American Diners - Monday Morning Worksheet

Welcome and Happy Monday!

It's good to be starting a fresh, new week. This has been a difficult week for many Americans, and being bombarded by media images and articles hasn't helped in the least. I've tried to maintain my sanity by re-reading my Ngaio Marsh mysteries, turning off my computer, and spending more time with my kids. Meanwhile, at work, I'm still responsible for making sure we're moving ahead. Teaching is one of those jobs where we do have to keep ourselves together, while making sure our students learn something. 

I wanted to something a little lighter this week, to set a happier and more positive tone than last week. I've done a very short reading on American Diners, what they're about and when they started. I've included some questions on diners, a menu with activities and an essay question. There are enough activities to last up to two class periods, but teachers can easily choose to do enough for only one class. 

Vocabulary Cheat Sheet

I've added a vocabulary cheat sheet for the teacher and a printable one for students (6 copies on a page.). I do not like to overuse our photocopier (it's slow, anyway), so I try to do activities that don't require too much copying. 

You can do any of the following with the vocabulary words.

1.) explain the vocabulary words orally; 

2.) copy the definitions on the board; or 

3.) give out the cheat sheet for students. I make my students get glue sticks and, when necessary, have students glue this sheet to the back. This saves having to copy an extra sheet for each student. 

I do hope  you enjoy this Monday Morning Lesson! I would love to hear your comments about how it went or what you did with it. The posted lesson is similar to the worksheet, which can be downloaded below. 

I hope you enjoy your Monday. Have a great week!

American Diners

A diner is a special kind of American restaurant. Diners are casual restaurants that serve American food. They are popular, and are often open very late. Diners are often visited by travelers, truck drivers, employees and people who enjoy typical American food. 

Most diners have a stainless-steel exterior. The insides have booths and stools with counters. When diners were first started in 1872, they were small. They would first be made and then shipped to the owners. 

Today, there are many kinds of diners. Some are small; others are very large. A few are quite famous. Some diners do not even look like diners anymore. However, you can still tell a diner by its menu.

Questions

1.  What is a diner?

2.  When did diners first start? How were they made?

3.  How can you tell that a restaurant is a diner?

4.  What does the inside of a diner look like?

5.  In your opinion, what are some reasons for diners becoming popular?

Activities

The menu below is a typical menu for a diner. 

1. Scan the menu quickly. What foods have you tried from this menu?

2. What are some items that you would have for breakfast? Lunch? Dinner? Dessert?

3. Imagine that you opened a new restaurant. Make up your own menu with prices. Include headings for each part of your menu.

4. Writing Topic: Some restaurants do very well. Others do not succeed and must be closed down. What makes a good restaurant? What makes a restaurant successful or not?

To download the worksheet for this post, click below.