Lesson plan (economical with the truth

Here are some common lies. Who might say these, in what circumstances

and why? Why do people make up excuses?

Pre-teaching vocabulary: Match these nouns with the pictures.

JERK HUT WISDOM

SUCCESS CRUSH

‘Please don’t worry about it,

it wasn’t all that valuable.’

‘She means nothing to me – it’s you

that I really love.’

‘Wow, it’s so great! It’s just what

I’ve always wanted.’ ‘Sorry, but I haven’t got

any cash on me’

‘Oh, sir! I’m sorry I’m late.

There was a terrible traffic

jam this morning!’

‘Don’t cry – your rabbit’s gone to

rabbit heaven. I know he has.’

1

3

2

4

5 6

‘It's really not you; it's me. I mean, you're

great, but the truth is I just got out of

this relationship two years ago and I'm not

ready yet.’

‘Sorry, I had no mobile

signal.’

‘I don’t eat too much – I

have a slow metabolism.’

‘Sorry, she’s in a meeting at the

moment. Can she call you back

later?’

7

8

9 10

Lesson Plan Sample: Economical with the Truth By Inma Alcázar

http://myeslcorner.blogspot.com

Now match these verbs with their definitions.

HANDLE To have confidence in the honesty of a person

TRUST To perceive the scent or odour of a substance

STARE To deal successfully with a person

ENCOURAGE To look at someone or something very directly for a long

time

SMELL To suggest that someone does something that you

believe would be good

Pre-viewing: Look at the title of the film. What do you think it means?

TEACHERS’ NOTES: Prepare a worksheet with some scenes from the video

extract they will see and ask them to predict the situation and the excuses

that the women in the segment say.

While-viewing: Now, watch this short scene from the film ‘He’s Just Not

That Into You’. Pay attention to all the excuses the women in the segment

came up with to justify their friends’ lovers not calling them. Try to

remember all of them.



‘That little boy is doing these terrible things because he has got a crush on you’, the

mother said to his daughter.

The mother told his daughter that that little boy was doing those terrible things

because he had got a crush on her.

‘You are too pretty and too awesome’ her friends said.

Her friends said that she was too pretty and too awesome’

‘He couldn’t handle it’ her friend told her.

Her friend told her that he couldn’t handle it.

‘I’m sure he has just lost your number’ the woman said to her friend.

The woman told her friend that she was sure he had just lost her number.

‘A girl will never forget the first boy she likes’, she said.

She said that a girl would never forget the first boy she liked.

Post-viewing: Grammar: Analyse the following sentences from the film and

say what changes take place when we report other people’s words.



Grammar

Read this short dialogue between Gigi and Alex, two of the main characters of the film,

and change the underlined sentences into indirect speech.

ALEX: Or maybe he just didn’t call because he has no interest in seeing you again.

GIGI: Yeah, but my friend Terri once went out with this guy who never called and she totally

wrote him off – then like a year later she ran into him-.

ALEX: Your friend Terri’s an idiot. And she’s the exception.

GIGI: OK. But what if I’m the exception?

ALEX: You’re not. You’re the rule. And the rule is – if a guy doesn’t call you, he doesn’t want to call

you and he won’t do it.

GIGI: Really? Always?

ALEX: Always. I know what blowing off a woman looks like. Trust me – if a guy is treating you like

he doesn’t give a shit – he doesn’t. No exceptions.

Gigi thinks this over.

GIGI: Why are you telling me all of this? Aren’t these man-secrets – like why men need to watch

televised golf?

Alex LAUGHS.

ALEX: I don’t know. You looked like you could really use the help.

RED MAPLE –NIGHT

It’s late. The bar is nearly empty. Alex is totaling receipts

–and Gigi is still nursing a drink.

ALEX: Look, you seem like a cool girl, so I’m just going to

be honest – Conor is never going to call you.

GIGI: Oh really? How do you know?

ALEX: Because I’m a guy. It’s how we do it.

GIGI: He said it was nice meeting me.

ALEX: I don’t care if he said you were his favourite

female since his mommy and Joanie Cunningham. Over a

week by – and he didn’t call.

GIGI: But maybe he called and I didn’t get the message.

Or maybe he lost my number, or was out of town, or was

hit by a cab, or his grandma died.



BIBLIOGRAPHY:

He is Just Not That Into You (video) by Claudio Azevedo:

http://warmupsfollowups.blogspot.com/2009/12/hes-just-not-that-into-you-

excuses.html

Film script: http://www.dailyscript.com/scripts/HJNTIY_072007.pdf

Alex told Gigi that she seemed like a cool

girl, so he was just going to be honest. He

said that Conor was never going to call her.



http://warmupsfollowups.blogspot.com/2009/12/hes-just-not-that-into-you-excuses.html

http://warmupsfollowups.blogspot.com/2009/12/hes-just-not-that-into-you-excuses.html

http://www.dailyscript.com/scripts/HJNTIY_072007.pdf

Education

Lesson plan (economical with the truth