Message in a bottle

Language level:! Learner type:! Time:!! ! Activity:! ! Topic:! ! Language:! !

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Pre-intermediate - Upper intermediate (A2 - B1) Teens; Adults 45 minutes Building a story; Writing a message; Listening to a song Castaways; Love and loneliness Present perfect; The verb to wish

MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE by Jamie Keddie

Preparation, materials and equipment

1.! For this activity, you will need the 1979 song Message in a Bottle by English rock band The Police. Use any of the following sites or applications to nd a version of the song: 2.! 3.! 4.! ! YouTube: ! ! http://goo.gl/93SWw Groove Shark:! http://goo.gl/DZQWp The iTunes store: ! via iTunes media player Decide how you are going to play the song in class (computer or mobile phone and loudspeakers, for example). For each student, make a copy of the song lyrics on page 8. Download the following images and decide how you are going to display them in class: Image one:! http://goo.gl/8oOM5 Image two:! http://goo.gl/k6RQZ

5.! !

(Optional) Bring a bottle with a screw cap into class. For real messages in bottles, plastic bottles are the most practical.

MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE

(by Jamie Keddie)

Lesson plan
Part one:! 1.! ! ! ! 2.! ! ! ! Introduction

Introduce the topic by showing students image one (see Preparation, materials and equipment on page 2). Find out if anyone has seen the lm. If so, ask them to recall the title (which is obscured on the image) and tell the rest of the class what the lm is about. Conrm by showing image two (see Preparation, materials and equipment on page 2). Students will now see that the title of the lm is Cast Away which tells the story of a FedX employee stranded on an uninhabited island after his plane crashes in the South Pacic.

Part two:! 1.! !

Visualisation

Tell students the following: I want you to imagine a castaway, lost at sea on a desert island.

Notes: This small description contains three pieces of target language contained in the song lyrics (the terms in bold). Write these on the board if necessary. Dont feel that you have to ask students to close their eyes for visualisations like this. Students can feel awkward about doing so and it isnt actually necessary. After all, visualisation is an important part of reading and it is impossible to read with your eyes closed!

2.!

Ask students the following questions: Is the castaway male or female? What is his or her name? What else do you see in the image? (Popular suggestions = monkeys, parrots, sharks, palm trees, coconuts, a shipwreck, etc.)

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Draw a picture on the board and add to it as the image develops (see sample on next page). If you are bad at drawing, ask for a volunteer student to do the artistic work.

MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE

(by Jamie Keddie)

Part three:! Narrative construction 1.! Dictate the following questions that relate to the scene: 2.! ! 3.! ! How long has he/she been there? ! How did he/she get there?! ! How does he/she feel?! ! ! What is he/she thinking?! ! ! ! ! ! (Present perfect) (Past simple) (Present simple) (Present continuous)

Put students into pairs or small groups. Ask them to consider answers to these questions. Feedback ideas (see Feedback Suggestions below and on the next page). Write new or useful language on the board.

Feedback Suggestions
Question:! How long has he been there?

Use this as an opportunity to revise or introduce the present perfect with unnished time clauses: He has been there for ten years.! ! He has been there since 2002.! ! (Not: He is there for 10 years.) (Not: He is there since 2002.)

MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE

(by Jamie Keddie)

Feedback Suggestions (continued)

Question:! How did he get there?

Common suggestions: His boat sank. His plane crashed. Question:! How does he feel?

Elicit and write as many adjectives as possible. Two adjectives that may arise are alone and lonely. Note that there is a difference: If you are alone, there is no one else with you. If you are lonely, you are unhappy because you are alone. Note the presence of one in both words (alone, lonely). Question:! What is he thinking?

This can be a good opportunity to introduce or revise verbs such as wonder, hope and wish: I wish I was a sh. I wish I could swim. I hope I get rescued. I hope I dont have to wait too long. I wonder if my wife will remember me. I wonder who she is with now.

Part four:! 1.!

Escape plan

Ask your students if they could bear the loneliness of a desert island. Note that this question contains two pieces of target language contained in the song lyrics (the terms in bold). Write these on the board if necessary.

2.! ! !

Tell students that their character is feeling particularly lonely and needs a plan for escape. Ask students to suggest as many things as possible that he could do (build a raft, get a re ready for a passing plane, send a message in a bottle, etc.)

MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE

(by Jamie Keddie)

3.! !

To the board drawing, add two thought bubbles coming from the castaways head. In the rst thought bubble write the words: Ill send an SOS to the world. In the second thought bubble write the words: I hope that someone gets my message in a bottle.

Note that these two lines come from the song Message in a Bottle. There is no problem if students realise this at this stage.

Part ve:!

Writing messages

Ask students to write castaway messages (i.e. the messages to go in bottles). They should write in the rst person and should include as much new language as possible (language that you have written on the board). They should include the following information: The castaways name. Roughly where the island is (the ocean, for example.) A description of the island. How he/she got there. How long he/she has been there. Note that if students are unaware of the idea of a message in a bottle, demonstrate the idea with a bottle with a screw cap and a piece of paper. Fold up the paper so that it ts into the bottle and drop it in.

MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE

(by Jamie Keddie)

Part six:! 1.! ! 2.! ! 3.! 4.! 5.! ! 6.!

Song

Tell students that they are going to hear a song called Message in a Bottle. Ask students if they know who it is by (answer = The Police). Tell students to listen to the song and pay attention to what happens after the castaway sends the message in a bottle. Ask students to form pairs and share what they understood. Play the song again. Give out copies of the song lyrics on page 8 and ask students to complete the Find a word or term task. Feedback answers: The feeling that a situation is so bad that it cannot be changed (answer = despair) Sane and sensible (answer = together) When an object has been carried by the sea and left on a beach, it has been ... (answer = washed up) The land that comes into contact with the sea (answer = the shore)

7.! ! 8.! ! !

Let students hear the song one more time. This time they can read and listen to the lyrics at the same time. Ask students to consider whether the song lyrics are to be taken literally or metaphorically. In the case of the latter, ask students to speculate on the meaning behind them.

MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE

(by Jamie Keddie)

Message in a bottle ! (The Police)

Just a castaway An island lost at sea Another lonely day With no one here but me More loneliness Than any man could bear Rescue me before I fall into despair I'll send an SOS to the world I hope that someone gets my message in a bottle A year has passed since I wrote my note I should have known this right from the start Only hope can keep me together Love can mend your life But love can break your heart I'll send an SOS to the world I hope that someone gets my message in a bottle Walked out this morning Don't believe what I saw A hundred billion bottles Washed up on the shore Seems I'm not alone at being alone A hundred billion castaways Looking for a home I'll send an SOS to the world I hope that someone gets my message in a bottle

Find a words or phrases in the text that mean: The feeling that a situation is so bad that it cannot be changed Sane and sensible When an object has been carried by the sea and left on a beach, it has been .... The land that comes into contact with the sea

MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE

(by Jamie Keddie)