Super Bowl Halftime Show Down!

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Looking for a high-engagement, low-prep ELA lesson for the Friday before the Super Bowl or the Monday after? Super Bowl Half Time ShowDown turns one of the biggest pop-culture moments of the year into a standards-aligned argument activity your students can get behind.
 
Students choose a judging criteria/category (best songs, best dressed, most iconic, best overall, and more), build a bracket-style tournament of Super Bowl halftime performances, and defend their champion using clear claims, evidence, and reasoning.
 
Perfect for secondary ELA classrooms, this lesson sparks debate, collaboration, and critical thinking, without feeling like “extra work.”
 
What’s Included:
Interactive Google Slides Assignment
Student-friendly category list with multiple judging lenses
Clear directions for building and advancing the bracket
Defense prompt for written or oral reasoning
Hyperlinks to YouTube videos of past halftime shows featuring Bruno Mars, Katy Perry, Kendrick Lamar, Beyoncé, Prince, + more
 
Why teachers love it:
Low prep, high engagement
Built-in claim, evidence, and reasoning practice
Student choice + pop culture = buy-in
Works before or after the Super Bowl
Easy to scale for discussion, writing, or debate