“Both Sides Now”

Joni Michell, 1967

Many singers have recorded Joni Mitchell’s song “Both Sides Now.” Her own version, with its slow tempo and clear diction, is particularly well-suited for language learning. The song’s language is poetic but comprehensible to language learners, and the repetition of the adverbial phrase “at all” models how the phrase is used. Plus, the song has a poignant story behind it. All in all, it’s a great choice for the language classroom.

Choose from the following activities:

  • Reading Read the story behind the song.
  • Listening Listen to Joni Mitchell’s audio-only video while filling in the missing words in the song. (This exercise targets the rhyming words, many of which rhyme but have different spellings: sun/done, feel/real, etc.) Lyrics intended for non-profit educational purposes only.

both sides now, lyrics gap-fill.pdf

  • Grammar / Usage The song repeats the adverbial phrase at all several times. The expression “at all” is common in English, but somewhat difficult to define or explain; it is best clarified through examples. It is important to point out that the expression is used in negatives and in questions but not in affirmative statements:

Correct: They don’t speak any French at all.
Correct: Do they speak any French at all?
Incorrect: They speak French at alll.

The exercise below gives students practice using the phrase. Permission granted to duplicate for classroom use. 

at all worksheet.pdf      at all worksheet (webpage)