A cat is softer than a rock. Well, it’s true. In this song, you’ll find lots of comparisons. If you want, you can choose from the list of adjectives below. But it’s better if you choose your own adjectives. It’s not important whether or not you find the same comparison as the singer.

*WARNING: this song is silly*

Some adjectives you might choose from bony, bubbly, calm, cuddly, floral, fresh, heavy, hot, lazy, round, solid, sticky, straight, wet, wise

Extremely True Facts About Cats

A cat is ____softer_______ than a rock.

And a cat is ________________ than your sock. 

And a cat is ________________ than air.

A cat is ________________ than a square.

And a cat is ________________ than ice.

A cat is ________________ than a poltergeist.

A cat is ________________ than some rotten old thing.

A cat is ________________ than a bedspring.

A cat recognizes only one single fact,

and that, in fact is that he’s a cat.

A cat is ________________ than a tornado.

And a cat is ________________ than a potato.

And a cat is ________________ than a sparrow.

And a cat is ________________ than an arrow.

And a cat is not as ________________ as the rain.

A cat is not as ________________ as champagne.

A cat is not as ________________ as a chrysanthemum.

And a cat is not as ________________ as a wad of gum.

A cat’s heart beats true for only one thing,

and that, in fact, is that he’s a cat.

 

Well, I hope you all agree with my catty comparisons.

And I hope when it comes to truths, you’ll find there’re some.

But there’s one last thing, it’s the hardest to get at,

and that is that a cat

is somehow much more than a cat.

See, a cat imposes his will

influencing the world

From the windowsill.

 

 Extremely True Facts About Cats [3:33m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (1073)

I think we should do more listening tasks in class. In foreign language classes I’ve attended it’s very rare to hear a dialogue, a song, a poem, a bit of newscast, or sound effects. Sound is so important, and so easy to bring to the class!  Maybe American poet Walt Whitman would agree.   Here’s what he wrote in “Leaves of Grass.”  I have made a musical recording of the section.  For in-class use, you might want to introduce students to the tough words first, like “accrue” and “fused.”

Now I will do nothing but listen
to accrue what I hear into this song.
To let sounds contribute toward it.
I hear the sound I love.
The sound of the human voice.
I hear all sounds running together,
combined, fused or following.
Sounds of the city.
Sounds out of the city.
Sounds of the day and night.

Sounds in this song download from FreeSound:
By ERH wedding cars.wav (http://freesound.iua.upf.edu/samplesViewSingle.php?id=28808)
By csengeri cricket.wav (http://freesound.iua.upf.edu/samplesViewSingle.php?id=34193)
By reinsamba evening in the forest.wav (http://freesound.iua.upf.edu/samplesViewSingle.php?id=18765)
By acclivity HorseGoingBy.wav (http://freesound.iua.upf.edu/samplesViewSingle.php?id=33848)

 

 From "Leaves of Grass" [1:20m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (335)

Here’s a Halloweenish story/poem with accompanying audio.
crash a party = to attend a party without invitation, or sneak into a party

Poor Paul the Monster!
Depression at last had set in,
from living alone the woods
with not a soul there to threaten.

What good is a monster
if there’s no one to see
what a hard, cold-hearted
hideous ol’ brute he can be?

So Paul the Monster crashed a party.
It wasn’t easy to get in.
But, my what a shock he got–
from all those there that met him.

They reached out their claws
or paws or tentacles in slime,
and our poor Paul yelled
“You’re monsters too–just like I’m.”

Next to them, he wasn’t so bad,
so there was no one to threaten.
Then some creature cried out, “Let’s party!”
and popped a cassette in.

Repulsively pulsing
monster music!
But they all rather liked it,
and it was their right to choose it.

Each creature had its own unsightly
unseemly, yucky dancing style
which, to his amazement,
Paul got used to after a while.

So in the end
what kind of monster was Paul?
He looked at the strangeness around him
and saw friends.
They were no longer monsters at all.

 

 Paul the Monster Crashes a Party [2:18m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (261)

You know that game where somebody has three cups and they put a little ball under one and then move them around, and your job is to keep you eye on the one with the ball, and say where it is?  Well, this game is sort of like that–only it is for practicing listening skills in a fun and exciting way.

Directions

Students work in groups of four. Put the following 4 objects on a table or chair: I’ve used common objects: a coin, a book, a pen, a ball.

Each student will represent a number, 1-4. Students will hear instructions.

For example, “Number 2, pick up the book.” “Number 1, hand the coin to Number 4.” “Number 3, don’t pass the pen to Number 1.”  The directions on the audio speed up as it plays. The object is for students to follow the directions perfectly. At the end of the audio, we see whose got what. If something doesn’t work out, let the students start again from the beginning.

You need 4 players.  It’s difficult with fewer.  But if you have five per group, that fifth person can be a monitor.

Easy Level, Game 1

There are two versions so far. One is the Easy Level. Even beginning students can follow the instructions with some pre-listening help. The verbs used: get, give, hand, pass, pick up, take

Advanced Level, Game 1

There is more variety in the instructions here, and they come fast. Verbs used: get, get rid of, give, hand, pass, pick up, put down, take, trade.

Playing Alone.  Yeah. You can practice your listening skills on your own. In this case you do all the actions. Create four squares, by using, for instance, four pieces of paper. Number them. Now move the objects to the proper places yourself. (see the picture to the right).

I’d be glad to hear some comments if anybody plays this game. You can download this MS Word Doc for the answers and instructions.”Who’s Got What?” Answers and Instructions

 

 Who's Got What? Easy, Game 1 [1:26m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (933)

 

 Whose Got What? Advanced, Game 1 [1:41m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (505)

Click to enlarge.

That’s right. This crossword has audio clues. There is one mp3 file for “Across” clues, and one for “Down” clues.

Your task, when listening to the very short clips from Beatles tunes, is to isolate and identify the particle verbs (otherwise known as phrasal verbs). These are multi-word verbs such as “let down,” “take your time,” and “find out.”The particle verb will appear in the crossword exactly as sung by the Beatles.

So for the verb “let down,” you will write “DONTLETMEDOWN”–no spaces, no apostrophes.

There are also written clues (see the Beatles Phrasal Verb Audio Handout below).  Follow these clues carefully.  If the written clue contains a subject and is in the past tense, like “I discovered the truth,” the answer in the puzzle will also contain a subject and be in the past: IFOUNDOUT.  This allows students to explore how the verbs really function.

If you want to do the crossword online, by yourself, just click on this link: Beatles Audio Crossword Online, Java 

Listen to the mp3 audio files (below) and type in the missing particle verbs. If you click on the puzzle, you will also get a written clue for that word/phrase.

If you want to do this activity in the classroom, you can use either of these handouts. A Word document: Beatles Phrasal Verb Audio Crossword handout.doc or a printable PDF document: Beatles Phrasal Verbs Audio Crossword handout.pdf.

If your class is advanced, with experience in particle verbs, you may let them try using the audio alone. Play the audio all the way through, first the across and then the down. If students have trouble, play the audios again. You may pause in between clues if you like. Each audio is just over one minute in length.

 

 Beatles Audio Crossword Clues--Across [1:09m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (2802)

 

 Beatles Audio Crossword Clues--Down [1:20m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (1756)

This is an old nursery rhyme. It’s got great verbs. Write the infinitives and a gap-fill on the board, like this:

It’s ________
It’s ________
the old man is ________
he ________in bed
and ________ his head
and ________ _________ in the morning

Students fill in the blanks.

Next use this as a pattern for students to write their own versions. Choose a subject like “She” or “He” or “We” and start from there. Example

She’ss crying
She’s whining
the little girl’s upset
Her best friend said
She wet the bed
and it wasn’t true one bit.

Below is an mp3 of the song and a karaoke version to which students can sing their own words.

 

 It's Raining [0:38m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (277)

 

 It's Raining, Karaoke [0:38m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (119)

Suzy the Monkey

In my flat there lived Suzy.
She liked to eat bananas under the bed.
She dreamed of friends, but she can’t find.

words and music by Alina Budko (age 11) and Ksyusha Gebennikova (age 11)

 

 Suzy The Monkey [0:33m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (262)

The Monkey

There lived a monkey.
She lived in the jungle.
She liked to eat bananas,
and ride on the elephant.
She dreamed of living like people,
but the people didn’t want that.

words and music by Artiom Tereshchenko (age 13) Minsk, Belarus.
Artiom is on the right in the photo. That’s his cousin Nikita on the left.

 

 The Monkey: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (311)

Lonely Spider

In a cave there lived a spider.
He liked to drink warm apple cider.
He liked to think about his life.
He wondered if he’d ever have a wife.
Lonely spider.

 

 Lonely Spider [0:59m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (689)

The Croc

In the river
there lived a croc.
He liked to lie (3X)
upon a big flat rock.
He dreamed of going for a walk,
But he had no shoes
and he only had one sock.

This songs just 20 seconds long. For kids, I play it a few times, providing a bit more scaffolding at each stage to help their listening comprehension. I might play the song once with no visual aids, asking them to write down anything at all they hear. After the first listing, I’ll give them time to consult each other. Next, I might provide a model on the board: certain words, a gap-fill, or the structure, like this

In
there
He
upon
He
but
and…

Can’t go wrong with such a short silly song! Wish my language teachers (Arabic, Latin, Russian, Swedish, German, Polish, Chinese, Spanish, Romanian, French) had given me little listening tasks. Just once even.

You’ll also found a slower version: it’s just 24 seconds but easier to understand.

 

 The Croc [0:20m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (454)

 

 The Croc, Slower [0:24m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (261)