LIFE IN ANOTHER COUNTRY
TASK 1 Planning your investigation
What you have to do
You have two investigations to do. Each investigation is made up of three
main tasks:
1. You have to investigate an aspect of life in the country you are
studying.
2. You have to compare it with the same aspect of life in this country.
3. You have to learn some of the foreign language linked to the aspects of
life you are investigating.
So you have to decide which country to investigate, then what aspects of life
in that country you want to investigate, then the sort of language that might be
linked to that.
Deciding which country to investigate
First you need to decide which country you are going to investigate. Discuss
this with your teacher and write the name of the country here.
The country I am going to investigate is:
_______________________________________________
Now write down the name of the main language which is spoken in that
country.
People who live there speak:
___________________________________
2. Deciding which topic to investigate
You now need to decide what aspect of life there you are going to investigate.
The subject you choose must have something to do with one of these topics
in the list below. Start by ticking topics that sound most interesting.
Someone’s personal details (family, friends, likes, dislikes, etc.)
Home life (houses or towns, etc)
Leisure activities (sports, hobbies, entertainment, etc.)
Learning (school, college, careers, etc.)
Shops (types of shops, prices, things to buy, etc.)
Food (menus, eating out, cooking, etc.)
Travel and tourism (holidays, places of interest, transport, etc.)
Places to stay (hotels, campsites, hostels, etc.)
Now think about what particular aspect of that topic would be interesting to
study.
For example, you might like to investigate the personal details of people from
that country that you are interested in, for example pop stars, sportsmen and
women, your penpal, etc. Remember that you need a similar person in this
country to compare them with.
Or, for Home life, you might like to choose a town or area in the foreign
country which is similar to your own, and investigate what there is for young
people who live there to do in their spare time. You could think about whether
your area has similar opportunities for young people, or different ones.
When you have thought about this and talked about it, jot down some ideas
here.
I’d like to find out about…
Deciding how to collect information
There are all sorts of ways to gather information. Here’s a list of some of the
ways. Tick the ones you think you might use:

using a computer and the internet

asking someone who has lived in that country or who has visited it
often

linking with a school in that country

looking up books, brochures and other printed material

watching a video

visiting local shops or other places where you can find things from the
country

asking a penpal.
You may have other ideas of your own, Write them down here:
Deciding what sort of words to learn
You also need to learn some of the language used by people in that country.
What sort of words, linked to your investigation, will you learn?
I’ll learn some words to do with:
How are you going to learn these words? Here are some ways to think about.
Tick the ones you might be able to use:

asking the teacher

talking someone who was born in the country or who knows the
language well

using a tape, a CD or a video

using a computer

going on a visit to the country.
If you have other ideas, write them down here:
I could learn some foreign words by…
Choosing personal targets
Finding things out involves practising lots of personal skills that you will need
to make a success of your life. Here are some of the skills you could practise.
Tick the ones which seem to be particularly important for you.

the ability to talk to people politely and confidently

the ability to listen carefully and to learn

the ability to plan and carry out work efficiently on my own

the ability to work well with other people

the ability to find things out from a variety of sources

the ability to produce neat and tidy work.
You may have ideas of your own. Write them down here:

the ability to…

the ability to…

the ability to…
Summary
On the next page, write a neat summary of all the things you have planned to
do. This is your Personal Target Sheet. Store it carefully. When you have
finished your investigation you will be able to look at it again and see how well
you have met all the targets you set yourself.
Name:
The country I plan to investigate is:
I aim to find out about:
I will find out information by:
I will learn at least eight words or expressions to do with:
During my investigations, I will try to improve the following skills:
Signed:
Date:
Name:
The country I plan to investigate is:
I aim to find out about:
I will find out information by:
I will learn at least eight words or expressions to do with:
During my investigations, I will try to improve the following skills:
Signed:
Date:
INVESTIGATION LOG
Name
__________________________________________________________________________
Investigation title
_____________________________________________________________
DATE
THIS IS WHAT I DID TODAY
THIS IS HOW WELL I WORKED
DATE
THIS IS WHAT I DID TODAY
THIS IS HOW WELL I WORKED
LANGUAGE LOG
Name
__________________________________________________________________________
Investigation title
_____________________________________________________________
THIS IS WHAT I KNOW
THIS WHAT IT MEANS
THIS IS HOW I KNOW IT
I can say it
I can understand it
when I hear it
I can understand it
when I see it written
I can write it correctly
I can say it
I can understand it
when I hear it
I can understand it
when I see it written
I can write it correctly
I can say it
I can understand it
when I hear it
I can understand it
when I see it written
I can write it correctly
I can say it
I can understand it
when I hear it
I can understand it
when I see it written
I can write it correctly
I can say it
I can understand it
when I hear it
I can understand it
when I see it written
I can write it correctly
LANGUAGE LOG (continued)
THIS IS WHAT I KNOW
THIS WHAT IT MEANS
THIS IS HOW I KNOW IT
I can say it
I can understand it
when I hear it
I can understand it
when I see it written
I can write it correctly
I can say it
I can understand it
when I hear it
I can understand it
when I see it written
I can write it correctly
I can say it
I can understand it
when I hear it
I can understand it
when I see it written
I can write it correctly
I can say it
I can understand it
when I hear it
I can understand it
when I see it written
I can write it correctly
I can say it
I can understand it
when I hear it
I can understand it
when I see it written
I can write it correctly
I can say it
I can understand it
when I hear it
I can understand it
when I see it written
I can write it correctly