Unit 13 Living in the city--- A City life compares life in the country and in the city

B Safety and crime focuses on ways of staying safe in urban areas.

Objectives:ensure students will be able to

1. talk respectively about the urban life and the country life

2. compare the two different life and find out some aspects that people truly

enjoy

3. talk about the urban safety and crime and recommend ways to stay safe

Lead-in During the recent decades of years, with the flow of population from the

country to the city, and meanwhile our government also issuing and carrying

out some policies and measures contributing to narrow the gap between the

country and the city, people’s ideas about country life and urban life have

changed a lot. Some people and books extol the virtues of country life, such

as the peaceful surroundings, friendly people, the clean atmosphere, the

closeness to nature and the gentle pace of living. Every time the country life

is mentioned, an appealing picture is being unfolded before us: you may wake

up with first cockcrow, the twittering of birds at dawn, and indulge yourself in

the sight of the rising sun glinting on the trees and farms. But anyway, this

idyllic pastoral scene is only part of the picture. There still inevitably exist

differences between the country life and urban life. And you all, city born and

city bred, of course, have the true picture of city life. You cannot deny that to

great extent, city life is somehow superior to country life, and that Shanghai

city can provide you with the best that life can offer. Now, before coming to

our further discussion on this topic, I’d like to offer you a poem for your

appreciation.

I live in city - I was born in hospital

I live in village - I was born in my home.

I live in city - from today, I become happy citizen of the country.

I live in village - from today, I become an honorable tax payer for the country.

I live in city - I am ill. Dad brings me to hospital. I am curious whether

insurance cover it.

I live in village - I am ill. Dad sold the pig, and bring me to doctor.

I live in city - My family bought motor cycle, and prepare to buy car several

years later.

I live in village - My family bought a new baby pig. Perhaps the year after next

year, it will have more baby pigs.

I live in city - Dad wants to have a business of his own.

I live in village - Dad wants to go into city, to be a farm worker

I live in city - country gave Dad all kinds of benefits, and waived all tax.

I live in village - Dad has to pay all the tax and fees back in home, and need to

pay to get all kinds of licenses.

I live in city - Dad goes to bank everyday, and servant smiles to him.

I live in village - Dad asks for delayed salary at the year end, but was beaten

and insulted by business owners.

I live in city - Government said Dad work on startups, and benefit the

economy

I live in village - government said Dad's rushing into city made big problems,

and maliciously asking for salary.

I live in city - I can move freely in my country.

I live in village - I can live freely in my village.

I live in city - Tomorrow is promising.

I live in village - Tomorrow is hopeless.

13A City life Activity 1Step 1 Invite students to page 56 and to read the words in the box out aloud,

then ask some students to give explanation to several simple words,

offer help if necessary .

construction: an object that has been made or built, like an impressive steel

and glass construction / skyscraper/ high-rise

grass: lawn; grassland;

inconvenient: (convenient) causing problems or difficulties for someone

litter: rubbish which is left lying around outside/ n. or v. (be littered with)

noisy: making a lot of loud or unpleasant sound

time-consuming: using large amounts of time

gorgeous: (someone or something) extremely pleasant or attractive

Step 2 Pair work

Have students form pairs to look at the pictures and describe the scenes

of city life using the words above mentioned or in your own words.

Then a few minutes later, help students generalize the descriptions of

the three aspects (environmental problems in public places; noise

pollution; traffic problems) of urban life shown in the pictures.

Step 3 Group work

1. Have students join their partners (four students a group ) to talk

about the advantages of city life and country life, and to take

notes on their discussions.

city life country life

stores/shopping less crime

a large variety of ethnic restaurants usually cheaper

nightlife with bars and clubs traffic not so bad

cafes and street life closer to nature

lots of movie theaters friendlier people

more large and top universities

2. Tell students to find words to describe the city or town where they

live (esp. Shanghai city). What do they like and dislike about it?

Circulate as students work, listening to as many groups as

possible, and encourage them to have more interactions with

partners.

3. Brainstorm a list of ideas on the board. For example, lots of movie

theaters, different ethnic restaurants, large universities, traffic

jam, violence, crime, cathedrals, commuters, department stores,

expressways, highways, high rent/cost of living, different types of

school, homelessness, museums, parks, pickpockets, pollution,

public transportation, skyscrapers, stylish clothes, zoo.

Activity 2Step 1 Warm-up work

1. As a warm-up, find out if any students have visited or know about

San Francisco and New York City. If so, ask them what the cities are

like.

2. Lead students to quickly go over these profiles of San Francisco

and New York City, answering any questions about vocabulary that

may arise.

3. Have the class form pairs to answer the questions about the profiles.

Call attention to the speech balloon, and encourage students to

use it as a model for the beginning of their own talk.

Step 2 Pair work

1. Help students brainstorm cities around the country. List all

answers on the board.

2. Have students work in their pairs to discuss the questions.

----what’s the largest city you’ve ever been to? What was it like

there?

----what’s your favorite city to visit? Why?

----if you could choose a city to live in, which would it be? Why?

3. If time allows, one or two students might be invited to give their own

ideas.

Activity 3 (students should be informed of this mission beforehand in order to get them well prepared)

Hold a debate on whether the city life is superior to country life.

Divide the class into three groups with one group of five students (Group C),

the other two groups of about twelve students (Group A and Group B). Group

C is appointed to take notes of main aspects from both Group A and Group B,

and meanwhile act as the Judge to decide which group performs better. The

students in Group A and B are the debaters respectively in support of the city

life or country life.

13B Safety and crime Activity 1 Step 1 Warm-up

As a warm-up, lead a brief class discussion about safety in the city or

town where you live.

Step 2 Work alone

1. Preview the questionnaire. Tell students to quickly read over the

chart. Answer any questions about vocabulary that may arise.

personal alarm: a small gadget(a small machine or device

which does a useful task/小巧的机械;小器具) that makes a loud noise if you are attacked

flashlight: a small portable electric light which gets its power

from batteries

2. Have students complete the questionnaire individually. Allow

enough time for them to do this.

Step 3 Pair work

1. Have students form pairs to compare answers and discuss how

they protect themselves against crime. Call attention to the

speech balloon, and encourage students to use it as a model for

the beginning of their own talk.

--stand near other people while waiting for the subway

--have locks on the windows of your apartment

--avoid making eye contact with people on the street

--have your apartment keys ready

--don’t walk alone late at night

--don’t let strangers into your apartment building

--always look like you know where you’re going

--tell your roommate where you’re going

2. After a few minutes, find out which of the things listed in the chart

the groups do and don’t do.

3. Have pairs make and share a list of safety dos and don’ts for

taking public transportation, driving alone, or going out at night.

4. If time allows, discuss the types of crimes that students think are

the most common in China and Shanghai city.

for example, robbery, burglary, theft, mugging, littering

Activity 2Step 1 Pair work

1. Lead students to the graph, and tell them to explain in words the

statistics in the graph. If necessary, offer help by explaining some

words and expressions.

injury: damage to a person’s body

theft: the act of taking something that belongs to someone else

and keeping it

to steal: to take something that doesn’t belong to you

graffiti: unofficial drawing or writing on public places

stationery: paper used for writing letters

2. Put students into pairs to discuss the questions.

--which country is the safest?

--do you worry about crime where you live?

--when you travel to another city or country, what precautions do

you take in order to stay safe?

3. After several minutes, invite some students to share their opinions

of how safe their country is.

Step 2 Work alone

Ask the class to read over the seven situations, then work individually to

rate the situations according to their seriousness, from 1 (the most

serious) to 7 (the least serious).

Step 3 Group work

1. Put students into small groups to compare evaluations. Point out

the speech balloons, and tell the class that their ratings are based

on their individual opinions.

2. Walk around the room as students work, offering advice and

encouragement.

3. After several minutes, reassemble the class and ask volunteers to

share their evaluations.

4. Encourage students to come up with some ways to punish the

illegal crimes. Provide relevant terms such as fines, jail, prison,

sentence.