It’s time for another set of free activities from Cambridge Assessment English! This month, we focus on speaking and listening skills at B1+/B2 and C1 levels. Download our activities here and plan your English lesson around some of the funniest photos of wildlife taken in 2017. Then, use an inspiring TED talk to practice listening skills in the classroom, as well as discover what your students think is the key to… happiness!

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Enseñamos Juntos Nº43
February 2018
Enseñamos Juntos Nº 43 – February 2018
Teaching activities:
1. Wildlife comedy – Speaking / Writing at B2.............................................................................2
2. The key to happiness – Speaking and Listening at B2 → C1...................................................6
A. Introductory discussion..........................................................................................................6
B. Speaking: Class debate ...........................................................................................................6
C. Vocabulary: words, idioms and expressions related to happiness and unhappiness...........7
D. Listening activity .....................................................................................................................7
E. Speaking: final discussion and drawing conclusions..............................................................8
3. Answer key ..................................................................................................................................9
A. Wildlife Comedy....................................................................................................................9
B. The key to happiness............................................................................................................10

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February 2018
1. Wildlife comedy – Speaking / Writing at B2
Below are some of the winners and finalists of the Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards. Ask
your students to look at the pictures1
. Then, in pairs or groups of three, have them answer the
following questions. Remind them that there are no right or wrong answers, and that they can be
as creative as they like:
1. What are the animals doing?
2. Judging by the expression on their faces (where applicable), what could they be thinking?
3. Where could they be going (where applicable)?
4. How do you think they are feeling?
5. If they could speak, what do you think they would say to you / to themselves / to each
other?
6. What makes each photo funny?
7. Which photo is your favourite and why?
8. If you were to give each photo a title, what would it be? Compare your title to each photo’s
original title.
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Photo credit: www.comedywildlifephoto.com
For exact title and author of each photo, go to page 9.
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2. The key to happiness – Speaking and Listening at B2 → C1
A. Introductory discussion
Read the title of the TED talk2
to your students. In groups of three or four, ask them to answer
the question in the title. You can help them by suggesting the following prompts:
 Do you think there is one key element to a good and happy life? If so, what is it and
why?
 Is there anyone you know who you think is a happy person? Tell your friends about him
or her and explain why you think they are happy.
 The speaker will talk about “a study on happiness”. How do you think this study was
carried out? What key factors and variables were taken into account? How many people
do you think took part in the study?
 What do you think makes a person unhappy?
B. Speaking: Class debate
Divide your students into two groups, A and B. Then, draw the following table on the board:
Group A Group B
Money is the key to happiness. Friends and family are the key to happiness.
Have your students, in their respective groups, write down as many reasons for the viewpoint
they’ve been given. You can either establish a time limit for the brainstorming stage (e.g. 5
minutes), or observe your students and ask them to finish when you see they are ready. Then, you
can begin the debate (if you like, flip a coin to decide which group should start). Each group has
exactly 1 minute to try and convince their opponents. You might want to use a stopwatch for this.
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This activity is based on a TED talk by Robert Waldinger. For more information, go to www.ted.com/talks

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February 2018
C. Vocabulary: words, idioms and expressions related to happiness and unhappiness
Ask your students to work in pairs or groups of three. Have them come up with words, idioms, and
expressions for the following concepts:
Happy Unhappy
Merry
Glad
Content
Gleeful
Delighted
Cheerful
On cloud nine
To be full of the joys of spring
To jump for joy
To be on top of the world
To be over the moon
Downcast
Gloomy
Depressed
Miserable
Disheartened
To be down in the dumps
To have a lump in your throat
To feel down
To be heartbroken / brokenhearted
To be heavy-hearted
Then, draw the above table on your board and brainstorm together. Can you come up with more
ideas of how to express happiness and sadness?
D. Listening activity
Have your students watch the video and answer whether the following statements are true
or false:
1. 80 % of young adults think that the most important life goal is to become
famous.
T F
2. It’s difficult to gain objective knowledge about human life because
memory isn’t very reliable.
T F
3. The speaker believes that the more you achieve in life, the happier you
will be.
T F
4. This particular study of adult life has been carried out since 1938. T F
5. The inner city Boston men don’t think their lives are interesting enough to
be studied.
T F
6. The speaker believes that relationships are not worth pursuing because
they are too messy and complicated.
T F
Watch the video again and answer the following questions:
1. The speaker talks to his audience about “The Harvard Study of Adult Development”. What is
it and what exactly is being studied?
2. Give as much information as you can on how the study is being conducted and what variables
are taken into account.
3. The speaker says that during the study, three big lessons about relationships have been
learned. What are they?
4. Compare your answers with the person sitting next to you.

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E. Speaking: final discussion and drawing conclusions
Your teacher will give you the answers to the listening activities. Compare your answers with the
person sitting next to you. Now, discuss the following in groups:
Do you think it’s a good idea to study adult life? Why or why not?
How can this kind of study benefit society?
In the previous activity, you were asked to write down the following three big lessons
about relationships:
 Social connections are good for us
 It’s not the number of friends you have, but the quality of your close
relationships
 Good relationships don’t just protect our bodies, they protect our brains.
Do you agree with the above statements? Why or why not?

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3. Answer key
A. Wildlife Comedy
Photo nº1: http://bit.ly/2BoXihQ
A tough day at the office by Angela Bohlke.
Photo nº2: http://bit.ly/2ExZS7c
Cheetah pondering the speed limit… “Well this sucks!” by Vaughan Jessnitz.
Photo nº3: http://bit.ly/2Cfw0qS
All dressed and ready for church by Carl Henry.
Photo nº4: http://bit.ly/2CcbEih
Hello! by Philip Marazzi.
Photo nº5: http://bit.ly/2ElOADX
Rush Hour by Julian Rad.
Photo nº 6: http://bit.ly/2BoXRbs
He went that way by Austin Thomas.
Photo nº 7: http://bit.ly/2CesNbn
Curious by Mario Fiorucci.
Photo nº 8: http://bit.ly/2snzSqh
Hitching a Ride by Daisy Gilardini.
Photo nº 9: http://bit.ly/2Bqrjy3
Slap by Troy Mayne.
Photo nº 10: http://bit.ly/2H7gO2X
Warrior of the grassland by Anup Deodhar.
Photo nº 11: http://bit.ly/2BSZTli
Monkey-Escape by Katy Laveck-Foster.

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B. The key to happiness
1. 80 % of young adults think that the most important life goal is to become
famous.
False
2. It’s difficult to gain objective knowledge about human life because
memory isn’t very reliable.
True
3. The speaker believes that the more you achieve in life, the happier you
will be.
False
4. This particular study of adult life has been carried out since 1938. True
5. The inner city Boston men don’t think their lives are interesting enough to
be studied.
True
6. The speaker believes that relationships are not worth pursuing because
they are too messy and complicated.
False
For the answers to the second listening activity, please go to the transcript:
http://bit.ly/2DKoZ2S