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Unit One: Families Home and Abroad
Lesson 1
Our family
Objectives : By the end of the lesson you will have
* read two letter
* discussed the contents of the letters
* practiced using wh-questions
* written a short letter to a newspaper
Guess the relationships between the people in the picture. Do you think it is a picture of a typical family in Bangladesh? In what way? Share your ideas with your partner.
B Read the two following letters taken from the problem page of a weekly English magazine. The Rising Sun, to identify the problems the two writers are facing.
The-Rising Sun
Wednesday 5 January
Dear Mita Apa,
I’m a first year college student and my annual exams are close at hand. I need to study a lot However, conditions in my house are not at all favorable. My elder sister got married last month and since then her share of the household chores has fallen on my shoulders. On top of that, my aunt (my father’s sister) has just had a new baby boy. He screams all the time and keeps everyone up late into the night. He keeps Auntie so busy that she cannot help with any of the housework. So mother now relies a lot on me and so do my grandparents. It seems that I am at everybody’s beck and call.
The house hasn’t shed its festive look. Which started with my sister’s marriage. Since Auntie’s baby was born, we have had streams of guests visiting the house. I’m really worried about my coming exams. There’s so much noise and confusion in the house that I can hardly concentrate on my studies. You can’t imagine how difficult it is to study in a large family. I even have to share my room with my younger brothers and sisters and at times with my cousins. I wish I were in a small family. Tell me, what should I do?
Nazneen
Aminpur, Sirajganj
The Rising
Wednesday 2 January
Dear Mita Apa,
I read Nazneen’s letter published in your column on 5 January. I can understand Nazneen’s problems about living in a large family, but things are not always rosy in a small family either. As Naznen seems to think. It appears the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence. From my experience, I know how awfully boring life can be in a nuclear family. I’m also a college student like Nazneen. I’ve a room of my own, and a lot of time to myself. But still I’m not happy. My parents are always busy with their work. My only brother goes to university in the morning and comes back late in the evening. Everybody is too tired to talk when they get back. Also, when at home they are busy with their own work. So the house is often much too quiet. I can’t visit my friends even when IO wish to, because it’s not safe for girls to move about alone in the city. I often feel very lonely and bored. I envy Nazneen. I wish I could live like her with grandparents, uncles, aunts, and cousins. I hope Nazneen realizes that having a small family does not necessarily make one happy.
Zinnia
Rajabazar, Dhaka.
Now look again at the letters and discuss in pairs.
1 What particular problems does Nazneen have?
2 What are Zinnia's problems?
3 What did you understand by 'extended1 and "nuclear* families?
4 What do you think are the advantages of an extended and a nuclear family?
5 Do you think that Nazneen's attitude might change after reading Zinnia's letter?
C Examine the letters carefully. Do you think that they are written in a formal, or an informal style? Give reasons for your answer.
D Here are some words and expressions from the letters that we use in daily life. Understanding their meaning within the context is important Check your comprehension by matching the words/expressions shown in column A with their meanings in column B.
A
envy
awfully
scream
rosy
chores
festive
be on one's toes
at somebody's beck and call
the grass is greener on the
other side
B
- believing what others have is always better
- small regular tasks that are done in the house
- be in a position where you do things as ordered by others
- wish that you had someone else's possessions, abilities
- cry loudly
- be always ready, be alert
- bright and cheerful, as in a celebration
- happy, wonderful
- very, very much
Now fill in the blanks in each of the following sentences with an appropriate word/expression from column A of the above table. Change the form(s) if necessary.
1 Bangladesh has a___ air during the month of Ramadan.
2 Things don't look very _____ for him in his present job.
3 She is ________ to help everybody in the house.
4 The peon in the office is at the Principal's________
5 When she saw the burglar, she ________ in terror.
6 I'm ________ sorry for breaking your new pen.
E Think about your own family. In pairs, ask and answer questions about your families.
e.g. How many members are there in your family?
What do/does...... do? Do your grandparents live with you? etc.
F Write a short letter to The Rising Sun describing the type of family .you like and why.
Focus:
Skills
Reading, speaking, writing
Functions
Asking questions and giving answers, describing situation's, expressing attitudes
Grammar/Structure
Simple present tense, wh- questions
Vocabulary
chores, scream, rely, beck and call, envy, awfully, concentrate
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Read
Unit One: Families Home and Abroad
Lesson 1
Our family
Objectives : By the end of the lesson you will have
* read two letter
* discussed the contents of the letters
* practiced using wh-questions
* written a short letter to a newspaper
Guess the relationships between the people in the picture. Do you think it is a picture of a typical family in Bangladesh? In what way? Share your ideas with your partner.
B Read the two following letters taken from the problem page of a weekly English magazine. The Rising Sun, to identify the problems the two writers are facing.
The-Rising Sun
Wednesday 5 January
Dear Mita Apa,
I’m a first year college student and my annual exams are close at hand. I need to study a lot However, conditions in my house are not at all favorable. My elder sister got married last month and since then her share of the household chores has fallen on my shoulders. On top of that, my aunt (my father’s sister) has just had a new baby boy. He screams all the time and keeps everyone up late into the night. He keeps Auntie so busy that she cannot help with any of the housework. So mother now relies a lot on me and so do my grandparents. It seems that I am at everybody’s beck and call.
The house hasn’t shed its festive look. Which started with my sister’s marriage. Since Auntie’s baby was born, we have had streams of guests visiting the house. I’m really worried about my coming exams. There’s so much noise and confusion in the house that I can hardly concentrate on my studies. You can’t imagine how difficult it is to study in a large family. I even have to share my room with my younger brothers and sisters and at times with my cousins. I wish I were in a small family. Tell me, what should I do?
Nazneen
Aminpur, Sirajganj
The Rising
Wednesday 2 January
Dear Mita Apa,
I read Nazneen’s letter published in your column on 5 January. I can understand Nazneen’s problems about living in a large family, but things are not always rosy in a small family either. As Naznen seems to think. It appears the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence. From my experience, I know how awfully boring life can be in a nuclear family. I’m also a college student like Nazneen. I’ve a room of my own, and a lot of time to myself. But still I’m not happy. My parents are always busy with their work. My only brother goes to university in the morning and comes back late in the evening. Everybody is too tired to talk when they get back. Also, when at home they are busy with their own work. So the house is often much too quiet. I can’t visit my friends even when IO wish to, because it’s not safe for girls to move about alone in the city. I often feel very lonely and bored. I envy Nazneen. I wish I could live like her with grandparents, uncles, aunts, and cousins. I hope Nazneen realizes that having a small family does not necessarily make one happy.
Zinnia
Rajabazar, Dhaka.
Now look again at the letters and discuss in pairs.
1 What particular problems does Nazneen have?
2 What are Zinnia's problems?
3 What did you understand by 'extended1 and "nuclear* families?
4 What do you think are the advantages of an extended and a nuclear family?
5 Do you think that Nazneen's attitude might change after reading Zinnia's letter?
C Examine the letters carefully. Do you think that they are written in a formal, or an informal style? Give reasons for your answer.
D Here are some words and expressions from the letters that we use in daily life. Understanding their meaning within the context is important Check your comprehension by matching the words/expressions shown in column A with their meanings in column B.
A
envy
awfully
scream
rosy
chores
festive
be on one's toes
at somebody's beck and call
the grass is greener on the
other side
B
- believing what others have is always better
- small regular tasks that are done in the house
- be in a position where you do things as ordered by others
- wish that you had someone else's possessions, abilities
- cry loudly
- be always ready, be alert
- bright and cheerful, as in a celebration
- happy, wonderful
- very, very much
Now fill in the blanks in each of the following sentences with an appropriate word/expression from column A of the above table. Change the form(s) if necessary.
1 Bangladesh has a___ air during the month of Ramadan.
2 Things don't look very _____ for him in his present job.
3 She is ________ to help everybody in the house.
4 The peon in the office is at the Principal's________
5 When she saw the burglar, she ________ in terror.
6 I'm ________ sorry for breaking your new pen.
E Think about your own family. In pairs, ask and answer questions about your families.
e.g. How many members are there in your family?
What do/does...... do? Do your grandparents live with you? etc.
F Write a short letter to The Rising Sun describing the type of family .you like and why.
Focus:
Skills
Reading, speaking, writing
Functions
Asking questions and giving answers, describing situation's, expressing attitudes
Grammar/Structure
Simple present tense, wh- questions
Vocabulary
chores, scream, rely, beck and call, envy, awfully, concentrate