Lesson  Plan:    Pop  Culture  Smallville  and  Superman    

Instructors:  Kaitlyn  McClaren  and  Jenna  Fettig  Date:  11/5/12  Length:  50  min  

Target  Students:    High-­‐Advanced  ESL  Teenagers/Young  Adults  in  the  US    

Contexts:  The  class  is  midway  through  the  unit  and  as  seen  entirely  the  first  episode  of  Smallville.    Vocabulary  has  been  reviewed  and  the  class  is  currently  going  over  certain  scenes  answering  some  discussion  questions.    

Ss  were  also  given  a  worksheet  about  the  pop-­‐culture  references  made  in  some  of  the  scenes  and  should  have  a  basic  knowledge  of  the  references  found  in  the  scenes.    That  HW  was  also  has  been  

already  corrected  in  class.    Some  Ss  also  may  have  already  watched  the  show  prior  to  this  class  or  have  previous  knowledge  about  Superman.  

 Objectives:  

At  the  end  of  the  class,  SWBAT:  •   Discuss  questions  related  to  the  scene  in  Smallville  and  relate  it  to  either  their  personal  and  non-­‐

personal  lives.  •   Using  the  vocabulary  and  references  given  from  the  scene,  use  them  in  conversation  with  the  

appropriate  context.      •   Critically  discuss  Hazing/bullying  and  the  issues  surrounding  it.  

 Materials:  

•   Video,  PowerPoint,  handouts,  previous  HW,  laptop    

Procedure:  Time Student Activity Teacher Activity 2-3 min

Greet T Have small conversation about current school activities

Greet Ss Have students converse about any upcoming plans involving school events

8 min

Listen to T for the activity and information Take out any HW on vocab and pop-culture related to the video

Tell Ss that they will be having a discussion on scene 3 Goes over Vocab from scene 3 briefly

3 min

Watch Scene 3

Play Scene 3

2 min

Receive Discussion questions Reads discussion questions aloud

Give discussion questions to Ss Has students read the discussion questions aloud

10 min In pairs go over discussion questions

Have Ss divide into pairs answer questions

7 min Switch partners and discuss questions Have Ss switch partners and go over the questions 8 min In groups of four (new people) go

over the last question In groups of four have the Ss go over the last question

9-10 min Present one idea discussed from the group discussion to the class

Have each group share to the class their thoughts on the last question (each member of the group gives one idea)

 Rationale:  

 *Paralinguistics  –  Using  body  language,  gestures,  intonation,  tempo,  pausing  to  help  understand  meaning  of  the  speaker’s  words  and  intent.    (Thornbury,  2005  p  9)  *Sociocultural  knowledge  –  Students  are  using  what  they  know  about  their  native  country  to  help  compare  what  they  are  learning  about  American  culture  to  help  put  it  into  context.    (Thornbury,  2005  p  12)  *Using  recordings  –  Using  clips  of  a  TV  show  with  native  speakers,  an  authentic  source  to  help  speakers  gain  exposure  to  language  outside  ‘textbook  language.’  (Thornbury,  2005  p  43)  *Noticing  the  Gap  –  Aimed  at  raising  awareness  of  the  difference  between  the  learner’s  current  competence  and  the  target  competence.    Learners  are  exposed  to  a  wider  range  of  vocabulary  as  well  as  pop-­‐culture  references  that  they  do  not  use  in  every-­‐day  speech  and  may  be  found  in  media  that  they  read  or  watch.  (Thornbury,  2005  p  58)  *Warm-­‐up  discussion  –  when  preparing  learners  to  read  or  listen  to  a  text,  it  is  common  to  set  a  few  questions  for  the  pair  or  group  discussion.    Students  are  asked  at  the  beginning  of  class  to  discuss  any  school  events  that  are  coming  up  in  preparation  for  discussion  question  1.  (Thornbury,  2005  p  103)  *Discussion  cards  –  The  teacher  prepares  in  advance  sets  of  card  (we  used  a  worksheet)  on  which  are  written  statements  relating  to  a  pre-­‐selected  topic.    The  students  are  given  a  set  of  questions  with  individual  variation  to  either  talk  a  personal  or  non-­‐personal  level.    (Thornbury,  2005  p  102)        

Name:  ___________________________       Date:  _________________________________  

 

Discussion  Questions  

 

1. This  scene  starts  off  with  Chloe  and  Pete  talking  about  the  Homecoming  Dance.  What  is  a  homecoming  in  terms  of  American  culture.  D  you  have  a  similar  kind  of  event  when  you  were  in  high  school?    Discuss  how  they  were  similar,  if  not-­‐what  kind  of  school  events  did  you  have?  

 

 

 

 

2. Football  is  a  very  important  sport  in  America  and  American  culture.    Discuss  what  you  know  about  football.    Does  your  home  country  have  a  national  sport,  if  so  what  is  it?  Do  you  enjoy  watching  it,  if  not  what  sport  do  you  watch  and  why?  

 

 

 

 

3. Pete  tells  Chloe,  “We’d  love  to  join  you  and  Scooby  inside  the  Mystery  Machine  for  another  zany  adventure  but…”    Scooby-­‐doo  is  a  popular  pop  culture  icon  and  that  is  constantly  being  referenced.    What  other  American  pop-­‐culture  icons/references  can  you  think  of/heard  frequently  on  Television  or  talking  with  native  speakers?    Are  there  certain  pop-­‐culture  icons  similar  to  Scooby-­‐doo  in  your  native  country?    Discuss  who  or  what  they  are  and  how  they  are  used.  

 

 

 

 

4. Pete  discusses  the  Scarecrow  tradition,  a  Hazing  ritual,  to  Chloe.  How  did  Pete  explain  this  to  Chloe.  What  is  Hazing  and  where  does  it  take  place?  How  is  it  similar/different  to  bullying?    What  are  your  opinions  on  hazing?    What  can  be  done  to  prevent  it  from  happening  or  becoming  too  dangerous?