Past Continuous and Past Simple? 4 medio

Hello everyone. My first share. I dont know if anyone else is teaching 4 Medio but I made this reading (i know, we are supposed to be doing speaking and listening.. but my guide teacher sometimes has other plans and is persuasive AHH!) and of it I thought I would share.

Warm Up with this youtube video:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PcIEEdTiNak (its of the performance the article is about)

okay and the text

Lady Gaga, Bruce Springsteen, Elton John, Sting, Deborah Harry Sing Journey Song ‘Don’t Stop Believing’

It appears strange, but the people who went to the Rainforest Fund concert in Carnegie Hall said that it really happened.
On Thursday May 13th, 2010 Bruce Springsteen, Lady GaGa, Elton John, Sting, Deborah Harry, and Shirley Bassey, sang "Don't Stop Believin'." They were singing the song to finish the Rainforest Fund benefit . Afterwards, the audience was clapping for a very long time.
Reporters from the New York Times and the New York Daily News went to the concert. The New York Times reporter Jon Pareles reported that Bruce Springsteen chose the song “Don’t Stop Believing.” Strangely, Sting was learning the song for the first time. “Everyone in the country knows this song except for Sting.” Lady Gaga said. The New York Daily News reporter Jim Farber enjoyed the show very much. “Elton John was entertaining because when the dancers entered and he was dancing with them.”
Trudie Styler and Sting started the Rainforest Fund. It is an organization that teaches people about rainforest conservation. The benefit collected money to help this organization.

NOTES: CARNEGIE HALL noun:A place
BENEFIT noun: show that gathers money

ADAPTED from Orentzi, TJ. The Huffington Post. “Lady Gaga, Bruce Springsteen, Elton John, Sting, Deborah Harry Sing Journey Song ‘Don’t Stop Believing.” May 15th, 2010. Accessed May 19th,2010. (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/05/14/rainforest-fund-benefit-c_n_577248.html)

the verbs mostly come from the first page of their regular and irregular verb lists (long sheets of paper they are supposed to but often times dont study). As a follow up i am planning on gap fill excersizes on the white board (they like using the pens), and next week students will used past continuous and pased simple to "report" aka say 3 sentences about their own concert (ideally).