WARM-UP QUESTIONS

What feelings do you associate with colours?

How important are colours in our lives?
Can you imagine a world with no colours at all? What problems could that cause?
Do you know anyone who is colourblind?

BEFORE YOU WATCH

1 Match the words to their definitions.
1. Detect ( ) manifest clearly
2. Grayscale ( ) a human being whose powers are
enhanced by mechanical body parts.
3. Cyborg ( ) a range of grey shades from white to
black.
4. Exhibit ( ) discover or identify the presence of
something
5. Perceive ( ) understand or come to realise
something

TEDTALK – I listen to colour

1 Watch the video and mark the sentences True or False.

1( ) Neil developed achromatopsia in his early childhood.
2( ) He started a project with scientists to create a colour sensor back in 2005.
3( ) At first, he had to memorise the names for colours.
4( ) After being able to dream in colour, he realised that the software and his brain had
united.
5( ) He wasn’t allowed to use his electronic equipment when taking his passport photo.
6( ) He compares going to an art gallery to going to a concert hall.
7( ) Listening to Mozart is like hearing the colour purple.
8( ) He’s got the ability to hear colours that the human eye cannot perceive.
9( ) He reckons that creating apps for our phones is more important than creating
applications for our bodies.
Discuss in pairs.

1. How different is Neil’s life to our own?

2. Would you consider his ability to hear colours a superpower? Why (not)?
3. What other superhuman abilities would you like to have?

COLOUR IDIOMS

Do you remember any expressions or idioms related to colours?

1 Match the idioms with their definitions.

RED TAPE GREEN WITH ENVY BLACK AND WHITE IN THE DARK
BLACK SHEEP OUT OF THE BLUE ONCE IN A BLUE MOON
SEE RED WHITE LIE TRUE COLOURS ROLL OUT THE RED CARPET
BORN WITH A SILVER SPOON IN ONE’S MOUTH

1 __________________________ = be born into a rich family.

2 __________________________ = the odd or bad member of a group.
3 __________________________ = straightforward, very clear.
4 __________________________ = very jealous.
5 __________________________ = unaware of something.
6 __________________________ = very rarely.
7 __________________________ = official or bureaucratic tasks.
8 __________________________ = treat someone like royalty.
9 __________________________ = one’s real self.
10 _________________________ = an innocent lie to protect someone’s feelings.
11 _________________________ = be very angry.
12 _________________________ = unexpectedly.

2 Complete the sentences using one of the idioms from exercise 1.

1 Joan is so conceited and self-centred. She expects us to _____________________ for her

whenever she comes round to visit.
2. After their first argument, Lucy could really see Conor’s _____________________.
3 Being the _____________________ of her family allowed her to step out of her comfort
zone.
4 Ben should learn that not everything in life is _____________________ all the time.
5 She could have finished her work earlier, but it was impossible to cut through all the
_____________________.
6 When Lucas showed us his new car, you could see it in his face that Owen was
_____________________.
7 One of the things I hate the most at work is when people keep me
_____________________. How can I do my job when I don’t know what I’m supposed to
do?
8 She told us she wasn’t coming to the party. Then, much to our surprise, she showed up
_____________________.
9 He was _____________________________. He got everything he wanted as a child.
10 She decided to tell her friend a _____________________. After all, she didn’t want to
hurt her feelings.

3 Discuss questions in small groups.

Would you say that Ireland has a lot of red tape?

What do you do once in a blue moon?
Is a white lie still a lie?
Do you know someone who’s always green with envy?
Are you the black sheep in your family?
What makes you see red?

CULTURE

1 In pairs, complete the diagrams with words you associate with each colour. Discuss
whether there are any cultural differences in your answers.

RED BLUE

GREEN BLACK
2 Discuss.
What colours do you associate with the following feelings, situations, or people?
Royalty: ______________________.
Love: ________________________.
Death: _______________________.
Hunger: ______________________.
Anger: _______________________.
Wealth: ______________________.

Do you think there might be cultural differences in the way we perceive colours?

3 In pairs, match the colours with their meanings according to different cultures.
1 Blue ( ) In China, this colour represents death
and mourning, whereas in the West, it
represents brides, angels, and peace.
2 Red ( ) While in Iran this colour is said to
represent heaven and spirituality,
Cherokees see this colour as a
representation of defeat and trouble.
3 Green ( ) In India, this colour represents Islam
and, in Ireland, it is a symbol of patriotism.
4 Black ( ) Whereas in Egypt this colour might
represent mourning, in the West it stands
for cowardness and a weak character.
5 White ( ) In South Africa, this colour is used to
represent mourning, but in India it is a
symbol of purity.
6 Pink ( ) Across the Western world, this colour
is a symbol of death and mourning.
Similarly, in Thailand, it represents
unhappiness and bad luck.
7 Yellow ( ) In Korea, this colour represents trust,
whereas in the West it’s associated with
love.

What feeling has multiple colour representation across different cultures?

SPEAKING

Do the colour quiz in pairs.

COLOUR QUIZ – STUDENT A
1 What is the first primary colour a baby can distinguish after a few weeks?
A BLUE
B RED
C GREEN

2 Which of the following terms is used for a persistent and irrational fear of colours?
A CHROMOPHOBIA
B HEMOPHOBIA
C ASTRAPHOBIA

3 Which effect happens to chickens when they see the colour red?
A THEY BECOME ANNOYED
B THEY CALM DOWN
C NOTHING

4 What is the most used colour in national flags?

A BLUE
B WHITE
C RED

5 What percentage of the world’s population has blue eyes?

A AROUND 8%
B AROUND 15%
C AROUND 16%

6 How many points do you get for a green ball in snooker/ pool?
A1
B3
C5

7 What is the second-largest river in China?

A YELLOW RIVER
B BLUE RIVER
C GREEN RIVER

8 On a Scrabble board, which colour is a double-word square?

A PURPLE
B PINK
C ORANGE

9 Which colour do we get when mixing red and yellow?

A BROWN
B PURPLE
C ORANGE

10 What does a green jersey mean in the bicycle race Tour de France?
A THE OVERALL LEADER OF THE RACE
B THE BEST SPRINTER
C THE BEST YOUNG RIDER
COLOUR QUIZ – STUDENT B
1 The Olympic flag features 5 interlaced rings in blue, black, red, and which two other
colours?
A WHITE AND YELLOW
B YELLOW AND GREEN
C GREEN AND PURPLE

2 A typical feature of London is the small post box in which colour?

A GREEN
B BLUE
C RED

3 The flag of Germany features three horizontal stripes. What is the colour of the centre
stripe?
A RED
B YELLOW
C BLACK

4 Which colour is thought to be less likely to cause accidents?

A BLACK
B WHITE
C GREY

5 The surface of Mars has a rusty reddish colour because it’s covered in which element?
A COPPER OXIDE
B IRON OXIDE
C ALIMINUM OXIDE

6 What colour is a zebra’s stripes during the first six months of life?
A BLACK
B BROWN
C GREY

7 How many colours are there on the Microsoft Corporation logo?

A2
B4
C6

8 In spite of their names, what is the actual colour of airplane black boxes?
A WHITE
B ORANGE
C YELLOW

9 Which singer named her daughter Blue Ivy Carter in 2012?

A SHAKIRA
B ADELE
C BEYONCÉ

10 Which of the following is not a typical meaning of blue?

A PEACE
B WAR
C FREEDOM
Teacher’s Version

WARM-UP QUESTIONS

What feelings do you associate with colours?

How important are colours in our lives?
Can you imagine a world with no colours at all? What problems could that cause?
Do you know anyone who is colourblind?

BEFORE YOU WATCH

1 Match the words to their definitions.
1. Detect ( 4 ) manifest clearly
2. Grayscale ( 3 ) a human being whose powers are
enhanced by mechanical body parts.
3. Cyborg ( 2 ) a range of grey shades from white to
black.
4. Exhibit ( 1 ) discover or identify the presence of
something
5. Perceive ( 5 ) understand or come to realise
something

TEDTALK – I listen to colour

1 Watch the video and mark the sentences True or False.

1 ( F ) Neil developed achromatopsia in his early childhood.
2 ( F ) He started a project with scientists to create a colour sensor back in 2005.
3 ( T ) At first, he had to memorise the names for colours.
4 ( T ) After being able to dream in colour, he realised that the software and his brain had
united.
5 ( F ) He wasn’t allowed to use his electronic equipment when taking his passport photo.
6 ( T ) He compares going to an art gallery to going to a concert hall.
7 ( F ) Listening to Mozart is like hearing the colour purple.
8( T ) He’s got the ability to hear colours that the human eye cannot perceive.
9 ( F ) He reckons that creating apps for our phones is more important than
creating applications for our bodies.
Discuss in pairs.

1. How different is Neil’s life to our own?

2. Would you consider his ability to hear colours a superpower? Why (not)?
3. What other superhuman abilities would you like to have?

COLOUR IDIOMS

Do you remember any expressions or idioms related to colours?

1 Match the idioms with their definitions.

RED TAPE GREEN WITH ENVY BLACK AND WHITE IN THE DARK
BLACK SHEEP OUT OF THE BLUE ONCE IN A BLUE MOON
SEE RED WHITE LIE TRUE COLOURS ROLL OUT THE RED CARPET
BORN WITH A SILVER SPOON IN ONE’S MOUTH

1 BORN WITH A SILVER SPOON IN ONE’S MOUTH = be born into a rich family.
2 BLACK SHEEP = the odd or bad member of a group.
3 BLACK AND WHITE = straightforward, very clear.
4 GREEN WITH ENVY = very jealous.
5 IN THE DARK = unaware of something.
6 ONCE IN A BLUE MOON = very rarely.
7 RED TAPE = official or bureaucratic tasks.
8 ROLL OUT THE RED CARPET = treat someone like royalty.
9 TRUE COLOURS = one’s real self.
10 WHITE LIE = an innocent lie to protect someone’s feelings.
11 SEE RED = be very angry.
12 OUT OF THE BLU = unexpectedly.

2 Complete the sentences using one of the idioms from exercise 1.

1 Joan is so conceited and self-centred. She expects us to _roll out the red carpet_ for her
whenever she comes round to visit.
2. After their first argument, Lucy could really see Conor’s _true colours_.
3 Being the __black sheep__ of her family allowed her to step out of her comfort zone.
4 Ben should learn that not everything in life is __black and white__ all the time.
5 She could have finished her work earlier, but it was impossible to cut through all the _red
tape__.
6 When Lucas showed us his new car, you could see it in his face that Owen was __green
with envy__.
7 One of the things I hate the most at work is when people keep me _in the dark__. How can
I do my job when I don’t know what I’m supposed to do?
8 She told us she wasn’t coming to the party. Then, much to our surprise, she showed up
_out of the blue__.
9 He was born with a silver spoon in his mouth. He got everything he wanted as a child.
10 She decided to tell her friend a _white lie_. After all, she didn’t want to hurt her feelings.

3 Discuss questions in small groups.

Would you say that Ireland has a lot of red tape?

What do you do once in a blue moon?
Is a white lie still a lie?
Do you know someone who’s always green with envy?
Are you the black sheep in your family?
What makes you see red?

CULTURE

1 In pairs, complete the diagrams with words you associate with each colour. Discuss
whether there are any cultural differences in your answers.

RED BLUE

GREEN BLACK

2 Discuss.
What colours do you associate with the following feelings, situations, or people?
Royalty: ______________________.
You could mention to students that purple
Love: ________________________. is the colour of royalty, as it is a difficult
Death: _______________________. colour to find in nature.

Hunger: ______________________.
Anger: _______________________.
Wealth: ______________________.

Do you think there might be cultural differences in the way we perceive colours?

3 In pairs, match the colours with their meanings according to different cultures.
1 Blue ( 5 ) In China, this colour represents
death and mourning, whereas in the West,
it represents brides, angels, and peace.
2 Red ( 1 ) While in Iran this colour is said to
represent heaven and spirituality,
Cherokees see this colour as a
representation of defeat and trouble.
3 Green ( 3 ) In India, this colour represents Islam
and, in Ireland, it is a symbol of patriotism.
4 Black ( 7 ) Whereas in Egypt this colour might
represent mourning, in the West it stands
for cowardness and a weak character.
5 White ( 2 ) In South Africa, this colour is used to
represent mourning, but in India it is a
symbol of purity.
6 Pink ( 4 ) Across the Western world, this
colour is a symbol of death and mourning.
Similarly, in Thailand, it represents
unhappiness and bad luck.
7 Yellow ( 6 ) In Korea, this colour represents trust,
whereas in the West it’s associated with
love.

What feeling has multiple colour representation across different cultures?

SPEAKING

Do the colour quiz in pairs.