Iceland brings tourists with natural wonders (Page 4)

江苏锡山高级中学 陈虹秀

I. Pre-reading

Discussion

1. What do you know about the country of Iceland?

(Can you say anything about its location, history, culture, or economy?)

2. Where is Iceland located?

volcanoes   glaciers / icebergs   lagoons     northern lights 

II. Detailed questions

1. What has made Iceland a hot destination for tourists?

Hollywood blockbusters such as Thor: The Dark World and Interstellar have made Iceland a hot destination.

2. What natural wonders in Iceland do people talk about?

Volcanoes, glaciers and the northern lights are talked about.

3. When is the best time to visit Iceland? Why?

The best time to visit Iceland is from September to mid-April, during which tourists can see the northern lights as well as volcanoes and glaciers.

4. Why does the writer say that Iceland offers inspiration?  

Iceland is a country which has a history of famous writers and literary works.

5. In your opinion, what did what Haraldur Jonsson said really mean?

People in Iceland are interested in literature because they want their lives to be rich despite    living in cold, ever-changing weather.

III. Structure of the passage

Beginning:

Introduction to the theme of Iceland

Body:

Iceland has many natural wonders.

It is rich with volcanoes.

It is also known for its glaciers and northern lights.

It offers inspiration, too.

Ending:

Remark from an Icelandic artist

IV. Retelling

Retell the passage according to the following questions:

1/ What has made Iceland a hot tourist destination?

2/ Where is Iceland located?

3/ What natural wonders can be seen in Iceland?

4/ Why was Iceland named a UNESCO City of Literature in 2011?

New batteries coming (Page 5)

江苏锡山高级中学 陈虹秀

I. Pre-reading

1. Do you have a smartphone? What do you use your smartphone to do?

2. Do you get annoyed when the battery of your smartphone runs low in the middle of a conversation or a game?

3. How can we improve the way smartphones work?

II. While reading

What does the author try to tell us?

How to enjoy longer battery life, either by using a new "super battery" or by following some other suggestions mentioned.

Read carefully and answer the following questions.

1.What makes people feel nostalgic about early models of phones?

The short battery lives of modern phones.

2.What are the advantages of the new aluminium battery?

The aluminium battery could be a cheap, fast-charging alternative to current designs. You can flex, squeeze, and practically bend it in half without breaking the packet. It is more environmentally friendly than alkaline batteries, and more safe than lithium batteries. It has a recharge time of around one minute.

3. What is its disadvantage?

It produces just half the voltage of a typical lithium battery.

4. What are other solutions to the problem of short battery life?

1) Turn down the brightness of your screen and the volume of your ring tone.

2) Switch off location services.

3) Smartphones work best below 30 C. So sleeping with the phone and making it warm will run it down faster.

III. Practice

Fill in the blank with a proper word or phrase from the article to complete the sentence.

1.  If you refer to a situation as a _________, you mean that it is very frightening and unpleasant.

2.A bus, air, or shipping ________ is a way between two places along which buses, planes, or ships travel regularly.

3.When someone in a car ______, they decide what roads the car should be driven along in order to get somewhere.

4.If you describe something as _______, you mean that it is very simple in style or old-fashioned.

5._________ is used to describe something that is different from the usual things of its kind, or the usual ways of doing something, in modern Western society.

6.The increasing population _____ will lead to even more traffic.

Finish the following sentences using the expressions in the article.

1. He _______ me as a very serious but friendly person.

2.I was positive things were going to _________ fine.

3. Many people feel ____________ the good old days.

4. In order to create an _________________and safe world, it is necessary for each country to set vehicular quotas and limit the number of permits to control regional air pollution.

5. He thinks drivers should be aware of the impact music has on them and advised them to either choose slower tunes or to _________ the volume to reduce distraction.

6.So every once in a while, turn off your phone and laptop, _________the TV, and put your worries to one side for a moment.

7. You could ____________or even leave it in the pocket of your trunks when you went for a swim and it would still work fine. 

IV. Post-reading

Debate

Should high school students be encouraged to use smartphones on campus?

Keep above water (Page 6)

辽宁大连开发区八中 程国良

I. Presentation

What do you do when you are in trouble?

Do you try to solve the problem yourself?

Or are you more likely to turn to others for help?

II. Reading

Read the first four paragraphs of the article carefully and answer the following questions.

1. Why did June decide to dive into the swimming pool?

It was hot and she wanted to cool herself off.

2. What happened to her?

Her head hurt and her body started to get numb. Breathing became difficult for her and her vision wasn't so clear.

3. Why didn't she ask the lifeguard for help?

She didn't wanted to embarrass herself or bother anyone.

4. How did she feel when she got to the other side of the pool?

She felt sick, weak and exhausted and it was difficult for her to get out of the pool.

5. Could she ask someone for help? Why?

No, she couldn‘t; she was too tired to say anything.

6. How did she eventually get out of the pool?

It took her several minutes of rest before she had enough energy to barely pull her body out of the pool.

III. Discussion

What do you think of June's experience in the pool?

IV. Further reading

Read the last three paragraphs carefully and decide which of the following statements you think the author would agree with.

1. There is nothing wrong with June's way of helping herself.

2. Being afraid of being laughed at may cost you your life.

3. We should go through life taking no notice of warning signs.

4. Panic will certainly make you slip further into trouble.

5. Instincts may help us live a happier, more fulfilling life.

6. You should listen to your instincts and seek aid when you need it.

V. Grammar

分词可以放在主语前面，也可紧跟在主语后面，这时较不强调。它们的作用和as，when，after，if，though等引起的状语从句相似.Example:

1. Having no money, I borrowed some from John．

2. Walking along the bank, I met a friend.  

3. Turning to the right, you will see the shop. 

4. Taking up the basket, she went to the market.

5. Working hard as he did, he was still unable to support the family.

Rewrite the following into complex sentences with proper Linking words.

1. Standing by the swimming pool, June was really hot.

While June was standing ..., she was really hot.

2. Having not swum in the past several years and being a bit out of shape, she became tired quickly.

As June has not swum ..., she became tired quickly.

3. She continued to swim, realizing her head was hurting and her body was starting to get numb.

June continued to swim, although she realized ...

4. Realizing she needed help but unable to even say anything, she leaned against the poolside.

Although June realized ..., she leaned against the poolside.

5.  Sitting on the side of the pool with her feet in the water, she felt the lifeguard staring at her.

When June ..., she felt the lifeguard staring at her.