Third Man Syndrome (Upper-Intermediate Lesson Plan)

ESL/EFL Level: B2/C1 (Upper-Intermediate)
Lesson Topics: third man syndrome, survival
Skill Focus: Reading, Listening, Speaking, Vocabulary
Approximate Class Time: 2 hours
Lesson Plan Download: third-man-syndrome-upper-intermediate-092024.docx
Lesson Overview:
  • After warm-up questions, read a 202-word passage about a phenomenon called the Third Man Syndrome which occurs when someone near-death experiences the presence of a 'third man' who helps them survive. The passage introduces the syndrome, gives two examples, and offers some explanations. After reading, students watch a 2:48-minute video of an avalanche survival recounting his experience with a third man.
  • The video is followed by recall, retell activity, comprehension questions, and a vocabulary-matching activity. After vocabulary matching, students form discussion questions with the target vocabulary.
  • There is one debate topic about the existence of guardian angels.
  • The main speaking activity is a survival scenario set in northern Canada. Students must review a list of items and rank them in order of importance for their survival.
  • The lesson has one roleplay scenario in which a man tries to persuade his wife to let him take a high-paying hazardous job mining diamonds on a mountainside.
  • After famous quotations and a collocation review, students review vocabulary by creating their own story with five illustrations.
  • Finally, students review key vocabulary before answering some final discussion questions.

A third-man helping a mountaineer (AI-generated image)

UPPER-INTERMEDIATE (B2/C1) Lesson on the Third Man Syndrome

Warm-up-Questions

  1. Have you ever been in a situation where you weren’t sure if you’d survive?
  2. Do you believe you have a guardian angel keeping you safe?
  3. Despite difficulties in life, what motivates you to keep going?
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This lesson plan was created by Matthew Barton of EnglishCurrent.com (copyright). Site members may photocopy and edit the file for their classes. Permission is not given to rebrand the lesson, redistribute it on another platform, or sell it as part of commercial course curriculum. ChatGPT was used to generate answer keys and some famous quotations. For questions, contact the author.

Comprehension Question Answer Key

  1. …
  2. Psychologists believe it is a coping mechanism triggered by intense stress, exhaustion, or life-threatening situations.
  3. …
  4. He knew he wouldn’t be able to get into the sleeping bag or light the stove due to his injuries, which meant he wouldn’t be able to survive the night in the cold.
  5. …

Vocabulary 1-e, 2-b, 3-k, 4-f, 5-a, 6-l, 7-d, 8-h, 9-i, 10-c, 11-j, 12-g

Collocation: 1-c, 2-e, 3-d, 4-b, 5-a

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