(Advanced) Cassini's mission to Saturn

Cassini arrived at Saturn in 2004, after a seven-year voyage. It was the first spacecraft to orbit the ringed planet.

Cassini

After a test

After a progress test, I often have a better idea of where students might want to focus their attention:


Here are four examples:


Comprehension / production (good all-rounder - grammar, reading and listening)

This student will develop by integrating their skills - they should try to write about the topics they investigate in class

Comprehension / vocab (good grammar, OK listening / weaker reading)

This student is probably needing to focus on vocab and perhaps reading practice. This will help them with their listening too.

Comprehension / hearing perception  (good grammar / OK reading / weaker listening)

This person probably still struggles with the sound of fluently spoken English. They probably speak a firt language that sounds very very unlike English ( different basic sounds, different rhythm and intonation). They need lots of individual practice, listening for the key points made in a conversation. They should not be embarrassed about listening multiple times so they really get a chance to discern the exact words of speakers. They should check the transcripts if possible.

Accuracy / grammar (good reading and listening / OK or weaker grammar)

Often these students are french speakers! They are excellent at vocabulary and understanding the meaning behind even unfamiliar passages of language. BUT, they often need to pay attention to the form of the language, the nitty-gritty of English grammar in order to performer better as speakers.

Go here for practice:

NEF Student Site

(NZ Culture) The Unplanned Masterpiece

Auckland / Tāmaki Makaurau is New Zealand's largest city and the main commercial hub of the country. Auckland has always been regarded as "different"; it has always been a contested place, a crossroads. In 2009, just before Auckland was to become the Super City, we asked some of the city's best informed and outspoken residents to help us tell the story of the place. The result is a rich and at times contradictory composite of views which yet add up to something deeply informative and memorable.

Watch film:

The Unplanned Masterpiece



Pre-lesson kahoot


Bits to watch

0:00 - 2:25

1. Who was Ti Tahi?

2. Who was Kiwi Tamaki? What did his dad do?

3. Why have tribes always struggled over Tamaki Makau-rau?




10:43 - 14:12

1. Which tribe is Ngarimu Blair representing?

2. Why did his ancestor invite the British to establish Auckland on part of his tribal lands?

3. What are the symbols of the theft of the land?

4. Where were some of the sacred trees in pre-European Auckland?

5. When did the New Zealand Wars occur?

6. Where were the British troops stationed during the New Zealand Wars?

7. Why did the local Maori have to wear red sashes at this time?




58:04 - 1:02

Tigi Ness, musician / activist

1. When Tigi's family migrate to Auckland?

2. Which suburb did they start out in?

3. What happened to Tigi's dad?


John Miller, photographer / activist

1. How was the physical landscape of Auckland altered during the Springbok tour?




1. Why did the Chinese and Korean immigrants choose Auckland to live in?




1:09.30 - 1:11

1.What's the key difference between the Auckland harbour bridge and the Sydney harbour bridge?

2. What is the "paradox" about Auckland?

3. Why does Chris think Auckland doesn't have a proper public transport system?

4. What's the difference between motorways and rail when ot comes to land development?

5. What's a "Queen street" farmer?





Lesson review

(Advancedl) A Knock at the Door

How do you tell a mother that her 13-year-old daughter has been killed in a car crash? Or a young wife that the father of her unborn child will never come home? Or the parents of a soldier that their son has been maimed on the battlefield? Every day in Britain, police officers have to perform this most difficult of tasks. And every day, families receive that knock at the door which means their lives will never be the same again.

Vin Ray hears powerful first-hand testimony from both sides of this terrible equation - the police and army officers charged with breaking the worst possible news to unsuspecting families, and the families themselves. Among those we meet are Helen Hughes, the mother of a teenager killed by a speeding driver, and Steve Chaplain, the officer who knocked at her door; Thanna al-Ghabban, whose husband Mohammed died in a motorcycle accident less than a year after their wedding; and Mike Griffiths, a former senior army officer who lost his soldier son.

Handled the right way, a “knock” conversation can help the receiver come to terms with the terrible news. So, Vin Ray asks, what is the right way of telling someone that a loved one has been killed, and how do you deal with unexpected responses – from shock to outright violence? What does it do to an officer to have to deliver traumatic news again and again? And how can faith help both sides deal with such a devastating experience?

Listen:

A Knock at the Door

Chose the correct word when you hear it. If you don't grasp the meaning, put a question mark next to it and ask me or a partner to explain.

While listening:

I can vouch for / verify that

It fell / felt to me

Break / bring the bad news

One I’ve recalled / replayed many times

Have a role to pray / play

The believed / bereaved

Keep the notion / ocean of death tucked away

Put in a  reprint / report

What’s coming / blocking her way

She just keeled off / over

A visceral / visual effect

Emotionally straining / draining

They just absolutely flop / flip / flap

In a nutshell / nutcase

Always do your research/ homework

The deceased / defeated

Big no nos / yos yos

Passed / past away

To pass on / over the bad news

To be on the responding / receiving end

Were / wore anything to happen

On leave / lead

Their strapping lad / land

An emotional lunch / punch bag

Absorb / inspire other people’s despair

It takes its toll / tall

At times avoid/ void of emotion

The whole situation has just sapped / swept everything out of you

Try and bottle / battle it up

Brittleness / Britishness

Feel very raw / low

Discussion

1. Have you ever received some really bad news?
2. Which of the situations discussed in the programme do you think would have been the most difficult to handle?
3. When was the last time you felt emotionally raw?
4. Do you think it helps to have a faith in situations like these?

(Intermediate) Listening Lounge

Want some practice with listening? Go here!

ESL Lounge

FCE Listening

CAE Listening

Judgemental Map of Auckland NZ

Click here for large format:

Judgemental map of Auckland

Project: make a judgemental map of you're own country or city. Try not to be too offensive.

Or: make a subjective map of your city, where you name locations according to your own personal experiences of them.

(Intermediate) The Flintstones

Architect Ammar Khammash made an instrument entirely from foraged flint stones from the deserts of Jordan.

Vocab - match with the definition:

A) to forage (v)
B) flint (n)
C) tuning (n)
D) chromatic (adj)
E) scale (n)
F) key notes (n)
G) verdict (n)

1. a sequence of notes from high to low or low to high
2. a kind of quartz stone - often found in the desert
3. the note you hear when you hit or strike something
4. to search (especially for something small, or something to eat - like mushrooms)
5. an equal arrangement of notes into semi-tones
6. an opinion or judgement
7. the fixed notes of a particular instrument


1. First watch with no sound and read the texts.

The Sound Of The Desert


2. Now watch with sound and then discuss these questions in pairs:

1. Why does Ammar say the desert has its own melody?

2.  What did he discover when he used a tuning app on the stones?

Deserts

Desert
Dessert


















Desert (n.)
Desert (v.)



















What comes to mind when you hear the word desert?
















How many deserts can you name?


















Does your country have a desert or deserts?

















Where are the world's biggest deserts?


















How old is the Sahara desert?


















Where is the world's second largest desert?


















Have you ever crossed a desert?

















Is there a desert in New Zealand?