Unit 8 Text a The Highs of Low Technology 1 Objectives 1. Skills: 1)reading: reading for the main idea and the ways to develop the main idea, making predictions 2)writing: write folloing the format of question /speculation /answer 3)listening: understanding the passages, listening for the main idea and the important details, learning to take notes while listening 4)speaking talking about avantage and disadvantages of technology 2. Vocabulary development words: garage sale, intrigue, innovation, nowhere, gang, glove, lure, pdal, genuine, fuss, gear, hord, representative, accessory, cushion, appliance, etc. 3. Grammar: The noun /pron. of which structure l. Teaching arrangement 1.Total class time for this unit: 6 periods 2. Suggested arrangement 1)Text A 4 periods 2) Text B 2 periods IlL. Teaching procedures 1. Pre-reading activities Spot Dictation Directions: In the famous tale Though the Looking-Glass, Alice finds her way through a mirror to a very strange land. In the scene you're about to hear, Alice has been sitting under a tree and talking with the Red Queen, Listen to the passage twice and fill in the missing words from the text below Passage Suddenly they began to run Alice never could quite understand how they began: All she remembers is that they were running hand in hand, and the Queen went so fast that Alice could hardly manage to keep up with her. The Queen kept crying But Alice couldn't go faster, though she had no breath left to say so. She felt as if she would never be able to talk again, she was getting so out of breath. And still the Queen cried Alice managed to gasp the Queen repeated. " Why ten minutes ago And they ran on, with the wind whistling in Alice's ears and almost blowing her hair off her head she imagined. They went so fast that at last they seemed to hardly touch the ground with their feet And then suddenly, just as Alice was getting quite exhausted, they stopped, and she found herself sitting on the ground Alice looked around in great surprise. "Why, I do believe "Of course we have, said the Queen. What would you expect? Well in my country, said Alice, "youd generall
21Century College English Book 3 Teaching Plan Wang Yinquan - 1 - Unit 8 Text A The Highs of Low Technology I. Objectives 1.Skills: 1) reading: reading for the main idea and the ways to develop the main idea, making predictions 2) writing: write folloing the format of question / speculation / answer 3) listening: understanding the passages, listening for the main idea and the important details, learning to take notes while listening 4) speaking: talking about anvantage and disadvantages of technology 2.Vocabulary development: words:garage sale, intrigue, innovation, nowhere, gang, glove, lure, pdal, genuine, fuss, gear, chord, representative, accessory, cushion, appliance, etc. 3.Grammar: The noun / pron. + of which structure II. Teaching arrangement 1.Total class time for this unit: 6 periods 2. Suggested arrangement: 1) Text A 4 periods 2）Text B 2 periods III. Teaching Procedures 1. Pre-reading activities ➢ Spot Dictation Directions: In the famous tale Though the Looking-Glass, Alice finds her way through a mirror to a very strange land. In the scene you’re about to hear, Alice has been sitting under a tree and talking with the Red Queen. Listen to the passage twice and fill in the missing words from the text below. Passage: Suddenly they began to run. Alice never could quite understand how they began: All she remembers is that they were running hand in hand, and the Queen went so fast that Alice could hardly manage to keep up with her. The Queen kept crying “_____________”But Alice couldn’t go faster, though she had no breath left to say so. She felt as if she would never be able to talk again, she was getting so out of breath. And still the Queen cried “______________”and dragged her along. “__________________” Alice managed to gasp. “_____________” the Queen repeated. “Why, ____________ ten minutes ago! _______” And they ran on, with the wind whistling in Alice’s ears and almost blowing her hair off her head, she imagined. They went so fast that at last they seemed to hardly touch the ground with their feet. And then suddenly, just as Alice was getting quite exhausted, they stopped, and she found herself sitting on the ground. Alice looked around in great surprise. “Why, I do believe _________________________.” “Of course we have,” said the Queen. “What would you expect?” “Well in my country,” said Alice, “you’d generally ______________________________
said the Queen. " Here it takes 答案见幻灯片) Background information Pioneers(settlers), the first members of a group to settle in an area, are especially important in the history of North America Pioneers often suffer great hardships and are often responsible for forming the basic structure of society for those who follow 2. While-reading activities Framework of the Text Part I(Para.1 The problem with the authors old-fashioned bicycle-different attitudes Part ll(Para. 2) What kinds of comments does the bicycle invite from other people Part Ill(Para.3) how do we interpret the comments about the old bicycle? Part IⅤ(Para4-6) The explanation of the puzzle -advantages of the old bicycle as seen by the author Part V(Para. 7) Conclusion about the old-fashioned bicycle and the corresponding low technology Key language points The highs of Low Technology high: n. something that is high; a high point or level The word is used here in contrast to low in"low technology". It means advantage low technology: simple, unsophisticated technology The term is patterned after"high technology", which means scientific technology involving the production or use of advanced or sophisticated devices, esp in the fields of electronics and computers garage sale(line 3) a (AmE) aprivate sale of used furniture, household appliances, personal articles, clothing tools, and other items, held in the garage or other part of a seller's home Things that you get at garage sales are usually very cheap and of no great value I cherish its simplicity(line 5) Cherish implies a special love and care. Appreciate often connotes understanding and admiration eg. She cherishes her children above al eg. We all appreciate beautiful things What intrigues me, in this age of technological innovation(which is nowhere more apparent than in the bicycle world), is the number of people who stop me and comment on my bike. (line 6 Intrigue: vt excite Interest or curiosItY
21Century College English Book 3 Teaching Plan Wang Yinquan - 2 - “___________________” said the Queen. “Here it takes ___________________________.” (答案见幻灯片) ➢ Background information Pioneers (settlers), the first members of a group to settle in an area, are especially important in the history of North America. Pioneers often suffer great hardships and are often responsible for forming the basic structure of society for those who follow. 2. While-reading activities ➢ Framework of the Text Part I (Para.1) The problem with the author’s old-fashioned bicycle – different attitudes Part II (Para.2) What kinds of comments does the bicycle invite from other people Part III (Para.3) how do we interpret the comments about the old bicycle? Part IV (Para.4-6) The explanation of the puzzle – advantages of the old bicycle as seen by the author Part V (Para.7) Conclusion about the old-fashioned bicycle and the corresponding low technology ➢ Key language points The Highs of Low Technology ◼ high: n. something that is high; a high point or level ◼ The word is used here in contrast to low in “low technology”. It means “advantage”. ◼ low technology: simple, unsophisticated technology ◼ The term is patterned after “high technology”, which means scientific technology involving the production or use of advanced or sophisticated devices, esp. in the fields of electronics and computers. garage sale (line 3) ◼ (AmE) a private sale of used furniture, household appliances, personal articles, clothing, tools, and other items, held in the garage or other part of a seller’s home ◼ Things that you get at garage sales are usually very cheap and of no great value. I cherish its simplicity. (line 5) ◼ I appreciate its simplicity. ◼ Cherish implies a special love and care. Appreciate often connotes understanding and admiration. ◼ eg. She cherishes her children above all. ◼ eg. We all appreciate beautiful things. What intrigues me, in this age of technological innovation (which is nowhere more apparent than in the bicycle world), is the number of people who stop me and comment on my bike. (line 6) ◼ intrigue: vt. excite interest or curiosity
eg. Anything colorful intrigued the little boy. which is no where more apparent than in the bicycle world which(technological innovation) is most clearly embodied in the improvement on bicycle a particular world is a particular field of activity and the people involved in it eg. They are well-known names in the film world i get all kinds of comments ---the best one being from a motorcycle gang who cornered me hile I was locking it up. (line 11) the best one being from a motorcycle gang who cornered me: the best comment being from a group of motorcyclists who surrounded and pressed me the absolute participle structure eg corner(a person, an animal, etc. ) vt get(a person, an animal, etc. )into a place or situation which they cannot easily escape from a eg. The police pursued and cornered the escaped prisoner. the lure of mass bicycle consumerism (line 1 le influence of advocacy oflc ale consumption of bi le temptation to buy Lure suggests something that always attracts and often deceives yet does not necessarily leads one into evil or danger. Temptation often suggests the desire to do or have, through pleasure or gain, something one knows one should not do or have eg. She was attracted to Holly wood by the lure of the silver screen I never get the feeling that they think I,'m crazy for riding something so old when I could be fussing with gears and having a presumably easier time of things.(line 23) a I never have the feeling that they think I'mfond of riding such an out-dated bicycle when I could be excitedly riding a bicycle with gears and having a possibly more comfortable experience with life fuss with sth. be excited about and rush around doing sth. unimportant eg. It irritates me the way she's always fussing with her hair have a(n)easy /hard time of have a(n)comfortable/uncomfortable experience with eg. For the rest of the trip he had an easy time of it. My bike seems to touch a sensitive chord in people.(line 28) My bike seems to arouse a sensitive response in people touch/strike a chord. call up an emotion, usu. sympathy or enthusiasm eg. The report touched a chord in the American peopl eg. The speaker had obviously struck a chord with his audience the world before gimmicks and gadgets, accessories and attachments(line 32) The world before the mention of all kinds of novel devices attached to the bicycle Gimmicks and gadgets implies something novel, fanciful, unnecessary, and coast along the street (line 37) ride a bicycle along the streets in a smooth and effortless manner coast along: move along or make progress without much effort
21Century College English Book 3 Teaching Plan Wang Yinquan - 3 - ◼ eg. Anything colorful intrigued the little boy. ◼ which is no where more apparent than in the bicycle world ◼ which (technological innovation) is most clearly embodied in the improvement on bicycles ◼ A particular world is a particular field of activity and the people involved in it. ◼ eg. They are well-known names in the film world. I get all kinds of comments --- the best one being from a motorcycle gang who cornered me while I was locking it up. (line 11) ◼ the best one being from a motorcycle gang who cornered me: the best comment being from a group of motorcyclists who surrounded and pressed me ◼ the absolute participle structure ◼ eg. Weather permitting, we’ll start tomorrow. ◼ corner (a person, an animal, etc.): vt. get (a person, an animal, etc.) into a place or situation which they cannot easily escape from ◼ eg. The police pursued and cornered the escaped prisoner. the lure of mass bicycle consumerism (line 17) ◼ the influence of advocacy of large-scale consumption of bicycles; the temptation to buy new bicycles ◼ lure: n. attraction; temptation ◼ Lure suggests something that always attracts and often deceives yet does not necessarily leads one into evil or danger. Temptation often suggests the desire to do or have, through pleasure or gain, something one knows one should not do or have. ◼ eg. She was attracted to Hollywood by the lure of the silver screen. I never get the feeling that they think I’m crazy for riding something so old when I could be fussing with gears and having a presumably easier time of things. (line 23) ◼ I never have the feeling that they think I’m fond of riding such an out-dated bicycle when I could be excitedly riding a bicycle with gears and having a possibly more comfortable experience with life. ◼ fuss with sth.: be excited about and rush around doing sth. unimportant ◼ eg. It irritates me the way she’s always fussing with her hair. ◼ have a(n) easy / hard time of: have a(n) comfortable / uncomfortable experience with ◼ eg. For the rest of the trip he had an easy time of it. My bike seems to touch a sensitive chord in people … (line 28) ◼ My bike seems to arouse a sensitive response in people … ◼ touch / strike a chord: call up an emotion, usu. sympathy or enthusiasm ◼ eg. The report touched a chord in the American people. ◼ eg. The speaker had obviously struck a chord with his audience. the world before gimmicks and gadgets, accessories and attachments (line 32) ◼ The world before the invention of all kinds of novel devices attached to the bicycle ◼ Gimmicks and gadgets implies something novel, fanciful, unnecessary, and complicated. coast along the street (line 37) ◼ ride a bicycle along the streets in a smooth and effortless manner ◼ coast along: move along or make progress without much effort
a eg coast along on a bicycle(=ride along without pedaling) a eg. While I struggled and labored, my sister just coasted along with top grades in all eel small (line 43) feel ridiculous, ashamed or humiliated (Also: look small eg. Talking to him makes me feel smal eg. He is al ways trying to make me look small in front of my girlfriend I eventually adapt to these so-called conveniences and accept them as a part of life. (line 55) a In the end I become used to these so-called conveniences and begin to use them in my daily life convenience:n./C/appliance or device that is useful, helpful or suitable eg. the house has all the modern conveniences, such as central heating and hot water supply a eg. There is a public convenience(Brit. euph. =lavatory)on the corner of the street I have a sneaking suspicion that many people feel the same way. (line 58) a Im not sure but I suspect that many people have the same feeling as I do a sneaking suspicion: an unproved and vague feeling of suspicion If you have a sneaking feeling about someone or something, the feeling embarrasses you, for example, because it is caused by the realization that someone else was right and you were wrong, or because it is the opposite of what you normally feel about them eg. I have a sneaking suspicion that he stole my wallet pioneer-village attitude (line 62) a Way of thinking of early American settlers and country people who used to have a simple, self-sufficient life Here it implies a self-sufficient, industrious, simple way of living 3. Post-reading activities Write Directions: Present a puccle of your own, then use the question/speculation /answer format to ponder it in about 150 words a Here are some puzzle you may want to ponder in your composition the preference to new products People's reaction to an unusual habit, hobby or profession of yours why we value an old custom or belief Sample Writing-- My Preference to New Products The author of the text"The Highs of Low Technology"seems to express the idea that people like their older possessions, not the new ones. But I would rather prefer the new products to old ones. So maybe people would think that I am the sort of person who tries to create or follow the fashion. Or perhaps, I dont have any old possessions at all These things are representatives of the world today, the things that people cannot live without: everything from microwave ovens and videocassette recorders to Scotch tape and aluminum foil Time is the scarce resource today. The kinds of things people will not be live without will be the kinds of things that free up time. Computers will allow us to squeeze in a few hours of work
21Century College English Book 3 Teaching Plan Wang Yinquan - 4 - ◼ eg. coast along on a bicycle (= ride along without pedaling) ◼ eg. While I struggled and labored, my sister just coasted along with top grades in all subjects. feel small (line 43) ◼ feel ridiculous, ashamed or humiliated (Also: look small) ◼ eg. Talking to him makes me feel small. ◼ eg. He is always trying to make me look small in front of my girlfriend. I eventually adapt to these so-called conveniences and accept them as a part of life. (line 55) ◼ In the end I become used to these so-called conveniences and begin to use them in my daily life. ◼ convenience: n. [C] appliance or device that is useful, helpful or suitable ◼ eg. The house has all the modern conveniences, such as central heating and hot water supply. ◼ eg. There is a public convenience (Brit. euph. = lavatory) on the corner of the street I have a sneaking suspicion that many people feel the same way. (line 58) ◼ I’m not sure but I suspect that many people have the same feeling as I do. ◼ a sneaking suspicion: an unproved and vague feeling of suspicion ◼ If you have a sneaking feeling about someone or something, the feeling embarrasses you, for example, because it is caused by the realization that someone else was right and you were wrong, or because it is the opposite of what you normally feel about them. ◼ eg. I have a sneaking suspicion that he stole my wallet. pioneer-village attitude (line 62) ◼ Way of thinking of early American settlers and country people who used to have a simple, self-sufficient life ◼ Here it implies a self-sufficient, industrious, simple way of living. 3. Post-reading activities ➢ Writing Directions: Present a puzzle of your own, then use the question / speculation / answer format to ponder it in about 150 words. ◼ Here are some puzzle you may want to ponder in your composition. ◼ the preference to new products ◼ People’s reaction to an unusual habit, hobby or profession of yours ◼ why we value an old custom or belief Sample Writing -- My Preference to New Products The author of the text “The Highs of Low Technology” seems to express the idea that people like their older possessions, not the new ones. But I would rather prefer the new products to old ones. So maybe people would think that I am the sort of person who tries to create or follow the fashion. Or perhaps, I don’t have any old possessions at all. These things are representatives of the world today, the things that people cannot live without: everything from microwave ovens and videocassette recorders to Scotch tape and aluminum foil. Time is the scarce resource today. The kinds of things people will not be live without will be the kinds of things that free up time. Computers will allow us to squeeze in a few hours of work
before bedtime; videocassette recorders will let us skip commercials and microwave ovens will warm up a bottle if milk in seconds. I just wonder why some people stick with old possessi when the new products are making our life a lot easier 1)Word building The prefix bi- means two. Study the following English words and their Chinese translations Words Chinese meaning biannual 年两次的;两年一次的 bilateral 风边的 bilingual 双语的 binocular 双筒望远镜 ane 杈翼飞机 bicultural j元文化的 Now complete the sentences below filling in each blank with one of these words The merits of education are a controversial issue in areas of the world with large minority populations A is an early type of airplane with two sets of wings, one above the other A publication comes out once every two years a If you want to take up bird watching, the first thing you need is a good pair of France and germany have signed a agreement aimed at improving the balance of trade (答案见幻灯片 2)Translation 1.那位著名科学家把计算机制造厂家所作的技术革新称作对现代社会发展的伟大贡献 The famous scientist referred to the technical innovations made by computer manufacturers as aa great contribution to the development of modern society 2.这对老人喜爱乡间生活。他们认为世界上别无他处可找到他们在那里所享受到的安宁。 The old couple delighted in their country life. They believed that nowhere else in the world could they find the pead ce thev 3.约翰暗中怀疑他妻子对于汽车是怎么擦破的说了谎。 John had a sneaking suspicion that his wife was lying about how the car had gotten scratched 4.这栋房子是这个城市新建筑的典型,因它兼具古典和现代建筑的优点 This house is representative of the new buildings in the city as it has all the merits of both classic and modern architecture
21Century College English Book 3 Teaching Plan Wang Yinquan - 5 - before bedtime; videocassette recorders will let us skip commercials and microwave ovens will warm up a bottle if milk in seconds. I just wonder why some people stick with old possessions when the new products are making our life a lot easier. ➢ Exercises 1) Word building The prefix bi- means two. Study the following English words and their Chinese translations. Words Chinese Meaning biannual 一年两次的; 两年一次的 bilateral 双边的 bilingual 双语的 binocular 双筒望远镜 biplane 双翼飞机 bicultural 两元文化的 Now complete the sentences below filling in each blank with one of these words. ◼ The merits of _____________ education are a controversial issue in areas of the world with large minority populations. ◼ A _____________ is an early type of airplane with two sets of wings, one above the other. ◼ A _____________ publication comes out once every two years. ◼ If you want to take up bird watching, the first thing you need is a good pair of ______________. ◼ France and Germany have signed a ___________ agreement aimed at improving the balance of trade. (答案见幻灯片) 2) Translation 1. 那位著名科学家把计算机制造厂家所作的技术革新称作对现代社会发展的伟大贡献。 The famous scientist referred to the technical innovations made by computer manufacturers as a a great contribution to the development of modern society. 2. 这对老人喜爱乡间生活。他们认为世界上别无他处可找到他们在那里所享受到的安宁。 The old couple delighted in their country life. They believed that nowhere else in the world could they find the peace they enjoyed there. 3. 约翰暗中怀疑他妻子对于汽车是怎么擦破的说了谎。 John had a sneaking suspicion that his wife was lying about how the car had gotten scratched. 4. 这栋房子是这个城市新建筑的典型，因它兼具古典和现代建筑的优点。 This house is representative of the new buildings in the city as it has all the merits of both classic and modern architecture