Pre-University: Reading nonfiction, article #4

“Living Like Weasels” by Annie Dillard, Teaching a Stone to Talk

Vocabulary to discuss in class

• swivel
• fur
• inexplicably
• bias, motive
• purity, dignity, necessity
• ignobly
• will (n.)
• (vows of) poverty, chastity, obedience, silence

Vocabulary to get from context

• carcasses (para. 1)
• socketed (para. 1)
• pry
• steers (para. 4)
• water lilies – terra firma – ceiling (para. 4)
• suburbia (para. 5)
• den (para. 15)
• seize (last para.)

For each of these words,

- list the context clues that can help you determine the meaning of the word

- write what you think the word means (don’t use a dictionary!)

Things to notice while you read

• the two anecdotes/illustrations in paragraphs 1 and 2
• the setting of the story
• the main event in the story
• how the author felt about that event
• the idea about life that she took from that event

Is this a personal essay?

Figurative language

– Words and phrases that create a mental picture of something by comparing it, directly or indirectly, to something else

• Metaphor:
• Simile:
• Hyperbole:
• (Other descriptive language uses vivid verbs and adjectives.)

In the essay, to what literal things do the following phrases refer?

• “soak him off like a stubborn label”
• “a fur pendant”
• “a green horizontal plane that is terra firma to plodding blackbirds, and tremulous ceiling to black leeches, cray­fish, and carp”
• “thin as a curve, a muscled ribbon, brown as fruitwood”
• “small and pointed as a lizard’s”
• “two black eyes I didn’t see, any more than you see a window”

Variation: the following phrase is concrete, but refers to something abstract.

• “I should have gone for the throat”

Can you find other examples? Look especially in paragraphs 10 and 11.

North American Longtail Weasel (photo from U.S. National Parks Service)

 

 

 

Pre-University: Reading nonfiction, Article #1

Nonfiction Reading Series Article #1 – reading guide

“A Zero-Emissions City in the Desert” by Kevin Bullis

Vocabulary

• metropolis
• outskirts
• compost
• sewage
• ostentatious
• R&D
• Silicon Valley
• collaboration
• emissions
• net (adjective, calculations)
• insulation
• ambitious
• unheard-of
• profitable

Topics to notice while you read

• Topic sentence
• Reasons to build the city
• Problems with building the city
• Comparison of Masdar City with other low-emissions building projects
• Ways the city will generate electricity
• Inspiration for cooling city design
• Ways of increasing energy efficiency in the city
• Transportation in the city
• Problems with solar panels
• History of Abu Dhabi
• Conclusion

There will be a quiz and discussion on this article on Friday, October 30. On Thursday, October 29, you will have an opportunity to ask questions about the article.

Intermediate: Lab 4 (Short story skits)

Group project for “The Ransom of Red Chief”

In class, we read the short story “The Ransom of Red Chief” by O. Henry. (http://www.classicshorts.com/stories/redchief.html) For this lab, you will work with a group to prepare a skit (very short play) about the story.

What should your skit be about?

You have two choices:

-        Imagine a different ending for the story.

-        Imagine what will happen the next day after the end of the story. (This could be in the town of Summit, in the Driscoll house, or wherever Bill and the narrator have gone.)

What are the requirements for the skit?

• 3 to 5 minutes long
• every group member must have a speaking part
• story should be related to “The Ransom of Red Chief”
• at least one character in your skit should be from O. Henry’s story
• reading lines is okay, but you should act out the skit

How should you prepare?

With your group…

• Decide the topic of your skit. What will happen?
• Work together to write the new part of the story. You should write lines for everyone in your group to speak.
• Practice your skit together. You may want to practice your part at home, too.
• You will have some time in class to prepare, but you might need to work or meet outside of class also.
• Perform the skit in class on Friday, June 26.

If you don’t know what a “skit” is, here is an example on YouTube of an ESL class skit.

Foundations: Lab 8 (Halloween)

Soon, Americans and people in some other countries will celebrate Halloween. You may have seen some decorations in stores and around people’s houses.

1. Read about Halloween on the internet. You can use some of these pages:

• Simple English Wikipedia
• About.com Halloween traditions
• About.com Halloween vocabulary – there is also a vocabulary quiz here if you want to practice

2. Go to this page and take the quiz there.

http://a4esl.org/q/h/vm/halloween.html

When you finish the quiz, print the page or copy down the questions and answers and turn it in with your lab Friday.

3. Complete the Halloween Wordsearch the teacher will give you. You are looking for words among all the letters. Circle or highlight the words.

Due Friday, October 31

Foundations: Lab 6 (Phone Message)

Due Friday, October 17

This is an internet lab. You may do it at any computer that allows you to listen to audio and allows you to print.

1. Go to http://www.esl-lab.com.

2. Under General Listening Quizzes in the Easy column, click on “Phone Message.”

Pre-Listening Exercises:

Imagine you have answered the phone. The caller asks to speak with someone. That person can not come to the phone. You say:

“I’m sorry, he can’t come to the phone right now. He’s __________.”

What are three ways to complete that sentence?

Example: He’s out of the office right now.

a. __________________________________________________________

b.__________________________________________________________

c. __________________________________________________________

3. Follow the instructions in part II, Listening Exercises. You may listen as many times as you want. Answer the questions.

4. Click “Final Score. Print the page with your quiz results.

5. Do do Part III, Post Listening Exercises.

• Mixed-Up Sentence
• Sentence and Vocabulary Matching
• Text Completion Quiz

6. Print your finished Text Completion Quiz.

7. What is the “HELPFUL TIP” on the esl-lab page?

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________

8. On Friday, bring three things to class:

• This page with answers

• Your Listening quiz

• Your Text Completion quiz

Resources: Hurricane formation

Here is the video we watched in class: What Is A Hurricane?

If you would like to see more information like this and learn about tornadoes, there are resources in this post from April 2008.

Resources: Tornado formation

BBC animated guide: Tornadoes

HowStuffWorks video: How Tornadoes Work

International Celebration Day

Announcement: On Tuesday, November 12, an international celebration will be held in the student center from 10 am. to 2 p.m. This is not a required event, but it is interesting and fun. See more information here:

International Celebration Day

Also note the information at the bottom of the page about the Interfaith Dialogue Lunch. This event is free, but they have limited space, so you need to fill out an application by Wednesday or Thursday of this week (Nov 7) – the deadline was extended.

General notes

If you are in town Saturday, May 12, you might enjoy visiting the Historic Arkansas Museum for their Territorial Fair (10 a.m. to 4 p.m.). Here is a map:

http://www.arkansashistory.com/visiting/how_find.asp

Also, a few people asked for my salsa recipe. Here it is. It’s very easy!

FRESH SALSA

• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 1 can regular Rotel (tomatoes and hot peppers)
• 1/3 of a medium-sized onion
• garlic, minced (or garlic powder)
• salt (optional)
• fresh cilantro, chopped

Put it all, except for the cilantro, in a blender and pulse until the onion is chopped. Pour it into a serving bowl and stir in the cilantro. You are finished! Serve with tortilla chips.

Foundations: writing

Tip for writing paragraphs

Our example from class:

“What was good about your last week of class?”

There were several good things about last week, which was the final week of class. First, we didn’t have much homework. This was good because we were very tired. Also, we had good friends in our class, and our teacher was ___. In addition, we learned a lot about English. Our English has improved. Finally, we had a party. This was a great way to finish the class. I enjoyed studying in this class.