Skill for Shakespeare (P3)

深圳市宝安中学 袁小林

 

Warm-up        

I. Free talk

1. What are the major achievements of Shakespeare? 

William Shakespeare, known for both his plays and sonnets, is considered to be the greatest writer in the history of English literature. 

His works consist of approximately 38 plays, 154 sonnets, two long narrative poems and a few other verses.

 

2. Have you ever read any of Shakespeare’s works?

 

II. Comprehension

Scanning

1. What is Elizabeth Hix busy preparing for right now?

She is busy preparing for the National Shakespeare Competition.

 

2.  When did Elizabeth Hix begin to like Shakespeare?

When she was in ninth grade.

 

3. What advantage does Hix have over many other students in performing Shakespeare? 

Unlike many other students, she doesn’t struggle to understand Shakespeare’s words. 

 

4. What role will she play in “Twelfth Night”? 

Viola, the lead female role. 

 

III. Reading and discussion

1. What is an “English and theatre person”?

A person who likes English and performing plays. 

 

2. What will Elizabeth do in the national competition?

She will perform Sonnet 147 and a monologue from Twelfth Night .

 

3. What does Elizabeth think of Sonnet 147?

She feels it is very different in tone and emotion, compared with the play and other sonnets.

 

4. What does she say is crucial to a performance?

Making a character feel alive in her heart is crucial.

 

5. Why isn’t she going to watch any of the film versions of Twelfth Night?

She doesn’t want to risk copying anyone else’s performance, and she wants to make the role her own.

IV. Further discussion:

Viola and Sonnet 147 in Elizabeth’ eyes: Which does she find easier to perform? Why?

She finds it easier to play Viola than to perform Sonnet 147,  because Viola is the same age as she is and is as emotional as any teenager. However, sonnets are stand alones. You don’t have any other information about the person, so Elizabeth has to create a character as she performs.

 

V. Language study

1. Hix figured she knew a thing or two about how emotional teenagers can be. 

know a thing or tw: 略知一二，懂一点

= Elizabeth felt that she knew something about how emotional teenagers can be.

 

2. So I thought of his love as someone who broke his heart, and he can’t get over it.” 

get over 使人了解或接受，克服，战胜（问题、困难等），即：accept an unpleasant fact or situation after dealing with it for a while

e.g., They’re upset that you didn’t call, but they’ll get over it.

 

3. Hix said she learned that making a character feel alive in her heart is crucial to her performance. 

be crucial to sb/sth 对……来说很关键，很重要 

e.g., Her work has been crucial to the project’s success.

 

 

Have a break away from electronics (P4-5)

山东烟台二中 李欣桐

I. Lead-in

ØWhen you go on holiday, what do you like to do?

ØHow about a tech-free holiday?

Having a tech-free holiday is becoming increasingly popular, especially among families because it enables them to spend quality time with each other without being distracted by texting, emails, and social media.  

a digital detox (数码产品戒毒期)

 

II. Skimming

Read the article quickly and find the answers to the following questions.

1. What do many people end up doing during their holiday?

We spend most of our holidays on our personal devices. 

Smartphones have ____(take) the world by storm, __________(influence) the manner we interact (互动) with each other.

 

2. What do we know about a digital detox?

•One of the best things about a digital detox is the fact ____ anyone can do it.  ______ you are a businessman or a student, everyone needs some time away from technology.  

•________to give yourself a digital detox is a difficult decision to make, but if you _______(坚持) your guns it may be just the thing you need to cleanse (清洗) your mind, body, and _____(灵魂).

 

3. What are the advantages of taking a tech-free holiday?

Taking a tech-free holiday would be a good time to ______(学会) something new, or return to hobbies ____ you never had time for. You could sketch (描绘) the view of the coast, or take photos with your old film camera. If you’re going with friends or family, perhaps bring ____ some board games to spend time rekindling (重新点燃) tired relationships.

 

Judge whether the following statements are T or F.  If it is false, correct it to the right one.

1. While it may seem that sending a quick text message or uploading a photo to WeChat take so much time, these things eventually add up without us even realizing. 

2. It was discovered in a study conducted by travel site LastMinute.com that 90 percent of Americans spend more than four hours a day using their gadgets while they are on holiday. 

3. To help you along, it is probably a good idea to choose a remote (遥远的) area, somewhere close to nature, where you can truly immerse (沉浸其中) yourself and unwind (放松), and most importantly, not be tempted (诱惑) to switch on your smartphone. 

4. In today’s fast paced world, it’s important to find time to stop and smell the roses - without taking a selfie at the same time, that is. 

 

Language points

Find the language points in the passage and guess their meaning. 

1. in full swing 

2. pile up 

3. personal devices

4. take the world by storm

5. distract

6. add up 

 

1. in full swing 展开

The preparations were in full swing.

 

2.pile up 积累 

 

3.personal devices 设备

digital devices

 

4.take the world by storm

使世界为之倾倒

Perhaps, it will not take the world by storm. 

也许，它不会采取世界风暴。

 

5. distract v. 分散(心思、思想)，转移(注意力)；使(人)分心；使精神涣散：

The music distracted her from her work.

音乐使她无法专心工作。

扰乱，使混乱；使烦忧；使困惑；使苦恼；弄昏，迷惑：

He was distracted by anxiety.

他因忧虑而心烦意乱。

distraction  n. 

 

6. add up   合计;[口语]加起来得到理想的结果，得出所求的总数;估计，估

Adding these figures up we can find the answer.

把这些数字加起来，我们就可以找到答数。

These figures don’t add up correctly.

这些数字加得不对。

We added up all the advantages and disadvantages and tried to come to a decision.

我们全盘估计了种种利弊，力图做出决定。

 

Appreciation

III. Post-reading

Summarize the language points in the passage and exchange your opinion about holiday plans with your peers.