Unit 12 Fact & Fantasy
Period 1: Warming-up, listening & speaking
Teaching Aims:
1. Learn about some scientific facts by doing a small science quiz.
2. Train the students’ listening ability.
3. Develop the students’ speaking ability by talking about science fiction using the useful expressions for beliefs and doubts.
Step 1. Lead in
(At the very beginning of the class, show the Ss some pictures about science.)
T: Just now we enjoyed some scientific phenomena. The world of science is mysterious, yet it also helps the development of society & human beings. Scientists have been showing interest in exploring the universe , hoping to find out more scientific facts.
Step 2. Warming up
T: Then how many scientific facts do you know? Try the small science quiz below to see how much you know about science.
(Show the questions on the screen & give the Ss some choices, since it’s difficult for them to answer.)
1. What is the highest mountain on earth and how high is it?
(Mt Himalayas, 8848metres.)
2. What is the deepest point in the ocean, and where is it?
(Marianas Trench in the Western Pacific Ocean.)
3. Which is the longest river on earth and how long is it?
(Nile River, 6695 km.
4. What is the distance from the earth to the moon? What is it to Mars? What is it to the nearest star?
(To the moon: 385,000 km; To Mars: 55.7 million km; To Sun: 150 million km.)
5. How far is it to the centre of the earth?
(6,500 Km.)
6. How high are the temperatures near the centre of the earth?
(6,000 ℃.)
7. What is the longest distance around the world?
(About 40,077 km.)
8. How fast does a balloon travel? How about an aeroplane? How about a space shuttle?
(A balloon only travells as fast as wind blows;
The top speed of the aeroplane is 375 miles per hour;
In general, the space shuttle’s top speed is always around 17,500 miles per hour, or 25,700 feet per second.)
T: So a better understanding of science can lead to a better understanding of the world. And there’re some famous writers who are interested in science wrote a large number of science fictions, among whom was a French writer Jules Verne. (Show a picture of him on the screen). He was considered as the father of science fiction. His two well-known novels are: 20,000 League Under the Sea & Around the World in 80 Days. Let’s enjoy a short clip about 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. (Show the Ss the clip.)
(After the clip)
T: Are you attracted by the film?
How did you feel when seeing the film?
T: Yeah, the world created by Jules is imaginary yet attractive & fantastic.
T: Besides the 2 famous novels , have you read any other books of Jules? What are they about?
( 1. Ss possibly say no & T presents some of his novels & give some explanations.
the Mysterious Island, the Children of Captain Grant, Journey to the Centre of the Earth
The book Journey to the Centre of the Earth describes what two men experienced after entering the centre of the earth through a chimney in an extinct volcano, which lies in Ireland.
2. Give a summary about the characteristics of the science fiction.
Science fiction is a type of book based on imagined scientific discoveries of the future, and often deals with space travel & life on other planets.)
T: By enjoying the novels by Jules, we can see science fiction is a type of book based on imagined scientific discoveries of the future, that is, it is often about things we believe may be possible in the far future, maybe a hundred years later.
Step 3. Speaking
T:①. Nowadays people are living a comfortable life. But I can’t imagine what life on earth will be like in the far future. Can you imagine it?
(Ask Ss to give their opinions.)
②. Maybe life in the future will be more convenient, & everything can be possible. For example, space travel may be possible in the near future. Because Yang Liwei went on a 17-hour travel to space by Shenzhou Ⅴ spaceship last year. What’s your opinion about space travel?
③. So space travel is a good way for us to have contract with outer space. Do you believe one day the creatures from outer space will visit our planet?
④. But it’s difficult for us to make some prediction about the future. Everything is changing. It’s likely that women can make their dream come true-Young forever.
(While talking with ss, the T places Life in 3098, Space travel, creature from outer space, young forever on the screen.)
T: Just now we mentioned the 4 things that may be possible in the future.Of course different people have different opinions. Some people may doubt whether science fiction may come true. Now it’s time for you to prepare dialouges about such topics. The dialogues are incomplete. Work with your partners to create a dialogue using some of the useful expressions for beliefs and doubts.
Space travel
A: I don’t believe________________.
B: Why not?______ ago nobody thought it was possible to __________.
A: __________ more than _______ to ______.
B: _________ we’ll be able to develop. Life in 3098
A: _________ any life on earth in the future.
B: Come on. What do you mean?
A: _________ some terrible disaster. Like __________.
B: _______________________________.
Young forever
A: Do you think there’ll be a time when we can beat all diseases?
B: _______________________.
A: Doctors may find a way to keep us young forever.
B: ______________________. Creatures from outer space
A: Do you believe ____________?
B: I don’t only believe in it, __________.
A: Do you really? ____________.
B: There are so many stars I’m sure _________________.
Useful expressions:
I believe /suppose/doubt…
I’m sure that…/ I’m (not) certain…
I can’t imagine…
It could be … but …
It’s likely …
It would take …
Step 4. Listening
1. Listen to the tape for the 1st time,and write down where, when and what Sam and Betty saw. Fill in the chart and make a sketch of the animal as they saw.
Place: Description:
Time: Sketch:
Size:
2. Listen to the tape again and answer the following questions.
① Why does Sam need to know the time?
② What instruments do Sam and Betty use to observe the animal?
③ Who will later ask them questions? A:____________ B:____________.
④ Write down 5 possible questions that other people may later ask Sam,Betty and Karen.
A:_________________________________________
B:_________________________________________
C:_________________________________________
D:_________________________________________
E:_________________________________________
Step 5. HK:
1. Practise more listening & speaking after class.
2. Preview reading.
3. Consult more information about science fiction on the website.
Period 2 Reading
Teaching Aims:
1.Learn and master the useful words and phrases.
2.Train the students’ reading ability.
3.Let the students learn about the French writer Jules Verne and his two famous science fictions.
Teaching Important Points:
1.Improve the students’ reading ability.
2.Master the useful phrases.
Teaching Difficult Points:
1.How to make the students understand the passage better.
2.How to help the students have a better understanding between fact and fantasy.
Teaching Methods:
1.Discussion before reading to make students learn more about some scientific facts.
2.Fast-reading method to get the general idea of the passage.
3.Careful-reading method to get the detailed information in the text.
4.Discussion after reading to help the students have a better understanding of the text.
Step 1 Revision and Lead in
Greet the whole class.
T:In the last period, we talked about some facts in the world. Now, let’s continue to learn more about scientific facts. Look at the pictures on the screen. (Show the following pictures on the multimedia.)
T:Here are three great inventions. Who can tell me when the inventions in the pictures were made?
S1:Electric railway was invented in the early years of the 20th century.
S2:Thomas Edison invented the light bulb in 1879.
S3:Steam-powered boat was made in 1807.
T: You’re quite right. But sometimes we need to know the difference between fact and fantasy. Here’s a beautiful picture. I’d like to like in the palace very much. Do you like it?
Ss: Yes.
T: But now I don’t know whether it is possible for me to live in it. To me it is only a fantasy. In science fictions, you can always find a lot of fantasies. Today I’d like to introduce a famous writer to you. His name is Jules Verne. We call him the father of science fiction. Let’s enjoy a film first.
Step 2 Warming up
Show a video. Then ask the students “What did you see?”
Ss: A monster?”
T: Have you ever seen a monster?
Ss: No.
T: Maybe a monster is only a fantasy. But Verne combined fact with fantasy so naturally that we think it is true. Would like to know something more about him?
Ss: Yes.
Step 3 Fast reading
Read the passage fast and find the answers to the following questions.
1.When was Jules Verne born and when did he die?
(He was born in 1828 and died in 1905)
2.How many science fictions are mentioned in the text?
There are two: 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and Journey to the Centre of the Earth.
3.Find the main idea for the following paragraphs
A. The film “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (Para. 2-5)
B. The film “Journey to the Center of the Earth (Para 6)
C. The life of Jules Verne (Para 1)
Step 4 Carefully reading
Read the passage again and finish the following exercises.
True or False Questions:
1. Verne had to sell newspaper to make a living when he was in Paris.
2. Verne died at 77, with his dreams realized.
3. The furniture on the Nautilu is precious and the food aboard is all sea food.
4. Captain Nemo is a very cruel man and no one likes him.
5. The story Journey to the Center of the Earth is a science fiction.
Tick out the right answers.
1. What did they see in the centre of the earth?
( √ ) A. layers of coal and marble
( √ ) B. boiling water from underground river
( √ ) C. a huge lake or underground ocean
( √ ) D. forests of mushrooms and plants
( √ ) E. ancient sea creatures
( × ) F. an ancient document in an old book
( × ) G. some modern ships
2. What is mentioned in the novel 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea?
( × ) A. Ships are disappearing is caused by a real monster.
( × ) B. Captain Nemo decides to kill the three men.
( √ ) C. Electricity is used for heating and power.
( × ) D. They walk around under the sea without clothes.
Step 5 Consolidation
Show the video and guess what the videos are talking about.
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (10 parts)
1. How were they on board the submarine?
disappearàset out àfindàbe thrown overboard àsurviveàturn outà on boardàpermanent guests
2.What is mentioned about the submarine?
extraordinaryàprecious furnitureàhuge glass windowsà thick iron platesà all that is neededà electricityà The food aboard
3. What did they do under the sea?
dressed inà walk around àlighted byà surrounded by… (r,f,s,p)waving and moving slowly
Journey to the Centre of the Earth (12 parts)
1.How did they begin the journey?
decided to a chimney in an extinct volcano a narrow passage
2.What did they do in the center of the earth?
pass through layers of coal and marble
drink water from a boiling underground river
reach a huge lake or underground ocean
go through forests of mushrooms and plants
3. What happened to them in the end?
build a raft to cross the sea
are attacked by ancient sea creatures
be drawn into a fast steam
shot out of a volcano
Step 6 Further Understanding
Describe the character of Captain Nemo?
Captain Nemo is the kind of person of whom it is difficult to say whether you like or not. You may think he is hard and cruel, but he also has a soft and gentle side.
Step 7 Discussion
What can we learn from Jules Verne and his novels about fact and fantasy?
Why would there be a huge underground ocean in the centre of the earth?
Why do the characters find plants and animals that live on the earth millions of years ago?
Why would there be a boiling river inside the earth?
(In this part, it is very important to help the students know the relationship between fact and fantasy:
In fact, there can’t be a huge underground ocean or plants and animals that live on the earth millions of years ago. There might be a boiling river, but it is impossible for us to see it because we can not bear the heat. However, when we read the stories, few people will doubt whether whatever they see and do is possible. And we enjoy the stories. Fantasy is very important for us. Without fantasy, science can not develop so greatly. But fantasies should base on facts.)
Step 8 Homework
1.Finish the exercises on Page 13.
2.Imagine a journey to some place in the future and write a composition about it. Prepare a role card in groups of three first.
(First, how do you begin the journey?
Then, what do you do during the journey?
Finally, what happens to you in the end?)
e.g. A Role Card: (A Journey to the Centre of the Earth)
1. travel to Iceland
2. enter…through a chimney in a dead volcano
3. through a narrow passage deep into…
4. pass through layers of coal and marble
5. reach a huge lake or underground ocean
6. through forests of mushrooms and plants
7. cross the sea in a raft
8. drawn into a fast stream
9. shot out of a volcano in southern Italy
The Third Period LANGUAGE STUDY
Teaching Aims;
1. Review the new words appearing in the last periods.
2. Learn to use the rules of word formation to guess the meaning of the word.
Teaching Important Points;
1. learn to choose proper words according to the contexts of the given passage.
2. learn to guess the meaning of the words by the meaning of some stems and affixes
Teaching Procedures;
Step 1 lead-in
Ask the students to watch a clip of video from the movie Titanic and some pictures from the movie to attract the students’ interest as well as go over some vocabularies that they learnt last time.
T. Just now we watched a video clip. It’s really moving. Is it a real story? The giant ship set off on her first voyage. What happened to the ship on their voyage ? What happened to the people on board ? how about the hero and the heroine ? (fiction/ had a collision with an iceberg. /sank/ couldn’t escape /permanent love)
Step 2 Word study
T. Ok , you really know a lot about the story. Would you like to know more information ? please turn to page 14 and finish the exercises in Work Study. First do it by yourself. Then check your answers in pairs. Finally We’ll check the answers together.
Step 3 Word formation
Task 1. introduction
T. As we know , learning the rules of word formation is one of the ways to enlarge our vocabulary.
We can guess the meanings of the words using them without looking them up in the dictionary. Please look at the screen.
(The teacher introduce the basic rules of word formation on the screen.to help students draw a conclusion about word formation.)
Word formation
语言的基本要素之一是词汇，按照语言一定的规律创造新词的方法，称之为构词法（word-formation or word-building)。
构词法
1. 转化法（conversion）
2．合成法 ( composition)
3. 缩略法 (shorting)
4. 缀合法 (affixation)
5. 变音法
缀合法：
由词根附加前缀后缀构成新词的方法。由 缀合法产生的新词称之为派生词(derivation)。缀合法产生的词汇是英语词汇的主体。例如：
加前缀re+unite reunite(再联合)
加后缀tract+or tractor(拖拉机)
加前后缀un+friend+ly unfriendly (不友好)
一、常见前缀
1.表示否定意义的前缀
dis- dishonest, dislike, disadvantage
im- impolite, impossible
un- unable, unhappy, unemployment
mis- mistake, mislead
2.表示空间位置，方向关系的前缀
under- =below underground, underwater
sub-=under subway , submarine
inter-=between internet, international
3.表示比较程度差别关系的前缀
extra- 表示“超越，额外” extraordinary
over-表示“超过，过分” overeat, oversleep
二、常见后缀
1.名词后缀
(1) -er表示“从事某种职业的人，某地区的人” banker, villager, Londoner.
(2) –or,表示“…者” doctor, operator, inventor. …2.形容词后缀
-able, comfortable, valuable,movable
-ish, foolish, selfish boyish
-ful, helpful, wonderful, beautiful
-ine, marine, feminine, masculine
(3) 动词后缀
-ize, modernize, organize
-en, quicken, weaken, soften, harden
-fy, beautify, simplify
(4)副词后缀
-ly, possibly, simply
-ward, downward, upward
-wise, otherwise, clockwise
-ways, always, sideways
Task2. practice
1. Study the meaning of these stems and affixes. Match the words and the correct definitions.(individual work)
mis- =wrong extra- = outside inter- =between sub- =under
under- =below over- =too much dis- =not -marine = sea
1. _________ submarine A. do not like
2. _________ underground B. work too much
3. _________ overwork C. action and reaction between people things
4. _________ interaction D. put in the wrong place
5. _________ misplace E. a ship that can travel below the surface of the sea
6. _________ dislike F. below the surfac
2.Guess meaning of the words in italics, using context clues and what you know about word parts(group work)
1. ___________ Mum told me not to misbehave at my grandparents’ house
2. ____________ The Chinese subtitles at the bottom of the screen help us understand foreign movies.
3. _____________ Don’t misunderstand me; I’m only trying to help.
4. _____________ In many cases, the words “fiction” and “novel” are interchangeable.
5. ______________ People like to take the subway because it is faster than buses and cheaper than taxis.
6. ______________ He looks very tired because he has been working overtime all week.
7. ______________ People will think you are mad if you walk in your underpants.
e of the earth
Step 4 .Consolidation(group work)
Add a proper affix to each of the following words to form another word.
1.__________dependent
2.__________ patient
3.__________ stop
4.__________ judge
5.__________ tired
6.__________heading
7.__________clothing
8._________advantage
Homework
1.Review what you have learnt in class.
2.Finish the word study and grammar part on the workbook.
3.Prepare for the next period
Period 4 Integrating Skills
Goals:
1. Get the students to have a good understanding of the story of Frankenstein.
2. Help the students finish the creative writing.
Step1 Lead-in
In the last two periods, we have learnt much about science fiction and known more about science fiction and Jules Verne, the father of science fiction, who wrote many famous science fictions, such as 20,000 Leagues Under the sea, Around the World in 80 Days, Journey to the Center of the World…He combined fact with fantasy cleverly. Now we’re going to read another passage about science fiction, whose title is the Story of Dr Frankenstein.
Step2 Background
Dr Frankenstein is a fictitious scientist portrayed by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelly, who was Shelly’s wife. She was honored as a pioneer of the science fiction (genre). Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft (1797-1851), English novelist. Daughter of the British philosopher William Godwin and the British author and feminist Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin, she was born in London, and privately educated. She met the young poet Percy Bysshe Shelley in May 1814, and two months later left England with him. When Shelley's first wife died in December 1816, he married Mary. In 1818 her first and most important work, the novel Frankenstein was published. A remarkable accomplishment for a 20-year-old, the work was an immediate critical and popular success. Repeatedly dramatized for both the theater and motion pictures, this tale of Frankenstein, a student of the occult, and the subhuman monster he assembles from parts of human corpses added a new word to the English language: A "Frankenstein" is any creation that ultimately destroys its creator. No other work by Mary Shelley achieved the popularity or excellence of this first work, although she wrote four other novels, books of travel sketches, and miscellaneous tales and verse. One of her novels, The Last Man(1826), reveals her liberal social outlook; another of her books, Lodore (1835), is a novelized autobiography.
Step3 Skimming
Read the passage as quickly as possible, and answer the following question:
What did Dr Frankenstein create at last?
( He had planned to create a larger human being but at last it turned out a living horror.)
Step4 Scanning
Now please read the text again and discuss :
How many periods can Dr Frankenstein’s experiment be divided?
(Three periods.)
Period 1 (Paragraph 1------Paragraph 3) He decided to crate life from dead matter.
Period 2 (Paragraph 4------Paragraph 5) He decided to create a larger human being than man
Period 3 (Paragraph 6------Paragraph 7) He succeeded in creating a creature, but a living horror.
Step 5 Detail Reading
Read each period again and answer the following questions :
Period 1
Paragraph 1
What did Dr Frankenstein want to do when he was young.?
( He wanted to learn the secrets of heaven and earth when he was young.)
Paragraph 2
After he was sent to university, what did he think of the thing taught at university?
( He felt very disappointed and decided to pioneer a new way himself.)
Paragraph 3
What attracted his attention?
( The structure of the human body and any animal that was alive attracted his attention.)
What did he discover?
(He discovered the cause of life and how to create life from dead matter.)
Period 2
Paragraph 4
Although he knew how to create life, what remained a difficult work for him?
( How to prepare a body for it with all its muscles and organs still remained a difficult job for him.)
Paragraph 5
Why did he decide to create a larger human being than man about eight feet in height?
(Because the small size of the parts slowed down his speed.)
Period 3
Paragraph 6
How did he create a life form that looks like a human being? Please rearrange the following steps in the right order.
1. He gained many materials from butcher shops and hospitals.
2. He finished his work on a night in November.
3. The dead creature came to life at one in the morning.
4. He lighted the flame of life into the dead thing.
5. He collected bones from graves and cut up dead bodies.
(the right order: 5---1---2---4---3)
Paragraph 7
What did the creature look like?
(He got black hair, white teeth, yellow skin, black lips and strange sounds. He looked like a terrible monster.)
What did Dr Frankenstein think of the creature?
( While unfinished, he was ugly but now he was a living horror.)
Step 6 Appreciation
As this passage is a very famous science fiction, there must be a lot of good sentences we can learn. Please discuss the following sentences with each other. Later we’ll appreciate them together.
1. My father was not scientific, so I had to look for a road without having a map.
(Dr Frankenstein used a metaphor in the so-clause. He compared the road without any instructions to that without having a map in order to show he had to work hard to find a way to science by himself.)
2. I read all the books I could find that threw light upon these matters.
( “throw light upon” means “make…clear”. Here is another metaphor. He compared books to lights.)
3. While unfinished, he was ugly, but now he was a living horror.
( The sentence “while unfinished” is equal to “while he was unfinished”)
Step7 Video Enjoyment
Watch the video. Let’s get a good understanding of Dr Frankenstein’s experiment.
Step 8 Post-reading
What’s the end of the story?
What happened to Dr Frankenstein?
After the Monster came to life, he began to live with common people. But his terrible appearance and behavior terrified the other people. He couldn’t get along well with them, and couldn’t live a happy life. He was eager to get the caring and friendship from others, but he failed, so he felt very lonely. Then he begged Dr Frankenstein to create another creature to accompany him, but was refused. Therefore, he took revenge on Dr Frankenstein, who gave life to him, making Dr Frankenstein’s family broken up, some gone away, some dead.
"Farewell! I leave you, and in you the last of humankind whom these eyes will ever behold. Farewell, Frankenstein! If thou were yet alive and yet cherished a desire of revenge against me, it would be better satiated in my life than in my destruction. But it was not so; thou didst seek my extinction, that I might not cause greater wretchedness; and if yet, in some mode unknown to me, thou hadst not ceased to think and feel, thou wouldst not desire against me a vengeance greater than that which I feel. Blasted as thou wert, my agony was still superior to thine, for the bitter sting of remorse will not cease to rankle in my wounds until death shall close them forever.
"But soon," he cried with sad and solemn enthusiasm, "I shall die, and what I now feel be no longer felt. Soon these burning miseries will be extinct. I shall ascend my funeral pile triumphantly and exult in the agony of the torturing flames. The light of that conflagration will fade away; my ashes will be swept into the sea by the winds. My spirit will sleep in peace, or if it thinks, it will not surely think thus. Farewell."
He sprang from the cabin window as he said this, upon the ice raft which lay close to the vessel. He was soon borne away by the waves and lost in darkness and distance.