unit18 inventions
period 1 let’s listen and speak!
goals
● help students understand the common sense about inventions.
● do listening and make sure students understand it.
● help improve the students’ listening and speaking abilities.
procedures
leading in by guessing.
today, we are going to learn something about inventions that will do good to human beings or even smooth away difficulties brought by disabilities. here are some of them. please guess what they are or who the inventors are.
1. a man who made more than 1,000 inventions in his life and invented electric bulbs
2. a woman who discovered a way to alter and expand the range of natural cotton colors without using tints or dyes
3. a computer that fits comfortably on your nose and weighs less than a pair of glasses
4. a man born in 1876 who invented an effective gas motor engine and built the first practical four-stroke internal combustion engine called the “otto cycle engine”
5. a shoe whose heels made electricity with every step the wearer takes
key:
1. thomas alva edison
2. sally fox
3. nose-top computer
4. nicolaus otto
5. electric shoes
to learn more about inventions please turn to page 57 or look at the screen.
task 1: looking and discussing.
look at page 57 or the screen. there are four pictures and four descriptions. read the descriptions individually first and then match each picture with the correct description.
picture 1: electric shoes
picture 2: inflatable bicycle
picture 3: edible chopsticks
picture 4: nose-top computer
task 2: discussing.
now discuss the following questions in pairs:
1. which of the four “invention” do you think would be more useful? why?
2. is there anything you would like to invent? if so, what and why?
task 3: listening and answering questions.
1. now we are going to listen to dialogue 1 on the tape, which is about mr. dean’s new invention. listen carefully and try to understand it. then you should answer the following questions:
1) what are the advantages of mr. dean’s new invention?
2) how does it work?
3) what can it be used for?
4) why does the patent officer not want to give the man a patent?
2. listen to the tape of dialogue 2, which is about mr. scoles’ invention and then answer the following questions:
1) what has mr. scoles invented?
2) why did the man invent it?
3) do you think it works? how does it work?
4) why does the patent officer not want to give the man a patent?
task 4: speaking up.
in groups of four one is to play the role of an inventor to explain to the rest how his invention works. the patent officer should listen, ask questions and decide to give which one the patent.
period 2 let’s read!
(what will you think of next?…)
goals:
● improve the students’ reading abilities.
● learn about creativity and thinking strategies.
procedures
learning in by discussing.
last time you were asked to write a list of your possible inventions. now we shall see whose inventions are both creative and practical.
t: what’s your invention, sa?
sa: flower speaker amplifiers.
t: what does it look like?
sa: it is the gadget that is hidden in a vase or a potted plant.
t: how does it work?
sa: it sends music at just the right frequency to vibrate up the stems and then be converted into audible sound by the entire plant. a device such as a cd player or radio can be connected to it. music is also good for the plants, which are invigorated by the constant musical sounds.
t: quite creative. now according to the answer from sa, i have got some questions for all of you to discuss in groups.
task 1: skimming for the main idea.
we shall learn more about creativity today. now skim the reading passage to find out the main idea of each part.
task 2: true or false.
1 most inventors have high iqs.
2 the things we know can sometimes make it more difficult for us to understand.
3 it’s impossible to learn how to be creative.
4 the best way to find a good solution is to look for one good answer.
5 inventors try to avoid failure.
6 the more ways we have of looking at a problem, the more likely it is that we can find a solution.
7 most good ideas are the result of a long process of trial and error.
task 3: listening and reading aloud.
next, we are going to listen and read aloud. pause at the correct places and find out the sentences difficult to you at the same time.
useful expressions
use one’s creativity, come up with anew idea, have much in common, have different backgrounds, do well in school, get high test scores, have a high iq, practice good thinking strategies, limit one’s thinking, think out, rephrase a problem, allow for creative solutions, reject wrong ideas, get stuck, move towards a better solution, break away from old thought patterns, explore new possibilities, deepen one’s understanding, remain hidden, connect to, make connections. a process of trial and error, change the world
task 4: questions and answers.
first work in pairs, trying to analyze the difficult sentences, then put your questions to me. we will focus on the forms and structures of the passages.
period 3 let’s study!
(grammar: review the attributive clause)
goals
● learn to define words in english with the attributive clause.
● learn more about the attributive clause.
procedures
leading in: reading and discovering.
read the passages and underline all the attributive clauses.
task 1: reviewing the attributive clause.
学习定语从句的几个问题
1、 掌握以上关系代词、关系副词的含义及使用时,要特别注意以下几点:
1) 指物时宜用 that 的情况:
a. 当先行词为 all, much, little, few, none, something, anything, everything, nothing 等不定代词时。all that can be done has been done.
b. 当先行词既指人又指物时。
he spoke of the men and the thing (that) he had seen abroad.
c. 当先行词被序数词或形容词的最高级修饰时。
this is one of the best films that i have ever seen.
d. 当先行词被 the very, the only, the last, any, every 等修饰时。
this is one of the very book that i am looking for.
e. 当先行词是疑问词 who, what, which 时。
who that has such a home doesn’t love it?
f. 关系代词在从句中作表语。
mary is no longer the girl that she used to be.
2) 关系代词 as 和which都能引导非限定性定语从句代表整个句子的内容,as
引导的从句可位于句首或句末,which引导的定语从句则不能位于句首。
which you know, he is a good man. (×)
as you know, he is a good man. (√)
3)关系副词when, where, why其含义相当于on which, in which for which等,可以互换:
the day when /on which i met him first was may 1st.
period 4 let’s read and write!
(all in the mind: scientific metaphors)
goals
● improve the students’ abilities of reading comprehension.
● learn about the positive and negative of “scientific metaphors”.
● enable the students to write brief essays.
procedures
leading in: by life experiences.
good morning, class! living in an information age, we are enjoying various inventions of modern technology. we make uses of computers, mobile phones, tv sets, and so on. now tell me what uses you make of all those modern devices.
task 1: reading for the main idea of each paragraph.