The woman who remembers every day

ESL Lessons: True Stories

A printable worksheet for story-based English conversation classes.

Difficulty: Intermediate B1

PDF: The woman who remembers every day

Warm-up

Do you have a good memory? (Yes, I do! / Not really...)

Vocabulary Match

unpleasant -   - amazing
astonishing -   - personal
recalls -   - remembers
experiences -   - exact
autobiographical -   - interested
specific -   - adventures
fascinated -   - sad

True Story

Listen and fill in the blanks with words from above.

Jill Price is a woman with an ________ memory. She remembers almost every day of her life since she was 14. This rare ability is known as Highly Superior ________ Memory (HSAM).

For example, Jill can recall what she did on ________ dates, like April 1, 1986, or what the weather was like on her 21st birthday. Scientists are ________ by her memory and study it to understand more.

In 2006, Jill's unique condition gained attention, and she later wrote a book about her ________. While her memory is impressive, it also brings challenges. Jill remembers every detail, both happy and sad, making it difficult to move past ________ memories.

Quiz

  1. What rare ability does Jill Price have?
  2. What can Jill recall about specific dates?
  3. What did Jill do in 2006?
  4. What challenges does Jill's memory bring?

True or False

  1. Jill Price has an ability called Highly Superior Astonishing Memory.  T  |  F
  2. She forgot to write a book about her memory.  T  |  F
  3. Her amazing memory is not always a good thing.  T  |  F

Conversation

Teacher: Alex, you remembered every event we discussed. Amazing!
Student: Yes, I just remember things, always have.
Teacher: You seem to have an extraordinary memory.
Student: It's automatic for me, like seeing or hearing.
Teacher: Your ability reminds me of Jill Price, who has HSAM.
Student: HSAM? I'll have to look that up!

Discussion

  1. How do you remember important things?
  2. What memory would you like to remember, and what would you like to forget?
  3. If you could write a book about any part of your life, what would it be about?
  4. If you had a memory like Jill's, how could you use it to improve your English?

True Story Answers

Jill Price is a woman with an astonishing memory. She remembers almost every day of her life since she was 14. This rare ability is known as Highly Superior autobiographical Memory (HSAM).

For example, Jill can recall what she did on specific dates, like April 1, 1986, or what the weather was like on her 21st birthday. Scientists are fascinated by her memory and study it to understand more.

In 2006, Jill's unique condition gained attention, and she later wrote a book about her experiences. While her memory is impressive, it also brings challenges. Jill remembers every detail, both happy and sad, making it difficult to move past unpleasant memories.

Vocabulary Answers

astonishing → amazing
autobiographical → personal
recalls → remembers
specific → exact
fascinated → interested
experiences → adventures
unpleasant → sad

Quiz Answers

  1. She has Highly Superior Autobiographical Memory (HSAM).
  2. She can recall what she did and what the weather was like on specific dates.
  3. She wrote a book about her experiences.
  4. She remembers every detail, both happy and sad, making it difficult to move past unpleasant memories.

True or False Answers

  1. False
  2. False
  3. True

Further Reading

https://www.npr.org/2008/05/19/90596530/blessed-and-cursed-by-an-extraordinary-memory

More "True Story" Lessons

ESL Lessons: True Stories