British royal Catherine Middleton has been named ‘Hat Person of the Year’ by the California-based Headwear Association. The Duchess of Cambridge is the third winner of this prestigious award for haute couture for the head. She won a whopping 91 per cent of the votes to be unanimously declared the winner. Singers Justin Timberlake and Bruno Mars, and actor Charlie Sheen were among the runners-up – each with one per cent of the vote or less. The duchess had a very special year in which there were many occasions to show off her hats. She married Britain’s Prince William in April and then went on a succession of public appearances and royal tours – most requiring headware.
The duchess has brought about a revival in the hat industry. In Britain, wearing a formal hat has long been going out of fashion. A baseball cap is the most likely thing a woman might wear on her head. It seems Kate’s taste in hats has inspired many American women to once again don one. Fashion expert Jenny Pfanenstiel said: “Kate has allowed American women to…feel more comfortable and confident about wearing hats in public.” This has raised the profile of many established and up-and-coming hat designers. This is not the first award Kate has picked up since marrying into royalty. Her 2011 titles include Queen of the High Street, Best-Mannered Person, and Hair Icon.
1. HATS: Walk around the class and talk to other students about hats. 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.
|
royal / headware / prestigious / award / winner / runners-up / public appearances / formal / out of fashion / taste / inspired / confident / profile / up-and-coming |
Have a chat about the topics you liked. Change topics and partners frequently.
3. … OF THE YEAR: Complete this table and share what you wrote with your partner(s). Change partners and share what you wrote again.
Category |
Judges to decide on… |
You think the winner is… |
Best person |
|
|
Nastiest person |
|
|
Best dressed |
|
|
Best business person |
|
|
Best athlete |
|
|
Best environmentalist |
|
|
4. HATS: Students A strongly believe hats are an important fashion item; Students B strongly believe not. Change partners again and talk about your conversations.
5. -WEAR: What’s most important for you? Rank these and share your rankings with your partner. Put the best at the top. Change partners and share your rankings again.
- headwear
- foot ware
- beach ware
- skiwear
|
- sportswear
- nightwear
- underwear
- party wear
|
6. HAT: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word ‘hat’. 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 British princess won an award for designing crazy hats. |
T / F |
b. |
The princess got over 90 per cent of the votes cast. |
T / F |
c. |
Justin Timberlake won the award for wearing the best hat of 2011. |
T / F |
d. |
Kate Middleton attended many occasions that requited wearing a hat. |
T / F |
e. |
The hat industry has seen an upturn in fortunes because of Kate. |
T / F |
f. |
Hat-wearing in Britain was becoming popular even before Kate arrived. |
T / F |
g. |
Kate has increased the confidence of U.S. women to wear hats. |
T / F |
h. |
The ‘Hat Person’ award was the only one Kate got last year. |
T / F |
2. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article.
| 1. |
based |
a. |
huge |
2. |
award |
b. |
probable |
3. |
whopping |
c. |
events |
4. |
occasions |
d. |
comeback |
5. |
succession |
e. |
located |
6. |
revival |
f. |
heightened |
7. |
likely |
g. |
won |
8. |
inspired |
h. |
sequence |
9. |
raised |
i. |
motivated |
10. |
picked up |
j. |
prize |
3. PHRASE MATCH: (Sometimes more than one choice is possible.)
| 1. |
the third winner of this |
a. |
up |
2. |
among the runners- |
b. |
in the hat industry |
3. |
one per cent of the vote |
c. |
appearances |
4. |
many occasions to show |
d. |
royalty |
5. |
went on a succession of public |
e. |
out of fashion |
6. |
brought about a revival |
f. |
prestigious award |
7. |
long been going |
g. |
coming hat designers |
8. |
the most likely thing a |
h. |
off her hats |
9. |
established and up-and- |
i. |
woman might wear |
10. |
marrying into |
j. |
or less |
WHILE READING / LISTENING
GAP FILL: Put the words into the gaps in the text.
| British (1) ____________ Catherine Middleton has been named ‘Hat Person of the Year’ by the California-based Headwear Association. The Duchess of Duchess is the third winner of this prestigious (2) ____________ for haute couture for the head. She won a whopping 91 per cent of the (3) ____________ to be unanimously declared the winner. Singers Justin Timberlake and Bruno Mars, and actor Charlie Sheen were (4) ____________ the (5) ____________ -up – each with one per cent of the vote or less. The duchess had a very (6) ____________ year in which there were many (7) ____________ to show off her hats. She married Britain’s Prince William in April and then went on a succession of public appearances and royal tours – most (8) ____________ headware. |
|
runners
occasions
award
among
requiring
royal
special
votes
|
The duchess has brought about a (9) ____________ in the hat industry. In Britain, wearing a (10) ____________ hat has long been going out of fashion. A baseball cap is the most (11) ____________ thing a woman might wear on her head. It seems Kate’s taste in hats has (12) ____________ many American women to once again don one. Fashion expert Jenny Pfanenstiel said: “Kate has allowed American women to…feel more comfortable and (13) ____________ about wearing hats in public.” This has raised the profile of many established and up-and-(14) ____________ hat designers. This is not the first award Kate has (15) ____________ up since marrying into royalty. Her 2011 titles (16) ____________ Queen of the High Street, Best-Mannered Person, and Hair Icon. |
|
coming
inspired
formal
include
revival
picked
likely
confident |
LISTENING – Listen and fill in the gaps
British royal Catherine Middleton __________________ ‘Hat Person of the Year’ by the California-based Headwear Association. The Duchess of Duchess is the third winner of _____________________ for haute couture for the head. She __________________ 91 per cent of the votes to be unanimously declared the winner. Singers Justin Timberlake and Bruno Mars, and actor Charlie Sheen were ____________________ – each with one per cent of the vote or less. The duchess had a very special year in which there were many occasions __________________ hats. She married Britain’s Prince William in April and then went on a succession of ____________________ and royal tours – most requiring headware.
The duchess has brought about a revival in the hat industry. In Britain, __________________ hat has long been going out of fashion. A baseball cap is the ____________________ a woman might wear on her head. It seems Kate’s taste in hats has inspired many American women to ____________________. Fashion expert Jenny Pfanenstiel said: “Kate has allowed American women to…feel more comfortable __________________ wearing hats in public.” This has __________________ many established and up-and-coming hat designers. This is not the first award Kate has picked up __________________ royalty. Her 2011 titles include Queen of the High Street, Best-Mannered Person, and Hair Icon.
AFTER READING / LISTENING
1. WORD SEARCH: Look in your dictionary / computer to find collocates, other meanings, information, synonyms … for the words ‘show’ and ‘off’.
- 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:
- named
- third
- actor
- less
- show
- tours
|
- industry
- likely
- taste
- once
- raised
- since
|
HATS SURVEY
Write five GOOD questions about hats 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.
HATS 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 ‘hat’? |
c) |
Are you a hat person? |
d) |
Is there a purpose of wearing a hat as a fashion accessory? |
e) |
Why do some women wear such stupid-looking hats? |
f) |
Do men also wear stupid-looking hats? |
g) |
What do you think of Kate Middleton, Duchess of Cambridge? |
h) |
Hoe do you feel when you wear a hat (not a baseball cap)? |
i) |
What do you think of there being a prize for the best hat wearer? |
j) |
Are you surprised the Duchess of Cambridge beat Justin Timberlake? |
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)
| a) |
Did you like reading this article? |
b) |
Is a baseball cap a hat? |
c) |
Have you noticed the revival in the hat industry? |
d) |
What part do hats play in your culture? |
e) |
Are women more likely to wear hats than men? Why? |
f) |
Do you think we’ll still be wearing hats 100 years from now? |
g) |
Do people really need a hat to make them feel confident? |
h) |
How important is the job of a hat designer? |
i) |
Who do you think should win hairstyle of the year? |
j) |
What questions would you like to ask Kate Middleton (about hats)? |
LANGUAGE – MULTIPLE CHOICE
British royal Catherine Middleton has been (1) ____ ‘Hat Person of the Year’ by the California-based Headwear Association. The Duchess of Duchess is the third winner of this (2) ____ award for haute couture for the head. She won a whopping 91 per cent of the votes to be unanimously (3) ____ the winner. Singers Justin Timberlake and Bruno Mars, and actor Charlie Sheen were among the runners-(4) ____ – each with one per cent of the vote or less. The duchess had a very special year in which there were many occasions to (5) ____ off her hats. She married Britain’s Prince William in April and then went on a succession of public appearances and royal tours – most (6) ____ headware.
The duchess has brought about a revival (7) ____ the hat industry. In Britain, wearing a formal hat has long been going out of fashion. A baseball cap is the most (8) ____ thing a woman might wear on her head. It seems Kate’s taste in hats has inspired many American women to once again (9) ____ one. Fashion expert Jenny Pfanenstiel said: “Kate has (10) ____ American women to…feel more comfortable and confident about wearing hats in public.” This has (11) ____ the profile of many established and up-and-coming hat designers. This is not the first award Kate has picked up since marrying (12) ____ royalty. Her 2011 titles include Queen of the High Street, Best-Mannered Person, and Hair Icon.
Put the correct words from the table below in the above article.
| 1. |
(a) |
put |
(b) |
risen |
(c) |
catalogued |
(d) |
named |
2. |
(a) |
prestige |
(b) |
prescribe |
(c) |
prestigious |
(d) |
presence |
3. |
(a) |
debunked |
(b) |
debriefed |
(c) |
declared |
(d) |
debacle |
4. |
(a) |
up |
(b) |
along |
(c) |
in |
(d) |
down |
5. |
(a) |
tell |
(b) |
make |
(c) |
show |
(d) |
sell |
6. |
(a) |
requisite |
(b) |
requite |
(c) |
requiem |
(d) |
requiring |
7. |
(a) |
both |
(b) |
in |
(c) |
up |
(d) |
wearing |
8. |
(a) |
likely |
(b) |
liked |
(c) |
likes |
(d) |
likelihood |
9. |
(a) |
non |
(b) |
don |
(c) |
son |
(d) |
ton |
10. |
(a) |
permission |
(b) |
prohibited |
(c) |
allowed |
(d) |
granted |
11. |
(a) |
raised |
(b) |
upped |
(c) |
rose |
(d) |
skyrocketed |
12. |
(a) |
along |
(b) |
all |
(c) |
bride |
(d) |
into |
WRITING
Write about hats for 10 minutes. Correct your partner’s paper.
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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 hats. Share what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.
3. KATE: Make a poster about Kate Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge. Show your work to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all have similar things?
4. HATS Write a magazine article about hats. Include imaginary interviews with people who like hats and those who dislike hats.
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 Kate Middleton. Ask her three questions about hats. Give her three pieces of fashion advice. Read your letter to your partner(s) in your next lesson. Your partner(s) will answer your questions.
ANSWERS
TRUE / FALSE:
| a. |
F |
b. |
T |
c. |
F |
d. |
T |
e. |
T |
f. |
F |
g. |
T |
h. |
F |
SYNONYM MATCH:
1. |
based |
a. |
located |
2. |
award |
b. |
prize |
3. |
whopping |
c. |
huge |
4. |
occasions |
d. |
events |
5. |
succession |
e. |
sequence |
6. |
revival |
f. |
comeback |
7. |
likely |
g. |
probable |
8. |
inspired |
h. |
motivated |
9. |
raised |
i. |
heightened |
10. |
picked up |
j. |
won |
PHRASE MATCH:
| 1. |
the third winner of this |
a. |
prestigious award |
2. |
among the runners- |
b. |
up |
3. |
one per cent of the vote |
c. |
or less |
4. |
many occasions to show |
d. |
off her hats |
5. |
went on a succession of public |
e. |
appearances |
6. |
brought about a revival |
f. |
in the hat industry |
7. |
long been going |
g. |
out of fashion |
8. |
the most likely thing a |
h. |
woman might wear |
9. |
established and up-and- |
i. |
coming hat designers |
10. |
marrying into |
j. |
royalty |
GAP FILL:
Kate Middleton is 2011’s ‘Hat Person’
British (1) royal Catherine Middleton has been named ‘Hat Person of the Year’ by the California-based Headwear Association. The Duchess of Duchess is the third winner of this prestigious (2) award for haute couture for the head. She won a whopping 91 per cent of the (3) votes to be unanimously declared the winner. Singers Justin Timberlake and Bruno Mars, and actor Charlie Sheen were (4) among the (5) runners-up – each with one per cent of the vote or less. The duchess had a very (6) special year in which there were many (7) occasions to show off her hats. She married Britain’s Prince William in April and then went on a succession of public appearances and royal tours – most (8) requiring headware.
The duchess has brought about a (9) revival in the hat industry. In Britain, wearing a (10) formal hat has long been going out of fashion. A baseball cap is the most (11) likely thing a woman might wear on her head. It seems Kate’s taste in hats has (12) inspired many American women to once again don one. Fashion expert Jenny Pfanenstiel said: “Kate has allowed American women to…feel more comfortable and (13) confident about wearing hats in public.” This has raised the profile of many established and up-and-(14) coming hat designers. This is not the first award Kate has (15) picked up since marrying into royalty. Her 2011 titles (16) include Queen of the High Street, Best-Mannered Person, and Hair Icon.
LANGUAGE WORK
| 1 - d |
2 - c |
3 - b |
4 - a |
5 - c |
6 - d |
7 - b |
8 - a |
9 - b |
10 -c |
11 - a |
12 - d |