2024年3月27日发(作者：)
Unit 2 Active reading 1 Language points 1 ... I can recall the changing colors of those
days clear and definite as a pattern seen through a kaleidoscope. Para 1 A kaleidoscope is
a toy that shows changing patterns. It is made of a tube with mirrors and colored pieces of
glass inside. The glass pieces move as you turn the kaleidoscope. As a metaphor
kaleidoscope means a view situation or experience that keeps changing and has many
different aspects. 2 ?? and look over the lights of Boston that blazed and blinked far off
across the darkening water. Para 2 To blaze means to burn strongly and brightly. The
lights ... that blazed and blinked means the lights were bright and went on and off
continuously like the blinking of eyes. 3 The sunset flaunted its pink flag above the
airport and the sound of waves was lost in the perpetual droning of the planes. Para 2 To
flaunt means to deliberately try to make people notice something eg your possessions
beauty abilities etc because you want them to admire you. The sunset flaunted its pink
flag means the pink color of the setting sun was like a flag which the sun was using to try
to make everyone notice and admire it. To drone means to make a continuous low sound.
Because Logan is an international airport the noise of the planes continued all the time.
So it was perpetual. 4 I marveled at the moving beacons on the runway and watched until
it grew completely dark the flashing red and green lights that rose and set in the sky like
shooting stars. Para 2 A beacon is a bright light that shines in the dark and is used as a
signal to warn people of danger or to show them the way to somewhere. Beacons are
used in airports to show approaching and departing planes the position of the runways to
help them land and take off safely. A shooting star is a meteor a large piece of rock in
space that falls through the earth’s atmosphere and makes a bright line of light in the sky.
When you see a shooting star it is said to be lucky and some people make a wish. 5 Out
by the parking lot David and I found the perfect alcove for our Superman dramas. Para 5
A parking lot is the American equivalent of a car park British English. A lot in American
English refers to a small area of land used for a particular purpose. 6 During recess David
and I came into our own. Para 6 To come into one’s own means to have the opportunity
to show how good or useful someone is. Here the two children are good at imaginative
play with Superman games. Childhood memories Unit 2 45 7 We ignored the boys
playing baseball on the gravel court and the girls giggling at dodge-ball in the dell. Para 6
Dodge-ball is a game played by children standing in a circle or on opposite sides of an
area. A rubber ball is thrown by those outside who try to hit those in the circle. The
children in the circle try to dodge the ball to avoid being hit. 8 Our Superman games
made us outlaws ?? Para 6 An outlaw is a criminal especially one who moves from place
to place to avoid being caught. There are many famous stories of outlaws in Western
culture eg Robin Hood Billy the Kid Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid Ned Kelly etc.
Here the two children are outlaws because they play their imaginative games against the
custom of other games like dodge-ball. 9 ?? the sallow mamma’s boy on our block who
was left out of the boys’ games ... and skin his fat knees. Para 6 Mamma mama momma
mummy are children’s names for mother mum. A mamma’s boy is one who depends too
much on his mother and is not independent when he should be. To skin one’s knees
means to hurt one’s knees by falling on a rough surface in a way that causes some skin to
be removed. 10 At the time my Uncle Frank was living with us while waiting to be
drafted ?? Para 8 The draft means conscription into the armed forces for military service.
People who are drafted are made to join the army navy etc they are conscripts or draftees
not volunteers. Reading and understanding 3 Answer the questions. 1 What were Sylvia
Plath’s most important memories She remembered winning a prize Paula Brown’s new
suit and the view from her window. 2 Where did she live and what could she see from her
bedroom window She lived on the bay side of town on Johnson Avenue and she could
see the lights of Boston and Logan Airport from her bedroom window. 3 What did the
view make her want to do It made her want to fly in her dreams. 4 Why did she have such
vivid dreams Because she was rarely tired when she went to bed. 5 Who appeared in her
dreams Superman appeared and taught her to fly. 6 Why did she enjoy the radio
adventures of Superman Because she loved the sheer poetry of flight. 7 Where did her
friend and she play Superman At the dingy back entrance to the school an alcove in a
long passageway. Unit 2 Childhood memories 46 8 Why do you think they chose
Sheldon to be the villain Because he was a mamma’s boy and was left out of the other
boys’ games. 9 How did she feel about her Uncle Frank She admired him as she thought
he bore an extraodinary resemblance to Superman incognito. 4 Choose the best summary
of the passage. 3 Sylvia Plath wrote about her real and imaginary life as a child. Dealing
with unfamiliar words 5 Match the words in the box with their definitions. 1 accurate and
true definite 2 continuing all the time perpetual 3 to spin quickly in circles whirl 4 to
shine very brightly blaze 5 to laugh in a nervous excited or silly way that is difficult to
control giggle 6 to encourage someone to speak or continue speaking prompt 7 to fall to
the ground tumble 6 Complete the paragraph with the correct form of the words in
Activity 5. Plath never needed to be 1 prompted to talk about her childhood memories.
They were very 2 definite and still real to her as an adult. She imagined she could fly and
3 whirl through the air like Superman. Coming from the highways around Boston was the
4 perpetual sound of traffic. In the distance a plane was taking off its lights 5 blazing into
the night sky. She remembered the sound of 6 giggling which came from the group of
girls. Sadly in her later life it seemed as if Superman had 7 tumbled to earth. 7 Replace
the underlined words with the correct form of the words in the box. 1 The lights at the
airport went on and off all day and night. blinked 2 The playground was like a desert. It
was without any interesting or positive features and unfriendly. barren 3 The boys were
playing a children’s game in which the players chase and try to touch each other and the
girls were gossiping and giggling. tag 4 Pulling the legs off insects is a form of action
causing extreme physical pain by someone as a punishment and is extremely cruel.
torture 5 The similarity in appearance between the twins was striking. resemblance 6 He
would cover candy with a piece of cloth used for cleaning lips and hands and make it
disappear. napkin 8 Answer the questions about the words and expressions. 1 If you look
through a kaleidoscope are you likely to see a changing coloured patterns or b a single
coloured pattern 2 If you flaunt something do you a deliberately try to make people
notice or b try to hide it 3 If you marvel at something do you find it a boring or b
surprising and fascinating Childhood memories Unit 2 47 4 Are shooting stars likely to a
move brightly through the night sky or b stand still 5 Is the twilight likely to be a at the
end of or b in the middle of the day 6 If you drift off to sleep are you likely to fall asleep
a quickly or b slowly 7 If someone is bookish are they likely to be a more or b less
interested in reading books than doing other activities 8 If you make up something do you
a invent it or b borrow it from someone else 9 If you come into your own are you likely
to show a how effective and useful or b ineffective and useless you can be 10 Is a villain
likely to be a a good or b bad person 11 If you are left out of something are you likely to
be a included or b excluded Active reading 2 Language points 1 These changing ideas
about children have led many social scientists to claim that childhood is a “social
construction”. Para 4 A social construction refers to the process or result of creating an
idea or system of behaviour in social contexts ie it is created and developed between
people and is not something natural or genetic. Childhood memories Unit 2 53 2 Social
anthropologists have shown this in their studies of peoples ... Para 5 Social
anthropologists are scholars and researchers who study human societies customs and
beliefs from a social perspective which may be distinct from the focus of physical
anthropologists or linguistic anthropologists. 3 Because they can’t be reasoned with and
don’t understand parents treat them with a great deal of tolerance and leniency. Para 5
Tolerance is the attitude of someone who is willing to accept other people’s beliefs or
way of life without criticizing them even if they disagree with them. The word leniency
means giving a punishment or acting in a way that is not as severe or harsh as it could be.
4 They are seen as being closer to mad people than adults because they lack the highly
prized quality of social competence ?? Para 6 Something is prized if it is considered to be
very important or valuable. The examples in the passage emphasize how different
cultural communities may give importance to quite different qualities which they expect
from children so the children are brought up very differently. 5 They are regularly told
off for being clumsy and a child who falls over may be laughed at shouted at or beaten.
Para 6 To tell someone off means to criticize someone angrily for doing something wrong.
If you are told off for doing something in a serious or official way you are reprimanded. 6
Looking at it from a cross-cultural perspective shows the wide variety of childhoods that
exist across the world ?? Para 11 A cross-cultural perspective is a view which considers
different cultures separately or independently and then makes comparisons. An
intercultural perspective would look at the relations and interactions between different
cultures or communities taking inside views of each culture into account. A transcultural
perspective would look at different cultures using knowledge skills and insights which
are thought to apply to a wide range of cultural contexts and which would help people in
intercultural contexts. Reading and understanding 3 Read the passage again and complete
the table. Teaching tips ?? When Ss have completed the table on their own divide the
class into seven groups each group being responsible for one row in the table. They have
to summarize the characteristics of childhood of this ethnic group and also include an
example. Then they report to the class. Each group should also add related information
they learned from the passage and the language and culture notes. The presentation of
each group could be given from that exact roles of parents from that exact cultural or
ethnic group. If this is difficult T may give each group a copy of the example below and
ask them to practise and present it to the class. ?? As a way to follow this up T can ask
each group one by one to compare their result with that of another group without looking
at their books. An alternative follow-up is for the T together with one or two Ss to take
the roles of TV reporters who meet each group and ask them “on camera” to compare
themselves with another group and talk about how they understand the other group from
a cross-cultural perspective. Unit 2 Childhood memories 54 1 We are American colonial
people. We lived in the 17th and 18th centuries on the east coast of America and our
families settled here from Europe. In our time children were expected to be good and
industrious. That was the main characteristic of childhood. For example when our girls
were four they knitted stockings and mittens when they were six they spun wool. We
called them “Mrs” to show the girls our appreciation. 2 We are Inuit people from the
Arctic regions. Some of us are from Canada and Greenland Denmark others from Russia
and Alaska of US. For us children need to get ihuma – you would call this the process of
acquiring thought reason and understanding. That’s the main characteristic of childhood.
For example as parents we are tolerant and lenient with children until they are old enough
to develop ihuma then we can teach them and discipline them. 3 We are from Tonga a
kingdom of about 170 islands in the south-west Pacific Ocean. As parents we may
regularly beat our children if they haven’t yet developed poto. You would think of poto
as social competence. For us it’s the main quality that our children need to develop. So
we treat them with discipline and physical punishment when they are mischievous or
wilful. 4 We are the Beng people. We live in different parts of West Africa. The main
characteristic of childhood is that young children are thought to be in contact with the
spirit world. They come to the world reluctantly because life in the spirit world is so
pleasant. As parents we have to look after our children properly or they may return to the
spirit world. We have to treat them with care and reverence. They can know and
understand everything we tell them whatever languages we use. 5 We are parents from
the Western world today. Some of us are from Europe others from North America
Australia and other places. The main characteristic of childhood in our countries is that
children are incompetent and dependent so they should play be part of the family and go
to school. Children should not work. For example a child under 14 can’t look after a
younger child unsupervised because they aren’t competent or responsible yet. If we found
a child of 12 working in a factory or in a market the social services could intervene and
the family could be prosecuted. 6 We are Fulani people. Most of us live in West Africa.
For us the main characteristic of childhood is that children are competent and responsible.
So by the age of four our girls can care for their younger siblings by six they can pound
grain or produce milk and butter which they can sell in the market alongside us. 7 We are
the Yanamam?? people from the Amazonian rainforest. We live among the hills where
you probably call the border between Brazil and Venezuela. The main characteristic of
childhood is that children are responsible and competent. Our girls help their mothers
from a young age and by the age of ten they will be running the house. This is important
because they will probably be married at 12 or 13. Our boys have fewer responsibilities.
They can play because they don’t get married until later. Culture / Ethnic group
Characteristics of childhood American colonial expected to be good and industrious Inuit
develop a process of acquiring thought reason and understanding Tonga regularly beaten
and told off by parents and older siblings seen as being very naughty until they develop
social competence Beng treated with great care and reverence believed that they are in
contact with the spirit world Childhood memories Unit 2 55 Culture / Ethnic group
Characteristics of childhood Western world today seen as incompetent and irresponsible
playing not working going to school not labouring consumption instead of production
Fulani competent and responsible expected to work Yanamam?? competent and
responsible girls expected to work from a young age be married and have children at 12
or 13 boys having fewer responsibilities and getting married later 4 Choose the best way
to complete the sentences. 1 The characteristics of childhood a hundred years ago d . a
would have interfered in their education b are similar to those of today c would be illegal
today d meant that children were treated more like adults 2 The idea that childhood is a
social construction suggests that a . a children experience childhood in different ways
according to the society in which they live b enormous transformations have taken place
within a relatively short time c children in the past worked harder d all children are.
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