Unit 8 Natural disasters
Reading (I)
I. Teaching aims and learning objectives
By the end of the lesson, students should be able to:
1. read the passage about the Taiwan earthquake fluently;
2. understand the meanings of the new words from the context;
3. know what Timmy did and how he felt before and after the earthquake;
4. understand the damage that an earthquake could bring about and the ways to reduce the losses of an earthquake.
II. Teaching contents
1. New words and phrases: shake, fear, silent, nervous, heart, beat, since, alive, dark, shout, safe;
in all directions, come down, not … at all, find one’s way out, at last
2. New structures: I was sleeping when the earthquake started.
I tried my best to run out too, but I could not.
Outside, people were running in all directions while pieces of glass and bricks were falling down.
Luckily, there was just enough space for me to move.
Hours later, as I was trying to find my way out, I suddenly heard some noise above me.
III. Focus of the lesson and predicted area of difficulty
Summarize the passage in sequence in students’ own words.
Learn to use the expressions of describing an event.
IV. Teaching procedures
Step I Lead-in
1. Play a guessing game according to some hints:
T: What natural disaster is it?
2. Present the topic about an earthquake. Then watch a video about the Taiwan Earthquake.
3. Help the students draw a conclusion of the effects of the earthquake:
Many people died …
People lost their homes …
Many things were destroyed …
【设计意图】鼓励学生谈论地震带来的危害，形成良好的心理预设，通过师生交流导入故事文本。
Step 2 Presentation
1. Show the key words
(1) Show the general idea of the story
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Present “The Taiwan earthquake”. Tell the students about Timmy’s story and present some
key words. (shake, scream, direction, come down, silent, be trapped, calm down, at last, safe)
(2) Ask the students to match some key words and their correct meanings.
2. Listen to the story with the help of Pocket Dictionary, and then answer the question
Who saved Timmy?
3. Read the story
(1) First reading: to get the main idea of the story
What is the main idea of the story?
(2) Second reading: to get to know Timmy in the story
What was Timmy doing when the earthquake started?
What were people doing while pieces of glass and bricks were falling down?
What did Timmy hear as he was trying to find his way out?
(3) Complete Part B2 & B3 and check the answers..
(4) Third reading: to analyze the character of Timmy
E.g.: From the sentence “I tried my best to run out too, but I could not”. I think Timmy was nervous/frightened.
(5) Fourth reading: to know further about Timmy.
T: According to the following sentences, let’s learn about Timmy’s mental change. How do you think Timmy felt?
I tried my best to run out too, but I could not. (Line 5) (nervous/frightened)
I felt nervous and my heart was beating fast. (Line 11) (nervous)
“I’m trapped,” I said to myself. ((Line 11) (sad)
A moment of fear went through my mind, but I told myself to calm down since I was still alive. (Line 12) (calm)
I shouted for help, but no one came. (Line 14) (helpless)
I screamed, “Help! Please help! I’m here!” (Line 18) (hopeful)
At last, I saw the bright daylight. I was safe. (Line 20) (excited)
(6) Fifth reading: to realize that Timmy was lucky.
Encourage the students to read the passage loudly and freely, and then complete Part B4.
【设计意图】首先通过讲故事和听故事，让学生初步感知语言材料，同时也训练了学生的听力。帮助学生在主题语境中学习核心词汇，为阅读扫除词汇障碍。之后采用五步阅读法：第一步站在语篇的高度，抓好文章主旨大意。第二步通过了解主人公不同时间段的行为，初步认识Timmy，为下文的人物性格解读做铺垫。同时也渗透了本单元的语法项目。第三步通过文本的具体分析，由学生阐述自己眼中的Timmy。此环节可设计小组之间的竞赛，激发学生阅读热情。第四步通过对相关细节的研读和学生自己的体会，师生一起分析主人公的前后心理变化。最后一步通过学生的自由朗读，熟悉语言材料，体验主人公经历地震的历程，唤起学生对生命的珍爱。
Step 3 Summary
1. Discussion
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What saved Timmy’s life?
What do you think may happen before an earthquake?
How can we protect ourselves in an earthquake?
2. Conclusion
(1) By showing some screenshots of the film 2012, tell the students that natural disasters are sometimes unavoidable.
(2) Present a motivation quote, “In face of disasters, calm, faith and courage are the most important.”
【设计意图】通过集体讨论，使学生了解地震的预兆以及地震时的应急救生措施，提升学生的开放性思维能力。在阅读后得到提升，从故事中获得成长。
V. Homework
1. Read the story fluently.
2. Write a letter of sympathy to Timmy in the name of our class to admire him for his strength.
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