The Time Traveler's Wife - Second Conditional

The film The Time Traveler’s Wife is delightfully enjoyable and brimming with ingenuity. The entire concept is highly captivating, and the intriguing outset is truly superb. I used two sequences from the movie to provide students with an opportunity to exercise the second conditional tense in a creative and situationally contextualized manner.

Definition:

Time Travel: the idea of traveling into the past or the future.

I. Work with a friend. Write down your answers to the questions:

1.       Would you like to time travel? Why (not)?

I ______________________ because ______________________.

2.       What would the consequences of time travel be?

If people could time travel, _________________________________.

3.       Would you change anything about your past?

If I could change anything about my past, I __________________.

4.       What about history? Would you change anything? What would you do to change it?

If I could change anything in history, I ____________________.

II. Watch the 1st segment and talk to a friend about the questions that follow.

1. What happened in the segment?

2. Why did he decide to go back in time to talk to himself as a child?

3. What do you think will happen next?

 

III. Watch the 2nd segment now. Then answer the questions. Write down your answers and use the 2nd conditional.

1. If you could go back in time, would you choose the person you wanted to marry and make her love you? Why (not)?

If I ______________________, I ______________________

2. Would you do what he did if you were the main character of the movie? Why (not)?

If I ______________________, I _______________________

3. Would life be better or worse if people could travel in time? Why?

If people __________________, _________________________

IV. Rank the periods that, if you could time travel, you would visit first, second, or never. Justify your answer.

(     ) Prehistoric Age

(     ) 0 BC - Jesus Christ era

(     ) 1800's

(     ) A few years ago

(     ) The 60's

(     ) 20 years in the future

(     ) 100 years in the future.

(     ) 500 years in the future.

V. Choose a time period and prepare a speech to share with the rest of the class. Follow the model below. Make sure you use the 2nd conditional.

If I could travel across time, first I ______________________________ because ____________. Second, I _____________________ beacause ____________, and finally I _____________________ because _____________. However, I _____________ (never) because_______________.

Thanksgiving

 Thanksgiving: Free Birds, Pieces of April & The Ice Storm

Thanksgiving is not a popular holiday in some countries, so it is always profitable to insert cultural perspectives into the lessons. Many ESL students learned a lot about this holiday and had fun doing it.

I. WARM-UP GAME

Here you will find some information about Thanksgiving.

In groups, decide if the statements are True or False. The group or student who scores most points is the winner.

1.	(     )	Thanksgiving is a holiday celebrated primarily in the United States and Canada.
2.	(     )	Thanksgiving is celebrated on the same day in both the US and Canada.
3.	(     )	Thanksgiving Day is also celebrated in Leiden, the Netherlands.
4.	(     )	Thanksgiving in the United States has been celebrated on various different dates throughout history.
5.	(     )	In the West African country of Liberia, Thanksgiving is celebrated on the first Thursday of November.
6.	(     )	Thanksgiving day originated in America.
7.	(     )	It is traditional for families and groups of friends to get together for a large breakfast.
8.	(     )	Traditional food often consists of a turkey, stuffing, different types of potatoes, cranberry sauce, gravy, other seasonal vegetables.
9.	(     )	Pumpkin pie is a traditional Thanksgiving dish.
10.	(     )	Thanksgiving Day parades are held in some cities and towns on or around Thanksgiving Day

Answer key:

1. T;

2. F (in the United States, Thanksgiving Day falls on the fourth Thursday of November. In Canada it is celebrated on the second Monday in October);

3. T; 4. T; 5. T; 6. T;

7. F (a large meal, usually dinner or lunch);

8. T; 9. T; 10. T; 

II. Watch the segment from the movie Free Birds and talk about the following questions:

1.    What is the turkey's point of view about Thanksgiving food?

2.    What Thanksgiving symbols did you see in the segment? 3.    How do vegetarians celebrate Thanksgiving in your country?

III. Watch the segment from the great movie Pieces of April and discuss the questions:

 1.    Describe the scene or write some key words.

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

 2.    Who do you think is hosting the dinner party?

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

 3.    What is being served?

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

  

4.    What are some of the characteristics in exercise I did you manage to see in the segment?

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

 

IV. Now watch the scene from the movie The Ice Storm and discuss the questions. 

 

1.    Describe the scene.

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

 2.    Who do you think is hosting the dinner party?

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

 3.    What is being served?

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

 

4.    What are some of the characteristics in exercise I did you manage to see in the segment?

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

MOVIE SEGMENT DOWNLOAD - FREE BIRDS

MOVIE SEGMENT DOWNLOAD -  PIECES OF APRIL

MOVIE SEGMENT DOWNLOAD -  THE ICE STORM