The days are getting longer, the sun is getting stronger and there’s time for one more set of activities before the summer holidays finally arrive. This month, we’ll listen to different versions of a classic summer song and learn to write opinions more effectively, get help describing photographs and work on our presenting skills.

1. 1
June teaching activities: Here comes summer!
The days are getting longer, the sun is getting stronger and there’s time for
one more set of activities before the summer holidays finally arrive. This
month, we’ll listen to different versions of a classic summer song and learn to
write opinions more effectively, get help describing photographs and work on
our presenting skills.
Photo credit: https://www.flickr.com/photos/eltpics/5977553795/in/album-72157626527253332/

2. 2
Contents:
Introduction: ................................................................................................................................... 1
‘Summertime’ – Writing opinions (B2 – C1/C2): ................................................................................... 3
Picture dictations (A2 – B1): .......................................................................................................... 7
Pecha Kucha (B1 – C2): ................................................................................................................. 8
Answers: ...................................................................................................................................... 9-10

3. 3
Activity 1: ‘Summertime’ (B2 – C1/C2) – Writing opinions
In 1934, George Gershwin wrote the classic summer song, ‘Summertime’, as part of his
opera ‘Porgy and Bess’. Over the years, the song has been recorded by many very different
singers, from Billie Holiday to Janis Joplin. In this activity, students will listen to two versions,
and then write their opinions about the each version.
Part 1: Listening activity
Divide the class into two groups, A and B. ask group A to listen to Ella Fitzgerald singing
‘Summertime’ (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u2bigf337aU) for homework, and
complete Worksheet 1 below with the lyrics. Ask group B to do the same exercise, but
listening to Janis Joplin (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=guKoNCQFAFk) – your
students may need to listen to this version a couple of times to complete the activity, as
Joplin’s voice can be difficult to understand.
Once the students have listened to their version of the song and completed the worksheets,
put them into pairs, one from group A and one from group B, and ask them to compare
their answers on the worksheets. Then explain that they are going to practise writing
paragraphs expressing their opinions about the version of the song they heard.
Part 2: Focus on paragraph structure
The objective of this part of the activity is to focus students on the structure which a
paragraph from an opinion essay should have. Typically, a paragraph begins with a topic
sentence, a statement of what the focus of the paragraph is going to be. This is followed
either by an explanation of the topic sentence, or an example. The paragraph ends with a
short summary or some sort of concluding statement, which may link to the next paragraph.
From B2 onwards, it is important that students take care to structure their ideas carefully in
their paragraphs, and try to link their ideas across paragraphs to make their essays flow
well.
Ask students to think about the version of the song they listened to, and to write down
three opinions about the singing, each in a separate box on Worksheet 2. Then ask them to
write why each of these opinions is important for the enjoyment of the song. Finally, ask
them to write one or two examples from the song where what they are describing is
particularly clear. Once they have done this, they should explain their opinions to their
partner from the other group, using the explanation and examples they have noted down.
Then students should try to link the sentences in each paragraph more effectively, and try to
add a short summary or concluding statement for each paragraph.
The finished paragraphs can be displayed around the classroom so students can see what
others have written, and you should encourage students to listen to the version of the song
they did not listen to, so they can see if they agree with the opinions expressed.

4. 4
Group A Worksheet 2 – ‘Summertime’ (Ella Fitzgerald, 1968)
GROUP A: Listen to the following version of ‘Summertime’ by Ella Fitzgerald
and complete the lyrics (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u2bigf337aU)
SUMMERTIME
Summertime, and the livin' is ......................................................
Fish are jumpin' and the cotton is ...............................................................
Oh, your daddy's .......................................... and your ma is good-lookin'
So hush, little baby, don't you cry
One of these mornings you're gonna rise up singing
And you'll spread your ............................................ and you'll take to the sky
But till that .........................................., there ain't nothin' can harm you
With daddy and mammy standin' by
One of these mornings you're gonna rise up singing
And you'll spread your ............................................ and you'll take to the sky
But till that ..........................................., there ain't nothin' can harm you
With daddy and mammy standin' by
Summertime, and the livin' is easy
Fish are jumpin' and the cotton is .............................................................
Oh, your daddy's ........................................... and your ma is good-lookin'
So hush, little baby, don't you cry

5. 5
Group B Worksheet 1 – ‘Summertime’ (Janis Joplin, 1968)
GROUP B: Listen to the following version of ‘Summertime’ by Janis Joplin and
complete the lyrics (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=guKoNCQFAFk)
SUMMERTIME
Summertime, time, time
Child, the living's ..........................................................
Fish are jumping now
And the cotton, Lord
Cotton's high, Lord so .................................................................
Your daddy's ...........................................................
And your ma is so good-looking, baby
She's a-looking good now
Hush, baby, baby, baby, baby now
No, no, no, no
Don't you cry, don't you cry
One of these mornings
You're gonna rise, rise up singing
You're gonna spread your ..............................................., child
And take, take to the .................................................
Lord, the sky
But until that .......................................................
Honey, n-n-nothing's going to harm you now
No, no, no no, no no, no...
Don't you cry, cry

6. 6
Worksheet 2 – Expressing opinions

7. 7
Activity 2: Picture dictations (A2 – B1)
In the Cambridge English: Preliminary for Schools speaking exam, students are given a
photograph and asked to describe it. Many candidates simply give a list of things that come
in the photograph, but stronger candidates can distinguish themselves by organising their
descriptions in a more orderly way. This activity is a simple way of helping them to achieve a
more organised way of describing a scene.
I begin this activity by revising prepositions of place and ways of describing position in a
picture – at the top, at the bottom, in the top right corner, etc. then we describe a
photograph together as a class, to make sure they are using the vocabulary correctly.
Then the students are seated in pairs, back to back. One of them is given a photograph and
is asked to describe it to their partner. The partner has to draw the picture as it is being
described. The student describing the picture has their back to the other student so that
s/he cannot make adjustment to the picture which is being drawn. The other student only
has their partner’s words to guide them as they draw. If they are unclear about a detail, they
can ask for clarification, and in that way they help their partner to structure a description in
a more logical way. Once the description is finished, they compare their pictures with the
original photograph. Then they change places and the exercise is repeated.
The pictures can be of anything, so it is a good idea to tie them in with the topic which you
are covering in class at the time (a good source of free pictures is www.eltpics.com). If
possible, I like to project the photograph on the IWB, which means that everyone is
describing the same picture at the same time, as this allows them to compare their drawings
not only with the original but also with those of their classmates, and this can be quite
motivating. If this is not possible, photographs cut from colour magazines work just as well,
and the students can be asked to bring the photos in themselves, which saves on
preparation time. A good tip is to keep any photos they bring in in an envelope in class, so
that fast finishers can repeat the exercise in future classes.

8. 8
Activity 3: Pecha Kucha – Learning to give presentations (B1
– C2)
At this time of the school year, there is often the problem of what to do with students who
do not need to sit the final exams. One activity which I have done such students at different
levels has been to arrange for them to prepare presentations for their class on a topic of
their choice. In order to make their presentations more easily comparable, and allow me to
mark them more fairly, I adapted the rules for Pecha Kucha – a form of high-speed
presentation where presenters deliver a talk based on twenty slides, each of which is shown
for twenty seconds. The slides are programmed so that they change automatically after
twenty seconds. In the version I used with my students, they were limited to six slides and
fifty seconds per slide, for a total time of three minutes, but obviously this can be adjusted
according to the ability and level of your students – remember, the lower their level, the
more they will hesitate, so the longer they will need for each slide.
You can find several videos on You Tube to show how to set up a Pecha Kucha presentation,
such as this one:
https://www.youtube.com/embed/l9zxNTpNMLo
Students can work on their presentations individually or in pairs / threes, and should be
encouraged to practise presenting before they show their work to the class, to avoid
overrunning or long awkward pauses. Students will often produce slides which are text-
heavy at first, and then read from the slide rather than using the slide to support what they
are saying. This can be countered by limiting the number of words on any one slide, or
simply by insisting that they rework their slides before you mark them.
If your students don’t have access to a computer in class, or you do not have the means to
show a presentation, they can do a similar activity based on a poster presentation, putting
their ideas on a large card or series of cards and delivering their talk that way.
You can use this activity to practise any public-speaking techniques you feel appropriate.
Giving effective presentations is an important life skill for students to develop, and it can be
a fun activity to round off the school year.

9. 9
Answer keys
Activity 1:
SUMMERTIME (Ella Fitzgerald)
Summertime, and the livin' is ..........EASY...................
Fish are jumpin' and the cotton is ...............HIGH..............................
Oh, your daddy's ............RICH............ and your ma is good-lookin'
So hush, little baby, don't you cry
One of these mornings you're gonna rise up singing
And you'll spread your ..........WINGS............. and you'll take to the sky
But till that .....MORNING.............., there ain't nothin' can harm you
With daddy and mammy standin' by
One of these mornings you're gonna rise up singing
And you'll spread your ...........WINGS......... and you'll take to the sky
But till that .........MORNING.........., there ain't nothin' can harm you
With daddy and mammy standin' by
Summertime, and the livin' is easy
Fish are jumpin' and the cotton is .................HIGH.......................
Oh, your daddy's ............RICH............ and your ma is good-lookin'
So hush, little baby, don't you cry

10. 10
SUMMERTIME (Janis Joplin)
Summertime, time, time
Child, the living's ..............EASY.........................................
Fish are jumping out
And the cotton, Lord
Cotton's high, Lord so .......... HIGH.......................................
Your daddy's ...........RICH................................................
And your ma is so good-looking, baby
She's a-looking good now
Hush, baby, baby, baby, baby now
No, no, no, no, no, no, no
Don't you cry, don't you cry
One of these mornings
You're gonna rise, rise up singing
You're gonna spread your ........WINGS......................................., child
And take, take to the .........SKY........................................
Lord, the sky
But until that ......MORNING..............................................
Honey, n-n-nothing's going to harm you
No, no, no no, no no, no...