brightlivesenglish.com/lessons/hedy-lamarr-star-and-inventor/
45-minute lesson plan
| Time | Stage | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| 0–3′ | Warm-up | Ask the class: “Do you know any actors or singers who are also good at something very different? How many wireless things do you use every day?” Let a few students answer. |
| 3–11′ | Words | Pre-teach the 5 words with the flashcards: star, radio, signal, frequency, patent. Say each word, show the meaning, and ask for a quick example. |
| 11–18′ | Video | Play the video (4:28). Students follow the transcript. Play it a second time if needed. |
| 18–26′ | Comprehension | Worksheet C (or the online Story Challenge): check answers together. Ask “How do you know?” |
| 26–34′ | Grammar | be known as + name/role · be known for + reason: to say what people call someone, or why someone is famous. Show “She was known as a film star.”, then do worksheet E together. |
| 34–42′ | Worksheet | Students do worksheet A, B and D alone or in pairs. Check with the answer key. |
| 42–45′ | Speaking | In pairs: “For many years, people only saw Hedy Lamarr's beautiful face, not her clever mind. Do people sometimes judge others only by how they look? What can we do about it?” |
Homework: students finish the lesson online (flashcards + Story Challenge). With your class link, you see who finished.
Words and grammar
- star (noun): a very famous actor or singer. “She was a big Hollywood star.”
- radio (noun): a way of sending sounds and messages through the air, without wires. “Radio could guide a torpedo to a ship.”
- signal (noun): a sound, light or wave that carries a message. “An enemy could block the radio signal.”
- frequency (noun): one exact channel that a radio signal uses (plural: frequencies). “Their idea was to change the frequency again and again.”
- patent (noun): an official paper that says an invention belongs to you. “In 1942, they got a patent for their idea.”
Grammar: be known as + name/role · be known for + reason — to say what people call someone, or why someone is famous. “She was known as a film star.”
Discussion questions
- For many years, people only saw Hedy Lamarr's beautiful face, not her clever mind. Do people sometimes judge others only by how they look? What can we do about it?
- What was the hardest moment in Hedy Lamarr's story? What did Hedy Lamarr do?
- Make two sentences about your own life with “be known as + name/role · be known for + reason”. (From the story: “She was known as a film star.”)
Student worksheet
A Match the words to their meanings
- star (noun)
- radio (noun)
- signal (noun)
- frequency (noun)
- patent (noun)
- torpedo (noun)
- inventor (noun)
- wireless (adjective)
- a sound, light or wave that carries a message
- a way of sending sounds and messages through the air, without wires
- a long weapon that moves under the water to hit a ship
- a very famous actor or singer
- an official paper that says an invention belongs to you
- working without wires, using radio waves
- one exact channel that a radio signal uses (plural: frequencies)
- a person who makes something new that did not exist before
B Complete the sentences from the story
frequency · patent · star · torpedo · inventor · Radio · signal · wireless
- An enemy could make a miss.
- She was a big Hollywood .
- In 1942, they got a for their idea.
- could guide a torpedo to a ship.
- Wi-Fi is a technology.
- Their idea was to change the again and again.
- An enemy could block the radio .
- Today, she is known as an too.
C Did you understand?
- As a little girl, Hedy took apart her music box to see how it worked.True / False
- Where did she get her Hollywood contract?
- In a Vienna café
- At a war-bond rally
- On a ship to America
- In a radio station
- What was her idea?
- To make torpedoes bigger
- To jump between radio frequencies very fast in a secret pattern
- To build a faster ship
- To stop using radio
- The US Navy used her idea immediately in 1942.True / False
- Why 88 frequencies?
- Because there were 88 ships
- Because she was 88
- Because the patent had 88 pages
- Like the 88 keys of a piano
D Put the words in order
- known / as / was / She / star / a / film
E Grammar: be known as + name/role · be known for + reason
We use it for to say what people call someone, or why someone is famous. She was known as a film star. · Today, she is also known for her invention. · Vienna is known for its music.
Example from the story: She was known as a film star.
- She was known the most beautiful woman in the world. (as / for / by)
- Today, she is also known her invention. (for / as / of)
- George Antheil was known a composer. (as / for / with)
F Your turn
Retell Hedy Lamarr's story in 5–6 sentences. Use at least three words from exercise A.
Answer key
A. 1d 2b 3a 4g 5e 6c 7h 8f
B. 1 torpedo · 2 star · 3 patent · 4 Radio · 5 wireless · 6 frequency · 7 signal · 8 inventor
C. 1 True · 2 c · 3 b · 4 False · 5 d
D. 1 She was known as a film star.
E. 1 as · 2 for · 3 as
Transcript
By day, she was one of the most famous faces in Hollywood.
By night, she sat at a drawing table and invented things.
One of her ideas waited twenty years before anyone used it.
This is the story of Hedy Lamarr.
Welcome to brightlivesenglish.com, where we teach real English using real-life stories.
Star. A star is a very famous actor or singer.
She was a big Hollywood star.
Radio. Radio sends sounds and messages through the air, without wires.
Radio could guide a torpedo to a ship.
Signal. A signal is a sound, light or wave that carries a message.
An enemy could block the radio signal.
Frequency. A frequency is one exact channel that a radio signal uses.
Their idea was to change the frequency again and again.
Patent. A patent is an official paper that says an invention belongs to you.
In 1942, they got a patent for their idea.
Now, one pattern: be known as and be known for.
Known as gives a name or a role.
Known for gives the reason someone is famous.
She was known as a film star.
Today, she is also known for her invention.
Ready? Let's begin.
Hedy Lamarr was born in Vienna, Austria, in 1914.
At five, she took apart her music box to see how it worked.
On long walks, her father explained to her how machines worked.
She became an actress in Europe.
In 1937, she sailed to America.
On the ship, she got a contract with a big Hollywood studio.
The studio gave her a new name: Hedy Lamarr.
She was a big Hollywood star.
She was known as the most beautiful woman in the world.
But few people knew her secret.
At home, she had a table just for inventing.
For a famous pilot, she suggested a faster wing shape, after studying fast fish and birds.
In 1940, the Second World War had begun.
Radio could guide a torpedo to a ship.
But there was a problem.
An enemy could block the radio signal, and the torpedo would miss.
Hedy had an idea.
At a dinner party, she met George Antheil, a composer.
Their idea was to change the frequency again and again, very fast, in a secret pattern.
Paper rolls, like in a self-playing piano, could do it.
88 frequencies, like 88 piano keys!
In 1942, they got a patent for their idea.
They gave it to the American navy.
But the navy said no.
She was known as a film star, so she should sell war bonds instead.
One night, she sold about $7 million of them.
Years passed. The patent ran out, and she never earned any money from it.
Then, in 1962, American navy ships used a system based on ideas like hers.
In 1997, at 82, she received an important award for her invention.
She said: "Well, it's about time."
She died in 2000.
Ideas like hers are part of Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and GPS.
Today, she is also known for her invention.
Let's review. She was a big Hollywood star.
Radio could guide a torpedo to a ship.
An enemy could block the radio signal.
Their idea was to change the frequency again and again.
In 1942, they got a patent for their idea.
And remember: she was known as a film star.
Hedy Lamarr's story teaches us: people are much more than the way they look.
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