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Unit Sixteen:
Wonders Home and Abroad
Lesson 1
The Sangsad Bhaban
Objectives: By the end of the lesson you will have
• talked about our Parliament
• read u passage about the Parliament House of Bangladesh
• asked and answered some questions
• rewritten a sentence .
• explained some sentences
• written your comments on our Parliament House
A What is a parliament? What happens in a parliament? What do you know about the Bangladesh Parliament? Discuss these questions in pairs.
B Now read this passage about our Parliament Building.
The Sangsad Bhaban (Parliament House) at Sher-e-Bangla Nagar in Dhaka is a wonder of modem architecture and technology, it is one of, the largest and most spectacular parliament buildings in the world. Originally designed by the famous American architect Louis I Kahn, this 155 ft high 9-storey building is surrounded by an artificial lake called the Crescent Lake. The main section is hidden behind a strong outer covering with circular and triangular openings. The structure has 1605 doors, 335 windows, 365 ventilators and corridors totaling to a bewildering length of 41.6 kilometres. One could easily get lost in these deceptive corridors. The house has 354 seals for MPs, 56 for guests, 40 for journalists and 430 for spectators. It has also three party rooms each of which can scat 153 people. The whole place is air-conditioned and includes all modern amenities. Although construction work on this structure started in 1964, it was finally inaugurated in 19N2 and the first parliamentary session was held on 15 February the same year. Being a highly complex structure, its annual maintenance cost is about 50 million -taka. This is truly a wonder for a poor country like Bangladesh.
Write down at least 6 questions on the basis of the text above. Now work in pairs to ask and answer those questions. Your questions and answers may be like this:
Question: Who designed the Sangsad Bhaban?
Answer: Louis 1 Kahn of the USA.
C Notice the use of the superlative forms of adjectives in the following sentence.
The Parliament House is the largest and most spectacular building in the country.
Now rewrite the sentence using the positive and comparative forms of the two adjectives (large, spectacular). You may use more than one sentence.
Explain the following sentences by adding one or two sentences to it. One has been done for you.
This is the largest building in the country. No other building in the country is larger than this.
This is the second largest building in the country.
This is one of the largest buildings in the country.
This is the largest building I have ever seen.
This is the largest building ever constructed in the country.
D Make 5 sentences describing things or places or people using adjectives in the positive, comparative or superlative degrees. Remember they must contain genuine facts, e.g. Asia is the largest continent.
E You have read that our Parliament House is a highly expensive building. What do you think of having such an expensive building in a country like ours? Write your comments in about 8-10 sentences.
Focus:
Skills.
Speaking, reading, writing.
Functions.
Asking and answering questions, explaining, commenting.
Grammar/Structure.
Comparative forms of adjectives.
Vocabulary.
architecture, spectacular, storey, triangular, deceptive, bewildering,
spectator, amenities, inaugurate, maintenance.
This text will be replaced
Unit Sixteen:
Wonders Home and Abroad
Lesson 1
The Sangsad Bhaban
Objectives: By the end of the lesson you will have
• talked about our Parliament
• read u passage about the Parliament House of Bangladesh
• asked and answered some questions
• rewritten a sentence .
• explained some sentences
• written your comments on our Parliament House
A What is a parliament? What happens in a parliament? What do you know about the Bangladesh Parliament? Discuss these questions in pairs.
B Now read this passage about our Parliament Building.
The Sangsad Bhaban (Parliament House) at Sher-e-Bangla Nagar in Dhaka is a wonder of modem architecture and technology, it is one of, the largest and most spectacular parliament buildings in the world. Originally designed by the famous American architect Louis I Kahn, this 155 ft high 9-storey building is surrounded by an artificial lake called the Crescent Lake. The main section is hidden behind a strong outer covering with circular and triangular openings. The structure has 1605 doors, 335 windows, 365 ventilators and corridors totaling to a bewildering length of 41.6 kilometres. One could easily get lost in these deceptive corridors. The house has 354 seals for MPs, 56 for guests, 40 for journalists and 430 for spectators. It has also three party rooms each of which can scat 153 people. The whole place is air-conditioned and includes all modern amenities. Although construction work on this structure started in 1964, it was finally inaugurated in 19N2 and the first parliamentary session was held on 15 February the same year. Being a highly complex structure, its annual maintenance cost is about 50 million -taka. This is truly a wonder for a poor country like Bangladesh.
Write down at least 6 questions on the basis of the text above. Now work in pairs to ask and answer those questions. Your questions and answers may be like this:
Question: Who designed the Sangsad Bhaban?
Answer: Louis 1 Kahn of the USA.
C Notice the use of the superlative forms of adjectives in the following sentence.
The Parliament House is the largest and most spectacular building in the country.
Now rewrite the sentence using the positive and comparative forms of the two adjectives (large, spectacular). You may use more than one sentence.
Explain the following sentences by adding one or two sentences to it. One has been done for you.
This is the largest building in the country. No other building in the country is larger than this.
This is the second largest building in the country.
This is one of the largest buildings in the country.
This is the largest building I have ever seen.
This is the largest building ever constructed in the country.
D Make 5 sentences describing things or places or people using adjectives in the positive, comparative or superlative degrees. Remember they must contain genuine facts, e.g. Asia is the largest continent.
E You have read that our Parliament House is a highly expensive building. What do you think of having such an expensive building in a country like ours? Write your comments in about 8-10 sentences.
Focus:
Skills.
Speaking, reading, writing.
Functions.
Asking and answering questions, explaining, commenting.
Grammar/Structure.
Comparative forms of adjectives.
Vocabulary.
architecture, spectacular, storey, triangular, deceptive, bewildering,
spectator, amenities, inaugurate, maintenance.