English ESL Worksheets: Movie Riddles. An ESL Lesson Plan to Get Students Talking About Movies. Free Printable PDF
English ESL Worksheets: Movie Riddles
Movie Riddle
Materials:
Language for Talking About Film
Activity 1: Film Riddles
Optional: 10 Chocolates.
Lesson Plan
This lesson is divided into four parts: introduction, presentation, solo work, and class activity.
Introduction
Walk into the room and get down to the lesson and gesture that you can’t remember something. Then when a student asks you what’s wrong, you say something along these lines:
I’m trying to remember the name of a movie, but I can’t think of it for the life of me. What was that movie called? Hmm.
Continue gesturing for a few seconds to see how the students respond? Will they ask you a question such as ‘Do you remember who is in it?” or something similar. If no one asks then begin a description on your own until somebody can help you remember.
You know, it’s a drama. Julia Roberts is in it. It takes place in a town in California where many people got sick She plays a secretary who works for a law firm. The movie is about a company that tries to hide it’s chemical pollution that killed many people. In the end, the company loses the law case and has to pay millions of dollars.
If somebody calls out the answer then take out a chocolate and toss it to them. The class usually perks up at that point. Then begin another movie riddle. Quickly give them ten movie riddles so that they can experience all of the important language points before you do the presentation on the board.
Presentation
Tell the students that you’re going to write some expressions on the board. Tell them that they don’t have to write anything down because you’ve already written the language in a worksheet that you’re going to handout shortly.
For each of the sections, genre, setting, actor, plot, climax, and critics, go over the vocabulary with the class, putting the expressions on the board:
Can anybody name a movie that takes place in space? What’s a movie starring Ewen McGregor? What is Troy about? In the end, what happens in Lord of the Rings?
Finally, hand out the worksheet and ask them if there are any more questions.
Solo Work and Class Presentation
Handout the movie riddle activity sheet. The students will have ten to twenty minutes to think of three movies and write clues for them. While they are working solo, walk around the room and help them with their clues. When everybody has done at least two clues they stop writing. Then make the students share their riddles with the class. The class guesses that answer to the movie riddle after all five clues have been read.
AFTER THIS LESSON, YOU CAN ALSO GO ON TO FILM FESTIVAL ROLE-PLAY
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