April Fool’s Day
(intermediate level)
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
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ESL Lesson Plans - Holidays (Intermediate) - April Fool’s
APRIL FOOL’S DAY
1. What would you say if someone told you the world was changing to metric time? Instead of 60 minutes in
every hour there would be 100. This is exactly what happened on April, 1st 1975 when an Australian news
program played an April Fool's Day joke on its viewers. This type of joke is called a hoax. The people who pull
the hoax are trying to fool a large amount of people. A few people always fall for a well planned hoax. Some
people never see a joke coming. People who believe anything are gullible. Part of the April Fool's tradition is
for the prankster to yell “April Fool's!” after a person has fallen for a joke.
2. April Fool's Day, also known as "All Fool's Day" is always on April 1st. It is observed throughout the
Western world and in many other countries as well. Traditionally all practical jokes are played out in the
morning before noon. There is no confirmed origin of April Fool's Day, though it has been in practice for
hundreds of years. The scope of April's Fool's Day has changed dramatically since the 1700s. Even until
recently, April Fool's Day was limited to practical jokes and "fool's errands" between family members, friends,
and colleagues. For example, students would tell each other their shoelaces were untied or their zippers were
undone. A husband would place salt in the sugar bowl before his wife woke up for her coffee. These days
pranksters use various methods to fool the masses. Jokes and hoaxes come in the form of email, tweets,
Facebook updates, product launches, and YouTube videos.
3. The most popular April Fool's Day hoaxes in history are legendary. These types of stunts are often pulled
off because they are organized by well trusted media sources. The BBC has pulled a few such tricks on its
readers and listeners. The Swiss Spaghetti Harvest hoax is one of the most well-known. In 1957, the BBC
featured a program about a spaghetti crop in Switzerland that was thriving because the “spaghetti weevil” had
died off during a mild winter. When viewers contacted the BBC to ask how to grow their own spaghetti tree,
they were advised to “place a sprig of spaghetti in a tin of tomato sauce and hope for the best." In 1980, the
BBC convinced some people that Big Ben would be changed to digital time. A more recent April Fool's Day
Hoax by the BBC featured flying penguins who migrated to the rainforests of South America.
4. Some companies are famous for April Fool's Day pranks. Google typically tries to fool the world on April 1st
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ESL Lesson Plans - Holidays (Intermediate) - April Fool’s
APRIL FOOL’S DAY - continued
each year. They often use a play on words to make gullible people seem even more like fools. In 2000, Google
announced a search technology that could read a user's mind. In 2006 they announced the new launch of
Google Romance. Their slogan was: "Dating is a search problem.” In 2007 Google announced Gmail Paper, a
free webmail service for turning emails into paper to send via the postal service. Google Australia pulled
another product prank in 2008 when it featured gDay technology. This fake product allowed users to search for
Internet content before it was created.
5. Some people are known for pulling pranks on other days besides April Fool's Day. Ashton Kutcher is one of
the most well-known celebrity pranksters in America. He popularized the term punked when he produced and
starred in MTV's hidden camera show. Kutcher's victims are famous people, such as Hollywood actors and
singers. On the other hand, talk show host Jay Leno is well known for humiliating everyday people. His
specialty is “Jaywalking” in which he stands on street corners and interviews passers-by about simple trivia.
6. Laughing at someone else's expense comes naturally to humans. April 1st is one of those days that we can
also laugh at ourselves. On the other hand, some jokes go too far. April Fool's Day jokes that are in bad taste
can do more than make people laugh. They can also become very dangerous and hurt people's feelings. One
town in America announced in 2008 that there would be a new “bye-law” law in which all April Fool's Day
jokes and pranks would be banned. Extra staff were hired at the local newspaper to prevent April Fool's Day
jokes from being printed. The newspaper even bought extra scissors to cut out any jokes that got through. “April
Fool's!”
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ESL Lesson Plans - Holidays (Intermediate) - April Fool’s
READING COMPREHENSION
A. Practice asking and answering the following questions with your partner. Then write the answers in
the spaces below.
1. Describe the Australian hoax from the introductory paragraph. ____________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________
2. What do tricksters shout on April Fool's Day after pulling off a prank? ______________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________
3. A number of legendary hoaxes are mentioned in paragraph 3. Who planned these hoaxes? _______________
_________________________________________________________________________________________
4. Which is the most recent prank mentioned in paragraph 3? ________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________
5. According to the reading, which popular company often has fake product launches on April 1st? __________
_________________________________________________________________________________________
6. What is Gmail Paper? _____________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________
7. What is Ashton Kutcher well-known for? ______________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________
8. What is "Jaywalking"? _____________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________
9. What is odd about the term "bye-law" in the final paragraph? ______________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________
10. How does the reading conclude? ___________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
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ESL Lesson Plans - Holidays (Intermediate) - April Fool’s
VOCABULARY REVIEW
A. Match the words on the left with the correct meaning on the right.
____1. metric
a) impolite or hurtful
____2. hoax
b) not allowed any more
____3. gullible
c) a measurement system based on meters and grams
____4. fall for
d) a fake report to trick people into believing something
____5. scope
e) easily tricked; believing anything
____6. practical jokes
f) tricks played on a person to make others laugh
____7. masses
g) events that promote a new item for sale
____8. product launches
h) making people feel very bad about themselves
____9. legendary
i) large numbers of people
____10. thriving
j) to believe in someone's trick or joke
____11. read someone’s mind
k) phrases that describe a product or company's purpose
____12. slogans
l) to know what someone is thinking
____13. humiliating (verb)
m) developing or growing very well
____14. bad taste
n) known by many for a long time
____15. banned
o) the variety or range (wide or narrow)
B. Match the example with the appropriate word from the list. Some of the words will not be used.
product launch
practical joke
gullible
slogan
scope
reading someone's mind
bad taste
banned
1. "Just Do It" is an example of a famous ______________________.
2. Releasing the Wii was an example of a ________________________________.
3. Taping a sheet of paper on someone's back that says "kick me" is an example of a _____________________.
4. Knowing what your sister is going to say when she calls is an example of ____________________________.
5. Falling for an April Fool's Day hoax (such as spaghetti growing on trees) is an example of being
_______________________.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
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ESL Lesson Plans - Holidays (Intermediate) - April Fool’s
C. Choose the correct word from the list to complete the following sentences.
~ legendary
metric
masses
bad taste
hoaxes
banned
thriving
scope
humiliating ~
1. A _________________ hoax in Australia is the report that stated that the country would be switching to
___________________ time.
2. Though Google attempts to trick the _________________ with its fake product launches, many people have
come to expect their April Fool's Day _________________.
3. The BBC is _________________ online. Viewers worldwide go online to enjoy the website.
4. April Fool's Day practical jokes were _________________ at our company this year because many of last
year's jokes were in _________________.
5. Celebrity pranks are popular because people find enjoyment in _________________ the rich and famous.
6. Over the years, April Fool's Day tricks have increased in _________________.
PAIR WORK
Part 1: Sharing Information
Directions: You and your partner each have a short reading about the April Fish. Read your article and
then share your information with your partner. Work together to complete the questions that follow.
Student A
In France the person who is fooled on April Fool's Day is known as the fish. The April Fish is the prank itself as
well as the fool. Unlike the variety of pranks pulled in places such as England and America, French children
find great amusement in a simple prank made of paper. Someone cuts a fish shape out of a piece of paper and
tapes it to another child's back. When the fool finally discovers the fish, those who witness it shout "Poisson
d'Avril"(April Fish). Children aren't the only victims in this tradition. Adults (especially teachers) have been
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ESL Lesson Plans - Holidays (Intermediate) - April Fool’s
known to walk around all day with a paper fish on their back. Originally a real fish may have been used. When
the fool smelled the dead fish on his back he would have realized his foolishness. These days it is customary to
sell and share chocolate fish in France on April Fool's Day. Some chocolate fish have tiny fish inside. Paper fish
are also hung up as decorations in schools and public places at this time of year.
Student B
The true origin of April Fool's Day is unknown. Many historians believe the tradition started in France after the
calendar was changed from the Julian calendar to the Gregorian calendar. According to the old calendar, the
New Year was celebrated between the weeks of mid-March and April 1st. The new calendar named January 1st
the official first day of the year. Many Europeans did not know or accept this change and continued to observe
April 1st as the last day of the New Year's season. These people were called fools. A fool was the lowest rank a
person could hold in society. The king was the highest. This time of year was associated with the zodiac sign
Pisces the fish. It was also a time when young fish were plentiful in France's streams. Young fish were easy to
catch or fool with a simple hook and lure.
PAIR WORK: Comprehension Questions - Work with your partner to complete the following questions.
(You each have half of the information in your previous readings.)
1. What is the French term for the April Fool?
2. Describe the typical prank that French children pull on April Fool's Day.
3. Which calendar came after the Julian calendar?
4. When was New Year celebrated before it was changed to January 1st?
5. Hundreds of years ago, who was considered the opposite of a fool?
6. Which zodiac sign is a fish?
7. Besides paper fish, what other types of fish are popular in France on April 1st?
8. What is the true origin of April Fool's Day?
9. Why does one of the readings mention streams?
10. How is a young fish comparable to a gullible person?
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
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ESL Lesson Plans - Holidays (Intermediate) - April Fool’s
VOCABULARY, IDIOMS, EXPRESSIONS
Reading Glossary
1. to see something coming (verb): to expect something (especially bad news or something you don't want to
experience)
Ex. I didn't think he would lose his job, but my husband saw it coming.
2. tweets (noun): short notes or shared bits of information (140 characters only) typed out on the micro-blog
Twitter
Ex. I usually write about five tweets per day. Some of these include links to my favorite blog posts.
3. to pull something off (verb): to succeed in achieving a goal (such as fooling a friend)
Ex. The stunt driver pulled off the difficult trick of jumping over ten cars.
4. play on words (noun): words that have more than one meaning and are used in a playful or funny way
Ex. The sporting company wanted a slogan that used a play on words.
5. died off (verb): to no longer exist in any form
Ex. All of the fall flowers died off after the first snowfall.
6. punked (verb): tricked an unsuspecting person (often a friend)
Ex. Ashton Kutcher has punked many of his celebrity friends.
7. at someone else's expense (verb): (enjoy) while others suffer
Ex. Feeling good at someone else's expense is common in the competitive business world.
8. hurt someone's feelings (verb): to upset someone
Ex. She hurt my feelings when she said I talked too much.
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ESL Lesson Plans - Holidays (Intermediate) - April Fool’s
VOCABULARY, IDIOMS, EXPRESSIONS
Vocabulary and Idiom Practice
Write an April Fool's Day "Tweet"
A tweet can only be 140 characters of type. This includes spaces and punctuation. Use the above idioms to write
example tweets you might read on Twitter on April Fool's Day. For example:
I should have seen it coming when my husband brought me breakfast in bed. Yuck! Salt in my coffee.
1. ______________________________________________________________________________________
2. ______________________________________________________________________________________
3. ______________________________________________________________________________________
FIND SOMEONE WHO...
Directions: Walk around the classroom and ask your classmates questions. (Write the answers to the
questions in the space provided below.) Find someone ...
1. who likes to play practical jokes on people ____________________________________________________
2. who has fallen for a hoax __________________________________________________________________
3. who has been humiliated in public ___________________________________________________________
4. who has seen Ashton Kutcher or Jay Leno on TV _______________________________________________
5. who has been to France ___________________________________________________________________
6. who participated in April Fool's Day _________________________________________________________
7. who thinks April Fool's Day should go beyond noon on April 1st __________________________________
8. who loves to eat chocolate _________________________________________________________________
9. who loves to eat fish ______________________________________________________________________
10. who has a birthday in April ________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
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ESL Lesson Plans - Holidays (Intermediate) - April Fool’s
WRITE A POEM
An acrostic poem is a poem that uses the letters in a word or phrase to inspire phrases about it. For example,
here is an acrostic poem using the word Google:
Go there to find out how popular you are
One place people go for information
Online since 1996
Gmail is its email service
Loves to release new technology
Engine people use for searching
Find a partner and write an acrostic poem together using the term "April Fool". Share your poem with
the class.
A_______________________________________________________
P_______________________________________________________
R_______________________________________________________
I_______________________________________________________
L_______________________________________________________
F_______________________________________________________
O_______________________________________________________
O_______________________________________________________
L_______________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
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ESL Lesson Plans - Holidays (Intermediate) - April Fool’s
ANSWER KEY
READING COMPREHENSION
1. The Australian hoax tried to convince people that Australia would be switching to metric time, in which every hour
would have 100 minutes.
2. Tricksters shout "April Fool's!" after pulling off a prank successfully.
3. The BBC organized the pranks discussed in paragraph three.
4. The most recent prank mentioned in paragraph three is the one where the BBC tried to convince its audience that some
penguins could fly.
5. Google often has fake product launches on April 1st.
6. Gmail Paper was a fake service that Google introduced one April Fool's Day. The promo suggested that users could now
get their emails printed on paper and posted for free.
7. Ashton Kutcher is well known for pulling pranks on other celebrities.
8. Jaywalking was something talk show host Jay Leno used to humiliate everyday people. He asked simple trivia to people
walking down the streets.
9. The term "bye-law" is funny because the real term is "bylaw". This is a play on words using the word "bye". Many
successful hoaxes use a play on words.
10. The reading concludes with a trick of its own. The report about the banning of April Fool's day jokes was a hoax itself.
VOCABULARY REVIEW
A. Match the words
1. c
2. d
14. a
15. b
3. e
4. j
5. o
6. f
7. i
8. g
9. n
10. m
11. l
12. k
13. h
B. Match the example
1. slogan
2. product launch
3. practical joke
4. reading someone’s mind
5. gullible
C. Choose the correct word
1. legendary, metric
2. masses, hoaxes
3. thriving
4. banned, bad taste
5. humiliating
6. scope
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
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ESL Lesson Plans - Holidays (Intermediate) - April Fool’s
ANSWER KEY
PAIR WORK - Comprehension Questions
1. The French term for the April Fool is April Fish (Poisson d'Avril).
2. The typical prank children play in France is to tape a paper fish to someone's back.
3. The Gregorian calendar came after the Julian calendar.
4. Previously, New Year was celebrated from mid-March to April 1st.
5. Hundreds of years ago the fool was considered the opposite of the king.
6. Pisces is the zodiac sign that is a fish.
7. Besides paper fish you will also see chocolate fish in France around April 1st.
8. The true origin of April Fool's Day is unknown.
9. Student B’s reading mentions streams because early April was a time when there were plenty of young fish in French
streams.
10. A young fish falls for a trick easily, just as a gullible person does.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
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