All Things Remembered

Upper-Intermediate
the ARTICLE (for teachers)

All Things Remembered

Imagine that you possessed the ability to recall small, unimportant events, details, and dates from your life with
almost perfect accuracy. Let's say, for example, you could remember than June 15th, 1992 was a Monday, and
you ate a hamburger with extra cheese and onions for dinner while you watched a rerun of Seinfeld on TV. For
Brad Williams, this isn't a what if. It's a feat of which he has always been capable.

There have been other people with similar abilities. However, they only could memorize random letters or
numbers with ease, or maybe remember book passages and short stories word for word. Williams is different.
He doesn't remember meaningless facts or figures, but information directly from his past. What's more, his
memory has proved almost flawless.

"I've always been this way," he said. In fact, as a child, he thought everyone had the same ability. To his family,
the phenomenon has always just been amusing. But one expert believes that Williams may have one of the
best memories in the world. The doctor is studying Williams because he hopes to better understand how
memory works.

Another woman has also been found with an almost identical talent, and has joined the same study. She calls
her ability a burden, though. Whenever she hears a date, a flood of memories flows through her mind. It's
nonstop and exhausting.

Both Williams and the woman remember information that they find interesting. Because this is an essential part
of their abilities, some researchers have concluded that many others may be capable of the same skills. Since
the study began, a third person has been discovered with similar potential.

Teacher's Notes:

* Underlined words in red typeface are the recommended vocabulary for this lesson.

Heads Up English - 1
www.headsupenglish.com
WARM-UPS
Select one or all of the following warm-up activities.

1: Define: What does "photographic memory" mean? Can you use it in a sentence? Can you give examples?

2: Brainstorm: Brainstorm with a partner(s) words and ideas associated with "memory" for 2 minutes. Spend
another 5 minutes or less discussing the words and ideas together.

3: Title: Speculate and/or discuss the contents of today's article from its title: "All Things Remembered."

4: Do you agree or disagree? Why?

a I have an excellent memory.
.
b I would want to remember every detail of my life.
.
c Names, dates, and details are always very important to remember.
.
d The brain and how it works will never be completely understood.
.
e Someday everyone will have great memories and will be able to remember all kinds of information.
.

5: Rank It!: Which memories are the most important? Rank the choices in order, and support your decisions!
a your wedding day
.
b the day your child was born
.
c your first kiss
.
d your first day of school
.
e the day one of your parents died
.
VOCABULARY
Select one of the following vocabulary acquisition activities.

1: Vocabulary match: Individually or in pairs/groups, match the words in column A (from the article) with the
best choice in column B.
a accurate q perfect
. .
b rerun r achievement
. .
c feat s same
. .
d ease t important
. .
e flawless u sensation
. .
f phenomenon v possibility
. .
g identical w correct
. .
h burden x weight
. .
i essential y repeat
. .
j potential z without effort
. .

2: Fill in the Blanks: Fill in the blank with the correct word.
feat identical ease potential rerun
flawless accuracy essential phenomenon burden
a Imagine that you possessed the ability to recall small details from your life with perfect ( ).
.
b You ate a hamburger with extra cheese and onions for dinner while you watched a ( ) on TV.
.
c It's a ( ) of which he has always been
. capable.
d They only could memorize random letters or numbers with ( ).
.
e What's more, his memory has proved almost ( ).
.
f To his family, the ( ) has always just been amusing.
.
g Another woman has also been found with an almost ( ) talent, and has joined the same study.
.
h She calls her ability a ( ), though.
.
 i Williams remembers information that he finds interesting. This is an ( ) part of his abilities.
.
j Since the study began, a third person has been discovered with similar ( ).
.

3: Define: Define each word, correctly pronounce it, explain the meaning and/or usage, and offer an example
sentence to the class.
a accurate c feat e flawless g identical i essential
. . . . .
b rerun d ease f phenomenon h burden j potential
. . . . .
WORD RECOGNITION
1: Word Search: Find the target words (in bold). Time yourself, and see how many words you can find in three
minutes. In five minutes. In ten minutes.
feat identical ease potential rerun
flawless accuracy essential phenomenon burden

F P N Y N U O F M L H R A L
C E A M E P O Z X A H D N C
A O Q Y E F D O M I I A R U
C C R Z Q N T B R T O A D E
R U I N A R R P W N U E N S
J E R T C Y K L U E F F B E
O Q R A N W M T R T Z M L N
S E N S C E V J G O P I R T
A D M A E Y D U P P F X X I
W R W Z P M H I B G Y C C A
R U C A L Y D T P H J K N L
Y F Q W E Y E A N L Z N O N
E M O N E H P E S B S K E S
S E N T I A L F E A S E T B
E W Z Y E E I G I P W J Y B
Q T W H J V E A L W J T J E
W

2: Target Word Pool: Find the target words (in bold) with their exact match. Time yourself, and see how many
words you can find in three minutes. In five minutes. In ten minutes.
feat identical ease potential rerun
flawless accuracy essential phenomenon burden
dental
accurateness essentially run
phoneme flaw potent
defeat phenomena
uneasy burden
rerunning potentially
inaccuracy flayed feet
burdensome unease accuracy
phenomenal identicalness
flawlessly identify
feat accurate phenomenon
potential ran ease
identically essence flawed
eases burdening
easy
identical burdened essentialness
burdens curate
rerun
essential feats
inessential potentiality
phenomenally
defeated reran
flawless potency
pre- or post-COMPREHENSION
1: Word Association: Brainstorm words associated with today's topic for two minutes. Present to the class.

2: Brainstorm Questions: Brainstorm questions that you would like to ask about today's topic. Answer the
questions without looking at the article.

3: True or False?: Guess (before the article) or answer (after the article) whether the sentence is true or false.
If false, correct the sentence.
a Brad Williams can remember every detail of his life. T/
. F
b Brad Williams remembers useless information, like random letters and numbers. T/
. F
c Experts agree that Williams has the best memory in the world. T/
. F
d He thinks his ability is a burden. T/
. F
e According to the article, everyone may one day possess the same ability. T/
. F

4: Questions: Answer the questions to check comprehension.

a What is Brad Williams's ability?
.
b How is his ability different than other, similar cases?
.
c What does his family think?
.
d How does the woman with a similar ability feel?
.
e What do some researchers believe of the ability?
.

5: Vocabulary: In pairs/groups, remember how the words were used in today's article.
a accuracy c feat e flawless g identical i essential
. . . . .
b rerun d ease f phenomenon h burden j potential
. . . . .

6: Fragments: Remember how the fragments were used, and complete the sentence from today's article.
a Imagine that you possessed the ability to...
.
b He doesn't remember meaningless facts or figures, but...
.
c But one expert believes that...
.
d Whenever she hears a date...
.
e Because this is an essential part of their abilities, some researchers...
.
post-COMPREHENSION
1: Vocabulary: Circle any additional unknown words/phrases in the article. In pairs/groups, use your
dictionaries to understand the meanings. Present to the class.

2: Class Questions: Read through the article once more, and write down any questions that you would like to
discuss in pairs/groups or as a class. Discuss.

3: Summarize: Work with a partner to summarize the article in your own words.

4: Discuss: Talk about the following questions in pairs/groups. Remember to support your answers!
a Did you like this article?
.
b What was your general impression after reading this article?
.
c How good is your memory?
.
d Would you want to have a better memory? Why/not?
.
e Would you want to have the same ability as Brad Williams? Why/not?
.
f What kind of memory improving techniques do you know?
.
g How likely is it that everyone will be the same as Brad Williams one day? Please explain your answer.
.
h What is your earliest memory? Please explain.
.
i What is your clearest memory from at least ten years ago? Please explain.
.
j When people remember the same event, some details are often different. Has this happened to you?
.

5: Debate: After extensive research, a drug has been developed that will give people the same ability as Brad
Williams. First write down some positive points, and then write down some negative points. Choose a positive
(for or against the drug) and debate with a partner who has the opposite opinion.
 positive points: negative points:

6: Google Search: Type "memory" into Google news and read additional articles on this topic. Discuss or write
an essay about your findings.
STUDENT HANDOUT (the article)

All Things Remembered

Imagine that you possessed the ability to recall small, unimportant events, details, and dates from your life
with almost perfect accuracy. Let's say, for example, you could remember than June 15th, 1992 was a
Monday, and you ate a hamburger with extra cheese and onions for dinner while you watched a rerun of
Seinfeld on TV. For Brad Williams, this isn't a what if. It's a feat of which he has always been capable.

There have been other people with similar abilities. However, they only could memorize random letters or
numbers with ease, or maybe remember book passages and short stories word for word. Williams is different.
He doesn't remember meaningless facts or figures, but information directly from his past. What's more, his
memory has proved almost flawless.

"I've always been this way," he said. In fact, as a child, he thought everyone had the same ability. To his family,
the phenomenon has always just been amusing. But one expert believes that Williams may have one of the
best memories in the world. The doctor is studying Williams because he hopes to better understand how
memory works.

Another woman has also been found with an almost identical talent, and has joined the same study. She calls
her ability a burden, though. Whenever she hears a date, a flood of memories flows through her mind. It's
nonstop and exhausting.

Both Williams and the woman remember information that they find interesting. Because this is an essential part
of their abilities, some researchers have concluded that many others may be capable of the same skills. Since
the study began, a third person has been discovered with similar potential.

Notes:
STUDENT HANDOUT (fill in the blank)
Fill in the blank with the correct word.
burden phenomenon potential rerun essential
feat memories ease possessed capable
understand accuracy identical concluded flawless
All Things Remembered
Imagine that you (a. ) the ability to recall small, unimportant events, details, and
dates from your life with almost perfect (b. ). Let's say, for example, you could
remember than June 15th, 1992 was a Monday, and you ate a hamburger with extra cheese and onions
for dinner while you watched a (c. ) of Seinfeld on TV. For Brad Williams, this isn't a what if. It's a
(d. ) of which he has always been (e. ).

There have been other people with similar abilities. However, they only could memorize random letters
or numbers with (f. ), or maybe remember book passages and short stories word for
word. Williams is different. He doesn't remember meaningless facts or figures, but information directly
from his past. What's more, his memory has proved almost (g. ).

"I've always been this way," he said. In fact, as a child, he thought everyone had the same ability. To
his family, the (h. ) has always just been amusing. But one expert believes that
Williams may have one of the best (i. ) in the world. The doctor is studying Williams
because he hopes to better (j. ) how memory works.

Another woman has also been found with an almost (k. ) talent, and has joined the
same study. She calls her ability a (l. ), though. Whenever she hears a date, a flood of
memories flows through her mind. It's nonstop and exhausting.

Both Williams and the woman remember information that they find interesting. Because this is an
(m. ) part of their abilities, some researchers have (n. ) that many
others may be capable of the same skills. Since the study began, a third person has been discovered
with similar (o. ).
STUDENT HANDOUT (extended listening)
Listen and fill in the missing sentences. Compare your answers with a partner, and then
listen once more.

All Things Remembered

Imagine that you possessed the ability to recall small, unimportant events, details, and dates from your life with
almost perfect accuracy. Let's say, for example, you could remember than June 15th, 1992 was a Monday,
a) . For Brad Williams, this isn't a
what if. It's a feat of which he has always been capable.

There have been other people with similar abilities. However, they only could memorize random letters or
numbers with ease, or maybe remember book passages and short stories word for word. Williams is different.
He doesn't remember meaningless facts or figures, but information directly from his past. What's more,
b) .

"I've always been this way," he said. In fact, as a child, he thought everyone had the same ability. To his family,
c) . But one expert believes
that Williams may have one of the best memories in the world. The doctor is studying Williams because he
hopes to better understand how memory works.

d) , and has joined the same

study. She calls her ability a burden, though. Whenever she hears a date, a flood of memories flows through her
mind. It's nonstop and exhausting.

e) . Because this is an
essential part of their abilities, some researchers have concluded that many others may be capable of the
same skills. Since the study began, a third person has been discovered with similar potential.