*COLANDER*
A perforated utensil for washing or draining food became a headgear for many members of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster.
Today's news lesson will be devoted to one special politician who took his oath of office in a colander on his head. I've used this article in couple of my Past Simple lessons and it has become a lively and smile provoking success. It is an intermediate level and it is aimed at refreshing the construction of Simple Past tense. The student is asked to read the text and fill in the gaps with a correct form of a verb. Additionally I use it as a teaser for discussion and speaking lesson. So here we go:
Pastafarian politician takes oath of office wearing colander on his head
Christopher Schaeffer, a Pastafarian minister, took
his oath of office to join the Pomfret Town Board in New York while sporting
the kitchen utensil. 'This may be the first openly Pastafarian sworn into
office. For sure, the first to be sworn in wearing a colander,' said faith
follower Bobby Henderson.
Councilman Christopher Schaeffer of Pomfret, N.Y.,
………. (to take) his oath wearing a colander on his head, paying tribute to his
Pastafarian faith.
A New York politician ………… (to sport) a spaghetti strainer as a head
covering for his swearing-in ceremony to make a point about religious freedom.
Christopher Schaeffer, a minister in the Pastafarian faith, ……..
(to wear) a solemn face on Jan. 2
as he ……… (to stand) with a colander on his head and his hand …… (to raise)
while Town Clerk Allison Dispense administered the oath of office to join the
Pomfret Town Board.
"It's just a statement about religious freedom," he …….. (to
tell) reporter Greg Fox of the Observer in
Dunkirk, about accessorizing with the symbol of the Church of the
Flying Spaghetti Monster.
Local news coverage of the town board election in the fall of 2013 makes
no mention to Schaeffer's faith and Fox told the Daily News the then-candidates
affiliation with the Church …….. (to be) not a topic of discussion during the
campaign.
Fox …… (to say) those attending the swearing-in ceremony ….. (to be) not
expecting Schaeffer to break out the colander and the audience didn't really
respond to the unusual sight.
"I'm not sure if people ….(to be) just in shock during his oath of
office, or …………. ( to know, not) what to make of it, which is why no one said
anything," he told the News.
Members of the town board ………… (to respond, not) to a request for
comment on their reaction to the display.
Pomfret, a community of nearly 15,000 residents, is located in east New
York, in Chautauqua County, bordering Lake Erie.
ROMA YANDOLIN/© ROMA YANDOLIN/DEMOTIX/CORBIS
Pastafarians in St. Petersburg, Russia. Followers of the faith
believe ‘the only dogma allowed in the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster
is the rejection of dogma.’
According to the church's statement of belief, "the only dogma
allowed in the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster is the rejection of
dogma.
"That is, there are no strict rules and regulations, there are no
rote rituals and prayers and other nonsense," the church website states.
Schaeffer, a Democrat, was elected to office on Nov. 6. Town board council members earn $4,500 each, the Observer ……… (to report).
The newly ……… (to elect) town board member serves as a managing partner
of Southern Tier Management and is an active volunteer in the local arts
community, according to his candidate profile.
The article was published on 7th January 2014 on the New York Daily News website. I hope you enjoyed it! If you are looking for the PDF version of the lesson plan with full details and the answers, you can find it in my Etsy Shop here.
I hope you had a good time with Pastafarians!
Kindly
Language Arts