Unit 2 The United Kingdom——readingI. Leading in and warming upA map of BritainThe United Kingdom = the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland(China = the People’s Republic of China)II. Warming up:Questions: What do you know about the UK? (I think you surely know sth. about this country, any volunteers? Just think When we talk about a country what items do we usually mention? ) Capital: London ( Do you know the capital of the countries of the UK? )Area: over (more than) 240,000 sq.km. (about two hundred and forty thousand )Language: EnglishPopulation: (about) 59,000,000 (fifty nine million)Flag: Union JackNatural resources: iron and coalTime difference: Eight hours later than Beijing hourThe UK is an island country surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean. It is situated in Northwestern Europe, lying to the north of France and the west of the Netherlands and Denmark.Now let’s do a quiz and find out how much more you know about the UK.1. Who rules the country?A. The QueenB. The Prime MinisterC. Both( by the way who is the present Queen and Minister of the UN? //// Elizabeth & Blair )(it may appear to an outsider that the Queen has an important role in ruling the country. However, this is not so. Her position is ceremonial: opening Parliament, welcoming Heads form other countries, going on tours to other countries to encourage trade with Britain, etc. The Minister together with his most important ministers (called the Cabinet) and his Members of Parliament make the important political decisions and the laws. ))2. What are the provinces called in England?A. countiesB. provincesC. states(County = a large area that includes several towns and their surrounding countryside and forms aunit of local government（英国的）郡；They have local government powers for their area.The counties of Britain are much smaller than provinces in China.But in America county = is the largest unit below the level of a state （美国的）县（州一下最大的行政区）3. Which is the most important river in England? Which is the longest river in England?A. The River AvonB. The River ThamesC. The River SevernThames (338km) London lies on the River Thames.Severn 354 km The longest river4. How many countries does the UK consist of ?A. twoB. threeC. fourThe United Kingdom consists of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.You have done good jobs. And Now let’s learn more about this in the first reading passage. (p9) ReadingI. Fast reading1. Read the text quickly and find the main idea of each paragraph (Maybe there is a topic sentence in each paragraph)Para 1 Why people use different words to describe the four countries (history reason)states the topic to be examined in reading. (引起下文) leads in the textPara2 How is Wales linked to England. (How Wales and England united) (What England includes) explains the joining of England and Wales.Para 3 How Great Britain and the United Kingdom came into being. (Why only Northern Ireland joined to the United Kingdom.)explains what the term “Great Britain” means and how it came about.Para 4 The relationship among the four countries (similarities and differences )explains differences in the four countriesPara 5 Something about the largest and most important country ---- England.explains how England is divided into three zones.Para 6 Something about the greatest historical city ----Londonexplains the importance of London as a cultural and political centre in the UK.2. Lets try to divide the passage into three parts and write down the main idea of each part.Part 1(Para1-4): It explains why and how the four countries (….) united/developed as a big one. They have similarities and differences as well.Part 2 (5): It shows how England is divided into three zones. And the characteristic of each part. Part 3 (6): It explains why London became the treasure of all and how it is influenced by some invaders. (How great it is / why London is call “the greatest historical treasure of all” / the cultural importance of London)3. Get through the passage within 2 minutes Find out the main idea of the whole text together with your partner.This passage introduces how four counties united as the UK. Differences exist in different parts of the United Kingdom. They each have their own international football or rugby team as well as their own educational and legal systems. But even so they are part of one big country---- the United Kingdom. And then the passage tells us something about one of the most important country ---- England and also the greatest historical city ----LondonPay attention to the title of the passage. Think it over why does the author use such a title? Is that suitable? If not, can you give us a better one? Let’s have a discussion in groups of four:A. The United KingdomB. A Brief Introduction of UKC. Puzzles in GeographyD. How Did the UK Come into BeingThere is no right or wrong answers to the question.(Different titles serve different purposes: Some can sum up the main idea of the test; others just arouse the interest of the readers; ….This title is just used to lead in the passage and draw the readers attention of interests.)----- Are you from England ?---- No, I come from Scotland.In my own opinion, this title isn’t a bad one. But maybe your answers are better than the title of the passageOk, so much for the discussion and the title, let’s come to the details of the passage.II. Careful reading1. Read the passage and judge the following statements true or false.1. Wales was linked to England in 15th century AD. (F/ 13th)2. When King James of England became King of Scotland and Wales as well, the three countries united peacefully. (F/ When King James of Scotland became King of En gland…)3. The four countries work together in all areas. (F/ some areas; )4. Most of the population settled in the South, but most of the large industrial cities in the Midlands and North of England (T)5. If you want to find out more about British history and culture, you have to go to the big cities.(F / go to the older and smaller towns first built by the Romans. )6. London is a great cultural and historical city. (T)III. Further understanding of the text1. Read the passage again and let’s do s ome further understanding of the passage.1. The Union Jack flag unites the three flags of the three countries in the United Kingdom. Which country is left out? And why? (p2)(Wales. Because Wales is usually considered to be part of England. )2. When two teams, for example one is the Chinese football team and the other Scottish football team, compete in the World Cup, which team do you think the funs from England will support? (Strange enough, they will support our Chinese team!)3. Which group of invaders did not leave any evidence in London?The Vinkings. (They influenced the vocabulary and place names of the North. But the other three invaders left sth. in London. )4. What is the relationship between the Republic of Ireland and the UK?Two independent countries.5. Can you work out why London is the capital of England, Great Britain and the UK?Because of its importance in transportation, cultural, economic, politic and history.6. Look at the language, the writing style of this passage. Is it formal or informal? Is it a personal opinion or presented factually? Are there any point of view or personal opinions?Formal. In fact this reading is written to explain facts. It is composed in the third person and in a plain, prose style. So it expresses no point of view or personal opinions.说明文expository writing2. Read Paragraph 5 and divide England into three parts in the map (P11)North: Leeds (立兹), York（约克）, Sheffield（设菲尔德）, Manchester（曼彻斯特）Midlands: Coventry考文垂Birmingham 伯明翰South: Reading, London, Brighton, Plymouth 朴里茅斯III. Retelling of the textRead the text again and try to retell the text according to the key words and phrases on the blackboard.different words describe, be linked to, came into being, similarities and differences, be divided into, historical treasure, invadersIV. Long and difficult sentences:1. There is no need to debate any more about why different words are use to describe the four countries: England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. 对于用来描述英格兰、威尔士、苏格兰和北爱尔兰这四个国家的词语，现在已经没有争辩的必要了。
