Lesson 1 Hitting the Headlines
Learning Objectives:
1. Discussing newspaper headlines and matching to photos. 2. Matching stories to headlines. 3. Reading news stories for detail. 4. Listening to news reports for detail.
5. Revising & practising passive constructions. 6. Writing and presenting a news report..
Speaking
1. Work in pairs. Look at the sentences (1–5) and discuss these questions. 1) Where do you think they come from?
2) What do you notice about the language used?
(1) Where do you think they come from?
They are all headlines from newspaper stories. 2) What do you notice about the language used?
They use simplified language, e.g. Omitting articles and simplifying tenses. They also use assonance (avalanche agony) and alliteration (Seb the Sailor). Neat, catchy and established phrases (happy ending, perfect alibi) are used to attract the reader. 2. Match the sentences (1–5) to the pictures (a–e).
Reading: Lexical preparation
(1) accuse: v. (accuse sb. of sth.) : to say that sb. has done sth. wrong or is guilty of sth. e.g. The government was accused of incompetence.
2) charge: v. (charge sb. with sth./ with doing sth.): to accuse sb formally of a crime so that there can be a trial in a court of law
e.g. He was charged with murder.
3) convict: v. [often passive] (convict sb. of sth.): to decide and state officially in a court of law that sb. is guilty of a crime
e.g. He was convicted of fraud.
4) allege: v. [often passive] (formal) to state sth. as a fact but without giving proof (It is alleged that?)
e.g. — It is alleged that he mistreated the prisoners. — He is alleged to have mistreated the prisoners.
5) chance: [U] the way that some things happen without any cause that you can see or understand (by chance)
e.g. I met her by chance (=without planning to) at the airport. 6) impress: v. (formal) to have a great effect on sth., esp. sb’s mind, imagination, etc. (impress sth. / itself on sth.)
7) catch up with sb. :
① if the police or authorities catch up with sb., they find and punish them after some time e.g. The law caught up with him years later when he had moved to Spain.
② to reach sb. who is ahead by going faster or reach the same level or standard as sb. who was better or more advanced
e.g. He had to work hard to catch up with the others after missing a term through illness.
8) be / get caught up in sth. : to become involved in sth., especially when you do not want to be e.g. Innocent passers-by got caught up in the riot.
9) attempt: n. an act of trying to do sth., especially sth. difficult, often with no success (in an attempt to do) (make an attempt to do) Reading
1. Match the first lines of each news story below (a–e) to the full stories (i–v). What do all the first lines have in common?
a) A Mafia hitman who was believed to have been responsible for ... b) A British climber made an extraordinary journey ...
c) A Japanese man drove his car through a train station ... d) A man has been jailed for three years ...
e) A 15-year-old boy from Cowes has become the youngest person ... What do all the first lines have in common? a) A Mafia hitman who was believed to have been responsible for ... b) A British climber made an extraordinary journey ... c) A Japanese man drove his car through a train station ... d) A man has been jailed for three years ... e) A 15-year-old boy from Cowes has become the youngest person ... The first lines introduce the main character, often with a qualifying adjective — mafia, British, etc.
2. Read the news stories and answer these questions. 1) Why did Graham Burdon post the message?
Because he wanted to get in touch with some old school friends. 2) Why is Torre’s perfect alibi such an “original” one?
Because he confessed to having committed another murder on the same day. 3) How did Seb Clover feel when he arrived? He felt very tired.
2. Read the news stories and answer these questions.
4) How did Saito try to attract the woman’s attention?
By driving dangerously up stairs and along a corridor in a train station. 5) Why was Trevor Jones lucky to have been found by the Romanian family? Because the village is usually uninhabited in winter. 3. Discuss these questions with a partner. 1) Which stories are the most humorous? Stories i, ii and iv.
2) Identify any humorous or ironic touches in these texts.
-- he was busy killing / he couldn't possibly have shot (ii); -- in a bid to get noticed (iv).
4. Translate the following sentences into English.
(1) 他被判处死刑，其犯罪团伙因杀害20人已受到指控。(accuse) He was sentenced to death. His gang had been accused of killing 20 people. 2) 她曾两次被判诈骗罪。(convict of) She has twice been convicted of fraud.
3) 据说他是被迫签署那份文件的。(It’s alleged that ...) It’s alleged that he had signed the document under pressure. 4) 他们攀登那座山的一切尝试都失败了。(in an attempt to do) They failed in all their attempts to climb the mountain. 5) 他的话铭刻在我的记忆里。(impress)
His words impressed themselves on my memory.
2. Listen again and find three incorrect facts in each report. Story 1: 1) The father, Ian, had challenged his son to sail around the world; 2) his father beat him by a day, not 12 hours; 3) it took 25 days not 55. Story 2: 1)Masafumi Saito had just dropped off a friend, not his mother; 2) two people were injured, not no-one; 3) he is 40 not 20 years old. Story 3: 1) The murder was 11 years ago, not 15; 2) another man was convicted a year after it took place, not two years; 3) he died in prison, he is not still there.
3. Discuss these questions with a partner.
1) Why do you think people might be interested in news 2) Do stories like these appear in the news in your country? Language Focus: Passive constructions
Practice
1. Complete the newspaper story using an appropriate passive form of the verbs in brackets. Compulsive criminal admits to 589 burglaries
A burglar who was jailed for seven years by a London court on Friday for two break-ins has admitted to nearly 600 more. 1) It was reported (report) that Martin Maloney, 22, had concentrated most of his efforts in the capital where 2) _________________ (say)to have carried out up to three burglaries a day. Maloney was sentenced for two separate burglaries, but 3)
______________(think) to have asked for a further 587 to be taken into consideration. 4)_________________________ (suggest) that Mr Maloney was hoping his confession would persuade the judge to give him a lighter sentence.
2. Translate the following sentences into English. 1) 他被公认为是一位专家。 He is known to be an expert. 2) 相信汤姆能在两天内返回。
Tom is believed to come back within two days. 3) 据报道，这条河流已经污染了。
It is reported that the river has been polluted. 4) 据说他找到一份好工作。
It is said that he has got a good job. 5) 人们相信这里的生活会得到改善。
It is believed that life here will be improved.
Writing：A news report
1. Work in pairs. Choose one of the other two newspaper stories on pages 61–62 and write a radio report about it. Include two incorrect facts in your report. Remember to use passive constructions where appropriate.
2. Work with another pair. Read your radio reports to each other. As you listen, try to identify the two incorrect facts.
Lesson 2 News to Me
Learning Objectives:
1. Learning expressions for using the internet. 2. Listening to people talking about blogs. 3. Discussing opinions about journalism.
4. Revising ways of expressing preferences about the present, the future and the past. 5. Reading a website about blogging. 6. Discussing blogs.
7. Writing a blog posting.
Vocabulary: Using the Internet
1. Match the two parts of these expressions. You can make more than one combination with some of the verbs.
2. Work in pairs. How often do you do each of these things?
3. What other combinations can you think of with the verbs in Exercise 1. install an anti-virus program, download a song ...
-- download a file/a song; -- update a file/software; -- install a new program; -- e-mail your contacts ?
Listening & Speaking
1. Work in pairs. Discuss these questions.
1) How important is it to keep up with the news? Why? 2) How do you find out about the news (TV, Internet, etc.)? 3) How has the way news is reported changed in recent years?
2. Listen to Kath and Phil talking about blogs and answer the questions.
According to Kath, how have blogs changed in recent years?