The very first lesson plan ever posted on this site (What happens next?) made use of the following clip:
Here is another way of using the same video which follows a similar format to the previous lesson plan (Reasons for buying flowers). Both activities involve students writing sentences on scrap pieces of paper.
Preparation
The video clip is titled “Baby Panda sneeze: HILARIOUS!”. If your students see this then the activity will be ruined. The best way to get around this problem is to download the clip (click here).
Procedure
1. Tell your students to imagine that you are all having a day out at the zoo. Ask the following questons:
- Which animals have we already seen?
- Which were your favourites?
- Which ones do will still have to see?
2. Show students the photograph below and ask them to guess what the two animals are (answer = panda cubs).
3. Play the sneezing panda video but pause it immediately. Find out if anyone in the class has seen it before - ask them to show their hands. If anyone has seen the clip before, tell them that they mustn’t tell anyone else what happens.
4. Play the clip and pause it again just before baby panda sneezes (this happens at about 9 seconds).
5. Tell your students that something very unexpected happens at this stage. Ask for a few suggestions (those who have seen it before must keep quiet at this stage).
6. Tell students that you are not going to show them the clip in full until you have a suggestion from everyone. Tell them that they will have to use their imaginations to the full. Give out scrap pieces of paper and ask everyone to write their suggestions. They should begin:
“I think that …”
Tell students that they will probably want to use present simple structures.
NB Students who have already seen the clip can write what actually happens if they want.
7. Collect in all the pieces of paper.
8. Dictate your students’ sentences back to your students. Make corrections, or alterations to the language whenever necessary (see examples below). You can do this spontaneously or if you prefer, you can take the pieces of paper home and decide what changes you are going to make before the next day.
9. During the dictation, keep a note of all the corrections/alterations you make by writing all of the sentences on a single piece of paper.
10. Allow students to compare what they have written. Then allow them to correct their work by passing the piece of paper with the corrected sentences around the class (NB While students are comparing their work, you could run off to the photocopier to make a few extra copies of your sheet to pass around)
Some example language
In each of the cases below, the sentences in bold were written by students on their scrap pieces of paper. The sentences in italics were the altered versions that I dictated. In some cases, no changes were made.
- Mummy panda is going to give some bamboo to the baby.
- Mummy panda is going to give some bamboo to her baby.
- Someone throws a bucket of water on the pandas.
- The baby panda will be eaten by a tiger.
- Baby panda gets eaten by a tiger.
- The mummy is going to fall asleep and fall over her baby.
- Mummy panda falls asleep and falls on top of baby panda.
- Mummy panda is going to piss.
- Mummy panda is going to do a pee.
- Mummy panda throws the bamboo at the camera.
- Mummy panda is going to bear another panda.
- Mummy panda is going to give birth to another panda.
- Mummy panda attacks the cameraman.
- Baby panda stands up suddenly and bites his mother.
- The baby panda cries for milk.
- Baby panda starts crying because he wants some milk.
- Baby panda steals the bamboo to his mother.
- Baby panda steals the bamboo from his mother.
NB The above suggestions came from a group of learners whose level of English was probably just a bit too advanced for this activity.
Follow up activities
- Use the sentences to make gap fill exercises to revisit the language the next day.
- Ask students to translate all the sentences into their own language(s). Then ask them to translate them back into English from memory.
Variations
- Use post-it notes instead of scrap pieces of paper. Students can stick their answers on the wall when they have finished writing.
- I have found that even when two or three students in the class have seen the clip, the activity still works well. However, I have only used the activity with adults. It might be different for younger learners. Try doing the activity using only the sound of the clip - ask students to write what they think is happening without seeing the moving pictures (youtube clips can be converted to audio mp3 files here).