Love, friendship and relationships

Introduction

Love, friendship and relationships

In this theme you will focus on friendship and love: what is a friend, who are your friends, and are people the same or different on social media?

What are you going to do?

You will read texts, listen to sound clips, watch a video and do exercises that all to do with love, friendship and relationships.

You will think about image and how that can affect your friendship circles – do you look at people and judge them according to what they wear and how they look?
We look at the idea of showing your affection in public – is it OK to kiss your boyfriend or girlfriend in the supermarket? If not, why not? Do you think it’s OK to shock older people? Then we look at the topic of teenage parents – how young is young?

What about you?

What do you think about teenage parents?
How important are our relationships with our family and friends?
Do they influence everything we do?

Some of the most important relationships are with our family – so why is Christmas,
or any other big family occasion, so stressful?
Or in lockdown because of Covid-19. None of us have ever faced a lockdown situation with our loved ones, so we don’t quite know what to expect. A couple of weeks with just your immediate family members. Is it a problem or can this time with your family be a happy experience?

Do you or anyone in your family suffer from hypercopresence?

Have fun!

Need to know

What do you need to know?

Read the questions.
Form groups of three or four.
In your group, select as many questions as there are members of your group.
Discuss these questions.
Select one question you all think is interesting.
Present, as a group, the results of your discussion to your class mates.
Answer, as good as you can, questions of your class mates.

When listening to other presentations, listen carefully and think of questions or things you did not understand.

Choose from the following questions.

Do you believe in love at first sight? Explain.
Have you ever had a crush on someone? What was it like?
Do you have or had a boyfriend/girlfriend?
If so, where did you meet your him/her? If so, what does he/she look like? Give details.
Is there a such thing as a perfect relationship for you? Explain.
What characteristics do you look for in a girlfriend or boyfriend?
What are some popular places to go on a date? What is the best one? Why?
How do you know when a relationship is over? What are the signs?
Why do you think some people fall out of love?
Do you think it's OK for a man to have two wives or do you think it's OK for a wife to have two husbands? Explain.
What do you think of romantic relationships between people from different countries?
Can you fall in love with someone from a totally different country and culture?
What is it like to be in a relationship when you are living in two different countries?
What do you think of same-sex marriages? Explain.
Do you think same gender relationships are accepted in our country? Explain.

Can do

In this theme you will focus on the following 'can do' statements.

Listening (B1-B2):

I can catch the main points in a video about 'unfriend day'.
I can listen to a news report about kissing in public and answer detailed questions.
I can watch and listen to the beginning of the film Love Actually and fill in the gaps of the text I hear.
I can understand a conversation in a radio show 'Help on the line' and answer questions.

Reading (B2)

I can rapidly grasp the content and the significance of an article about Unfriend day. I can decide if a closer reading is worthwhile or needed.
I can read and understand the Calamities of beauty article in which the writers express specific attitudes and points of view in detail.
I can explain the differences between skimming and scanning a text.
I can understand in detail texts about a couple arrested for kissing in public and teenage parents.
I can read a text with statistics about teen pregnancies.
I can read texts about 'hypercopresence' and grasp the most important points.

Speaking (B1-B2)

I can start, maintain and close simple face to face conversation on the theme friends'.
I can recognize the pronunciation of the third person 's' in different ways and I can pronounce words with the vowel sound Schwa.
I can take an active part in a conversation and discussion about friendship accounting for my views.
I can express and respond to feelings about a conversation about how you feel about 'kissing in public'.
I can give a short presentation and present descriptions of positive and negative results of being a teenage parent.

Writing (B1-B2)

I can write about advantages and disadvantages of activities for School Friend day.
I can write down my thoughts about friends and friendships.
I can write and design a class survey to find out how my classmates feel about their image.
I can write simple texts about ideas of how to discuss issues like public displays of affection.
I can give or seek personal views and opinions about teenage moms.
I can write a personal letter to a friend and express feelings and experiences about how Corona affects my life.
I can convey short simple information about Christmas panning.

To do

This theme Love contains an introduction, five lessens and a finishing touch.
In the schedule below you can see the titles of the sections and an estimate of the time required for each part.

Lesson	Title	Activities	Time (hours)*
Introduction			0,5 hour
Lesson 1	To friend or unfriend?	Read and speak about friends on social media. Write about your thoughts about friends and friendships. Grammar: Simple present	3 - 4 hours
Lesson 2	Your image	Discuss how important the way we look is. Make a poster about tips to improve body shapes. Write a survey to find out how your classmates think about their image. Grammar: Present continuous (progressive) or simple present	3 - 4 hours
Lesson 3	Kissing in public	Speak and read about kissing in public. Listening to a news report about a lesbian couple kissing in public. Discuss establishing rules about displays of affection at your school.	2 - 3 hours
Lesson 4	Teenage parents	Discuss a number of theses about teenage parents. Read an article written by a 'teenage mum'. Give a presentation about results of being a teenage parent.	2 - 3 hours
Lesson 5	Love Actually	Speak about romantic places with a classmate. Read about 'hypercopresence'. Grammar: superlatives or adjectives.	2 - 3 hours
Finishing touch	Projects Oefenprogramma Evaluation	You are going to write a short story about a relationship, friendship or family. You are going to listen to a radioshow 'Help on the line'. You are going to practise with the 'Oefenprogramma Engels'. You will answer evaluation questions, what did you learn?	3 hours
		Total	± 20 hours

*hour = lesuur. Eén lesuur komt ongeveer overeen met 2 SLU.

Lessons

To friend or unfriend

To friend or unfriend?

Introduction

The subject of this lesson is 'to friend or unfriend'.

Form groups of three or four pupils.

Discuss the following questions in your group:

Have you got lots of friends?
Are they ‘real’ friends, or ‘friends’ that you have on your social media accounts?
How many social media friends do you have?
Did you become ‘friends’ with them because they requested your friendship?
Are you really friends with them?

In this lesson you are going to think about who your friends really are.
You will learn some ‘friends’ vocabulary, and you will think about the qualities of a good friend.
Then you will look at some criteria to reduce your friend list on social media.

This lesson contains 10 steps and an evaluation. Work them through step by step.

Step	Activity
	Introduction	Find out what you already know.
Step 1	Speaking	Read the statements. Tick the right ones. Discuss with a classmate, give three reasons.
Step 2	Words	Pronounce the words. Divide them in two categories. Fill the words in in two exercises.
Step 3	Writing	Write down thoughts about friends & friendship.
Step 4	Reading	Read the text. Tick the reasons. Do a true/false exercise. Check with a classmate.
Step 5	Speaking (and writing)	You can answer questions using the Past Perfect tense.
Step 6	Listening (and viewing)	Tick annoying posts. Watch the video and answer the question.
Step 7	Words	Example of prefixes. Two exercises about prefixes.
Step 8	Grammar	Grammar desk and exercises: Simple Present.
Step 9	Pronunciation	Pronunciations of third person 's'. Listen to the pronunciation and watch the video.
Step 10	Task	Look at activities for celebration friends day. Discuss advantages and disadvantages.
	Evaluation	Reflecting on what you have learned.

Step 1 - Speaking

Speaking
Read these statements and write down the ones that are true for you.

It’s important to have friends.
I know all my friends on social media.
I add a new friend at least every week.
The number of friends on social media is important.
I talk to my real time friends regularly.
It’s important to do things together with your friends.
A friend on social media is not a true friend.

Compare your answers with those of your classmate.
Both choose a different statement and discuss in English why that statement is true for you.
Both mention 3 reasons.

Step 2 - Words

Words
Look at the following words and expressions. They all have something to do with friendship.

get on well with	a good friend	can't stand
easy-going	the jealous type	a fun friend
best friend	friend	easy/difficult to get on with
spend time with	share an interest	a good laugh
a close friend	mate	be laid back
count on	hang out with

They can be divided into two categories:

type of friend (nouns)
feelings of friendship (verbs)

Do the exercise.

Now take a look at the following words and expressions.

best friend	enemy	mates
acquaintances	get's on well	can't stand
spending time with	having a horrible time	easy-going
the jealous type	a good laugh	easy to get on with
count on	hang out with

Use these words in the following exercise.
Choose the correct words in the sentences. Click here to do the exercise.

Step 3 - Writing

Thoughts about friends and friendships
What are the qualities of your friends?
Do you have a best friend?
Do you have lots of close friends?
Would you like to have more friends?

Write down your thoughts about friends and friendships.

Think of three of your friends.
Write down five qualities for each of them.

Now, think about your #1 top best friend.
Why is he or she your best friend?
Write about 150 words describing this friend saying what qualities
he or she has and describe what makes him or her so special.

Step 4 - Reading

To 'unfriend' a friend

Reading strategies provides you with tools needed to analyse text in the most effective way.
Read the information about reading strategies skimming and scanning:

Skimming and scanning

You are going to read a text (in two parts) quickly to look for certain information.
The title of the article is: The Faze Guide To National Unfriend Day.

The article lists some reasons to ‘unfriend’ a friend. Which reasons? Read the text quickly (skimming).

So it’s National Unfriend Day and let’s be honest, we all have a few questionable “friends” on Facebook.

You may not think about it when you log on, but today is the day to really get you thinking, who should stay and who should go? If you’re unsure about where to start, we’re here to help you narrow down who you should cut from your friends list:

1. Do you dislike them?
If running into them in real life or seeing them on your feed is an unenjoyable experience, it’s time to bite the bullet and hit unfriend. There’s no reason why you should keep seeing someone that you heavily dislike.

2. Do they post too much?
Facebook is not a place for a lot of sharing. No one wants to know what you had for breakfast or when your roommate left the dishes in the sink. It is also not the place to live-feed award shows or sports. If you see a fellow Facebook “friend” doing any of the above and share no interest in
either, click unfriend.

3. Are they an ex-girlfriend/boyfriend?
This goes without saying, sometimes it’s better to avoid any contact with ex-lovers. Unfriending them will
make it better for you to move on and avoid any future Facebook stalking sessions. Unless, of course, you
both managed to remain friends in light of the break up then good for you both.

4. When did you see them last?
If you met them once in biology class 4 years ago and haven’t talked to them since, it’s time to hit unfriend.
If you can barely consider them an acquaintance, there is no point in keeping them as a Facebook “friend.”
There should be a two-year limit to consider because beyond that you’ll probably never see them again.

5. Have you talked to them at all?

This may sound needless to say, but if you have never interacted with this person in real life or online, you need to hit “unfriend.” For all you know it could be your online stalker. Besides, there is no reason why you should have to deal with mindless life updates of a person you’ve never met.

6. Do they like to ruin your favourite shows before you watch them?
If they are the type of people that like to post spoilers of your favourite TV shows, consider unfriending them or avoid Facebook by all means. After all, they may be posting spoilers, but you can always count on them for sharing a similar interest as you.

7. If they do any of the following:

Fill out online quizzes daily and post the results on your feed.
Regularly invite you to play games like Farmville.

If their entire feed is made up the above posts, and if you have no interest in any of the above, it’s time to reconsider hitting the unfriend button. It’s not like you’ll miss seeing their activity spam. So feel free to consider our guide when you participate in this year’s National Unfriend Day
and say adieu to all the people that used to clutter your Facebook feed.

Do the first exercise.

Read the questions below.
Now read the whole text and do the second exercise: answer the questions.

Step 5 - Speaking

Speaking
Read these questions and take notes. Then compare your ideas with your classmate.
Talk to each other about the questions. Do you have the same ideas or different? How different are your opinions?

Which friend have you known longest? Where did you meet and what did you have in common?
What qualities do you appreciate in your friends? What are some things you like about your best friend?
How important is it to have friends? How important are your Facebook friends?
Some people have lots of friends, and other people prefer to have less.
Why do you think this is?
There are people who stay friends all their lives.
How do you think they do that? What kind of things are important to do to maintain friendships?
There is a saying "To have a good friend, you need to be a good friend." Do you think that is true?
How can you be a good friend?
A popular saying is ‘two’s company, three’s a crowd’. Do you agree?
Why /Why not?

Step 6 - Listening

What types of posts annoy you on social media?
Write down the ones that annoy you the most.
Why do you find them annoying?

Your food
Your feet on holiday
Funny cat videos
Tagging your friends
Invitation to games
Your new outfit for a party
................
................

You’re going to watch a video.

Answer the question.

Step 7 - Words

Word formation: prefixes
You can make new words by adding a prefix.
Look at these prefixes and their meanings:

dis	from, away	*dis*appear
il	not	illogical
im	not, without	impolite
in	not, without	inexpensive
mis	bad, wrong	*mis*place
un	against, not, opposite	unbelievable

In this exercise you drag the prefixes to the root word.

In this exercise you fill in the correct prefix of the word to complete the sentences.

Step 8 - Grammar

Grammar
If you want to be able to do the assignments correctly you will need to know more about some grammar items.

Simple Present

Fill in the correct form of the verb in Simple Present.

Do the following exercises.

Step 9 - Pronunciation

Pronunciation

The third person ‘s’ can be pronounced in different ways.

After you've watched the video, try to decide if you hear: /s/, /z/ or /iz/.

thinks
catches
makes
knows
teaches
says
plays
enjoys

Answers

Step 10 - Task

Task
A friend of yours, Bobby, has asked you to help him set up a School Friend Day at your school – a day to celebrate friends.
Look at the following activities. Note down the advantages and disadvantages of each.
Then talk together with your classmate about the advantages and disadvantages.
Then, try to agree on two activities together.

Evaluation

Fill in the schedule and answer the questions below.

Activity	easy	difficult	known	new
Step 1 - Speaking
Step 2 - Words
Step 3 - Writing
Step 4 - Reading
Step 5 - Speaking
Step 6 - Listening
Step 7 - Words
Step 8 - Grammar
Step 9 - Pronunciation
Step 10 - Task

What have you learnt in this period? What do you have to ask your teacher?