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Famous people—Dolly Parton

EFLsuccess.com

An EFL lesson for middle-level students

Aug 2026. eflsuccess.com ⇔

Warm up: What does “rags-to-riches” mean? Do you know about anyone who grew up very poor, but later became well-known or wealthy? Tell us about him/her.

Vocabulary:

(*key terms) [sth=something, sb=somebody; click here for common English abbreviations]

  • *country music: music (normally associated with the American South) that focuses on working class American life. “Most country music features a singer who plays a stringed instrument like a guitar or banjo.”
  • philanthropist: a rich person who gives a lot of money to help people in need
  • *distinguished: respected, admired and successful
  • pastored: a “pastor” is a Christian leader, trained to teach Christian truth and care for a local church, so “to pastor” means to act as a pastor (i.e., to lead a church)
  • single: when a musician releases one or two song recordings together, apart from a larger album
  • camera-shy (adj.):  sb that does not like to be photographed or filmed
  • variety show: a stage show that invites various artists to perform different types of entertainment like music, dance, comedy, or acrobatics
  • *to star (vb.):  to act/perform the role of a main character in theater or film
  • chick flick: (slang) a film designed to appeal to women, esp. movies that feature lots of emotion and/or relationships (though not necessarily romantic)
  • to gross (grossed): to bring in money (esp for a movie) seen as a total, before subtracting the cost to make the project (salaries, distribution, cost to make props, taxes, etc.)
  • *theme park: a public place where you pay to enter, then enjoy various attractions (such as roller coasters, theater shows or restaurants) that all share a common setting or idea (similar to an “amusement park”)  “The Disney theme parks have rides based on popular characters from their movies.”
  • *hometown: the city or place sb grew up/spent their childhood in
  • *attractions: sth interesting or enjoyable to see or do; things you can ride/do/see in a theme park “Dollywood’s most popular attractions include several roller coasters, a steam train, a children’s playground, themed restaurants, and several concert stages.”
  • literacy: the state of being able to read and write “Programs that seek to improve adult literacy rates are very important in developing countries.”
  • *grounded: to be based on (facts, research, beliefs, knowledge, etc.)

Expressions or proper nouns:

  • rags-to-riches: refers to sb who starts life very poor but later gains a lot of money (though business, entertainment, investment, etc.) 
  • 9 to 5: AmE slang term for a full-time job, usually requiring 40 hours of work a week. “My 9 to 5 job is teaching, but I have a side hustle delivering food and packages with my car.” (“side hustle” is a part-time job)

Dolly Parton

Underlined vocabulary terms are defined above, followed by discussion questions.

Dolly Parton was an award-winning female country music artist, songwriter, actor and philanthropist. Starting in the mid 1960s, Dolly worked on over 65 albums and received Emmy, Grammy, BMI and numerous other awards including the distinguished Living Legend Award (U.S. Library of Congress, 2004).

Born in 1946 in a one-room cabin near the Great Smoky Mountains, Dolly was the fourth of 12 children in a poor family. Her parents taught her to have faith, to love, and to work hard. As young as 5 years old, Dolly was writing and singing in the church pastored by her grandfather. Her uncle, singer/songwriter Bill Owens, was one of Dolly’s biggest supporters. When she was 10, she first appeared on TV & radio (The Cas Walker Show in Knoxville, TN), and at 13 Dolly performed at the famous Grand Ole Opry with her uncle and released her first single: “Puppy Love.” In 1966 she married Carl Dean, her loving but camera-shy, husband. Her first full length solo album “Hello, I’m Dolly” was released in 1967. Following the album, Dolly joined The Porter Wagoner Show and made various other TV variety show appearances. In 1976-1977 Parton hosted her own variety show: Dolly!

Her movie career started in 1980 with the comedy “9 to 5”, followed by various roles in TV movies. Dolly also starred in the chick flick “Steel Magnolias” (1989), which grossed nearly $100,000,000 at the box office, and earned several People’s Choice awards. In 1986, Parton took ownership of Dollywood, a theme park in her hometown of Sevier County, Tennessee. Dollywood has become famous for not only rollercoasters and rides for all ages, but also for family-friendly live performances such as bluegrass and southern Gospel. The Dollywood Company now owns several attractions in three states.

Dolly was also well-known for charitable efforts, including wild-life rescue, disaster relief, medical education, and Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library (promoting literacy). This “library” sends free books to young children across the USA, Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, and the Republic of Ireland. By the time of her death (Aug 25, 2026), her Imagination Library had sent a monthly book to over 200 million children (up to the age of 5), and Dolly had donated over $650 million to various causes.

Dolly Parton has been described as a “country legend.” With countless awards and over 100 million records sold worldwide, she is one of the best-selling music artists of all time. Her songs, films, and life story have captured the hearts of generations, yet she remained humble and grounded in faith and family. No dream was ever too big and no mountain ever too high for the little country girl who turned the world into her stage.

(See discussion questions after the Dollywood photos below.)

Vocabulary matching:

Match the words from the article on the left with their synonyms on the right. Are your answers the same as other students’? 

1. to star                a. respected
2. philanthropist         b. based on
3. cabin                  c. funny
4. chick                  d. shows
5. distinguished          e. to perform
6. comedy                 f. donor
7. performances           g. simple house
8. grounded               h. woman

Video (optional):

Before discussing this article, watch one of Dolly Parton’s performances. Here are some suggestions:

Dollywood Photos

Dollywood is very close to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
A genuine steam engine runs on the hour, giving passengers nice views of the theme park and mountains.
Dollywood has several world-class roller coasters, and many other rides.
Some people think the best part of Dollywood is the stage shows that run throughout the day.
It is possible to move from show to show, filling up your entire day with great music!
At Dollywood, you can also see craftsmen at work; the food is wonderful too!
On my first visit I was surprised to see SO MANY attractions for children, too!
Elaborate decorations change from season to season; the theme park boasts six million lights at Christmastime.

Discussion:

Are there any terms you want to ask your teacher about? (As always, please do not answer any question that makes you uncomfortable.) If you have a lower English level, ask your partner “content questions” which have answers in the text.

  1. The text says Dolly’s parents taught her “to have faith, to love, and to work hard.” Tell us about a value that you learned from your parents.
  2. How many brothers and sisters did Dolly have? Talk about the good and bad reasons to have a large family.
  3. Name one of the influences in Dolly’s life. Tell us about someone who has influenced or supported you.
  4. If you could star in a film, what kind would it be, and why? (comedy, chick-flick, documentary, romance…)
  5. Think of your favorite actor. Name one show he/she starred in. Why is he/she your favorite?
  6. What kinds of charity did Dolly support? Tell us about a charity you support, or would like to donate to.
  7. Read these Dolly Parton quotes. Explain what you think she was talking about.
    • “Storms make trees take deeper roots.”
    • “I always ask God to work through me and let me be a light of some kind and help in this world, so I always pray for that. And I always want to do good.”
    • “Find out who you are, and do it on purpose.”
  8. Read the last sentence of the article. What is your “stage”?

For additional lessons on famous people, visit: https://famouspeoplelessons.com

Matching (answers)

  • 1.              to star=to perform                     5. distinguished=respected
  • 2.              philanthropist=donor                6. comedy=funny
  • 3.              cabin=simple house                  7. performances=shows
  • 4.              chick=woman                   8. grounded=based on

Sources include

Original materials on EFLsuccess.com ©Michael Krigline, some rights reserved (written 2024, updated 2026). Our resources were created for our students under the understanding of “fair use” for educational resources. As far as we are concerned, website visitors are allowed to print/copy these materials for personal or classroom use. For details, see our Website Standards and Use Policy. We also encourage you to visit Michael’s inspirational website: wp.krigline.com.

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