Jazz Up Your Lesson
Most students in most schools are used to a certain lesson-pattern and do not really expect something extraordinary. But beware – that monotony might kill curiosity! Let’s try to vary the lesson-plan. For instance, just before the beginning of the lesson you might do the following: put little sheets of paper with one tongue-twister and one riddle on every one of them in a hat and as the lesson starts let the students pick them up and do the task to recite the tongue-twister or solve the riddle. The best one(s) may deserve a good mark.
Tongue-twisters
Any noise annoys an oyster
But a noisy oyster annoys an oyster more.
A sailor went to sea to see
what he could see.
And all he could see
was the sea, sea, sea…
If two witches were watching two watches,
Which witch would watch which watch?
If Stu chews shoes
Should Stu choose the shoes he chews?
One smart fellow, he felt smart.
Two smart fellows, they felt smart.
Three smart fellows, they all felt smart.
The swan swam over the sea.
Swim, swan, swim!
The swan swam back again.
Well swum, swan!
Black bug bit a big black bear.
But where is the big black bear
that the big black bug bit?
Fuzzy Wuzzy was a bear.
Fuzzy Wuzzy had no hair.
Fuzzy Wuzzy wasn’t fuzzy, was he?
If Freaky Fred found fifty feet of fruit
And fed forty feet to his friend Frank
How many feet of fruit did Freaky Fred find?
Three thousand tricky tongue-twisters
Trip thrillingly off the tongue.
Silly Sally swiftly shooed seven silly sheep.
The seven silly sheep Silly Sally shooed south.
These sheep shouldn’t sleep in a sack,
Sheep should sleep in a shed.
Peter Piper picked a pack of pickled peppers,
If Peter Piper picked a pack of pickled peppers,
How many packs of pickled peppers did Peter Piper pick?
I wish to wish the wish you wish to wish,
but if you wish the wish the witch wishes,
I won’t wish the wish you wish to wish.
One-One was a race horse.
Two-Two was one too
One-One won one race
And Two-Two won one, too!
She sells sea-shells on the seashore
The shells she sells are seashore shells
Then if she sells sea-shells on the seashore
Then the shells she sells are seashore shells.
If you tell Tom to tell a tongue-twister
His tongue will be twisted as tongue-twister twists tongues.
Billy Button bought a buttered biscuit,
Did Billy Button buy a buttered biscuit?
If Billy Button bought a buttered biscuit,
Where’s the buttered biscuit Billy Button bought?
How many cans can a canner can,
If a canner can can cans?
A canner can can as many cans
As a canner can, if a canner can can cans.
While we were walking,
We were watching window washers
Wash Washington’s windows
With warm washing water.
Susan shines shoes and socks
Socks and shoes shines Susan
She ceased shining shoes and socks
For shoes and socks shocked Susan.
Of all the felt I ever felt,
I never felt a piece of felt
which felt as fine as that felt felt,
when first I felt that felt hat’s felt.
Riddles
1. 2 persons are standing near one another.
One is looking southward and the other is looking northward.
How can they see each other without turning their heads and without using a looking glass?
2. 5 birds were in the tree. A man shot at them and saw two fall.
How many birds were left in the tree?
3. 6 men were under one umbrella, but nobody got wet.
How did they do it?
4. Whenever you are looking for anything, you will always find it in the last place you look.
Why is it so?
5. What will happen if a girl swallows her spoon?
6. When may a boy’s coat pocket be empty and have something in it at the same time?
7. How far can you go into the forest?
8. How many legs does a sheep have if you call a tail a leg?
9. When the clock strikes 13, what time is it?
10. How long will a 7-day clock run without winding?
11. How many kilograms of earth you can take out of a hole which is 1 meter square and 1 meter deep?
12. What question can not be answered with “yes”?
13. What question can not be answered with “no”?
14. What belongs to you and yet is used more by others than by you yourself?
15. What unites the Atlantic Ocean and a small boy?
16. When is a fool wise?
17. What can you see with your eyes shut?
18. What often falls and still never gets hurt?
Key for riddles:
1. They are facing each other.
2. Not any – the others flew away!
3. Easily – it was not raining!
4. Because you stop looking for a thing right the moment you find it.
5. She will not be able to eat her soup.
6. When it has a hole in it.
7. You can go into the forest as far as the centre and then you will go out of the forest.
8. A sheep has 4 legs. Even if you call a tail a leg – it will not make it a leg.
9. It is time to take this clock to a clock repair.
10. It will not run without winding at all.
11. None, as there is no earth in a hole.
12. Are you asleep?
13. Do you hear?
14. Your name.
15. Both of them are constantly moving.
16. When he is silent.
17. Dreams.
18. Snow.