Unit1 The written word.-Task

高二选修 8

Task

Writing a literary review

What you will learn in this unit:

First, you will learn how to listen for key words, then you listen to recording and write down the key words for each paragraph . Later you will read a short story online written by a student from the USA.,then fill in the table below to make notes for your literary below. After that ,listen to a conversation and check your notes in part B. Second, you will get some useful phrases to ask for and give opinions.Finally, you will learn how to write a literary review by using some key structures.

Skills building 1:

Listen for key words:

When your teacher is speaking, it is important to listen carefully for key words. Key words are the most important words in a sentence or paragraph.

Below is some useful information on how to listen for key words.

1、 Key words are often stressed.

2、 There is often a pause before a key word.

3 、 Key words are often repeated.

4 、 Key words are often summarized.

Step 1: recognizing key words.

Part A. listening:

Your teacher is telling you how to write a literary review. Listen to the four paragraphs. Then write down the key words for each paragraph. Fill in the table below.

Paragraph 1

Paragraph 2

Paragraph 3

Paragraph 4

Answers to part A

author, title, genre, settingplot, characters, character, development

themes, symbols

personal opinion, rate of the story

Part B.

Read the story on page 11, and use this table to make notes for your literary review.

Title Theme

Author Symbols

Genre Your opnion

Characters Star rating

Plot

Answers to part B

Jerry Johnson

The home-made ball friendship

The old home-made soccer ball and the new soccer ball, the old bench and the new sneakers

short storyokay

Kevin,Mike, Steven three out of five

Kevin and Mike are good friends, and play soccer with their home-made ball every day.However, when Kevin gets new sneakers and a new soccer ball, things change.

Part C:

Please listen to the conversation in part C and check your notes in part B against what you hear in part C.

Skills building 2:

Asking for and giving opinions.

When you’re giving your opinion, you may say:

I feel that ……

If you ask me, I would say ……

In my opinion……..

To keep the discussion going, you’ll need to ask for other people’s Opinions. You may say:

Do you think that….?

How do you feel about……?

What’s your opinion of……..?

In the discussion, you will either agree or disagree with others. Here’re some useful phrases to express your agreement:

Exactly!

I feel the same way.

I think so, too.

If you don’t agree with others, you can say:

I disagree.

I don’t feel the same way.

I beg to differ.

Step 2

Giving your opinion on a literary review

Read the literary review on page 12. Use the information from skill building 2 to discuss the questions below with your partner.

1. Do you think the plot of ‘The Attic’ sounds interesting?

2. What do you think about the way colours are used to describe Cindy’s moods?

3. Why do you think Virginia Fox uses chocolate as a symbol of happiness?

4. Which character in ‘The Attic’ do you think is the most interesting?

5. Do you think ‘the beauty of freedom’ is a good theme for a short story?

Skills building 3:

Writing a literary review.

When you write a literary review, you should remember the following:

1. A literary review is usually written in the simple present tense, but we can also use the present perfect tense.

2. A literary review should have a certain structure.

You can use the following outline as an example of structure.

• Paragraph One

Mention the title and author of the story.

Mention the genre of the story.

Describe where the story is set.

• Paragraph Two

Give a brief outline of the plot without giving away the ending.

Describe the important characters in the story.

Discuss any character development.

• Paragraph Three

Discuss the important themes in the story.

Discuss any symbols that appear in the story.

• Paragraph Four

Give your own opinion of the story.

You can also give the story a rating of one to five.

Step 3:

Writing your review.

You want to write a literary review about ‘The home-made ball’. Work in a group and discuss your views on the story.

Sample:‘The home-made ball’ is a short story written by Jerry Johnson. The story is set in modern-day America.

The main character of ‘The home-made ball’ is a boy called Kevin. Kevin and Mike are good friends who play soccer with their home-made ball every day, but when Kevin gets new sneakers and a soccer ball, things change.

Friendship is an important theme in this short story. The author, Jerry Johnson, uses the old and new things, like the old home-made ball and the new soccer ball, and the old bench and the new sneakers as symbols. The old things symbolize the most valuable thing, friendship, which needs to be cherished.

I think this story is really good and I give it a rating of four out of five.

Home work:Try to write a literary review after reading a famous novel. You may refer to the skills in this part.

祝同学们学习进步！