Using regional UK accent may give an edge (P4)

山东烟台二中 赵娜娜

I. Lead-in 

Do you like to talk to people who speak with unusual accents? 

There are also many different accents in Britain.

Scouse,

Glaswegian and Black Country are just three of many. 

Watch the video and answer the questions. 

1.What do we call standard English?

Received Pronunciation 

2. What’s the name of the Liverpool accent?

Scouse

3. Which two sounds are mentioned that differs from other accents?

［r］and［k］

II. While-reading 

Fast reading

Read the article quickly, and answer the question: 

What’s the main idea of the passage?

The positive and negative impacts British accents have on non-Brits and local speakers.

Careful reading

Read the passage carefully, and answer the following questions: 

1. What’s the difference between people’s assumption about British accents and the reality? 

There’s an assumption by many non-Brits that everyone in Britain speaks with what’s known as a Received Pronunciation accent, while most Britons speak in their own regional (地区的) accents.

2. What negative impacts can not speaking in an RP accent have on a British person? 

Besides from disappointing foreign visitors, not speaking in an RP accent may mean a British person is judged, or even treated differently, in their everyday life.

3. How did the study by The University of South Wales work? 

Videos of people reading a passage in three different UK accents were shown to a second group of people. The group then rated how intelligent they thought the readers sounded.

4.What was the result of the study?

Specific regional accents are often perceived as inferior and belonging to groups lacking in prestige.

5. What advantages are there to a non-Brit not speaking in an RP accent? 

British people usually get really excited when they talk with people using some of their local dialect words, and they become much more friendly. It makes a bit of bond (情感纽带) between local people and foreigners when they both use the same accent.

Read the passage carefully, and find the sentences with similar meaning to the following ones: 

1. People with non-RP accents are usually considered to be less noble and of ordinary social status

Specific regional accents are often perceived as inferior and belonging to groups lacking in prestige. 

2. It’s obvious that people with local accents are still treated unequally

It is clear that many of those with regional accents are still hitting a glass ceiling. 

a glass ceiling

A glass ceiling is a metaphor used to represent an invisible barrier that keeps a given group (typically applied to women) from rising beyond a certain level in a hierarchy

E.g., Because they are hitting a glass ceiling, many talented women are leaving their organizations in search of better opportunities elsewhere.

III. Post-reading 

Discussion

Based on the passage, discuss and share your opinions on British accents with your partners.

Debate

As a Chinese person, do you think it is acceptable to speak with local accents?

IV. Homework

Writing:

Write an article about your idea of accents.

 

Climate affects health (P5)

山东烟台二中 赵娜娜

I. Lead-in 

What do you think of when it comes to climate change?

Rising sea level

What influence can climate change have on human beings?

With your partners, describe the picture and discuss what you believe the child may be thinking.

What impact can climate change have on mental health?

II. While-reading 

Fast reading

Read the article quickly, and answer the following question: 

What is the main idea of the passage?

Climate change can influence  victims’ mental health  because of the impacts of a disaster, changes in their surroundings, harm to their physical health or changes to how different communities interact with one another.

Read the passage quickly again and finish the following match

Para. 1

Introduction

Para.2-3

The result of the study

Para. 4-7

Different kinds of impacts on mental health due to climate change

Para. 8-11

Solutions 

Careful reading

Part 1

Read Para1 carefully and explain the phrases in English using your own words.

When it comes to/ melting/ rising/ impact

Part 2

Read Para2-3 carefully, and answer the following questions:

1. What’s the result of the study?

It was discovered that disasters linked to climate change could cause shock due to personal injuries, loss of a loved one, damage to property (财产) or even the loss of livelihood. When the negative emotions caused by these events eventually go away, they may be replaced by longer-term mental impacts.

2.What method is used to explain the results?

For example, both suicides (自杀) and suicidal thoughts more than doubled among people in Louisiana, US, after Hurricane Katrina happened in 2005, according to the report. Nearly half of the people living in the affected area developed anxiety or a mood disorder such as depression (抑郁症). 

Part 3

Read Para4-7 carefully, and finish the tasks:

1.Find the transitional words or sentences in Part 3.

However, disasters alone aren’t the only causes of climate change-related mental health problems. 

The effects can also have an impact on physical health. 

In addition 

2.Read Para4 and fill in the blanks.

Changes in climate also ____ __ ___(造成损失) on agriculture, ________(基础设施) and _________(宜居度), which in turn affect ________(职业) and quality of life. As a result, some people ____ _____ __ ____(迁徙) and become so-called ____ ______(气候难民).

3.Read Para5-7 and answer the questions.

a. What are the effects of changes in climate on victims?

These effects can lead to a loss of personal and professional identity, or cause feelings of helplessness and fear. The effects can also have an impact on physical health. High levels of stress and anxiety are linked to conditions such as a weakened immune system. 

b. How does climate change influence the way communities interact?

Both long-term effects such as drought and extreme (极端的) weather events, such as hurricanes, have been shown to make people more aggressive (好斗的), according to earlier studies.

Part 4

Read Para8-11 carefully again and answer the question.

What’s the solution to reducing the negative impacts on mental health? 

The most important thing is to encourage social connections, make people feel more secure and give them greater access to information.

Another important factor is being prepared.

III. Post-reading 

Discussion

Discuss with your partners and share your opinions on how to help the victims of mental health problems caused by climate change.

IV. Homework

Writing:

Write an article about the impacts of climate change on people’s mental health and give some possible solutions.

 

Turning pain of loss into laughter (P6)

辽宁沈阳二中 常虹

I. Lead-in 

When you think of SISTERS, what comes to mind?

They can ______ each other.

How about the sisters in the passage?

II. While reading 

Scanning: 

Read the first two and the last two paragraphs and answer the following questions. 

•What happened after Jayde and her sister Jenna said ‘I love you’ to each other?

Days later, aged 28, Jenna died, killed by a serious disease.

•How did Jayde become a stand-up comedian?

Jenna encouraged her to find humor at the darkest of times, and her death gave Jayde a sense of fearlessness. This led to her becoming a stand-up comedian.

•Why did Jayde enter the Funny Women competition?

She'd watched her sister die, then she found herself letting go of all the insecurities that had held her back previously. It was around then that she entered the Funny Women competition.

Read the middle part of the article and put the facts in order of time.

1. I was studying at university when I was told that Jenna had a serious disease.

2. We stuck together and even shared a room.

3. I began seeing life differently.

4. I'd joke around and try to lighten the mood.

5. We both said, “I love you” in a phone conversation. 

6. I still joked around, making fun of her for not taking care of her eyebrows. 

2—1—4—5—6—3

Skim the passage and  find out what the number refers to.

28Aged 28, Jenna died, killed by a serious disease2011Jenna died in 2011.

five yearsFive years after losing Jenna I can see that it also shaped who I am.two yearsIt took two years for the sadness to start to lift.

31At 31, I now see that life's too short to worry about my own insecurities.2014She won the Funny Women competition. 

Read the passage again and answer the questions. (open)

•What do you think of Jenna? Provide some proof.

•How did Jayde’s mood change? From p_______ to f________.

•Can you sum up the main idea of the passage?

Mini cloze

 Jenna’s death gave me a ___1___ of fearlessness - which ___2___me becoming a stand-up comedian. During Jenna's___3___ hospital stays, I'd joke around and try to lighten the mood. 

 1.A. way   B. sense    C. feeling    D. mind

 2.A. turned out        B. appealed to    C. led to    D. contributed for

 3.A. often   B. alternative   C. regular    D. regretful

  I found myself __1__  all the insecurities that had held me back previously. My win in 2014 __2__ a huge turning point in my career . I sometimes wonder __3__I'd be doing all this if Jenna hadn't died. But the __4__ is, she did - and this is what I've been left with.

1. A. giving in to      B. making up for

  C. fed up with        D. letting go of

2.A. marked     B. remained    C. improved    D. altered

3.A. what      B. how       C. if                D. why

4. A. case       B. thing       C. matter    D. story

Translate the following sentences.

I wanted to make everyone around her stop acting like the worst thing was about to happen - because we didn't know that it was. 

我想让每一个她身边的人都不要表现出最糟糕的事情马上要发生的样子--- 因为我们并不知道那确实是最糟糕的事情。

Jayde Adams

Date of birth: 26-11-1984

Winner of the 2014 Funny Women Award

III. Post-reading 

Discussion：

1. Do you have a sister or a brother? Would you want to have one? Why or why not?

2. Have you experienced losing someone you love? If possible, could you share your feelings with us? What did you learn from the experience?

IV. Homework

Collect some words or expressions to describe both painful and fearless moods.