This is an oral grammar game to practise present tense ‘yes/no’ question forms. You
can play the game after the Warm-up activities for New Opportunities Pre-
Intermediate Module 1 on page 9.

Materials: None.
Time: Thirty minutes.

Step 1: Elicit the names of jobs and occupations from the whole class. Write them on
the board. Here is a list of examples:

actor, actress, architect, artist, athlete, bus driver, businessman, businesswoman,
cashier, cook, dancer, dentist, doctor, engineer, electrician, fashion designer, film
director, financial dealer, firefighter, gardener, hairdresser, housewife, journalist,
lawyer, mechanic, model, musician, nurse, pilot, plumber, police officer, politician,
scientist, secretary, shepherd, singer, teacher, translator, travel agent, vet, waiter

Step 2: Divide the class into groups of four or five students.

Step 3: Explain the game. One student imagines he/she does a particular job. The
other students take turns to ask questions to try and guess the job. They can ask up to
ten questions.

Examples
Do you work outdoors?
Do you work with animals?
Do you have to get a university degree?
Do you get dirty?
Do you use computers?

As students play the game, walk around the groups and note down any mistakes you
hear with question forms. You can ask students to correct these at a later stage.

Option: To vary the question forms, students can guess the occupation of family
relatives.

Examples
Student A: Guess my uncle’s job.
Student B: Does he work outdoors?
Student A: No, he doesn’t.
Student C: Does he work with animals?

Note: If you prefer, you can play the game with the whole class.

MODULE 2

NOTES FOR TEACHERS

VERB TENNIS

Materials: None.
Time: Fifteen minutes.

Step 1: Explain you are going to play a game involving irregular verbs. Ask students
to look at the list of irregular verbs at the back of the Mini-Dictionary. Give them only
a short time, maybe one or two minutes.

Step 2: Divide the class into two teams, A and B. Ask the students to imagine an
imaginary tennis net down the middle of the room – this divides the class into two
teams. Explain the game.

• You point to a student in Team A who must say an irregular verb infinitive form.

• You point to a student in Team B who must say the past simple form of that verb.

• You point to a student in Team A who must say the past participle of that verb.
• You point to a student in Team B who must say a new irregular verb in the

infinitive form.

• This process continues until a student makes a mistake or takes too long to

answer, in which case the opposing team wins the point and ‘serves’ a new verb.

• You don’t need to score the game as in real tennis – simply play up to ten points.
• As you play, trace the trajectory of the imaginary tennis ball as it flies over the

net.

• Point at students in a random fashion so that they never know who will be asked.

Example

A: eat
A: eaten
A: went
A: put

B: ate
B: go
B: gone
B: putted
(Wrong! Team A wins the point.)

MODULE 3

WHO SAID THAT?

• Who do you think said these quotes – a, b or c?

1 “We are all pencils in the hand of God.”
a) Pablo Picasso b) William Shakespeare c) Mother Teresa

2 “I am proud of the fact that I never invented weapons to kill.”
a) Thomas Edison b) Albert Einstein c) Guglielmo Marconi

3 “An awful lot of gay pop stars pretend to be straight. I'm going to start a
movement of straight pop stars pretending to be gay.”
a) David Bowie b) Elton John c) Robbie Williams

4 “Modern Society will find no solution to the ecological problem unless it
takes a serious look at its lifestyles.”
a) Greenpeace b) Nelson Mandela c) Pope John Paul II

5 “I believe in everything until it's disproved. So I believe in fairies, the myths,
dragons. It all exists, even if it's in your mind. Who's to say that dreams and
nightmares aren't as real as the here and now?”
a) Michael Jackson b) John Lennon c) J.R.R. Tolkien

6 “Only two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity, and I’m not
sure about the former.”
a) Albert Einstein b) Galileo c) Isaac Newton

7 “You don't need any brains to listen to music.”
a) Luciano Pavarotti b) Frank Sinatra c) Britney Spears

8 “Writing in English was a major challenge. I didn't want other songwriters to
write for me. I wanted to preserve the spirit of my songs in Spanish.”
a) Nelly Furtado b) Jennifer Lopez c) Shakira

9 “My heroes are the ones who survived doing it wrong, who made mistakes,
but recovered from them.”
a) Bono b) Prince c) Sting

10 “America is the only country that went from barbarism to decadence
without civilisation in between.”
a) George W. Bush b) Brad Pitt c) Oscar Wilde

11 “Military intelligence is a contradiction in terms.”
a) Mahatma Gandhi b) Napoleon Bonaparte c) Groucho Marx

12 “I want to play an action hero. I'm ready for roles that totally aren't me.”
a) Orlando Bloom b) Cameron Diaz c) Kirsten Dunst

13 “A day without laughter is a day wasted.”
a) Jim Carey b) Charlie Chaplin c) Will Smith

14 “If you want to make peace with your enemy, you have to work with your
enemy. Then he becomes your partner.”
a) Winston Churchill b) Nelson Mandela c) Socrates

15 “An archaeologist is the best husband a woman can have. The older she
gets the more interested he is in her.”
a) Agatha Christie b) Madonna c) Julia Roberts

16 “America can't beat anyone anymore.”
a) Woody Allen b) George Clooney c) Kevin Costner

17 “You're not anyone in America unless you're on TV.”
a) Nicole Kidman b) Ricky Martin c) Kylie Minogue

18 “Hating people because of their colour is wrong. And it doesn't matter
which colour does the hating. It's just plain wrong.”
a) Muhammad Ali b) Mariah Carey c) Nelson Mandela

19 “If you can't laugh at yourself, then who can you laugh at?”
a) Ronaldinho b) Michael Schumacher c) Tiger Woods

20 “I'm just like every other girl who likes to shop, likes to look good, likes to
spend time with friends.”
a) Cristina Aguilera b) Victoria Beckham c) Maria Sharapova

• Now check your answers with your teacher.

• What was your score out of twenty?

3 NOTES FOR TEACHERS

WHO SAID THAT?

This is a fun reading activity which you can do after New Opportunities Pre-
Intermediate Module 3 (Heroes).

Materials: One photocopy of the worksheet per student.
Time: One class lesson, or you can set it for homework.

Step 1: Give out the worksheets and explain the activity. Students have to read the
quotations and guess which of the three people said them.

If you do the activity in class …

• you can explain and discuss each quotation with the whole class and then ask

students to make their choice before telling them the answer and moving on to the
next quote.

• you can ask the students to read the quotes in pairs and make their guesses

together, then tell them the answers when they have finished.

If you set the task as homework …

• tell students they can use the Internet to find the answers if they wish.
• go through the answers at the start of the next lesson.

Answers
1 c) Mother Teresa
4 c) Pope John Paul II
7 a) Luciano Pavarotti
10 c) Oscar Wilde
13 b) Charlie Chaplin
16 b) George Clooney
19 c) Tiger Woods

2 a) Thomas Edison
5 b) John Lennon
8 c) Shakira
11 c) Groucho Marx
14 b) Nelson Mandela
17 a) Nicole Kidman
20 c) Maria Sharapova

3 c) Robbie Williams
6 a) Albert Einstein
9 a) Bono
12 c) Kirsten Dunst
15 a) Agatha Christie
18 a) Muhammad Ali

MODULE 3

Stage A

Read the story. You can check unknown words in a dictionary or ask the
teacher.

At Palm Springs Airport, a writer passed through the security check and took a

seat in the waiting room. In a few minutes his flight was called and he boarded, absent-
mindedly leaving the briefcase behind. The briefcase was found and turned over to the
airport security, and a guard noticed that it had a foreign airline sticker on it.

The airport authorities were suspicious because they knew about a terrorist who

carried bombs in black briefcases and planted them in airport waiting rooms. When the
guards had a look at the briefcase under X-ray they got even more suspicious. They saw
an arrangement of batteries and cylinders that might well have been a bomb.

The police came and carried the briefcase out to an unused runway where it

could explode without doing much damage. Then a demolition squad arrived and examined
the briefcase. They didn't like the combination lock. It could be a detonator. So they
decided to stand back and blow the briefcase open.

There was a small explosion. The case opened and all the things flew out. A tape

recorder. An electric razor. A bottle of aftershave. And the pages of an unfinished
manuscript, blowing in the wind.

The writer didn't blame anyone. He was even grateful to the guards for putting

all the pages of his manuscript back in order, though somewhat damaged.

http://www.anecdotage.com/index.php?aid=5109

………………………………………………………………………………………

Stage B

In groups, write the story. Use the words below as many times as you need.

writer
security check
guard
guards
briefcase
waiting room
terrorist
airport
demolition squad
combination lock
detonator
unfinished manuscript
tape recorder
bottle of aftershave

pass
leave
find
know
have a look at
carry
see
come
examine
explode
blow something open
open
fly out
blame

3 NOTES FOR TEACHERS

In this activity students practise writing and speaking as well as grammar, especially
the Past Simple and articles. You can do it after finishing module 3 of Opportunities
Pre-intermediate.

Materials
A task sheet for each student/group.

Time
20-30 minutes

Step 1
Hand out the text and give students a few minutes. You can answer questions about
unknown vocabulary but do not ask any comprehension questions.
Alternative
Instead of letting the students read the text, you can read it out yourself. Before that,
preteach the unknown vocabulary to avoid questions. This option is obviously more
challenging.

Step 2
Take the texts away from the students. Divide the students into groups of three or four
and give each group task sheet B. Give the students ten minutes to write the story
again in as much detail as they can remember. Tell them to monitor the use of the Past
tense and articles.

Step 3
The groups take turns to read out sentences from the story in a chain. Other groups
can add details that have been missed out. Ask the students to watch out for mistakes
in article use and the Past tense and elicit corrections.
Alternative
You can ask the students to write the story on the board, though this will take much
more time.

MODULE 4

NOTES FOR TEACHERS

CHAIN STORIES

This is a free writing activity which also practises past tenses and narrative linking.
It is best done after Module 2 of New Opportunities Pre-Intermediate.

Materials: Each student needs a piece of paper to write on.
Time: Twenty minutes.

Step 1: Divide the class into groups of six. Write the following on the board:

One day / morning / night …

When …

Suddenly …

Meanwhile …

Then …

In the end …

Step 2: Explain the activity. Each student writes the first sentence of a story. They
must begin this first sentence with ‘One day’ or ‘One morning’ or ‘One night’ (see
above) and the story must be in the past. Each student then passes the paper to the
next student in the group. All the students now have the first sentence of a story which
they must add a second sentence to, this time beginning with the word ‘When’. They
pass on the paper and the process continues, each time adding another sentence using
the prompts from the board, until the story is finished with a sentence beginning ‘In
the end’. Remind the students to use the past simple and past continuous tenses.

Note: The best way of explaining the activity is to demonstrate it. Elicit sentences
from the class and write them on the board. You can ask for alternative sentences if
you don’t like the sentence a student suggests and adapt the sentences as students
suggest them. For example, you might ask students to suggest a better verb or to
improve a sentence by inserting an adjective.

Step 3: Students can read out a selection of the best stories. Be warned – they’ll
probably be very bizarre!

Note: You can also do the activity with smaller groups - each student just has to write
more than one sentence.

MODULE 4

NOTES FOR TEACHERS

In this activity students practise questions with the Present Perfect and ever. You can
do it after finishing Module 4 of Opportunities Pre-intermediate.

Materials
Four or five attractive/interesting photos of interesting locations. Some of them can be
possible holiday spots, some more controversial, e.g. a slum area of a city, a dirty and
polluted river, an ordinary terraced house in the UK

Time
15 minutes

Preparation
Find some big photos of interesting locations, e.g. downtown New York, an African
desert with some camels, trekkers in the Himalayas, etc. Some of them can be
controversial holiday spots, e.g. a slum area of a city, a dirty and polluted river, an
ordinary terraced house in the UK, which can result in funnier ads.

Step 1
Divide the class into groups of four or five. Give each group a photo and explain that
their task is to write an holiday advert for the place shown in the photo. Give an
example for students to follow.

Example
a photo of a South American village in the mountains

Have you ever been at 3500 meters above the sea?
Have you ever seen a llama?
Have you ever learned Quechua?
Have you ever washed in a geezer?
Have you ever cooked on open fire?

If not, come to the Peruvian Andes and try all these things. It's only $500 per week.

Step 2
Students prepare their ads. Monitor their work and help with vocabulary.

Step 3
The groups take turns to present their advertisements.

MODULE 5

‘DICTRIO’

NAME: __________________________________________________ CLASS:
_____

DO NOT USE YOUR MINI-DICTIONARY!

• Try to solve these ‘dictrio’ puzzles.

1 a type of transport with two wheels
2 a thousand million
3 he/she studies animals and plants

……………………
……………………
……………………

4 talk informally
5 not expensive
6 to read or compare something to see if it is correct

……………………
……………………
……………………

7 someone who buys and sells things
8 the end of life
9 an organised discussion about a particular subject

……………………
……………………
……………………

10 the act of going away to live in another country
11 to stress something is important
12 a group of countries controlled by one powerful one

……………………
……………………
……………………

13 situation with many people having no food
14 known by many people
15 follower of a pop group or team

……………………
……………………
……………………

16 a man on his wedding day
17 the surface of the earth
18 develop or increase in size

……………………
……………………
……………………

19 a powerful storm with strong winds
20 to make someone or an animal feel pain
21 the man a woman is married to

……………………
……………………
……………………

22 frozen water
23 a suggestion, plan or thought
24 the best that something or someone could be

……………………
……………………
……………………

25 the activity of running to get fit
26 to take part in an activity
27 perfect

……………………
……………………
……………………

• How many words do you know? _____

• Now check your answers in the MINI-DICTIONARY and find the words you

didn’t know. Write them in your vocabulary book.

5 NOTES FOR TEACHERS

DICTRIO

This is a vocabulary activity to revise known words and teach new words.

Materials: Each student needs a copy of New Opportunities Pre-Intermediate Mini-
Dictionary.
Time: Thirty minutes.

Step 1: Give out the worksheets and ask students to take out the mini-dictionary from
the back of the Students’ Book. Explain the game.

• ‘Dictrio’ is an invented word, comprising the ‘dic’ of dictionary and the word ‘trio’

meaning group of three.

• Each question gives three definitions. These correspond to three words which

appear consecutively in the Mini-Dictionary of New Opportunities Pre-
Intermediate.

• Write this example on the board for words beginning with the letter ‘A’.

1 to reply
2 medicine to cure an infection
3 very old and valuable object

Concentrate on one definition that you think you know. For example, ‘1’ is probably
answer. Ask the class to look up answer in the Mini-Dictionary. They can see that
the two words after it are antibiotic and antique - which correspond to the definitions
'2' and '3'.

Step 2: Ask the students to put their Mini-Dictionaries away – this is important!

Step 3: Ask the students to look at the worksheet and fill in all the answers they think
they know. Set a time limit for this (ten minutes?).

Step 4: After the set time, ask students how many words they think they got right.

Step 5: Tell students they can now use their Mini-Dictionaries to check their answers
and also to fill in the answers to words they didn’t know. Encourage them to write all
or some of the words they didn’t know in their vocabulary books.

Option: For homework, students could write their own ‘dictrio’ of three definitions
using another letter of the alphabet. In the next lesson they can read out their
definitions to the class or their group for the other students to guess the words.

The authors would like to thank Steve Owen, a teacher at the British Council in Madrid, for the idea of
the ‘dictrio’ game.

MODULE 5

Club Name ……………………………

Rules

…………………………………………………………………………………………

5 NOTES FOR TEACHERS

In this writing activity students practise modals of obligation, permission, prohibition
and exemption. You can do it after finishing Module 5 of Opportunities Pre-
intermediate.

Material
None

Time
10 minutes

Step 1
Divide the class into groups of four or five. Tell the students that they have just
become owners of a club in their town. They can now decide what kind of place it
will be, what guests they want to have, what music they will play. Distribute the
worksheets. Students think of a name for their club.
Alternatively, you can just give the groups clean sheets of paper to work with.

Step 2
Write on the board four modal verbs from Module 5:

CAN MUST MUSTN'T NEEDN'T

The students prepare a set of rules for their club, using the modal verbs. Encourage
them to make the rules original, to make their club a unique place.

Example
You mustn't wear smart clothes.
You needn't buy anything to eat.
You can stay until morning.
You must be in a good mood.

MODULE 6

‘WHO WANTS TO BE A MILLIONAIRE?’

• Can you answer these questions? They start easy, and then get more difficult!

1 Which of the following is a typical British meal?
A fish & crisps B fish & chips C fish and fruit D fish &
rice

£100

↓

2 What is the main ingredient of an omelette?
A eggs B rice C oil D milk

£200

↓

3 Hamburgers were invented by a man from which city?
A Hamburg B London C New York D Vienna

£300

↓

4 What is a kiwi?
A a seafood B a fruit C a vegetable D a nut

£500

↓

5 What animal does ‘beef’ come from?
A cow B sheep C pig D chicken

£1000

↓

6 Which of these is a type of seafood?
A prawn B avocado C plum D broccoli

£2000

↓

7 Which of these is not a dairy product?
A cheese B milk C olive oil D yoghurt

£4000

↓

8 What do you call the list of food available in a restaurant?
A the card B the menu C the recipe D the bill

£8000

↓

9 How do you describe meat that’s easy to chew?
A soft B bland C tender D mild

£16000

↓

10 What do you use to make caramel?
A chocolate B milk C butter D sugar

£32000

↓

11 What is ‘GM’ food? Genetically …
A microwaved B modified C manufactured D monitored

£64000

↓

12 Which fish is not white?
A cod B tuna C haddock D hake

£125000

↓

13 What is custard?
A a sweet sauce B a cereal C a hot spice D a tropical
fruit

£250000

↓

14 Which of these is not another English way of saying
‘dessert’?
A pudding B afters C sweet D tardy

£500000

↓

15 Which of the following contains the least water?
A carrots B celery C full milk D tomatoes

£1000000

6 NOTES FOR TEACHERS

‘WHO WANTS TO BE A MILLIONAIRE?’

This is a fun general knowledge quiz which revises some of the vocabulary from
New Opportunities Pre-Intermediate Module 6 (Food). All the questions are related to
the topic of food.

Materials: Photocopies of the quiz (one between two if students are going to do the
quiz in pairs)
Time: Twenty minutes.

Background: The TV Quiz game Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? is a popular
British programme and there are versions of it all over the world. If your students are
not familiar with the game, explain it. Basically a contestant is asked a series of
fifteen multiple-choice questions. The questions begin easy and get harder, but the
prize for each question correctly answered also rises. If the contestant gives a wrong
answer, he/she is out of the game. At any time during the game the contestant may
‘retire’ and take away the money he/she has won. The aim is to try and reach the
million-pound question and answer it correctly. In the TV game, a contestant may also
ask for help three times – by asking the studio audience, by phoning a friend, or by
eliminating two of the multiple-choice options. This class activity is a much
simplified version – and of course you don’t have to pay out large amounts of money!

Step 1: Divide the class into pairs if you want them to do the quiz in pairs. Give out
the question sheets and ask students to read the questions and decide on their answers.
Give them a fixed amount of time for this. Some of the vocabulary is unknown and
some is deliberately misleading (as in normal quizzes), so don’t let students use
dictionaries or ask you for the meanings of words; let students rely on their own
powers of elimination and intuition.

Step 2: At the end of the quiz, go through the answers with the whole class. Students
can mark their own or you might ask them to swap papers.

Step 3: Ask students to add up how much they won. They add up the prize money for
consecutive questions answered correctly. For example, if a student answered the first
six questions correctly, he/she would have won 4000 pounds (100 + 200 + 300 + 500
+ 1000 + 2000). Questions answered correctly after this winning sequence don’t
count, because in a real game he/she would have been ‘out’ of the game as soon as
he/she answered question 7 incorrectly. Ask if anybody won a million pounds!

Answers: 1B, 2A, 3A, 4B, 5A, 6A, 7C, 8B, 9C, 10D, 11B, 12B, 13A, 14D, 15C

Follow-up: For homework, students could write one multiple-choice question related
to the topic of food. At the beginning of the next lesson, as a warmer, students read
out their questions for the others in the class to answer.

MODULE 6

NOTES FOR TEACHERS

In this game students practise using comparative forms of adjectives. You can do it
after doing Module 6 of Opportunities Pre-intermediate.

Materials
None

Time
10-15 minutes

Preparation
Prepare pairs of things/people that your students know and could compare, e.g.
lemon - orange
lion - gorilla
car - aeroplane
Brad Pitt - Daniel Radcliffe
sugar - honey
Mercedes - Fiat Panda
lake - sea
New York - Paris

Step 1
Divide the class into small groups. Explain the rules of the game. Draw a chart on the
board where the scores will be kept

Step 2
Give the students the first pair of objects to compare. They have 90 seconds to write
as many comparisons as they can of the two things (e.g. A lemon is smaller than an
orange, an orange is sweeter than a lemon). Tell the groups to count their sentences.
The group that have most comparisons read out their sentences. If they are all correct,
they score a point.

Step 3
Students get the next pair of things to compare and the procedure is repeated until you
run out of pairs. The winner is the group that scores most points.

MODULE 7

NOTES FOR TEACHERS

GET IT RIGHT!

This is a grammar game to practise recognition and correction of a variety of
common mistakes. You can play the game after Opportunities Pre-Intermediate
Module 7 (Money).

Materials: A pack of cards with incorrect sentences on them (see below).
Time: 30 minutes.

Preparation: Photocopy and cut out the cards (see below)

Step 1: Put the cards face down on your desk. Divide the class into two teams.

Step 2: Explain the game. Each card has a sentence containing a mistake of some
kind – it may be word order, a wrong tense, agreement, etc. Students from each team
take turns to come to your desk and select a card. They must not look at the card first.
They then write the sentence on the board and correct it. If their answer is correct,
they get two points. If the answer is wrong, a student from the opposing team can try
to correct the sentence for a bonus point.

Step 3: After all the cards have been used, add up the points. The team with the most
points is the winner.

Note: If students seem to have a problem with a particular mistake, you can explain
the mistake after the game or as a follow-up in the next lesson.

7 ‘Get It Right! Cards

1
All my friends likes
football.

2
She is taller that her sister.

3
If he will come, I’ll give
him your message.

4
I’ve got an information for
our project.

5
We haven’t got no money.

6
You should to study for
your exam.

7
He entered in the room and
sat down at the front.

8
I was late and lost the bus.

9
Sue wears always jeans.

10
Has your team won last
week?

11
There were a lot of
furnitures in his room.

12
Do you have got a
dictionary?

13
My mother don’t like sport.

14
There’s no school
tomorrow, so I mustn’t get
up early.

15
Can you give me some
advices?

16
She phoned me while I had
my dinner.

17
Thanksgiving was make a
holiday in the USA in 1864.

18
My brother is watching TV
every night.

19
Neither of us didn’t go.

20
I’ve been to London last
year.

21
During the match he felt
and broke his leg.

22
Only a little people live in
our village.

23
Sorry, I’ve forgotten my
book at home.

24
There aren’t much things to
do in my town.

25
Mm, the dinner is smelling
good!

26
One of the thieves was tall
and the second was short.

27
I want to be architect.

28
I didn’t have many money
so I stayed in.

29
There aren’t many news
about the accident.

30
It’s a film very interesting.

MODULE 8

COMMERCIAL BREAK

• Discuss these questions with your teacher.

1 What is your favourite TV advert? Why do you like it?
2 Are there any adverts that annoy you?
3 Do adverts make you buy things?
4 What ‘slogans’ do you remember? Do you know any in English, e.g.
‘Nokia – connecting people’.
5 Are there too many adverts on television?

• Match the extracts from TV adverts (1-10) with the products or

services (a-j).

1 2
Relax – we’ll do the driving.

There’s no better way to start the
day!

3 4
Feeling down? Always tired? Try
Zappo – you’ll feel the difference!

Need some cash now? Call us on
6479132. Anything from 500€ to
5000€

5 6
Use once a day for shiny,
dandruff-free hair.

The new Mikado – more
economical, more comfortable, and
easier to park!

7 8
Bonzo Bits – meatier, tastier,
crunchier. They’ll love it!

Mmm, delicious - we all deserve
something sweet!

9 10
Gets your clothes whiter than
white!

You’ll feel fresh all day!

a) breakfast cereal.
c) inter-city train travel.
e) washing powder
g) loan company
i) energy drink

b) car.
d) chocolate bar
f) deodorant
h) shampoo
j) dog food

8 NOTES FOR TEACHERS

COMMERCIAL BREAK

This is a reading activity. You can do it after Lesson 23 (Adverts) of New
Opportunities Pre-Intermediate.

Materials: Copies of the worksheet (one between two if you prefer).
Time: 15-20 minutes.

Step 1: Give out the worksheets. Ask students to think about the questions in the first
exercise and discuss the answers with the whole class. You may want to point out that
‘commercial’ is another word for ‘advert’, originally taken from US English but now
common in the UK.

Step 2: Explain the reading activity. Students have to match the extracts from
imaginary adverts to the product or service they are advertising.

Step 3: Check the answers. Ask them which words gave them clues to the answer for
each one. Explain any new vocabulary.

Answers: 1c, 2a, 3i, 4g, 5h, 6b, 7j, 8d, 9e, 10f

MODULE 8

Read the predictions about the world in 20 years time. Arrange them from the

most probable to the least probable ones.

All machines will run on solar energy.

English will be the world's official language.

The Olympic Games won't be organised any more.

Scientists will find a cure for all known diseases.

India will become the richest country in the world.

Children won't go to school – they will learn online.

All housework will be done by robots.

People won't have passports – they will have identity chips planted in their

bodies.

People will have a colony on Mars.

Children won't learn handwriting, they will use word processors only.

8 NOTES FOR TEACHERS

In this discussion activity students practise making predictions with will. You can do
it after finishing Module 8 of Opportunities Pre-intermediate.

Materials
Task sheet for each pair of students.

Time
15 minutes

Step 1
The students to work in pairs. Give each pair the task sheet and ask them to rank the
predictions according to their probability. They think of arguments to support their
decisions.

Step 2
After about 5 minutes the students get into groups of four to compare and discuss their
ranking.

Step 3
Discuss the most probable and the least probable predictions with the whole class.

MODULE 9

GOING MOBILE!

• How often do you use your mobile to do these things? Circle 1-5

for each situation (1 = never, 5 = a lot).

1 Find out information, e.g. sports results, cinema
times

1 2 3 4 5

2 Arrange to meet a friend.

1 2 3 4 5

3 Play games.

1 2 3 4 5

4 Listen to music.

1 2 3 4 5

5 Take and send photos.

1 2 3 4 5

6 Tell someone where you are

1 2 3 4 5

7 Ask someone about homework.

1 2 3 4 5

8 Chat to a friend.

1 2 3 4 5

9 Chat to your boyfriend or girlfriend.

1 2 3 4 5

10 Read and write emails.

1 2 3 4 5

• Compare your answers with another student’s.

• Here are some common abbreviations young British people use

when they send text messages.

B
B4
C
CU
CUL8R
GR8
H8
HW
ILUVU
L8
L8R
LOL
MSG
NE
NE1
NO1
PCM
PLS

be
before
see
see you
see you later
great
hate
homework
I love you
late
later
lots of luck or lots of love
message
any
anyone
noone
please call me
please

R
SKL
SOM1
SPK
TTYL
TX
TXT
WAN2
W/
WKND
X
XLNT
YR
2
2DAY
2MORO
2NITE
4

are
school
someone
speak
talk to you later
thanks
text
want to
with
weekend
kiss
excellent
your
to, too, two
today
tomorrow
tonight
for

•

What abbreviations do you use in your language?

•

Match a boy’s text messages with the situations.

CN U DO HW? NE IDEAS? PCM

2 3

TX 4 YR MSG. SPK L8R AT SKL

LOL W/ XAM 2MORO

4 5

DO U WAN2 C FILM AT WKND?

U WERE XLNT CU L8R

a) He is asking his friend if he wants to go to the cinema at the weekend.
b) He is asking his friend for help with some difficult homework.
c) He is congratulating his friend and will see him later.
d) He is wishing his friend good luck with tomorrow’s exam.
e) He has received a message from his friend and will talk about it at
school.

• Work in pairs. Write text messages to each other in English. Here

are some ideas:

- you want to invite your friend to a party at your house
- you can’t meet your friend on Friday because you have to go to the
dentist
- you want to know some news from school
- you want to borrow something from your friend
- you want to know the mark your friend got in a test at school
- you want to thank your friend for something

9 NOTES FOR TEACHERS

GOING MOBILE!

This is a speaking and writing activity. You can do it after Lesson 25 (Mobile
Fever) of New Opportunities Pre-Intermediate.

Materials: Photocopies of the worksheet (one between two students if you wish).
Time: One class lesson.

Step 1: Give out the worksheets and ask students to complete the survey about mobile
phone use individually.

Step 2: Divide the class into pairs. Students compare their results with their partner’s.
When they’ve finished, you may want to elicit a few answers from the whole class.
Example: Who listens to music a lot on their mobile? What’s your favourite download
at the moment?

Step 3: Ask students to read through the the list of texting abbreviations. Explain any
that they don’t understand. Ask what abbreviations they use in their own language.

Step 4: Ask students to read the text messages and match them with the situations.

Answers: 1b, 2e, 3d, 4a, 5c

Step 5: In the same pairs, ask students to write a short text message to their partner on
a small piece of rough paper, using abbreviations from the worksheet. They pass the
papers to each other and then write a short reply on another piece of paper. This
process can continue until the business of the mesage is resolved and each student
says goodbye. Students can repeat the activity in different pairs.

Note: You might like to try the activity with real mobile phones - if your school
hasn’t already banned mobile phones and if you can trust the students not to start
using their phones for other activities!

MODULE 10

NAME: ________________________________________________ CLASS: _______

INTERNET TASK

• Choose any topic and write four questions about it that you would like to

answer.

Example KANGAROOS

1 Do they live outside Australia?
2 How big are they?
3 What do they eat?
4 How many are there?

• Use a ‘search engine’ like Google to find websites where you can look for the

information. Add the best websites to your list of ‘favourites’ list.

Example

www.wwf-uk.org

(World Wildlife Fund)

www.animalinfo.org

(Endangered Animals)

http://www.foei.org/

(Friends of the Earth)

• Find information from the websites to answer your questions.

Example KANGAROOS

1 Do they live outside Australia? Yes, in Tasmania.
2 How big are they? Up to 2 metres tall; up to 90 kilos.
3 What do they eat? Grass and leaves.
4 How many are there? About 5000 – and going down.

• Prepare a display about your topic. Use the information you have got to write

sentences and add photos, maps, diagrams, etc. Include your list of useful
websites.

KANGAROOS

Kangaroos live in Australia and Tasmania. They can grow up to

two metres tall and can weigh up to ninety kilos. They eat grass

and leaves. They are an endangered species. There are only

about 5000 left and the numbers are going down every year …

10 NOTES FOR TEACHERS

INTERNET TASK

This is a reading and writing Internet activity. You can do it during or after New
Opportunities Pre-Intermediate Module 10 (The Web). This project presumes that
students have access to the Internet. If this is not the case, the same project can be
done using books and listing books and magazine as the sources of information.

Time: Forty minutes on the Internet (at home or in school if you have access) plus
twenty minutes in class or at home writing up the project.
Material: One copy of the task sheet per student

Step 1: Give out task sheets in class. Explain that students have to choose a topic for
their project and then make a list of questions with the information that they want to
find out. They can include up to ten questions. Here are some useful websites:

Search engines:

www.google.com

Encyclopedias:

www.encarta.msn.com

www.britannica.com

www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk

Environment:

Geography:

Show business:

www.empireonline.co.uk

www.qonline.co.uk

www.filmsite.org

Britain and British culture:

www.Britain.express.com

www.great-britain.co.uk

www.englishculture.about.com

www.yahooligans.com

www.nationaltrust.org.uk

Art:

www.sunsite.doc.ic.ac.uk/wm

Sport:

www.olympics.com

www.football365.com

Science:

www.exploratorium.edu

CNN:

Step 2: Set the information finding activity for homework if students have access to
the Internet. If they have access to the Internet at your school, you could do this in the
computer room. If they have no access to the Internet, you could get them to find
magazines, books and encyclopedias.Students have to complete their task sheet with
information. It is vital that they do not copy large chunks directly from the Internet,
but take notes.

Step 3: Students show you their task sheet and then prepare their display. They must
include their task sheet as well as the final product. Tell students your assessment
criteria: how they have found the information and how they organise and present it.
Go around and help students with language while they are doing the writing.

Follow Up: Display the writing around the class if you can, or make a class folder to
pass around.

MODULE 10

NOTES FOR TEACHERS

With this activity students revise the 2nd conditional used to talk about impossible
situations in the present and future. You can do it after finishing Module 10 of
Opportunities Pre-intermediate.

Materials
A set of situation cards for each group of students.

Time
10 minutes

Preparation
Prepare a set of situation cards for each group of students.

You win a million
dollars in a lottery

You get a one-year

scholarship at a

college in the UK.

You live in New

York.

You live on a small

island in the

Caribbean.

You are a pop star.

You have ten

brothers and

sisters.

You don't have to

go to school.

You are Miss /

Mister Universe.

You can speak

Chinese.

You live in

Antarctica.

You go on a safari

in Africa.

You fall in love with

your best friend's

boyfriend/girlfriend.

You are 200 cm

tall.

You damage your

mother's computer.

You are a teacher.

You have a driving

license.

You weigh 150

kilos.

You are homeless.

You catch a

goldfish.

Your IQ is 180.

Step 1
Divide the class into groups of four. The students sit in a circle. Put the situation
cards, upside down, in the middle of each group.

Step 2
In turns, students pick one card and imagine what they would do in the situation
described in the card. They make a complete sentence in 2

conditional.

Example
If I won a million dollars, I would give it away.

MODULE 11

SEA POEM

• Read these poems. What do you notice about them? Which do you

prefer? Why?

1 2

Touching a crab,
Holding a delicate starfish,
Eels slithering past me.

Snorkelling in clear water,
Eyes like a shark’s,
Always awake.

Tossing us around like a toy boat,
Horizon going crazy,
Everywhere wind and spray.

Sliding around, helpless as
Enormous, gigantic waves rise
Above us like a wall.

• This type of poem is called an acrostic poem – the title of the poem

goes vertically down the left-hand side of the page and each line
begins with a letter of the title.

• Write your own acrostic poem using one of these words or any

other word connected to the topic of ‘the sea’ ...

... boat people, dolphins, iceberg, islands,

lifeboat, shark, sea storm,

sunbathing, surfing, underwater,

whales, whirlpool …

NOTES FOR TEACHERS

SEA POEM

This is a creative writing activity. It is best done after Module 11 (The Sea) of New
Opportunities Pre-Intermediate.

Materials: Photocopies of the worksheet (one between two is fine); the Mini-
Dictionary.
Time: One class lesson plus homework.

Step 1: Give out the worksheets. Read out the poems to the class and ask the students
to think about the answers to the questions. Explain any vocabulary.

Step 2: Elicit the layout of an ‘acrostic’ poem, i.e. that the title is written vertically
down the left-hand side of the page and the lines of the poem begin with each letter in
the title.

Step 3: Discuss briefly which poem the students prefer and why. This can be done in
the students’ first language.

Step 4: Ask students (individually) to choose a word connected to the theme of ‘The
Sea’ and to start writing some lines for their poem in rough. Go round the class
helping with vocabulary. Dictionaries are very useful at this stage as students can look
for words beginning with a particular letter to give them ideas. Ask students to finish
their poem at home.

Follow-up: In the next lesson, students take turns to read out their poems to the class
or groups. The other students listen and try to guess the title. You can collect the
poems and display the best ones on the wall or staple them into a class booklet, maybe
for other classes to read.

MODULE 11

NOTES FOR TEACHERS

In this game students revise the Present Perfect and the Past Simple. You can use it
after finishing Module 11 of Opportunities Pre-intermediate.

Materials
A set of question cards and answer cards.

Time
10 minutes

Preparation
Prepare a set of Question cards and a set of Answer cards for each group of students.

Step 1
Divide the class into groups of four or five students. The students in each group sit in
a circle. They deal the answer cards so that everyone has five cards and see what cards
they have. Place the pile of Question cards upside down in the middle of the group.

Step 2
In turn, students draw question cards and ask the first question in the Present Perfect.
The student with the relevant Answer card responds positively. Then the first student
asks the next question, this time in the Past Simple. The other student answers.
Example:
Student A: Who has eaten seafood?
Student B: I have.
Student A: When did you eat it?
Student B: I ate it on holiday last summer.

Alternative
The game can also be played in pairs. Then the dialogue between the student looks
like this:
Student A: Have you eaten seafood?
Student B: Yes, I have.
Student A: When did you eat it?
Student B: I ate it on holiday last summer..

Question cards Answer cards

eat seafood? When?

SEAFOOD

do baby-sitting? Who?

BABY-SITTING

see a ghost? What … like?

GHOST

meet a celebrity? Who?

CELEBRITY

shave your head? When?

HEAD

have a job? How much?

JOB

spend a night at the police station? Why?

POLICE

STATION

climb a really high mountain? Where?

HIGH

MOUNTAIN

write a poem? What … about?

POEM

win a sports competition? When?

SPORTS

COMPETITION

appear on TV? What?

give a concert? Who … for?

CONCERT

be at the opera? What?

OPERA

cook a meal? What?

MEAL

sleep outside? Where?

OUTSIDE

read 'Hamlet'? What ... like?

HAMLET

ride a horse? Where?

HORSE

pay a fine? What?

FINE

fall in love? Who?

LOVE

dance a waltz? Where?

WALTZ

MODULE 12

NAME: _____________________________________________ CLASS: ____

GET TO THE TOP!

• Complete each sentence with A, B or C and mark your answers on the

mountain. Start at the bottom of the mountain with question one.

1 Hamlet was written __________ Shakespeare.

A by

B for

C of

2 I __________ an argument with my boyfriend last night.

A did

B had

C made

3 At the moment my brother __________ medicine at university.

A studies

B is studying

C student

4 We were late and __________ the last bus home.

A lost

B missed

C passed

5 You must __________ a tie at the wedding.

A to wear

B wear

C wearing

6 Top footballers can __________ a lot of money nowadays.

A collect

B earn

C win

7 If it __________, we won’t go out.

A rains

B will rain

C going to rain

8 She has lived here __________ two years.

A during

B for

C since

9 Snowboarding __________ made an Olympic event in 1998.

A has been

B is

C was

10 They don’t serve alcohol, only __________ drinks.

A soft

B light

C weak

10 A B C

9 C .. A .. B

8 .. B … C .. A ..

7 … A … B …. C …

6 … C ……… A … C ….

5 … B ……… C …………… A ..

4 ……….. A …………. B ….. C ……

3 …….. C ………………. A …………… B …..

2 …… B ………........ C …………………. A ………………

1 …… A ………………………… B ……………………….. C ……

• Now listen to your teacher give the answers. How far did you get up the

mountain? Did you get to the top?

12 NOTES FOR TEACHERS

GET TO THE TOP!

This is a grammar and vocabulary activity. You can do it after New Opportunities
Pre-Intermediate Module 12 (Mountains).

Materials: Photocopies of the questions and mountain diagram for students.
Time: Thirty minutes.

Step 1: Give out the worksheets and explain the activity. Students read the questions
and decide which option best fills the gap. They circle their answers (A, B or C) on
the diagram representing a mountain.

Step 2: When students have finished, elicit the answers from the students. Students
draw a line to join up correct answers as you go through them. If they get an answer
wrong, their ‘progress’ up the mountain stops at that point, i.e. they only join up
consecutive correct answers. (A studnt who gets the first answer wrong would stay at
the bottom of the mountain, but would continue to check his/hr answers).
Answers: 1A, 2B, 3B, 4B, 5B, 6B, 7A, 8B, 9C, 10A.

Step 3: Find out who reached the highest point – or if anybody got to the top!

Option: If students enjoyed the gam, you can play it again later. Here are ten
alternative questions.

1 He __________ like rap music.
A don’t B doesn’t C not
2 I tried really __________ to understand.
A hard B hardly C much
3 __________ I heard the bell, I opened the door.
A Just B When C While
4 We __________ a party at the weekend.
A celebrated B had C did
5 I think she’s the __________ intelligent girl in the class.
A best B more C most
6 I’m sorry, but I __________ my book at home.
A forgot B left C took
7 We don’t get on __________ our neighbours.
A for B from C with
8 I’m saving up __________ an iPod.
A for B to C with
9 We live on the sixth __________ .
A floor B height C level
10 I took part __________ the school concert last year.
A in B on C with
Answers: 1B, 2A, 3B, 4B, 5C, 6B, 7C, 8A, 9A, 10ª

MODULE 13

NAME: ________________________________________________ CLASS: _____

JUMBLED DIALOGUES

• Match the sentences (1-8) with the replies (a-h).

1 I quite like rap music.

2 I think Robbie Williams is great.

3 What shall I wear for the wedding?

4 I passed my maths exam!

5 Can I help you?

6 Why don’t we watch a video tonight?

7 Can I open the window?

8 Is it all right if I go dancing tonight?

a) Well, you don’t have to be too formal.

b) That’s great. Well done.

c) Really? I can’t stand it.

d) Yes, I’m looking for some jeans.

e) Okay, but don’t be late home.

f) Mm, that’s a good idea. Which one?

g) Yes, I agree. He’s really talented.

h) I’m a bit cold, actually.

• Put the parts of this phone conversation in the correct order.

STUDENT A

STUDENT B

Maybe later when I’ve finished.
What time is it now?

Great. I fancy a game of pool. Can
you bring some music, too.

Such as?

Hi, Mark. It’s me. Your mobile is
switched off.

Hello, 6579345.

How about the youth club?

Right. See you.

Er, it’s half-past six. Still early.

Yeah, I know. I was doing my
homework.

I’d like to hear that new Killers
album again.

Okay, I’ll bring it.

I’ve finished mine. I’m a bit bored.
How about going out?

Right, maybe about eight o’clock?
Where do you want to go?

Cool. See you at the club then.
About eight?

Okay. They’ve got a new pool table.

13 NOTES FOR TEACHERS

JUMBLED DIALOGUES

This is a reading activity which practises much of the functional language students
have encountered in the book so far. It can be done after Module 13 (Dance) of New
Opportunities Pre-Intermediate.

Materials: Copies of the worksheet.
Time: Fifteen minutes.

Step 1: Give out the worksheet and explain the first activity. There are eight
utterances on the left and student have to match the with the replies on the right.
Check answers by having one student read out an utterance from the left and choose
another student to offer a reply.

Answer: 1c, 2g, 3a, 4b, 5d, 6f, 7h, 8e

Step 2: Now explain the second activity. This is a more complex version of the first
activity. It is a jumbled phone conversation. Students put what Speakers A and B say
in the correct order. The first utterance is given. You could check the answers by
having two volunteers be Speakers A and B and read out their answers.

Answers:
A: Hello, 6579345.
B: Hi, Mark. It’s me. Your mobile is switched off.
A: Yeah, I know. I was doing my homework.
B: I’ve finished mine. I’m a bit bored. How about going out?
A: Maybe later when I’ve finished. What time is it now?
B: Er, it’s half-past six. Still early.
A: Right, maybe about eight o’clock? Where do you want to go?
B: How about the youth club?
A: Okay. They’ve got a new pool table.
B: Great. I fancy a game of pool. Can you bring some music, too.
A: Such as?
B: I’d like to hear that new Killers album again.
A: Okay, I’ll bring it.
B: Cool. See you at the club then. About eight?
A: Right. See you.

MODULE 13

NOTES FOR TEACHERS

In this speaking activity students revise the language of making suggestions and
arrangements. You can use this activity after finishing Module 13 of Opportunities
Pre-intermediate.

Materials
A role card for each student.

Time
10 minutes

Preparation
Copy enough role cards for all students in class. More than one student can have the
same card.

Step 1
Revise the language for making suggestions and arrangements

Are you doing anything on Friday?
No, I'm not.
How about going shopping?
Great idea! Let's meet at 4 p.m. at the Arkadia shopping centre.

Step 2
Explain the game and hand out the role cards (more than one student can have the
same role card). Students walk around the class and make arrangements with different
people to do various things during the week. They make notes in their diaries about
who they are meeting when and what they are going to do. They can also arrange to
do things they haven't got in their role cards but their priority is to find people who
will want to do the same things as they do.
The game is over when the majority of the class have made arrangements to do the
things in their role cards.

Step 3
Ask a few students who they are meeting when and what they are doing together.

Arrange to meet four different people to
do these things, each on a different day.

SHOPPING

SWIMMING-POOL

CINEMA

CHAT

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

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

Sunday

Arrange to meet four different people to
do these things, each on a different day.

SHOPPING

THEATRE

REVISING FOR THE TEST

TENNIS

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

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

Sunday

Arrange to meet four different people to
do these things, each on a different day.

TENNIS

CLUBBING

CINEMA

CHAT

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

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

Sunday

Arrange to meet four different people to
do these things, each on a different day.

CLUBBING

SWIMMING-POOL

THEATRE

WALK

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

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

Sunday

Arrange to meet four different people to
do these things, each on a different day.

WALK

REVISING FOR THE TEST

AEROBICS

DINNER

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

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

Sunday

Arrange to meet four different people to
do these things, each on a different day.

SHOPPING

AEROBICS

DINNER

CHAT

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

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

Sunday

MODULE 14

NOTES FOR TEACHERS

MUSIC QUIZ

This is a listening activity to practise intensive listening skills. It can be done during
or after New Opportunities Pre-Intermediate Module 14 (Music).

Materials: None.
Time: Fifteen-twenty minutes.

Step 1: Divide the class into two or three teams.

Step 2: Explain the game. You begin reading an item connected to the theme of music
or dance to the whole class. As you read, students are given more detailed information
about the subject of the item. There will be vocabulary that they don’t know, but tell
them to listen for important words or pieces of information. When a student thinks
he/she knows who or what you are talking about, he/she calls out the answer. If he/she
is correct, award a point to that team; just ignore wrong guesses and continue reading.
The team with the most points at the end is the winner.

Follow-up: For homework, students could write their own similar paragraph about a
star (without mentioning the name). Items can be read out in the next lesson for other
students to guess.

The authors would like to acknowledge Neville Britten for the idea of this game. See Who Knows? by
Neville Britten, (Nelson 1990).

14 Music Quiz Items for the Teacher to Read Out

(The answers are in brackets at the end of each item)

1 First I’m going to talk about a singer. He was born in Mississippi in 1935. His first
jobs were as an usher in a cinema and then a truck driver. He signed a recording
contract in 1955 and immediately became a rock and roll sensation. He served in the
American army for two years. He appeared in over thirty films. In his later life he
suffered from ill health and weight problems. He died in 1977 and is remembered as
the King of Rock and Roll.
(Elvis Presley)

2 Now a dance, a modern ballroom dance. It appeared in the early twentieth century.
A man and a woman perform the dance together, and when it was first performed,
many people thought it was too sexy! The couple take long steps and you need a lot of
space to do this dance. It became very popular in Latin America, especially in
Argentina.
(The tango)

3 Here is some information about a composer. He was born in 1756, in Salzburg. He
was educated by his father, Leopold. By the age of six he was an accomplished
performer on the clavier, violin, and organ and went on tours of Europe. By the age of
fourteen he had written sonatas and operas. Although he wrote some of the finest and
most famous music of the eighteenth century, such as The Marriage of Figaro, Don
Giovanni, and several truly great concertos and symphonies, he died in poverty in
1791. Only a few friends came to his funeral and his burial place was unmarked.
(Wofgang Amadeus Mozart)

4 Now a more up-to-date musician. In 1990 he saw an advertisement in a newspaper
asking for auditions for a boy band. He became part of the hugely successful boy
band, Take That. He left the band in 1996 and began a solo career. He has had several
best-selling albums and has won many awards. His most famous songs include Feel
and Angels. (Robbie Williams)

5 Now, a musical instrument. This is a stringed instrument, thought to be an Italian
invention of the early eighteenth century, though it was later developed in other parts
of Europe. It was based on the hapsichord, but differs from that instrument because
when you play the keyboard small hammers hit the strings. The white keys are made
of ivory and the black keys ebony, though nowadays plastic may be used. Foot pedals
can also change the quality of the sound. Today there are two types of this instrument
– the ‘grand’ and the ‘upright’. This instrument is used in all styles of music, from
classical and jazz performers to modern pop singers such as Elton John.
(The piano)

6 Now a singer who is also a great football fan! He made his debut in London in 1965.
He mainly sings opera. He is from Italy and, along with Luis Carreras and Placido
Domingo from Spain, is one of the world’s most famous and popular tenors.
(Luciano Pavarotti)

7 Now I’m going to talk about a traditional song and dance. Both the words to the
songs and the music are improvised within traditional rhythms and structures. The
dances that accompany the songs are performed by men or women or both together,
and these also have improvised steps. The dance form may have originated in India.
Performances are often accompanied by hand claps and shouts, and since the
nineteenth century the songs have mainly been performed on guitar. You are most
likely to see and hear this music in southern Spain.

(Flamenco)

8 And now an American pop singer. She was born in 1958 into an Italian family and
first trained as a dancer. She began recording in the early 1980s and her first big hit
was in 1983, a song called ‘Holiday’. She has also starred in a few films. Her albums,
such as ‘Like A Virgin’, have sold millions of copies. By the 1990s, she was the best-
selling female performer of all time. This famous ‘Queen of Pop’ famously adopted
an African child in 2006.
(Madonna)

9 Now another woman, this time an opera singer. She was born in New York in 1923
into a Greek family – her real name is, in fact, Maria Kalogeropoulos. She studied
opera in Athens and later became one of the leading soprano singers at La Scala in
Milan. She died in 1977.
(Maria Callas)

10 And now another musical instrument. It is made of wood, with a small sound box
and short neck. It has four strings which are usually played with a bow. Two very
famous (and expensive!) makes of this instrument are Stradivarius and Guarnarius.
Two great virtuosos are Paganini, from the nineteenth century, and Yehudi Menuhin,
from the twentieth century. Though mainly thought of as a classical instrument, it is
also played by folk and jazz musicians. One of the best virtuosos in jazz was Stephan
Grappelli.
(The violin)

11 Now a singer, dancer and actress. She was born in Puerto Rico in 1970, but her
family soon moved to New York. Her first love was dancing and from the age of
sixteen got parts in dance shows. This led to a part in a TV series and then a big
movie break starring in a film with George Clooney. After this, she tried her hand at
singing, recording hit songs in both English and Spanish. Not satisfied with being a
top dancer, singer and actress, she has also started her own line in perfume! (Jennifer
Lopez)

12 Finally, I’m going to talk about a British singer and songwriter. He was born in
1940 in Liverpool, England, and met his songwriting partner, Paul McCartney, while
at school. Together they formed the most successful pop group in history, The
Beatles. The singer I’m talking about left The Beatles in 1969 and pursued a solo
career. Tragically, he was shot dead by a fan in New York in 1980.
(John Lennon)

MODULE 14

NOTES FOR TEACHERS

This activity aims at practising question tags. You can use it after finishing module
14 of Opportunities Pre-intermediate.

Materials
A set of slips with questions for each group.

Are you hungry?

Can you play the guitar?

Is there a bookshop near the school?

Is your family big?

Do you play chess?

Did Brazil win the last World Cup?

Have you been abroad?

Did our country win any gold medals in the last Olympics?

Are you going to study at university?

Will the weather be good tomorrow?

Have you met anyone famous?

Did you go skiing in winter?

Are you going to the cinema at the weekend?

Was the last maths test difficult?

Are you learning to drive?

Is it cold today?

Do you like cats?

Is your room big?

Do you have a computer?

Were you at school yesterday?

Time
10 minutes

Preparation
Cut up the slips with questions – a set for each group of students.

Step 1
Revise forming questions tags with the class.

Step 2
Put the students into groups of four. Explain the activity and put the slips with
question in the middle of each group.

Step 3
In turns the students pick a question, rephrase it as a tag question and ask the student
on their left. Point out that they can rephrase each question in two ways: as an
affirmative statement with a tag or as a negative statement with a tag, according to
what they know.

Example
Are you hungry?

Student A: You're hungry, aren't you? or You aren't hungry, are you?
Student B: Yes, I am. / No, I'm not.

The students responds, then picks a new question and the process repeats until the
group run out of slips.

Alternative
To make the activity easier, you can prepare slips with statements rather than
questions. Then the only thing students have to do is to add a correct tag.

15 NOTES FOR TEACHERS

PHOTO PRESENTATION

This is a speaking activity to practise talking about photos. It should be done some
time after Lesson 44 (Photography) of New Opportunities Pre-Intermediate.

Materials: Students need to bring a large photo in a book or cut out of a magazine.
Time: Two minutes per student. You can do the activity over several classes.

Step 1: Explain and present the activity a week before you want the students to do it -
this gives them time to look for a picture. Emphasise the suitability of the picture
when you explain and present the activity yourself. Find a big picture that all the class
can see, and go through the stages below, accepting answers and comments from the
whole class.

EXPLAINING THE TASK

Describe the picture. This first part of the activity is quite mechanical. Explain
students will have to describe what they can see. Tell them it's a good idea to say
information in different ways to avoid repetition. Prompt them to begin sentences in a
variety of ways: "I can see...", "There is...", "On the right...", "In the corner...", etc.

Speculate. Use prompt questions to encourage students to speculate about the picture,
e.g. "What is this man thinking?", "How does this girl feel?", "What's the boy going to
do next?"

Chat. The picture must lend itself to further discussion. Explain you will lead the
student into a chat about a topic related to the theme of the picture. For example, a
picture of punk rockers may lead on to a chat about musical tastes, music lessons,
weekend clothes, etc.

Note: If you plan to assess the task, be strict with your vocabulary mark in the first
part of the task, as pupils should have prepared this at home. In the second and third
parts, assess them more for fluency.

Step 2: Tell the students when you want them to give their presentations. You may
ask four or five students to speak per lesson over a week or so.

Note: It’s worh having a few pictures in reserve yourself in case a student forgets
his/her photo. They won’t have much preparation time, but the alternative is that your
planning is disrupted.

Step 3: While you listen to students give their presentations, assess them for
vocabulary, accuracy and fluency.

MODULE 15

Complete the story with relative clauses.

I have a good friend who 1………………………………………………..…. . He is very good-looking

and there are a lot of girls who 2 …………………………………………………………. .

Yesterday, I was walking my dog in the park when I saw him with a girl who

3…………………………………………………………………. They were arguing. I couldn't see her

face, only a storm of red hair that 4…………………………………………….…… She was

shouting at my friend and waving a photograph that

5……………………………………………..………. She had a dog that

6………………………………………………..……. . The people who

7……………………………………………………… all looked at them curiously.

I guessed that she was jealous of another girl who

8…………………………………………………..….. . She started to cry, took out a handkerchief

from the bag 9……………………………………….……… and turned away from my friend. Then

I recognised her – it was the girl who 10……………………………………………………….……. .

15 NOTES FOR THE TEACHER

This writing task is aimed at practising defining relative clauses. You can do it after
completing Module 15 of Opportunities Pre-intermediate.

Materials
A task sheet for each student or each pair of students

Time
10-15 minutes

Step 1
Tell the students to work in pairs. Distribute the task sheets. Explain that their task is
to complete the gaps with relative clauses so that the text becomes more coherent and
interesting.

Step 2
The students in pairs read the text and complete the gaps.

Step 3
Ask a few pairs to read out their stories. Compare the different versions.

Alternative
This task can also be done individually.

16 NOTES FOR TEACHERS

PROJECT FOLDER

This is a written project which practises a variety of text types. The project should be
set up at the end of the third term and students should hand it in after the long summer
holiday. If your students are not returning to your school, you could set the project up
earlier in the year and give them several homework sessions to complete it.

Materials: Copies of the sheet explaining the content of the project (one for each
student)
Time: One class lesson to set up the project and several homework sessions or a long
holiday period for students to do it.

Step 1: Give out the photocopies and explain the task (see the worksheet). You may
wish to tell the students what topic you would choose, what your narrative would be
about, what extra items would be suitable for your topic, etc.

Step 2: Explain your assessment criteria. You can adapt them to your own situation,
e.g. ten marks for interesting content, ten for task achievement, ten for accuracy
(grammar, spelling, punctuation), etc.

Step 3: Students begin planning the content of their projects in class. Go round and
help with ideas. In my experience, it’s possible to work in a narrative and personal
letter connected to any topic. However, if a student is really stuck, it may be that the
topic is not suitable; in this case ask them to choose another topic.

Step 4: Students prepare and write their projects over a certain period; make sure you
set a deadline well in advance for collecting them.

Follow-up: Try to make some time to have a personal chat with each student about
their project. Perhaps devote one class lesson to giving back projects and pass them
round for others to read – use this opportunity to call students to your desk and give
some brief feedback. Try to be positive and encouraging – even if that project on
heavy metal music didn’t really interest you personally!

MODULE 16

PROJECT FOLDER

• Choose a topic that you are interested in
This could be any topic, (but check it with your teacher first!). For example: a famous
person; a foreign city or country; a hobby; an animal; a sport; a famous building; a
festival; a period in history; a local, national or international issue, etc.

• Content
Everything in your folder must be related to the topic and the material must be
original. Your folder must contain the following items:

• A contents page

• An introduction
• A narrative

• A personal letter

• Original item(s) of your choice
• Some interesting information

You can also include some photos and illustrations if you wish.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Contents page: This goes at the front of your project, but do this at the end when you
have finished all the material and decided on the order for the items.
Introduction: Write about why you have chosen this topic. When did you first
become interested in it? Do you collect things related to it?
Narrative: Write a story (200-250 words) connected to your topic. Make sure you
include some description in the story and not just a list of events. Set the story in the
past and don’t forget linking words. (See Writing Help 2, page 138).
Personal letter: Write a personal letter (about 75 words) connected to your topic.
You could include this in your narrative as a letter from one of the characters if you
wish. (See Writing Help 1, page 138).
Original item(s) of your choice: Include another type of text, e.g. an advert (see
Writing Help 4, page 139), a brochure, a menu, a recipe, a leaflet, some
instructions on how to make or do something, a review, a formal letter (see Writing
Help 6, page 140), an Internet page (see Writing Help 5, page 140), your own poem
or maybe a real postcard which you could stick into your folder. Your choice of text
really depends on the topic you have chosen.
Some interesting information: Again, this depends on the topic you have chosen.
For example, if you have chosen a famous person, you may wish to give some
interesting facts about his/her life in the form of a timeline; if you have chosen an
animal, you may wish to present some facts in the form of a quiz for the reader; if you
have chosen a foreign country, you may wish to present some key information in the
form of a factfile (see Lesson 15 Scotland, page 46).

All page references are to New Opportunities Pre-Intermediate, Student’s Book.

Two examples of notes for project content

Motorbikes

Introduction
- older brother has a motorbike
- buy motorbike magazines
- motorbike posters in bedroom
- watch racing on TV

Narrative
- story about motorbike gang

Personal letter
- letter to friend telling him about where
you went on your motorbike at the
weekend

Extra items
- road safety leaflet
- poem about riding in the rain

Information
- labelled drawing of a motorbike
- timeline with drawings showing the
history of motorbikes

The 1960s

Introduction
- got interested in 1960s music, then
fashion

Narrative
- story about a fan who queues all night
for a concert ticket and then is
disappointed when he gets to meet his pop
heroes backstage

Personal letter
- letter to friend inviting him/her to a
‘sixties music’ party at your house –
everyone has to dress in sixties fashion

Extra item
- a concert review of a 60s group
- an advert for a concert
- an album cover with titles to songs (and
maybe invent some lyrics?)

Information
- labelled drawings of 60s fashion
- timeline showing important events of the
1960s

Remember …

• plan each piece of writing carefully – this saves time in the end!

• check your rough work for grammar and spelling mistakes before you copy it

neatly.

When you finish all the writing …

• make and decorate a cover for your folder
• don-t forget to write the contents page

• staple or tie everything together and number the pages

Enjoy your project – and don’t leave all the work until the last
minute!

Document Outline

MODULE
Step 1: Elicit the names of jobs and occupations from the wh
Step 3: Explain the game. One student imagines he/she does a
The 1960s

new oppartunities resources pre int

Document Outline