Carnival safety success Lesson plan - BBC British Council 2002

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1 Carnival safety success Lesson plan - BBC British Council 2002 Teacher s notes Carnival Safety Success This news report is about the Notting Hill Carnival 2002 held on the 25 th and 26 th August, in London. The report describes the carnival and the problems caused by so many people being in such a small place. For more information about the Notting Hill Carnival you can visit:- For this lesson you will need Copies of Worksheet A (optional) Introduction and first reading questions Copies of Worksheet B Reading questions and Writing activity Copies of Worksheet C - Vocabulary The audio or written text- Carnival Safety Success Introduction worksheet A Aim Raise awareness of Carnival. Introduce vocabulary and a language prediction task. For this stage you can give out Worksheet A. However, you can easily do this stage without the worksheet, as follows. Start the class by writing the word CARNIVAL on the board. Ask students what they know about this word. Information for teachers: CARNIVAL This is a period or occasion or public enjoyment and celebration. There are often processions and parties. This is very common in Roman Catholic countries. Brazil and Jamaica are two countries that are famous for their carnival celebrations. Next, write the headline on the board and the vocabulary choices (Worksheet A, question 2) Ask the students, in pairs to choose some words they think they will see in the article. Next, give the students the first reading question:- 3. What was the problem two years ago and why was Carnival 2002 called a safety success?

2 Carnival safety success Lesson plan - BBC British Council 2002 Play the audio or hand out the text. Students read to check their predictions and answer the first question. Answers for Worksheet A:- 2. These words appear in the article. Street festival Murder Balcony Costumes Music Cloudy Party Colourful Arrest Wonderful 3. What was the problem two years ago and why was Carnival 2002 called a safety success? Two years ago, two people were murdered. In 2002, there was only a little crime, and there weren t any murders. The organisers had made changes to the carnival, and these changes were successful. Main reading / listening Worksheet B Aim Understanding details Hand out worksheet B Students answer the true/false questions. Answers for Worksheet B:- 1. Are the following statements true or false? a. In Europe, there is a bigger festival than Notting Hill Carnival Answer: False It is the biggest b. The weather was very good at Carnival 2002 Answer: False it was cloudy c. The carnival parade went a different way this year Answer: True the route was changed d. Many activities continued till midnight Answer: False the ending time of 9 p.m. was closely observed (followed/obeyed) e. Over a million people wore special costumes Answer: False 3000 people dressed up in costumes. A million came to see the parade

3 Carnival safety success Lesson plan - BBC British Council 2002 f. For some people, it was difficult to see the parade Answer: True the crowds were large (5 people deep) and many people only had a glimpse of the carnival a brief look g. Some police danced and partied - Answer: True Some of the police got in on the act, they joined in h. There were many kinds of music Answer: True g. More than half the arrests were for theft Answer: True pick pocketing and robbery are types of theft h. The carnival represents only one group or community in London Answer: False it represented the multicultural aspect of London, many different types of people and communities Vocabulary Worksheet C Before doing the writing follow up exercise, you should do the vocabulary exercise worksheet C You can do this in three ways. a. Hand out Worksheet C b. Put the items from Worksheet C on the board c. Mingle activity. Cut up the words and definitions into individual pieces of paper Give each student a word or two. Distribute the definitions around the class. The students then find the definition(s) for their word(s). Feed back to the board, be sure to check and drill the pronunciation. Vocabulary answers:- hailed as described / called To deal with something to take action about something Residential area a place many people live Steward someone who helps control a big event Paraded walked in a public procession Lined the route stood next to the path of the parade

4 Carnival safety success Lesson plan - BBC British Council 2002 Glimpse a quick look Sound system something that plays music in a public place Pick-pocketing stealing from someone s pockets Ill founded unjustified / without good reason Writing Worksheet B It is a good idea for students to work on the planning stages of this writing in pairs or threes. Refer the students to the writing advice on Worksheet B

5 Carnival safety success - BBC British Council 2002 Worksheet A Carnival safety success Introduction 1. CARNIVAL What does this word mean to you? What country does it make you think of? What happens in carnival? Do you have carnival in your country? What public celebrations do you have? In London, people celebrate carnival. You are going to read or listen to a news report about Carnival Look at the headline below CARNIVAL SAFETY SUCCESS 2. Which of the following words do you expect to see or hear in the article? Street festival Boring Party Danger Strike Prisoners Arrest Music Health Murder Demonstration Balcony Colourful Costumes Wonderful Cloudy Read or listen to check your ideas. 3. Answer this question. What was the problem two years ago and why was Carnival 2002 called a safety success?

6 Carnival safety success - BBC British Council 2002 Worksheet B Reading / Listening 1. Are the following statements true or false? a. In Europe, there is a bigger festival than Notting Hill Carnival b. The weather was very good at Carnival 2002 c. The carnival parade went a different way this year d. Many activities continued till midnight e. Over a million people wore special costumes f. For some people, it was difficult to see the parade g. Some police danced and partied h. There were many kinds of music i. More than half the arrests were for theft j. The carnival represents only one group or community in London Follow Up Writing You are going to write an article, for an international student magazine, describing a festival or time of celebration in your country. First of all, get your ideas What festivals are there in your country? Have you been to any? Which one would you like to write about? When does it take place? Where does it take place? What happens at this festival? How does it start? Is there a parade or march? Is there music? Do people dance? Eat? Drink? What can you see? Is it religious? Does the festival have any problems? What words do you need to describe this festival adjectives, nouns and verbs? Now plan your article What title can it have? The first paragraph is the introduction what information can you put here? Your next paragraphs contain the description think about the history of the festival, what happens and maybe the problems? Your final paragraph is the conclusion perhaps give the main reason for somebody to visit your country to see this festival. Now, write your article

7 Carnival safety success - BBC British Council 2002 Worksheet C Vocabulary Match the words on the left with their definitions or synonyms on the right. Use the text to help you. hailed as a place many people live To deal with something stood next to the path of the parade Residential area described / called Steward unjustified / without good reason Paraded something that plays music in a public place Lined the route to take action about something Glimpse stealing from someone s pockets Sound system walked in a public procession Pick-pocketing a quick look Ill founded someone who helps control a big event

8 Carnival safety success - BBC British Council 2002 Text Carnival Safety Success This year s Notting Hill Carnival, Europe s biggest street festival, is being hailed as the best ever. Despite the cloudy skies, the carnival brought the streets to life in its own unique way with record numbers and little reported crime, After the two murders in 2000, there had been major safety worries concerning this year s carnival. To deal with these fears several changes were made. Firstly, the route for the carnival was changed to avoid the narrowest streets in Notting Hill, a residential area with many small roads. Secondly, the carnival organisers provided more stewards and they received better training. Finally, the organisers ensured that the ending time, 9 p.m., was closely observed. Following these changes, Carnival 2002 saw more than a million people party in the streets of Notting Hill. More than 3,000 people dressed in spectacular colourful costumes and paraded and danced through the streets, crowds of four and five people deep lined the route to catch a glimpse of the event. Residents partied on apartment balconies and even the police got in on the act. Apart from the carnival parade, the local area was filled with sound systems pumping out music of all different kinds Samba, Soca, Reggae and Rap music being the most common. Police yesterday said that 56 arrest were made over the weekend, which included 30 arrests for pick-pocketing and three for robbery. The chairman of the Notting Hill Carnival Trust, Chris Mullard, yesterday said, "The criticism of the event has been ill founded and I hope people will now see the carnival for what it is; a wonderful opportunity to project the multiculturalism that is metropolitan London.

Notting Hill Carnival

CHAPTER FIFTEEN Notting Hill Carnival The Notting Hill Carnival is the biggest street festival in Europe. It takes place in Notting Hill Gate, an area of west London, on the last Sunday and Monday of August.