Jan 29, 2012

Percy Jackson & The Lightning Thief: Zero Conditional

This movie is great, especially because of the references made to Greek mythology. Many teens started learning about it while watching it. This scene reveals a few characteristics of Medusa. I used it to practice the Zero Conditional because it deals with general truths about the myth.

Remember:

The structure of a zero conditional sentence

A zero conditional sentence consists of two clauses, an “if” clause and a main clause (In most zero conditional sentences you can use when or if and the meaning will stay the same.):



The zero conditional is used to talk about things which are always true — such as scientific facts and general truths:




I. Watch the movie segment and complete the condition with general truths about Medusa.





MEDUSA



1. If someone looks into Medusa's eyes, .................................................................



2. If someone sees Medusa but they don't look into her eyes, ............................................



3. If someone looks at Medusa's reflex in the mirror, .............................................



4. If someone doesn't manage to keep he eyes closed when approached by Medusa, .................................


II. Think about a folklore character of your country. Write a brief description of his traits or features and write two Zero Conditional clauses saying what is true about them. Follow the example in exercise I.

Ex:

If a werewolf bites you, you become a werewolf too.


1 ...............................................

2 ...............................................


WORKSHEET

MOVIE SEGMENT DOWNLOAD - PERCY JACKSON

Jan 21, 2012

A Christmas Carol: Passive Voice with Modal Verbs

I could never expect this movie to be so good. It is animated, but it seems to be so real... Besides, it is a classic tale that everyone should learn about. I must admit it is scarier than many children can bear, but it has been approved for all audiences. I enjoyed it immensely.







A. Watch the movie segment that takes place on Christmas Eve. Read the sentences below and decide if you are going to use affirmative or negative modal verbs, according to the information in the segment. Choose the correct modal verb according to the purpose in parentheses.










1. We ___________ (find) lots of poor children playing on the streets on Christmas eve. (modal for ability)



2. The government __________ (provide) children with a good meal for free on Christmas eve.
(present or future possibility)



3. Sometimes the population ___________ (help) homeless people because it's difficult for them to take care of their own family. (present impossibility)



4. Scrooge ___________ (assist) the choir singers because he is a rich man. (advisability)



5. A gambler hit a little boy. Adults __________ (respect) all the children. (necessity)



6. __________ adults _________ (tell) children Santa Claus doesn't exist? (advisability)



7. How __________ the government _________ (assist) poor children? (present possibilty or ability)



B. Now rewrite the sentences in exercise A, using passive voice statements.


WORKSHEET

MOVIE SEGMENT DOWNLOAD - A CHRISTMAS CAROL


Answer key:
A.
1. can find

2. could (might) provide

3. can't help

4. should assist

5. have to (must) respect

6. Should adults tell

7. can the government assist


B.
1. Children can be found ...

2. Children could (might) be provided with ...

3. Homeless people can't be helped by the population ...

4. The choir singers should be assisted ...

5. All the children hast to (must) be respected...

6. Should children be told that ...


7. How can children be assisted by the government?

A peer of mine said that he had used a slides presentation with links to my passive voice activities. I was sent the link and came across this really cool and thorough class on passive voice. I'm glad Simon Friend used my blog for his video activities. His slides are effective, fun and constructive. Thanks Simon Friend for these really cool slides. Thanks for linking my site to it.


Jan 14, 2012

Planet 51: Passive Voice with Simple Present

Happy 2012!!! Hope you enjoy the activities planned for 2012. Remember to share yours too. Email them to claudioazv@gmail.com and your credits and pictures are added as well.


Planet 51 is amazingly funny. I laughed so much that I almost cried during the movie. It is attractive to children and to adults, too. Rent the movie! You'll love it. I took advantage of the opening scene to practice passive voice in the simple present tense.





A. Watch the movie segment and check the activities that the inhabitants of Planet 51 perform on a typical afternoon.







1. ( ) They wear strange clothes



2. ( ) They play tennis.



3. ( ) They drive flying cars.



4. ( ) They read the newspaper.



5. ( ) Boys ride flying bicycles.



6. ( ) They walk their pets.



7. ( ) Workers sweep the street.



8. ( ) Children play hopscotch.



9. ( ) They make barbecue.



10. ( ) They sell candy.





B. Now rewrite the sentences above in the passive voice. Decide if the sentence is affirmative or negative according to the information in the snippet:



Ex:



1. Strange clothes aren't worn.



2 ...............................................



3 ...............................................



4 ...............................................



5 ...............................................



6. ..............................................



7. ..............................................



8. ..............................................



9. ..............................................



10. ............................................




C. Now read the activities in exercise A and ask your partner if they perform those activities on a typical Sunday afternoon.



EX:



1.



S1: Do you wear strange clothes?



S2: No, I don't.


WORKSHEET

MOVIE SEGMENT DOWNLOAD - PLANET 51



Answer key:

A. Students should NOT check items 1, 2, 5, 9, 10


B.


2. Tennis isn't played.


3. Flying cars are driven.


4. The newspaper is read.


5. Flying bicycles aren't ridden.


6. Pets are walked.


7. The streets are swept.


8. Hopscotch is played.


9. Barbecue isn't made.


10. Candy isn't sold.
A peer of mine said that he had used a slides presentation with links to my passive voice activities. I was sent the link and came across this really cool and thorough class on passive voice. I'm glad Simon Friend used my blog for his video activities. His slides are effective, fun and constructive. Thanks Simon Friend for these really cool slides. Thanks for linking my site to it.