Try this jigsaw reading activity with your learners to find out more about Bonfire Night and get them speaking about similar festivals in their own country.

A young girl in a warm coat playing with a sparkler in front of a bonfire

This activity is a jigsaw reading about the history of the Gunpowder Plot. As a follow-up, learners take part in a pyramid discussion talking about similar festivals in their own country.

Lesson outcomes

All learners will:

  • practise reading for specific information
  • work on question formation
  • practise speaking skills through a discussion.

Materials 

  • Lesson plan
  • Jigsaw reading texts – cut up into A and B
  • Discussion questions  – cut up (one set per pair of learners)

Procedure

Stage
15
Jigsaw reading
  • Depending on the level of your group, decide how much of the vocabulary to pre-teach. Make sure all learners know the meaning of the following before they begin the reading: blow up, a plot, gunpowder.
  • Divide the learners up in half. Then make pairs or small groups within each half. 
  • Give all learners in one half text A and all learners in the other half text B. 
  • Tell learners to work together to write questions to find out the missing information from their text. Monitor and support as needed. 
  • Then re-group the learners into pairs so that As are with Bs. Tell learners not to show their text to their partner. 
  • Each learner asks and answers their questions to complete the texts. 
  • Get feedback on the task and mention any common errors. 
15
Discussion
  • Before moving on to the discussion, elicit or give the meaning of firework display
  • Give pairs the discussion questions. Monitor and support with language. Write any useful language on the board. 
  • After five minutes' discussion, join two pairs to make a group. Pairs share their ideas. 
  • Finally, ask groups to share their ideas with the whole class.  

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