Using Famous Personalities and Celebrities in Content-Based Language Learning

Evel Knievel Isn’t Dead

Whenever a famous entertainer, celebrity or historic figure becomes newsworthy, don’t let the opportunity to motivate and involve your learners pass you by. Instead, use it to delve more deeply into the cultural elements and language hat spawned that person. Then watch as your learners begin to grow and develop their English or other foreign language skills almost as if by magic. The late motorcycle stuntman extraordinaire Evel Knievel isn’t “dead” and neither are hundreds of other celebrities, personalities, news-makers of our recent and distant past. Let them help you and your learners to develop communicative skills in the English language. Don’t forget, these same principles can be easily applied to the teaching and learning of many other foreign languages as well.

Using Famous Personalities and Celebrities in CBL

Using famous personalities, historic figures and celebrities in Content-based Learning (Richards and Rodgers,1993) is a way to lower the Affective Filter (Krashen Terrell, 1983) of your learners and truly get them highly motivated and involved in English or other foreign language acquisition. Let’s consider the late Evel Knievel as an example then.

Are motorcycles popular and frequently used where you are? What are some well-known makes and models? What kind of bikes did Evel Knievel use? (Can you say Harley-Davidson?) Not only can your learners investigate his life, his stunts and his bikes, but they can look for and watch videos on YouTube and additional video archive sites, read news clippings of his exploits and view photos from the various stages of his life along with related articles and clips online. Have learners explain how to ride a motorcycle too.

To start you all off try the several historic videos of Evel Knievel online at YouTube or his official website at: http://www.evelknievel.com/. And don’t just blindly accept the blasé “book report” type of presentation either. Ask for and demand better for these and future assignments or expositions by your learners.

Try Multi-format or Multi-modal Presentations

Have them try some different or multi-format presentations like:

• Posters
• time line graphs
• audio-visual presentations
• video clips
• collages
• power point slides
• dialogues
• interviews
• scrap book presentations

Only the imagination and ingenuity that you and your learners apply will limit the English as a foreign language or other foreign language teaching and learning possibilities for you and your learners.

Again, whenever a famous entertainer, celebrity or historic figure becomes newsworthy, don’t let the opportunity to motivate and involve your learners pass you by. Instead, use it to delve more deeply into the cultural elements and language hat spawned that person. Then watch as your learners begin to grow and develop their English or other foreign language skills almost as if by magic. And while they’re at it they’ll a bit of fun too.

Be sure to let me know of any comments, experiences and special results that you may have.


For some great tips, tricks and techniques for quickly and easily learning virtually any of the world’s 6912 living languages just click HERE

Prof. Larry M. Lynch is an English language teaching and learning expert author and university professor in Cali, Colombia. For more information on entering into or advancing in the fascinating field of ELT send for his no-cost pdf Ebook, “If You Want to Teach English Abroad, Here’s What You Need to Know”, send an e-mail with "free ELT Ebook" in the subject line. For comments, questions, requests, to receive more information or to be added to his free TESOL articles and teaching materials mailing list, e-mail: lynchlarrym@gmail.com

Evel Knievel Isn’t Dead

Evel Knievel Dead at Age 69

On November 30, 2007, the legendary motorcycle stunt performer Robert Craig “Evel” Knievel died at age 69. Many of you may remember his exploits from the 60’s and 70’s as he jumped his motorcycle over rows of cars, Mack trucks, Greyhound buses, London double-decker buses and the fountains at Cesar’s Palace in Las Vegas in 1968, among many other increasingly spectacular daredevil feats. Often his stunts left him with broken bones and assorted injuries.

Indeed, he is reported to have said, “I’ve broken every bone in my body at least once.”

A Newsweek magazine tribute reported though, that he’d suffered 88 broken bones. He had more than a dozen major surgeries and broken bone repairs to his skull, pelvis, ribs, collarbones, hips and shoulders. This never stopped him though. He appeared on the cover of Newsweek magazine and was the focus of a full-length, semi-autobiographical feature film “Viva Knievel” starring George Hamilton in 1977. One of his last and arguably most publicized stunts was his failed “jump” over the Snake River Canyon in Idaho in 1974. He was forced to retire in 1980 saying, “he was nothing but scar tissue and surgical steel”. But his stunts didn’t finally kill Evel Knievel. In the end it was complications from Diabetes and Pulmonary Fibrosis that ultimately stole this stunt legend from the world.

But what, you might ask, has any of this got to do with English as a Second or Foreign language?

Simply this: A language is inseparably linked to the cultural aspects of the country or countries where it is spoken.. Using Content-Based Learning (CBL) then, becomes an excellent, highly efficient and interesting way of teaching or learning virtually any foreign language. Evel Knievel and a seemingly endless parade of other celebrities, famous or infamous, historic and notable personalities offer a detailed glimpse into frequently un-taught intricacies of the English language. For example, if you haven’t heard of him, you’re likely either well under 30 or so years old, or do not have English as your first language or grew up in a foreign cultural setting.

Evel Knievel Isn’t Dead

Whenever a famous entertainer, celebrity or historic figure becomes newsworthy, don’t let the opportunity to motivate and involve your learners pass you by. Instead, use it to delve more deeply into the cultural elements and language hat spawned that person. Then watch as your learners begin to grow and develop their English or other foreign language skills almost as if by magic.

When you read that Evel Knievel has died, don’t you believe it. Evel Knievel isn’t "dead". He’s just waiting for you and your learners to make him come alive in their hearts, minds and imaginations yet again.

In our next segment, “Using Famous Personalities and Celebrities in Content-Based Learning”, we’ll go into more depth on using newsworthy celebrities, historic and other famous persons to motivate and engage our English or foreign language learners in and out of the class room.

In the meanwhile, check out this Evel Knievel career over view video at: http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=CAzLPEiA8a0

For some great tips, tricks and techniques for quickly and easily learning virtually any of the world’s 6912 living languages just click HERE.

Prof. Larry M. Lynch is an English language teaching and learning expert author and university professor in Cali, Colombia. For more information on entering into or advancing in the fascinating field of ELT send for his no-cost pdf Ebook, “If You Want to Teach English Abroad, Here’s What You Need to Know”, send an e-mail with "free ELT Ebook" in the subject line. For comments, questions, requests, to receive more information or to be added to his free TESOL articles and teaching materials mailing list, e-mail: lynchlarrym@gmail.com

5 More Ways to Help Make This Your Best English or Foreign Language Teaching Year Ever

The Fabulous Five Additional Ways

Remember what Henry Ford (pictured) once said? It was, “Whether you think you can or think you can’t, you’re right.” In continuing to make 2008 your best teaching year ever here are 5 more suggestions you might want to consider and implement.

8. Learn a Foreign Language

I’ll just bet you wouldn’t delay your “dream” trip to the Bong Mine complex of Liberia, in West Africa (or whatever your trip might be) if you intensely began learning the local language. Want to see Paris? How about relaxing among the “Pines of Rome”? Is a stroll along the Great Wall a fancy of yours? Well why don’t you just start a foreign language course in the tongue you’ll likely need for the trip? If “a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step” as the proverb goes, then you’ll be many miles along on your journey just by beginning your foreign language course.

9. Write a Series of Articles or Compile a Book

You don’t think you could write a book? Balderdash! Almost every has at least one good book in them. But how about starting off with an article? Write a journal. Tell about your work, your problems (I’ll bet you have plenty of those) and how you solved some of them. Voila! You have an article. A book is simply a series of articles which are linked through a common theme. When you’re done and published – see the previous item on this list for the next step. Move over Hemmingway.

10. Publish Online

With the number of teaching-related websites steadily growing there’s no shortage of places to post or publish your writing. Try www.ezinearticles.com or other article banks to get your feet wet. From there, you have virtually no limit online.

11. Get a Website

You’ve been telling yourself that you need a website for some time now. Now’s finally the time to get off your duff and make your online presences a reality. There are free sites available for the taking. Cheap domain names to be had and a vast online world to explored, enjoyed and exploited. It doesn’t have to be fancy, elaborate or extensive. Just get out there and get your name up in digital form.

12. Start and Keep a Teaching Journal

Here’s a good one to get you started. Journal what happens in your classes. Write about your day, your problems and their solutions great and small. Ramble about the country you live in. What changed for you? What problems do you have that are “different”? What about the food, the clothes, the lifestyle? Talk about your co-workers (with the names changed to protect the innocent – or the guilty). Whatever motivates you will almost certainly motivate countless numbers of others worldwide. Don’t believe me? Well you’re reading THIS, aren’t you?

So using any or all of these 5 additional suggestions, you can easily make this year one of your best teaching years ever. Remember Henry Ford’s advice: “Whether you think you can or think you can’t, you’re right.” It’s up to you – now get to work and good luck.


For some great tips, tricks and techniques for quickly and easily learning virtually any of the world’s 6912 living languages just click HERE

7 Ways to Help Make This Your Best English or Foreign Language Teaching Year Ever

“Whatever you are, be a good one”, Abraham Lincoln, America’s 16th president reputedly said. So why not set out to make 2008 your best teaching year ever? How? Well, here are seven suggestions you might want to consider and implement.

The Magnificent Seven

1. Subscribe to and Read a teaching Technical periodical publication

There are a number of TEFL related periodicals online and in print which can provide you a flow of new ideas, tips and techniques to get you out of your rut and keep you out of it.

2. Create and Post a Video Series

No question about it, video has exploded its online presence in a major way during the past several months. YouTube.com is no small contributor to this phenomenon and there’s certainly no reason why you too shouldn’t get on the bandwagon by creating and posting videos of your own.

3. Take or Teach an Extension Course

You’re already a teacher so why teach during your time off? Simple, teach something other that your principle topics. Try teaching a hobby or other interest, a sport, a skill or other ability you might have and want to expand on.

4. Take a Short Seminar

Long a staple method for rapid improvement, take a short course or seminar evenings, weekends or during semester breaks. There are short and medium length courses from one-day to one month on a myriad of topics, so just take your pick, feed your inner soul and watch yourself grow.

5. Try Some New Didactics and Techniques in Your Classes

Talk with colleagues, former professors, go online, visit websites and chat rooms to get some extra tips and techniques to try out with your learners. Very likely, you’ll be glad you did.

6. Go on a Teaching Vacation

What? You say? Take a teaching vacation during my vacation from teaching? Yes, that’s right. But this time it’ll be different. How? Well, you can teach a short course or summer course in another location. Live in the USA? Then teach a course abroad in Asia, Europe or Latin America. Live in a Latin American country? The go teach in Europe, Scandinavia, Asia or Africa. Are you in Europe? Go to Australia, Latin America, Asia or Africa. The change of venue will charge your batteries like nothing else you can imagine. You could also try changing the learner group you normally teach too. Teens to adults or business professionals, Technical English classes your forte? Swap for a children’s summer camp.

7. Get Yourself a Raise

Prepare your accomplishments as a presentation for your administration. Detail your seminars, publications and seminar or short course attendance to boost your image. What do you think would happen if you sent a copy of an article or book you’ve published to your boss, the administration and the language department heads of every school, institute and related educational facility in your area complete with your contact information and a short introductory note? Nothing? Don’t you believe it!

So using any, many, most or even all of these 7 suggestions, you can easily make this year one of your best teaching years ever. Remember Abe Lincoln’s advice: “Whatever you are, be a good one”. If you’d like even more suggestions for making this year one of your best ever, stay tuned for more coming soon.

For some great tips, tricks and techniques for quickly and easily learning virtually any of the world’s 6912 living languages just click HERE.

Part 2 Use These Examples to Create Unique Videos That Generate Massive Website Traffic

In the first part of this two-part article series, we began to discuss creating a video or series of videos in order to promote your business products or services in previous articles. The idea is to produce a unique video or series that will pique interest and drive massive traffic to your website, blog or squeeze pages. Here in part two, we’ll continue that theme and add more online examples for you to consider as well. As before, in each category I’ve tried to include two or three examples for variety of theme illustration. The videos listed are from YouTube.com, with others from the Metacafe.com video posting website.

Photo: T. Kobyashi, world hot-dog-eating champ

Let’s Pick Up With Number Six

6. Gross – Try using key words like awful, disgusting, terrible, insane, horrible, perverted and revolting to associate ideas, concepts and situations to your wares, whatever they may be. Look for unusual records in the Guinness Book of Records as shown in these examples.

Lady Popping Her Eyes Out (Guinness Book of Records)
Link: http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=HX_5zIXxKEU

Watch Da Big Lady Elephant....Her Name Is in the Guinness Book Of World Records
Link: http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=EjQCqRTGRFc

Making Scars with Bubble Gum
Link: http://www.metacafe.com/watch/847434/scars_with_bubblegum/

7. Sexy – I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again, many people may not like it but sex sells. It likely always has, and likely, it always will to some extent. Companies and campaigns from food, politics to clothing, cars, appliances and schools or even power tools continue to use “sexy” ads and commercials. Why? Because they work, that’s why. But sexy videos need not be risqué, distasteful or x-rated. Take a look at these covertly sexy ones for example.

Chinese Girls – Amazing Contortionists
Link: http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=JhL8OncB5CU

Photo Shoot of Riya Sen
Link: http://www.metacafe.com/watch/856501/photo_shoot_riya_sen/

Sexy Korean Commercial
Link: http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=pIRwk6lSIyQ

Sexy Korean Commercial for Lemon Tea
Link: http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=Ivuu3scBE7Q

Korean Girls Photo Sequence – Useful for Commercials
Link: http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=VIRGht3vKzU

Chinese Super Sexy High Quality Song (sung in Chinese)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZ7Sn65K2Uw

8. Funny - Who doesn’t love humor? If your video can make people laugh or even just smile, you’ve got a winner on your hands. Think of comic, humorous angles related in some way to your service or product.

Beer Portal
Link: http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=m5MK6XElfx4

Funny novelty fishing lures that really catch fish!
Link: http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=KL5F-k64Nr4

Mr. Bean Dancing to an East Indian Song
Link: http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=V_bnAlxRGBg

A Really Funny Sports video clip
Link: http://www.metacafe.com/watch/880759/really_funny/

9. Shocking – Could you associate your products and services with any surprising, stunning, stupendous or stupefying experiences, images or situations?

Giant Anaconda Attacks dog
Link: http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=0XSNlhWCPJk

Hurray for the Bull
Link: http://www.metacafe.com/watch/872395/hurrah_for_the_bull/

The Most Terrifying Bull Ride
Link: http://www.metacafe.com/watch/926978/the_most_terrifying_bullride/

10. Weird - Use words and phrases like odd, strange, dumb, silly, unusual, and unique to start and continue brain storming sessions to come up with possibilities, situations and ideas for your promotional videos.

World's largest Piranha (world record)
Link: http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=zc2NJDqkqPw

Incredible Night Fishing video
Link: http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=cDTKCZur1vM

Weirdest Animals on the Planet
Link: http://www.metacafe.com/watch/813073/weirdest_animals_on_the_planet/

Hopefully, you’ve been inspired enough by these examples to come up with your own original video segment ideas to generate massive traffic to your website or blog or squeeze pages. These examples are but a few of the literally hundreds of thousands of videos available online. YouTube.com alone has more than one million vides at the time of this writing. Look around at others. You can Google search additional video websites to generate as much input and as many unique ideas as you can. Soon you too will be producing your own personalized videos to build your niche marketing lists and online profits.


Larry M. Lynch is an English language teaching and learning expert author and university professor in Cali, Colombia. Now YOU too can live your dreams in paradise, find romance, high adventure and get paid while travelling for free. View my YouTube video playlist at: http://au.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=B156E95F69660E9E Do you need professional, original content and photos or images for your blog, newsletter, e-zine or website? Want more information, have a comment or special request? E-mail the author for a prompt response at: lynchlarrym@gmail.com .

Part 1 Use These Examples to Create Unique Videos That Generate Massive Website Traffic

We discussed creating a video or series of videos in order to promote your business products or services in previous articles. The idea is to produce a unique video or series that will pique interest and drive massive traffic to your website, blog or squeeze pages. Here we’ll continue that theme and add some online examples for you to consider as well. In each category I’ve tried to include two or three examples for variety of theme illustration. Some videos listed are on YouTube.com, but others are on Metacafe.com.

The Ten Best Video Types With Examples

1. Instructional - Directly related to demonstrative types of videos, instructional videos are designed to teach the viewer how to do something, learn and perform a skill or accomplish a specific result. Literally thousands of these types of videos are all over not only YouTube.com, but other personal video posting websites like Metacafe.com too. Have a peek at these unique examples.

"Black guy Teaches How to Pronounce Words Like Ask"
Link: http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=nlWOu9FHm-I

"Create Teeny Tiny Solar Insect Robots"
Link: http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=YzFCA-xUc8w

"Boiled Egg Peeling Trick"
Link: http://www.metacafe.com/watch/930150/peeling_egg_trick/

2. Interesting - Again, try for relevant, but little-known, facts or stories related to your products and services. How about world, country or even state records that might be somehow related? Look for unusual or unique statistics or facts that you could parlay into a slick video segment. Try different slants and takes on the same or similar themes. Keep in mind that if you find it to be of interest, unusual or unique in some way, so will many of your potential customers. Here are two online video examples to get you started.

"Hungry Bullhead Catfish Being Fed"
Link: http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=67c_4YZLc04

"A Talking Cockatiel"
http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=DsyAZYYB2ig

3. Inspirational - Look for personal stories of inspiration that might be somehow related to your business offerings. Don’t forget animal stories and anecdotes as well. Consider these compelling online videos as inspirational examples.

"Free Hugs Campaign"
Link: http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=vr3x_RRJdd4

"Working with Children"
Link: http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=QwDjA4tqtGY

4. Demonstration – For these types of videos you should show features and benefits, focusing on benefits to future customers or clients and people will literally flock to your website for more information and purchases. Show demos of different people, young and old, using your products. Make them practical. Make them kooky. Make them different and make them memorable. Here are a couple of good examples.

"How to Make Small Batch Strawberry Jam"
Link: http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=jaPpxWlyrfw

“How Turn Soda Can Into Popcorn Machine” video online at: http://www.metacafe.com/watch/921777/how_turn_soda_can_into_popcorn_machine/

"How to Make Photos Talk"
Link: http://www.metacafe.com/watch/920976/how_to_make_photos_talk/

5. Personal - Find a way to “personalize” your videos to a specific client or customer type, as if speaking directly to them, you’ll almost certainly be very successful with your marketing video efforts. Are your prospective customers youth-oriented? Are they nature lovers, cooking enthusiasts or sports fanatics? Prepare your videos accordingly for your best chances of success.

Like insects? Check this video out!
Link: http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=iDw5P46VCe4

Direct Art Australia - Unique and Personalized Gift Ideas
Link: http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=rf4y4gFlUrc


Hopefully, you’ll be inspired enough by this series of examples to come up with your own original video segment ideas to generate massive traffic to your website, blog or squeeze pages. These examples are but a few of the hundreds of thousands of videos available online. In part two of this two-part series, we’ll look at some additional online video examples. See you then.

Larry M. Lynch is an English language teaching and learning expert author and university professor in Cali, Colombia. Now YOU too can live your dreams in paradise, find romance, high adventure and get paid while travelling for free. View my YouTube video playlist at: http://au.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=B156E95F69660E9E Do you need professional, original content and photos or images for your blog, newsletter, e-zine or website? Want more information, have a comment or special request? E-mail the author for a prompt response at: lynchlarrym@gmail.com.