In this weekly post, we bring more useful content from the Macmillan Dictionary to English language learners. These tips are usually based on areas of English which learners find difficult, e.g. spelling, grammar, collocation, synonyms, etc.
This week, we look at some Easter vocabulary.
Easter isa movable feast. The term itself describes a Sunday in March or April when Christians celebrate the time when Jesus Christ died then returned to life according to the Bible. It also refers to the holiday period that includes Easter day. Here are some more useful terms to know:
Easter egg (noun)
1 a chocolate egg that you give to someone as a present at Easter
2 an egg that children decorate in celebration of Easter
Cultural note: Children often go on Easter egg hunts to find eggs that have been hidden around their home by the Easter bunny.
Easter Sunday (noun)
the Sunday in March or April that Easter is celebrated on
Lent (noun)
the period of 40 days before Easter, starting on Ash Wednesday, when some Christians stop eating or doing something that they enjoy
Holy Week (noun)
in the Christian religion, the week before Easter Sunday
Palm Sunday (noun)
the Sunday before Easter, when Christians remember Christ’s journey to Jerusalem before he died
Maundy Thursday (noun)
the Thursday before Easter when Christians celebrate the last supper of Jesus Christ
Good Friday (noun)
the Friday before Easter, which Christians remember as the day that Jesus Christ died
Passion play (noun)
a play about the death of Jesus Christ according to the Bible, often performed at Easter
hot cross bun (noun)
a sweet cake for one person, marked with a small cross on the top and traditionally eaten at Easter
simnel cake (noun) (British)
a type of cake containing dried fruit, traditionally eaten at Easter
An excellent post to learn conditionals with songs. 4 Songs for Teaching the 4 English Conditionals
When we think about all of the grammar points that we have to teach, what would you say is the one that you dread most?
Now, I’m sure there are those among you who’ll say it’s the passive voice, while there are others out there who’ll swear it’s modal verbs. However, I’m willing to be that most of you are just like me in always having to draw a deep breath when the time comes to deal with the many weird and wonderful conditional sentences.
Let’s face it, the challenges of dealing with the form of each of the four main conditionals is nightmare enough (something is, something will be, something would be, something would have been), never mind getting on to the somewhat subtle differences in function from one conditional to the next (I attempt to deal with some of the trickiest things in the follow up to this post).
After many years of trawling through conditionals-focused grammar lessons, I’ve come up with quite a list of ways not to go about it! These aren’t the focus of today’s post, though. One extremely painless, fun and motivating way of ‘doing’ conditionals is through music. For this post, I’m delighted to be joined by Paul Mains from Language Trainers Online. Here are some suggested songs for presenting each of the four conditionals, one suggestion from me and one from Paul for each type (no, we’re not dealing with mixed conditionals today, sorry!).
Paul’s Zero Conditional: ‘Rain’ by The Beatles
The Beatles are one of my favorite bands for teaching English, as they sing slowly and clearly, and produce catchy melodies that students will remember (and regardless — they’re The Beatles!). The song Rain, in particular, is great for teaching the zero conditional, which describes general truths and scientific facts. (Note: if you’re wondering what they sing in the last line of the song, it’s simply “If the rain comes they run and hide their heads” played in reverse.)
Adam’s Zero Conditional: ‘Everytime’ by Britney Spears
She may no longer be the queen of pop, but dear Britney still has many uses in the language classroom, and exemplifying the zero conditional is one of them!
The form: We construct the zero conditional like this: if + simple present, simple present
“If we heat water, it boils.”
“When a tree crashes to the ground, does it make a sound if no one is around to hear it?”
Adam’s lyrics to analyze:
Every time I try to fly / I fall
Every time I see you in my dreams / I see your face
Paul’s lyrics to analyze:
If the rain comes / they run and hide their heads
When the sun shines / they slip into the shade
Adam’s First Conditional: ‘Time after Time’ by Cyndi Lauper
This is probably one of the most iconic tunes of the 80s, with unforgettable lyrics that make it perfect for teaching the first conditional, which expresses future events that have a decent chance of occurring.
Paul’s First Conditional: ‘If You Don’t Know Me By Now’ by Simply Red
An emblematic song of the 80s, the bluesy tune of If You Don’t Know Me By Now is catchy and memorable. And it has a conditional form in its very title, so it should be clear why it’s ideal for teaching the first conditional, which expresses future events that are likely to happen. It’s also good for teaching some idiomatic expressions of time, such as “by now” and “never ever”.
The form: We form the first conditional like this: if + simple present, will + main verb. (the notion of futurity can also be expressed using ‘be going to’)
“If it rains, I won’t go shopping.”
“If the train comes late, we’re going to miss our connection.”
Adam’s lyrics to analyze:
If you’re lost / You can look and you will find me
Paul’s lyrics to analyze:
If you don’t know me by now / You will never ever know me
Adam’s Second Conditional: ‘One of us’ by Joan Osborne
This is an absolute classic from the 1990s and really takes me back to my early twenties! What’s more, this is a good song to use when teaching the second conditional, which is the conditional we use to talk about hypothetical or near-impossible situations.
Paul’s Second Conditional: ‘If I were a boy’ by Beyonce
Who wouldn’t want an excuse to listen to Beyoncé during class? Her recent hit, If I Were a Boy, was so popular that it was officially produced and recorded in a Spanish-language version. Incidentally, it’s also a perfect song to teach the second conditional, which, as Adam noted, is used to talk about hypothetical or impossible situations.
The form: We construct the second conditional like this: if + simple past, would + base verb. (“would” is often shortened to a contraction, such as I’d or she’d. Other modal verbs, such as could and should can take its place, too.)
If I won the lottery, I would buy a Ferrari and a yacht.
Adam’s lyrics to analyze:
If God had a name, what would it be?
If God had a face, what would it look like?
Paul’s lyrics to analyze:
If I were a boy even just for a day / I’d roll out of bed in the morning
If I were a boy / I swear I’d be a better man
If I were a boy / I would turn off my phone
Adam’s Third Conditional: ‘If it hadn’t been for love’ by Adele
The third conditional is every teacher’s nightmare to teach, as it involves three auxiliary verbs, and is thus incredibly difficult for language learners. Fortunately, Adele is here to rescue us. This conditional seems so well suited to a lot of Adele’s musical catalog, as it focuses on situations that are impossible to change because they’ve already happened; despite what we may wish, we cannot change the past.
Paul’s Third Conditional: ‘Come back, be here’ by Taylor Swift
The third conditional: the grandaddy of all conditional constructions. Indeed, the “regret conditional” deals with situations that are impossible because they’ve already happened, and alas, we cannot change the past. It involves a total of three auxiliary verbs, and is thus notoriously difficult for language learners. And for that reason, Taylor Swift’s light, gentle voice is a perfect way to lessen the blow.
The form: We construct the third conditional like this: if + had + past participle, would + have + past participle. (“would” and “have” are often shortened to a contraction, such as ‘I would’ve’. The can also be replaced by other modals.)
“If I had seen him today, I could have told her.”
“If she had studied, she wouldn’t have failed that exam.”
Adam’s lyrics to analyze:
I never would have hitchhiked to Birmingham / If it hadn’t been for love
I would have been gone like a wayward wind / If it hadn’t been for love
Paul’s lyrics to analyze:
If I had known what I know now / I never would’ve played so nonchalant.
So somebody really special got you a selfie stick for Christmas this year — now what?
The controversial stick is either the most loved or the most hated gift of the season. Good Morning America called it one of the hottest gifts of the year and Time even named the selfie stick one of the Best Inventions of 2014, among a filter that fights ebola, for context.
Before you gather the family 'round for a group selfie with grandpa, get a few other ideas. And, remember: Selfie with caution.
1. Embarrass your entire family while you're out to eat.
I ______________ the highest mountains I __________________ through the fields
Only to be with you
Only to be with you
I have run, I ______________________
I ___________________ these city walls
These city walls
Only to be with you
But I still haven't found
what I'm looking for
But I still haven't found
what I'm looking for
I ______________________ honey lips
_____________ the healing fingertips
It burned like fire
This burning desire
I ___________ with the tongue of angels
I _______________ the hand of the devil
It was warm in the night
I was cold as a stone
But I still haven't found
what I'm looking for
But I still haven't found
what I'm looking for
I believe in the Kingdom Come
Then all the colours will bleed into one
Bleed into one
But yes ___________________________
You broke the bonds
And you loosed the chains
Carried the cross and
All my shame, all my shame
You know I ___________________ it
In an interview with Rolling Stone magazine, Bono said the song was "an anthem of doubt more than faith."
This is one of many spiritual songs by U2. This one makes obvious references to Jesus Christ: "I believe in the kingdom... you broke the bonds and you loosed the chains" he is talking about salvation but he still hasn't found what he is looking for.
The need for more out of life leaves him feeling disappointed and disillusioned with regard to his faith.
This setback leaves him feeling confused but instead of getting back onto the road towards a better faith, another disappointment occurs and he feels like he would rather just give up.
What really comes across from the lyrics of this song is the feeling of doubt and how the singer is desperate to overcome it.
Esio Trot was published in 1990 and was one of the last stories Roald Dahl wrote that was released in his lifetime. It tells the story of Mr Hoppy, his great love, Mrs Silver, and a little tortoise called Alfie.
Here are some activities for you to do after reading the book.
You'll find the link to the book at the end of this entry.
Here's another one to Roald Dahl's biography: Roald Dahl's bio
Resources:
'Esio Trot' is 'Tortoise' spelt backwards. Try spelling other words backwards. Do they make a funny word? Do they make a real word?
Find out about Palindromes... words that can be read the same way in either direction (e.g. dad, level, noon). Can you think of any more?
Find out about Semordnilap... words that make a different word when you read them backwards (e.g. star = rats, stop = pots, stressed = desserts). Can you find other examples?
Write a letter from Mr. Hoppy to Mrs. Silver (at the beginning of the book) inviting her to a cup of tea and a biscuit.
Write a story about a 'great feat' that Mr. Hoppy might perform to make him a hero in Mrs. Silver's eyes.
Create a report to teach others how to look after a tortoise, or another pet of your choice.
Write a new story about an adventure that a tortoise might have.
Write your own rhyme that might make Alfie grow (using forwards or backwards words).
Find some examples of speech between Mr. Hoppy and Mrs. Silver. Can you use these to write a play script of part of the story?
Look at the 'Introducing...' page at the start of the book. Can you write a sentence / paragraph to describe each character in the story?
Write a letter to an animal charity asking them about their work.
Mr. Hoppy weighs the tortoises in ounces. Can you convert the measurements into metric measurements?
Tortoises can live for a hundred years. Can you find out the life expectancy of other animals? Could you put these into a chart / graph?
Create a graph that shows how the changes in the weights of each tortoise.
Imagine that each tortoise needs to eat 30% of its own body weight in lettuce each day. How much would this be for Alfie? How much would it be for the heavier tortoises?
Draw a selection of tortoises of different weights. Can you put them in order from lightest to heaviest?
Mr. Hoppy imagines that the distance between his balcony and Mrs. Silver's is a million miles. How far is this? If you would travel a million miles, where might you end up?
Find out about hibernation. Why do tortoises do this? What other animals hibernate in the winter?
Create a report about tortoises. Where do they live? What do they eat?
The 'Author's Note' at the start of the book explains why it became illegal to bring tortoises into the country. Can you find out about animal welfare and charities who help to look after animals?
Use painting software to paint a tortoise shell pattern.
Use desktop publishing software to design an invitation to Mr. Hoppy and Mrs. Silver's wedding.
Design a new house for the largest tortoise to fit into.
Can you design and make a 'grabber' to pick up something that is far away?
Paint a picture which shows all of the beautiful flowers on Mr. Hoppy's balcony.
Make your own tortoise mask.
Colour the tortoise colouring pages (see Resources below).
Compose a tune that Mrs Silver can sing when she is reciting the 'Esio Trot' magic words.
Mr. Hoppy is jealous of Alfie the tortoise. What does it mean to feel jealous? Have you ever felt jealous of somebody?
Mr. Hoppy tricks Mrs. Silver to make her feel a little happier. How do you think she would feel if she found out about the trick?
