Raising a Robot

The main goals of this ESL lesson plan are:

• – To get students talking about robots and how they can integrate into society,
• – To teach technology-related vocabulary,
• – To work on B2 level grammar.

This upper-intermediate lesson uses the topic of robots in society to build vocabulary, improve grammar accuracy, and develop speaking skills.

Warm-up:

Students talk about a selection of discussion questions with their teacher. Students should provide reasons or examples to support their answers. By doing so, they get to practice a natural English conversation flow. The teacher should take the lead in this section, asking follow-up questions to increase the students’ talking time.

Video:

Students watch an authentic English-language video called “I Tried the First Humanoid Home Robot. It Got Weird.”, noting down key ideas and new expressions that they hear. Students are encouraged to ask the teacher about new phrases or ideas in the video that surprised them. New language should be noted down so that they can use it in subsequent conversation practice. Following the video, students answer questions related to the video content.

Exercises:

This part of the lesson focuses on boosting the students’ active vocabulary by having them complete a variety of English vocabulary activities. Students will talk about robots using a provided chart, decide if statements are true or false, and identify mistakes in sentences. In the following exercises, students talk about what uses of robots are acceptable and why. In the final two exercises they insert words from a word bank into the correct gaps in sentences and match terms to their definitions.

By working with the language in a variety of ways, students will find it easier to retain and recall the new language when participating in discussion activities.

Discussion:

Students react to a quote related to robots, saying whether they agree or disagree, and why. Students should use new language from the lesson, and also provide reasons and examples to support their point of view. More confident students should also be encouraged to ask the teacher for their opinions.