Boy next door (Page 4)
21st
I. Lead-in:
Who is your favorite musician?
What are their best qualities?
II. Read between the lines:
1. What makes Ed Sheeran stand out among British musicians?
His music is based on real life stories.
2. When did Ed Sheeran start to develop an interest in music?
When he was young, his parents limited how much TV he could watch and banned electronic games. Instead they bought him a guitar, which brought him into the world of music.
3. Give one example the author uses to describe Ed Sheeran’s character.
“I was based on different friends’ sofas. Not knowing where you’re going to stay every night can get difficult,” he told Faze magazine.   ---Independence
An ordinary T-shirt and a pair of jeans is perfectly fine with him. 
And Sheeran’s wild celebrations of his success only go as far as splashing out on Lego kits.
   ---Humbleness, down to earth quality
III. Language study
Translate the following sentence into Chinese:
“Writing songs and playing live is like turning on a tap in an old house; first you’ll get the mud and dirty water, but the more you get it out, the quicker the good water starts flowing,” he said.
创作歌曲和现场表演就像打开一间老房子里的下水管道；先出来的是泥巴和脏水，但是随着出来的水越来越多，你能看到越来越多的清水流出来。
IV. After reading
What can we learn from Ed Sheeran’s experiences?
What do you think is the correct attitude toward hardship and failure?
New clones are coming (Page 5)
21st
I. Lead-in:
Have you ever heard of cloning before?
What kind of animals have been cloned?
II. Read between the lines:
1. What is the major theme of Martine Rothblatt’s new book, Virtually Human: The Promise and the Peril of Digital Immortality?
The major theme is technology that can make artificial copies of human minds.
2. What is the latest development in mind cloning technology?
Scientists at Stanford University in the United States recently created a circuit (电路) board modeled on the human brain that could simulate 1 million neurons and billions of connections in the brain.
3. According to Rothblatt, what will be the first step of future mind cloning technology?
“Mindclones” will first begin as digital assistants in our mobile devices.
4. What is the author’s attitude toward the rights of “mindclones”?
The author has an objective attitude toward the rights of “mindclones”.
III. Vocabulary
Fill in the blanks with words from the article:
1. Some children find it difficult to ____ with others.
2. The city is dotted with small lakes, both natural and _____.
3. A sheet of metal was shaken to ______ the noise of thunder. 
4. Tom was in some ways a younger ____ of his handsome father. 
IV. After reading
Do you agree with cloning a human mind? Why or why not?
The other woman (Page 6)
大连开发区八中程国良
I. Free talk
Ask the students to describe their mothers and then ask them:
How long do you usually spend with your mother every week?
What do you usually do for her? Why? Why not?
II. Reading
Read the article carefully and answer the following questions.
1. Why didn’t the author visit his mother very often?
2. What did he do with his mother that evening?
3. What happened to his mother a few days later?
4. How did he feel about his mother’s death?
III. Choose the best answer for each of the following statements:
1. The mother had curled her hair and was in her best clothes because ____.
A. she wanted to honor the memory of her husband.
B. it was her wedding anniversary.
C. she cared about her son’s visit very much.
2. The sentence “My mother took my arm as if she were the First Lady” suggests that _____.
A. she was very happy and proud.
B. she looked noble and elegant.
C. she was serious and pleased.
IV. Vocabulary
Find out a word or phrase from the article to match the following.
1. before something happens ______
2. to do something you have not managed to do yet    ______
3. to delay doing something   ______
4. to have earned something with your good or bad behavior _______
5. pleasant      _______
V. Translate the following sentences with proper words and phrases from the article.
1. 你可以提前十天在网上预订火车票。
2. 他们放学后得留下来把作业赶完。
3. 因天气原因，比赛已被推迟到明天。
4. 老人应受到悉心的照顾。
5. 我不会打任何人，即使他该打。
6. 我们一起度过了十分愉快的几小时。
Answers:
II.
1. He was busy with his work and had to take care of his children.
2. They spent the evening at a restaurant talking about recent events.
3. His mother died of a massive heart attack.
4. He felt sad and sorry that he had not given up more time for his mother in the past.
III. 1. C 2. A
IV. 1. in advance   2. catch up on  3. put off   4. deserve   5. agreeable
V. 1. You can book train tickets 10 days in advance.
2. They had to stay behind after school to catch up on their homework.
3. The match has been put off until tomorrow because of bad weather.
4. Old people deserve to be looked after carefully.
5. I would never hit anyone, even if they deserved it.
6. We spent very /a most agreeable couple of hours.