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Unit 22 Lesson 6
The Alien
Objectives: By the end of the lesson you will have
• read an extract from a story
• answered comprehension questions on the story
• retold the story in brief in your own words
A Read the following extract from a short story 'Across the Ionosphere and into the trees' by Henry Gregor Felson. It is about an alien who came to earth but didn't go back and who is being visited by another alien. (An alien is an imaginary living being from outer space.)
The way it happened. I was awakened in the middle of the night by a ringing noise in my cars. Three long rings in my left car and two short rings in the right.
I sat up at once startled. That was my correct number. But who on Earth could be car ringing me in the middle of the night with an Adnaxian form of communication?
I suppose I should explain that I am a native of the planet Adnaxas. I came to Earth about a dozen years ago in a flying saucer, in order to scout Earth for future destruction. While scouting I met a girl in a drugstore, and we got to talking. To make a long story short, yesterday I was Captain Exmyex of the Adnaxian Interplanetary Airforce, and today I appear to be a man, living in lowa, USA, with my Earth-wife and two half-astronaut children.
Well, anyway, it was the middle of the night, and someone was trying to contact me on the auralphone. "Exmyex here" I brain-waved sleepily. "Who's calling please?"
"Exmyex!" an agitated brain-voice in my inner ear. "Thank heaven I found you! Oxxyox here. And help Exmyex! Help!"
"What's the matter" I asked "Where are you.'" "That's what I want you to tell me." Oxxyox brain-cried. "Listen to me Exmyex and don't interrupt. I have just
landed next to your old space-ship, and I surrounded by a tribe of monsters who mean to do me in."
"What!" I brain-scoffed.
"They are all around me!" Oxxyox cried fearfully. "There must be thousands of them. I'm holding them at bay with my molecule pistol, and I've threatened to shoot the first one who moves." Oxxyox's brain-tone became hoarse with terror. "They are horrible fearfil creatures, Exmyex, a hundred feet tall, with huge bushy heads that they keep shaking at me. Oh save me Exmyex, Please save me!"
"Now now" I said soothingly. "Don't alarmed Oxxyox. You are in the woods and those are just trees."
"Trees?" lie repeated shakily. "Are they friendly? What should I say to prove I
mean them no harm?"
"You don't have to say anything", I said. "I'll be right over. So don't worry. You
arc in no danger." "Oh, no", he said bitterly. "No danger. All one of these brutes
has to do .is step on me, and my career is over."
I slipped out of bed, changed into Adnaxian form and whisked out to Razza's wood. There stood Oxxyox with his back against my old flying saucer, nervously addressing u tribe of maples and walnuts.
"Am I glad to see you", Oxxyox said in u relieved voice when I joined him. "These trees have been getting more restless by the minute. I guess the only reason they didn't attack me at once was that they thought I was some kind of God coming down from the sky."
I persuaded Oxxyox to put aside his pistol and explained the nature of trees. An owl cried out, further startling him, so I went on to explain about the birds — and the bees and the Mowers.
B Answer the following questions.
1 What arc the following things in the story?
Exmyex, Adnaxas, Oxxyox
2 Are the following answers true or false? Write T or F.
a Exmyex came from outer space to destroy the world.
b Exmyex married a human being.
c Me communicated with other aliens through his brain by thinking.
d Oxxyox was attacked by giants.
e Exmyex came to earth twenty years ago.
f Exmyex was sleeping when his bruin phone rang.
g Maples and walnuts arc two types of trees.
h Exmyex destroyed his flying saucer after he landed on Earth.
3 Give short answers in pairs.
a Whv didn't Exmyox go back to his own world?
b What docs he call the mechanism by which he was contacted by Oxxyox?
c Why was Oxxyox afraid of the trees? How did he describe them?
d What do the underlined words mean he said: "I am surrounded by a tribe of monsters who mean to do me in?"
e Why did Exmyex change into Adnaxian form before meeting Oxxyox?
f Write 5 adjectives to describe Oxxyox's state of mind while he was in the woods.
g Write 5 sentences describing Exmyox's feelings during the whole time.
eg. He was surprised/astonished/startled to receive the Adnaxian ear call.
C Work with a partner and tell the story in your own words in English. Use reported speech for the dialogues.
Focus:
Skills.
Intensive reading, speaking,
writing. Functions.
Summarising, reporting, expressing emotions.
Grammar/Structure.
Past tense for narratives, participle
adjectives.
Vocabulary.
bellowed, scoffed, startled, do me in, to hold at bay.
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Unit 22 Lesson 6
The Alien
Objectives: By the end of the lesson you will have
• read an extract from a story
• answered comprehension questions on the story
• retold the story in brief in your own words
A Read the following extract from a short story 'Across the Ionosphere and into the trees' by Henry Gregor Felson. It is about an alien who came to earth but didn't go back and who is being visited by another alien. (An alien is an imaginary living being from outer space.)
The way it happened. I was awakened in the middle of the night by a ringing noise in my cars. Three long rings in my left car and two short rings in the right.
I sat up at once startled. That was my correct number. But who on Earth could be car ringing me in the middle of the night with an Adnaxian form of communication?
I suppose I should explain that I am a native of the planet Adnaxas. I came to Earth about a dozen years ago in a flying saucer, in order to scout Earth for future destruction. While scouting I met a girl in a drugstore, and we got to talking. To make a long story short, yesterday I was Captain Exmyex of the Adnaxian Interplanetary Airforce, and today I appear to be a man, living in lowa, USA, with my Earth-wife and two half-astronaut children.
Well, anyway, it was the middle of the night, and someone was trying to contact me on the auralphone. "Exmyex here" I brain-waved sleepily. "Who's calling please?"
"Exmyex!" an agitated brain-voice in my inner ear. "Thank heaven I found you! Oxxyox here. And help Exmyex! Help!"
"What's the matter" I asked "Where are you.'" "That's what I want you to tell me." Oxxyox brain-cried. "Listen to me Exmyex and don't interrupt. I have just
landed next to your old space-ship, and I surrounded by a tribe of monsters who mean to do me in."
"What!" I brain-scoffed.
"They are all around me!" Oxxyox cried fearfully. "There must be thousands of them. I'm holding them at bay with my molecule pistol, and I've threatened to shoot the first one who moves." Oxxyox's brain-tone became hoarse with terror. "They are horrible fearfil creatures, Exmyex, a hundred feet tall, with huge bushy heads that they keep shaking at me. Oh save me Exmyex, Please save me!"
"Now now" I said soothingly. "Don't alarmed Oxxyox. You are in the woods and those are just trees."
"Trees?" lie repeated shakily. "Are they friendly? What should I say to prove I
mean them no harm?"
"You don't have to say anything", I said. "I'll be right over. So don't worry. You
arc in no danger." "Oh, no", he said bitterly. "No danger. All one of these brutes
has to do .is step on me, and my career is over."
I slipped out of bed, changed into Adnaxian form and whisked out to Razza's wood. There stood Oxxyox with his back against my old flying saucer, nervously addressing u tribe of maples and walnuts.
"Am I glad to see you", Oxxyox said in u relieved voice when I joined him. "These trees have been getting more restless by the minute. I guess the only reason they didn't attack me at once was that they thought I was some kind of God coming down from the sky."
I persuaded Oxxyox to put aside his pistol and explained the nature of trees. An owl cried out, further startling him, so I went on to explain about the birds — and the bees and the Mowers.
B Answer the following questions.
1 What arc the following things in the story?
Exmyex, Adnaxas, Oxxyox
2 Are the following answers true or false? Write T or F.
a Exmyex came from outer space to destroy the world.
b Exmyex married a human being.
c Me communicated with other aliens through his brain by thinking.
d Oxxyox was attacked by giants.
e Exmyex came to earth twenty years ago.
f Exmyex was sleeping when his bruin phone rang.
g Maples and walnuts arc two types of trees.
h Exmyex destroyed his flying saucer after he landed on Earth.
3 Give short answers in pairs.
a Whv didn't Exmyox go back to his own world?
b What docs he call the mechanism by which he was contacted by Oxxyox?
c Why was Oxxyox afraid of the trees? How did he describe them?
d What do the underlined words mean he said: "I am surrounded by a tribe of monsters who mean to do me in?"
e Why did Exmyex change into Adnaxian form before meeting Oxxyox?
f Write 5 adjectives to describe Oxxyox's state of mind while he was in the woods.
g Write 5 sentences describing Exmyox's feelings during the whole time.
eg. He was surprised/astonished/startled to receive the Adnaxian ear call.
C Work with a partner and tell the story in your own words in English. Use reported speech for the dialogues.
Focus:
Skills.
Intensive reading, speaking,
writing. Functions.
Summarising, reporting, expressing emotions.
Grammar/Structure.
Past tense for narratives, participle
adjectives.
Vocabulary.
bellowed, scoffed, startled, do me in, to hold at bay.