Interesting English Activities Through Friends TV Show

Aya Ahmed Hussien
Nov 10, 2020
2 min read

(for grade 9 and above)

Learning through movies and TV shows is always an appealing way for students to learn English, and one of the most famous TV shows that never gets old is FRIENDS. People who watch the series are able to watch it over and over again and enjoy binge-watching with their friends. HERE'S HOW you can use this TV show in your classroom to create a fun yet educational learning environment that integrates read/write, visual, auditory and kinesthetic learning styles:

1) Choose an interesting scene

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L81XWiDgmTk

FRIENDS is full of hilarious scenes that are so popular among its fans. Choose one of these scenes to use as your lesson. This website has many short scenes that you can use: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJBo3iyb1U0cGfTm1du_L8b81kiGioqJ7

2) Have a discussion on the scene

A very important part in your lesson plan is to let your students engage in the topic. Assign some time for your students to reflect on the scene, share their opinions and express themselves. Here are some questions that you can ask your students to practice speaking: 1. Have you watched this scene before? 2. Can you remember (for example) why Joey does that? 3. If you haven't seen the series, have you ever been in a similar situation before?

3) Teach them the new vocabulary of the scene

Each scene can have a range of vocabulary that your students are unfamiliar with, based on their English level. Whether you choose to teach them many words or prefer to stick to few words and repeat them during the class, each scene is a great resource of vocabulary for you. Provide many examples and explanations for each new word to approach all students, including these who are not so much interested in the series. Here's a Facebook page that teaches vocabulary through FRIENDS that will be of a great help for you: https://www.facebook.com/English-with-Friends-Series-100164711766702/

4) Exercises and writing

Follow up exercises are essential to ensure that your students fully understand the new vocabulary. As it's an unconventional class from the very beginning, your exercises should not be less creative. Here are some creative exercises you can use:

- Multiple questions are always the most favorite kind of questions for students. Use FRIENDS theme in your questions, and make sure that every student will understand the questions, not just FRIENDS Fans.

- Ask your students to use their imagination and creativity to create a story using the given new words they have learned in this class. Set it as a competition and give rewards to the most well written and coherent story.