Breaking News English ESL Lesson Plan on Birthday Presents

Some kids get a used car or a motorbike for their sixteenth birthday, if they’re really lucky. Justin Dior Combs got a $360,000 sports car. He’s the son of legendary rap singer and producer Sean Combs, a.k.a. P Diddy. The car, a Maybach 57, is a super-expensive, ultra-luxurious version of a Mercedes Benz. It’s one of the most expensive cars in the world. Justin’s birthday party was just as lavish. His dad threw a party for him at one of New York’s trendiest clubs. He also gave him $10,000 in cash to spend around New York. Justin told UsMagazine.com that he was going to donate all of the cash to the Haiti earthquake relief. He did enjoy the party, telling reporters: "I'm just ecstatic right now. Words can't even describe how I feel."

describe how I feel."
Mr. Combs was later quizzed about the gifts on the American TV show ‘Nightline’. The presenter, Martin Bashir, questioned whether it was a suitable present for a 16-year-old. Combs replied: "I think it's appropriate to give my kids whatever I want to.” He seemed a little angry that he was asked this question and told the presenter: “I feel the way I raise my children, I don't have to explain to you or anyone else, 'cause nobody knows the way I raise my children.” He added: “Nobody knows the lessons that I've taught my children to understand if they are mentally ready for that." Mr. Bashir asked if the presents give the wrong message about money. P Diddy replied: "It wasn't about a lesson. It's what I wanted to do [for my son]."

WARM-UPS

1. BIRTHDAY PRESENTS: Walk around the class and talk to other students about birthday presents. 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.

used cars / sports cars / rap singers / birthday parties / trendy clubs / donating cash / gifts / suitable / raising children / learning lessons / mentally / wrong messages

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

3. GIFTS: What’s the perfect one for these people? Complete this table. Share what you wrote with your partner(s). Change partners and share what you heard.

	What?	Why?
English teacher
Best friend
You
Your country’s leader
Your parents
A friend getting married

4. SPOILT: Students A strongly believe today’s kids are spoilt; Students B strongly believe the opposite. Change partners again and talk about your conversations.

5. LESSONS: What do we need to teach our children? Rank these and share your rankings with your partner. Change partners and share your rankings again.

How to forgive
About money
How to fight
About telling the truth

About helping the planet
English
About love and friendship
How to keep fit and healthy

6. LESSON: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word ‘lesson’. Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories.

BEFORE READING / LISTENING

1. TRUE / FALSE: Read the headline. Guess if a-h below are true (T) or false (F).

a.	A rap star’s son got a $36,000 sports car for his birthday.	T / F
b.	The father gave his son $10,000 to spend in a trendy club.	T / F
c.	The son wants to give the cash to victims of the Haitian earthquake.	T / F
d.	The boy can’t express how happy he feels.	T / F
e.	P Diddy was asked on US television about the suitability of the gifts.	T / F
f.	P Diddy didn’t mind being asked questions about his son’s presents.	T / F
g.	P Diddy said he wasn’t obliged to discuss his parenting skills.	T / F
h.	P Diddy agreed expensive presents send the wrong message to kids	T / F

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

1.	used	a.	luxurious
2	legendary	b.	suitable
3.	lavish	c.	appeared
4.	trendiest	d.	questioned
5.	ecstatic	e.	second hand
6.	quizzed	f.	bring up
7.	appropriate	g.	most fashionable
8.	seemed	h.	famous
9.	raise	i.	lesson
10.	message	j.	overjoyed

3. PHRASE MATCH: (Sometimes more than one choice is possible.)

1.	Some kids get a used	a.	all of the cash
2	legendary rap singer	b.	about money
3.	Justin’s birthday party was	c.	describe how I feel
4.	he was going to donate	d.	for a 16-year-old
5.	Words can't even	e.	my children
6.	Mr. Combs was later quizzed	f.	car or a motorbike
7.	a suitable present	g.	ready
8.	the way I raise	h.	and producer
9.	mentally	i.	about the gifts
10.	give the wrong message	j.	just as lavish

WHILE READING / LISTENING

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

Some kids get a ____________ car or a motorbike for their sixteenth birthday, if they’re really lucky. Justin Dior Combs got a $360,000 sports car. He’s the son of ____________ rap singer and producer Sean Combs, a.k.a. P Diddy. The car, a Maybach 57, is a super-expensive, ultra-luxurious ____________ of a Mercedes Benz. It’s one of the most expensive cars in the world. Justin’s birthday party was just as ____________. His dad threw a party for him at one of New York’s ____________ clubs. He also gave him $10,000 in cash to spend around New York. Justin told UsMagazine.com that he was going to ____________ all of the cash to the Haiti earthquake ____________. He did enjoy the party, telling reporters: "I'm just ____________ right now. Words can't even describe how I feel."

lavish
version
used
donate
ecstatic
trendiest
relief
legendary

Mr. Combs was later ____________ about the gifts on the American TV show ‘Nightline’. The presenter, Martin Bashir, questioned whether it was a ____________ present for a 16-year-old. Combs replied: "I think it's appropriate to give my kids ____________ I want to.” He seemed a little angry that he was asked this question and told the presenter: “I feel the way I ____________ my children, I don't have to ____________ to you or anyone else, 'cause nobody knows the way I raise my children.” He added: “Nobody knows the lessons that I've taught my children to understand if they are ____________ ready for that." Mr. Bashir asked if the presents give the wrong ____________ about money. P Diddy replied: "It wasn't about a ____________. It's what I wanted to do [for my son]."

whatever
message
quizzed
explain
lesson
mentally
suitable
raise

LISTENING – Listen and fill in the gaps

Some kids ____________________ motorbike for their sixteenth birthday, if they’re really lucky. Justin Dior Combs got a $360,000 sports car. He’s the ____________________ singer and producer Sean Combs, a.k.a. P Diddy. The car, a Maybach 57, is a super-expensive, ultra-____________________ Mercedes Benz. It’s one of the most expensive cars in the world. Justin’s birthday party ____________________. His dad ____________________ at one of New York’s trendiest clubs. He also gave him $10,000 in cash to spend around New York. Justin told UsMagazine.com that he was going to ____________________ to the Haiti earthquake relief. He did enjoy the party, telling reporters: "I'm just ecstatic right now. Words can't even describe how I feel."

Mr. Combs was ____________________ the gifts on the American TV show ‘Nightline’. The presenter, Martin Bashir, questioned whether it was a ____________________ a 16-year-old. Combs replied: "I think it's appropriate to give my kids whatever I want to.” He ____________________ that he was asked this question and told the presenter: “I feel the way I raise my children, I don't have to explain to you or anyone else, 'cause nobody ____________________ raise my children.” He added: “Nobody knows the lessons that I've taught my children to understand if they are ____________________ that." Mr. Bashir asked if the presents give ____________________ about money. P Diddy replied: "It wasn't about a lesson. It's what I wanted to do [for my son]."

AFTER READING / LISTENING

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

birthday

present

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:

used
version
lavish
threw
cash
describe

TV
suitable
seemed
explain
ready
lesson

STUDENT BIRTHDAY PRESENTS SURVEY

Write five GOOD questions about birthday presents 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.

BIRTHDAY PRESENTS 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 ‘birthday’?
c)	What’s the best birthday present you’ve ever had?
d)	Do you prefer giving or receiving birthday presents?
e)	What do you think of Justin Combs’ birthday presents?
f)	What did you get for your sixteenth birthday?
g)	What do you think Justin will get for his seventeenth birthday?
h)	What do you think of Justin for donating his money to victims of Haiti’s earthquake?
i)	What words might describe how Justin felt?
j)	When was the last time you were ecstatic?

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

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

a)	Did you like reading this article?
b)	Why do you think P Diddy was ‘quizzed’ about the birthday presents on American TV?
c)	Do you think the birthday presents were suitable?
d)	Is it really any of Martin Bashir’s business what anyone buys for his/her children?
e)	What do you think of P Diddy’s replies to the questions?
f)	Do you think the P Diddy being questioned about birthday presents shows we are obsessed with celebrities?
g)	Do you think P Diddy gave his son the wrong message about money?
h)	If you were a multi-millionaire, how much would you spend on an important birthday for your child?
i)	Do you think the presents show how much P Diddy loves his son?
j)	What questions would you like to ask Justin?

LANGUAGE – MULTIPLE CHOICE

Some kids get a (1) ____ car or a motorbike for their sixteenth birthday, if they’re really lucky. Justin Dior Combs got a $360,000 sports car. He’s the son of (2) ____ rap singer and producer Sean Combs, a.k.a. P Diddy. The car, a Maybach 57, is a super-expensive, ultra-luxurious version of a Mercedes Benz. It’s one of the most expensive cars in the world. Justin’s birthday party was just (3) ____ lavish. His dad (4) ____ a party for him at one of New York’s trendiest clubs. He also gave him $10,000 in cash to spend around New York. Justin told UsMagazine.com that he was going to donate all of the cash to the Haiti earthquake (5) ____. He did enjoy the party, telling reporters: "I'm (6) ____ ecstatic right now. Words can't even describe how I feel."

Mr. Combs was later (7) ____ about the gifts on the American TV show ‘Nightline’. The presenter, Martin Bashir, questioned whether it was a suitable present (8) ____ a 16-year-old. Combs replied: "I think it's appropriate to give my kids (9) ____ I want to.” He seemed a little angry that he was asked this question and told the presenter: “I feel the way I (10) ____ my children, I don't have to explain to you or anyone else, 'cause nobody knows the way I raise my children.” He added: “Nobody knows the lessons that I've taught my children to understand if they are (11) ____ ready for that." Mr. Bashir asked if the presents give the wrong (12) ____ about money. P Diddy replied: "It wasn't about a lesson. It's what I wanted to do [for my son]."

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

1.	(a)	use	(b)	uses	(c)	usage	(d)	used
2.	(a)	legend	(b)	legends	(c)	legendary	(d)	legionary
3.	(a)	has	(b)	as	(c)	was	(d)	is
4.	(a)	threw	(b)	caught	(c)	aimed	(d)	hit
5.	(a)	relieve	(b)	relieving	(c)	relief	(d)	relieves
6.	(a)	right	(b)	such	(c)	simple	(d)	just
7.	(a)	quiz	(b)	quizzed	(c)	quizzes	(d)	quizzing
8.	(a)	for	(b)	to	(c)	at	(d)	by
9.	(a)	whenever	(b)	whatever	(c)	wherever	(d)	whatsoever
10.	(a)	rise	(b)	rising	(c)	raise	(d)	rises
11.	(a)	mentally	(b)	mental	(c)	meant	(d)	mentality
12.	(a)	messaging	(b)	messaged	(c)	messenger	(d)	message

WRITING

Write about birthday presents 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 the birthday presents stars buy. Share what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.

3. BIRTHDAY PRESENTS: Make a poster about the birthday presents you’ve had and how they made you feel. Show your work to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all have similar things?

4. ECSTATIC: Write a magazine article about someone being ecstatic after getting some really cool birthday presents. Include an imaginary interview with that person.

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 a celebrity. Ask him/her three questions about birthday presents. Give him/her three opinions on what kind of presents they should buy. Read your letter to your partner(s) in your next lesson. Your partner(s) will answer your questions.

ANSWERS

TRUE / FALSE:

SYNONYM MATCH:

1.	used	a.	second hand
2	legendary	b.	famous
3.	lavish	c.	luxurious
4.	trendiest	d.	most fashionable
5.	ecstatic	e.	overjoyed
6.	quizzed	f.	questioned
7.	appropriate	g.	suitable
8.	seemed	h.	appeared
9.	raise	i.	bring up
10.	message	j.	lesson

PHRASE MATCH:

1.	Some kids get a used	a.	car or a motorbike
2	legendary rap singer	b.	and producer
3.	Justin’s birthday party was	c.	just as lavish
4.	he was going to donate	d.	all of the cash
5.	Words can't even	e.	describe how I feel
6.	Mr. Combs was later quizzed	f.	about the gifts
7.	a suitable present	g.	for a 16-year-old
8.	the way I raise	h.	my children
9.	mentally	i.	ready
10.	give the wrong message	j.	about money

GAP FILL:

P Diddy gives son, 16, luxury sports car

Some kids get a used car or a motorbike for their sixteenth birthday, if they’re really lucky. Justin Dior Combs got a $360,000 sports car. He’s the son of legendary rap singer and producer Sean Combs, a.k.a. P Diddy. The car, a Maybach 57, is a super-expensive, ultra-luxurious version of a Mercedes Benz. It’s one of the most expensive cars in the world. Justin’s birthday party was just as lavish. His dad threw a party for him at one of New York’s trendiest clubs. He also gave him $10,000 in cash to spend around New York. Justin told UsMagazine.com that he was going to donate all of the cash to the Haiti earthquake relief. He did enjoy the party, telling reporters: "I'm just ecstatic right now. Words can't even describe how I feel."

Mr. Combs was later quizzed about the gifts on the American TV show ‘Nightline’. The presenter, Martin Bashir, questioned whether it was a suitable present for a 16-year-old. Combs replied: "I think it's appropriate to give my kids whatever I want to.” He seemed a little angry that he was asked this question and told the presenter: “I feel the way I raise my children, I don't have to explain to you or anyone else, 'cause nobody knows the way I raise my children.” He added: “Nobody knows the lessons that I've taught my children to understand if they are mentally ready for that." Mr. Bashir asked if the presents give the wrong message about money. P Diddy replied: "It wasn't about a lesson. It's what I wanted to do [for my son]."

LANGUAGE WORK

1 - d

2 - a

3 - b

4 - c

5 - c

6 - b

7 - d

8 - a

9 - b

10 - d

11 - c

12 - a

Breaking News English

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P Diddy Gives Son, 16, Luxury Sports Car (19th June, 2010)

WARM-UPS

BEFORE READING / LISTENING

WHILE READING / LISTENING

LISTENING – Listen and fill in the gaps

AFTER READING / LISTENING

STUDENT BIRTHDAY PRESENTS SURVEY

BIRTHDAY PRESENTS DISCUSSION

LANGUAGE – MULTIPLE CHOICE

WRITING

HOMEWORK

ANSWERS

P Diddy gives son, 16, luxury sports car

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My 1,000 Ideas e-Book	Breaking News English HOME \| HELP MY SITE \| 000s MORE FREE LESSONS	My 1,000 Ideas e-Book

Breaking News English

PRINT

13-Page PDF Handout - with all-skills activities

LISTEN

MP3 (2:06 - 1,006KB)

P Diddy Gives Son, 16, Luxury Sports Car (19th June, 2010)

WARM-UPS

BEFORE READING / LISTENING

WHILE READING / LISTENING

LISTENING – Listen and fill in the gaps

AFTER READING / LISTENING

STUDENT BIRTHDAY PRESENTS SURVEY

BIRTHDAY PRESENTS DISCUSSION

LANGUAGE – MULTIPLE CHOICE

WRITING

HOMEWORK

ANSWERS

P Diddy gives son, 16, luxury sports car

Help Support This Web Site

Sean Banville's Book

Thank You

13-Page PDF
Handout - with
all-skills activities