Zodiac Signs Lesson Plan for ESL Classes

Zodiac Signs Lesson Plan for ESL Classes Whether students believe in the Zodiac or not, working with Zodiac sign descriptions provides a great opportunity to widen their vocabulary about personality and characteristic adjectives. Use these Zodiac signs to get students talking about themselves and their friends. Youll all have a good laugh, and students will improve their active vocabulary beyond the standard happy, funny, sad, and lucky. Aim: Improve personality adjectives vocabulary Activity: Reflections on yourself and a friend Level: Upper Intermediate to Advanced Outline: Make sure the students have access to a good dictionary.Cut the Zodiac sheet up into strips and pass them out based on their birth dates.Ask students to find their own Zodiac sign and read through the description making sure they understand every descriptive adjective or phrase provided on the sheet.Once students understand the adjectives, they are asked (on the worksheet) to choose three traits they agree with and two they disagree with. Students should provide a reason and/or an example for each of these chosen traits.Have students share their descriptive adjectives with each other in a group discussion, citing the reasons why they agree or disagree with their chosen traits.Ask students to pair up, this time distribute strips based on the birthday of the students partner.Repeat exercise. Your Zodiac Sign Aries / March 21 - April 20 Aries is the first sign of the Zodiac and is associated with fresh vigor and new beginnings. Individuals born under this sign are said to have an enthusiastic, adventurous, aggressive, humorous, passionate, and pioneering character but one which is also prone to selfishness, boastfulness, intolerance, impulsiveness, and impatience. Positive Adventurous and energeticPioneering and courageousEnthusiastic and confidentDynamic and quick-witted Negative Selfish and quick-temperedImpulsive and impatientFoolhardy and daredevil Which three traits do you think are true about you? Please list and give a reason for each. I am:I am:I am: Which two traits do you think are false about you? Please list and give a reason for each. I am not:I am not: Taurus / April 21 - May 20 Taurus is the second sign of the Zodiac and associated with material pleasure. Individuals born under this sign are thought to have a calm, patient, reliable, loyal, affectionate, sensuous, ambitious, and determined character, but one which is also prone to hedonism, laziness, inflexibility, jealousy, and antipathy. In terms of anatomy, Positive Patient and reliableWarmhearted and lovingPersistent and determinedPlacid and security loving Negative Jealous and possessiveResentful and inflexibleSelf-indulgent and greedy Which three traits do you think are true about you? Please list and give a reason for each. I am:I am:I am: Which two traits do you think are false about you? Please list and give a reason for each. I am not:I am not: Gemini / May 21 - June 21 Gemini is the third sign of the Zodiac and associated with youth and versatility. Individuals born under this sign are thought to have a sociable, fun-loving, versatile, lively, communicative, liberal, intelligent, mentally active and friendly character but one which is also prone to moodiness, inconsistency, superficiality, restlessness , and laziness. Positive Adaptable and versatileCommunicative and wittyIntellectual and eloquentYouthful and lively Negative Nervous and tenseSuperficial and inconsistentCunning and inquisitive Which three traits do you think are true about you? Please list and give a reason for each. I am:I am:I am: Which two traits do you think are false about you? Please list and give a reason for each. I am not:I am not: Cancer / June 22 - July 22 Cancer is the fourth sign of the Zodiac and associated with family and domesticity. Individuals born under this sign are thought to have a kind, emotional, romantic, imaginative, sympathetic, nurturing, and intuitive character, but one which is also prone to changeability, moodiness, hypersensitivity, depression, and clinginess. Positive Emotional and lovingIntuitive and imaginativeShrewd and cautiousProtective and sympathetic Negative Changeable and moodyOveremotional and touchyClinging and unable to let go Which three traits do you think are true about you? Please list and give a reason for each. I am:I am:I am: Which two traits do you think are false about you? Please list and give a reason for each. I am not:I am not: Leo / July 23 - August 22 Leo is the fifth sign of the Zodiac and is associated with the keywords magnanimous, generous, hospitable, caring, warm, authoritative, active and open. Leos are typically pictured as very dignified and regal. They are hard-working, ambitious and enthusiastic, however, they are prone to laziness and can often take the easy way out. They are known to be exuberant, extroverted, generous with a natural dramatic flair and very creative. They are typically very self-assured and love taking center-stage in every arena. Positive Generous and warmheartedCreative and enthusiasticBroad-minded and expansiveFaithful and loving Negative Pompous and patronizingBossy and interferingDogmatic and intolerant Which three traits do you think are true about you? Please list and give a reason for each. I am:I am:I am: Which two traits do you think are false about you? Please list and give a reason for each. I am not:I am not: Virgo / August 23 - September 22 Virgo is the sixth sign of the Zodiac, a set of astrological signs, and associated with purity and service. Individuals born under this sign are thought to have a diligent, analytical, self-sufficient, controlled, orderly, and modest character but one which is also prone to fussiness, perfectionism, harsh criticism, coldness, and hypochondria. Positive Modest and shyMeticulous and reliablePractical and diligentIntelligent and analytical Negative Fussy and a worrierOvercritical and harshPerfectionist and conservative Which three traits do you think are true about you? Please list and give a reason for each. I am:I am:I am: Which two traits do you think are false about you? Please list and give a reason for each. I am not:I am not: Libra/ September 23 - October 22 Libra is the seventh sign of the Zodiac and associated with justice. Individuals born under this sign are thought to have a pleasant, articulate, charming, charismatic, fair, artistic, social, refined, diplomatic, even-tempered and self-sufficient character, but on the negative side, are also thought to be indecisive, flirtatious, extravagant, lazy, analytical, frivolous, impatient, envious, shallow, aloof, and quarrelsome. Positive Diplomatic and urbaneRomantic and charmingEasygoing and sociableIdealistic and peaceable Negative Indecisive and changeableGullible and easily influencedFlirtatious and self-indulgent Which three traits do you think are true about you? Please list and give a reason for each. I am:I am:I am: Which two traits do you think are false about you? Please list and give a reason for each. I am not:I am not: Scorpio / October 23 - November 21 Scorpio is the eighth sign of the Zodiac and associated with intensity, passion, and power. Individuals born under this sign are thought to have a complex, analytical, patient, keenly perceptive, inquisitive, focused, determined, hypnotic, and self-contained character, but one which is also prone to extremity, jealousy, envy, secretiveness, possessiveness, cruelty and cunning. In terms of anatomy, Positive Determined and forcefulEmotional and intuitivePowerful and passionateExciting and magnetic Negative Jealous and resentfulCompulsive and obsessiveSecretive and obstinate Which three traits do you think are true about you? Please list and give a reason for each. I am:I am:I am: Which two traits do you think are false about you? Please list and give a reason for each. I am not:I am not: Sagittarius / November 22 - December 21 Sagittarius is the ninth sign of the Zodiac and associated with travel and expansion. Individuals born under this sign are thought to have a straightforward, dynamic, highly intelligent, extremely clever, ethical, humorous, generous, open-hearted, compassionate, and energetic character, but one which is also prone to restlessness, impulsiveness, impatience, recklessness, and childishness. Positive Optimistic and freedom-lovingJovial and good-humoredHonest and straightforwardIntellectual and philosophical Negative Blindly optimistic and carelessIrresponsible and superficialTactless and restless Which three traits do you think are true about you? Please list and give a reason for each. I am:I am:I am: Which two traits do you think are false about you? Please list and give a reason for each. I am not:I am not: Capricorn / December 22 - January 19 Capricorn is the tenth sign of the Zodiac and associated with hard work and business affairs. Individuals born under this sign are thought to have an ambitious, modest, patient, responsible, stable, trustworthy, powerful, intellectual, perspicacious and persistent character but one which is also prone to coldness, conservatism, rigidity, materialism, and dullness. Positive Practical and prudentAmbitious and disciplinedPatient and carefulHumorous and reserved Negative Pessimistic and fatalisticMiserly and grudging Which three traits do you think are true about you? Please list and give a reason for each. I am:I am:I am: Which two traits do you think are false about you? Please list and give a reason for each. I am not:I am not: Aquarius / January 20 - February 18 Aquarius is the eleventh sign of the Zodiac and associated with future ideas and the unusual. Individuals born under this sign are thought to have a modest, creative, challenging, inquisitive, entertaining, progressive, stimulating, nocturnal, and independent character, but one which is also prone to rebelliousness, coldness, erraticism, indecisive, and impracticality. Positive Friendly and humanitarianHonest and loyalOriginal and inventiveIndependent and intellectual Negative Intractable and contraryPerverse and unpredictableUnemotional and detached Which three traits do you think are true about you? Please list and give a reason for each. I am:I am:I am: Which two traits do you think are false about you? Please list and give a reason for each. I am not:I am not: Pisces / February 19 - March 20 Pisces is the twelfth and last sign of the Zodiac and associated with human emotions. Individuals born under this sign are thought to be tolerant, modest, dreamy, romantic, humorous, generous, emotional, receptive, affectionate, and have an honest character, but are also prone to exaggeration, fickleness, passiveness, hypersensitivity, and paranoia. Positive Imaginative and sensitiveCompassionate and kindSelfless and unworldlyIntuitive and sympathetic Negative Escapist and idealisticSecretive and vagueWeak-willed and easily led Which three traits do you think are true about you? Please list and give a reason for each. I am:I am:I am: Which two traits do you think are false about you? Please list and give a reason for each. I am not:I am not: This exercise is based on the Zodiac resource page at Wikipedia.

The Only Person You Have to Please is You

The Only Person You Have to Please is You Yeah, thats hard for us to swallow sometimes. We write to be read. Eager to please, were like kids asking what are the rules so we can play the game well enough to win. We want people on the sidelines to root for us and tell us how well we did. We want the prize. Along the way, when times are rough, we remind ourselves that we are our best and worst critic. We might even say we only have to please ourselves, but we dont mean it. We get sad. Sometimes we cry. A few get mad and bash the publishing world as an evil, heartless machine that gobbles up the good and spits on the rest, stomping out the soul of art. But in the end, when were alone in our room staring at a screen that wont produce the right words, we have to face the fact we write for ourselves first, foremost, and last. Without our own love infused into our stories, they read dry. And to give love to something means to sacrifice and take risks. Remember, love can be unrequited. Many things we do in our lives we do for self-pleasure. While its a joy to be complimented for our efforts, the bottom line is we shouldnt perform without enjoying the experience of the performance. When you do, you shortchange the audience. Write a story that makes you smile, cry, or feel proud. Be truthful with yourself when trying to make it your best. Be thrilled when others enjoy the experience you worked so hard to produce, but try not to measure your success on the judgment of others. While its tempting to beg for the judgment, and shoved in our faces that success comes in terms of sales to others, nothing we do gets off the ground written in a vacuum with only an Amazon ranking representing the goal. Its like finding a friend. Not everyone likes you, and you dont like everyone. Only certain people connect with who you are. You have to be the best you to be the best for someone else. Without pleasing yourself first, you lose all hope of pleasing others. Have fun writing.