Age: Teenage/adult

Level: A2+

Timing: about 40 mins

'Chatty' magazine has sent one of its top reporters to interview Hollywood actor, Sam Jemson. Students are provided with two worksheets. The first (A) contains twenty two answers to questions asked during the interview. Students working in pairs must try and work out what the questions were according to Sam’s answers.

In the second part of the exercise, students are given a second worksheet (B), with the magazine article based on the answers to the questions on worksheet A. There are a number of factual mistakes in the text. Students are asked to put away worksheet A and then to identify and correct the mistakes made by the reporter in the finished article.

Procedure

• Divide the class into pairs. Make enough copies of both worksheets for each pair of students. Distribute copies of worksheet A.
• Introduce the topic and then give students a good fifteen minutes to try and write down which questions were asked by the interviewer during the interview. Circulate, giving help and support where appropriate. At the end of the time allotted, elicit the questions for each of the answers on the sheet from the class, writing a correct example answer for each question on the board.
• Remind students that it’s possible that an answer has more than one correct question.
• Next, ask students to put away worksheet A and then distribute copies of worksheet B. Explain the second task and then give students at least another fifteen minutes to identify and correct in writing the factual mistakes in the text. Circulate and give help again.
• Again, at the end of the task, elicit corrections from the class. Ask students to return to worksheet A to check their answers.
• Additionally, it could be a nice idea for students to practise their speaking ability by role-playing the interview with Sam. Ask them to swap roles, so each person gets to play Sam and the reporter respectively.     

Follow-up activity

Ask students (for homework?) to do some research on their favourite actor. Ask them to write a short profile in their own words of between eighty and one hundred words.