Breaking News English ESL Lesson Plan on Eurovision

Serbia wins Eurovision Song Contest

Serbia's Marija Serifovic won this year’s Eurovision Song Contest on Saturday in Helsinki, Finland. She beat competitors from 23 other European countries in a three-hour televised extravaganza. The 22-year-old singer won with a simple ballad called Motiva, which means ‘Prayer’ in Serbian. Serifovic was elated after the victory and found it difficult to contain her excitement. She spoke at a news conference after the contest, which was broadcast live across Europe to an estimated 100 million viewers. She said: "I honestly think that a new chapter has opened for Serbia and not only in music. I'm proud.” It was Serbia’s first solo performance at the annual song competition. Her Serbian fans were delighted at the victory. “She has a fantastic voice and she has put Serbia on the world music map,” said one fan.

The current show is very different from how it all started in the 1950s. Then, it was a formal, black-tie event, and was the flagship for the European Broadcasting Union. Over the years it has made many singers famous, although most winners simply disappeared. Perhaps the most famous artists to emerge from the show are Abba – the Swedish group who won in 1974 with their song ‘Waterloo’. Many Western Europeans now view the show as an annual joke, a showcase for amateurs with little real talent, rather than a serious contest. Conversely, Eastern Europeans are taking a big interest in it. Ukraine finished second this year and won the contest in 2004, when Serbia and Montenegro finished second. Perhaps this is a sign that Eastern European rock is set to take over the music world.

WARM-UPS

1. MUSIC: Walk around the class and talk to other students about music and singers. Change partners often. After you finish, sit with your original partner(s) and share what you found out.

2. CHAT: In pairs / groups, decide which of these topics or words from the article are most interesting and which are most boring.

Serbia / competitors / singers / ballads / excitement / prayers / fans / maps / black-tie events / artists / Abba / jokes / talent / contests / rock music

Have a chat about the topics you liked. For more conversation, change topics and partners frequently.

3. HI. I’M A SINGER: Imagine you are a famous singer. Talk to all the other “famous singers” in the classroom about being famous.

4. MUSIC GENRES: Which of these music genres would you like to be good at? What kind of lifestyle would you have with each? Talk about this with your partner(s).

rock ‘n’ roll guitarist
classical violinist
pop singer
rap artist

opera singer
jazz saxophonist
street performer (busker)
your choice _________________

5. WHEN I’M…: In pairs / groups, talk about the best songs / artists / music to listen to while you’re...

studying English
in the bath
depressed
on holiday

at work
with your partner
at home alone
driving or sitting on a train/bus/airplane

6. WORLD MUSIC: In pairs / groups, talk about your image of music from…

Serbia
Britain
China
South Africa

Brazil
Swaziland
Japan
Turkey

7. QUICK DEBATE: Have this quick debate with your partner(s). Students A think pop music is rubbish; students B think pop music is the best kind of music. Change partners and topics every two minutes.

BEFORE READING / LISTENING

1. TRUE / FALSE: Look at the article’s headline and guess whether these sentences are true (T) or false (F):

a.	The Eurovision Song Contest was held in Serbia.	T / F
b.	The event was a 23-hour televised extravaganza.	T / F
c.	The winner spoke to 100 million people around the world.	T / F
d.	One fan was happy that Serbian music has risen in world music.	T / F
e.	The Eurovision Song Contest has been going for around 50 years.	T / F
f.	The most famous winners of the Contest are the Beatles.	T / F
g.	Many Western Europeans do not take the Contest seriously.	T / F
h.	Eastern European rock music is now the best in the world.	T / F

2. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article:

a.	competitors	aired
b.	extravaganza	folk song
c.	ballad	appear
d.	broadcast	dominate
e.	chapter	non-professionals
f.	formal	spectacular
g.	emerge	phase
h.	showcase	contestants
i.	amateurs	dressy
j.	take over	exhibition

3. PHRASE MATCH: Match the following phrases from the article (sometimes more than one combination is possible):

a.	a three-hour televised	the show as an annual joke
b.	found it difficult to contain	has opened for Serbia
c.	broadcast	has made many singers famous
d.	a new chapter	extravaganza
e.	she has put Serbia on	her excitement
f.	a formal,	to emerge from the show
g.	Over the years it	over the music world
h.	the most famous artists	the world music map
i.	Western Europeans now view	live across Europe
j.	set to take	black-tie event

WHILE READING / LISTENING

GAP FILL: Put the words into the gaps in the text.

Serbia wins Eurovision Song Contest

Serbia's Marija Serifovic won this year’s Eurovision Song Contest on Saturday in Helsinki, Finland. She beat ________ from 23 other European countries in a three-hour televised extravaganza. The 22-year-old singer won with a ________ ballad called Motiva, which means ‘Prayer’ in Serbian. Serifovic was elated after the victory and found it difficult to ________ her excitement. She spoke at a news conference after the contest, which was broadcast live across Europe to an ________ 100 million viewers. She said: "I honestly think that a new chapter has ________ for Serbia and not only in music. I'm ________.” It was Serbia’s first solo performance at the annual song competition. Her Serbian fans were ________ at the victory. “She has a fantastic voice and she has put Serbia on the world music ________,” said one fan.

opened
simple
delighted
estimated
proud
competitors
map
contain

The current show is very different from ________ it all started in the 1950s. Then, it was a formal, black-tie event, and was the ________ for the European Broadcasting Union. ________ the years it has made many singers famous, although most winners simply disappeared. Perhaps the most famous artists to ________ from the show are Abba – the Swedish group who won in 1974 with their song ‘Waterloo’. Many Western Europeans now ________ the show as an annual joke, a showcase for amateurs with little real talent, rather than a ________ contest. Conversely, Eastern Europeans are taking a big ________ in it. Ukraine finished second this year and won the contest in 2004, when Serbia and Montenegro finished second. Perhaps this is a ________ that Eastern European rock is set to take over the music world.

serious
interest
flagship
view
over
how
sign
emerge

LISTENING

Listen and fill in the spaces.

Serbia wins Eurovision Song Contest

Serbia's Marija Serifovic ___________________ Eurovision Song Contest on Saturday in Helsinki, Finland. She beat competitors _______________ European countries in a three-hour televised extravaganza. The 22-year-old singer ___________________ ballad called Motiva, which means ‘Prayer’ in Serbian. Serifovic was elated after the victory and found ___________________ excitement. She spoke at a news conference after the contest, which was broadcast live across Europe to an estimated 100 million viewers. She said: "I honestly think ___________________ opened for Serbia and not only in music. I'm proud.” It was Serbia’s first solo performance at the annual song competition. Her Serbian fans were ___________________. “She has a fantastic voice and she has put Serbia ___________________,” said one fan.

The current show is very different ___________________ in the 1950s. Then, it was a formal, black-tie event, and was the flagship for the European Broadcasting Union. ___________________ made many singers famous, although most winners simply disappeared. Perhaps the most famous artists ___________________ show are Abba – the Swedish group who won in 1974 with their song ‘Waterloo’. Many Western Europeans ___________________ an annual joke, a showcase for amateurs with little real talent, rather than a serious contest. Conversely, Eastern Europeans are taking ___________________. Ukraine finished second this year and won the contest in 2004, when Serbia and Montenegro finished second. Perhaps this is a sign that Eastern European rock ___________________ the music world.

AFTER READING / LISTENING

1. WORD SEARCH: Look in your dictionaries / computer to find collocates, other meanings, information, synonyms … for the words ‘song’ and ‘contest’.

song

contest

Share your findings with your partners.
Make questions using the words you found.
Ask your partner / group your questions.

2. ARTICLE QUESTIONS: Look back at the article and write down some questions you would like to ask the class about the text.

Share your questions with other classmates / groups.
Ask your partner / group your questions.

3. GAP FILL: In pairs / groups, compare your answers to this exercise. Check your answers. Talk about the words from the activity. Were they new, interesting, worth learning…?

4. VOCABULARY: Circle any words you do not understand. In groups, pool unknown words and use dictionaries to find their meanings.

5. TEST EACH OTHER: Look at the words below. With your partner, try to recall exactly how these were used in the text:

Helsinki
23
simple
broadcast
chapter
fantastic

current
over
emerge
talent
interest
set

STUDENT SURVEY

Write five GOOD questions about MUSIC in the table. Do this in pairs. Each student must write the questions on his / her own paper.

When you have finished, interview other students. Write down their answers.

	STUDENT 1 _____________	STUDENT 2 _____________	STUDENT 3 _____________
Q.1.
Q.2.
Q.3.
Q.4.
Q.5.

Now return to your original partner and share and talk about what you found out. Change partners often.
Make mini-presentations to other groups on your findings.

DISCUSSION

STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

What did you think when you read the headline?
What kind of music do you like?
Do you think you’d like to listen to ballads from Serbia?
What do you know about the Eurovision Song Contest?
Do you like looking at music contests?
Would you like to take part in a music contest?
How do you think its feels to talk to 100 million people?
If you had to sing on TV, what would you sing and wear?
Have you ever found it difficult to contain your excitement?
Do you think Marija has put Serbia on the world music map?

-------------------------------------------------------------------

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

Did you like reading this article?
Do you think televised song contests are a good idea?
What do you think of the idea of a world song contest?
How has music changed since the 1950s?
Is music in your country dominated by American and British artists?
Do you think music stars in your country can be famous around the world?
Do you like Abba?
Would you like Eastern European rock to take over the music world?
If you could be any singer, who would you be?
Did you like this discussion?

AFTER DISCUSSION: Join another partner / group and tell them what you talked about.

What was the most interesting thing you heard?
Was there a question you didn’t like?
Was there something you totally disagreed with?
What did you like talking about?
Which was the most difficult question?

SPEAKING

WORLD SONG CONTEST:

You have entered the first World Song Contest with your partner(s). Together, agree on the information in the table and state your reasons:

Information	Reasons
Name
Costume
Name of song
Genre
Opening line of song
Stage show
Winning speech ideas

Change partners and share your ideas.
Vote on the best ideas.
As a class, agree on a class rock group.

LANGUAGE

CORRECT WORD: Put the correct words from a–d below in the article.

Serbia wins Eurovision Song Contest

Serbia's Marija Serifovic (1) ____ this year’s Eurovision Song Contest on Saturday in Helsinki, Finland. She (2) ____ competitors from 23 other European countries in a three-hour televised extravaganza. The 22-year-old singer won with a (3) ____ ballad called Motiva, which means ‘Prayer’ in Serbian. Serifovic was elated after the victory and found it difficult to
(4) ____ her excitement. She spoke at a news conference after the contest, which was broadcast live across Europe to an estimated 100 million viewers. She said: "I honestly think that a new (5) ____ has opened for Serbia and not only in music. I'm proud.” It was Serbia’s first solo performance at the annual song competition. Her Serbian fans were delighted at the victory. “She has a fantastic voice and she has put Serbia on the world music
(6) ____,” said one fan.

The current show is very different from how it all started in the 1950s. Then, it was a (7) ____, black-tie event, and was the flagship for the European Broadcasting Union. (8) ____ the years it has made many singers famous, although most winners simply disappeared. Perhaps the most famous artists to emerge (9) ____ the show are Abba – the Swedish group who won in 1974 with their song ‘Waterloo’. Many Western Europeans now (10) ____ the show as an annual joke, a showcase for amateurs with little real talent, rather than a serious contest. Conversely, Eastern Europeans are taking a big interest (11) ____ it. Ukraine finished second this year and won the contest in 2004, when Serbia and Montenegro finished second. Perhaps this is a sign that Eastern European rock is (12) ____ to take over the music world.

1.	(a)	winnings	(b)	wonder	(c)	won	(d)	win
2.	(a)	won	(b)	beat	(c)	victory	(d)	defeat
3.	(a)	simple	(b)	simply	(c)	samples	(d)	simile
4.	(a)	contestant	(b)	content	(c)	container	(d)	contain
5.	(a)	chapter	(b)	index	(c)	contents	(d)	front page
6.	(a)	globe	(b)	mapped	(c)	map	(d)	atlas
7.	(a)	informal	(b)	formal	(c)	formality	(d)	form
8.	(a)	Over	(b)	Overly	(c)	Overdone	(d)	Overall
9.	(a)	with	(b)	of	(c)	for	(d)	from
10.	(a)	sight	(b)	viewer	(c)	view	(d)	eyesight
11.	(a)	or	(b)	in	(c)	on	(d)	of
12.	(a)	sunset	(b)	settle	(c)	setting	(d)	set

WRITING:

Write about music for 10 minutes. Read and correct your partner’s paper.

_______________________________________________________________________

HOMEWORK

1. VOCABULARY EXTENSION: Choose several of the words from the text. Use a dictionary or Google’s search field (or another search engine) to build up more associations / collocations of each word.

2. INTERNET: Search the Internet and find more information about the Eurovision Song Contest. Talk about what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.

3. MUSIC POSTER: Make a poster about your favourite musicians. In particular, focus on how your musical tastes have changed. Show your poster to your class in the next lesson. Vote on the best one(s).

4. MAGAZINE ARTICLE: Write a magazine article about world music. Choose three or four countries / genres to write about. Decide if your article will be

for people your age
for your grandparents
for Martians who have never heard Earth music
for people who hate the music you’ll wrote about
other

Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Which article was best and why?

5. LETTER: Write a letter to Marija Serifovic. Ask her three questions about the Eurovision Song Contest. Give her three pieces of advice about her life as a world music superstar. Read your letter to your partner(s) in your next lesson. Your partner(s) will answer your questions.

ANSWERS

TRUE / FALSE:

a. F

b. F

c. T

d. T

e. T

f. F

g. T

h. F

SYNONYM MATCH:

a.	competitors	contestants
b.	extravaganza	spectacular
c.	ballad	folk song
d.	broadcast	aired
e.	chapter	phase
f.	formal	dressy
g.	emerge	appear
h.	showcase	exhibition
i.	amateurs	non-professionals
j.	take over	dominate

PHRASE MATCH:

a.	a three-hour televised	extravaganza
b.	found it difficult to contain	her excitement
c.	broadcast	live across Europe
d.	a new chapter	has opened for Serbia
e.	she has put Serbia on	the world music map
f.	a formal,	black-tie event
g.	Over the years it	has made many singers famous
h.	the most famous artists	to emerge from the show
i.	Western Europeans now view	the show as an annual joke
j.	set to take	over the music world

GAP FILL:

Serbia wins Eurovision Song Contest

Serbia's Marija Serifovic won this year’s Eurovision Song Contest on Saturday in Helsinki, Finland. She beat competitors from 23 other European countries in a three-hour televised extravaganza. The 22-year-old singer won with a simple ballad called Motiva, which means ‘Prayer’ in Serbian. Serifovic was elated after the victory and found it difficult to contain her excitement. She spoke at a news conference after the contest, which was broadcast live across Europe to an estimated 100 million viewers. She said: "I honestly think that a new chapter has opened for Serbia and not only in music. I'm proud.” It was Serbia’s first solo performance at the annual song competition. Her Serbian fans were delighted at the victory. “She has a fantastic voice and she has put Serbia on the world music map,” said one fan.

The current show is very different from how it all started in the 1950s. Then, it was a formal, black-tie event, and was the flagship for the European Broadcasting Union. Over the years it has made many singers famous, although most winners simply disappeared. Perhaps the most famous artists to emerge from the show are Abba – the Swedish group who won in 1974 with their song ‘Waterloo’. Many Western Europeans now view the show as an annual joke, a showcase for amateurs with little real talent, rather than a serious contest. Conversely, Eastern Europeans are taking a big interest in it. Ukraine finished second this year and won the contest in 2004, when Serbia and Montenegro finished second. Perhaps this is a sign that Eastern European rock is set to take over the music world.

LANGUAGE WORK

1 - c

2 - b

3 - a

4 -d

5 - a

6 -c

7 - b

8 -a

9 -d

10 - c

11 -b

12 - d

Breaking News English

THE ARTICLE

Serbia wins Eurovision Song Contest

WARM-UPS

BEFORE READING / LISTENING

WHILE READING / LISTENING

Serbia wins Eurovision Song Contest

LISTENING

Serbia wins Eurovision Song Contest

AFTER READING / LISTENING

STUDENT SURVEY

DISCUSSION

SPEAKING

LANGUAGE

Serbia wins Eurovision Song Contest

WRITING:

HOMEWORK

ANSWERS

Serbia wins Eurovision Song Contest

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