Cleveland Middle School's Library Media Center
Inspiring a Culture of Readers...
​​iRead@CMS​​
Survival Language Skills...
Communicate in a Language Other Than English
"Mr. Bean's Holiday" offers insights into the predicaments travellers often have as they explore a new country.
PRIOR KNOWLEDGE...
What do you know about the language and country you have chosen to study...
What would you like to know about the language and country you have chosen to study...
REVIEW iBabel Goals...
For the month of February, you will be exploring and practicing communicating with your chosen language of study. This can be a challenge in and of itself. However, as you will see, there are more unpleasant surprises that could happen whenever you visit a foreign land. From ordering raw oysters on a menu to losing track of your finances in trying to convert from dollars to the new currency, there will be awkward situations where you will need to know certain words and expressions; so, you can conduct yourself in a way that is the least embarrassing.
Have fun, considering the following predicaments and how you would handle them...
Movie Trailer "Mr Bean's Holiday" or "Disaster has a passport".
ONGOING ACTIVITY - CREATING FLASH CARDS...
As you solve each of the predicaments below, be sure to create a new flash card for each of the new expressions and words you are learning. On one side of the index card, write the "romanized" expression/vocabulary that you would use in order to avoid Mr. Bean's disasterous mishaps...and on the backside write the English translation.
IMPORTANT: Draw then a cartoon as a mnemonic aide to help trigger your memory. [REMEMBER: Neko in Japanese means cat!] The bear in the interview gave sage advice when he said: The more emotion you attach to learning, the better you will remember it!
Considering Mr. Bean's Holiday disasters can be a helpful lesson in what not to do while travelling abroad. With an emphasis on meaningful, concrete learning experiences, we're going to use these examples as a way to explore your chosen language. You will be analyzing the situations and coming up with solutions...
STANDARDS & OBJECTIVES:
I. Standard Number 1 (Goal One): Communicate in a Language Other Than English
• describe assorted objects and people (e.g., dress, types of dwellings, foods);
Performance Indicators:
The student is able to:
•use appropriate vocabulary, gestures, and oral expressions for greetings, introductions, leave takings, and other common or familiar interactions (e.g., exchanging names, address, phone number, place of origin, general health/state of being; using the telephone; making and responding to requests). ​​​​​​​​​​​
Mystery Artifact...
For each lesson we have together in the Conference Room there will be a "mystery artifact" for you to touch, manipulate, and explore. You will need to determine this artifact's country of origin, and what it is or how it is used...
 "Mystery Artifact" #1Can you determine what country I am from and who I represent from that country and give a name for each figure... |  "Mystery Artifact" #2Can you determine what country I am from and what I represent from that country and give me my proper name... |
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 "Mystery Artifact" #3Can you determine what country I am from and what purpose I serve? |  "Mystery Artifact #4"Can you determine what country I am from and what purpose I serve? |
 "Mystery Artifact #5"Can you determine what country I am from and what purpose I serve? |  "Mystery Artifact #6"Can you determine what country I am from and what purpose I serve? |
 "Mystery Artifact #7"Can you determine what country I am from and what purpose I serve? |
Mr. Bean doesn't speak French, but he is going to eat at a French restaurant. He doesn't know what the food is.....
QUESTION
Interpret the situation. If it were in your country of study, what would you do? How could you avoid such a mortifying experience?
LEARNING OBJECTIVE: Acquire basic expressions of greeting, foods, and numbers using a wide range of digital and print resources.
Predicament 1. Mr. Bean needs to properly greet the waiter as he enters the restaurant. If this were a restaurant in your chosen country...what would you say, to be polite, to give your name for a reservation?
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Predicament 2. Mr. Bean when he is looking over the menu needs to be familiar with the names of his favorite foods...consider what you would want to order in the restaurant of your chosen country and find out what to look for on the menu...this would need to include a main course meal as well as a dessert and a drink. Be sure to learn how to ask for your item how you prefer, hot or cold.
Predicament 3. Mr. Bean simply leaves a unknown amount of money on the table to pay for the food he has ordered. He may have overpaid or worse, underpaid for the food. Find out the currency of your chosen country and learn how to count from one to ten, to help familiarize you with the denominations of money you would use.
Sometimes trying to speak or understand someone else's language can feel like you are getting nowhere. Consider this situation on the plane that Mr. Bean finds himself in. His attempts to cheer up the child falls flat...why?
Predicament 1. Mr. Bean has to depend on gestures and physical movements to communicate with the "child flyer". Can you come up with some other entertaining scenario that will cheer up this depressed little guy in English. Now, take that over to Google Translate, and see how it would sound in your chosen language of study...are there any cognates, or words that sound similar in English and in your chosen language?
Predicament 2. Mr. Bean feels fine; however, the child is sick. Knowing how to express yourself when you are sick in a foreign land can be a challenge. Practice expressions you would say to a doctor, if you were in the same situation and your condition worsened. Do you know how to ask for an asperin?
Predicament 3. What if you were being blamed for an honest accident? How would you apologize in your chosen language of study and how would you explain yourself, if what you did really annoyed the other person?
In this scene Mr. Bean is short on cash and decides to become a street preformer. Deep emotions are communicated in songs. Consider how differently listening to a poem being spoken versus the lyrics being sung...
Predicament 1. There are several distinct styles of music that Mr. Bean preforms to in this scene. Find out some of the distinct musical compositions from your country of study. Listen to the National Anthem of your country of study, translate its lyrics, determining the emotion expressed.
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Predicament 2. Try "lip singing" to the anthem in keeping with its expressed emotion. [A clip of your performance may be used in your final presentation...] Music is a great teaching tool for language study. Determine if it is as effective for you...
Curiously not every culture watches the clock as much as we Americans do. The pace of life is much slower, more relaxed, and less stressful in many parts of the world. Speech too can be spoken quite rapidly or slowly. Read more...
Predicament 1. Mr. Bean dresses differently from the locals. If you wanted to go "native"...find out the typical attire for your country of choice and how you would ask for each piece of clothing, consistent with the climate and the habits of the culture.
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Predicament 2. As a tourist, you will often need to ask for directions. Find out how to understand simple directions in your chosen language of study.
Predicament 3. Waiting too, for public transportation is inevitable when you travel. Practice asking a taxi driver to take you to see some of the major tourist sites in your chosen country of study?