Author Topic: The UK (part 1 and part 2) (Read 5203 times)

erlend · « **on:** July 04, 2016, 02:29:57 PM »

I'm attempting a series of lessons on the UK.

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B4-07v9bi4WdejdweDJqM3QycDA

Here are 2 lessons. The lesson on Scotland is easily the better of the two.

I think they should be self-explanatory. If there's anything you don't understand, please ask.

One note: for the lesson about Scotland, there are 2 worksheets. Don't give out worksheet 2 with worksheet 1, as worksheet 2 contains the answers to an exercise on worksheet 1.

Thx
erlend

Sarsfield · « **Reply #1 on:** July 04, 2016, 03:27:36 PM »

Looks great but I'm just adding these quotes from your UK PPT:

"English food is bad",
"people in the UK are unhappy",
"Korean people are fashionable and UK people are unfashionable"
"people in the UK are rude"

You seem to have a test of these 'facts' for the students too. I'd recommend you maybe depict these opinions as stereoptypes of the people of the UK.

Secondly, Northern Ireland and Ireland are not interchangeable terms and it's probably good for the students to know the Republic of Ireland is a separate country.

Cheers!

Imogen1991 · « **Reply #2 on:** July 04, 2016, 03:34:31 PM »

'People in the UK are unhealthy. People in the UK are unhappy. People in the UK are rude'

jeeez OP why do you hate us yongooks

lazerbullet · « **Reply #3 on:** July 04, 2016, 03:46:05 PM »

What Sarsfield said.

I really appreciate that you're teaching about the UK in a bit of detail and accuracy, it infuriates me when people refer to it as just 'England' or Yongok. For that reason, it's worth pointing out that the UK is not an island

It's Great Britain (the island), Northern Ireland (part of the island of Ireland) and a bunch of other islands. Obviously this is a bit technical and can turn off the kids very easily. Unless they've requested this lesson and seem really jazzed about learning about the UK, I'd say go light on the detail. Or if you want to go the other way and just confuse the crap out of them, show em this:

England has no traditional music ... erm didn't you include a video of Morris dancing in the lesson? Ditto English dress.

sligo · « **Reply #4 on:** July 04, 2016, 04:00:03 PM »

Quote from: erlend on July 04, 2016, 02:29:57 PM

I'm attempting a series of lessons on the UK.

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B4-07v9bi4WdejdweDJqM3QycDA

Here are 2 lessons. The lesson on Scotland is easily the better of the two.

I think they should be self-explanatory. If there's anything you don't understand, please ask.

One note: for the lesson about Scotland, there are 2 worksheets. Don't give out worksheet 2 with worksheet 1, as worksheet 2 contains the answers to an exercise on worksheet 1.

Thx
erlend

WOW! Why the "Korea is amazing, UK is shit approach"?

People in Korea are polite? ha ha ha .
People in the UK are rude? really? What are you basing this on?
People in Korea are healthy? Soju, fags and ramyeon included? hmmm
People in the UK are unhealthy? all of them?
People in Korea are happy? People in UK are unhappy?
http://worldhappiness.report/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2015/04/WHR15.pdf
p.28 shows UK at 21st, South Korea at 47.
Korean food is very good? (actually i ike it but...)
Food in the UK is very bad? What are you basing this on? Just because you haven't eaten any good food, doesn't mean there isn't any.

Seriously, are you just so desperate for the love of Koreans what you will lick their arses clean to please them? Even if you just chose these as opposites, some students will lap this up and believe everything to be true.

erlend · « **Reply #5 on:** July 04, 2016, 07:41:18 PM »

Hi, lovely people!

I'm not desperate for the love of Koreans. In this section of the PPT I was attempting a kind of humour often called "self-deprecation". The students were intelligent enough to understand this, to understand that my statements were made with a certain irony.

Much as I appreciate sligo taking the trouble to show me World Happiness Report statistics, I was, emphatically, not attempting factual statements. I obviously don't believe that "all people in the UK are unhealthy". Of course, sligo doesn't believe that I believe that, either. He's just trolling!

Although, I'm sorry, but I should add that "English food is bad" IS a fact

erlend · « **Reply #6 on:** July 04, 2016, 08:13:18 PM »

Quote from: Imogen1991 on July 04, 2016, 03:34:31 PM

'

jeeez OP why do you hate us yongooks

I'm English myself, incidentally

sligo · « **Reply #7 on:** July 04, 2016, 08:28:49 PM »

Quote from: erlend on July 04, 2016, 07:41:18 PM

Hi, lovely people!

I'm not desperate for the love of Koreans. In this section of the PPT I was attempting a kind of humour often called "self-deprecation". The students were intelligent enough to understand this, to understand that my statements were made with a certain irony.

Much as I appreciate sligo taking the trouble to show me World Happiness Report statistics, I was, emphatically, not attempting factual statements. I obviously don't believe that "all people in the UK are unhealthy". Of course, sligo doesn't believe that I believe that, either. He's just trolling!

Although, I'm sorry, but I should add that "English food is bad" IS a fact

I am also English, and either you have a very limited palate, grew up with a mother who couldn't cook, or are ignorant, because, there are masses of amazing Enflish foods. It is just very easy to focus on the boring (but sometimes wonderful) dishes such as fish and chips.

There are moe than 800 different cheeses in the UK for a start. Winter dishes such as stews, pottages and casseroles bring warmth to the misery of winter. Desserts such as sticky toffee pudding, jam rolly polly and even the great Christmas pudding with custard are especially awesome. Don't get me started on pies and pasties, and how can one overlook baked goods such as scones (pronounced as in bones) with cream and English jam (or marmalade if you are into anarchy).

It makes me angry when people dismiss English food out of hand. I accept that a lot of the older dishes are out of vogue due to laziness, fast food options and the appeal of exotic dished from far and wide (i too am partial to Indian food), but just because some of the classic gems have been forgotten, it doesn't mean they don't exist.

I have just returned from homerplus with English style sausages, toad in the hole for dinner tomorrow i think, with lashings of gravy.

As for trolling, i wasn't, i have been here long enough to have heard these opinions spouted as facts. Next you will be telling me i have bad teeth....

Imogen1991 · « **Reply #8 on:** July 04, 2016, 09:01:30 PM »

Thanks for the definition of self-deprecating, i totally wouldn't have known what that meant if you hadn't attached it

lazerbullet · « **Reply #9 on:** July 04, 2016, 10:20:14 PM »

Think you should do a lesson on the attached pic erlend, that'd teach the students more about English culture than any Morris dance or jam roly-poly!

erlend · « **Reply #10 on:** July 04, 2016, 11:19:53 PM »

Imogen1991, lazerbullet-

A misunderstanding: I attached that picture not to show the definition of self-deprecation but to show the highlighted portion at the bottom of the text, which says that "self-deprecation is often perceived as being a characteristic of certain nations, such as the United Kingdom."

Sligo-

"are you just so desperate for the love of Koreans what you will lick their arses clean to please them?" sounds very much like trolling to me.

This discussion is a waste of time and has furthermore done little to shake my impression that people from my country are rude. I'm not going to comment further on it. Go and be outraged at something else.

argaluza · « **Reply #11 on:** July 04, 2016, 11:48:39 PM »

I'll try and help you - I can understand what you are trying to do but in my opinion, the giving of opinion is a separate lesson in itself. In fact it is a really, good, fun enjoyable lesson.

Food in the UK is very bad

The you can explain how you give this opinion gravitas with writing down pros and cons to this statement, why you believe this to be true whilst someone else would disagree - which is what academic essay writing is based on which students need to know when they toddle off to the States or the UK to study.

You can use all those opinion based statements for another lesson, not this one I am afraid.

Sarsfield · « **Reply #12 on:** July 05, 2016, 07:52:17 AM »

The problem with using humour in the classroom is that at the best of times it can be misunderstand, never mind in an esl classroom with intermediate students who come from a culture not as familiar with sarcasm and self-deprecating humour.

It's a fantastic idea for a lesson though since so little is known about the UK here in Korea and I'll definitely use your very good materials. What I'll do is focus on your jokes about bad UK food, bad weather, etc, and turn it into a lesson on stereotypes (gentle Korean ones included) and then clearly explain why these stereotypes might be not true. I'll also briefly explain the island of Ireland's relationship to the UK (half is in the UK, half is outside and its own country, which should suffice).

victorflood · « **Reply #13 on:** July 05, 2016, 10:25:59 AM »

Hi - the four-leafed clover is not a symbol of Ireland, however the 3-leafed shamrock (yes, it's a variety of clover) is. Cheers.

spops_89 · « **Reply #14 on:** July 05, 2016, 01:27:42 PM »

Hi, nice materials. I get the humour would come across as you delivered it to your Ss.

Just a little something you might want to edit in your slide about the UK. The flag is referred to as the 'Union Jack' not 'Union Flag'. Just a small oversight, unless you've done that deliberately.

lazerbullet · « **Reply #15 on:** July 05, 2016, 01:44:42 PM »

Quote from: spops_89 on July 05, 2016, 01:27:42 PM

Hi, nice materials. I get the humour would come across as you delivered it to your Ss.

Just a little something you might want to edit in your slide about the UK. The flag is referred to as the 'Union Jack' not 'Union Flag'. Just a small oversight, unless you've done that deliberately.

That's a myth actually, either term is fine! http://www.flaginstitute.org/wp/british-flags/the-union-jack-or-the-union-flag/

sligo · « **Reply #16 on:** July 05, 2016, 03:20:56 PM »

Quote from: spops_89 on July 05, 2016, 01:27:42 PM

Hi, nice materials. I get the humour would come across as you delivered it to your Ss.

Just a little something you might want to edit in your slide about the UK. The flag is referred to as the 'Union Jack' not 'Union Flag'. Just a small oversight, unless you've done that deliberately.

It should only be called the Union Jack when flown at sea. On land it is the Union Flag.

spops_89 · « **Reply #17 on:** July 11, 2016, 01:40:52 PM »

Seriously? Well...you learn something new everyday! I would argue it's more commonly referred to as the Union Jack though. Each to their own :)

lazerbullet · « **Reply #18 on:** July 12, 2016, 04:40:28 PM »

Quote from: spops_89 on July 11, 2016, 01:40:52 PM

Seriously? Well...you learn something new everyday! I would argue it's more commonly referred to as the Union Jack though. Each to their own :)

Remember that language is defined through usage :)

jslegacy85 · « **Reply #19 on:** July 14, 2016, 12:01:28 PM »

Erlend thank you so much! This is seriously excellent material. I love all your lesson plans, I can't tell you how many times you've saved me when I was having writer's block for lessons~