Unit 1 How can we become good learners

Unit 1 How can we become good learners?

To read, write, listen and speak about your problems in learning English To learn new words: pronounce, increase, speed, ability, …

What’s your problems in learning English? How do you solve them?

Can you help me? I have difficulties in learning English.

• • • The difficulties he has in learning English New words: can’t pronounce some of the words /spell some English words Speaking: be afraid to speak Listening: can’t understand spoken English Writing: can’t make complete sentences Reading: read very slowly Grammar: make mistakes

1 a Learning English can be difficult. What things are difficult for you? Read the list. Check (✔) the statements that are true for you. I can’t pronounce some of the words. I can’t understand spoken English. I don’t know how to increase my reading speed. I can’t spell some English words. I often make mistakes in grammar.

What other things are difficult for you? Make a list. (1 b) Ødon’t know enough words to write well. Øcan’t get the pronunciation right Øbe afraid people might laugh at me Øcan’t always make complete sentences Øforget a lot of new words Øcan’t understand when people speak too quickly Ødon’t get much writing practice Øcan’t understand the words in magazines

1 c Paul finds it difficult to learn English. Listen and complete the learning challenges he talks about. pronunciation 1. He can’t get the_______ right. forgets 2. He______ a lot of new words. understand 3. He can’t always_____ when people talk to him. writing 4. He doesn’t get much______ practice.

1 d Listen again. Complete the solutions. Listening 1. ________ can help. write the new words 2. He can always___________ in his notebook and study them at home. join an English language club 3. He can____________ to practice speaking. pen pal 4. He should find a_______ to practice writing.

1 e Role-play conversations using the information in 1 c and 1 d. A: I don’t have a partner to practice English with. B: Maybe you should join an English club. A: I can’t get the pronunciation right. B: Maybe you should listen tapes.

Pair work A: I forget a lot of new words. B: Maybe you should write the new words in your notebook and study them at home. A: I can’t always understand when people talk to me. B: Maybe you should join an English language club to practice speaking.

Language points mistake vt. 弄错, 误解 I mistook the number and went to the wrong room. 我记错号码, 走错了房间。 n. 错误; 过失 Tom didn’t make a single spelling mistake in his composition. 汤姆在这篇作文里一个字也没拼错。 make mistakes 犯错; 出错

challenge n. 挑战 He wants a career that offers a challenge. 他想要一份有挑战性的事业。 vt. 向. . . 挑战; 对. . . 提出异议 I challenged him to show his proof. 我要他拿出证据。 He challenged my view on that matter. 他就我对那件事的看法提出异议。

solution n. (问题、疑难等的) 解决; 解答 It may take a long time to find a solution to the problem. 也许要花很长时间才能找到解决这个问 题的办法。 The solution of the problem requires a lot of time. 解决这个问题需要很多时间。

2 a What good learning habits can you think of? Make a list and discuss them with your partner.

2 b Read the passage quickly and check if any of the habits you listed in 2 a are mentioned. Which four habits of successful learners can you find from the passage? USING DICTIONARIES This can help you find the definition that matches the context of the word in the text.

How Can You Become a Successful Learner? Everyone is born with the ability to learn. But whether or not you can do this well depends on your learning habits. Research shows that successful learners have some good habits in common. Creating an interest in what they learn Studies show that if you are interested in something, your brain is more active and

it is also easier for you to pay attention to it for a long time. Good learners often connect what they need to learn with something interesting. For example, if they need to learn English and they like music or sports, they can listen to English songs or watch sports programs in English. This way they will not get bored. Practicing and learning from mistakes Good learners think about what they are good

at and what they need to practice more. Remember, “use it or lose it”! Even if you learn something well, you will forget it unless you use it. “Practice makes perfect. ” Good learners will keep practicing what they have learned, and they are not afraid of making mistakes. Alexander Graham Bell did not invent the telephone overnight. He succeeded by trying many times and learning from his mistakes.

Developing their study skills It is not enough to just study hard. Good learners know the best ways they can study. For example, they may take notes by writing down key words or by drawing mind maps. They also look for ways to review what they have learned. They may do this by reading their notes every day or by explaining the information to another student.

Asking questions Good learners often ask questions during or after class. They even ask each other and try to find out the answers. Knowledge comes from questioning. Learning is a lifelong journey because every day brings something new. Everything that you learn becomes a part of you and changes you, so learn wisely and learn well.

Language Points 1. Everyone is born with the ability to learn. But whether or not you can do this well depends on your learning habits. (1)Be born 意为“天生，出生”为被动语态， be 动词通常用was 或were，born 为bear 的 过去式。E. g. I was born in a small village. 我出生在一个小山村。 He was born to succeed in life. 他生来注定会成功。

(2) ability 在此处为不可数名词，意为“能力” 常构成短语 have the ability to do sth. ( 有能 力做某事)， 而不用 “have the ability of doing sth” 结构。 Man has the ability to speak. 人类有说话的能力。 (3) whether or not 意为“是否” whether引导主 语从句，不能与if 替换。 whether she will come or not is still a problem. 她是否会来还是个问题。

2. Studies show that if you are interested in something, your brain is more active and it is also easier for you to pay attention to it for a long time. (1) Active –adj, “活跃的，积极的” 可作表语 或定语。常用短语：take an active part in, 意为“积极参加” Although he is over 80, he is still very active. 他虽然年过八十，但是仍很活跃。

We all take a part in the sports meeting. 我们都积极参加运动会。 (2) pay attention to 意为“注意，关注”，其中to 为介词，其后可接名词、代词或动词-ing形式。 You’d better pay attention to this word in the English exam last time. 你最好注意一下上次英语考试中的这个单词。

3. Good learners often connect what they need to learn with something they are interested in. (1) connect…with…意为“ 把……和……联系 起来” 其中connect为及物动词，意为“（使） 连接；与…有联系”，其名词形式为connection， 意为“连接；关系” Please don’t connect this lesson with that person. 请不要把这个人和那个人联系在一起。

4. Good learners think about what they are good at and what they need to practice more. (1)Think about 意为“考虑”其后接名词、代 词、动词-ing形式或宾语从句。 They are thinking about a serious problem. 他们正在考虑一个严肃的问题。 (2) Be good at “擅长” 同义于 do well in “在某 方面做得好” He is good at English. = he does well in English.

Forget to do sth 和forget doing sth. Forget to do sth: 忘记去做某事 forget doing sth. 忘记做过某事 e. g. I forget to turn off the light. 我忘记关灯了。 I forget turning off the light. 我忘记已经关灯了。

6. They also look for ways to review what they have learned. （1）look for 意为“寻找” 后跟名词或代词作 宾语。 E. g. they are looking for the missing child. 他们在寻找失踪的孩子。 比较：look for, find与 find out

2 c Read the passage again and answer the questions. 1. Does the writer think that everyone is born with the ability to learn well? Do you agree? Why or why not? No. No, I don’t. Because whether or not you can learn well depends on your learning habits.

2. Why is it a good idea to connect something you need to learn with something you are interested in? Because if you are interested something, your Brain is more active and it is also easier for You to pay attention to it for a long time.

3. What do the sayings “use it or lose it” and “practice makes perfect” mean? Do you agree with them? We should keep practicing what we have learned. Even if we learn something well, we will forget it until we use it. Yes, I do. 4. Do good learners learn from mistakes or are they afraid of making mistakes? Good learners learn from mistakes.

5. What study skills does the writer talk about? Do you have those study skills? Creating an interest in what you learn, practicing and leaning from mistakes, developing study skills and asking questions. Yes, I do. / No, I don’t. 6. Do you agree that learning is a lifelong journey? Why or why not? Yes, I do. Because every day brings something new.

2 d Look up the following words from the passage in the dictionary. Then write a sentence for each word. brain n. connect v. overnight adv. attention n. review v. knowledge n. ability n. active adj. wisely adv. e. g. brain: A good way to train the brain is to do some math exercises every day.

2 e Do you think you are a good learner? What learning habits do you think are useful? Discuss with your group and share your ideas with the class.

Can you think of other ways to become a successful learner? Discuss with your group and share your ideas with the class. A: I think another way to become a successful learner is by trying to think about the same thing in different ways. B: I agree. I believe that. . .

3 a Your friend wants to improve his/her English and asks you for help. What are three best ways to learn and why? Make some notes in the chart. Best ways to learn 1. Being interested in what you do 2. 3. Reasons Examples If you are interested in something, your brain will be more active and… If you like music, you can learn English by listening to English songs.

3 b Write a letter to your friend. Give him /her some advice about the best ways to learn English. Use your notes in 3 a. Use the following expressions to help you: There are three good ways to … I think you should. . . If you do this, you will. . . It is also a good idea to. . . because. . . You could try to improve your English by. . . This will help you to. . .

Dear Mary, There are three good ways to help you learn English. The first way is being interested in what you do. Because if you are interested in something, your brain will be more active and smart. For example, if you like music, you can lean English by listening to English songs. The second way is…

Write a letter telling a friend how to be a good learner.

Sample writing Dear Li Lei, I know it isn’t easy to learn English well, but I have some ideas that may help. You said you couldn’t understand people who talked fast. Well, you can try to listen for the most important words, not every word.

You can also do lots of listening practice. I think it’s one of the secrets to becoming a good learner. Another thing that I think important is English grammar. In order to learn it well, you have to take a lot of grammar notes in every class. You can write English sentences using the grammar you are learning. You can

also read more English books. Reading is as important as listening for us to learn English well. If you do so, I believe that you can learn English very well later on. Yours, Meimei

根据提示内容写一篇题为“ How to be a good learner” 的作文。要求： 1. 必须用上提示内容，语句通顺，书写规范。 2. 词数 80左右。 提示：habit, way; get ready, listen; go over, homework; study in groups, help each other; work hard, do sports…

How to be a good learner As a good leaner, we should have good habits and ways of learning. We need to get ready for our lessons before class and always listen carefully in class. After class, we must go over the lessons and finish our homework on time. It’s good to study in groups and help each

other. As a student, working hard is important but don’t forget to do sports and keep healthy. We should do more reading in our free time. If we have any problems, we’d better ask others for help. I hope all these will be helpful to us.

根据句意及首字母提示完成单词。 1. We should read aloud to practice our ronunciation p_______. 2. As teachers, we must be p_______ with atient our students. 3. He is careless, so he always makes many m____ in his homework. istakes 4. Listening to the teacher carefully is the s_______ to becoming a good language learner. ecret 5. I’ve learned a lot of k_____ from nowledge his report.

根据汉语提示完成单词。 1. Are you _______ (害怕的) of snakes? afraid 2. My teacher reads the article _____ slowly (慢慢地). realized 3. He _____ (意识到) he had left his bag at home. 4. We should help the people in trouble _____ (困难). 5. My mother doesn’t know our ____ secret (秘密) plan.

从方框中选择适当的词汇完成句子。 spoken, difficult, quickly, favorite 1. It’s very _____ to work out this difficult problem. spoken 2. This girl can’t understand _____ English. quickly 3. My father spoke very _____, so I couldn’t hear him clearly. 4. What’s your ____ way to learn math? favorite

根据汉语提示完成句子，每空一词。 1. 我姐姐从不犯语法错误。 made mistakes My sister has never _________. in grammar 2. 上周琳达加入了语言俱乐部。 joined language Last week Linda ______ the _____. club 3. 他哥哥总是在家里学习新单词。 His brother always _______ studies new words ______. at home

Translate and write them down. 1. 令我吃惊的是，我发现自己和这个陌生 人之间有很多共同之处。 To my surprise, I found I had a lot in common with this stranger. 2. 天气若不很冷，我总是开着窗户睡觉。 I sleep with the window open unless it’s really cold.

3. 你能依靠她来应付(deal with)这种局面。 You can depend upon her to deal with this situation. 4. 请注意你的字迹。 Please pay attention to your handwriting. 5. 他对小说(fiction)感兴趣。 He was interested in fictions.

(2013 • 重庆）You can improve your English A _______ practicing more. A. by B. with C. of D. in (2013 • 南京）Linda’s father hates waiting in A long lines. I think he’s just not very_____. A. patient B. talented C. popular D. powerful

(2013 • 金华）—Tommy, you can never let others know what I have told you today. —Don’t worry. I will keep the ______ A A. secret B. money C. address D. grade （2013 • 云南)You don’t have to ____every B new word in the dictionary while reading. A look for B. look up C. look at D. look after

(2013 • 呼和浩特)When you visit a museum you should ______the instructions and C don’t be against them. A. compare with B. look forward to C. pay attention to D. try out D (2013 • 泰安)—_______ you’ve tasted it, you can’t imagine how delicious the dishes are. A. Because B. Although C. When D. Unless

Homework What good learning habits can you think of? Discuss them with your partner.