2020-2021学年度第26期总第820期
Starting anew (P2)
山西省灵石县第一中学 任立琴

I. Free-talk
Read the following messages.

Who were these messages sent to?
Why did they send these messages?

II. Read for general information
Divide the passage into three parts.
Para 1-2  Brief introduction

Para 3-4  Challenges

Para 5  Measures taken

Para 6-8  Comments

Main idea: 
Facing many national and international ______(挑战), Biden began to ______ (采取行动) hours after he ________ (上任).
Key: challenges; take action; took office

III. Read for details
Read para 1-2 and complete the table.
 

III. Read for details
Read para 3-4 and list the challenges.
Nationally: 
many deaths because of COVID-19; 
a debate about the treatment of minorities; 
a riot (骚乱) at the Capitol in Washington DC;
Internationally:
tension (紧张) between USA and other countries and organizations.

Read para 5 and list the measures Biden took. 
    _____ a plan to fight the pandemic, including imposing a national order requiring face masks; 
    ______ a series of executive actions that reversed  some of Trump’s policies; 
    _______the process of rejoining the Paris Agreement on climate change and ______ Trump’s efforts to leave the World Health Organization.

Key: Issued; Signed; Began, ended

What attitude do experts have toward the China-US relationship?
A. Optimistic. 
B. Pessimistic.
C. Neutral.
D. Indifferent.

Key：A

Try to retell the passage.
 

IV. Post -reading

There is “much to repair, much to restore, much to heal, much to build and much to gain”.
How do you understand Biden's words?

V. Language focus
Find the following expressions in the article.
1.就职，上任
2.需要，呼吁
3.死于
4.采取措施
5.发布计划
6.有可能
7.符合，一致

Key:
1.take office
2.call for
3.die of 
4.take action
5.issue a plan
6.be likely to do 
7.in line with
Key words
Several deaths of African-Americans at the hands of police officers in 2020 caused a debate about the treatment of minorities (少数群体). 
treat  v. 对待；治疗；视为；n. 请客，款待
treatment n. 治疗，疗法；对待

即学即练
Translate:
1. We shouldn’t treat our mother in a disrespectful way.
v. 对待

2. No one knew how to treat this frightening disease. 
v. 治疗

3. She was always treating him to ice cream.
v. 请客

4. It’s a treat to be enjoyed all year round.
n. 款待

5. On certain occasions we treat the good as bad, and conversely the bad as good. 
v. 视为

What does as mean?
1. On Jan 20, Joe Biden, 78, took office as the 46th president of the country.   prep. 作为

2. In his inauguration (就职) speech, Biden called for the American people to come together as the nation has been facing many challenges. 
conj. 因为

3. According to Johns Hopkins University data, as of Jan 20, more than 400,000 people had died of COVID-19 in the US.
as of 固定搭配   截止到

4. Also, the China-US relationship is likely to start a new chapter, as the new US president seems more pragmatic (务实的) and advocates (提倡) cooperation, experts said.
conj. 因为

VI. Further information
    美国总统就职典礼 
美国总统就职典礼为何选在1月20日？
每四年的1月20日，都将迎来新一届美国总统的就职典礼。
这是美国政治生活中里程碑式的时刻。总统就职典礼的举行，标志着新一届美国总统任期的开始。根据美国宪法对就职典礼的要求，总统在执政前必须进行宣誓。然而随着历史的推移，就职典礼的传统项目也在逐渐扩大，从最初一个简单的宣誓仪式，发展到如今一个包括游行、演讲和舞会的为期一天的盛大活动。