ESL resources - time activity

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The Magic Stopwatch

Posted by Jacqueline Richards

Language point: time activity

No - one knew how the magic stopwatch got to be so magic. Perhaps it had fallen from a great height ... span around in the universe and when it clattered to the ground, magic banged into it's springs and suddenly everything started turning around. Very soon, the magic stopwatch was so magic that it stopped everything. When it ticked, it stopped the wind and stopped the sun shining, too. The magic stopwatch was so magic that it stopped the toast burning and the pan boiling over stew. The magic stopwatch was so magic that it stopped the carpets getting dusty so that they didn't need a vacuum cleaner ... and stopped the windows breaking, even tough balls regularly crashed into it and smashed every other window in town. In the garden, the magic stopwatch was so magic that it stopped the grass growing so that there never was any need to mow the lawn. The magic stopwatch stopped the dawn and made the morning twice as long since it stopped lunch and stopped the afternoon. The magic stopwatch was so magic that before long, everything else stopped as well - in the town, even without traffic lights, the cars no longer ran, nor did the trains. The magic stopwatch stopped the sky going dark at night so that the stars shone twice as bright. The magic stopwatch stopped the cat meiouwing so that it no longer kept everyone awake at night. It stopped the ducks quacking and the dogs barking. Magic stopwatches come in very handy when you have things that you want to stop - like this story, now.

Activity
In pairs, measure the length of time it takes to :

1. Read this story
2. Take off your sock
3. Open and close the door
4. Jump up and down 50 times
5. Open and close a book 100 times

You could also ask some general questions like - how many minutes in an hour (60); how many days in a year (364) etc

© Jacqueline Richards 2005

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