Unit 3
Text I
Three Sundays in a Week
Objectives:
• 1. Understanding of time Zones and
International Date Line
• 2. Narration in Chronological Order
• 3. Vocabulary and structures
Teaching Tasks and
Process
Pre-reading Questions
Decide whether the following statements are T
or F:
• It is quite possible to have three Sundays
occurring in one week.
• The earth rotates about its axis continually,
and the period of a complete rotation is one
day.
• There are 24 time zones on the surface, when it is
noon in Beijing, the times in Sydney, New York
and Manchester are all different.
• If you travel west, you lose one hour for
approximately every thousand miles you go.
• If you travel east, you gain one hour for
approximately every thousand miles you go.
• If you travel around the world once, you either
lose or gain 24 hours.
Background Information
• The author----Edgar Allen Poe (1809-1849)
• He virtually created the detective story and
perfected the psychological thriller.
• He also produced some of the most
influential literary criticism of his time -important theoretical statements on poetry
and the short story –and has had a
worldwide influence on literature.
Main ideas
• Two sailors and Kate gave a plausible
explanation of how three Sundays could
occur in a week.
Time zones
• A time zone is a region of the earth that has
uniform standard time, usually referred to as
the local time.
International Date Line
• The International Date Line (IDL) is an
imaginary line on the surface of the
Earth opposite the Prime Meridian
where the date changes as one travels
east or west across it.
Language points
…, Kate and I tried to gain our
point indirectly.
• gain one's point: succeed in making
others agree; persuade people to accept
one’s argument
• We made great efforts and finally gained
our points.
• gain one’s experience/ somebody’s
confidence
…,we began to steer the
conversation.
• steer: to control, to make…follow the
course as somebody had planned
• to steer a ship/ car/ conversation/ talk/
boat
• He steered the car skillfully through the
narrow streets.
“Well,” broke in my uncle.
• break in: to interrupt, cut in
• I could tell the story more easily if you
didn't break in so often.
• The secretary broke in to say that there
was a visitor for the boss.
Here Smitherton found his voice at
last.
• found his voice: began to speak
• find one’s tongue/ lose one’s voice/ lose
one’s tongue
He’d been looking at the others as
though they were mad.
• as though/if
• even though/even if
• were /did
• could/would + do
• had + done
…,my uncle roared, purple with
anger.
• be purple with anger: be so angry that
one’s face turns deep crimson
• green with envy
• ash-white with terror
• blue with sadness
…after a bit of mock thought.
• mock: pretended
• mock at sb.
• They mocked at my timidity.
Comments on the text
• Para. 1—the theme
• Para. 2---Para.7 —the first step in the
steering of the conversation.
• Para.8---Para.15 —the chief subject of
concern, Sunday, was brought up.
• Para. 16---end —the old man was tricked.
Text II
The Bermuda Triangle
The Bermuda Triangle
Background information
• The Bermuda Triangle, also known as the Devil's
Triangle, is a region of the northwestern Atlantic
Ocean in which a number of aircraft and surface
vessels are alleged to have disappeared. Some
people have claimed that these disappearances fall
beyond the boundaries of human error, equipment
failure or natural disasters. Popular culture has
attributed some of these disappearances to the
paranormal, a suspension of the laws of physics,
or activity by extraterrestrial beings.
Question
• What do you think of this mysterious
phenomenon?
• What do you think are the reasons for the
lost planes?
Discussion/Exercises
• Oral Work:
• A discussion on the Bermuda Triangle
Paragraph writing
• Narration in Chronological order
Assignments
• Exercises on the Work Book