Breaking News English ESL Lesson Plan on Golf

Pop superstar Justin Timberlake has just opened his own golf course. He bought it at the end of 2007 in his hometown of Memphis, Tennessee. It was about to go up for auction and Timberlake wanted to save it from property developers. He has called it Mirimichi, which means ‘place of happy retreat’. Timberlake invested in the new course to make it more environmentally friendly. The 18-hole, par-72 course has a cutting-edge drainage system. This means it uses water more efficiently. There are also many restored areas of natural beauty, including waterfalls, lakes and streams. Timberlake said: "I was able to pose the question, is it possible for a golf course to actually be green, and I'm sure you all know I mean, eco-friendly.”

The new course is now open to the public. Timberlake bought it because he loves golf and because he wanted to help his local community. He has already hosted his own PGA Tour tournament and regularly plays with professional golfers. His new course will bring in tourists from all over the world and help the local economy. Timberlake said: "Its amazing to do something to give back to your community, a place you grew up.” He commented on why Mirimichi has a special place in his heart. “Right over there on the tenth tee is where I hit my first golf ball ever," he said. The singer has other business ventures besides golf. He has opened restaurants and has his own clothing brand.

WARM-UPS

1. GOLF: Walk around the class and talk to other students about golf. Change partners often. Sit with your first partner(s) and share your findings.

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

pop superstars / golf courses / hometowns / property developers / natural beauty / local community / tourists / the place you grew up / business venture / clothing brand

Have a chat about the topics you liked. Change topics and partners frequently.

3. MY OWN BUSINESS: What business would you like? Complete this table. Share what you wrote with your partner(s). Give each other advice on how to make the business venture more successful. Change partners and share what you heard.

	Your ideas	Advice from partner(s)
Name / Slogan / Logo
Market
Product / Service
Eco-friendliness
Selling points
Prices

4. GOLF: Students A strongly believe golf is the greatest game in the world; Students B strongly believe golf is the most boring game in the world. Change partners again and talk about your conversations.

5. CELEBRITY BUSINESS: What business would be good for these people? Talk about this with your partner(s). Change partners and share what you heard.

Barack Obama
Madonna
Brad Pitt
Nelson Mandela

Your country’s leader
Tiger Woods
J.K. Rowling (Harry Potter author)
Queen Rania of Jordan

6. ECO-FRIENDLY: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the term ‘eco-friendly’. Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories.

BEFORE READING / LISTENING

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

a.	Justin Timberlake opened a golf course he bought a decade ago.	T / F
b.	He bought the course to stop property developers from building on it.	T / F
c.	Timberlake changed the course so it is better for the environment.	T / F
d.	Timberlake removed all of the water features from the course.	T / F
e.	The new golf course is only for Justin, his family, friends and guests.	T / F
f.	Timberlake hopes people from all over will play on his course.	T / F
g.	Justin first played golf on a course in Hollywood.	T / F
h.	The golf course is not the first time Justin has ventured into business.	T / F

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

1.	save	a.	latest technology
2	retreat	b.	ask
3.	cutting edge	c.	everyone
4.	pose	d.	apart from
5.	green	e.	rescue
6.	the public	f.	escape
7.	hosted	g.	make
8.	bring in	h.	held
9.	besides	i.	environmentally friendly
10.	brand	j.	attract

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

1.	He bought it at	a.	in the new course
2	It was about to go	b.	in his heart
3.	Timberlake invested	c.	the question
4.	many restored areas	d.	in tourists from all over
5.	I was able to pose	e.	the end of 2007
6.	The new course is now open	f.	local community
7.	he wanted to help his	g.	to the public
8.	His new course will bring	h.	up for auction
9.	a special place	i.	besides golf
10.	other business ventures	j.	of natural beauty

WHILE READING / LISTENING

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

Pop superstar Justin Timberlake has ____________ opened his own golf course. He bought it at the end of 2007 in his hometown of Memphis, Tennessee. It was about to go ____________ for auction and Timberlake wanted to save it from property developers. He has called it Mirimichi, which means ‘____________ of happy retreat’. Timberlake invested in the new course to make it more environmentally ____________. The 18-hole, par-72 course has a cutting-edge drainage ____________. This means it uses water more efficiently. There are also many restored areas of natural ____________, including waterfalls, lakes and streams. Timberlake said: "I was able to ____________ the question, is it possible for a golf course to actually be green, and I'm sure you all know I mean, ____________ -friendly.”

beauty
up
friendly
just
eco
place
pose
system

The new course is now open to the ____________. Timberlake bought it because he loves golf and because he wanted to help his ____________ community. He has already ____________ his own PGA Tour tournament and regularly plays with professional golfers. His new course will bring in tourists from all over the world and help the local ____________. Timberlake said: "Its amazing to do something to give back to your community, a place you ____________ up.” He commented on why Mirimichi has a special place in his ____________. “Right over there on the tenth tee is where I hit my first golf ball ever," he said. The singer has other business ventures ____________ golf. He has opened restaurants and has his own clothing ____________.

economy
local
besides
brand
public
heart
hosted
grew

LISTENING: Listen and fill in the gaps.

Pop superstar Justin Timberlake _________________ his own golf course. He bought it at the end of 2007 in his hometown of Memphis, Tennessee. It was _________________ for auction and Timberlake wanted to save it from property developers. He has called it Mirimichi, which means ‘place of happy retreat’. Timberlake invested _________________ to make it more environmentally friendly. The 18-hole, par-72 course has a cutting-edge drainage system. _________________ water more efficiently. There are also many _________________ natural beauty, including waterfalls, lakes and streams. Timberlake said: "I was able to _________________, is it possible for a golf course to actually be green, and I'm sure you all know I mean, eco-friendly.”

The new course is now _________________. Timberlake bought it because he loves golf and because he wanted to help his local community. He has already _________________ PGA Tour tournament and regularly plays with professional golfers. His new course will bring in tourists _________________ world and help the local economy. Timberlake said: "Its amazing to do something _________________ your community, a place you grew up.” He commented on why Mirimichi has a special _________________. “Right over there on the tenth tee is where I hit my first golf ball ever," he said. The singer has other business ventures besides golf. He has opened restaurants _________________ clothing brand.

AFTER READING / LISTENING

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

golf

course

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 how they were used in the text:

just
auction
save
happy
system
green

open
hosted
bring
amazing
special
besides

STUDENT GOLF SURVEY

Write five GOOD questions about golf 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)

a)	What did you think when you read the headline?
b)	What springs to mind when you hear the word ‘golf’?
c)	Do you think golf courses are good for the environment?
d)	What do you think of Justin Timberlake buying the gold course?
e)	What do you think of the name Mirimichi?
f)	What kind of golf courses are there near you?
g)	How big is golf in your country?
h)	Is it possible for a golf course to be eco-friendly?
i)	Would you like to play on Timberlake’s golf course?
j)	What do you know about Justin Timberlake?

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

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

a)	Did you like reading this article?
b)	What’s your favourite sport?
c)	Do you like watching golf on the television?
d)	How do you help your local community?
e)	How do you feel about the place where you grew up?
f)	What places have a special place in your heart?
g)	Can you remember the places you did things for the first time ever?
h)	What kind of business venture would you like to try?
i)	Why is golf so popular?
j)	What questions would you like to ask Justin Timberlake?

LANGUAGE

Pop superstar Justin Timberlake has just opened his own golf course. He bought it at the (1) ____ of 2007 in his hometown of Memphis, Tennessee. It was about to go (2) ____ for auction and Timberlake wanted to save it from property developers. He has called it Mirimichi, which (3) ____ ‘place of happy retreat’. Timberlake invested in the new course to make it more environmentally friendly. The 18-hole, par-72 course has a cutting-(4) ____ drainage system. This means it uses water more efficiently. There are also many restored areas of natural beauty, (5) ____ waterfalls, lakes and streams. Timberlake said: "I was able to (6) ____ the question, is it possible for a golf course to actually be green, and I'm sure you all know I mean, eco-friendly.”

The new course is now open to the (7) ____. Timberlake bought it because he loves golf and because he wanted to help his local community. He has already hosted his own PGA Tour tournament and (8) ____ plays with professional golfers. His new course will bring (9) ____ tourists from all over the world and help the local economy. Timberlake said: "Its amazing to do something to give back to your community, a place you grew up.” He commented (10) ____ why Mirimichi has a special place in his heart. “Right over there on the tenth tee is where I hit my first golf ball ever," he said. The singer has (11) ____ business ventures besides golf. He has opened restaurants and has his own clothing (12) ____.

Put the correct words from the table below in the above article.

1.	(a)	last	(b)	back	(c)	finish	(d)	end
2.	(a)	up	(b)	down	(c)	in	(d)	out
3.	(a)	meant	(b)	means	(c)	meaning	(d)	meanie
4.	(a)	side	(b)	edge	(c)	corner	(d)	face
5.	(a)	included	(b)	including	(c)	include	(d)	includes
6.	(a)	poses	(b)	posing	(c)	pose	(d)	poser
7.	(a)	public	(b)	private	(c)	republic	(d)	privacy
8.	(a)	regulations	(b)	regulars	(c)	regular	(d)	regularly
9.	(a)	up	(b)	on	(c)	to	(d)	in
10.	(a)	up	(b)	on	(c)	to	(d)	in
11.	(a)	other	(b)	others	(c)	another	(d)	the other
12.	(a)	bland	(b)	branded	(c)	brand	(d)	band

WRITING:

Write about golf for 10 minutes. 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 out more about golf. Share what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.

3. ECO-FRIENDLY: Make a poster about how eco-friendly / unfriendly golf courses are. Show your work to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all have similar things?

4. LOCAL: Write a magazine article about Mirimichi. Include imaginary interviews with Justin Timberlake and a member of his local community.

Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Write down any new words and expressions you hear from your partner(s).

5. LETTER: Write a letter to Justin Timberlake. Ask him three questions about his golf course. Give him three ideas for future business ventures. Read your letter to your partner(s) in your next lesson. Your partner(s) will answer your questions.

ANSWERS

TRUE / FALSE:

SYNONYM MATCH:

1.	save	a.	rescue
2	retreat	b.	escape
3.	efficiently	c.	effectively
4.	pose	d.	ask
5.	green	e.	environmentally friendly
6.	the public	f.	everyone
7.	hosted	g.	held
8.	bring in	h.	attract
9.	besides	i.	apart from
10.	brand	j.	make

PHRASE MATCH:

1.	He bought it at	a.	the end of 2007
2	It was about to go	b.	up for auction
3.	Timberlake invested	c.	in the new course
4.	many restored areas	d.	of natural beauty
5.	I was able to pose	e.	the question
6.	The new course is now open	f.	to the public
7.	he wanted to help his	g.	local community
8.	His new course will bring	h.	in tourists from all over
9.	a special place	i.	in his heart
10.	other business ventures	j.	besides golf

GAP FILL:

Justin Timberlake opens own golf course

Pop superstar Justin Timberlake has just opened his own golf course. He bought it at the end of 2007 in his hometown of Memphis, Tennessee. It was about to go up for auction and Timberlake wanted to save it from property developers. He has called it Mirimichi, which means ‘place of happy retreat’. Timberlake invested in the new course to make it more environmentally friendly. The 18-hole, par-72 course has a cutting-edge drainage system. This means it uses water more efficiently. There are also many restored areas of natural beauty, including waterfalls, lakes and streams. Timberlake said: "I was able to pose the question, is it possible for a golf course to actually be green, and I'm sure you all know I mean, eco-friendly.”

The new course is now open to the public. Timberlake bought it because he loves golf and because he wanted to help his local community. He has already hosted his own PGA Tour tournament and regularly plays with professional golfers. His new course will bring in tourists from all over the world and help the local economy. Timberlake said: "Its amazing to do something to give back to your community, a place you grew up.” He commented on why Mirimichi has a special place in his heart. “Right over there on the tenth tee is where I hit my first golf ball ever," he said. The singer has other business ventures besides golf. He has opened restaurants and has his own clothing brand.

LANGUAGE WORK

1 - d

2 - a

3 - c

4 - b

5 - b

6 - c

7 - a

8 - d

9 -d

10 - b

11 - a

12 - c

Back to the top

Help Support This Web Site

Please consider helping Breaking News English.com

Sean Banville's Book

You can download a free sample PDF showing various parts of my book,
"1,000 Ideas & Activities for Language Teachers".

Thank You

SHARE THIS LESSON:

E-Mail

RSS

Breaking News English

July 27, 2009

Justin Timberlake Opens Own Golf Course