Cars: Comparatives of Adjectives and Nouns

I have said many times that I just love animated movies. Cars was a turning point in animation. The movie is great and this scene is perfect for comparatives. I also use it for the practice of USED TO, but this is something for another post. I hope you like this one.

A. Read the features below and compare the same city before and after the construction of Interstate 40. Write B if the adjectives or nouns are more evident in the city before the construction of the interstate 40 years ago or A if it applies to the city after the construction of the Interstate.

1. ( ) visitors

2. ( ) cars

3. ( ) busy

4. ( ) rich

5. ( ) jobs

6. ( ) crowded

7. ( ) empty

B. Now write comparative sentences about the city in the past and nowadays. Pay attention whether the items are adjectives or nouns when you write the sentences.

Ex:

1. In the past the city had more visitors than nowadays.

Nowadays the city has fewer visitors than in the past.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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MOVIE SEGMENT DOWNLOAD - CARS

Answers:

2. In the past the city had more cars than nowadays.

Nowadays the city has fewer cars than in the past.

3. In the past the city was busier than nowadays.

Nowadays the city is less busy than in the past.

4. In the past the city was richer than nowadays.

Nowadays the city is less rich than in the past.

5. In the past the city had more jobs than nowadays.

Nowadays the city has fewer jobs than in the past.

6. In the past the city was more crowded than nowadays.

Nowadays the city is less crowded than in the past.

7. In the past the city was less empty than nowadays.

Nowadays the city is emptier than in the past.

Crazy Heart: Past Modal for Speculation and Regrets

This movie has great music and touching acting. The scene the little boy disappears is perfect for modals for speculation and regrets. I used it for a production, not controlled exercise.

A. Watch the movie segment and write sentences using past modal verbs.

I. Write down 3 sentences saying what might have happened while the boy was lost.



Ex: The boy must have hidden himself somewhere.

1. _____________________

2. _____________________

3. _____________________

II. Write down 3 sentences saying what the main character should not have done.

Ex: He shouldn't have left the boy unattended.

1. ______________________

2. _____________________

3. _____________________

III. Write down 3 sentences saying what he should have done.

Ex: He should have kept an eye on the boy all the time.

1. _______________________

2. _______________________

3. _______________________

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MOVIE SEGMENT DOWNLOAD - CRAZY HEART

Answers will vary.

The Uninvited: Narratives - Simple Present

This film and scene are a bit scary. Make sure your audience is ready for this kind of material. It is great, though, and very easy to understand. The students can easily perform the assigned tasks and practice writing a narrative, using the simple present tense.



I. Work in pairs:


1. Do you dream every night?

2. Do you remember your dreams?

3. Which kind of dream do you remember with more details? Dreams or nightmares?

4. Do nightmares have meanings?


II. Complete the paragraph with the verbs provided below. You may repeat the verbs. This paragraph is a teenager's description of a nightmare she had in the previous night.

BE - WANT - HEAR - GO - RUN - FEEL (neg)

I _____ at a party, but all I _________ to do is get home. And then I _____ my mother's bell. I ________ to find her. She __________ alone. She ________ not supposed to be alone. I ______ up to the house to find my dad. There _____ something wrong. It ______ safe. There ______ something evil in the house.

III. Now watch the segment and check your answers.

IV. Now write a short paragraph narrating a nightmare or a dream of yours. Use the simple present tense to describe it.

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MOVIE SEGMENT DOWNLOAD - THE UNINVITED

Answer key: am, want, hear, go, is, is, run, is, doesn't feel, is.

9:Imperative Forms

I. Half the students leave the classroom and wait outside (or close eyes) - Students A.









II. The students who stay in the classroom - Students B - work individually.





Students B - Watch the movie segment and make a list of all the actions that the main character performs in the order they take place.



Ex:



1. He opens his eyes




III. Invite the other students back into the classroom (or sts open their eyes). Each student chooses one of the Students B, who had stayed in the classroom.





IV.



Students B - Give the commands and Students A role play the action.



Ex: Lie on the floor, open your eyes, etc

V. Students A and B watch the segment to check the similarities in the performance.

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MOVIE SEGMENT DOWNLOAD - 9

Surrogates: To Be Able To

This movie rocks. I love the original idea of the conflict it proposes. You must see it. I used this wonderful scene to talk about the future and what people will be able then.



A. Work in small groups:



1. Are you optimistic or pessimistic about the future? Explain it.



2. In what fields of science will the future present major changes? Why?



3. Imagine life 20 years from now. Make a list of 5 things that you believe people will be able to do that we cannot nowadays.





a. .............................................................



b. .............................................................



c. .............................................................



d. ............................................................







B. Now watch the movie segment from the science fiction Surrogates. The scene shows a couple going shopping. Watch it carefully and say what consumers will be able to do when they go shopping 20 years from now. Write at least 3 sentences.








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



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



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

C. Discussion.

1. Do you think this is a possible vision of the future? Why (not)?
2. Is this vision of the future optimistic or pessimistic? Why?
3. Would you like to live in this kind of future?
4. How do you think life will be like in 20 years?

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MOVIE SEGMENT DOWNLOAD - SURROGATES

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs: Count x Non Count Nouns

This is a fantastic animated movie and its ecological message is subtle, but highly effective. It's also very funny.

A. Watch the movie segment TWICE and check the items that you can see OR that the characters say in the snippet. First, check that you understand all the words.

( ) EGGS

( ) TOAST

( ) ORANGE JUICE

( ) BACON

( ) CHEESEBURGERS

( ) CHICKEN

( ) WAFFLES

( ) FALAFELS

( ) JELLYBEANS

( ) AVOCADO

( ) PIZZA

( ) DOUGHNUTS

( ) BLT

( ) PIE

( ) FISH

( ) CRÈME BRULÉE

B. Now write down the food items under the correct column - COUNTABLE or NON-COUNTABLE.

ATTENTION:

Some nouns can be both countable or non-countable. Choose the column according to the information in the segment.



COUNTABLE X NON-COUNTABLE

EGGS ORANGE JUICE


C. Talk to a partner and say what you usually have for breakfast. Then say which foods in exercise A do you like and dislike.

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MOVIE SEGMENT DOWNLOAD - CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS

Answer Key:

Count:

EGGS, TOAST, CHEESEBURGERS, WAFFLES, FALAFELS, JELLYBEANS, DOUGHNUTS, BLT

Non-Count:

ORANGE JUICE, BACON, CHICKEN, AVOCADO, PIZZA, PIE, FISH, CRÈME BRULÉE

The Karate Kid: Cleft Sentences

It is great to have a movie segment to have students practice the use of cleft sentences, because it contextualizes the grammar point, allowing students to meaningfully emphasize the information presented in the segment.






Cleft sentences are used to help us focus on a particular part of the sentence and to emphasize what we want to say by introducing it or building up to it with a kind of relative clause. Because there are two parts to the sentence it is called cleft (from the verb cleave) which means divided into two. Cleft structures include the reason why, the thing that, the person/people who, the place where, the day when and what-clauses which are usually linked to the clause that we want to focus on with is or was.

I. Rewrite the sentences below, using the information presented in the movie segment. Make sure you start your sentences with the given cues, using cleft sentences. Pay attention to the cues in bold.








1. The story is about a Princess and the boy she loves.

No, it isn't a Princess who loves the boy. It ____________________





2. The Goddess and the boy can stay together a single week.


No, it isn't a single week they can stay together. It ______________________




3. The boy promised to be in her house later that day.


No, what _____________________________




4. The audience was amazed by the fragile puppets.


What _________________________________




5. What did you like (dislike) about the movie segment.

What __________________________________



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MOVIE SEGMENT DOWNLOAD - THE KARATE KID




Answer key:

1. No, it is the Goddess who loves a boy.


2. No, it is a single night that they can stay together.


3. No, what he promised was to be at her audition.


4. What amazed the audience were the fragile puppets.


5. What (answers will vary) I liked about the segment was the romantic love story.