Billy Ocean – When The Going Gets Tough (The Tough Get Going) Activity types: rhyming words, vocabulary. Grammar: Future will. Time: 20 mins. Note: this was a huge hit in 1985, and featured on the soundtrack of the film “The Jewel of the Nile”. It returned to Number One in the U.K. when it was covered by Boyzone […]

Queen – We Are The Champions Activity type: phonetics, rhyming words ,gap fill, comprehension. Grammar: present simple, present perfect, past simple, future will and be going Time:30 mins. Level:Intermediate Note: Queen recorded this song for the 1977 album “News Of The World”, and it immediately became a concert favourite, now often being used at sporting events.

U2 – Walk On Activity types: Discussion; rhyming words; gap fill; Internet search Level: Intermediate/Upper-Intermediate (Song only: Elementary/Pre-Intermediate) Language: Talking about human rights; reading and discussing the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; speaking about human rights activists; summarising; reporting; comparing Note: This is from U2’s 2000 album All That You Can’t Leave Behind. Released as

The Righteous Brothers – Unchained Melody Activity types: vocabulary, rhyming, listening for specific words, gap fill. Grammar: Present simple. Level: Elementary Note: Written by Alex North and Hy Zaret in 1955, this is one of the most covered songs of all time – over 500 artists, including Elvis Presley and U2, have recorded it.  It

The Beatles – Twist And Shout Activity type: gap fill, listening for specific words. Time: 15 mins. This song was made famous by the Isley Brothers in 1962, then covered by The Beatles, who used it to end many of their early live performances. Worksheet written by Prof. Analía Massa, Buenos Aires, Argentina Download worksheet

Michael Jackson – Thriller Activity type: Listening for incorrect words. Role-playing and describing a video. Time: 20 mins. One hour with video. Note: This video was the most expensive video ever made when it was released in 1983. Directed by John Landis, and featuring the voice of legendary horror actor Vincent Price, it is almost

Amy Macdonald – This Is The Life Activity types: listening for specific words, vocabulary, speaking/writing Language: Informal English; Phonetics Level: Pre-intermediate Note: This Is The life is the title song of the Scottish singer-songwriter Amy Macdonald’s 2007 debut album. Also released as a single, it only reached n. 28 in the UK, but became a

Supertramp – The Logical Song Activity types: vocabulary, word formation, listening for specific words, discussion. Level: Intermediate Time: 30 mins. Note: Taken from Supertramps’s 1979 album Breakfast In America, this is one of their best known hits. Wikipedia explains that the song is about a man who is taken away from the unspoilt immediacy of

Christy Moore – The City of Chicago Activity types: Discussion; gap fill; Pronunciation focus on “ch” / ʃ/, /tʃ/ and /k/; Internet search Level: Intermediate/Upper-Intermediate (Song only: Pre-Intermediate) Language: summarising and reporting historical events and geographical details; comparing; making a tourist leaflet Grammar: Past Simple (regular and irregular verbs); Note: Christy Moore, one of the

Jack Johnson – The 3 R’s (The Magic Number) Activity type: gap fill. Time: 30 minutes Note: Jack Johnson recorded this song for the soundtrack of the 2006 film Curious George. It is based on the song “The Magic Number” by De La Soul. Key Word: Recycling Download worksheet Embedding disabled? Double click on the