This is a lesson that improves learners’ spoken language and pokes fun at politicians.
It’s aimed at B2+ / C1 Business English learners.
Procedure
1) Ask your learners to write down a list of 1 to 9.
2) Tell the learners that you made some subtitles for a short film, but that you made 9 mistakes. Their task is to write down these mistakes.
3) Play the video as many times as needed. Learners confer in pairs in-between each viewing.
4) Check answers. Extend the task as you see fit.
Answers
1) I don’t believe – I do believe (do here used for emphasis)
2) It’s not a fraction of a second – it’s just a fraction of a second (just – a synonym for only here)
3) the actual train wouldn’t be alright as fast as that – the actual train wouldn’t be quite as fast as that (quite used for emphasis)
4) I would say – I should say (should here indicates a formal warning)
5) fat small – that small (that used for emphasis, and to refer back to something that has just been said)
6) much a big distance – such a big distance (such for emphasis)
7) smaller version of anything – smaller version of everything (confusing every/ any is a common learner error – every refers to ‘every single thing’–there are limits–any refers to ‘any possible thing’–there are no limits)
8) doesn’t that hand to reason – stand to reason (wrong verb used in the idiom to stand to reason – to be a logical conclusion)
9) high ant – giant
Hope you enjoyed the second in the series of ‘Bad Subtitles’ lessons.
If you use this lesson let me know how it goes!
paul