Unit 1 Festivals and Celebrations
Discovering Useful Structures
【教材分析】
该板块的活动主题为“描述节日活动”（Describe festival activities）。丰富的节日活动往往会带给人们深刻的印象和不同的感受，无论是在口头表达还是书面表达中，人们对节日活动的描述都与亲历者的情绪交融在一起，而常用来表达人物情绪和感受的典型结构之一便是用作定语或表语的动词-ing形式，这也是本单元要学习的核心结构。单元主题语境与语言结构的契合能够确保语言使用的真实性和合理性，使学生充分感受和理解目标结构，并能自如地使用所学结构进行表达。
【教学目标】
1. Able to understand the function and meaning of the -ing form as an attribute and a predicate;
2. Can summarize and accumulate related vocabulary used to express emotions, including -ing form and past participle;
3. Read about La Tomatina, a festival held in the town of bunol, Spain.
【教学重难点】
Importance:
1. Guide students to understand the function and meaning of the attributive and predicate of the -ing form in real context;
2. Instruct students to correctly use the -ing form to describe different festival activities and personal feelings.
Difficulties:
The use of the -ing form as attributive and predicative in context.
【课前准备】
1. Review the basic structure of the -ing form, find out the sentences containing the -ing form from the listening and reading parts, and analyze the function and meaning of the structure;
2. Read the content of this section in advance, understand the new words in the text according to the context, and summarize the words that express emotions;
3. Complete the relevant exercises in the guide plan.
【教学过程】
Step 1 Revision
1. Ss read the three sentences from Reading text and discuss the meanings and grammatical functions of the italicised -ing form, and summarizes the usages of the -ing form as attribute and predicate.
*These lanterns are amazing.
*During the Mid-Autumn Festival in China, families gather to admire the shining moon and enjoy delicious mooncakes.
*Families celebrating the Lunar New Year can enjoy exciting dragon dances and carnivals together.
2. T shares the meanings and functions of the -ing form in each sentences.
No.1: The -ing form is used as a predicate, usually after a tie verb, to indicate what or how the subject is.
No.2: The -ing form is an attribute, usually used to modify, qualify, or indicate the qualities and characteristics of a noun or pronoun.
No.3: The -ing form is an attribute which modifies the preceding noun.
Step 2 Learning new grammar
Activity 1
1. Work in pairs to identify sentences from the unit that contain the -ing form as an attribute and a predicate. Explain the composition and meaning of the -ing form in each sentence as below.
*I think the Rio Carnival would be the most exciting.（表语）
*It’ll be too tiring to walk or dance for a long time in those shoes.（表语）
*Another example is Halloween, which slowly became an exciting festival for children, in spite of its religious origins.（定语）
*The first week was a little confusing.（表语）
2. In student activities, the teacher may make necessary supplement.
Step 3 Practice
Activity 2
1. T asks sb. to read the messages (on page 6, Students’ book) posted by some exchange students on an Internet forum.
2. T asks the following questions to guide Ss to focus on the theme, text features and the core content of each comment.
*What are they discussing in the forum (Which festival is the best )
*How are the messages arranged (By time and date.)
*What festivals are mentioned in the discussion (Rio Carnival, the Spring Festival, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas.)
Step 4 Summarizing
1. Students read the online comments carefully, find the -ing form of the verb that is used as an attribute or predicate and underline it. Then check with your partner.
2. The teacher asks different students to read the content of each post and say whether the -ing form is used as an attribute or a predicate.
Step 5 Reading
Activity 3
1. Ss look at the picture and scan the passage to understand the main idea while teacher is giving the following questions to inspire Ss to think.
*Where are those people
*What are they doing
*Why are they so excited
2. Ss complete the passage with the appropriate -ing form. Then discuss and check the answers with class.
Answers: boring, interesting, taking, exciting, amazing
3. The teacher raises questions for the students to discuss and encourages them to express their opinions.
*Do you like La Tomatina Why or why not
4. Each group representative reports the discussion result, the teacher gives feedback and the evaluation.
Step 6 Practice
Activity 4
1. Ss complete the Ex 2 in Using Structures.
2. Check the answers after finishing the exercises.
Step 6 Homework
Understand and master the functions and usage of the -ing form;
【教学反思】
1.通过本节内容学习，学生是否理解和掌握动词-ing形式作定语和表语的功能和意义；
2.通过本节内容学习，学生能否在理解文段内容的基础上，根据上下文语境和表达逻辑，能正确运用动词-ing形式描述节日庆典。
3.通过本节内容学习，学生是否归纳和积累用于表达情绪的相关词汇。Unit 1 Festivals and Celebrations
Listening and speaking & Listening and talking
【教材分析】
本板块的活动主题是“谈论节日活动”（Talk about festival activities），主要是从贴近学生日常生活的角度来切入“节日”主题。学生会听到发生在三个国家不同节日场景下的简短对话，对话中的人们正在参与或将要亲历不同的庆祝活动。随着全球化的进程加速，国际交流日益频繁，无论是国人走出国门还是外国友人访问中国，都已成为司空见惯的事情。因此，该板块所选取的三个典型节日场景都是属于跨文化交际语境，不仅每组对话中的人物来自不同的文化背景，对话者的身份和关系也不尽相同。
【教学目标】
1. Master the new words related to holiday: lantern, carnival, costume, dress (sb) up, march, congratulation, congratulate, riddle, ceremony, samba, make-up, after all.
2. To understand the origin of major world festivals and the activities held to celebrate them and the significance of these activities;
3. Improve listening comprehension and oral expression of the topic by listening and talking about traditional festivals around the world;
4. Improve students’ understanding of the topic by watching pictures and videos about different traditional festivals around the world;
5. Review the common assimilation phenomenon in English phonetics, distinguish the assimilated phonemes in the natural language flow, and consciously use the assimilation skill in oral expression.
【教学重难点】
Importance:
1. Guide students to pay attention to the attitude of the speaker in the process of listening, and identify the relationship between the characters;
2. Inspire students to use topic words to describe the festival activities based on their background knowledge.
Difficulties:
In the process of listening to the correct understanding of the speaker’s attitude, accurately identify the relationship between the characters.
【课前准备】
1. To understand the origin of traditional festivals in the world, the celebration activities (customs) of these festivals and the meaning of these activities;
2. Talk about holiday celebrations;
3. Preview: understand the new words according to the context.
【教学过程】
Step 1 Lead-in
Teachers talk about the world’s traditional festivals, such as the Lantern Festival in China, adults’ day in foreign countries, carnivals and so on.
Step 2 Watching and talking
Activity 1
1. Teacher lets Ss look at some pictures about festival activities. During talking about these activities, teacher can add some background knowledge about festivals.
Questions:
①What festivals do the pictures show us
②In which country do you think people celebrate each festival
③How do people celebrate each festival
2. Ask sb to choose some words or phrases from the box to celebrate each festival.
3. Teacher can show students how to use these word blocks and learn to describe holiday activities in groups. For example：
On the Coming-of-Age Day, young girls in Japan would wear traditional costumes.
One of the most important activities during the Lantern Festival is to guess riddles.
During the Rio Carnival, you can watch wonderful samba dances.
4. The teacher asks students to report the results of the group lecture. Ask these questions:
①What do people do to celebrate the Chinese Lantern festival
②Who will celebrate Coming-of-Age Day What do they do to celebrate it
③What do you expect to see if you go to the Rio Carnival
5. Learn some words and phrases in the box.
Step 3 Listening
Activity 2
1. Teacher asks sb to read “Listen for relationships”, In pairs, discuss how to identify relationships between people based on their tone and content. The teacher can provide the following questions to inspire students to discuss.
①What does a tour guide usually say to a tour group What expressions are frequently used
②What questions does an interviewer usually ask during an interview
③What would a reporter say or do if he/she wants to interview a tourist
④How do friends usually talk
2. Some group representatives are invited to communicate and speak in class.
3. Teacher plays the listening tape for students to listen to and write the order of the conversations next to the names of the festivals.
4. Play the tape again, students match each conversation with the relationship between the speakers.
5. Check the answers with class.
Activities 3-4
1. Teacher asks students to look at the tasks and requirements of activity 3. Then read the main ideas of the three dialogues. (Guide the students to guess and fill in the words according to the context. Let the students analyze the English syntactic structure based on the meaning of the sentence and make reasonable inferences.)
2. Teacher plays the tape for the second time. After listening to the tape, students discuss the answers in pairs. Then the class communicates and checks the answers.
3. Teacher lets students listen to the tape for the third time (Before the teacher plays the recording for the third time, the teacher should prepare the students to take notes and remind them to catch key words, especially phrasal verbs.).
Step 4 Speaking
Activity 5
1. Lead the dialogue by asking questions. Let students understand how to discuss their favorite festivals and give their reasons.
E.g.,
Conversation 1
T: Which of the three festivals do you like best
S1: I think the Coming-of-Age Day is the most interesting.
T: Why is it your favourite
S1: Because I like to see women dressed up in their colorful traditional kimonos.
Conversation 2
T: Which of the three festivals attracts you most
S2: The Chinese Lantern Festival.
T: I suppose you like yuanxiao, the sweet dumplings.
S2: Not only that. I especially like guessing riddles and I’m good at it.
2. Follow the example of the conversation in activity 5 and work in pairs to discuss your favorite holiday and explain why. After the discussion, the teacher asks some groups to show the dialogue.
Step 5 Acting
One student plays the role of a journalist. The other three students play the roles of the characters in the listening dialogue. They are the Japanese girl attending the coming-of-age ceremony, the girl attending the Rio carnival, and the tourist visiting China. The following questions can be used in the interview:
①What is the purpose of this festival
②How do you usually celebrate this festival
③What do you like best about this festival
Step 6 Pronunciation
1. Help students recognize speech assimilation.
（1）Teacher plays the recording of activity 1 and asks the students to pay attention to the pronunciation changes of bold letters while listening.
（2）Teacher organizes students to carry out activities in pairs: the teacher plays the recording, one person in the group reads after the words and phrases in activity 1, the other person compares the pronunciation of the recording with that of his partner carefully, and points out the pronunciation problem of his/her partner if there is any difference. Then switch roles, listen to the tape again and complete the same task.
2. Let students imitate and read.
（1）Teacher guides students to understand the requirements of activity 2. Before listening to the tape, the teacher asks the question for students to think: “How does your pronunciation change while reading the sentences ”
（2）Teacher plays the tape for the first time. The students read after the sentences in activity 2.
（3）Teacher plays the tape for the second time, the students repeat the sentences again, and then discuss with their partners the differences between the pronunciation of the bold consonants in words and the pronunciation in sentences, and describe the phonetic assimilation in the flow.
（4）Teacher asks different students to read the six sentences of activity 2 and report the result of the discussion on phonetic assimilation. The teacher supplements and corrects the students’ conclusion, explains it appropriately, and writes the assimilation pronunciation in these sentences on the blackboard or presents it to the students through the courseware.
Step 7 Listening and Talking
Activity 6
1. Learn the new words about the festivals.
2. Look at the pictures and predict what festival Song Lin and Max are going to talk about.
3. Listen and answer the questions.
①What festival is Max talking about
②What did Max’s mother cook
③What did Max do during the festival
④What did Max and his family do during and after the dinner
⑤What was the best part of the festival
4. Listen again and check the answers with class.
Answers:
①Christmas experiences.
②Roast turkey, mashed potatoes and Christmas pudding, …
③He helped decorate the Christmas tree and put presents under it, then helped his mum prepare for the family dinner.
④During dinner they shared stories and told jokes, afterwards they played games, opened their presents.
⑤The best part was opening their presents on Christmas morning.
5. Listen again and tick the phrases that Max or Song Lin uses. Then check the answers with class.
6. Have a conversation with the help of these questions:
①What is the recent festival you have had
②How did you celebrate it
③How do you feel about the festival Why
Step 8 Homework
1）Read the passage again and understand the food culture from a cross-cultural perspective.
2）Remember the new words and learn the usages of them.
【教学反思】
1、通过本节内容学习，学生能否理解发生在三个国家不同节日场景下的简短对话，对话中的人们正在参与或将要亲历不同的庆祝活动；
2、通过本节内容学习，学生能否辨别对话中人物之间的关系；
3、通过本节内容学习，学生能否掌握听力训练中的听力策略。Unit 1 Festivals and Celebrations
Reading for Writing
【教材分析】
1. Read quickly to get main idea; read carefully to get the detailed information about Naadam Festival.
2. Learn the structure of the reading article and language.
3. Write an article about a festival experience.
4. Learn to use the psychology, emotions and feeling in the writing.
【教学目标】
1. Write an article about a festival experience.
2. Use the structure of the reading article and language.
【教学过程】
Step 1 Lead in——Small talk
For Chinese, there are many important traditional festivals such as the Spring Festival and Mid-autumn Day, at that time people always gather together to have a big meal and do something together. But what do the ethnic people do in their local festivals like the Dai people
Step 2 Before reading: Analyze the title——My amazing Naadam Experience
From the title, we can know the article is about that the author went to Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region and experience the Mongolian traditional festival—Naadam Festival, which the author thinks it is amazing.
Step 3 While reading——Task 1
Find out the main idea of each paragraph.
Para 1 A. the wrestling competition at the Naadam Festival.
Para 2 B. something about the Naadam Festival
Para 3 C. the horse races and the riders at the Naadam Festival
Para 4 D. many people attended the Naadam Festival
Para 5 E. the author’s feeling
The article is about the author’s first experience at the Naadam Festival.
Step 4 While reading——Task 2
Read the text again and answer the following questions:
Q1: What does “Naadam” mean Which event does it include
It means “games” in Mongolian. It includes horse racing, wrestling and archery.
Q2: What Naadam Festival customs did you learn about
Wrestling and horse racing.
Q3: What do you think is the most impressive thing about the festival
The horse racing is the most impressive.
Q4: What else would you like to know about the festival and the writer’s experience
The writer didn’t talk about food or music, but surely they should have been interesting parts of the festival.
Step 5 Post reading——Study the organisation and language features
Read the sentence patterns below and use them to rewrite the opening sentence of the article.
This was my first time spending my holiday in China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region to celebrate the Naadam Festival, and it was an enjoyable and exciting experience for me.
I’ll never forget it because it was an enjoyable and exciting experience for me.
I’ll always remember the Naadam Festival in China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region because it was an enjoyable and exciting experience for me.
Underline the sentences that describe the writer’s emotions and feelings.
Which are all so exciting to watch;
After the opening ceremony and some amazing performances;
I was quite moved by their show of strength and grace;
I absolutely enjoyed the archery, too, but the horse races were my favorite part;
I was surprised to see that the riders were boys and girls;
I was a little worried about the children’s safety;
I’m finally back home now, feeling really tired, but celebrating Naadam with my friend was totally worth it;
I can’t wait!
3. Study the organisation
Step 6 Writing——organize the outline
Have the Ss make notes of their ideas in the table and then write their draft.
Step 7 Writing
假设你是李华，你留学在美国，2019年7月4日——美国独立日那天，你和你的寄宿家庭一起去乡下进行了一次烧烤、制作冰淇淋、游泳和骑马活动，看了焰火表演，你感觉很惬意。请写一篇日记。
提示词：独立日Independence Day 周年anniversary 寄宿家庭host family
烧烤barbecue 焰火表演firework display
Step 7 Pair work
Exchange drafts with a partner. Use this checklist to help your partner revise his/her draft.
1. Does the writer tell the reader what he/she knows about the topic
2. Is the writing well-organised
3. Is there an opening sentence in the 1st paragraph
4. Does each paragraph include the necessary details
5. Does the writer describe his or her feeling and emotions
6. Does the writer use the -ing form correctly in the writing
7. Can you find any grammar or spelling mistakes
Step 8 Homework
Put up your revised draft in the classroom or read it to your class.Unit 1 Festivals and Celebrations
Reading and Thinking
【教材分析】
该板块的活动主题——探究节日与庆典的缘由（Discover the reasons for festivals and celebrations），是前面听说板块主题内容的延续，从展示几个不同节日的场景过渡到探讨人们为何欢庆节日、对世界各地的人们庆祝节日的现象追根溯源，进而谈论节日的传承与发展变化，目的在于启发学生的深层思考，体会节日文化的内在实质，感悟世界各国人民共同的精神追求和美好愿望。
【教学目标】
1. Read the essays with the theme of “why we celebrate festivals”, analyze the discourse structure and textual logic of the essays, understand the development and changes of festival customs, and understand the connotation and significance of festivals;
2. Guide students to find the topic sentence quickly and accurately;
3. Guide students to summarize and accumulate related vocabulary used to express emotions;
4. Guide students to understand the festival culture of different countries and nationalities, sort out, analyze and refine the spiritual connotation of festivals, and understand the common emotional and spiritual pursuit of people all over the world.
【教学重难点】
Importance:
1. Guide students to find the topic sentence quickly and accurately;
2. Guide students to correctly understand and master the new vocabulary in the reading text;
3. Guide students to understand the festival culture of different countries and nationalities, analyze and refine the spiritual connotation of festivals, and understand the common emotional and spiritual pursuit of people all over the world.
Difficulties:
1. To analyze the discourse structure and textual logic of argumentation, understand the development and change of festival customs, and understand the connotation and significance of festivals;
2. Guide students to understand the festival culture of different countries and nationalities, analyze and refine the spiritual connotation of festivals, and understand the common emotional and spiritual pursuit of people all over the world.
【课前准备】
1. Read the text in advance and understand the meaning of new words in the text according to the context or the dictionary;
2. Find the topic sentence of each paragraph according to the text content, and understand the content of the article;
3. Find out the long and difficult sentences, analyze the sentence structure, and make notes of the sentences you don't understand.
【教学过程】
Step 1 Pre-reading
Activity 1
1. In groups, Ss discuss how to celebrate the festivals with family each year, answer the following questions and fill in the table.
Q1: What festivals do you celebrate with your family each year
Q2: Why do you think people celebrate different festivals
Names of the festivals Reasons for celebrating the festivals
2. Have the Ss look at the two pictures in the passage. Students say the English name of the festival and the basis of their judgment according to the situation, objects and words presented in the two pictures.
Q: What festivals are the two pictures about How do you know
3. Based on the title of the article and the illustrations in the passage, the students can guess what the author may be talking about. The teacher can ask individual students to express their opinions and list the points mentioned on the blackboard.
Step 2 Reading
Activity 2
1. Students read the text “Why do we celebrate festivals ” carefully. The teacher can present the following sentences for the students to fill in after reading:
People all over the world celebrate different festivals because:
*they would like to______________________________.
*festivals _____________________________________.
2. After the students have filled in the blanks, the teachers and students check the answers.
T: Read the passage again. Let's find out all the reasons and factors for celebrating the festival.
The teacher can guide the students with the following questions:
①Why do people celebrate the harvest festivals
②What role do customs and traditions play in festivals Do you think they are also the reasons for celebrating festivals Why
③Why did the writer mention the commercialization of festivals How is it influencing people's way of celebrating festivals
④What are some other reasons for celebrating festivals
Activity 3
1. Look for topic sentences. The reading strategy in the box on the right of student reading Activity 3. The teacher can check whether the students' understanding of the strategy is accurate or not by the following questions.
*Do you know how to identify the main idea of each paragraph
*Where can we usually find the “topic sentence”
2. Students read the text again and complete the activity independently. When checking the answers, students should read the complete topic sentence.
Activity 4
1. Explore the roots of the festival. Students have a group discussion around the first question in activity 4. Teachers can inspire students to think and express their opinions through a series of questions, such as:
*When we talk about festivals, we may think of many different kinds of festivals around the world. Their names, origins, celebration activities can be quite different. However, since festivals exist in every country and culture, there must be some similarities. What are they Please discuss these questions with your partner and share your ideas.
*What do you think most festivals seem to have in common Can you give some examples to illustrate your opinion
*What do you think are the most important things in most festivals
*Why do you think people around the world find these things important Do they have something to do with the human history/social life/people’s spiritual needs
After finishing the discussion, Teacher asks different groups to tell their opinions.
2. Discuss the changes of festival customs. Teacher's question “What festival customs have already faded away ” Let the students brainstorm about the festivals and traditions that are gradually withdrawing from modern life. Then write down what the students have said on the blackboard.
Festivals Customs that have already faded away Reasons why they have disappeared Your feelings
After the discussion, the teacher may call in different groups to report. When students report, teachers should use courseware or blackboard to present some expressions for students’ reference, such as:
*People in…used to…during…, but now…
*Nowadays people no longer…
*I think it is because…
*People have given up the custom of…in order to…
*As for the custom of…, I…
*I think I would love to…
3. Comment on the commercialization of festivals. Students discuss the third question in Activity 4 in small groups. Before the discussion, the teacher should remind the students to find relevant statements from the text and draw a conclusion by analyzing the author's wording. In addition, teachers can also let students express their true feelings and views on the commercialization of festivals.
4. Teacher shares his/her views on this issue:
During Festival, the happiest moment for my parents is when all the children and grandchildren come back home, chatting and preparing the big family dinner together. These years, we often have our family dinner in restaurants. However, the splendid dishes in a restaurant do not bring so many joyful and sweet memories to all the family members.
On Mother's Day, my child’s special gift hand-made with love and care is always my favorite. So you see, sometimes the best gifts don't cost much.
Step 3 Analyzing discourse structure
Activity 5
1. Students discuss in pairs, analyze the structure of the discourse by drawing a mind map, and demonstrate the textual structure and logical level of the discourse.
Step 4 Understanding difficulties
Read the text again and find some sentences or expressions that you find difficult to understand. Teacher can also ask students to find some subtle sentence patterns and expressions in the text and encourage them to use them in writing. According to the students' feedback, the teacher will write some typical sentences on the blackboard. Such as:
*wide range of origins (= a great number of different origins, many kinds of origins)
*It featured a parade and a great feast with music, dancing, and sports. (= A parade and a great feast with music, dancing, and sports were included as important parts of the Egyptian harvest festival.)
*some traditions may fade away and others may be established. (= Some traditions may disappear gradually, while other new traditions may come into being.)
Step 5 Practice
(1) Listen and follow the tape. The teacher may remind the students to pay attention to the meaning and usage of the black words in the context, so as to prepare for the completion of the blanks in Activity 5 and vocabulary exercises in the exercise book.
(2) Students complete the text of Activity 5 by themselves. The teacher needs to remind the students to fill in the blanks with the correct form of the vocabulary they have learned in the text. Students exchange their answers with their partners, and then teacher and students check their answers.
(3) Finish the Ex in Activity 5 of students’ book.
Step 6 Homework
1. Read the text again, in-depth understanding of the text.
2. Discuss the origin of festivals, the historical changes of related customs, the influence of commercial society on festivals and the connotation and essential meaning of festivals.
3. Complete relevant exercises in the guide plan.
【教学反思】
1.通过本节内容学习，学生是否理解和掌握阅读文本中的新词汇的意义与用法；
2.通过本节内容学习，学生能否结合文本特点快速而准确地找到主题句；
3.通过本节内容学习，学生能否理清论说文的语篇结构和文本逻辑，了解节日风俗发展与变迁，感悟节日的内涵与意义。
