SESSION 25: A SONG
COUNTING CROWS - ACCIDENTALLY IN LOVE
With lyrics:
ALICE IN WONDERLAND - PLAYSCRIPT - MAY 2010 - ACT 11
15 years ago
Sunday, April 8, 2012
SESSION 25: A VIDEO (1)
SESSION 25: A VIDEO (1)
A FILM: 1001 INVENTIONS AND THE LIBRARY OF SECRETS
http://youtu.be/JZDe9DCx7Wk
Starring Sir Ben Kingsley as Al-Jazari
SESSION 25: EXERCISES FOR DISCUSSION AND FINAL TASK
SESSION 25: EXERCISES FOR DISCUSSION AND FINAL TASK
2. EXERCISES FOR DISCUSSION:
2.1 ANCESTORS: How different would their life be from today? Was it better or worse than today?
- family life
- stress
- transportation
- food
- entertainment
- safety
2.2 DISCOVERIES: What are the most important ones ever made? Rank them and explain why they are the most important to you?
- fire
- how to use metal
- the computer
- penicillin
- the printing press
- television
- the wheel
- others
2.3 DISCUSSION: HERE ARE SOME QUESTIONS AND STATEMENTS WHICH YOU CAN THINK ABOUT AND TRY ASKING YOURSELF BEFORE YOU COME TO OUR DISCUSSION ON WEDNESDAY:
a) What springs to mind when you hear the word ‘ancestors’?
b) What do you think about what you read?c) How interesting is this news to you?
d) How important a discovery is this?
e) How do you think our ancestors started a fire?
f) Do you have any experiences with starting fires?
g) What do you think life was like a million years ago for our ancestors?
i) What do you think early humans would make of our modern world?
j) Do you think early humans were happier than we are?
k) Did you like reading this article? Did it made you think?
l) What would change in our understanding about our ancestors if scientists knew what the early humans used fire for?
m) How do you think the knowledge of how to use fire spread around the prehistoric world?
n) What do you know about early human life in your country?
o) What do you think of meat that is cooked over an open fire?
p) What other things do you think early humans used fire for?
q) Do you think early humans were happier than we are?
r) Apart from fire, what other important discoveries have taken place through History?
PREPARING A DISCUSSION IS FUNDAMENTAL:
THIS MUST BE DONE IN TWO DIRECTIONS:
FIRST, YOU NEED TO LEARN NEW VOCABULARY AND EXPRESSIONS THAT YOU WILL HAVE TO USE FOR THE DISCUSSION.
SECONDLY, YOU HAVE TO PREPARE THE TOPIC BY LOOKING UP INFORMATION IN THE INTERNET, BOOKS, ENCYCLOPAEDIAS.
THIS WAY YOU WILL FEEL MUCH MORE CONFIDENT AND AT THE SAME TIME YOU WILL HAVE MUCH MORE TO TALK ABOUT IN THE ORAL SESSION.
FINAL TASK:
HERE IS ONE FINAL TASK THAT YOU MAY DO IN ORDER TO COVER THE FOUR SKILLS YOU SHOULD FOCUS ON WHEN LEARNING A LANGUAGE: LISTENING, READING, SPEAKING AND WRITING.
Write a composition and leave it in the blog as a comment to Session 25, I will edit it in the blog so that everybody can learn from other people´s opinions. Choose one of these two options:
- Life from our ancestors who lived at the beginning of the 20th Century with life from today is very different. Express your opinion.
- How have certain inventions affected our development in life and changed our lifestyle.
SESSION 25: KEY TO EXERCISES
SESSION 25: KEY TO EXERCISES
1.1 TRUE/FALSE:
a.T / b.F / c.T / d.T / e.F / f.F / g.F / h.T
1.2 SYNONYM MATCH:
1.g / 2.e / 3.i / 4.c / 5.h / 6.j / 7.a / 8.f / 9.b / 10.d
1.3 PHRASE MATCH:
1.f / 2.a / 3.j / 4.i / 5.c / 6.b / 7.h / 8.d / 9.g /10.e
1.4 GAP FILL:
1.AMONG - 2. CASTS - 3. PROVE - 4. MULTIPLE - 5. UNLIKELY - 6. STRIKES - 7. POSSIBILITY - 8. NATURAL
9. NONE - 10. SIGNS - 11. GROUND - 12. TWIGS - 13. RAW - 14. TOSSED - 15. WARMTH - 16. PREVIOUSLY
SESSION 25: EXERCISES WORKING WITH THE TEXT
SESSION 25: EXERCISES WORKING WITH THE TEXT
NOTE: IN ORDER TO WORK WITH THE TEXT, UNDERSTAND AND PREPARE IT BETTER I RECOMMEND THESE EXERCISES:
THERE WILL BE TWO TYPES OF EXERCISES:
1. EXERCISES WORKING WITH THE TEXT: THESE ARE EXERCISES FOCUSING ON THE READING COMPREHENSION, WORKING WITH VOCABULARY AND EXPRESSIONS.
2. EXERCISES FOR DISCUSSION: EXERCISES FOCUSING ON THE PREPARATION FOR THE DISCUSSION.
1. EXERCISES WORKING WITH THE TEXT
1.1 TRUE/FALSE: Look at the article and guess whether these sentences are True (T) or False (F):
a. Scientists have debated for a long time about humans’ first use of fire.
b. Remains of ash and bones were found in an old house in South Africa.
c. Scientists have pretty much concluded lightning did not start the fires.
d. It is possible that bat droppings can catch alight spontaneously.
e. Scientists have a much clearer idea about why early humans used fire.
f. Scientists found that early humans started fires by using animal fat.
g. The researchers discovered the cave dwellers only ate raw meat.
h. Humans started using fire 300,000 years earlier than earlier thought.
1.2. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article:
1. argument ............... a. unmistakable
2. ancestors ............... b. threw
3. casts .................... c. proof
4. evidence ............... d. earlier
5. rare ..................... e. descendants
6. still ...................... f. pondering
7. clear .................... g. debate
8. wondering ............. h. uncommon
9. tossed .................. i. throws
10. previously ............ j. until now
1.3 PHRASE MATCH: Match the following phrases from this article (sometimes more than one option is possible):
1. The argument ............................. a. light on the debate 2. casts new .................................. b. the wiser
3. unlikely the fires were started ......... c. possible natural event
4. spontaneously ............................. d. bones into the fire
5. a very rare but ........................... e. previously thought
6. still none .................................. f. among scientists
7. Scientists are ............................. g. from wild animals
8. tossed the ................................ h. now wondering
9. protection ................................ i. combusting
10. years earlier than ...................... j. naturally
1.4 GAP FILL: Put the words into the gaps in the text:
POSSIBILITY - UNLIKELY - PROVE - NATURAL - AMONG - MULTIPLE - CASTS - STRIKES
The argument (1) ____________ scientists about when our human ancestors first used fire is a long-running one. A new study centred on a cave in South Africa (2) ____________ new light on the debate. Prehistoric ash and the remains of burnt bones (3) ____________ early humans used fire a million years ago. Scientists working at South Africa’s Wonderwerk Cave have found evidence of (4) ____________ fires deep inside the cave, some over 30 metres from the entrance. This means it is very (5) ____________ the fires were started naturally, by lightning (6) ____________ or from nearby bush fires. Scientists have also discounted the (7) ____________ that the fires were as a result of bat guano spontaneously combusting – a very rare but possible (8) ____________ event.
RAW - PREVIOUSLY - SIGNS - TWIGS - WARMTH - NONE - TOSSED - GROUND
The scientists are still (9) ____________ the wiser what our cave ancestors used fire for. They found no (10) ____________ of a place for fire preparation, like a hearth or a deep hole in the (11) ____________. It is clear, however, that they started the fires by burning leaves, grass and small (12) ____________. Scientists are now wondering about the burnt bones. Some say our ancestors could have cooked the meat, while others say they could have eaten the meat (13) ____________ and (14) ____________ the bones into the fire. Cave researcher Francesco Berna of Boston University said other possible uses could be for (15) ____________, light or protection from wild animals. The discovery means our ancestors used fire 300,000 years earlier than (16) ____________ thought.
SESSION 25: TEXT FOR WEDNESDAY 11th APRIL
SESSION 25: TEXT FOR WEDNESDAY 11th APRIL
EARLY HUMANS USED FIRE MILLION YEARS AGO
TEXT TAKEN AND/OR ADAPTED FROM:
THE TEXT:
The argument among scientists about when our human ancestors first used fire is a long-running one. A new study centred on a cave in South Africa casts new light on the debate. Prehistoric ash and the remains of burnt bones prove early humans used fire a million years ago. Scientists working at South Africa’s Wonderwerk Cave have found evidence of multiple fires deep inside the cave, some over 30 metres from the entrance. This means it is very unlikely the fires were started naturally, by lightning strikes or from nearby bush fires. Scientists have also discounted the possibility that the fires were as a result of bat guano spontaneously combusting – a very rare but possible natural event.
The scientists are still none the wiser what our cave ancestors used fire for. They found no signs of a place for fire preparation, like a hearth or a deep hole in the ground. It is clear, however, that they started the fires by burning leaves, grass and small twigs. Scientists are now wondering about the burnt bones. Some say our ancestors could have cooked the meat, while others say they could have eaten the meat raw and tossed the bones into the fire. Cave researcher Francesco Berna of Boston University said other possible uses could be for warmth, light or protection from wild animals. The discovery means our ancestors used fire 300,000 years earlier than previously thought.
'Early Humans Used Fire Million Years Ago' - 4th April 2012
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