Life style
- Different views on happiness
- Phrases about feelings
- How to talk about happiness and what makes people happy
Part 1
Warm-up
Answer the questions
What is the happiest thing in your life?
Do you think having a lot of money or power would make you happier?
Part 2
Vocabulary
Read the word, its’ meaning, and the examples
Then make up your own sentences using the word.
Student can skip the words they already know.
control
/kənˈtroʊl/
To be in charge of something or someone.
She can control the TV with the new remote.
The teacher has to control the class so it’s not too noisy.
representative
/ˌrep.rɪˈzen.tə.tɪv/
someone who speaks or does something officially for another person or group of people
Our school representatives will talk to the principal about having longer breaks.
The company sent a representative to the meeting to speak for them.
in accordance with
/ɪn əˈkɔrdəns wɪð/
Following or obeying a rule or law.
We must play the game in accordance with the rules.
The builders worked in accordance with the plans the architect gave them
independence
/ˌɪn.dɪˈpen.dəns/
When someone or something is free and able to make their own choices.
She was proud to have her own independence now that she had a job.
The country fought for independence to make its own laws.
Who knows?
/huː noʊz/
A way of saying you don't know the answer to a question.
Will they win the game? Who knows?
Who knows? Maybe you’ll become a teacher when you grow up
Make up your own sentences using the words.
Part 3
Reading comprehension
Read the article and answer questions.
Teacher helps student correct their pronunciation.
Different people chase happiness in their own ways.
Some try to control power over others for self-satisfaction, but often end up unfulfilled due to endless desires.
Representatives of another view, such as priests and monks, limit their wants and live in accordance with strict religious rules, believing this brings them joy. Yet, one wonders if true happiness can exist without independence.
Then there are those who simply cherish family and life’s small pleasures. Their joy comes from daily comforts like food, shelter, and family time.
Which is the happiest group? Who knows? If you think you’re happy, then you are. Happiness is the result of how you think about the world and your place in it.
Check your understanding
According to the article, how many groups of life styles are there?
How do religious individuals find happiness according to the text?
According to the article, what makes ordinary people happy?
Sample answer
- => There are three groups of lifestyles mentioned:
A. People who try to control power over others for self-satisfaction.
B. Priests and monks who limit their wants and live by strict religious rules.
C. Ordinary people who cherish family and life's small pleasures. - Religious individuals find happiness by limiting their wants and living in accordance with strict religious rules.
- Ordinary people are happy with family time and enjoying small things in life, like good food and a comfortable home. They find joy in daily comforts and spending time with their loved ones.
Part 4
Express happy/bad moods
Teacher guides the student the advanced vocabulary to express happy/ bad mood.
- Money can’t buy happiness (idiom) – used to say wealth or material possessions will not give a person happiness.
- To be down in the dumps (idiom) – depressed or unhappy.
- To let one’s hair down (idiom) – to have fun or relax, often by acting in a more carefree or open way than usual
- (In a) good mood: feeling happy and positive
- (In a) bad mood: feeling unhappy or negative
- To be over the moon / on cloud nine / in seventh heaven (idioms) – to be very happy.
Using the advanced vocabulary to express happy/ bad moods above , complete the following sentences.
- I was _______ when my wife told me she was pregnant.
- He’s _______ because his football team lost. Again.
- For the first time in months, Carla was able to _______ and go out dancing with her friends.
- He was the richest man in the town, yet he never found a woman who loved him. Well you know what they say: _______.
- She’s been feeling _______ since her boyfriend left her.
Answer
- I was over the moon/etc when my wife told me she was pregnant.
- He’s in a bad mood because his football team lost. Again.
- For the first time in months, Carla was able to let her hair down and go out dancing with her friends.
- He was the richest man in the town, yet he never found a woman who loved him. Well you know what they say: money can’t buy happiness.
- She’s been feeling down in the dumps since her boyfriend left her.
Part 5
Discussion
Let’s use the vocabulary you’ve learned during the lesson and talk about the following topics/questions freely!
Teacher helps student expand and correct the answers
“Money can’t buy happiness”. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this idea.
What usually puts you in a good mood? What puts you in a bad mood?
What do you often do to let your hair down?
Are you generally a happy person or an unhappy person?
Do you think people who are single are happier than those in a relationship?
What was the happiest moment in your life?
Do you usually do volunteer work? Can volunteering and helping others increase your own happiness? Try to expand your answer.
What changes could you make in your life that would make you feel happier?
“Everyone seeks happiness, but not everyone experiences it throughout their life”.
=> What causes this, and what can people do to become happier?
Review
Let’s review the lesson with teacher
5 words and phrases in the lesson
6 expressions for happy/bad moods
Discuss about happy/unhappy things.
See you next lesson
Homework
Let’s choose one of these options for your homework
Write about your opinion of happiness.
Try to use some of the vocabulary you learned earlier in this lesson. In your answer, you could include some of the following topics:
• What makes you happy.
• What makes you unhappy.
• How people can be happier in their lives
Tips: You can consider some factors such as: Relationships, health, achievements, independence, simple pleasures, helping other people, hobbies, purpose,etc.
Then, practice record it and send to teacher.
