The First Period Reading

Teaching goals 教學目標

1. Target language 目標語言

a. 重點詞匯和短語

occupation, photograph, photographer, colleague, eager, concentrate, course, acquire, meanwhile, recorder, case, accuse, deliberately, guilty, concentrate on, accuse ... of, so as to (do sth), defend against，cover a story，have a “nose” for a story, get a scoop, get sth straight, a trick of the trade  

b. 重點句式 （P26）    

Never will Zhou Yang forget...

Only when you have seen ..., can you cover a story...

Only if you ask ... will you acquire...

2. Ability goals能力目標

Enable the students to talk about the qualities needed to be a good reporter and how to conduct a good interview.

3. Learning ability goals 學能目標

Help the students to talk about the qualities needed

to be a good reporter and how to conduct a good interview.

Teaching important & difficult points 教學重難點

Help the students learn about the qualities needed to be a good reporter, how to get an accurate story and how to protect a story from accusation.   

Teaching methods 教學方法  

Fast-reading method; task-based method.

Teaching aids 教具準備

A computer, a projector and a tape recorder.

Teaching procedures ＆ ways教學過程與方式

Step Ⅰ Lead-in

Greet the whole class as usual. And then ask the students some questions about their future jobs.

T: Good morning / afternoon, everyone!

Ss: Good morning / afternoon, Ms / Mr...!

T: In this period, I’d like to know something about your future plans. What do you want to be in the future? And why?

S: I want to be a scientist because I want to invent lots of new things that are useful for human beings.

S: I want to be a doctor because I want to help patients recover from their illnesses.

S: I want to be an sportsman like Liu Xiang. 

S: I want to be a teacher like you because teachers are the engineers of human souls.

S: I want to be a reporter because I am curious and I like writing and photography.

T: Wonderful ideas! I hope all your dreams will come true! But whatever you want to be, you need to know a lot about the occupations and prepare yourselves for them from now on.

Step Ⅱ Warming Up

T: Suppose you want to work for a newspaper and you are offered a chance for a job at China Daily. Do you know what kind of jobs they have at their office and what each job involves? Here is a list of different types of jobs at China Daily.

Show the table on the screen.

Types of jobs at English newspaper

journalist,   editor,   reporter,  critic,

foreign correspondent,   photographer,   designer

Ask the students the following questions one by one.

T: Which two words mean the same?

S: Journalist and reporter.

T: Very good. What does a journalist or a reporter do then?

S: A journalist or a reporter interviews people or finds out events from onlookers and writes news stories.

T: Great! Next question, who gives opinions on plays and books?

S: A critic.

T: Quick response! Thank you. What does an editor do then?

S: An editor checks the writing and facts and makes changes if necessary.

T: What does a photographer do then?

S: A photographer takes photographs of important people or events.

T: Terrific! Who lays out articles and photographs?

S: A designer.

T: Well done! Who reports from abroad?

S: A foreign correspondent.

Present the following chart to the students on the screen.

Step Ⅲ Pre-reading

T: Now if you want to be a good news reporter, what qualities do you think you need to have?

S: A higher level of education, enthusiasm and good working skills.

T: Creative ideas! Any more?

S: The ability to work in a team.

T: Great idea! Here I have a list of qualities for you. Please open your books to page 25 and look at Exercise 1 in Pre-reading. Now discuss in groups of four. Tick the boxes you choose. Then add two more qualities you think are important and give your reasons.

Two minutes later.

T: Now I’d like to hear your voice. Which group would be the first?

S: Let me try. Our group agrees that a higher level of education, good communication skills and hard-working are very important qualities. The other three are important qualities. We also think the ability to work in a group and being ready to work irregular hours are important.

T: Excellent! Any different ideas?

S: We think a higher level of education, curious and active personality and enthusiasm for the job are very important qualities for a good news reporter. The rest are important. Besides, we agree good writing skills and being a good listener are also important.

T: Creative thinking! Everyone has unforgettable moments in his / her life. Think about your first day at school, being far away from home, your first day abroad .... Now discuss in groups what the first day would be like, and how you would feel if you were to work for China Daily.

Allow the students a few minutes to discuss.

T: Anyone would like to share your ideas with us?

S: My first day would be an exciting day because the job was what I had been looking forward to getting. So I would feel very excited and eager to start my work as a reporter and go out to interview different people.

S: My feelings would be mixed because, on one hand, I would be excited; but on the other hand, I would feel a little nervous. Anyway, I was a green hand and I wasn’t sure about my capability of doing the work.

T: Don’t worry! Anyone has his or her first day at work. Just relax! I think as long as you are well prepared, you’ll do fine.

S: Thank you.

Step Ⅳ Reading

Get the students to do fast reading.

T: All right. In this period we are going to learn about a new reporter Zhou Yang who is on his first day of working at the office of a popular English newspaper. Please go through the whole passage as fast as you can and try to find answers to the following three questions.

1. Could Zhou Yang go out on a story alone immediately? Why (not)?

2. What mistakes must he avoid?

3. How did Zhou Yang feel on his first day at work?

A couple of minutes later check the answers with the whole class.

T: OK. Let’s check the answers. Question 1. Any volunteers?

S: I’ll try. The answer is No, not until he was more experienced because there was a lot for him to learn and he must work in a team.

T: Correct. The next one, please.

S: He must avoid being rude and talking too much himself.

T: You got it. Question 3?

S: He felt excited and eager to go out on a story.

S: He is curious, too.

T: Smart conclusion.

Step Ⅴ Comprehending

Get the students to carry out the tasks in this part.

Task 1 Reading for details and discussion

T: Now there are some more tasks for you. Please read the instructions of Exercise 1 on page 27 and then discuss Zhou Yang’s notes. After that, please complete the chart. I will give you three minutes.

Three minutes later, check the answers.

Task 2 Reading for main idea

T: All right. Now Li Lihong would like you to help her readers understand the duties of a reporter. Read the passage again and divide it into three sections, each of which looks at one duty of a reporter. Then write down the main idea of each section. I will give you two minutes.

Two minutes later, check the answers.

T: Well done! Now what does the whole passage tell us? What’s the main idea of the passage?

S: The passage tells us about the qualities needed to be a good reporter, how to get an accurate story and how to protect a story from accusation.

T: Very good. You’ve got it.

Task 3 Discussion

Let the students work in pairs to discuss which adjectives in the box on page 27 can be used to best describe what is required for a reporter and a photographer respectively.

T: Now please turn to page 27 and look at the adjectives in the box. Please work in pairs to discuss which of them best describe what is required for a reporter and a photographer. Then complete the chart.

Five minutes later, check the answers.

T: Now we know the qualities for a good reporter and a good photographer. Can you make a good reporter or a good photographer? Why? Any volunteers?

S: I think a good reporter needs to be thorough, curious, careful and concise but a photographer needs to be creative, imaginative, technically good and gifted. They both need to be professional, well-organized and patient. I think I would make a good reporter because I am careful and curious.

T: Wonderful! You’ve done a good job.

Step Ⅵ Summary and Homework

T: In this period we have talked about the qualities needed to be a good reporter and a good photographer, how to get an accurate story and how to protect a story from accusation. Now here’s homework for today:

1. Read aloud the dialogue with your partners. Pay attention to the stress and intonation.

2. Read 21st Century Teens for this week.