Monday 20 February 2012

The Icing on the Cake

You are going to
  • watch a video about memories and do a listening exercise
  • use remember + gerund for talking about memories
  • practise would and used to for talking about past habits
  • describe and write about memories and past habits




1) Discuss
  • What things do you remember from your childhood?
  • What are your earliest memories?
  • What are your favourite memories?



2) Introduction
You are going to watch a StoryCorps video.
Blanca Alvarez and her husband crossed the border to immigrate into the U.S. and then struggled to make ends meet. They hoped to shelter their children from these harsh realities, but Blanca's daughter Connie reveals how much children can really see of their parents' lives—and the inspiration they draw from their struggles.

A) Watch the video
What does Connie remember from her childhood?
The film is called "The Icing on the Cake" what do you think that means?




B) Answer the questions



3) Grammar
Look again at what Connie says
Remember. If you are remembering things in the past and you use the verb remember, what must you do with the verb which follows?
Answer - Highlight here = Use a gerund -ing. I remember eating, I remember playing...

If we want to talk about past habits and repeated activities what language can we use?
Answer - Highlight here = Would. You can also use Used to

See here - Contrast of Used to and Would







4) Practise
Have a look at this presentation and practise Remember + Gerund, Would and Used to









5) Gap-fill
Practise Remember + Gerund, Would and Used to in this gap-fill exercise















Printable version here




6) Writing
Memories
Write about a memory you have of something you did in the past.
It could be a holiday, your first visit to the UK (or another country), a school trip, a memory from your childhood or just somewhere you used to live...

  • Talk about what you remember doing
  • Use Would and Used to but remember the secret of good writing is variety so try and use both of them with a variety of other past tenses
  • Introduce the topic and have a concluding sentence or paragraph
  • You can use the ex 5 gap-fill as a model






7) More Practice
Would for Past Habit Jumbled Sentence Games 1 - 10
Past habits - Used to / Would interative exercises


More videos from StoryCorps

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