Unit 6 The Pace of Life
Test A Old Father Becomes A Terror
Objectives:
Students will be able to:
1.Vocabulary in language focus. Be sure that students memorize them and know how to utilize them.
2.Learn how to construct an argumentation.
3.Learn how to employ writing skills such as exemplications, quotations, figures, compare and contrast, cau and effect, etc. to make an argumentative paper persuasive.
4.Lead students to understand caus of the feeling of time famine, the solutions to it and eventually how to put them into practice in our daily life.
First period
Preview assignment:
1.Preview the new words and expressions in the text.
2.Grasp the main idea and structure of the text; pay attention to the topic ntences in each part and make a note of the transitional devices.
3.Try to underline the reasons/caus to the feelings of time famine, the reactions to time famine and the crux(症结)of the problem and its remedy propod by the author in the text.
4.Before class collect phenomena of the modern life (the students are expected to report them in class.)
I.Listening practice 15mins
Listen to the passage and then answer questions:
Harvard University: Established in 1636 by vote of the Great and General Court of the Ma
ssachutts Bay Colony, Harvard was named after its first benefactor, John Harvard, of Charlestown, Massachutts. Upon his death in 1638, the young minister left his library and half his estate to the new College. In 1639, in recognition of John Harvard's bequest, the Great and General Court ordered "that the colledge agreed upon formerly to be built at Cambridg shalbee called Harvard Colledge." Founded 16 years after the arrival of the Pilgrims at Plymouth, the College has grown from 9 students with a single Master into a University with an enrollment of more than 18,000 degree candidates.
1. When did Harvard University established? (Answer: 1639)
2. How did the University get its name? (Answer: Harvard was named after its first benefactor, John Harvard, of Charlestown, Massachutts.)
3. How many candidates now in University?(Answer: an enrollment of more than 18,000 degree candidates.)
II.Cultural Notes:15mins
1.Richard Tomkins (e reference book page 56)
2.Technology (e reference book page 57)
3.Stress in the workplace (e reference book page 57&58)
4.Henley Centre: founded in 1974 by academics associated with the Henley Management College in Oxfordshire, notably the economist James Morrell. It was originally known as The Henley Centre for Forecasting, with a focus on business forecasting. It was initially run as a non-profit organisation in partnership with the management college, before becoming privately owned in the early 1980s. It was acquired by WPP in the 1990s and now sits within the Kantar Group, WPP’s information, insight and consultancy division.
5.McDonald’s is the world's leading food rvice retailer with more than 30,000 restaurants in 118 countries rving 46 million customers each day. It also rves the world some of its favorite foods---world famous French Fries(炸薯条) Big Mae(巨无霸)Chicken McNugges(麦乐鸡块)and Egg McMuffin（猪柳蛋汉堡包）
II. Check the preview work (ask veral students to tell the phenomena they collected of the modern life) 30mins
Suggested answer:
First, all people nowadays ems to be too much in a rush to spare enough time for one another. The pace of life is so high in this society that we have no time and energy to enjoy the sunshine every day. We are busy doing important business and working or buying hous. Time always ems to be limited and not sufficient at all. As a result almost all people feel the pressure of time. It ems that all the things in life is necessary and important for us to do that we can’t spare even half an hour to enjoy the warm sunshine outside. Second, science and technology plays a rather important part in our life, which on the one hand makes our life comfortable and convenient, but on the other hand makes our human beings develop a kind of abnormal dependence on modern scientific products. For example, we carry mobile phones to keep in touch with others, without it we may feel isolated and helpless. Third, more and more people complain that t
hey are under a large amount of stress from work, study or simply from life. According to surveys many people feel exhausted, frustrated and even depresd.
Teacher may sums up and leads into the Text by saying:
True as the pace of our life is quickening ever faster, we all em to be so busy, we em forever on the go. Many people would ask: how are we to cope with so many things in so little time? But have you ever reflected on the reasons why we become so? Why we become so time presd? What's the crux and is there any solution to prevent "old father Time becomes a terror"? Now, in the following periods we will e our author Richard Tomkins’ explanation. To begin with, we’ll e the organization of his writing.
III. Analysis of the text structure 25mins
In many ways we can e that this piece is a rather persuasive argumentative paper, which much probably can be found in the editorial or comment ction where journalists and others contribute regular or occasional columns reflecting on topical issues. Here in t
he initial part (paragraph 1-11), first by pointing out that we were wrongly estimated we would have more spare time with the help of technology, the writer propos the problem of the pressure of time and prent three reasons why we feel so time-presd nowadays. Then in the cond part (paragraph 12-18), the author goes on to concede that not everybody is affected to the same extent, that is, an exception: not everyone is time-stresd, and in the ca of Americans they have actually gained more free time in the past decade. Next comes to the third part (paragraph 19-23), in which our author percepts a variety of reactions triggered by the time-famine. Finally in the last part (paragraph 24-28) the author pins down the crux of the problem and puts forwards a remedy for the stress we feel.
