Incorporating Multimodality, Creativity and Universal Themes for Adult English Language Learners
Channelling creativity and multimodality with teaching English Language Learners
- Catherine Stepan
- Mar 27, 2025 at 9:27 PM
Background and Learning Module History
This is a brief backstory of my path as an educator. I have worked in the field of Education for nearly three decades varying from teacher of English in a high school in Queens, NY to organizing inter-generational syllabi for immigrant families in the early 2000s in what was the world's most diverse zip code at one time, then going abroad across the Atlantic to teach English as a Foreign Language in the Czech Republic. Eventually, I gravitated towards education management and curriculum design as Head of the English Department in a private college then to auditing English Language programs across Europe in the Czech Rep, Poland, Serbia among others. During the summer months, I would be the Academic Director for a summer language program geared for 11 - 18 year-old students who would come to the UK for a language course and cultural experience. My role was to design the syllabi according to levels, onboard all academic management staff, create the academic training manuals, assess the students and ensure their courses of study are running smoothly and that the feedback, from both students and staff was being tended to.
On my return to the States in 2023, I found that my diverse, global work experience in education was not very understood, or maybe it was just me, my age, or my lack of investigation but, regardless, my search for a job proved fruitless. Either, I didn’t possess the exact teaching certificates that school districts now wanted, or my experience didn’t align with the needs of the organizations I was attempting to apply to. Regardless and regrettably, I did not land any educational management roles I was so optimistic in obtaining, nor was I asked to interview for thee numerous districts in the Chicagoland area that supposedly were desperate to find experienced educators for the vast numbers of students needing to learn English. Here I was, over 50, a sole provider with decades of teaching experience, looking for work. I took what came; an educational lead position in behavioral health for adolescents committed to the 6th floor under mental health supervision and as an adjunct English instructor at a local community college, teaching ESL to adults under a WIOA-funded program (Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act). I must say, I find both very satisfying but I yearn to do what I have done in Europe, which is to integrate creativity into the learning environment and design curricula. In Europe, I worked as an Eaquals Organization inspector, and using their framework, would assess English language programs. Based on the results, I would help organizations better align their curricula with more innovative methodology, moving away from didactic to authentic with the optimism of having both the educational organizations, as well as their teachers, move towards more transformative teaching, enhancing critical thinking into the English Language classroom.
My teaching approach, for the most part, is a communicative one. I am a child of immigrants myself, and empathy is the motivating force for how and what I teach. I want students to learn grammar and lexis in an interactive way so they want to continue coming to class to learn. This encompasses sharing of my own experiences, that of my parents', if it includes a funny anecdote which they can relate to, and giving insight into pop culture that they may not otherwise be exposed to. The environment in which students learn is also integral to how students approach learning and our classroom environment is hopefully, transformative, where we learn from one another, whether it be through independent research or working in groups, the key to our dynamic is feeling comfortable about learning and sharing our knowledge. My mantra is connect, get inspired, learn, and I am dedicated to doing this to each and every one of my students, age, level notwithstanding. Dr. Cope's and Dr. Kalantzis' Dimensions of Learning have become my new gauge to how I will approach my own teaching and that of the organizations I work with and will work for.
The concept behind this semester's course, and thus, this learning module was to use universal themes to connect my High-Intermediate level students (or B1-level on the Common European Framework) by designing a multimodal learning module on a theme everyone, young and old, English-speaking and non, regardless of level of English, can relate to: love. The learning outcomes are further outlined in that named section but basically, students will practice grammar, lexis, syntax, a dash of U.S. sociology, and their digital skills in a more creative way than they have perhaps previously been taught.
Note: Something I hope to further explore is, that in the global world we live in, why are there so many different sets of standards for English Language Learning? I was quite content with the Common European Framework, which has a set series of levels (A1 – C2) where A1 is considered the lowest level and C2 would be considered proficient, near native-level of English. In the States, the terms go from Beginner, High-Beginner, Pre-Intermediate (roughly 6-7 levels) moving to Proficient and to confuse professionals, and learners alike, each state also includes their own sets of standards.
I want students to find the lessons fun, interactive and instructional, but most of all, thought-provoking. With the idea of using love as my theme, I had an outline in mind from which I was going to build the lessons then thought, why not ask Chat GPT to do the same. I felt I needed a challenge; can Chat GPT come up with a better learning module?
This is the basic outline that I came up with prior to comparing with ChatGPT.
I wanted to include the following components:
Song – related to theme, discussion, idioms and expressions, vocabulary, differing perspectives, US pop culture, multimodality, poetry, literary texts – I chose Greek myths for example and a Tedx talk.
Below is what I inputted to ChatGPT:
Can you outline a learning module on the theme of love. This module should also be for English Language Learners of B1 level English on the CEFR and higher. Include multimodal materials. It should be 5 lessons of one-hour each and include the following: Song, greek myth, poem, discussion questions, idioms and vocabulary connected to the theme. A text to read and focus on different perspectives, family, relationships, work, politics, and a breakdown of key words.
It is important to note that although I was interested in seeing what Chat GPT 4.0 would come up with as a learning module, I decided to use my own creative thought and teach my outlined version. The only idea that I procured from Chat GPT 4.0 was to use Elizabeth Barrett Browning's sonnet, How do I love thee? as the poem component. The impetus behind asking Chat GPT 4.0 was not to get ideas but to become more adept at inputting prompts in order to generate results that better align what I want to accomplish. Thus far, I have found that utilizing AI has been challenging but very rewarding and I have only just scratched the surface of how AI can improve and iterate my teaching content, style and creativity.
Overview & Learning Outcomes
For this learning module, I integrate multimodality and creativity, choosing the universal theme of love into a series of three lessons for adult language learners, who are a part of a gratis program at a local community college in the Fox Valley region in Illinois, funded by federal grants. The task-planning was two-fold; creating my own series of lesson plans on the idea, then inputting my lesson plan idea into Chat GPT 4.0 and compare the results. A comparative of the results will be done in a later research paper.
This module was introduced in the week three of the 12-week semester which includes two intensive 3-hour classes per week in the evenings. For the most part, students come after work and are tired. Concepts in these lessons include a variety of teaching strategies: experiential connections for engagement, mostly didactic mothodology for grammar explanations, then moving towards interactive, communicative activities, exploring digital literacy, error correction, pronunciation practice, critical & analytical skills and lots of discussion. If I can get students comfortable about speaking English, then the content must be interesting enough for them to move out of their comfort zone to let that learning begin.
Learning Outcomes for Students
Students were given links to each lesson via Sway, which allowed me to share ideas, images and content with students through our learning platform, D2L. See Materials for a link to each lesson.
Learner Objectives: SWBAT (Students Will be Able To) for Students
(Language graded to aid learner understanding)
Reading
- Explain the difference between a poem, song, short story, article, video, and TEDx talk using words we learned before.
- Read different types of texts (poems, articles, song lyrics) and find the main idea, theme, and important vocabulary (including idioms and figurative language).
- Find specific information in a text.
- Use skimming (quick reading) and scanning (looking for key words) to find important details.
- Summarize the main points of a text and share them with others.
- Make connections between texts and your own life, other texts, or the world.
- Read a short text and add correct punctuation to change the meaning or show different points of view.
- Read and understand discussion questions that include idioms and expressions about relationships and love.
- Read a TEDx talk script about the science of love.
- Read a myth (Pandora’s Box) and analyze the text.
Listening
- Listen to two different songs and fill in the missing words.
- Understand a short explanation of a 19th-century poem.
- Listen to classmates talk about different parts of an article on love and relationships (jigsaw reading).
- Listen to classmates ask and answer discussion questions about love and relationships.
- Listen to a TEDx talk about the science of love.
- Watch a short video version of Pandora’s Box for understanding.
Writing
- Complete the lyrics of songs by writing the missing words.
- Take notes from an article and share them with classmates.
- Use punctuation correctly to change the meaning of a short letter ("Dear John" letter).
- Write a poem using Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s Sonnet 43 as a guide.
- Give feedback on the lesson and topic.
- Write three discussion questions using words and expressions about love and relationships.
- Brainstorm and write down 10 vocabulary words that Pandora exposed to the world.
Speaking
- Think of symbols that represent love.
- Brainstorm words about love and create idioms.
- Discuss different types of love and guess what an article will say about the topic.
- Create short group presentations to explain key points from a text.
- Utilize verb + gerund or verb + infinitive patterns in natural language
- Discuss questions about relationships using discussion cards.
- Think of your own discussion questions about love and relationships.
- Discuss what Pandora gave to the world by opening the box.
Critical Thinking
- Translate an expression about love from your native language into English.
- Use creativity to write your own sonnet.
- Compare different ways of talking about love (poems, songs, articles, videos) and share your opinion about how each one affects people differently.
- What symbols could we use to represent what Pandora opened that we have in society today?
- Make cultural connections about texts from home country with US pop culture
Research
- Use the internet to research information about poems using the theme of love.
- https://poets.org/ or https://www.poetryfoundation.org/
- How to find learning material that has interesting topics and tapescripts (Tedx) http://www.ted.com
- Digital literacy
- Use technology to find information related to choosing your own poems using the universal theme of love
- Changing information from text into a visual piece of information
Below are the standards for learning that you should be familiar with. These will help you to better understand your learning path in studying the English language. We will discuss these standards in lessons and you can see which standards we use for each lesson in our Sway presentations.
Standards: ICCB Content Standards for English Language Acquisition 10 Anchor Standards
ESL Standards Proficient Instructor Training, Illinois Community College Board and Adult Learning Resource Center
An ELL (English Language Learner) can …
1. construct meaning from oral presentations and literary and informational text through level-appropriate listening, reading, and viewing.
2. participate in level-appropriate oral and written exchanges of information, ideas, and analyses, in various social and academic contexts, responding to peer, audience, or
reader comments and questions.
3. speak and write about level-appropriate complex literary and informational texts and topics.
4. construct level-appropriate oral and written claims and support them with reasoning and evidence.
5. conduct research and evaluate and communicate findings to answer questions or solve problems.
6. analyze and critique the arguments of others orally and in writing.
7. adapt language choices to purpose, task, and audience when speaking and writing.
8. determine the meaning of words and phrases in oral presentations and literary and informational text.
9. create clear and coherent level-appropriate speech and text.
10. demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English to communicate
in level-appropriate speech and writing
I also include Elements of Rigorous Instruction, which move students out of their comfort zone and into ZPD (zone of proximal development) with some academic language, language strategies, critical and analytical thinking, as well as, students as facilitators. We have discussed these concepts in the handout attached for reference
:
Learning Outcomes for Instructors
Students were given links to each lesson via Sway, which allowed me to share ideas, images and content with students through our learning platform, D2L. See Materials for a link to each lesson.
Allowing students access to the Sway lessons help them to explore the lessons and their content independently, thus encouraging them to work on digital literacy skills without the stress of their classmates, who may be more adept at using technology than they may be.
Student version of learning outcomes have been graded in language to aid comprehension.
Learner Objectives: SWBAT (Students Will Be Able To) for Instructors
Reading
- Differentiate between various literary and media forms, including poetry, songs, short stories, articles, videos, and TEDx talks, utilizing prior knowledge of modality.
- Analyze diverse genres and multimodality (e.g., poetry, articles, song lyrics) to identify themes, main ideas, and key vocabulary, including both literal and figurative language.
- Extract and interpret specific information from texts.
- Employ skimming and scanning techniques to efficiently locate key details.
- Summarize essential information and key arguments to communicate with peers.
- Establish connections between texts and personal experiences, other texts, and broader societal contexts (text-to-self, text-to-text, text-to-world).
- Apply appropriate punctuation in short texts to enhance clarity, convey meaning, and distinguish different points of view.
- Comprehend and respond to discussion questions incorporating idiomatic expressions and vocabulary related to relationships and love.
- Analyze a TEDx talk transcript on The Science of Love, identifying key arguments and supporting details.
- Read a simplified version of Pandora’s Box and apply terms and vocabulary to discussion.
Listening
- Listen to and transcribe missing words from two different song lyrics, demonstrating phonetic awareness and comprehension.
- Interpret a short analytical commentary on a 19th-century poem, identifying key literary elements.
- Engage in collaborative learning by listening to peers present different sections of an informational article on love and relationships (jigsaw reading).
- Comprehend and analyze peer-led discussions on love and relationships, formulating thoughtful responses.
- Critically engage with a TEDx talk on The Science of Love, identifying main ideas and supporting arguments.
Writing
- Complete song lyrics by accurately spelling words based on auditory input.
- Synthesize key information from an article through structured note-taking for peer discussion.
- Apply punctuation strategically to alter meaning in a Dear John letter, demonstrating an understanding of syntactic structures.
- Compose an original poem modeled after Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s Sonnet 43, integrating learned poetic techniques.
- Provide constructive feedback on lesson content and thematic discussions through reflective writing.
- Develop three discussion questions incorporating thematic vocabulary and concepts related to love and relationships.
- Brainstorm vocabulary of society’s hardships that Pandora’s opening unleashed on the world.
Speaking
- Generate and present ideas on universal symbols of love, demonstrating cross-cultural awareness.
- Compile and categorize vocabulary related to love, constructing original idiomatic expressions.
- Engage in predictive discussion on different forms of love, making informed hypotheses about upcoming reading material.
- Deliver concise group presentations summarizing key points from assigned readings.
- Participate in structured discussions using relationship-themed discussion cards, formulating and defending personal perspectives.
- Construct original discussion questions that align with previously explored relationship themes and vocabulary.
- Generate and document a list of ten vocabulary terms associated with the evils and hardships released by Pandora, analyzing their meanings and implications.
- Utilize verb + gerund or verb + infinitive patterns in natural language.
Critical Thinking
- Translate and analyze love-related expressions from L1 to English, identifying linguistic and cultural nuances.
- Utilize the creative writing process to compose a personal sonnet that reflects individual perspectives on love.
- Classify and evaluate multiple modes of expressing the theme of love, articulating informed opinions on their impact.
- Connect the varied texts and input on love with the critical reading of Pandora’s box and create valid reasoning to support ideas.
Research
- Utilize digital resources to investigate poetic works that explore the theme of love, analyzing their historical and cultural significance.
Cultural Connections:
- Learn idiomatic expressions connected with the topic of relationships.
- Recognize and compare how different cultures express love and relationships through poetry, music, literature, and media (e.g., sonnets, pop songs, TEDx talks).
- Identify and analyze universal themes of love across cultures and time periods (e.g., love in 19th-century poetry vs. modern songs).
- Explore perspectives on love and relationships through idiomatic expressions, symbols, and literary references.
- Compare cultural variations in idioms and proverbs about love by translating and discussing expressions from students' native languages.
- Understand the role of popular American culture (e.g., Elvis, Grease) in shaping ideas about love, romance, and relationships.
- Exploring intercultural norms and pop culture.
- Discuss how different cultures represent and celebrate love (e.g., Valentine’s Day traditions, love symbols, relationship norms).
- Intellectual risk-taking by using context and writing creatively (a sonnet).
Digital literacy
- Demonstrated by using technology and navigate websites https://poets.org/ or https://www.poetryfoundation.org/ to search for a poem on the contextual theme of love and be able how they searched and why they found it interesting.
- Changing information from text into a visual piece of information by utilizing various digital tools to create a mind map/visual tool
- Explore specific websites to research - https://poets.org/ or https://www.poetryfoundation.org/
- Identify and evaluate learning materials, including TEDx http://www.ted.com talks and their transcripts with engaging and thematic topics for language development.
- Look online for images on themes covered in this unit.
Students can access which anchor standards we address in each lesson in the Sway presentations which are posted into their learning platform (D2L).
We will also address a breakdown of what each of these standards mean in simpler, graded language for easier comprehension for the students.
Standards: ICCB Content Standards for English Language Acquisition 10 Anchor Standards
ESL Standards Proficient Instructor Training, Illinois Community College Board and Adult Learning Resource Center
An ELL (English Language Learner) can …
1. construct meaning from oral presentations and literary and informational text through level-appropriate listening, reading, and viewing.
2. participate in level-appropriate oral and written exchanges of information, ideas, and analyses, in various social and academic contexts, responding to peer, audience, or
reader comments and questions.
3. speak and write about level-appropriate complex literary and informational texts and topics.
4. construct level-appropriate oral and written claims and support them with reasoning and evidence.
5. conduct research and evaluate and communicate findings to answer questions or solve problems.
6. analyze and critique the arguments of others orally and in writing.
7. adapt language choices to purpose, task, and audience when speaking and writing.
8. determine the meaning of words and phrases in oral presentations and literary and informational text.
9. create clear and coherent level-appropriate speech and text.
10. demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English to communicate
in level-appropriate speech and writing
I also include Elements of Rigorous Instruction, which move students out of their comfort zone and into ZPD (zone of proximal development) with some academic language, language strategies, critical and analytical thinking, as well as, students as facilitators.
The handout students received on Elements of Rigorous Instruction was covered early in the course but students also have access to a digital version in the D2L platform.
Target Learners
The target learners are adult immigrants, aged 20 – 65, who are B1-level on the CEFR (Common European Framework) and considered at the community college to be Level 7-High Intermediate. Most are working and attend intensive English classes Tues and Thurs evenings from 6 – 9:45 pm. They are from varied backgrounds such as Bangladesh (2), Russia (1) and Tunisia (1) and the 14 are from South America: Venezuela, Mexico, Ecuador and Columbia.
The students I plan to use this module with are working adults who attend English classes in the evenings, after their daily grind. They can articulate their thoughts and needs but have issues with verb tenses and higher-level discussions. This theme will resonate in that they will be able to engage linguistically in broader discussion on the theme of relationships using discourse of idiomatic expressions on a very relative topic. During discussion, students will also work on modals of speculation in addition to practicing the vocabulary covered in this module.
This learning module can also be used for English Language Learners in a high school setting or even learners who are fluent in English as the topics covered are universal in theme. Additionally, this lesson can be used in any setting suited for high school students and higher.
It is important to note that we are in Week three with the students and we have already established routines in our classroom space. Students who come early already move desks together to work in groups, which is very kind of them. On the left of the whiteboard there is a running order of what our learning aims are and there is a 'do now' on the board with (see example below:)
Our class has already been familiarized with using useful academic language to: give opinions, disagree with an opinion, provide reference to text, ask for clarification, exchanging ideas. See below for handout:
We have also covered:
- parts of speech, prefixes and suffixes
- basic verb-+ gerund or verb+ infinitive patterns (like, love, hate, want, need, enjoy, prefer, modals and infinitive without to - examples: will do, can sing, must learn, etc.)
Anticipated drawbacks/problems:
1. Students won't recall info or vocabulary from previous lesson
2. Cognitive or media overload. Many sts are not tech savvy and some cannot remember their student IDs to use the classroom computers.
3. Students will not be interested
4. Students won't recall info or vocabulary from previous lesson
5. Cognitive or media overload. Many sts are not tech savvy and some cannot remember their student IDs to use the classroom computers
6. Absenteeism will hinder the module
7. L1 discussion interference
Duration
Number of Lessons: 3 – 2 1/2 – hour lessons
Materials
Note: All materials in this learning module can be accessed in both digital and hard copy formats. Students who are present in lessons receive handouts of all the materials in the form of lesson packets. This includes links to all digital media used, as well. Students are given instructions on how to access D2L platform and thus, the links. I model how to click on the the links and how they can move through the Sway content in a quick 5-minute mini-presentation.
Lesson One Materials: Mind map, Article, Youtube clips, Gap-fill of Elvis song and full-text handout, Poem - sonnet by Browning handout - then missing text for own poem creation, rubric for poem creation, Youtube video of poem analysis, Punctuation hand-out, Discussion Cards (authentic materials)
https://sway.cloud.microsoft/dM4hnYQzx8amRTv1?ref=Link&loc=play - Lesson One
Lesson Two Materials: Week 2 Handout: Discussion Questions, Blank Chart - Visual/Symbol, Summer Lovin' song gap-fill sheet, Multimodal mind map, Plus Lesson One Handouts
https://sway.cloud.microsoft/tdNnHCtgYOtPxHEC?ref=Link&loc=play - Lesson Two
Lesson Three Materials: Plutchik's Wheel of Emotions and fact sheet, Wheel of Feelings handout, Levelled variation of Greek Myth - Pandora's Box, Venn Diagram, Choice of 3 Essay Options encompassing the unit plus rubric, Find Someone Who A/B (authentic materials), rubric for Find Someone Who
https://sway.cloud.microsoft/JDjcv8gK3E0raeDi?ref=Link&loc=play - Lesson Three
Students have access to these lessons and the materials on the D2L, our school and class' learning platform.
The Lesson Stages in Three Parts
Activities for Instructors
Lesson #1 on Love: Universal themes, Creativity and Multimodality in the English Language Classroom
Link to lesson 1 below to post - You can access digital materials from our lessons on our D2L platform or by clicking on this link.
https://sway.cloud.microsoft/dM4hnYQzx8amRTv1?ref=Link&loc=play
Lesson Aims:
Duration: 3 hours
- Understand the role of symbols and multimodality in learning, and define symbiosis as the interconnected use of multiple modes for creating meaning.
- Develop an analytical approach to intertextuality by identifying and articulating connections between various symbols, text and concepts.
- Enhance comprehension and engagement with academic texts by employing strategies that make complex language interpretable.
- Strengthen effective note-taking practices through the use of visual organizing techniques and semantic mapping - brainstorming, mind-mapping, word families
- Demonstrate the benefits of visual organizers, such as mind maps, and enhance digital literacy through the integration of digital tools.
- Apply comparative and contrastive analysis in writing to critically evaluate similarities and differences between texts.
- Making intercultural connections of pop culture, figurative language, expressions and their meaning in a universal thematic context
- Develop students' presentation skills in English by fostering an academic environment conducive to effective public speaking and discourse.
Below you can see how this learning module's learning outcomes connect with Illinois Community College Board and Adult Learning Standards (known as the ICCB Anchor Standards):
An English Language Learner can …
1. construct meaning from oral presentations and literary and informational text through level-
appropriate listening, reading, and viewing.
2. participate in level-appropriate oral and written exchanges of information, ideas, and analyses, in various social and academic contexts, responding to peer, audience, or
reader comments and questions.
3. speak and write about level-appropriate complex literary and informational texts and topics.
5. conduct research and evaluate and communicate findings to answer questions or solve problems.
8. determine the meaning of words and phrases in oral presentations and literary and informational
text.
10. demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English to communicate
in level-appropriate speech and writing
Do now Activity:
To activate schema and connect to previous lesson about symbols and meaning, have students work individually or in small groups of max 3. You can also have them work individually. These lessons' do now activities are meant to immerse learners into work in English as soon as they arrive to class. Students typically 'trickle' in the first 30 minutes of lessons due to other responsibilities. I encourage an open door policy and to join our learning community even if they come late. We begin going over our do now activities 15 minutes into the designated lesson start time so that all students are learning and those who come in late have the opportunity to see what is on the board and 'catch up' so to speak.
Do now activities are typically 3-5 questions that students can use to connect the last lesson with today's lesson and also make their own personal connections to what was learned and what will be done for the evening's lesson.
Sample do now image below:
1. Look at both images, write down some words or sentences about each.There is no guide for this activity - students will generate their own ideas based on the images. Some will go to google translate in order to generate their higher-level thoughts into English. I allow this.
(Individual then pair-share, then small group-share)
2. Last class we discussed the term MODE or modality on how we create meaning or understanding. What are some different different modes we can learn from? (small-group discussion then whole-group) Look at the visuals we created with AI from last lesson.
Word list we created (great work, everyone!)
Audio, podcasts, audiobooks, clips, instrumental, sounds, voice, recordings, music, songs, images, symbols, logos, letters, font, abbreviations, acronyms, titles, bold, italics, maps, drawings, graphics, visual organizers, charts, articles, news clips, words, lyrics, videos, apps, games, gamification, edutainment, websites, PPT or other presentations, TPR, presentations, class discussion, note-taking, Google or search engines, drawing, facial expressions, gestures, body language
3. What are some ways we can express love?
4. What do you think are good combinations that help YOU create meaning? = SYMBIOTIC
What are some ways you enjoy learning? What ideas help you to be good at remembering ideas?
Create your own combination.
Activities/Timing/Interaction/Skill (Include learning skills focus)
1. Students write their own ideas of what the heart symbols represent to them, share with partner, then small group. (Writing/Speaking/Listening)
2. In the last lesson, we brainstormed a whole-group mind map of sources of input - titled MULTIMODALITY (Speaking)
The images are meant for students to reflect on the content we created together but to act as a reminder that AI is an aid and not a crutch. I will later point out that the actual content is riddled with errors and that the only version created, which is NOT aesthetically pleasing has the correct content. These images are accessible in the student learning platform and as slides on the smart board.
Listed:
Many of the AI-created versions of mind maps from the last lesson were riddled with errors. Only one (noted above) was nicely generated however the font was miniscule. See other versions below:
Students used Canva AI and Miro to generate the visual organizers- notice errors
What we generated on the board together with me scribing in the last lesson.
NOTE: I wrote their ideas on the whiteboard in the last lesson. The students transferred the text ino mindmap creators later in the lesson. See image of all ideas.
Making meaning from symbols and discussing the importance of images and input (Visual input) Teacher-led
Spend about 10 minutes discussing the DO NOW questions as a whole-group activity and point out the errors in the visuals.
Students discussing HOW they learn from the multimodal mind map and creating combinations is a great way to springboard the vocabulary - symbiotic - symbiosis and create word families.
3. Discuss the lesson focus (the running order of the lesson is established - it is written in bullet points on the left side of the white board and the do now is written on the right side)
Have students write new vocabulary - literal/figurative/symbolic/symbiotic (Pronunciation practice - drilling)
and define the universal theme of love. Symbols and modes to represent love. (Speaking) Quick pair-share or small-group share of the do now activities if they were not worked on together then as whole-group discussion. I typically allow students to decide for themselves if they opt to work with a partner or individually. I have already established the routine of students to discuss any questions re vocabulary or grammar with eachother before turning to me.
Create word families with these words and ensure students are familiar with the different parts of speech in order to be able to use them in further discussion and be able to refer to them. Remind students about the importance of taking notes in lessons to be able to go back and review vocab, discussion points and grammar structures. Note: I find that I regularly reiterate the importance of writing down info, Many of my students do not do this if not told to.
4.Ask students to write down one or two idioms/expressions about love and relationships from their native language.
Sts think about figurative and idiomatic expressions about love & relationships in their language and write their own English translation of it into their notebook. (10 minutes work time)
(Writing/Speaking)
Sts independently work on this, share with small-group then whole group.
We discuss the expressions and the teacher writes some examples on the board.
Translate some expressions of love from your culture:
Some responses that were shared from the lesson that can be used as a model template:
Shrimp that falls asleep is carried away by the current
We can cut all the flowers but we can’t stop the spring
My favorite color is seeing you
True love is like the wind – you can’t see it but you can feel it
I talk with my heart on my hands
What you don’t see your heart doesn’t feel (you can see everything but you don’t see the reality)
Follow-up question - How are these idioms and expressions
5. Word family with the word LOVE (Writing/Speaking/Pronunciation/Syntax)
Let students decide for themselves how many words they can derive from this word and the part of speech. This is a scaffolding exercise from previous lessons on word families, parts of speech and giving meaning to words based on context and part of speech.
Write the word LOVE on the board. Allow 5 minutes for work and discussion then elicit answers.
LOVE – what part of speech?
To love – verb
Love – noun
Lovely/loveable – adjective
Lovingly – adverb
This is meant to reinforce the importance of language and meaning. This is recurring with words. Previous lessons on prefix, suffix and their roles in syntax done.
6.Tell students you are going to give them an academic article about love & relationships. We used the handout but students also had access to the digital link if they wanted to read that way. I mentioned this in the lesson. The focus was to skim the text and predict the main idea/gist of the article based on font, heading, subheadings, etc. We did this already with other articles to stress the importance of visual input.
Skim the article and answer this question:
According to this article, how many types of love are there?
How do you know? What changes in the text? Elicit – heading, title, bold words
Students work in pairs or trios and do a jigsaw reading of the article. Each group gets 2 types of love from the text or one with the introduction or the conclusion. Task: Take notes and you will prepare a very short summary of your part of the text.
(Reading/Note-taking/Speaking)
7. Students put into pairs and they read 2 types of love and have to share via presentation
Key terms, main idea of each, give example
Students present – in front of class or at desks
Given prompts:
This part of the text deals with…
The main idea of our text is…
Some key terms are…
I like to include enhancement activities to support rigorous instruction but break content down to digestible chunks. Asking students to create a mini-presentation helps slowly adjust to presenting in an academic setting and using academic language, synthesizing information and making valuable decisions on what they will share from their piece (critical thinking) as well as using language strategies by writing/sharing new vocabulary with their peers.
8. Students present and share key points from their piece of the text and describe the different types of love they read about.
Students write down 3 or more key words from their text. (video clips available) Presenters write key words on white board. This incorporates active listening strategies and note-taking. Students will need this for the next lesson when they will transfer content from the article into a visual aid (chart).
See some model examples of a presentation:
Sts take notes and ask questions. (Speaking/Public speaking/Note-taking/Listening)
9. Word clouds –Handout Word Clouds A and B to different groups of students. Ask students to look at the terms and highlight words they are not familiar with then discuss and share. Try to come up with (they learned this phrasal verb in a previous lesson) as many phrases and expressions you can from these word clouds. Some students may not know what a word cloud is so ensure a brief explanation. Do a concept-check by asking several students to rephrase the task to the whole-group. Answer any questions that might occur and give the students 10 minutes to come up with 10 phrases/terms.
Sts work together to come up with different terms and expressions connected with love or the word love
(Identifying vocabulary in visuals/Critical thinking/Speaking)
In groups,
find 10 terms connected with love and relationships that you know
find 5 terms that you don’t know.
Discuss meanings of expressions and categorize into positive/negative meaning. Pairs/Whole-group on board
Students will share their findings. Hand out the other word cloud to the students. Also point out the word bank of terms that were created by the teacher and we work as a whole group.
See word bank below:
VOCABULARY:
to love, love life, self-love, platonic, lovesick, true love, lovebirds, unrequited love, selfless love, endless love, unconditional love, romantic love, healthy love, unhealthy love, toxic relationship, love is blind, puppy love, love at first sight, a match made in heaven, love with all your heart, to pop the question, to fall in love, to fall out of love, to get butterflies in your stomach, to feel a spark, the flame went out, a flame
of passion, a whirlwind romance, a love triangle, love-struck, a secret admirer, to wear your heart on your sleeve, to break someone's heart, love conquers all, love-hate relationship, a love nest, courtship, love letter, love poem, love song, to cherish, to adore, infatuation, heartache, soulmate, love affair, heartthrob, love potion, to be head over heels, to mend a broken heart, everlasting love, to be smitten, to have a crush, to pining for someone.
(Incorporating review of verb + gerund practice from last lesson)
10. Ask students: Can you think of any love songs from your culture? Discuss
Introduce activity - discuss Elvis (pop culture/the King/iconic) and love songs (Listening/Note-taking)
Can’t help falling in love…
Artist: Elvis (1935 – 1977)
Song – Elvis – Gap-fill Handout 1 -
Sts listen to the song and fill in the missing words.
Play 2x and students fill in the missing words.
Watch Elvis Video first without lyrics on screen then lyrics on screen. Students compare their answers with peer then receive
Handout 2 - Song with complete text. Students check their answers in pairs.
Sing together
Can’t help falling in love…Elvis
______________ men say
Only fools rush ___________________
But I ___________________ help falling in love with you
Shall I ___________________?
Would it be a ____________________
If I can't help falling in love with you?
Like a river _________________
Surely to the ________________
_____________________, so it goes
Some things are meant _______________ be
Take my _____________________
Take my whole life, too
For I can't help falling in love with you
Like a river flows
Surely to the sea
Darling, so it goes
Some things are meant to be
Take my hand
Take my whole life, too
For I can't help ________________ in love with you
For I can't help ______________ in love with you
Sts given full version after 2 listenings to compare their answers.
B.
Can’t help falling in love…Elvis
Wise men say
Only fools rush in
But I can't help falling in love with you
Shall I stay?
Would it be a sin
If I can't help falling in love with you?
Like a river flows
Surely to the sea
Darling, so it goes
Some things are meant to be
Take my hand
Take my whole life, too
For I can't help falling in love with you
Like a river flows
Surely to the sea
Darling, so it goes
Some things are meant to be
Take my hand
Take my whole life, too
For I can't help falling in love with you
For I can't help falling in love with you
11.Talk about different genres on the same theme. Move to POETRY
Read Aloud (Listening/Speaking)
Elizabeth Barrett Browning Sonnet 43 – How Do I Love Thee
Reading for gist - In groups, students discuss three ways the speaker in the poem loves the other person. Then, whole-group discussion.
Elizabeth Barrett Browning
(1806 – 1861)
THEE = YOU = Old English
How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
I love thee to the depth and breadth and height
My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight
For the ends of being and ideal grace.
I love thee to the level of every day’s
Most quiet need, by sun and candle-light.
I love thee freely, as men strive for right.
I love thee purely, as they turn from praise.
I love thee with the passion put to use
In my old griefs, and with my childhood’s faith.
I love thee with a love I seemed to lose
With my lost saints. I love thee with the breath,
Smiles, tears, of all my life; and, if God choose,
I shall but love thee better after death.
Note: THEE means YOU…..Old English
How do I love _______ ? Let me ___________
I love _________ and __________ and __________
My soul can _________________________________
For __________________________________________
I love _______________________ everyday
Most ___________________ by __________ and __________
I love you __________________ as ______________________
I love you ________________, as __________________
I love you with ____________________________
In my _______________________ and with my _____________
I love you with a love I ________________________
With my _________________. I love you with __________
Smiles, tears, of all __________________; and, if God choose,
I will ________________________
Attached is the rubric to support the sonnet writing assignment. Have students work together in groups to break down the rubric in 3 basic steps using sequence words - first, then, and finally. Students also work together to create a question they have about this assignment.
12. Watch a short critical analysis of video clip with British accent. (Viewing/Listening/Academic Language)
Short video of poetic analysis using literary terms.
Link to analysis: Link to Elizabeth Barrett Browning's Sonnet 43 - How Do I Love Thee Analysis
Academic language and literary devices: Vocab: Stanza, line, speaker, theme, romantic
12. Students research one or both of these poetry websites to find a poem they like on the theme of love. Work in Pairs/Trios. Discuss and choose one poem following the theme.
(Digital Literacy/Research)
In writing, explain why they chose it and share on Google Slides.
https://poets.org/ or https://www.poetryfoundation.org/
13. Punctuation Activity to clarify how punctuation is related to context and meaning. Explain the concept of a Dear John letter and what it means, culturally - a break up letter. (Critical thinking/Syntax/Punctuation)
Handout below. Students first given the unedited version. Sts divided into two groups
A. The writer is in love.
B. The writer is NOT in love.
Tell students to work together to punctuate the unpuctuated text based on whether they are in love or no longer in love. Then compare their version with the punctuated version.
Discuss the term: context and tone
Why is punctuation an important aspect of meaning? You may need to quickly review the different forms of punctuation. We used this chart below:
14. Discussion/Communication
Use authentic discussion materials and work in small groups using vocabulary from lesson to discuss relationship and love questions. My Authentic Discussion Cards Discussion Cards on Relationships: See discussion cards. These are cut up and laminated much like a deck of playing cards. Students have the cards turned over then pick up and discuss in small groups. I reiterate to write down any words/expressions that are new to them.
Basic Letter (No Punctuation)
Dear John
I want a man who knows what love is all about you are generous kind thoughtful people who are not like you admit to being useless and inferior you have ruined me for other men I yearn for you I have no feelings whatsoever when we’re apart I can be forever happy will you let me be yours
With Punctuation (Version 1)
With Punctuation (Version 2)
[A person writing on a letter AI-generated content may be incorrect.]
Dear John,
I want a man who knows what love is. All about you are generous, kind, thoughtful people, who are not like you. Admit to being useless and inferior. You have ruined me. For other men I yearn. For you I have no feelings whatsoever.
When we’re apart I can be forever happy. Will you let me be?
Yours,
Gloria
I want a man who knows what love is all about. You are generous, kind, thoughtful. People who are not like you admit to being useless and inferior. You have ruined me for other men. I yearn for you. I have no feelings whatsoever when we’re apart. I can be forever happy. Will you let me be yours?
Gloria
Elements of Rigorous Instruction also used in lesson:
- Use of academic language during presentation and Q&A
- Language strategies - reading and listening for purpose
- Making inferences, predictions and decoding words
- Analyzing pros and cons
- Critical thinking strategies - Synthesizing information from several sources
- Comparing and contrasting ideas
- Categorizing and making connections - intertextualizing
- Read/listen to texts differently depending on the purpose, decoding words, using visuals to aid comprehension, building on prior knowledge
- Using language for critical thinking
ICCB Alignment (Anchor Standards) Used in this Lesson 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8
Assessment - Formative and Summative
Oral presentations
Writing
Gap-fill
Poem production
Exit slip - feedback 3-2-1 (3 words I learned, 2 takeaways, 1 question)
Homework: Work on your own sonnet. Write 3 questions about relationships using the new vocabulary. Find 3 symbols that you think show what we did in this lesson.
Lesson #2 on Love: Universal themes, Creativity and Multimodality in the English Language Classroom
https://sway.cloud.microsoft/tdNnHCtgYOtPxHEC?ref=Link
Lesson Duration: approx 3 hours
Lesson Aims:
- Develop confidence in using expressions related to love and relationships in authentic communicative contexts.
- Apply domain-specific terminology to articulate and evaluate outcomes of activities that promote critical thinking and intellectual risk-taking.
- Enhance note-taking proficiency through the integration of visual representations and the systematic organization of word families.
- Utilize popular culture as a means of activating prior knowledge and fostering intercultural exchange.
- Implement a variety of visual organizers, such as mind maps and Venn diagrams, to support cognitive processing and information synthesis.
- Introduce students to the cognitive and organizational benefits of visual tools to improve comprehension and analytical skills.
Activating Schema: (teacher's focus- Utilizing vocabulary, context and symbols from last lesson)
Do now Activity: (I always put a do now on the board for sts to work on because they trickle in)
1. Can you recall 5 - 8 expressions connected with love and relationships or the article we read?
2. Can you recall 5 - 8 different modes we can use for learning?
3. Are there any movies or books from your country that focus on the idea of love? Are they romance, comedy, tragedy?
4. Write a short summary of the story to share with class.
Activities/Timing/Interaction/Skill (Include learning skills focus)
Students work on the do now questions independently for the first 15 minutes of the lesson. (Recalling/Writing/Making connections)
2. Students discuss their input from the do now questions in pairs or small groups (Speaking)
3. Bring up image of multimodality mind map and show what students created through their input last lesson. Open discussion with prompts like:
What information would you agree with and why? What would you change? What symbiotic methods do you prefer to learn with?
(Speaking)
4. Bring up article on the screen and ask sts to take out their article handout.
ARTICLE Understanding The Different Types Of Love For Different People: From Familial To Romantic Love Medically reviewed by Andrea Brant, LMHC
5. Hand out questions. Give sts 5-7 minutes of wait time to go over the questions. Discuss with team first. If there are any questions that can not be answered within the team, we will answer as a whole-group. (Reading/Speaking/Vocabulary/Listening/Study Skills & Strategies)
Understanding The Different Types Of Love For Different People: From Familial To Romantic Love
What can you remember about the article? In your group, go back to the article and find the answers.
Review questions together
Ludus (Playful Love)
In what stage of a relationship is Ludus most commonly present?
What feelings are often associated with Ludus?
How does Ludus differ from a committed romantic relationship?
How might someone express Ludus in a new romantic interest?
What is one way Ludus love can develop over time?
Eros (Romantic Love)
What Greek god is Eros love named after?
How is Eros different from Ludus in terms of emotional intensity?
Why did the ancient Greeks consider Eros to be dangerous?
What are some characteristics of Eros love?
How might a couple reignite Eros in their relationship?
Pragma (Practical Love)
What type of relationships typically display Pragma love?
Why is Pragma considered an ideal form of romantic love?
What are some key characteristics of Pragma love?
How does Pragma differ from Eros in long-term relationships?
What qualities must be present in a relationship for Pragma to develop?
Storge (Familial Love)
What relationships are typically associated with Storge love?
How does Storge love develop naturally in families?
What is one example of Storge love outside of a biological family?
What strong desire is often associated with Storge love?
How does Storge love contribute to a person’s well-being?
Review questions together
Philia (Brotherly Love)
What kind of relationship does Philia love describe?
How did the Greeks view Philia in terms of equality?
What are some ways Philia love can be nurtured?
How does Philia love compare to Eros?
What are some qualities of a deep friendship based on Philia love?
Philautia (Self-Love)
What is Philautia love?
How does healthy Philautia differ from narcissism?
What are some ways to practice self-love?
Why is Philautia important for mental health?
How can Philautia affect the way a person treats others?
Mania (Obsessive Love)
What are some characteristics of Mania love?
How does Mania love typically manifest in relationships?
What emotional factors might contribute to Mania love?
How does Mania differ from Pragma?
What are some unhealthy behaviors associated with Mania love?
Agape (Unconditional Love)
What is the main characteristic of Agape love?
Why is Agape sometimes called "universal love"?
How can Agape love be shown in everyday life?
Why is Agape love considered selfless?
What are some ways Agape love can impact society?
Brant, Andrea. Understanding the Different Types of Love for Different People: From Familial to Romantic Love. BetterHelp, https://www.betterhelp.com/advice/love/understanding-the-different-types-of-love-for-different-people-in-your-life/. Accessed 2/01/202
6. Students work in pairs or trios and choose 2 or 3 types of love and skim the article to find the answers to the questions handout. (Reading/Note-taking/Speaking) There are many questions but only ask students to discuss the ones find interesting. This activity allows for skimming/scanning strategies and also reintroduces the article into the lesson. Explain to students that we are going to transfer information from text into a visual organizer.
The student version has blanks where the students will work on the parts of the article they read last lesson and fill in the missing information. Give students about 10 minutes to work on this activity. Then go over on the screen and input the rest - discuss.
7. Group discussion about 1 questions from each heading. Then hand out the blank chart. Sts create a visual organizer (chart)
Students work together to fill-in the key vocabulary and bullet points (Critical Thinking/Writing/Vocabulary)
8. View the completed version of chart on the screen. Sts check their own versions.
9. Activate schema - Discuss pop culture and iconic movies/songs/media that influenced our upbringing.
Discuss number 3 from the do now in the lesson and students share their answers to the question in small groups. Encourage students to use new vocabulary and idiomatic expressions.
Whole-class discussion and some key points are mentioned and written on board. Introduce movie Grease. Some might know it already. Sequence the plot in 5 easy sentences.
10. Introduce activity - Summer Lovin' (Listening/Note-taking) Sts listen to song and do the gap-fill exercise. Listen again for missing words or for correction. Compare answers with partner and then compare with the completed text version of lyrics. Students very much enjoyed the song the last time so I decided to introduce Grease and talk about this is pop culture from when I was growing up.
Students fill in the gaps much like the last lesson then we compare with lyrics (new vocab word)
See song below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_J2bcNx3Gw
Summer loving song gap fill - Listen to the song and write the words you hear that are missing into the gaps. Listen again to get the ones you missed or to check your answers. Good luck :).
Lyrics – SUMMER LOVIN’ FROM THE FILM GREASE
Summer lovin', had me a ___________
Summer lovin', happened so fast
I met a girl __________ for me
Met a boy __________ as can be
Summer days drifting away
To uh, oh those summer _____________
Oh well, oh well, oh well oh, uh
Tell me more, tell me more
Did you get very _________ ?
Tell me more, tell me more
Like does he have a car?
She __________ by me, she got a cramp
He ___________ by me, got my suit damp
I saved her life, she nearly ____________
He showed off splashing around
Summer sun, something's begun
But uh, oh those summer nights
Oh well, oh well, oh well oh, uh
Tell me more, tell me more
Was it love at first ___________ ?
Tell me more, tell me more
Did she put up a fight?
Took her bowling in the arcade
We went strolling, _________ lemonade
We made _________ under the dock
We stayed out till ten o'clock
Summer _________ don't mean a thing
But uh, oh those summer nights
Tell me more, tell me more
But you don't gotta ___________
Tell me more, tell me more
'Cause he sounds like a drag
He got friendly __________ my hand
Well, she got friendly down in the sand
He was _________ , just turned eighteen
Well, she was good, you know what I mean
Summer heat, boy and girl meet
But uh, oh those summer nights
Tell me more, tell me more
How much ___________ did he spend?
Tell me more, tell me more
Could she get me a friend?
It turned colder, that's where it __________
So I told her we'd __________ be friends
Then we made our true love vow
Wonder what she's doin' now
Summer dreams ripped at the seams
But, oh, those summer nights
Tell me more, tell me more
Source: Musixmatch
Songwriters: Jim Jacobs / Warren Casey
Summer Nights lyrics © Edwin H. Morris & Co. Inc.
Lyrics
Summer lovin', had me a blast
Summer lovin', happened so fast
I met a girl crazy for me
Met a boy cute as can be
Summer days drifting away
To uh, oh those summer nights
Oh well, oh well, oh well oh, uh
Tell me more, tell me more
Did you get very far?
Tell me more, tell me more
Like does he have a car?
She swam by me, she got a cramp
He ran by me, got my suit damp
I saved her life, she nearly drowned
He showed off splashing around
Summer sun, something's begun
But uh, oh those summer nights
Oh well, oh well, oh well oh, uh
Tell me more, tell me more
Was it love at first sight?
Tell me more, tell me more
Did she put up a fight?
Took her bowling in the arcade
We went strolling, drank lemonade
We made out under the dock
We stayed out till ten o'clock
Summer fling don't mean a thing
But uh, oh those summer nights
Tell me more, tell me more
But you don't gotta brag
Tell me more, tell me more
'Cause he sounds like a drag
He got friendly holding my hand
Well, she got friendly down in the sand
He was sweet, just turned eighteen
Well, she was good, you know what I mean
Summer heat, boy and girl meet
But uh, oh those summer nights
Tell me more, tell me more
How much dough did he spend?
Tell me more, tell me more
Could she get me a friend?
It turned colder, that's where it ends
So I told her we'd still be friends
Then we made our true love vow
Wonder what she's doin' now
Summer dreams ripped at the seams
But, oh, those summer nights
Tell me more, tell me more
Source: Musixmatch
Songwriters: Jim Jacobs / Warren Casey
Summer Nights lyrics © Edwin H. Morris & Co. Inc.
(Listening for comprehension/Vocabulary)
11. Sing song together - (Pronunciation)
12. Communicative discussion using the questions students created. Small-group discussion.
See below:
THEME: LOVE - some student-created questions
Instructions: Find your letter group and discuss the questions with your group. Write down two more questions about the topic.
A. General Questions:
How would you define love in your own words?
Do you think love is the same in all cultures? Why or why not?
Is love more about feelings or actions? Explain your opinion.
Can people choose who they love, or is it something that just happens?
Do you think love changes over time? How?
B. Love in Relationships:
What makes a good friendship? Is friendship a type of love?
What is more important in a romantic relationship—love, trust, or respect? Why?
Do you believe in love at first sight? Why or why not?
How do people show love in different ways? (e.g., words, actions, gifts)
Do you think long-distance relationships can work? Why or why not?
C. Love in Family & Society:
What is the difference between romantic love and family love?
How do parents show love to their children?
Should love be an important factor in marriage, or are other things more important?
Can love exist in a professional environment, such as at work? (e.g., love for a job, respect for colleagues)
How do people in your culture or country express love?
14. Error correction. Teacher writes 10 sentences with errors in each and students have to work in pairs to correct then go up to the board individually and correct them. Students choose which sentence they want to correct - randomly then we go over each sentence one-by-one in whole-group. (Error correction/Grammar/Pronunciation/Critical thinking)
Assessment - Formative and Summative
Comprehension questions
Inter-textualizing
Gap-fill
Transferring information into a visual organizer
Exit slip - feedback 3-2-1 (3 words I learned, 2 takeaways, 1 question)
Homework: Sonnets are due next lesson. Write a paragraph explaining which love you think is most important in your world and why. Give examples. Use 5 new terms or expressions in your writing.
Elements of Rigorous Instruction:
- Use of academic language through text and in structured academic discussions
- Language strategies while reading/listening or interpreting an image or graphic
- Critical thinking: comparing/contrasting, researching options, evaluating options, synthesizing information from multiple sources
- Language gives to elaborate and clarify ideas, supporting ideas, paraphrasing, building on ideas, challenging and synthesizing
- Read and listen
- Comparing and contrasting ideas
- Categorizing and making connections - intertextualizing
ICCB Alignment (Anchor Standards) Used in this Lesson 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8
Lesson #3 on Love: Universal themes, Creativity and Multimodality in the English Language Classroom
https://sway.cloud.microsoft/JDjcv8gK3E0raeDi?ref=Link
Duration: 3 hours
Lesson Aims:
- Develop the ability to engage in intertextual analysis and establish meaningful connections between texts.
- Enhance accessibility and comprehension of academic texts and language through structured reading strategies.
- Strengthen effective note-taking practices using visual representations and the organization of word families to support language acquisition.
- Apply comparative and contrastive writing techniques to critically evaluate texts.
- Analyze the significance of symbols in everyday contexts to deepen interpretative and analytical skills.
- Integrate the use of symbols, contextual analysis, and meaning-making strategies in current and future academic discourse including writing.
Materials: Plutchik's Wheel of Emotions and fact sheet, Wheel of Feelings handout, Levelled variation of Greek Myth - Pandora's Box, Venn Diagram, Find Someone Who A/B
Materials from lesson one and two for reference.
Activating Schema: (teacher's focus- reviewing language and content through context)
Do now Activity:
1. Think about the words happy, sad, angry, surprised, scared, disgust - yes, look it up :). Draw a quick symbol for 3 of the words.
2. Can you recall 5 expressions about love & relationships?
3. What is the difference between a poem, a fairytale and a myth?
4. Are there any popular love stories from your country or that you remember?
Activities/Timing/Interaction/Skill (Include learning skills focus)
1. Students draw symbols to express 3 of the words in the do now. Independent (Critical thinking)
2. Students discuss what symbols they drew with their partner or group and why (pair or small group then whole-group) (Speaking)
3. Discuss how symbols derive through context, culture and content (Listening/Speaking/Critical thinking)
4. Students share answers for do now #2 and ask one another to define the terms. The reason for this is to get sts comfortable about asking questions to peers for more learner autonomy and less student-teacher interaction and more student-student interaction. (Speaking/Listening)
5. Word family with the words EXPRESS, EMOTION, SYMBOL (Writing/Speaking)
Teacher writes the above words on the board and asks students to discuss the meanings with their partner. They they think pair-share and write different variations of the words and if they can, what part of speech they are.
Part of speech then change them express (v) - expression (n), expressive (adj) expressionless (adj) emotion (n) - emotional (adj), emotionally (adv) emote (v), unemotional (adj), symbol (n)- symbolize (v) symbolism (n)
We do this together as whole-group activity
6. Sts take the words from the do now and create their own word families. Remind students of the importance of prefixes and suffixes and how they change meaning and part of speech.
7. Plutchik's Wheel of Emotions Handout/Feelings Handout
Plutchik's Wheel of Emotions
Who is Plutchik and what is a Wheel of Emotions?
Robert Plutchik is a psychologist known for creating the "Wheel of Emotions," a visual representation of emotions that depicts eight primary emotions arranged in pairs of opposites, allowing for the understanding of complex emotions as combinations of these primary feelings; essentially, his wheel shows how emotions can blend and vary in intensity based on their position relative to each other.
When do you think this concept was created? 1980s
What is a feelings wheel?
A feelings wheel is a visual tool that can help you identify and express your emotions. It is typically arranged in the shape of a circle, with different emotions arranged around the circumference. Some common emotions included on a feelings wheel are happy, sad, angry, scared, and excited.
You can use a feelings wheel to help you understand and communicate your emotions. For example, if you are feeling overwhelmed and are having trouble putting your feelings into words, you can use the feelings wheel to identify which emotions you are experiencing.
How will we use the feelings wheel?
Another version is the Feelings Wheel (see below)
A. What words do you know? Circle words you don't know.
B. What words do you think are positive? Negative? What are these words describing? What part of speech are they?
C. Look carefully at both visual diagrams and see if there is a pattern.
Students work pairs to discuss A-C then we share in a whole-group discussion (Speaking/Analyzing/Comparing&Contrasting)
8. Quick-write - story from your childhood about love or relationships and write a 5-sentence summary. (Writing)
Pair -Share your story. Was it a fairytale? Myth? Define both. Cultural significance underpinning fairytales and myths.
Why were they written? Whole group (Speaking/Analyzing)
9. Pandora's Box - Read-aloud. Sts will read a paragraph then ask another student to continue (Reading/Speaking/Listening/Pronunciation)
Sts answer the comprehension questions in small discussion groups. (Reading/Comprehension/Skimming/Discussion)
10. Give same prompts from previous lesson: Sts prepare to share their ideas by taking notes about the text using these sentence starters. (Speaking/Making Connections)
This text deals with…
The main idea of our text is…
Some key points are…
11. Students come up and share the key points from their text and describe the different types of love they read about.
Write down 3 or more key words from their text. (video clips available) Presenters write key words on white board.
Sts take notes and ask questions. (Speaking/Public speaking)
12. Venn Diagram - Students work together to compare 2 texts we worked on together in class and complete a Venn Diagram focusing on 3 for each section.
13. Find Someone Who Activity - Students first work in small groups and go over the content to see if there is any vocabulary they are not familiar with. (Vocabulary)
Students change the phrases into question forms (Grammar) Focus is on correct question forms, changing pronouns and verb tenses
Go over rubric for the Find Someone Who - same routine, students work in small groups to decipher the rubric and break it down into 3-4 basic steps, using sequence words.
Students have their own handout and the rubric is also available to access digitally on the D2L platform.
Teacher facilitates to see all students have written questions and done so, correctly.
14. Mingle activity - students go around and ask the questions. Students must speak to 5 different people and ask a follow-up question. Students can only ask 2 questions max to one student. (Speaking/Listening)
Language reminder from first lesson:
Can you please repeat that? I didn't catch it. I'm sorry, I didn't understand what you said.
Pandora's Box
Pandora's Box - Read-Aloud text
Name ______________________________________
Once upon a time, in the world of Greek mythology, lived a curious woman named Pandora. Pandora was the first woman created by the gods. The mighty Zeus, king of the
gods, had ordered her creation as a gift to mankind. He instructed the gods to endow her with many talents. She was given beauty by Aphrodite, persuasion by Hermes, and curiosity by Hera.
As a wedding gift, Pandora received a beautiful box from the gods. But there was a catch. The box came with a warning: Pandora was told never to open it, no matter what. The box was sealed and only she held the key.
Days turned into weeks and weeks into months. Pandora lived a happy life, but she could not ignore the box. Her curiosity, gifted by Hera, got the better of her.
She began to wonder, "Why was I given a box if I wasn't allowed to open it?
What could be so terrible inside?"
One day, Pandora could no longer resist. She took out the key and turned it in the lock. As soon as the box creaked open, things began to fly out, things that she had never seen before. They were not nice things; they were miseries like illness, poverty, jealousy, hate, and all the evils of the world. Pandora was horrified. She tried to close the box, but it was too late. All the evils had already escaped into the world.
In her fear and regret, Pandora didn't notice that one tiny thing was still left inside the box. It was Hope. Zeus had packed it in the box to help humans endure all the bad things that could now come their way. As Pandora noticed Hope, she let it fly out into the world, giving us the courage to keep going, even when times get tough.
This story teaches us that, even when everything seems wrong, there is always Hope. It is a gift from the gods, ready to help us face any hardship that comes our way.
Reading Questions to Answer:
Who was Pandora and why was she created?
What was the gift Pandora received when she got married?
Why did Pandora decide to open the box?
What flew out from the box when Pandora opened it?
What was the last thing that came out of the box, and what is its significance? How can this be helpful?
Discuss - Did you know that a dragonfly symbolizes hope?
Hope images
Hope was in Pandora's Box among all the terrible things that flew out...
Connecting "Pandora’s Box" with Love
16. The myth of Pandora’s Box can be connected to love in several ways. Love, like curiosity, can be both a gift and a challenge. Just as Pandora’s curiosity led her to open the forbidden box, love often involves taking risks—opening ourselves up to emotions, both joyful and painful. The evils that escaped from the box, such as jealousy and hate, are emotions that can affect relationships. However, the presence of Hope in the box suggests that, despite the hardships love may bring, hope sustains us and allows love to endure.
Discussion Questions (Connecting the Story to Love)
How does Pandora’s curiosity compare to the risks people take when falling in love?
What emotions that escaped from the box could be seen as challenges in relationships?
Why do you think Zeus included Hope in the box? How does hope play a role in love and relationships?
Do you think love is more about curiosity, like Pandora’s, or trust? Why?
If love were placed inside Pandora’s Box, what do you think would happen when it was released into the world?
17. VENN DIAGRAM
18. Students get the essay questions. Read together and choose which one they might want to answer. Go over any questions prior to end of class.
Essay Questions - Critical thinking
1. Taking Risks in Love Pandora’s curiosity led her to open the box, just as people take risks when falling in love. Describe a time when you took a risk in a relationship (friendship, family, or romantic love). What was the outcome? How did you feel before and after?
2. Love and Challenges When Pandora opened the box, many troubles escaped, but Hope remained. In love and relationships, people face challenges like jealousy, misunderstandings, or distance. What are some common problems in relationships? How can people use hope and communication to solve these problems?
3. The Meaning of Love and Hope In the myth, Hope was the last thing in the box, showing that even in hard times, people can find strength. What does love mean to you? How does hope help people stay strong in love and relationships? Give an example from your life or from a story you know.
Go over the rubric with the students for the essay. Students work in small groups and then paraphrase the rubric in 3-4 basic sentences. They write down one question they either still have or they can ask another group to facilitate concept-checking.
Attached is also a sample essay that you can show students if you choose to. This was done by a previous student.
Find Someone Who_Love_ Learning Module_A
Directions: Change the statements into questions. Go around the room and ask each other questions. Write the name of the student into the space. Students can also ask follow-up questions to find out more and use more vocabulary.
Find someone who…
1. can tell you what modes of learning they prefer _________________
2. can define the meaning of literal and figurative ___________________
3. is able to tell you why punctuation is important _________________
4. knows who Zeus is in Greek mythology ___________________
5. remembers 4 different genres we studied _________________
6. can share 2 words that have love in them __________________
Directions: Change the statements into questions. Go around the room and ask each other questions. Write the name of the student into the space. Students can also ask follow-up questions to find out more and use more vocabulary.
Find someone who…
1. can tell you 3 types of visual organizers ___________________
2. knows the difference between context and content __________________
3. remembers 2 idioms or expressions about love ___________________
4. knows 3 things that were in Pandora’s Box _________________
5. recall 3 different types of love from the article ___________________
Find Someone Who_Love_ Learning Module_B
Directions: Change the statements into questions. Go around the room and ask each other questions. Write the name of the student into the space. Students can also ask follow-up questions to find out more and use more vocabulary.
Find someone who…
1. can explain what Plutchik’s Wheel is about _________________
2. enjoys drawing images/symbols when taking notes ___________________
3. knows who Elvis is and where he lived _________________
4. remembers the difference between line and stanza ___________________
5. enjoys reading poetry _________________
Change the statements into questions. Go around the room and ask each other questions. Write the name of the student into the space. Students can also ask follow-up questions to find out more and use more vocabulary.
Find someone who…
1. can share 3 things they remember from this unit on love _________________
2. uses visual organizers when they take notes ___________________
3. likes watching romantic movies ___________________
4. knows what movie the song Summer Lovin’ is from _________________
5. can explain the difference between gesture and expression _____________
6. can tell you what they are good at ___________________
Essay Questions - Critical thinking
Taking Risks in Love Pandora’s curiosity led her to open the box, just as people take risks when falling in love. Describe a time when you took a risk in a relationship (friendship, family, or romantic love). What was the outcome? How did you feel before and after?
Love and Challenges When Pandora opened the box, many troubles escaped, but Hope remained. In love and relationships, people face challenges like jealousy, misunderstandings, or distance. What are some common problems in relationships? How can people use hope and communication to solve these problems?
The Meaning of Love and Hope In the myth, Hope was the last thing in the box, showing that even in hard times, people can find strength. What does love mean to you? How does hope help people stay strong in love and relationships? Give an example from your life or from a story you know.
18. 10 sentences with common errors on the board. Students have to find the errors and correct them. Teacher tells students these are the common errors noted during the mingle activity. Students note these in their notebooks for future reference. (Error correction)
Assessment - Formative and Summative
Find Someone Who
Essay Writing
Online Quiz
Exit slip: Choose 2 questions and answer
How can you connect today's lesson to real life?
What was the most interesting thing you learned today?
What is something you want to practice more?
Have you learned any new words to describe emotions or feelings?
Homework: Complete your essay.
This essay assignment is summative assessment and culminating activity where students can share what they learned by writing about all of the ideas that we discovered in the previous lessons.
ICCB Alignment (Anchor Standards) Used in this Lesson 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8
ESL Standards Proficient Instructor Training, Illinois Community College Board and Adult Learning Resource Center
Elements of Rigorous Instruction:
- Use of academic language through text and in structured academic discussions
- Language strategies while reading/listening or interpreting an image or graphic
- Critical thinking strategies: researching options, analyzing pros & cons, synthesizing information from multiple sources
- Using language skills to elaborate and clarify ideas, support ideas, paraphrase ideas, build on another's opinion, synthesize conversations
- Making inferences and predictions
- Decoding words: use knowledge of word parts to guess word meanings
- Using the language of critical thinking
Follow-up lesson(s) ideas:
Utilize technology to create a visual organizer, such as a Wheel of Emotions or Feelings Wheel, to categorize and analyze word variations, including word families, word clouds, and lexical patterns.
Develop a short documentary video project that critically explores the universal concept of love, integrating key themes and perspectives discussed in the lesson.
Activities for Students
Lesson #1 on Love: Universal themes, Creativity and Multimodality in the English Language Classroom
Link to lesson 1 below to post - You can access all the digital materials from our lessons on our D2L platform or by clicking on this link. We also have extra copies of our materials pack if you need or want.
https://sway.cloud.microsoft/dM4hnYQzx8amRTv1?ref=Link&loc=play
Lesson Learning Aims:
- To better understand how symbols, images help us connect ideas and meaning.
- To learn new vocabulary to better explain how we make connections with different media to communicate and make meaning.
- To learn new vocabulary for relationships and present these terms to our peers.
- To find connections between an article, images, a song, a poem and give deeper meaning to the universal theme of love.
- To use skimming/scanning techniques to find the main idea of a text.
-
To practice speaking in English in front of others in a clear and confident way.
Learn how to give good presentations in an academic setting. - To improve note-taking skills from presentations.
- To find content and information from other sources of media such as visual organizers (mind maps, word cloud, brainstorming) and organize ideas using visuals.
- Using digital tools to create information and to find information.
- To explain the difference between compare and contrast. Then compare and contrast different texts.
- To explore Pop Culture and new idioms/expressions about love & relationships.
Below you can see how this learning module's outcomes connect with Illinois Community College Board and Adult Learning Standards (known as the ICCB Anchor Standards. This is a breakdown of what you are learning in connection with what the state of Illinois wants you to learn:
An English Language Learner can …
Listening & Reading Comprehension
• (1) Understand ideas from spoken and written texts (recapping key points, discussing challenges).
(8) Find the meaning of words and phrases in discussions.
Speaking & Writing
• (2) Share ideas and respond to questions in discussions (discussing challenges and learning outcomes).
• (3) Speak and write about a complex topic (reflecting on learning and project work).
Critical Thinking & Research
• (4) Give reasons and examples to support ideas (discussing learning outcomes and challenges).
• (5) Find information and explain it clearly (connecting bullet points to learning outcomes).
• (10) Use correct grammar and sentence structure in writing and speaking (homework writing task).
Do now Activity: (work independently or with a partner)
1. Look at both images, write down some words or sentences about each.There is no guide for this activity. Be creative - there is no right or wrong answer :)
2. Last class we discussed the term MODE or modality on how we create meaning or understanding. What are some different different modes we can learn from? (small-group discussion then whole-group) Look at the visuals we created with AI from last lesson.
Word list we created (great work, everyone!)
Audio, podcasts, audiobooks, clips, instrumental, sounds, voice, recordings, music, songs, images, symbols, logos, letters, font, abbreviations, acronyms, titles, bold, italics, maps, drawings, graphics, visual organizers, charts, articles, news clips, words, lyrics, videos, apps, games, gamification, edutainment, websites, PPT or other presentations, TPR, presentations, class discussion, note-taking, Google or search engines, drawing, facial expressions, gestures, body language
Have a look and discuss which ones you find interesting and why. Is there anything wrong with the content? We will see more later in the lesson.
3. What are some ways we can express love?
4. What do you think are good combinations that help YOU create meaning? = SYMBIOTIC
What are some ways you enjoy learning? What ideas help you to be good at remembering ideas? Create your own combination(s).
Let's begin....shall we?
Last lesson we focused on different types of media and text, or multimodality. Today we are going to add to this and analyze how symbols also create meaning. We will work with our mind maps, another visual organizer called a word cloud, a song, a poem and an academic article. We will break all of these down and then find connections between them. You will learn new idioms and expressions about love and relationships, which is today's focus.
1. What can we share about the two different heart symbols?
2. Let's write down these new words into our notebooks.
Literal, Figurative, Symbol, Symbiotic - Talk to your partner and think about their meaning. Look up the definition on your phone too if you prefer doing that and also look up what the part of speech is.
3. What have you found out?
What are some learning patterns that you use?
vocabulary - symbiotic - symbiosis and create word families for literal, figurative, symbol
literal/figurative/symbolic/symbiotic (Pronunciation practice - drilling)
4.Think about and translate an expression or popular quote about love and relationships from your culture/language.
Tell your partner then explain it to the whole class. (10 minutes work time)
(Writing/Speaking)
Here are some examples you shared.
Shrimp that falls asleep is carried away by the current
We can cut all the flowers but we can’t stop the spring
My favorite color is seeing you
True love is like the wind – you can’t see it but you can feel it
I talk with my heart on my hands
What you don’t see your heart doesn’t feel (you can see everything but you don’t see the reality)
Nicely done.
5. LOVE (Writing/Speaking/Pronunciation/Syntax)
What part of speech is this? How many other words can you create from this 4-letter word?
5 minutes for work and then discuss with a partner before sharing.
LOVE – what part of speech?
To love – verb
Love – noun
Lovely/loveable – adjective
Lovingly – adverb
6. Now we are going critically analyze an article which defines love into categories.
Skim the article and answer this question:
Look at the text.
According to this article, how many types of love are there?
How do you know? What changes in the text? Elicit – Title, subheading, bold words, italics
Article download -
Understanding The Different Types Of Love For Different People: From Familial To Romantic Love Medically reviewed by Andrea Brant, LMHC (digital version)
We are going to do a jig saw reading, which means that, in pairs, you are going to read a smaller piece of the text. You and your partner are going to analyze what you feel is most important and summarize the key points.
a. Take notes and summarize your section in your own words.
b. Define 3 terms that you extracted from the text.
c. Prepare a short presentation (in front of the class or from your seat) and explain the info to your peers.
d. In your presentation, use some phrases like these:
Given prompts:
This part of the text deals with…
The main idea of our text is…
Some key terms are…
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Active listening task
We will listen to our peers share key points from the text. When they are presenting, you will:
a. Take notes of the key definitions
b. Summarize their information in a mind map.
c. Write a question about what they are explaining.
(Reading/Note-taking/Speaking)
Here are two examples:
7. Now that we have synthesized the information and have analyzed what the Greeks believe about 8 different categories of love, let's expand our vocabulary with some idioms and expressions connected with relationships.
You are going to change your work partner and we are going to look at a word cloud. We have 2 different versions with different words/expressions in each. You and your partner will analyze the information and then extract 10 phrases or terms from the handout. The left side of the room will receive word cloud 1 and the right side will receive word cloud 2. I will give you 10-15 minutes to do this activity.
____________, can you please rephrase what the instructions for this activity are?
8. Here are your word clouds.
(Identifying vocabulary in visuals/Critical thinking/Speaking)
I will come around to you and help with whatever you need. Remember, you can refer to your article to find some phrases and compare.
9. Let's share what we found. Each group will share 3 terms and we will categorize them for meaning. Ask yourself, is this a negative term or a positive?
We will create a T-Chart on the board and add to it. (Vocabulary building/connecting meaning/intertextuality)
10. Here is a list of all the terms that I found in the word clouds. Work with your partner and take 5-10 minutes to look at the terms and expressions. Circle or highlight the one that you are NOT familiar with.
See word bank below:
VOCABULARY:
to love, love life, self-love, platonic, lovesick, true love, lovebirds, unrequited love, selfless love, endless love, unconditional love, romantic love, healthy love, unhealthy love, toxic relationship, love is blind, puppy love, love at first sight, a match made in heaven, love with all your heart, to pop the question, to fall in love, to fall out of love, to get butterflies in your stomach, to feel a spark, the flame went out, a flame
of passion, a whirlwind romance, a love triangle, love-struck, a secret admirer, to wear your heart on your sleeve, to break someone's heart, love conquers all, love-hate relationship, a love nest, courtship, love letter, love poem, love song, to cherish, to adore, infatuation, heartache, soulmate, love affair, heartthrob, love potion, to be head over heels, to mend a broken heart, everlasting love, to be smitten, to have a crush, to pining for someone.
(Incorporating review of verb + gerund practice from last lesson)
11. Ask students: Can you think of any love songs from your culture? Discuss
Introduce activity - discuss Elvis (pop culture/the King/iconic) and love songs (Listening/Note-taking) Do you know this face? Can you write a short bio using the following terms:
Elvis, the King, poor, Graceland, crooner, Graceland, Priscilla, Rock-and-roll, iconic, handsome, tragic.
Remember to check your verbs for past tense!
Can’t help falling in love…
Artist: Elvis (1935 – 1977)
Song – Elvis – Gap-fill Handout 1 -
12. I will play the video three times. The first time you can just listen or you can try filling in the missing words. The second time, fill in the missing words and/or check the text you have written.
Do you know this song? Discuss.
Let's listen to the song again.
Now, compare your answers. Do you have the same words? Which lyrics were difficult to hear?
Now, check the lyrics with all of the words. You can listen and read the subtitles of the lyrics or you can read the lyrics on the handout. Which words did you get wrong?
Look through the lyrics and find expressions connected with love.
Sing together
Text below:
Can’t help falling in love…Elvis
______________ men say
Only fools rush ___________________
But I ___________________ help falling in love with you
Shall I ___________________?
Would it be a ____________________
If I can't help falling in love with you?
Like a river _________________
Surely to the ________________
_____________________, so it goes
Some things are meant _______________ be
Take my _____________________
Take my whole life, too
For I can't help falling in love with you
Like a river flows
Surely to the sea
Darling, so it goes
Some things are meant to be
Take my hand
Take my whole life, too
For I can't help ________________ in love with you
For I can't help ______________ in love with you
Sts given full version after 2 listenings to compare their answers.
B.
Can’t help falling in love…Elvis
Wise men say
Only fools rush in
But I can't help falling in love with you
Shall I stay?
Would it be a sin
If I can't help falling in love with you?
Like a river flows
Surely to the sea
Darling, so it goes
Some things are meant to be
Take my hand
Take my whole life, too
For I can't help falling in love with you
Like a river flows
Surely to the sea
Darling, so it goes
Some things are meant to be
Take my hand
Take my whole life, too
For I can't help falling in love with you
For I can't help falling in love with you
13. Next, I want us to look at the lyrics in a different way. How are songs like poems?
Do you see any literary devices (go back to your notes from our poetry lesson) and see if you can find any language connected with making writing more descriptive.
Here are some hints: a) M - T- PH_R, b) S_MI_L_
Yes, metaphor and similar. Who can remind us what these terms mean and what the difference between them is. Let's compare and contrast.
14. We are going to look at a poem with the same theme. It is a sonnet, which is a typical style of poetry writing from a long time ago.Before we talk about sonnets, who can tell me how poems are structured? Do we use the term sentences in poems?
Correct. Poems have STANZAS - consider it like a paragraph and LINES - consider it like a sentence. Remember to write this down if you did not during our poetry lesson.
Does anyone know how we read poetry? We stop after every line and take a breath, or pause, as if we would read a sentence. Just read slowly and end at each line.
Sonnets have a specific number of lines and a rhyme pattern. That is the way they wrote poems a long time ago. They also spoke Old English which was a bit more formal than today.
All you have to know about that for now is how to understand the title. Let's look together at the title. What is the title of this poem?
Sonnet 43 – How Do I Love Thee?
I'm going to make this simple, what is at the end of this title? Yes, a question mark. This poem will answer the question in the title. What is that question? THEE....is an Old English way of saying you. Look at the handout.
One more thing before we read this together. Who is the poet? Let's look at the marker. When was she born? When did she die? How old was she when she died?
I need you to remember that the poet, or the writer of the poem is not always the voice in the poem. The voice in the poem is called the SPEAKER. Can you repeat that? Speaker.
Elizabeth Barrett Browning
15. Let's now read it together. Who wants to give it a try? Remember, slow, loud and proud :)
The rest of us will listen and read for gist - Let's predict what this poem will be about based on the title.
Elizabeth Barrett Browning
(1806 – 1861)
THEE = YOU = Old English
How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
I love thee to the depth and breadth and height
My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight
For the ends of being and ideal grace.
I love thee to the level of every day’s
Most quiet need, by sun and candle-light.
I love thee freely, as men strive for right.
I love thee purely, as they turn from praise.
I love thee with the passion put to use
In my old griefs, and with my childhood’s faith.
I love thee with a love I seemed to lose
With my lost saints. I love thee with the breath,
Smiles, tears, of all my life; and, if God choose,
I shall but love thee better after death.
Note: THEE means YOU…..Old English
16. In groups, students discuss three ways the speaker in the poem loves the other person. Then, we will discuss as a whole-group. Write down your ideas.
17. Let's watch a short critical analysis of video clip with British accent. (Viewing/Listening/Academic Language)
Short video of poetic analysis using literary terms.
Academic language and literary devices: Vocab: Stanza, line, speaker, theme, romantic
What accent did you hear from this speaker? Yes, British. Do you prefer an American English accent or British? Are there any other different types of accents in English?
US, British, Australian, New Zealand, South African....
18. With your group, you are going to use the computers to do some research. I am going to give you the links to two websites specifically dedicated to poetry. I love them. I want you to do the following:
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/
a) Check out each website. Choose the one you feel more comfortable using.
b) Find the search bar. Let me know when you do and I will continue.
c) What themes are we working with? Love, relationships...Now, type the key word into the seach bar. What happens?
d) Search through some of these poems, open them up and read 3. Choose one you like the best and I want you to write down the poet and the name of the poem. We are going to create a google slide with the different poems that we chose.
e) I will give you and your group 15 minutes to do this. What are you supposed to do? (CCQ)
f) Ask another group first if you have specific questions, then ask me if no one else can help you.
g) In writing, explain why you chose it and share this on Google Slides.
(Digital Literacy/Research)
19. Look at the poem again and now focus on the punctuation. What punctuation do you see? Can we remember the different types? (note: full stop is British English for period)
I want to focus on these:
Period, exclamation mark, question mark, colon. What are they for?
(Critical thinking/Syntax/Punctuation)
20. Look at this letter handout. See below:
Dear John
I want a man who knows what love is all about you are generous kind thoughtful people who are not like you admit to being useless and inferior you have ruined me for other men I yearn for you I have no feelings whatsoever when we’re apart I can be forever happy will you let me be yours
THERE IS NO PUNCTUATION
21. You are going to punctuate this text based on A or B. The left side of the class is A and the right side of the class is B.
A. The writer is in love. (A love letter)
B. The writer is NOT in love. (A Dear John letter)
I will explain the two. I don't think I need to explain A :)
________, can you tell me what you are going to do? Work together to punctuate the unpuctuated text based on whether you are in love (A) or no longer in love (B) and want to break up. Then let's compare their version with the punctuated version.
Discuss the term: context and tone
Why is punctuation an important aspect of meaning? Punctuation changes the TONE and CONTEXT of writing. This will change the MEANING. Let's talk about these.
A)
I want a man who knows what love is all about. You are generous, kind, thoughtful. People who are not like you admit to being useless and inferior. You have ruined me for other men. I yearn for you. I have no feelings whatsoever when we’re apart. I can be forever happy. Will you let me be yours?
Gloria
B
Dear John,
I want a man who knows what love is. All about you are generous, kind, thoughtful people, who are not like you. Admit to being useless and inferior. You have ruined me. For other men I yearn. For you I have no feelings whatsoever.
When we’re apart I can be forever happy. Will you let me be?
Yours,
Gloria
Let's add these terms into your notebook and also keep the punctuation handout as a reference. Write definitions of each in your own words - paraphrase.
22. Now that you have all of this information in your knowledge bag, let's take a look at the version of the poem with the blank lines. Why do you think they are blank?
How do I love _______ ? Let me ___________
I love _________ and __________ and __________
My soul can _________________________________
For __________________________________________
I love _______________________ everyday
Most ___________________ by __________ and __________
I love you __________________ as ______________________
I love you ________________, as __________________
I love you with ____________________________
In my _______________________ and with my _____________
I love you with a love I ________________________
With my _________________. I love you with __________
Smiles, tears, of all __________________; and, if God choose,
I will ________________________
For your homework, I want you to think creatively and you will write your own version of this poem. You will have a week to do it. Look at the websites we researched to give you inspiration and ideas.
Below is slide of the rubric to help guide your when you are writing your sonnet outside of class. You can also find this rubric in our D2L platform. We have used rubrics before so have a look, discuss with your group what you have to do in order to get a smiley emoji. With your group, break down the task in 3 easy steps. Then think of one question you still have or one question you want to ask the other groups to make sure they understand the task.
23. Let's use all of the ideas and vocabulary we worked with today and discuss love and relationships using these question cards.
Discussion/Communication
These are cut up and laminated much like a deck of playing cards. You will have the cards turned over then pick up and discuss in small groups. Make sure to ask if you are not sure about a word or an expression. We are here to learn from each other.
Relationship discussion cards
24. Exit slip - feedback 3-2-1 (3 words I learned, 2 takeaways, 1 question)
What did we do today. Let's check the boxes of the learning aims. Did we cover these? Discuss with your partners then do your exit slip.
25. Homework: Work on your own sonnet. Write 3 questions about relationships using the new vocabulary. Draw 3 symbols that you think show what we did in this lesson.
Assessment - Formative and Summative
Oral presentations
Writing
Gap-fill
Poem production
Exit slip - feedback 3-2-1 (3 words I learned, 2 takeaways, 1 question)
Elements of Rigorous Instruction also used in lesson:
- Use of academic language during presentation and Q&A
- Language strategies - reading and listening for purpose
- Making inferences, predictions and decoding words
- Analyzing pros and cons
- Critical thinking strategies - Synthesizing information from several sources
- Comparing and contrasting ideas
- Categorizing and making connections - intertextualizing
- Read/listen to texts differently depending on the purpose, decoding words, using visuals to aid comprehension, building on prior knowledge
- Using language for critical thinking
ICCB Alignment (Anchor Standards) Used in this Lesson 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8
Our learning aims from the beginning of the lesson are easy to understand. Take a look at the Illinois Sstandards of Learning that we are doing. Great work!
Lesson #2 on Love: Universal themes, Creativity and Multimodality in the English Language Classroom
Link to lesson 2 below to post - You can access all the digital materials from our lessons on our D2L platform or by clicking on this link. We also have extra copies of our materials pack if you need or want.
https://sway.cloud.microsoft/tdNnHCtgYOtPxHEC?ref=Link
Lesson Learning Aims:
- To use Love and relationship vocabulary with more confidence in conversations.
- To talk about ideas and opinions using words connected to critical thinking.
- To use pictures and word groups (word families) to organize notes and remember new words.
- To use pop pulture to connect and discuss different cultures.
- To talk about movies, music, and famous people and share ideas about pop culture.
- To better use tools like mind maps and Venn diagrams to compare and organize ideas.
- To be able to explain how pictures, diagrams, and charts help us understand and explain information better.
Do now Activity:
1. Can you recall 5 - 8 expressions or symbols connected with love and relationships and/or the article we read?
2. Can you recall 5 - 8 different modes we can use for learning?
3. Are there any popular movies or books from your country that focus on the idea of love? Are they romance, comedy, tragedy?
4. Write a short summary of the story to share with class.
(Recalling/Writing/Making connections)
1. Today we are going to focus on the learning aims above. We will work on using the expressions we learned last lesson in discussion. We will also work with intertextual evidence (let's break this word down) and see how we can transfer information into a visual organizer.
Let's go over the do now questions...first paraphrase your answers to the do now in smaller groups or with a partner before we share as a whole group. Your partner will share what your partners told you with us :).
2. Let's look closer at the multimodality mind map and show what students created through their input last lesson.
What information would you agree with and why? What would you change? What symbiotic methods do you prefer to learn with? Have we missed any?
Write down 2 things you have learned about multimodality and learning.
(Writing/Speaking)
3. Now, let's look at the article we read and shared the other lesson. It's up on the screen but you also have your hard copy if you want to annotate (write comments and notes on it).
ARTICLE Understanding The Different Types Of Love For Different People: From Familial To Romantic Love Medically reviewed by Andrea Brant, LMHC
Tell your partner what you remember about this article from the last lesson.
4. On the screen you can see comprehension questions about this reading that we did. (Reading/Speaking/Vocabulary/Listening/Study Skills & Strategies)
What can you remember about the article? In your group, go back to the article and find the answers. Choose 5 questions from this list and discuss with your group.
Ludus (Playful Love)
In what stage of a relationship is Ludus most commonly present?
What feelings are often associated with Ludus?
How does Ludus differ from a committed romantic relationship?
How might someone express Ludus in a new romantic interest?
What is one way Ludus love can develop over time?
Eros (Romantic Love)
What Greek god is Eros love named after?
How is Eros different from Ludus in terms of emotional intensity?
Why did the ancient Greeks consider Eros to be dangerous?
What are some characteristics of Eros love?
How might a couple reignite Eros in their relationship?
Pragma (Practical Love)
What type of relationships typically display Pragma love?
Why is Pragma considered an ideal form of romantic love?
What are some key characteristics of Pragma love?
How does Pragma differ from Eros in long-term relationships?
What qualities must be present in a relationship for Pragma to develop?
Storge (Familial Love)
What relationships are typically associated with Storge love?
How does Storge love develop naturally in families?
What is one example of Storge love outside of a biological family?
What strong desire is often associated with Storge love?
How does Storge love contribute to a person’s well-being?
Review questions together
Philia (Brotherly Love)
What kind of relationship does Philia love describe?
How did the Greeks view Philia in terms of equality?
What are some ways Philia love can be nurtured?
How does Philia love compare to Eros?
What are some qualities of a deep friendship based on Philia love?
Philautia (Self-Love)
What is Philautia love?
How does healthy Philautia differ from narcissism?
What are some ways to practice self-love?
Why is Philautia important for mental health?
How can Philautia affect the way a person treats others?
Mania (Obsessive Love)
What are some characteristics of Mania love?
How does Mania love typically manifest in relationships?
What emotional factors might contribute to Mania love?
How does Mania differ from Pragma?
What are some unhealthy behaviors associated with Mania love?
Agape (Unconditional Love)
What is the main characteristic of Agape love?
Why is Agape sometimes called "universal love"?
How can Agape love be shown in everyday life?
Why is Agape love considered selfless?
What are some ways Agape love can impact society?
Source: Brant, Andrea. Understanding the Different Types of Love for Different People: From Familial to Romantic Love. BetterHelp, https://www.betterhelp.com/advice/love/understanding-the-different-types-of-love-for-different-people-in-your-life/. Accessed 2/01/202
Let's share our findings.
5. What I would like to work on today is transferring information from one text to another. We are going to make connections between our texts from last lesson and other types of texts today. This is called INTERTEXTUALITY.
How are visual organizers helpful? Let's compare visual organizers to longer texts, like the article we read. What I want us to do now is take a look at this text.
With your group, I want you to focus ONLY on the categories of love that you worked with the other day. Go back to the article and choose the words that would fit the missing information. You can also use your own terms as long as they are correct.
What I want you to focus your attention on is that last column. With your group I would like you to create a symbol for each of the categories and draw your idea in the box. Be ready to discuss which symbols your group chose and WHY?
Work together to fill-in the key vocabulary and bullet points (Critical Thinking/Writing/Vocabulary)
How many symbols will your group draw altogether? Great - 8.
______, can you please tell us what I want you to do?
I will give you and your group about 15-20 minutes for this exercise. If you finish, create some discussion questions about this article like the ones we talked about in the last lesson.
6. Which text did you find easier to work with? Why? I will show the slide with the completed chart AND give you the hanout. I would like you to compare the answers your group wrote to the answers on this chart. How are they similar/different?
7. Let's go back to question 3 from the do now. What was an iconic film or song from your teenage years in your country? Let's discuss POPULAR CULTURE or otherwise known as POP CULTURE. Share a quick summary first with your partner, then we will share a couple together with the class.
8.Was Grease a popular film or movie where you lived? For me it was a really big film that was a 'coming of age' type of film. The setting of the film was around the era of Elvis but it was actually produced later than the 1950s which was the setting (time/place) in the film.
What do you know about John Travolta or Olivia Newton John?
9. You did such a great job singing in the last lesson, I thought I might bring another song in today. What I want you to also focus on while we do the gap-fill while watching the video are the cars and fashion.
Who can tell us the steps of the gap-fill we did yesterday?
I want you to look at the lyrics of the text and with your partner, think about what word MIGHT fit in the gap.
10. Introduce activity - Summer Lovin' (Listening/Note-taking) Sts listen to song and do the gap-fill exercise. Listen again for missing words or for correction. Compare answers with partner and then compare with the completed text version of lyrics. Students very much enjoyed the song the last time so I decided to introduce Grease and talk about this is pop culture from when I was growing up.
Students fill in the gaps much like the last lesson then we compare with lyrics (new vocab word)
See song below:
Grease - An iconic movie about love - POP CULTURE = Popular Culture
Summer loving song gap fill - Listen to the song and write the words you hear that are missing into the gaps. Listen again to get the ones you missed or to check your answers. Good luck :).
Lyrics – SUMMER LOVIN’ FROM THE FILM GREASE
Summer lovin', had me a ___________
Summer lovin', happened so fast
I met a girl __________ for me
Met a boy __________ as can be
Summer days drifting away
To uh, oh those summer _____________
Oh well, oh well, oh well oh, uh
Tell me more, tell me more
Did you get very _________ ?
Tell me more, tell me more
Like does he have a car?
She __________ by me, she got a cramp
He ___________ by me, got my suit damp
I saved her life, she nearly ____________
He showed off splashing around
Summer sun, something's begun
But uh, oh those summer nights
Oh well, oh well, oh well oh, uh
Tell me more, tell me more
Was it love at first ___________ ?
Tell me more, tell me more
Did she put up a fight?
Took her bowling in the arcade
We went strolling, _________ lemonade
We made _________ under the dock
We stayed out till ten o'clock
Summer _________ don't mean a thing
But uh, oh those summer nights
Tell me more, tell me more
But you don't gotta ___________
Tell me more, tell me more
'Cause he sounds like a drag
He got friendly __________ my hand
Well, she got friendly down in the sand
He was _________ , just turned eighteen
Well, she was good, you know what I mean
Summer heat, boy and girl meet
But uh, oh those summer nights
Tell me more, tell me more
How much ___________ did he spend?
Tell me more, tell me more
Could she get me a friend?
It turned colder, that's where it __________
So I told her we'd __________ be friends
Then we made our true love vow
Wonder what she's doin' now
Summer dreams ripped at the seams
But, oh, those summer nights
Tell me more, tell me more
Source: Musixmatch
Songwriters: Jim Jacobs / Warren Casey
Summer Nights lyrics © Edwin H. Morris & Co. Inc.
Compare your answers with your partner. Highlight any words/phrases you are not sure about. If you partner does not know, we will go over as a whole-group.
Here are the complete set of lyrics. Compare what you wrote with the words. How many did you get right? Wrong?
Are you ready to sing?
Lyrics
Summer lovin', had me a blast
Summer lovin', happened so fast
I met a girl crazy for me
Met a boy cute as can be
Summer days drifting away
To uh, oh those summer nights
Oh well, oh well, oh well oh, uh
Tell me more, tell me more
Did you get very far?
Tell me more, tell me more
Like does he have a car?
She swam by me, she got a cramp
He ran by me, got my suit damp
I saved her life, she nearly drowned
He showed off splashing around
Summer sun, something's begun
But uh, oh those summer nights
Oh well, oh well, oh well oh, uh
Tell me more, tell me more
Was it love at first sight?
Tell me more, tell me more
Did she put up a fight?
Took her bowling in the arcade
We went strolling, drank lemonade
We made out under the dock
We stayed out till ten o'clock
Summer fling don't mean a thing
But uh, oh those summer nights
Tell me more, tell me more
But you don't gotta brag
Tell me more, tell me more
'Cause he sounds like a drag
He got friendly holding my hand
Well, she got friendly down in the sand
He was sweet, just turned eighteen
Well, she was good, you know what I mean
Summer heat, boy and girl meet
But uh, oh those summer nights
Tell me more, tell me more
How much dough did he spend?
Tell me more, tell me more
Could she get me a friend?
It turned colder, that's where it ends
So I told her we'd still be friends
Then we made our true love vow
Wonder what she's doin' now
Summer dreams ripped at the seams
But, oh, those summer nights
Tell me more, tell me more
Source: Musixmatch
Songwriters: Jim Jacobs / Warren Casey
Summer Nights lyrics © Edwin H. Morris & Co. Inc.
(Listening for comprehension/Vocabulary)
How many expressions did you know because of our last lesson? What are they?
11. I have put together the questions you created into a handout of questions. Each group will get a letter. You will now discuss the questions about love using the language we have learned so far. After you discuss, I want you to create a small mindmap of the focus of the questions you discussed then 3-4 key things you discussed with your group. Be ready to share.
Small-group discussion.
See below for the questions: Remember your group has a letter and your main focus is to discuss the questions connected with the letter assigned to your group.
THEME: LOVE - some student-created questions
Instructions: Find your letter group and discuss the questions with your group. Write down two more questions about the topic.
A. General Questions:
How would you define love in your own words?
Do you think love is the same in all cultures? Why or why not?
Is love more about feelings or actions? Explain your opinion.
Can people choose who they love, or is it something that just happens?
Do you think love changes over time? How?
B. Love in Relationships:
What makes a good friendship? Is friendship a type of love?
What is more important in a romantic relationship—love, trust, or respect? Why?
Do you believe in love at first sight? Why or why not?
How do people show love in different ways? (e.g., words, actions, gifts)
Do you think long-distance relationships can work? Why or why not?
C. Love in Family & Society:
What is the difference between romantic love and family love?
How do parents show love to their children?
Should love be an important factor in marriage, or are other things more important?
Can love exist in a professional environment, such as at work? (e.g., love for a job, respect for colleagues)
How do people in your culture or country express love?
12. Error correction Time. I have been going around and listening to your very interesting discussions. I have also shared some of my own opinions about your topics.
In addition, I have also been writing down some common errors that I have heard while listening to your groups speak. Look at the board. Each sentence has at least one error in it. Please work together to read each sentence and correct it. We will go over it as a group in 5-8 minutes.
(Error correction/Grammar/Pronunciation/Critical thinking)
13. Great, everyone. Now, in your groups I want you to discuss on lesson aim that we covered today and how you can connect it to the real-world. Keep it short but be prepared to use key language like:
We discussed..., We agreed..., We felt that...Today's takeaway for us is...
On your exit slips:
Exit slip - feedback 3-2-1 (3 words I learned, 2 takeaways, 1 question)Exit slip - feedback 3-2-1 (3 words I learned, 2 takeaways, 1 question)
Homework: Sonnets are due next lesson. Write a paragraph explaining which love you think is most important in your world and why. Give examples. Use 5 new terms or expressions in your writing.
Assessment - Formative and Summative
Comprehension questions
Inter-textualizing
Gap-fill
Transferring information into a visual organizer
Exit slip - feedback 3-2-1 (3 words I learned, 2 takeaways, 1 question)
Elements of Rigorous Instruction:
- Use of academic language through text and in structured academic discussions
- Language strategies while reading/listening or interpreting an image or graphic
- Critical thinking: comparing/contrasting, researching options, evaluating options, synthesizing information from multiple sources
- Language gives to elaborate and clarify ideas, supporting ideas, paraphrasing, building on ideas, challenging and synthesizing
- Read and listen
- Comparing and contrasting ideas
- Categorizing and making connections - intertextualizing
ICCB Alignment (Anchor Standards) Used in this Lesson 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8
Lesson #3 on Love: Universal themes, Creativity and Multimodality in the English Language Classroom
Link to lesson 3 below to post - You can access all the digital materials from our lessons on our D2L platform or by clicking on this link. We also have extra copies of our materials pack if you need or want.
https://sway.cloud.microsoft/JDjcv8gK3E0raeDi?ref=Link
Lesson Learning Aims:
- To find connections between text and understand intertextuality.
- To learn how to compare and connect ideas from different texts.
- To use helpful reading strategies to understand difficult academic texts and new words.
- To incorporate pictures, diagrams, and word groups to organize new vocabulary and ideas.
- To improve skills when comparing and contrasting ideas.
- To better explain how symbols (like signs, colors, or images) have special meanings in different situations.
- To use what we learned about symbols and background knowledge in order to explain ideas in writing.
- To use word families in building our vocabulary.
Do now Activity:
1. Think about the words happy, sad, angry, surprised, scared, disgust - yes, look it up :). Draw a quick symbol for 3 of the words.
2. Can you recall 5 expressions about love & relationships?
3. What is the difference between a poem, a fairytale and a myth?
4. Are there any popular love stories from your country or that you remember?
1. Share the symbols you created with your partner and explain in short detail why you drew the symbol you did (Critical thinking)
2. Today's focus is going to be similar to what we did last lesson but we are going to analyze different visual information and work them the into context of vocabulary building. We are also going to read a myth that contains symbols. We will make comparisons to the other texts we covered in these last lessons using a Venn Diagram ,which is a nice visual tool to use when comparing/contrasting ideas. I also want to do a communicative activity (a Find Someone Who) that we have done in previous lessons to see how much you can remember from this unit.
3. Now, who can share what a prefix and a suffix is?
How do prefixes and suffixes change meaning?
What are some common prefixes and what do they mean? Suffixes?
We had the words HAPPY, SAD, ANGRY, SURPRISED, SCARED, DISGUST. Let's talk about their meaning. Can you give me some examples in relationships that can connect with these feelings?
What did you change these words into?
Let's break down happy, for example:
Happy (adj) -- Unhappy (adj - antonym) Happier, Happiest (adj - comparative/superlative) - Happiness - (n.) Happily (adv)
Let's look at these others together.
4. Now, your turn..write down these words...
EXPRESS, EMOTION, SYMBOL
I will give you 3 minutes to do this with your partner.
a) define it b) what part of speech is it? c) add a prefix or suffix and be able to tell us what part of speech it is.
5. Let's share what you just did. Think about the symbols you drew in the beginning of the lesson and how an image gives meaning. I also want to focus on context and content.
How do prefixes, suffixes, and changing a part of speech change the meaning in a sentence?
I want you to look at words more critically. When you see a word in a sentence or when you write, give it context. Ask yourself, what part of speech is it? Can I change add a prefix or a suffix and change the content? Is there a more suitable synonym?
Part of speech then change them express (v) - expression (n), expressive (adj) expressionless (adj) emotion (n) - emotional (adj), emotionally (adv) emote (v), unemotional (adj), symbol (n)- symbolize (v) symbolism (n)
What words do you think of when you see the word expression? What about expressionless? Emotional? Unemotional?
Can you think of other words that can describe the feelings we just discussed? Happy, sad, angry, surprised? disgusted? What expressions or gestures might show these feelings?
(Listening/Speaking/Critical thinking)
6. Let's have a look at a visual together. What do you notice about this. What information is this giving us?
7 What parts of speech do you see in this visual?
Why are the core feelings? How do they branch out? In what ways are these words connected?
Discuss with your group - 10 minutes.
8. Look at this wheel and circle 5 words you do not know. Can you guess what they MIGHT mean based on their location in visual?
Choose 5 words that you do know the meaning of add a prefix or suffix to change the meaning/part of speech.
9. Now, we are going to look at another handout. This one is called Plutchik's Wheel of Emotions. We are going to do the same thing but you are going to break this down with your partner/group.
What are you going to do?
Plutchik's Wheel of Emotions
Who is Plutchik and what is a Wheel of Emotions?
Robert Plutchik is a psychologist known for creating the "Wheel of Emotions," a visual representation of emotions that depicts eight primary emotions arranged in pairs of opposites, allowing for the understanding of complex emotions as combinations of these primary feelings; essentially, his wheel shows how emotions can blend and vary in intensity based on their position relative to each other.
When do you think this concept was created? 1980s
What is a feelings wheel?
A feelings wheel is a visual tool that can help you identify and express your emotions. It is typically arranged in the shape of a circle, with different emotions arranged around the circumference. Some common emotions included on a feelings wheel are happy, sad, angry, scared, and excited.
You can use a feelings wheel to help you understand and communicate your emotions. For example, if you are feeling overwhelmed and are having trouble putting your feelings into words, you can use the feelings wheel to identify which emotions you are experiencing.
10. How will we use the feelings wheel?
Explain.
A. What words do you know? Circle words you don't know.
B. What words do you think are positive? Negative? What are these words describing? What part of speech are they?
C. Look carefully at both visual diagrams and see if there is a pattern. Do you agree with the way these visuals have been organized?
Work in pairs to discuss A-C then we share in a whole-group discussion (Speaking/Analyzing/Comparing&Contrasting)
10 . Quick-write - Think about a story from your childhood that you can remember and write a 5-sentence summary. (Writing)
Pair -Share your story. Was it a fairytale? Myth? Define both. Cultural significance underpinning fairytales and myths.
In your opinion, why were myths and fairytales written? Whole group (Speaking/Analyzing)
11. Pandora's Box - Read-aloud.
We are going to read a myth together titled Pandora's Box. Is anyone familiar with the phrase, He/She opened up a Pandora's Box?
(Reading/Speaking/Listening/Pronunciation)
Read and then ask another classmate to continue. While reading, I want you to focus on what symbols might be in the box. What emotions might these characters be feeling.
Pandora's Box - Read-Aloud text
Name ______________________________________
Once upon a time, in the world of Greek mythology, lived a curious woman named Pandora. Pandora was the first woman created by the gods. The mighty Zeus, king of the
gods, had ordered her creation as a gift to mankind. He instructed the gods to endow her with many talents. She was given beauty by Aphrodite, persuasion by Hermes, and curiosity by Hera.
As a wedding gift, Pandora received a beautiful box from the gods. But there was a catch. The box came with a warning: Pandora was told never to open it, no matter what. The box was sealed and only she held the key.
Days turned into weeks and weeks into months. Pandora lived a happy life, but she could not ignore the box. Her curiosity, gifted by Hera, got the better of her.
She began to wonder, "Why was I given a box if I wasn't allowed to open it?
What could be so terrible inside?"
One day, Pandora could no longer resist. She took out the key and turned it in the lock. As soon as the box creaked open, things began to fly out, things that she had never seen before. They were not nice things; they were miseries like illness, poverty, jealousy, hate, and all the evils of the world. Pandora was horrified. She tried to close the box, but it was too late. All the evils had already escaped into the world.
In her fear and regret, Pandora didn't notice that one tiny thing was still left inside the box. It was Hope. Zeus had packed it in the box to help humans endure all the bad things that could now come their way. As Pandora noticed Hope, she let it fly out into the world, giving us the courage to keep going, even when times get tough.
This story teaches us that, even when everything seems wrong, there is always Hope. It is a gift from the gods, ready to help us face any hardship that comes our way.
Answer the Reading Questions with your group and then we will discuss as a whole group:
Who was Pandora and why was she created?
What was the gift Pandora received when she got married?
Why did Pandora decide to open the box?
What flew out from the box when Pandora opened it?
What was the last thing that came out of the box, and what is its significance? How can this be helpful?
When we share, remember to use vocabulary that describes your critical and analytical thinking.
This text deals with…
The main idea of our text is…
Some key points are…
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Asking questions to clarify
Can you elaborate on that?
What do you mean by that?
Why do you think that is important?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Support ideas
An example from the text is...
For example....
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Building ideas
I would like to add that...
I want to also say that...
Another way you can look at it is....
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
12. Discuss - Did you know that a dragonfly symbolizes hope?
Hope images
Word family - Hope
Hope was in Pandora's Box among all the terrible things that flew out...
Define HOPE
Connecting "Pandora’s Box" with Love
The myth of Pandora’s Box can be connected to love in several ways. Love, like curiosity, can be both a gift and a challenge. Just as Pandora’s curiosity led her to open the forbidden box, love often involves taking risks—opening ourselves up to emotions, both joyful and painful. The evils that escaped from the box, such as jealousy and hate, are emotions that can affect relationships. However, the presence of Hope in the box suggests that, despite the hardships love may bring, hope sustains us and allows love to endure.
Discussion Questions (Connecting the Story to Love)
How does Pandora’s curiosity compare to the risks people take when falling in love?
What emotions that escaped from the box could be seen as challenges in relationships?
Why do you think Zeus included Hope in the box? How does hope play a role in love and relationships?
Do you think love is more about curiosity, like Pandora’s, or trust? Why?
If love were placed inside Pandora’s Box, what do you think would happen when it was released into the world?
Choose one of the questions and do a quick-write with your own opinion and then we will share...Remember just choose one of the questions and brainstorm your ideas. You can use a mind map if you want to.
13. In this unit we have analyzed many different texts. Can you name some?
(Symbols, Images, Song, Visuals - mind map, chart, Venn Diagram, Article, Poem, Myth)
What I would like you to do now is compare and contrast using a good visual tool for comparing and contrasting. Can anyone tell us what we have used in the past to compare/contrast?
Venn Diagram - work together to compare 2 texts we worked on together in class and complete a Venn Diagram focusing on 3 for each section. Think carefully about which text you want to compare. You will be writing an essay to compare some themes like love and hope with one of the texts we analyzed.
14.
For homework you will write an essay answering one of the following questions.
Using the ideas we have discussed in the last few lessons, read the essay questions with your group and think about some ideas that you can write about. How can you plan your ideas?
Essay Questions - Critical thinking
1. Taking Risks in Love Pandora’s curiosity led her to open the box, just as people take risks when falling in love. Describe a time when you took a risk in a relationship (friendship, family, or romantic love). What was the outcome? How did you feel before and after?
2. Love and Challenges When Pandora opened the box, many troubles escaped, but Hope remained. In love and relationships, people face challenges like jealousy, misunderstandings, or distance. What are some common problems in relationships? How can people use hope and communication to solve these problems?
3. The Meaning of Love and Hope In the myth, Hope was the last thing in the box, showing that even in hard times, people can find strength. What does love mean to you? How does hope help people stay strong in love and relationships? Give an example from your life or from a story you know.
Let's share some ideas.
Let's also look at the rubric for this task together to see if we have any questions. Work with your group and break down the instructions of what we need to do in 3 steps, first, then, and finally. With your group, write down one question you still have about the essay assignment.
Here is the rubric and you can also find it on our D2L platform:
Are there any questions you have about what you need to do?
So, who can tell me what we need to do?
15. For our last activity today, let's wrap up what we learned in this unit. Each group will get one set of statements in the Find Someone Who. Each Find Someone Who only has phrases. Like before, first we work in small groups and go over the content to see if there is any vocabulary they are not familiar with. (Vocabulary)
Remember, you will have to clarify and explain your question if the person you are speaking with does not understand your question. Circle or highlight any word or phrase you and your group are not familiar with. I will go around and facilitate.
Then, change the phrases into question forms (Grammar)
Focus is on correct question forms, changing pronouns and verb tenses
I will facilitate to see all students have written the questions correctly.
I will come around to help you but let's go over this first...
- Find Someone Who - Group A
- Find Someone Who - Group B
- Find Someone Who - Group C
- Find Someone Who- Group D
16. Mingle activity - Go around and ask the questions. Remember, you must speak to 5 different people and ask a follow-up question. You can only ask 2 questions max to one student. (Speaking/Listening)
Language reminder from first lesson:
Remember you are writing the questions to ask someone:
For example:
Can you please tell me what mode of learning you prefer?
Can you please repeat that? I didn't catch it. I'm sorry, I didn't understand what you said.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Directions: Change the statements into questions. Go around the room and ask each other questions. Write the name of the student into the space. Students can also ask follow-up questions to find out more and use more vocabulary.
You will be divided into 4 groups.
A. Find someone who…
1. can tell you what modes of learning they prefer _________________
2. can define the meaning of literal and figurative ___________________
3. is able to tell you why punctuation is important _________________
4. knows who Zeus is in Greek mythology ___________________
5. remembers 4 different genres we studied _________________
6. can share 2 words that have love in them __________________
Directions: Change the statements into questions. Go around the room and ask each other questions. Write the name of the student into the space. Students can also ask follow-up questions to find out more and use more vocabulary.
B. Find someone who…
1. can tell you 3 types of visual organizers ___________________
2. knows the difference between context and content __________________
3. remembers 2 idioms or expressions about love ___________________
4. knows 3 things that were in Pandora’s Box _________________
5. recall 3 different types of love from the article ___________________
Find Someone Who_Love_ Learning Module_B
Reiterate symbols for hope
Directions: Change the statements into questions. Go around the room and ask each other questions. Write the name of the student into the space. Students can also ask follow-up questions to find out more and use more vocabulary.
C. Find someone who…
1. can explain what Plutchik’s Wheel is about _________________
2. enjoys drawing images/symbols when taking notes ___________________
3. knows who Elvis is and where he lived _________________
4. remembers the difference between line and stanza ___________________
5. enjoys reading poetry _________________
Change the statements into questions. Go around the room and ask each other questions. Write the name of the student into the space. Students can also ask follow-up questions to find out more and use more vocabulary.
D. Find someone who…
1. can share 3 things they remember from this unit on love _________________
2. uses visual organizers when they take notes ___________________
3. likes watching romantic movies ___________________
4. knows what movie the song Summer Lovin’ is from _________________
5. can explain the difference between gesture and expression _____________
6. can tell you what they are good at ___________________
17. 10 sentences with common errors on the board. With your groups, find the mistakes in each of these sentences. These are sentences I heard and wrote down while I was walking around and listening to you speaking. (Error correction)
18. Exit slip: Choose 2 questions and answer
How can you connect today's lesson to real life?
What was the most interesting thing you learned today?
What is something you want to practice more?
Have you learned any new words to describe emotions or feelings?
Homework: Complete your essay.
Assessment - Formative and Summative
Find Someone Who
Essay Writing
Online Quiz
This essay assignment is summative assessment and culminating activity where students can share what they learned by writing about all of the ideas that we discovered in the previous lessons.
ICCB Alignment (Anchor Standards) Used in this Lesson 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8
Standards: ICCB Content Standards for English Language Acquisition 10 Anchor Standards
ESL Standards Proficient Instructor Training, Illinois Community College Board and Adult Learning Resource Center
- Elements of Rigorous Instruction:
- Use of academic language through text and in structured academic discussions
- Language strategies while reading/listening or interpreting an image or graphic
- Critical thinking strategies: researching options, analyzing pros & cons, synthesizing information from multiple sources
- Using language skills to elaborate and clarify ideas, support ideas, paraphrase ideas, build on another's opinion, synthesize conversations
- Making inferences and predictions
- Decoding words: use knowledge of word parts to guess word meanings
- Using the language of critical thinking
Possible Follow-up lesson(s) ideas:
Utilize technology to create a visual organizer, such as a Wheel of Emotions or Feelings Wheel, to categorize and analyze word variations, including word families, word clouds, and lexical patterns.
Develop a short documentary video project that critically explores the universal concept of love, integrating key themes and perspectives discussed in the lesson.
Chat GPT Learning Model Version
Below is the Chat GPT 4.0 version.
Here's a structured 5-lesson learning module on the theme of Love for B1+ English Language Learners, incorporating multimodal materials and activities:
Module Title: Exploring Love in Language and Culture
Level: B1+ (Intermediate and Higher)
Duration: 5 lessons (1 hour each)
Skills Practiced: Reading, Listening, Speaking, Writing, Critical Thinking
Lesson 1: Love in Music
Objective: Introduce the theme of love through a song, explore emotions and meanings in lyrics.
Song: Can’t Help Falling in Love – Elvis Presley (or Make You Feel My Love – Adele)
Activities:
Pre-listening discussion: What does love mean to you? How does music express emotions?
Listen and fill in missing lyrics
Vocabulary focus: devotion, tenderness, affection, heartache
Discussion: Why do love songs often talk about longing and sadness?
Writing: Describe a love song you like and what it means to you.
Lesson 2: Love in Mythology
Objective: Read and analyze a Greek myth about love, discuss its themes and relevance.
Myth: The Story of Orpheus and Eurydice (Greek Myth)
Activities:
Reading comprehension: Summarize the myth in your own words.
Discussion: Would you turn back to look like Orpheus did? Why or why not?
Vocabulary focus: fate, tragedy, devotion, trust, sacrifice
Compare with modern love stories in films and books
Lesson 3: Love in Poetry
Objective: Analyze a love poem and explore poetic language.
Poem: How Do I Love Thee? – Elizabeth Barrett Browning (simplified for B1)
Activities:
Read and underline key phrases about love
Discussion: What kind of love is described? What emotions does the poem evoke?
Idioms & Expressions: head over heels, love at first sight, love is blind
Writing: Write a short poem or letter about love (friendship, family, or romantic).
Lesson 4: Love in Society (Family, Work, Politics)
Objective: Explore different types of love and perspectives in relationships.
Reading Text: The Many Faces of Love – Short text about love in family, friendships, and work.
Activities:
Identify different types of love in the text (e.g., parental, friendship, passion, companionship).
Discussion questions:
Is love only romantic? How do cultures express love differently?
How do politics and work relationships involve love or respect?
Vocabulary focus: loyalty, companionship, unconditional love, admiration
Role-play: Giving advice to a friend about relationships (work, family, friendships).
Lesson 5: Love in Idioms & Final Discussion
Objective: Expand vocabulary with idioms about love and reflect on the theme.
Activities:
Idiom matching game (e.g., puppy love, wear your heart on your sleeve, tie the knot).
Create a short dialogue using idioms.
Debate: Can love be measured? Is love more important than money?
Writing Reflection: What have you learned about love in different forms?
Multimodal Materials Used:
✔ Audio: Song (Can’t Help Falling in Love)
✔ Visual: Images of Orpheus & Eurydice, poetry breakdown
✔ Text: Myth, poem, nonfiction reading
✔ Video (Optional): Scene from a film exploring love (e.g., Pride & Prejudice, Titanic)
✔ Interactive: Role-play, discussion, creative writing
Conclusion
Although ChatGPT provided a detailed and interactive series of lessons I feel that my selections were more authentic based on the background knowledge I have of the target learners. It would be interested to further explore this in more detail. In fairness, I only submitted a brief outline to Chat GPT 4.0 and did not input specifics. On that note, I also had to build on my general idea for the lesson and this took me a more substantial amount of time in comparison with AI.
Knowledge Survey
Pre-learning Survey
https://forms.office.com/e/neq5X7K8Z7
Pre-course Learner Survey done in Microsoft forms
References
Greer, G. (2001). The female eunuch. Harper Perennial.
Jacobs, J., & Casey, W. (1978). Summer nights [Song recorded by J. Travolta & O. Newton-John]. On Grease: The original soundtrack from the motion picture. RSO Records. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_J2bcNx3Gw
Krashen, S. D. (1982). Principles and practice in second language acquisition. Pergamon Press.
Plutchik, R. (2003). Emotions and life: Perspectives from psychology, biology, and evolution. American Psychological Association.
Robertson, K., & Ford, K. (2008). Language acquisition: An overview. Colorín Colorado. https://www.colorincolorado.org/article/language-acquisition-overview
Robinson, K. (2006, February). Do schools kill creativity? [Video]. TED. https://www.ted.com/talks/ken_robinson_do_schools_kill_creativity
Weiss, H., Peretti, L., & Creatore, G. (1961). Can’t help falling in love [Song recorded by E. Presley]. On Blue Hawaii [Album]. RCA Victor. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vGJTaP6anOU