Sweden not Switzerland
Updated: Aug 29
ESL Lesson Plan Sweden not Switzerland uses the viral "Sweden (not Switzerland)" video campaign to explore cultural identity, national branding, and the stereotypes that get the two countries confused. Students open with a competitive quiz distinguishing Sweden from Switzerland, then react to real statistics on how often people mix the two up before working through vocabulary tied to diplomacy and identity — words like distinction, confusion, and yodelling. The video and a gap-fill listening task anchor the vocabulary in context, followed by comprehension questions, short reading texts on Swedish culture, and a "would you rather" fluency activity.
📄B2 ⏱️90 min 📁21 slide
Outcomes and skills:
Expanded vocabulary related to culture, geography, and identity.
Strengthened critical thinking through comparisons and reflections.
Ability to describe Swedish culture and contrast it with Switzerland’s image.
Vocabulary
distinction
proposition
confusion
negotiation
proposal
surreal acceleration
luxury
yodelling
Lesson plan
Lead-in
Students answer six personal questions about countries, flags, and geography — including whether they've ever mixed up two countries themselves — a fun and relatable way to open the topic
Quiz: Sweden or Switzerland?
A seven-round competitive quiz where students decide whether each clue refers to Sweden or Switzerland. Clues include ABBA, Toblerone, IKEA, Stockholm's 14 islands, EU membership, the franc, and four official languages — great for activating background knowledge before the vocabulary and video work.
Data Discussion
Students look at three striking statistics — 120,000 annual Google searches asking if the countries are the same, 50% of Americans unsure how to tell them apart, and 43% of British people admitting they confuse them — and react to each figure in open discussion.
Vocabulary Introduction
Learners study nine target words connected to the lesson's theme of diplomacy, identity, and culture, including distinction, confusion, surreal, acceleration, luxury, and yodelling.
Vocabulary Matching
Students match each word to its definition — establishing meaning before the listening task so target language is primed and ready for use in context.
Video: Sweden (Not Switzerland)
Students watch a 1 minute 55 second satirical promotional video in which Sweden addresses Switzerland directly about their "mutual problem," paying close attention to how the target vocabulary appears in natural use.
Listening: Gap Fill
Students listen again and fill in the missing words from the video script — covering key moments such as the distinction proposal, yodelling, confusion, surreal, acceleration, luxury, and proposal — reinforcing both comprehension and vocabulary recall.
Comprehension Questions
Six questions pushing students beyond surface understanding: what problem Sweden wants to solve, what their proposed solution is, what Sweden claims instead of mountain tops, what the opposite of particle accelerators is, what Sweden offers instead of expensive watches, and whether students think the video actually helps solve the confusion.
Facts About Sweden
Students read four short texts about Sweden covering fika culture, the country's 70% forest coverage and abundant wildlife, the right-to-roam law allowing camping on almost any land, and the Midnight Sun phenomenon in the far north where the sun doesn't set for weeks in summer.
Would You Rather...?
Seven paired choice questions directly drawing on lesson content — yodelling or silence, mountains or rooftops, leather couture or streetwear, banks or sandbanks, luxury watches or forgetting about time, particle accelerators or fika, Swiss chocolate or IKEA meatballs — a lively fluency activity that recycles vocabulary naturally.
Writing: Country Promotion Script
Students write a one-minute promotional script for their own country or one of their choosing. They follow a three-step structure — choosing a target audience (tourists, investors, students), then building a script with a hook, a body highlighting three or four distinctive features, and a call to action inviting the audience to visit and explore.
