Tag Archives: ELT materials

Changing ideas of beauty

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In this lesson plan designed for the British Council Teaching English site, we explore the topic of vitiligo, an autoimmune condition which causes some people to lose pigment in their skin, and look at how attitudes are changing towards what does or does not make someone attractive.

This lesson was devised to mark World Vitiligo Day on 25 June. However, it could be used at any time of year as this is not specifically mentioned.

The lesson begins with students looking at a photo of a young woman with vitiligo and discussing their reactions to the photo. They then go on to read about a model with vitiligo, Chantelle Brown-Young (also known as Winnie Harlow- pictured above), and discover what makes her special. The lesson reviews a range of tenses that might be used in a biography of a living person and looks at how to organise such a text, before the students go on to write their own.

Aims:

  • To encourage students to question their perception of what is beautiful and become more tolerant of difference
  • To practise reading for specific information (true/false)
  • To revise a range of tenses that students should know at B1 level
  • To help students structure and write a biography-type text

Age:

Adults/older teenagers

Level:

CEF Level B1 (intermediate) or strong A2 (pre-intermediate)

Time:

45-60 minutes

Materials:

Teachers notes and student worksheets can be downloaded here.

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What’s new in ELT Materials?

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The cynical will say that there is nothing new in ELT materials, and they would have a point. After all, there is nothing new under the sun. However, I think there are some definite trends, and new takes on old ideas, and plenty of inspiration to be found in the nominees for this year’s British Council ELTons awards. Read about five new (or nearly new) ideas in ELT materials here, my new post for the Voices blog.

And here is the full list of nominees: http://englishagenda.britishcouncil.org/eltons

The Awards Ceremony is being live streamed on Thursday night,  https://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/article/watch-eltons-awards-ceremony-live-online-–-thursday-4-june-1815-2015-bst so if you can’t make it, join the fun from afar.

I will also be the official live-blogger for the event. As @muranava commented, may the wifi Gods be with me!

 

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