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Developing Student Autonomy Through Film

Jun 02, 2018

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    FILM AS A TOOL FOR DEVELOPING STUDENT AUTONOMY:

    A MATERIAL PACK FOR EFL / ESL TEACHERS

    David Rear and Christine Rosalia

    Kanda University of International Studies

    Japan

    The following paper and activity pack is based on:

    Rear D. and Rosalia C. (2004). Using film to teach student language learning autonomy.

    Paper presented at the ETA International Symposium on English Teaching. Nov 2004,

    Taipei, Taiwan.

    It was published in: Rear D. (2005). Film as a tool for developing student autonomy.

    Working Papers in Language EducationVol. 2, 93 - 101.

    Abstract

    When Japanese students are asked how they study English in their free time, they often

    say they watch English movies. This paper will demonstrate how students can take an

    activity they already enjoy (but often do passively) and fine-tune it into enjoyable, self-

    directed, and self-assessed independent learning opportunities. The activities encourage

    students to make their own learning materials by utilizing self-chosen film clips to

    improve the skills they wish to focus on, including vocabulary, pronunciation, grammar,

    critical thinking and listening. Feedback from our students testifies that they hunger for

    more native interactions, making autonomous learning with authentic material vital.

    Most activities involve students choosing the film, activity, number of participants, and

    mode of assessment (self, peer, or teacher), thereby training themselves to be more self-

    directed and aware of their own mistakes and weaknesses.

    Advantages of Film for Language Learning

    It is a truism in foreign language learning that to achieve long-lasting success in their

    studies, students need to have the motivation and the capability to work independently

    outside the classroom, both during the course itself and once it has come to an end. In an

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    educational culture such as that of Japan, where autonomous learning often gains little

    emphasis, it is vital that learners be afforded the opportunity to work with materials that

    can be effectively utilised away from the school environment.

    Film is an obvious and practical tool with which this can be achieved. Firstly, of

    course, it has the benefit of being attractive to a wide range of students, almost regardless

    of age, aptitude, and interest. In a pre-study questionnaire given to sixty Freshman

    students at a foreign language university in Japan, over ninety-six percent reported that

    they either loved or liked watching movies, and eighty-five percent watched at least

    one film in English a week. Film carries the advantage of story: it entices learners with a

    powerful combination of sound, image, and dialogue, contextualising the language they

    are studying and encouraging in them a natural desire to understand it. Students are

    frequently willing to spend hours each week listening to the flow of English dialogue

    emanating from their television screen, while more traditional modes of study fail to

    inspire.

    With the wide variety of films available, it is unlikely students will fail to find one

    that suits their interests and tastes. Childrens movies and animations offer lower-level

    learners a chance to hear large amounts of English spoken in context. More adult-oriented

    films can fulfill the needs of advanced learners. They also provide an insight into the

    cultures of the target language (albeit somewhat distorted by the lens of the filmmaker),

    providing learners with a glimpse of where their linguistic skills can take them, as well as

    exposure to a large range of accents and dialects. Finally, they have the advantage of

    being easily accessible away from the classroom. With most families in Japan possessing

    DVD players or personal computers, movies can be conveniently utilised as linguistic

    resources at almost any time. They will also be available once the student has completed

    their course.

    Failure to Use Film Effectively

    The problem, in the experience of the authors, is that although movies are frequently

    watched by language learners, they are seldom exploited with true effectiveness. Students

    may sit in front of the television screen and appear to be taking in a rich stream of

    language input, but how much of that language are they really processing? As eighty-

    eight percent of the Freshmen students at the university admitted in the pre-study

    questionnaire, they tended to switch off as the movie progressed, concentrating on the

    pictures while allowing the words to wash over them unattended.

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    They usually failed to employ strategies that one might reasonably expect to assist

    language learning, as the following table illustrates:

    TABLE 1: Strategy use by Freshman students while watching movies

    Strategy Always Often S/times Rarely Never

    I understand more than half of what

    the actors say.

    0% 10% 35% 37% 18%

    If I do not understand something, I

    rewind and listen to it again.

    0% 7% 17% 43% 33%

    I try to notice if the movie uses a

    word I have learned recently.

    0% 15% 16% 39% 30%

    I stop to write down new vocabularyand expressions.

    0% 6% 12% 29% 53%

    I watch movies more than once to

    review vocabulary and expressions.

    2% 13% 14% 30% 41%

    I try to take note of the actors

    pronunciation.

    4% 23% 26% 31% 16%

    If I watch a movie with friends, we

    discuss it afterwards in English.

    0% 9% 24% 39% 28%

    I check the movie script when I

    watch.

    1% 9% 13% 34% 43%

    Perhaps as a consequence of this, few students reported that they felt movies

    genuinely helped them to improve their English. The majority (seventy-eight percent), in

    fact, admitted that they had little or no idea how to use movies to study English.

    It was for this reason that the Film for Independent Learning component was

    added to the Freshman English programme. Films can be a rich resource for language

    learning, offering opportunities for extensive and intensive listening, pronunciation work,

    grammatical and lexical development, and critical reflection. If students were given

    guidance on how to use film more effectively, it was hoped they would eventually begin

    to do so independently.

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    Film for Independent Learning Component

    The Film for Independent Learning component ran for four ninety-minute classes during

    the Freshman English course, which met for four times a week for one year. It consisted

    of fourteen separate activities, each designed to be completed by students working

    independently, either by themselves or with a partner or small group. Each activity also

    contained a feedback sheet, in which the students were able to record both what they did

    and their reflections on how it went. These sheets could be checked by the teacher as a

    way of monitoring their progress.

    Over the course of the four classes, the students were required to complete four

    activities in total. The activities were divided into three types: those that involved the

    watching of a whole film in English; those that were focussed on a particular scene from

    a film; and finally, those that could be accomplished without using film. In all cases, the

    students could choose the movie and the clip, selecting ones that suited both their level

    and interest. Although estimates were given for the length of time the activity would take

    and the optimal number of students for participating, the final decision was left up to the

    learners themselves.

    As the appendix pages show, students had a wide variety of choice in terms of the

    type of activity and the skills it was designed to practise. The following is a brief

    summary:

    Activity 1: Discussion Topics Listening for gist. Speaking.

    Activity 2: Story Frames Listening for gist. Speaking. Short writing.

    Activity 3: Comparing Characters Listening for gist. Speaking. Grammar.

    Activity 4: Dear Film Friend Listening for gist. Writing. Speaking.

    Activity 5: Character Interviews Listening for gist. Speaking. Grammar.

    Activity 6: Dictation Listening for details. Grammar.

    Activity 7: Reverse Translation Listening for details. Translating. Grammar.

    Activity 8: Questions for Friends Listening for details. Speaking.

    Activity 9: Listen and Repeat Pronunciation. Vocabulary. Listening.

    Activity 10: Trailers Listening for details. Note-taking. Speaking.

    Activity 11: Spot the Mistakes Listening for details. Grammar.

    Activity 12: Predict the Opening Scene Speaking.

    Activity 13: Making a film remake Speaking. Writing. Critical Thinking.

    Activity 14: Pronunciation Project Pronunciation. Speaking. Listening.

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    At the end of the four classes, the students were asked to give their thoughts on the

    component, and the reaction was almost overwhelmingly positive. Ninety-seven percent

    of students said they had enjoyed or very much enjoyed the experience, with the only

    negative reports being due to the difficulty of finding and setting up DVDs in the

    crowded settings of the university. In the future, we would hope to research whether

    students continue to use the activities they have learned in their everyday independent

    study.

    Acknowledgements

    Many of the above activities were adapted from:

    Stempleski S. and Tomlin B. (2001): Research Books for Teachers: Film. Oxford: OUP

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    Film Vocabulary

    Overview of Activities

    Discussion Topics

    Story Frames

    Comparing Characters

    Dear Film Friend

    Character Interviews

    Dictation

    Reverse Translation

    Questions for your Friends

    Listen and Repeat

    Which film looks best? (Trailers)

    Listen for the Missing Words

    Spot the Mistakes

    Predict the Opening Scene

    Film Pronunciation Project

    Useful internet sites

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    Film Vocabulary

    Talking about movies Making a movie

    Whats it about? actor n.

    Whos in it? actress n.

    Where is it set? director n.

    Who directed it? producer n.

    Who produced it? editor n.

    Who made it? to edit (s/thing) vb.

    When was it made? to act in vb

    cast n.

    It is based on (a true story) scriptwriter n.

    To release a movie vb. script n.

    sequel n. to dub (a movie) vb.

    remake n. crew n.

    agent n.

    agency n.

    (camera) angle n.

    shoot (a movie) vb.

    Watching a movie Talking about movie

    plots

    setting n. a Western n.

    sound effects n. criminal n.

    special effects n. victim n.

    subtitles n. evidence n.

    trailer n. title n

    plot n. character n.

    dialogue n. complex adj.

    clip n. characteristic n.

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    scene n. (have an) affair vb.

    commercial n. politics n.

    synopsis n. detailed adj.

    (opening) credits n. scary adj.

    (closing) credits n. amusing adj.

    Being a movie star Success and failure

    fame n. to succeed vb.

    superstar n. to fail vb.

    legend n. success n.

    celebrity n. failure n.

    popularity n. a (big) hit n.

    Oscar n. a flop n.

    Academy Award n. to criticise vb.

    award n. to praise vb.

    role n. (film) review n.

    major role n.

    minor role n.

    leading role n.

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    Whole Film

    If you choose these options, you have to watch the film OUTSIDE CLASS.

    You can discuss and do the activities inside class.

    Activity One: Discussion Topics (23 people): 40 minutes

    Summary: Watch an English movie and discuss it with your friends.

    Skills: Listening for gist. Speaking.

    Method: (1) Watch an English movie outside of class.

    (2) Discuss some general questions together about the movie.

    (3) Write about what you discussed.

    Activity Two: Story Frames (23 people): 40 minutes

    Summary: Watch an English movie and summarise it using a story frame.

    Skills: Listening for gist. Speaking. Short writing.

    Method: (1) Watch an English movie outside of class.

    (2) Discuss it with your friends and complete a story frame (like a

    questionnaire).

    (3) Give your teacher the story frame to check

    Activity Three: Comparing characters (2 people): 40 minutes

    Summary: Watch an English movie and then compare the main characters using aVenn diagram.

    Skills: Listening for gist. Speaking. Making comparisons (grammar).

    Method: (1) Watch an English movie outside of class.

    (2) Discuss and compare the characters using a Venn diagram (the

    two circles we used when comparing food in two countries).

    (3) Show your teacher your Venn Diagram.

    Activity Four: Dear film friend (1 - 2 people): 40 minutesSummary: Watch an English movie and write a letter to the main character.

    Skills: Listening for gist. Speaking. Writing.

    Method: (1) Watch an English movie outside of class.

    (2) Discuss the main characters.

    (3) Write a letter to one of the main characters.

    (4) Give your teacher the letter to read

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    Activity Five: Character interviews (23 people): 1 hour

    Summary: Watch an English movie and role-play an interview with one of the main

    characters.

    Skills: Listening for gist. Speaking. Making questions.

    Method: (1) Watch an English movie outside of class.

    (2) 1 2 students make interview questions for the main character.

    The other student pretends to be the main character.

    (3) Role-play the interview.

    Film Clips

    If you choose these options, you have to choose and set up the film clip OUTSIDE

    CLASS. You can watch the film clip and do the activities inside class.

    Activity One: Dictation (1 - 2 people): 1 hour

    Summary: Watch a short scene of an English movie without subtitles and write down

    the dialogue.

    Skills: Listening for details. Grammar. Speaking

    Method: (1) Choose a movie scene outside class.

    (2) Listen and write down what the characters say.

    (3) Listen again and check if you were right

    (4) Give your teacher the dialogue and write about your experience

    Activity Two: Reverse translation (2 people): 1 hour

    Summary: Watch a scene from an English movie with Japanese subtitles with the

    sound off and try to work out what the characters are saying.

    Skills: Listening for details. Translating. Grammar.

    Method: (1) Choose a scene from an English movie with Japanese

    subtitles.

    (2) Watch the scene with the sound off and translate the Japanese

    subtitles into English.

    (3) Listen to the scene to check your answers.

    (4) Show your teacher your translation and write about how accurate

    it was.

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    Activity Three: Questions for your friends (24 people): 1 hour

    Summary: Watch a sort clip from an English movie and make some comprehension

    questions for your friends, who then watch the same clip.

    Skills: Listening for details. Speaking. Making questions.

    Method: (1) Watch a scene from an English movie outside of class.

    (2) Write some comprehension questions about the scene.

    (3) Show the scene to your friends. Your friends try to answer the

    questions you wrote.

    (4) Show your teacher the questions and write about your

    experience of making them.

    Activity Four: Listen and Repeat (12 people): 30 minutes

    Summary: Watch a short clip from an English movie with subtitles and repeat what

    the characters to improve your vocabulary and pronunciation.

    Skills: Vocabulary. Pronunciation. Listening.

    Method: (1) Watch a scene from an English movie.

    (2) Listen carefully to what the characters are saying and try to repeat

    it with the same pronunciation.

    (3) Write down any new vocabulary or expressions you learned.

    (4) Fill in the form and give it to your teacher.

    Activity Five: Trailers (24 people): 3040 minutes

    Summary: Watch trailers for three different films and discuss which trailer you think

    is best.

    Skills: Listening for details. Taking notes. Speaking.

    Method: (1) Choose a video with three trailers outside of class.

    (2) Take some notes about the trailers as you watch.

    (3) Discuss which trailer was best and why.

    Activity Six: Spot the mistakes (2 people): 45 minutes

    Summary: Get a script from a short movie scene and write it out with four mistakes.

    Show the scene to your partner and see if they can find the mistakes.

    Skills: Listening for details.

    Method: (1) Choose a scene outside of class with a script.

    (2) Change the script so that there are four mistakes.

    (3) Show the scene to your partner and see if they can find the

    mistakes.

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    Activity Seven: Predict the opening scene (23 people): 45 minutes

    Summary: Look at a movie poster or video cover and guess what happens in the first

    scene.

    Skills: Speaking.

    Method: (1) Look a movie posters or video covers of films you havent seen.

    (2) Discuss what you think might happen in the opening scene.

    (3) Watch the opening scene to check.

    (4) Write to your teacher about what you guessed would happen

    and what actually happened.

    Others

    Activity One: Pronunciation project

    Summary: Listen to and then act out a scene from a movie, concentrating on

    pronunciation and fluency.

    Skills: Pronunciation and speaking

    Acknowledgements

    Many of the above activities were adapted from:Stempleski S. and Tomlin B. (2001): Research Books for Teachers: Film. Oxford:

    OUP

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    Discussion Topics (23 people): 40 minutes

    Summary: Watch an English movie and discuss it with your friends.

    Skills: Listening for gist. Speaking.

    Method: (1) Watch an English movie outside of class.(2) Discuss some general questions together about the movie.

    (3) Write about what you discussed.

    Materials: Any movie

    Questions for discussionWhats the movie about?

    Whos in it?

    When / Where is it set?

    Who directed it?

    When was it made?

    What did you like best about this film?

    What, if anything, did you learn from this film?

    Was there anything you did not understand about the film? What was it?

    Which character in the film did you like best?

    Which character in the film did you like least?

    Did you like the way music was used in this film?

    What do you think of the ending of the film?

    If you were the director, how would you have ended the film?

    ANY MORE QUESTIONS?

    _____________________________________________________________ ?

    _____________________________________________________________ ?

    _____________________________________________________________ ?

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    Feedback

    What movie did you watch?

    ________________________________________________________________

    Explain about the movie: what was it about? who was in it? where was it set?

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    What did you think of the movie?

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    How did you feel about this activity?

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

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    Story Frames (23 people: 40 minutes)

    Summary: Watch an English movie and summarise it using a story frame.

    Skills: Listening for gist. Speaking. Short writing.

    Method: (1) Watch an English movie outside of class.

    (2) Discuss it with your friends and complete a story frame (like

    a questionnaire). Give your teacher the story frame to check.

    Materials: Any movie

    Story frame

    Film title

    Setting

    Character

    The main character in this film is

    In the film, he / she

    I think he / she is good / bad because

    Plot

    The film starts when

    Next,

    Then,

    Finally,

    Opinions

    What I liked about this film was

    What I didnt like about this film was

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    Feedback

    Please write your letter here:

    ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

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    Character interviews ( 23 people: 60 minutes)

    Summary: Watch an English movie and role-play an interview with one of the

    main characters. Present in front of classmates or video tape your

    interview.

    Skills: Listening for gist. Speaking. Making questions.

    Method: (1) Watch an English movie outside of class.

    (2) 1 2 students make interview questions for the main

    character. The other student pretends to be the main

    character.

    (3) Role-play the interview.

    (4) Record or videotape the interview

    Materials: Any movie. Equipment to record the interview (tape, MD, video)

    Student A: Imagine you are an interviewer for a famous magazine (think: What

    kind of magazine?). You are going to interview a character from a

    movie. Think of some questions you want to ask that character

    (think: What information do you want to know?)

    Student B: You are the character and are going to be interviewed by a

    magazine. Think: How does your character behave? Is he / she

    nice or nasty? Will he / she tell the truth in the interview or does he /

    she want to lie? What kind of body language will he / she use?

    Example questions

    Rose is being interviewed by a famous romance magazine called We Love Men.o How do you feel about Jacks death?

    o Why did you fall in love with him?

    o Were you scared when Titanic sank?

    o What are doing now?

    o What are your hopes for the future?

    o Are you planning to get married?

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    Dictation (12 people: 1 hour)

    Summary: Watch a scene of an English movie without subtitles and write

    down the dialogue.

    Skills: Listening for details. Grammar. Speaking

    Method: (1) Choose a movie scene outside class.

    (2) Listen and write down what the characters say.

    (3) Give your teacher the dialogue.

    Materials: Any movie with English subtitles

    More information

    Sometimes we only need to catch the main ideas, but sometimes we need to

    understand every word. You can use movies to improve you ability to listen

    accurately for details. One way to do this is by dictation.

    Procedure

    1. Choose a brief scene (or part of a scene) from your favourite film. Don`t

    make it too long- about 10 lines of dialogue is enough. Do not have

    subtitles.

    2. Get a piece of paper and a pen, and watch the scene. As you watch, write

    down the dialogue. At first, you may only be able to understand a few

    words here and there. Don`t worry! Watch the same scene again. Write

    down more words. And again. And so on

    3. When you`ve done as much as you can do, you have a number of options.

    If it is a DVD, you can check the English subtitles. If there is a screenplay

    available, you can check that (SALC has about 30 screenplays). Or you

    can bring the video and your script to me, and I`ll check it for you.

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    Feedback

    Please write your dictation here:

    ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

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    Feedback

    Please write your translation here:

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    Please write the real translation here:

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

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    Questions for your friends (24 people: 1 hour)

    Summary: Watch a scene from an English movie and make some

    comprehension questions for your friends, who then watch the

    movie.Skills: Listening for details. Speaking. Making questions.

    Method: (1) Watch a scene from an English movie. It should be 3 5

    minutes long.

    (2) Write some comprehension questions about the scene.

    (3) Show the scene to your friends.

    (4) Your friends try to answer the questions you wrote.

    (5) Show your teacher the questions you made.

    Materials: Any movie

    NB: If you do this with two people, one person should write questions for

    one movie and then ask their partner, and the other person should do the

    same with a different movie. With four people, two people can make

    questions together for the same movie and two people a different movie.

    Write your questions here:

    1.

    2.

    3.

    4.

    5.

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    Listen and Repeat ( 12 people: 30 minutes)

    Summary: Watch a short clip from an English movie with subtitles and repeat

    what the characters to improve your vocabulary and pronunciation.

    Skills: Vocabulary. Pronunciation. Listening.Method: (1) Watch a scene from an English movie.

    (2) Listen carefully to what the characters are saying and try to

    repeat it with the same pronunciation.

    (3) Write down any new vocabulary or expressions you learned.

    (4) Fill in the form and give it to your teacher.

    Materials: Any movie (best with English subtitles)

    Name of movie: ____________________________________

    What happened in the scene? ________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    Expressions / vocabulary you repeated:

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

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    Which film looks best? (2 people: 3040 minutes)

    Summary: Watch trailers for two different films (one which you picked out and

    one which your partner picked out) and discuss which trailer you

    think is best.Skills: Listening for details. Taking notes. Speaking.

    Method: (1) Choose a video or DVD or go to http://www.apple.com/trailers/

    with two trailers.

    (2) Take some notes about the trailers as you watch. Make notes

    about:

    the title

    the leading actors

    the genre (horror, drama, action, comedy, animation,

    etc)

    the plot (what happened?)

    the mood (feeling) of the film (romantic, dark, happy,

    etc.)

    (3) Try to catch the words and write down the key dialogue. (Ask

    your teacher to watch your trailer if you need some help. Before

    you ask though, watch the trailer at least 3 times)

    (4) Discuss which trailer was best and why.

    Materials: Any movie trailers

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    Feedback

    Trailers watched: __________________________________________________

    Which movie looked best? ___________________________________________

    Why? ___________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

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    Listen for the Missing Words

    Summary: Get a script from a short movie scene (3-5 minutes is recommended).

    Blacken out 4 words. Watch the scene again and see if you can catch the words

    you blackened out. Next, show the scene to a friend and see if they can find the

    mistakes.

    Skills: Listening for details

    Method:

    1. Preparing the words: Do step A or B or C

    A. Watch a 3-5 dialogue minute scene with the subtitles on. Write downthe subtitles.

    B. Download and print the words from a film script resource page. Thefollowing pages might be helpful:http://www.script-o-rama.com/

    http://www.simplyscripts.com/

    http://www.weeklyscript.com/index.htm

    http://www.eslnotes.com/synopses.htmlhttp://www.moviescriptsandscreenplays.com/

    http://www.scriptcrawler.net/

    http://www.dailyscript.com/http://www.allmoviescripts.com/,

    http://www.movie-page.com/movie_scripts.htm

    http://blake.prohosting.com/bamzon

    C. Photocopy 2-3 pages from a movie script book. You can purchasemovie scripts from many bookstores, for example,http://www.amazon.com

    2. Read the script once

    3. Look up any words you do not understand.

    4. Darken out 4 words. (A good challenge is to darken out the words you did notknow in step 3.)

    4. Watch the film scene and try to catch the missing words.

    5. Switch film sheets with a partner. Can you fill in the words your partner hadblackened out? Can they fill in the words that you blackened out?

    http://www.script-o-rama.com/http://www.simplyscripts.com/http://www.weeklyscript.com/index.htmhttp://www.moviescriptsandscreenplays.com/http://www.scriptcrawler.net/http://www.dailyscript.com/http://www.allmoviescripts.com/http://www.movie-page.com/movie_scripts.htmhttp://blake.prohosting.com/bamzonhttp://blake.prohosting.com/bamzonhttp://www.movie-page.com/movie_scripts.htmhttp://www.allmoviescripts.com/http://www.dailyscript.com/http://www.scriptcrawler.net/http://www.moviescriptsandscreenplays.com/http://www.weeklyscript.com/index.htmhttp://www.simplyscripts.com/http://www.script-o-rama.com/
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    Spot the mistakes

    Summary:This activity is just like Listen for the missing words, but instead of

    blackening out words, change four words in the script.

    Skills:Listening for details and Grammar

    Method:

    1. Do steps 1-3 as above in Listening for Missing Words.

    2. Change the script so that four words are changed; make four mistakes.

    3, Switch film sheets with a partner. See if they can catch the mistakes

    you put into the script.

    A variation on this activity is to target certain grammar. For example,

    change four verbs into their noun form or leave out some noun word

    endings or leave out articles

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    Predict the opening scene (23 people: 45 minutes)

    Summary: Look at a movie poster or video cover and guess what happens in

    the first scene.

    Skills: Speaking.Method: (1) Look a movie posters or video covers of films you havent

    seen.

    (2) Discuss what you think might happen in the opening scene.

    (3) Watch the opening scene to check.

    (4) Write about what you guessed would happen and

    what actually happened.

    Materials: Any movie and the front cover / poster of that movie

    Ideas to help you predict the scene

    Think of:

    Setting: When and where might the opening scene take place?

    Characters: Which characters might appear in the scene?

    Key events: What might happen in the opening scene?

    Dialogue: What are some lines of dialogue you might hear?

    Other: List any other details you think might be part of the openingscene.

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    Feedback

    What did you think would happen?

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    What actually happened?

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________

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    Using Dialogue in Films

    to help you improve your fluency and

    pronunciation

    1. Select a 5 minute clip from your film

    How to select a good clip?Choose one that has many characters so that everyone in your group is speakingORChoose a clip for every 2-3 people in your group (when you cannot find a clip thathas good speaking parts for a larger group).

    2. Write or find a transcript of the scene.

    How do I write the words from a film down?You can go to scriptpimp.com or script-o-rama.com or do a internet search forthe title of your film and the key words film script. When you do this you canfind the words to the film. Look inside these scripts for the scene you want to do.

    OR

    Listen to the scene and try to write down the words you hear (We can go into theSALC or ELI to do this). I can help you.

    3. Practice copying this scene. Dont worry about props so much. Youwill have a chance to make your own film later and then that will beimportant, but for this activity the DIALOGUE is most important andyou should focus on speaking the dialogue as the actors do. Focuson the

    Intonation Speed Rhythm Accent Word stress

    4. Tape-record (or MD record) the dialogue that you perform.

    5. Give your teacher a copy of your tape/MD and a printed copy of thewords to your scene.

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    Recommended Sites for film scripts, screenplays or

    transcripts

    http://www.script-o-rama.com/http://www.simplyscripts.com/

    http://www.allmoviescripts.com/http://www.movie-page.com/movie_scripts.htmhttp://www.weeklyscript.com/index.htmhttp://www.moviescriptsandscreenplays.com/http://www.scriptcrawler.net/http://www.dailyscript.com/http://www.eslnotes.com/synopses.htmlhttp://blake.prohosting.com/bamzone/

    For purchasing scriptshttp://www.iscriptdb.com/

    For purchasing learning sites that use filmhttp://www.learningbrook.com/

    Movie trailers:http://www.apple.com/trailers/http://www.movie-list.com/http://www.comingsoon.net/trailers/http://www.movie-page.com/trailers.htm (all of these trailers also have film scriptsto full versions of the movie)http://www.movie-trailers.com

    Lesson plans sites for using film:http://bogglesworld.com/lessons/MovieLesson1.htmhttp://www.onestopenglish.com/News/Magazine/News/video_beder.htm

    http://www.script-o-rama.com/http://www.simplyscripts.com/http://www.allmoviescripts.com/http://www.movie-page.com/movie_scripts.htmhttp://www.weeklyscript.com/index.htmhttp://www.moviescriptsandscreenplays.com/http://www.scriptcrawler.net/http://www.iscriptdb.com/http://www.learningbrook.com/http://www.apple.com/trailers/http://www.movie-list.com/http://www.movie-page.com/trailers.htmhttp://bogglesworld.com/lessons/MovieLesson1.htmhttp://bogglesworld.com/lessons/MovieLesson1.htmhttp://www.movie-page.com/trailers.htmhttp://www.movie-list.com/http://www.apple.com/trailers/http://www.learningbrook.com/http://www.iscriptdb.com/http://www.scriptcrawler.net/http://www.moviescriptsandscreenplays.com/http://www.weeklyscript.com/index.htmhttp://www.movie-page.com/movie_scripts.htmhttp://www.allmoviescripts.com/http://www.simplyscripts.com/http://www.script-o-rama.com/