TEACHER’S GUIDE Fluentize, LLC. Copyright 2021. For use only with license.

How Did Black Friday Start? (B1 - B2)

Preview 1
Part 1. Discussion questions / topics about Black Friday.
(1) - (2) Answers will vary.
(3) When a company goes from red to black numbers, it goes from being in the “negative”
or financial losses (generally due to expenses) to being in the “positive” or profit level.
Part 2. Difference between big-box stores and small retail shops. Answers will vary.
Part 3. Matching activity (nouns). (1) b (2) e (3) a (4) d (5) c
Part 4. Write a definition / synonym for the words as used in the sentences.
(1) clogged: blocked or unable to move
(2) hordes: crowds / large groups of

Viewing Activity
Part 1. Short answers:
(1) Black Friday originally referred to the crash of the US gold markets in 1869.
(2) A century later, Philadelphia police used the term “Black Friday” to refer to chaos and
congestion in the city and on the streets.
(3) They tried to reinvent it by giving it a positive meaning. They said it was the day when
profits went from the “red” to the “black”.
(4) Today, Black Friday is all about the bargains.
Part 2. True / False. (1) True (2) False (3) True

Post-Viewing 1
Part 1. Vocabulary Context Usage
(1) collapse (2) congestion / hordes (3) bargains
Part 2. Video quote. c. create a new meaning of
Part 3. Video quote. b. start to become trendy or popular

Post-Viewing 2
Part 1. Non-defining clauses in the passive voice.
(1) There was a global surge in e-commerce in 2020, caused by the pandemic.
(2) Thanksgiving is a day when Americans have a big feast with turkey, eaten by 88% of all
Americans on this day.
(3) My mom wants a specific type of purse as a Christmas gift, sold by only one boutique
in our town.

Post-Viewing 3
Speaking Task. Answers will vary. Correct students’ speaking mistakes and contribute your own
thoughts to the conversation.
TEACHER’S GUIDE Fluentize, LLC. Copyright 2021. For use only with license.
How Did Black Friday Start? (B1 - B2)

Post-Viewing 3 (continued)
Bonus Task. Mistakes / corrections in the video script.
SENTENCE 1: safe CORRECTION: scary
SENTENCE 2: rise CORRECTION: collapse
SENTENCE 3: mayor CORRECTION: police
SENTENCE 4: small retail shops CORRECTION: big-box stores
SENTENCE 5: black to red CORRECTION: red to black
SENTENCE 6: fall CORRECTION: growth

Quiz & Review

Part 1. Questions. Refer to Viewing Activity.
Part 2. Vocabulary.
(1) chaos: lack of order or organization
(2) clogged: blocked or unable to move
Part 3. Vocabulary context usage.
(1) congestion / hordes (2) reinvent
Part 4. Grammar sentences using non-defining clauses in the passive voice.
(1) ‘Black Friday’ really started catching on in the 80s and 90s, pushed by the growth of
big-box stores.”
(2) There was a lot of chaos and congestion in Philadelphia during the holiday shopping
season, referred to by police as ‘Black Friday’.