Summer associations
- Help students develop their sense of poetry and extend their vocabulary. Encourage the use of dictionaries in preparing their responses if appropriate. The level of description will vary greatly depending on their level
- Write on the board: The things I associate with summer
- Then write:
- the smell of ...
- the sound of ...
- the sight of ...
- Give some examples to finish the sentences (e.g. the smell of freshly cut grass, the sound of bees buzzing in the garden, the sight of people drinking on the pavement outside cafes) then encourage suggestions from students.
- Put students in pairs or give them some individual time to plan their ideas.
- Put students in groups to tell each other about their associations and hold a class round up.
- For higher levels a good song which conjures up the idea of associations/impressions is America by Simon and Garfunkel.
Sun safety
- You can introduce discussions on sun safety using a variety of techniques.
- Write the word sun on the board and then add screen. Challenge students in pairs to write as many nouns or verbs using sun, e.g. sun factor, suntan, sunbathe, sunburn. Elicit questions from students with their words, e.g. Which sun factor do you use? Do you enjoy sunbathing? Put students in small groups to discuss their questions.
- Make a list of sun safety tips. Leave off the end of sentences for student to try and complete in small groups. They will have to discuss what they know to successfully complete the sentences. Compare the sentences they have written to other groups. Do they agree? Then compare to the original list you made.
- Give students a list of sun facts. How much do they know about the sun? Are the facts true or false? E.g. You can get sunburned on a cloudy day. (True)
Topics for discussion
- Summer boredom: Put students into small groups and ask them to make a list of four activities to do if they are bored at home during the summer holidays. Use this to create a class list. Discuss how they feel young people are catered for in their town. What improvements could they make?
- Length of holidays: Some countries have up to three months' summer holiday while others have six weeks' holiday. Do students or teachers really need a summer holiday? Why? Why not? Put students in groups to think of reasons for/against long summer holidays. Alternatively, give students a list of reasons for and against and ask them in groups to agree or disagree with them, e.g. Students forget too much if they are away from school for too long. Hold a class vote: Who wants a longer/shorter summer holiday?
Language Level