The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
When my advanced (C1) class told me they wanted to do some reading, I thought Hitchhiker would be perfect. The activities I put together are in the document below. It contains the complete text of chapter one of the book. No copyright infringement is intended – I only want to introduce the book to as many students as possible!
This activity requires a bit of cutting out beforehand (it’s the activity on page 6 in the document above):
There are also two Quizlet sets, one for general vocabulary from the first chapter. The second set has the collocations from the penultimate section of the chapter.
Overall, we spent about 7 hours on all of the activities, including discussion between them. In the final lesson of the week, we watched the film.
Thinking about it while I write this post, I believe Douglas Adams has had a huge influence on the way that I think. His books were some of the ones that really influenced my teenage years. I don’t know now, but it’s possible that his words were the ones that led me towards being a lover of Macs, or consciously deciding that God doesn’t exist. And his essays on ‘Y’ and on attitudes to technology in The Salmon of Doubt
I’ll leave you one of my (many) favourite quotes from Douglas Adams:
“A learning experience is one of those things that says, ‘You know that thing you just did? Don’t do that.”
― Douglas Adams, The Salmon of Doubt
*All book links are to Amazon, and I will get 10% if you buy after clicking these links. Thank you!
Sandy Millin 
Can’t resist leaving a personal note – loved both “the hitchiker” and “a town called Alice”, though the latter is, of course, a completely different kind of book. Have never tried anything to do with either with students – good for you!
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My. favourite. book. Ever. I was 10 when the TV version came onto our screens. I subsequently read HHGTTG and Restaurant at the End Of The Universe and Life, The Universe and Everything. Then, later, I went back to the original radio series. Finally read So Long & mostly harmless in 2000 when I bought the complete trilogy in 5 parts, before listening to the newly minted radio shows based on the later books. Each one subject to the law of diminishing returns. The film is/was great in places (The Vogons, Magrathea) and disappointing in others (Marvin, Deep Thought, Ford Prefect). I still, however, think digital watches are a pretty neat idea. Would love to one day incorporate a HHGTTG themed lesson or two into my practice. you’ve set the benchmark. P
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