Meeting your ancestors（Unit5 Module8）

Reading

Teaching goals 教学目标

1. Target language 目标语言

a. 重点词汇和短语

archaeology, tentative, accuracy, excavate, interrupt, ornament, assume, regardless, sharpen, cut up, scrape, ample, primitive, preserve, bead, botany, botanical, analysis, specific, seashell, specifically

b. 重点句型

I’m sorry to interrupt you but how could they live here?  

We have been excavating layers of ash almost six meters thick, which suggests that they might have kept the fire burning all winter.

Yes, indeed, as the botanical analyses have shown us, all the fields around here used to be part of a large shallow lake.  

That’s why they are called hunters and gatherers.

2. Ability goals 能力目标

Enable the students to tell the differences between modern people and Peking man and learn how Peking man lived their lives.

3. Learning ability goals 学能目标

Help the students learn how to tell the differences between modern people and Peking man and learn how Peking man lived their lives.

Teaching important points 教学重点

Talk about Peking man in Zhoukoudian Caves.

Teaching difficult points 教学难点

How to express oneself clearly and correctly.

Teaching methods教学方法

Listening, reading and discussion.

Teaching aids 教具准备

A tape recorder, a projector and a computer.

Teaching procedures & ways教学过程与方式

Step Ⅰ Revision

Check the homework.

The students will show their information about Zhoukoudian Caves in the following steps.

Step Ⅱ Lead-in

T: In the last period, we learned about the life of ancient Egypt. But what about the life of ancient Chinese? Look at the picture on page 37, and guess what it is.

S: It is a skullcap.

T: Can you guess whose skullcap it may be?

S: Peking man’s skullcap.

T: Yes, you are right. Now you are given 3 minutes to discuss and imagine what Peking Man might have done and used thousands of years ago. Then compare it with the life of modern people.

3 minutes later.

S1: Peking Man might have lived in caves of rocks and trees, while modern people live in modern buildings which are huge, like boxes with flat roofs, sharp corners and glass walls.

S2: Peking Man might have used natural furniture made of stone or wood, while modern people use beautiful furniture with lots of ornaments, mostly made of wood or other special materials.

S3: Peking man might have got entertainment from nature or family get-together, while modern people can have a good time by watching TV, surfing the Internet and traveling.

S4: Peking man might have eaten natural food, such as nuts and fruits. However, modern people eat a good variety of cooked food, which is healthier.

S5: Peking man might have worn clothes made from animal skins, while modern people wear clothes made from special material, such as cotton and wood.

Then show the following.

	Modern people	Peking man	Accuracy
Place for living	Modern architecture, which is huge, like boxes with flat roofs, sharp corners and glass walls.	Caves	Very accurate
Furniture	Beautiful furniture with lots of ornaments mostly made of wood or other special materials.	Natural furniture made of stone or wood.	Accurate
Entertainment	Watching TV, surfing the Internet and traveling.	Enjoy the nature or family get-together.	Inaccurate
Food	A good variety of cooked food, which tastes delicious.	Natural food, such as nuts and fruits.	Accurate
Clothing	Clothes made from special material, such as cotton and wood.	Clothes made from animal skins.	Accurate

T: Now do you know where we can find the Peking man sites?

S: In Zhoukoudian Caves.

T: Yes. Let’s visit Zhoukoudian Caves with a group of students from England. Now listen to the dialogue between an archaeologist and these students.

Step Ⅲ Reading

After listening.

T: Now tell me what you have known about Zhoukoudian Caves?

S1: Zhoukoudian is a small village situated about 50 km southwest of Beijing. The Peking Man Site is just on the west side of Zhoukoudian Village.

S2: In December 1929, a Chinese archaeologist named Pei Wenzhong discovered a complete skull of “Peking Man” on Dragon Bone Hill northwest of Zhoukoudian, in the southwest suburbs of Beijing. Later, archaeologists unearthed 40-odd individually fossilized skeletons of “Peking Man”, male, female, old and young, all at the same site. Zhoukoudian, therefore, became the most common site for human remains with the most abundant fossils in the world. The discovery pushed the history of Beijing’s civilization back to some 600,000 years. These fossilized remains prove that “Peking Man” was primitive man in an evolutionary process from ancient ape to modern man, and is the ancestor of the Chinese nation.

S3: In 1987, the Zhoukoudian caves were listed as one of the world cultural heritage sites.

…

T: Yes. Zhoukoudian is a relic of primitive culture, 48 kilometers southwest of downtown Beijing, where Longgushan (dragon skeleton mountain) is standing. Several decades ago, local farmers mined lime-stone in Zhoukoudian, came upon some bone fossils and called them “the Dragon Bones”. Zhoukoudian became known as “Dragon Bone Mountain”. Drugstores purchased the bones as a medical ingredient. The news about the “magic bones” drew attention of scientists. In 1929 these lime-stone caves became world famous with the discovery of a skull and two teeth dating back 200,000 to 500,000 years. They were named Peking Man. But the fossils were lost during World War II. Many of the implements used by those early humans, and bones of animals they hunted are on display at a museum near the site of the discovery. With the steadily increased number of visitors from all over the world, Zhoukoudian has become a scenic spot of Beijing. Now read the dialogue aloud please.

Skimming

This is an individual work. Ask the students to skim the text and write down what the text is about and the three stages of the archaeologist’s part of the dialogue.

T: First, I’d like you to skim the dialogue and then write down what the text is about and the three stages of the archaeologist’s part of the dialogue.

Two minutes later, check the answers with the whole class.

S1: An archaeologist is showing a group of students from England around the Zhoukoudian Caves and telling them something about the Caves.

S2: Stage 1 is about homes of Peking man in Zhou-koudian Caves, where they live, how they keep warm, cook food and scare wild animals away.

S3: Stage 2 is about tools Peking man used and clothes they made.

S4: Stage 3 is about the appearance of Peking man. And living conditions.

Scanning

Ask the students to read the text and get the main idea of the dialogue. And then ask them to write down the three ways in which the life of early people differs from modern ones. Ask them to work in pairs and discuss the question.

Sample answers:

Homes: Peking man lived in Zhoukoudian Caves of rocks and trees.

Tools:   They used needle that was made of bone sharpened stone tools and scraper made by stones.

Dress: They wore clothes from animal skins and they also wore necklace made from seashells or animal teeth.

Careful reading

Let the students read the passage again and answer the following questions.

Show the questions on the screen.

1. Why have the English students come to the Zhoukoudian caves?

2. Where did early people live?

3. How did early people keep warm?

4. What did they use for doors?

5. What did they eat?

3 minutes later, check the answers.

Step Ⅳ Post-reading

Ask the students to fill in the chart on the life and habits of Peking man on page 37 and compare it with the list they made in the pre-reading. What differences are there?

Give the students 3 minutes to discuss their conclusion. Then check the answers.

Sample answers:

There are many similarities. But Peking Man also constructed fires by which they kept warm, cooked food and scared wild animals away. They used needles made of bone. Besides, they wore necklace made of animal bones or shells. They took part in trade activities. And they killed animals for food.

…

Explanation

During this procedure, the students will listen to the recording again and underline the difficult sentences. Then the teacher will explain the text and deal with language points.

T: Now listen to the dialogue again and underline the language points you think are difficult to understand.

After listening to the text, explain some difficult sentences.

T: Do you have any difficulties with the text?

S1: I find the sentence “You must be aware that it’s here that we have found evidence of some of the earliest people who lived in this part of the world.” is difficult to understand. Would you please explain it to us?

T: The structure is a bit complex. “Aware” is an adjective, meaning having knowledge or understanding. “It’s here that we...” is to emphasize “here”, so we use sentence pattern “it’s...that...”“Who lived in this part of the world” is an Attributive Clause, which is introduced by the Relative Pronoun “who”. Because “the earliest people” is used as Subject in the Attributive Clause, we use “whom” to lead the Attributive Clause.

S2: How to understand the sentence “yes, indeed, as the botanical analyses have shown us, all the fields around here used to be part of a large shallow lake”?

T: It means: The botanical analyses have been specifically showing us that all the fields around here used to be part of a large shallow lake. “As” is used to introduce the Attributive clause.

…

Step Ⅴ Summary and homework

T: Today we learned about Zhoukoudian Caves and the life of Peking Man. Do you think it is important for us to know about them? Why?

S1: Yes, the following fact shows that it is very important: Zhoukoudian Caves were formally inscribed on the “World Heritage List” in December 1987 at the eleventh session of UNESCO World Heritage Committee. The inscription of the Peking Man Site on the World Heritage List confirms the exceptional and universal value of the cultural site, which requires protection for the benefit of all humanity. The site is therefore not only of China, but also of the world as a whole.

T: Good. Now today’s homework: 1) Go over the text; 2) Write a brief introduction to the Zhoukoudian Caves.