True Height

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Unit 5

• Overcoming Obstacles

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Contents
Objectives
Warm Up Activities
Cultural Notes
Text Analysis
Key Language Points
Assignments
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Objectives

• Students will be able to
• 1.grasp the main idea (dreaming and hard work
  helped Michael Stone on his way to success)and
  the structure of the text(narration with a
  flashback)
• 2.appreciate the narrative skills (using details
  to bring out a character a surprising ending)
• 3.master the key language points and grammatical
  structures in the text
• 4.conduct a series of reading, listening,
  speeding and writing activities related to the
  theme of the unit.

back
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Warm-up Questions

• Can you talk about the obstacles that you have
  been faced with in your life? How to overcame
  such difficulties?
• Can you tell us the problems that you still have
  in overcoming these obstacles?

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Listening Comprehension

• Listen to the recording two or three times and
  then think over the following questions
• 1. What happened to the singer?2. What helped
  her pull through all the hardships she
  suffered?3. What is the tone of the song?4. Is
  the song related to the theme of the unit --
  overcoming obstacles?

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Cultural Notes

• 1. Sports Sports play an important in American
  life. Professional baseball and (American)
  football games attract large crowds, and many
  people watch games on television. Although many
  parents complain about their children being couch
  potatoes (people who spend a lot of time
  watching television), there are sports at school
  for all ages. College students are usually also
  required to take physical education classes to
  complete their studies.

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Cultural Notes

• 2.Olympics The ancient Olympic Games were held
  in Olympia every four years from 776 B.C. to 392
  A.D. The modern Games first held in 1896 in
  Greece and, with the exception of three games not
  held because of the two world wars, have been in
  various cities of the world at regular 4-year
  intervals. Since 1924, a separate program of
  minter sports has been added to the Games.

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• Olympics

• IN 2008 Beijing will host the 29th Olympic Games.

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• The Olympic symbol---five interlocking red, blue,
  yellow, and green circles on a white
  field---represents the continents of the world
  joined in friendship.
• The Olympic motto is Citius---Altius---Fortius.
  These words mean Swifter, Higher, Stronger.

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History of Olympics
The ancient Olympic Games were the great Greek
religious, athletic, and cultural festivals that
inspired the creation of the modern Olympic
Games. The earliest documentation of the ancient
Games traces the efforts of King Iphitos of Elis,
around 824 BC, to establish a "sacred truce"
through the conduct of Games "dear to the gods."
From 776 B.C., these Games took place every four
years.
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• The ancient Games were sacred events. Athletes
  from all Greek city-states joined the festivals
  at Olympia - marked by solemn Opening and Closing
  ceremonies. The "sacred truce" from the first
  known Games makes interesting reading "May the
  world be delivered from crime and killing and
  freed from the clash of arms." The intent was for
  warring city-states to lay down their arms for
  the period of the Games, so athletes could
  compete in peace.

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• The program of competitive events in the ancient
  Games evolved over time. Among the sports
  contested were the foot race, wrestling, boxing,
  the pentathlon, and chariot races. The first
  recorded winner was the runner Koroibos. Only men
  were permitted to take part in the Olympic Games
  - women were forbidden to compete or be
  spectators at the ancient Olympic Games under
  penalty of death. The only female allowed in
  Olympia was the high priestess of the goddess
  Demeter.

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• Women in ancient Greece, did, however,
  participate in festivals of their own and
  exclusively female Games, held in honor of the
  goddess Hera, were held at regular intervals. The
  ancient Olympic Games are known to have existed
  for 12 centuries. The symbolic power of the Games
  lived on after their demise in 394 AD, and came
  to life again as the modern Olympic Games.

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Pierre de Fredy, the Baron de Coubertin, was the
founder of the modern Olympic Movement. Born in
1863 to a French aristocrat family, Coubertin was
an avid sportsman, believing sport possessed the
power to benefit humankind and encourage peace
among the nations of the world.
After visits to England and the United States,
Coubertin formulated a plan to revive the Games.
His vision was realized, in June 1894, when a
meeting of delegates in Paris voted to hold the
modern Olympic Games at Athens in 1896.
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The Olympic Games are organized and governed by
the International Olympic Committee (IOC). It has
offices in Lausanne, Switzerland. The Committee
has made many decisions that affect the modern
Olympics. For example, in 1912, the Committee
decided to allow women to compete in the
Games. Olympic Museum Lausanne
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Text Analysis

• True Height

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• Scan the text and answer the questions
• 1. Where does the text switch from the past tense
  to the past perfect tense?
• Para 3.
• 2. Which sentence shows that the flashback is
  over and the narration returns to the National
  Junior Olympics?
• The first sentence of paragraph 6.
• 3. Where does author conclude the text?
• Para 13.

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Text Organization
Part one
(Paras 1-4)

• The waiter was disappointed to find that the
  Richest Man in America led so simple a life.
• Being friendly, easy-going and never flashy,
  Walton carries on like plain folks and never
  wants any special treatment.
• With the Wal-mart team in mind, Walton devotes
  himself heart and soul to making the business a
  great success.

Part two
(Paras 5-13)
Part three
(Paras 14-22)
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Main Idea
Dreaming and hard working helped Michael Stone on
his way to success.
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Further Understanding
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For Part 1
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For Part 2 Questions and Answers

• From the description of Michaels parents, what
  can you learn about his parents?
• 2. Brainstorm the various obstacles Michael
  might face during the hard training.
• 3. What individual characteristics should
  Michaels success be attributed to?

Michaels mother is romantic and passionate,
while his father is a hard-core realist.
Open-ended.
He is diligent, perseverant, optimistic,
ambitious, etc.
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GR-Part3-1
For Part 3 Chart Completion
Michaels reaction before/after clearing the bar
Height of the pole
Importance
Before
After
His palms were sweating. He needed a towel to dry
his grip. (L. 1)
1.If Michael Stone was surprised,
excited or vain(LL. 3738) 2.He seemed
unaware of (LL. 4041)
3 inches higher than his personal best
17 feet
, again he showed no emotion. (LL. 4344)
17 feet 2, 17 feet 4
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GR-Part3-2
For Part 3 Chart Completion
Michaels reaction before/after clearing the bar
Height of the pole
Importance
Before
After
9 inches higher than his personal best
17 feet 6
1.It was that brought Michael back to
earth. (LL. 7980) 2.On his back with that
wonderful hot sun(LL. 8181)
1. It startled him... (L. 53) 2.
The intensity anxiety. (L. 56) 3. He
became more tense. (L. 57) 4. Afraid would
be (LL. 5859)
A National and International Junior
Olympics record
He later went on that day to clear 17 feet 6
17 feet 6
1 2
1 2
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For Part 4 Discussion
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More Questions
1. What does the text title True Height mean?

• It has more than one meaning. It may refer to
• the new bar heights that Michael cleared one
  after another
• 2) the tremendous obstacles Michael had overcome
  in attaining his goal.

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Scan the text again to find out all the instances
where work is used as a verb and explain in
English the different meanings of work .
work v. 1) labor, do an activity which needs
physical or mental effort
2) act or operate effectively
3) exercise He worked out
every other day (L. 27)
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More Questions

• Without the last sentence, would you still admire
  Michael Stone's achievement?
• Who would you admire better, a Michael Stone with
  a sound body or a blind Michael Stone?
• Why does the author keep the secret about
  Michael's blindness until the last sentence?

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Extra Activities
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Scan the whole text to find out all the words
and phrases that are related to sports or
stadium. And think about their Chinese
equivalents.

???????????
National Junior Olympics
personal best
??????
stand(s)
??
final race
????
pole vault event
??????
track and field competition
????
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?????
gymnast
?????
body builder
??
weightlifting
??
bar
???
inflated landing mat
???????
vaulter
???
finger-tipped push-up
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Writing Strategy
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How to keep the article smoothly?

• As the text consists of the main story and a
  flashback, the narration has to switch from the
  ongoing competition to earlier events and then
  return to the ongoing competition. How does the
  author manage to make these parts in the text
  flow smoothly?
• 1.One way is to repeat a key word in the last
  sentence of a paragraph in the first sentence of
  the next paragraph,

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• e.g. It also has the element of flying, and the
  thought of flying as high as a two-story building
  is a mere fantasy to anyone watching such an
  event.
• As long as Michael could remember he had always
  dreamed of flying.

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• 2.Another way is to pick up a key idea from a
  previous paragraph and repeat it in the sentence
  introducing the next paragraph,
• e.g.All of Michaels vaults today seemed to be
  the reward for his hard work.

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Language Points Grammar
Structure
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1.sweat
1. v. excrete perspiration through the pores of
the skin
He was sweating after working so hard.
The white shirts were sweated through.
2. n. liquid which comes out from the body
through the skin to cool it
I was covered in sweat after running to catch the
bus.
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2. grace n.
1.quality of being smooth and elegant, esp. in
movement or structure
She danced with a grace that surprised us.
2. kindness willingness to do what is right
She had the grace to say that he was right.
??????????
He agreed that he was wrong with bad grace.
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3. mere
adj. nothing more than
She lost the election by a mere 20 votes.
???????
Mere words wont help.
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4.fantasyimagination, esp. when it has no
connection at all with reality

• Examples I still have the fantasy that one day I
  will win the National lottery.
• Having watched so many animated Moons, some
  children can't tell fantasy from reality.

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5.numerous very many

• Examples During the Depression, numerous people
  wandered from town to town looking for work.
• Numerous scholars before Copernicus had suggested
  that the earth went round the sun, but he was
  the first person to bear it out mathematically.
• antonym few

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6.passionstrong feeling, esp. of love

• Examples He loved her still, with the same
  passion as he always had.
• She had never before loved anyone with such
  passion.
• have a passion for have a strong interest in
  sth. and like it very much
• Example She had a passion for dancing which
  interfered with her schoolwork-)

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7.detail 1)small, particular fact or item

• Examples No details of the negotiation between
  the two countries have been revealed.
• I can still recall every detail of my Graduation
  Day.

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2) sth. which is unimportant and doesn't affect
the main issue

• Examples The salary is a detail the main thing
  is to find a job.
• She does not enjoy the details of housekeeping.

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go into detail (s) explain sth. thoroughly

• Example Can you give me a rough idea of what
  happened, without going into detail?
• in detail fully or thoroughly
• Example She told them in detail what they were
  going to say at the meeting.
• As for the pay increase, we haven't yet had a
  chance to discuss it in detail.

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8. recur come or happen again

• Examples The theme of love recurred in many of
  his books.
• The school authorities warned the student that he
  will be expelled if this cheating recurs.

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12. relax make or become less tense, worried or
nervous

• Examples The best strategy for avoiding stress
  is to learn how to relax.
• Massage is used to relax muscles.
• After a hard day's work, he liked to relax by
  going for a swim.

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13. on one/ two / several occasion(s)
once/twice/several times in the past

• Examples On several occasions, I attempted to
  talk with my parents about my taking a part time
  job, but my mother instantly interrupted me by
  asking me questions about my studies.
• He drinks far too much. On one occasion I saw him
  drink a whole bottle of vodka.

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14. vain too pleased with one's own abilities or
looks

• Examples Too much praise can make a person vain.
• She was vain of/about her appearance.

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15. be ashamed of feeling foolish or
uncomfortable because of sth.

• Examples She was so ashamed of cheating in the
  test that she went and told the teacher.
• You should be ashamed of yourself, telling lies
  at your age.

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20. tense feeling worried or nervous making
people worried or nervous

• Examples Facing so many teachers, John got very
  tense and made several mistakes in his
  recitation.
• The flight had been postponed five hours and all
  of the passengers were getting tense.

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22. stretch out hold a part of your body
straight out in front of you

• Examples She stretched out a hand and lifted the
  glass to her lips.
• There were beggars everywhere, pathetically
  stretching their hands out to passers-by.

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23.bring (sb.) back to earth cause (sb.) to stop
daydreaming cause (sb.) to return to reality

• Examples Emily's voice brought him back to
  earth.
• Jack had been spending dl his time chatting on
  1ine with his key-pals until his parents had a
  word with him and brought him back to earth.

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24. in one's mind's eye in one's imagination in
one's memory

• Examples In his mind's eye, she is still a shy
  girl.
• In my mind's eye, I can still see the house where
  I was born.

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25. media (collective noun) means of mass
communication, e.g. TV, radio, newspapers

• Examples They are wondering whether bias in the
  news media contributed to the candidate's defeat.
• Much of what children learn comes directly from
  the mass media.

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• 1. Michaels dedication, determination and
  discipline family chores. (Lines 29-32)

Alliteration An English device with the same
repeated consonant sound at intervals in the
initial position of words(??). An honor student
an excellent student ?? ?????????????????????????
??????????????,????????????????????
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1.What does hit sb. like a wet bale of hay
mean?

• 2. Then it all hit him like a wet bale of hay.
  (Line 54)

1.What does hit sb. like a wet bale of hay
mean?
If something hits you like a wet bale of hay, it
comes as a sudden, forceful and unpleasant
surprise.
2. Use some adjectives to describe how Michael
felt at that time.
He felt anxious, tense, nervous, etc.
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• Structure

• Answer the following questions, using the
  structure It isthat.
  
• Model What brought Michael back to earth?
• It was either the eruption of the
  people in the stands or the thump of his landing
  that brought Michael back to earth.

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1) What made it possible for a blind boy to set a
world record in pole vault?
_______________________________________
__________________________________________________
____ 2) When did you begin to learn English?
________________________________________
______________________________________
It was his dream and hard work that made it
possible for him to set a world record in the
pole-vault.
It was nine years ago that I began to learn
English.
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3. Who has ever exerted the greatest effort on
you? ____________________________________________
____________________________________ 4. Where did
you come across John?
________________________________________
It is my parents who have exerted the greatest
influence on me.
It was in Central Park that I met John.
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• Structure

2. Study the model and complete the following
sentences by translating the Chinese into
English, using what-clause
Model 1 What he
didnt know was that his dad was hugging his wife
and crying. Model 2 We know what you said.
(Text A, Unit 3, Book2)

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what the speaker wanted to
emphasize was
1.Obviously_______________________________________
_______(???????????), the impact of these
findings rather than the process that led to
these findings. 2.It seems that he is never
bothered about ___________________________________
______. (????????????)
what people would think about his behavior
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3. The CEO never hesitates to let his employee
know____________________________________. (
?????????) 4. The scientist will show the
audience _________________________________________
. (?????(tele-operated robot)????????)
what he is planning for the company
what a tele-operated robot can do for a family
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Key to exercises
Vocabulary
1. 1) startled 3) tension
5) sweating 7) vain 9)
anxiety 11) emotions 13) In
my minds eye 15) mere
2) core 4) tense
6) stretched out 8) On one occasion
10) detail 12) ashamed of
14) recurring
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Key to exercises
Vocabulary

• 2. 1) Mrs. Whites birthday coincides with her
  husbands.
• 2) The writer was assisted in the preparation of
  this article by other members of her family
• 3) It has been a week of alternate sunshine and
  rain.
• 4) Politics and philosophy had been his lifelong
  passions, although he studied economics at
  university.

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Key to exercises
Vocabulary
5) She grew tense as she waited for her
first TV interview. 3 1) medias bears
out grace 2) along with congratulate them
on 3) preparations the intensity to relax
numerous
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Key to exercises
Collacation

• Mike, a Green, made the suggestion that a large
  park be built near the community.
• In the letter to his daughter, Mr. Smith
  expressed her wish that she (should) continue her
  education to acquire still another degree.
• there is no reason to hold the belief that
  humans have no direct moral responsibility to
  safeguard the welfare of animals.
• Children need to feel safe about the world

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Key to exercises
Collacation

• .

• they grow up in , and it is unwise to give
  them the idea that everything they come into
  contact with might be a threat.
• Anxiety can result from the notion that life has
  not treated us fairly.
• Nobody believed his claim that he was innocent.

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Key to exercises
Words with Multiple Meanings

• I work out in the gym for one hour every morning.
• Florance has worked as a cleaner at the factory
  for five years.
• The wounded man worked his way across the field
  on his hands and knees
• The safe road for a truck of this type works out
  at about twenty-five tons.
• It is difficult to understand how human minds work

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Key to exercises

• To my disappointment, the managers plan of
  promoting the new products doesnt work at all.
• The teacher has a lot of experience of working
  with children who dont know how to learn.
• The media began to work one hour after the child
  took it.

Words with Multiple Meanings
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Key to exercises

• Structure
• 1) It was his dream and hard work that made it
  possible for him to set a world record in the
  pole vault.
• 2) It was nine/ ten/ eleven years ago
  that I began to learn English.
• 3) It is my parents/ my teachers/ my
  grandfather/ my brother who have/ has exerted the
  greatest influence on me.
• 4) it was in Central Park/ the library/ the book
  store/ the post office that I met John.

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Key to exercises

• Structure
• 2. 1) What the speaker wanted to emphasize was
• 2) what the people would think about his
  behavior
• 3) what he is planning for the company
• 4) what a tele-operated robot can do for a
  family

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Key to exercises

• Comprehension Exercises
• Close (A)
• 1. In my minds eye
  2. detail
• 3. sweating
  4. realx
• 5. tense
  6. fantasy
• 8.congratulate
  9. media
• 10. emotion

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Key to exercises

• Comprehension Exercises
• 1. Close (B)
• 1. what 2. for
  3. an
• 4. rarely/never 5.will
  6. longed
• 7. got 8. Then
  9. in
• 10. life 11. support
  12.to
• 13. After 14. run
  15.face

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Key to exercises

• Comprehension Exercises
• 2. Translation
• Psychologists have used numerous facts to bear
  out the argument/ statement/ claim that in order
  to recover speedily from negative emotion, you
  should allow yourself to cry. You neednt/dont
  have to be ashamed of crying. Anxiety and sorrow
  can flow of the body along with tears.

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Key to exercises

• Comprehension Exercises
• Consider the case of/ Take Donna. Her son
  unfortunately died in a car accident. The
  intensity of the blow made her unable to cry. She
  said, it was not until two weeks later that I
  began to cry. And then I felt as if a big stone
  had been lifted from my shoulders. It was the
  tears that brought me back to earth.

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Assignment 1 Write a paragraph of 80 to 100
words about a person you are familiar with.
Brainstorm what you know about this person --
stories, facts, etc. -- and use examples to
illustrate his/her individual characteristics.
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Text B Fourteen Steps
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Main Idea In this text, the author
talks about his three lives. His birth was the
beginning of his first life. In his fifties,
after he suffered from a disease, he experienced
his second life. Then, on a dark, rainy night in
1971, after an old blind man and a little girl
helped him, he began his third life.
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Install vt. 1. Place or fix in position ready for
use 2. establish (someone) in a new place,
condition, or role
Examples we're planning to install a new
shower. Ashley installed herself behind her
table.
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Sanity n. 1. the ability to think and behave in a
normal and rational manner sound mental
health 2. reasonable and rational behavior
Examples I began to doubt my own sanity.
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Penetrate v. succeed in understanding or gaining
insight into (something complex or mysterious)
Examples a magician who seemed to have
penetrated the mysteries of nature. ??????????????
????
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Suffer from ( unhappy/ unpleasant things etc.)
Examples Many people suffered from a great
dread of heights. His wife has suffered from
ill health for some years.
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Sweep over ??,????????,????????
Examples A storm swept over the country.
Cold winds swept over the barren plains.
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• Jack up
• raise something, especially a vehicle, with a
  jack
• (informal) increase something by a considerable
  amount.
• (NZ informal) arrange or organize something

Examples France jacked up its key bank interest
rate.
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Key to exercises

• Comprehension Check
• 1.b 2.c 3.b 4.b 5.c 6.a

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Key to exercises

• Translation
• 1. aid 2. traits 3.
  inclined
• 4. in spite of 5.horrible 6.penetrated
• 7. dismiss 8. has suffered from
• 9. impatient 10.progressive
• 11.optimistic 12. to a degree

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Key to exercises

• 13. ease 14. hold on to
  
• 15. install 16. in good
  health
• 17. shortcomings 18.intervals
• 19.bumped 20. miserable

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• Thank you for your attention!