Asking for and giving directions: English Language

Gene Therapy   Listen to a recording about a new anti-ageing technique.  First you will have 1 minute to study the task below, then you will hear the recording twice.  While listening, choose the correct answer (A, B, C or D) for questions 1-6. Only one answer is correct.  The first one (0) has been done for you. After the second listening, you will have 1 minute to check your answers. 

                                                                                                                    

0 Scientists have discovered how to                                                               
¨ A prolong the life of mice.

¨ B produce youthful human skin.

¨ C stop the ageing process.

¨ D make the skin of mice look younger. T

Q1 Research on mice has shown that

¨A the ageing process can be slowed down.

¨ B one particular gene affects the way other genes behave.

 ¨ C only one gene influences the ageing of the skin.

 ¨ D interfering with a vital gene can be dangerous.

Q2 The equivalent gene in human beings

¨A functions in a completely different way.

¨ B works in a comparable way.

¨ C is not suitable for experiments.

¨ D has already been closely studied.

Q3 Trying out the procedure in humans might

 ¨A have unpredictable effects.

¨ B reverse the ageing process too much.

¨ C produce too many other genes.

 ¨ D inspire people to mess around.

Q4 Scientific findings show that ageing is

 ¨A a consequence of the ups and downs of life.

¨ B a genetic process that cannot be turned back.

¨ C an ongoing development determined by genes.

¨ D the result of a certain lifestyle.

Q5 This kind of therapy is not yet available for humans because

¨ A experiments on humans have not been successful so far.

¨ B cosmetic surgeons are strongly opposed to it.

¨ C developing treatments is a lengthy process.

¨ D the cosmetic industry will suffer as a result.

Q6 The problem when applying gene therapy to humans is how to

¨ A manipulate the little fatty particles.

 ¨ B put the genes inside a virus.

¨ C cure infected cells.

¨ D influence genes in many cells simultaneously.

https://invalsi-areaprove.cineca.it/docs/2019/4_Gene%20therapy.mp3

Willa and Brad LEVEL B1

Listen to a couple talking about the beginning of their relationship.

First you will have 1 minute to study the task below, then you will hear the recording twice.

While listening, match the beginnings of the sentences (1-5) with the sentence endings (A-H).

There are two sentence endings that you should not use. The first one (0) has been done for you. After the second listening, you will have 1 minute to check your answers.

0 Brad and Willa first met ___. C

Q1 They got to know each other through ___.

 Q2 At that time Brad only knew ___.

Q3 Willa immediately phoned ___.

Q4 Nona and Aunt Ziya were ___.

Q5 Everything changed because of ___

A his job

B more supportive

C at university

 D their daughter

 E her mother

F a friend

G two black people

H Willa’s parents

https://invalsi-areaprove.cineca.it/docs/2019/2_Willa%20and%20Brad.mp3

International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women

25 November 2018

The United Nations General Assembly has designated November 25 as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women(Resolution 54/134).^[1] The premise of the day is to raise awareness of the fact that women around the world are subject to rape, domestic violence and other forms of violence; furthermore, one of the aims of the day is to highlight that the scale and true nature of the issue is often hidden. 

Write a short essay on the following topic

Domestic violence towards  women

Introduction: Definition of violence

I Paragraph : The forms of domestic violence, the Cycle of domestic violence

II Paragraph: Causes of domestic violence, Effects of domestic violence

III Paragraph Existing laws against it, Role of media, of police, of government

Conclusion

Use the following connectors

HOWEVER

ON THE OTHER HAND

ON THE CONTRARY

IN ORDER TO/SO AS TO

BECAUSE OF

MOREOVER/IN ADDITION

CONSEQUENTLY/AS A RESULT

IN CONCLUSION

IN MY VIEW

James I and the ‘Divine Right of Kings’
What did he use to say to Parliament?

"I am King, and I was chosen by God to rule over both England and Scotland. I share my power with nobody. "

"This is my Kingdom, and I'll spend money how I like! It is not up to you how I run my government."

" I was chosen by God to be King and to have complete power. I do not make compromises. You should give me the money I want."

The Gunpowder plot

The gunpowder plotters were a group of angry Catholics, who did not like how King James was treating Catholics in England. Catholics were fined, exiled and had their rights taken away. The plotters planned to attack the state opening of Parliament with gunpowder, when all of the most important people in Britain were there. They would then take control of the country.

The first permanent colony was created in New England(America) by the Pilgrim Fathers

The Pilgrim Fathers were the first  settlers of Plymouth, Massachussets, the first permanent colony in New England(1620). Of the 102 colonists, 35 were members of the English Separatist Church (a radical faction of Puritans) who had earlier moved to  the Netherlands, to escape persecution at home.

Puritans were a religious group during the 1500s and 1600s who followed extreme Protestant ideas, and lived strictly religious lives. They really hated Catholics. They also hated decoration in churches, and wanted their places of worship to be simple and ‘pure’ (hence, ‘Puritan’). Puritans wore plain black clothing, with a white collar.

They thought people should work hard and always behave in a religious way. They did not like people having fun. Puritans disliked theatres, sport and drinking alcohol, and believed that Sundays should always be spent in church and praying. 

https://www.slideserve.com/betrys/tudor-to-stuart-to-hanover

https://www.slideshare.net/lauracdh1/bonfire-night-powerpoint
https://www.slideserve.com/qiana/guy-fawkes-night

The American Thanksgiving Story (English subtitles)

https://youtu.be/CzVXun4Uyp0

The First Thanksgiving Story

After watching the videos answer the questions:

1. When did the Pilgrims leave England for the New World?

2. Why was their first winter in the New World difficult?

3. Who helped them and how?

4. Why did the Pilgrims have a feast in autumn, 1621?

5. Who did they invite to the feast?

6. What did they eat at the feast?

7. When is Thanksgiving celebrated?

GROUP WORK

Do some research about the following issues:

Who were the Pilgrim Fathers?

What are the origins of the first Thanksgiving day?

What did they eat at the first Thanksgiving day?

When did Thanksgiving become an official holiday?

What about Thanksgiving traditions and foods?

How long has pumpkin pie been a traditional part of Thanksgiving?

What about the first Macy’s Thanksgiving day parade?

LITERATURE - Charles Dickens

WORKSHEET
Answer the questions

1. He was a novelist and a great showman. What did he do to be a great showman?
2. What was he interested in?
3. What elements could he put together so as to write down interesting fun novels?
4. What kind of problems did he have in his family when he was still a child?
5. Did he ever forget his experience working as a child in a blacking factory?
6. Which is the novel where he describes a blacking factory?
7. What kind of "buildings" does he describe in Oliver Twist?
8. In his time did "comfortable" people feel the necessity to change things?
9. What method did he use to arouse in his readers a big interest in the lower social classes' living conditions?
10. What was his strategy to get people to think about difficult things?
11. What were the"wrong things" in his age?
12. What did he want to happen by highlighting some of the problems in his age?
13. Was he also sensitive in his family life?
14. According to the video, did he take care of his family?

New words and expressions

Racy plots= Trame vivaci

Weepy moments=momenti commoventi

Shallow=superficiale

Sympathy = feelings of pity and sorrow for someone else's misfortune.

Numbing Speed=la velocità paralizzante

He was plodding=arrancava, camminava a fatica

DICKENS SLIDES

https://www.slideshare.net/ClaudiaCantaluppi/plot-hard-times (summary Hard Times)

https://slideplayer.com/slide/6032531/

Hard times- Charles dickens - Facts

EDUCATION in HARD TIMES is a form of MECHANICAL 'people processing' equivalent to industrial MASS PRODUCTION.
The childrens' heads are stuffed with useless facts. In addition, a particular attitude to knowledge is taught. It is a one-way transmission as the students' role is completely passive and mechanical.
The school is a sort of factory; individual differences are destroyed. In a sense, the students should be IDENTICAL and INTERCHANGEABLE.
Experience as  a form of knowledge is cancelled in Gradgrind's school.

TOPIC to talk about:
Today more space is given to students'own ideas and interpretations of the world. Is it true?

The Life of Charles Dickens (BBC)

Write an article

Write an article-
"A Water bomb" 

It happened at night on the 19th October, on Friday. It seemed to be a normal night, but it wasn't.

First, at 7 p.m. there was only a light rain, but it became stronger and stronger. There was lightning and thunder in the sky. For a short time, the rain stopped, but at 10 p.m. it rained again and a storm blew up.

It rained all  night long, until 5 a. m.During the night,  heavy rain caused lots of damage- water dragged stones and debris along the streets.Cars, garages and some houses were covered with water. Roads were seriously damaged and the flood overwhelmed buildings and destroyed bridges.

It happened in our province. The flood hit the towns of..........

The scale of the disaster is high-streets are highly damaged and many roads are closed. The plain nearby was left full of water in the storm and lands have been destroyed.

Luckily there were no casualties, but shop owners and common people had lots of problems.

The causes of the flood are different. Origins can be found in the structures of the buildings and their materials.For example, in the areas hit by the flood, most of the damaged buildings had been built in unauthorized lands. Moreover, road maintenance hasn't been done for years.

What's happened here?

Some days ago a terrible thunderstorm and, consequently a huge flood occured, mainly, in the towns of.......Many other cities and towns have been hit such as..............................................

That  natural disaster has destroyed cars, courtyards, crops and also some houses and schools have been damaged.

It happened during the night on the 12th October, although the thunderstorm started at 9 p. m.  the evening before and luckily there have been no casualties.In addition, the mayors of the target towns have declared a state of natural disaster.

People are right now suffering the consequences of this disaster. They're working hard to recover from the shock , even if they're still emotionally and mentally destroyed.

There have been a lot of  consequences, such as the closing of some schools and the lack of accessibility of certain streets.

Finally, that terrible disaster has brought about so much discomfort in people's lives. One thing is sure. The weather is totally weird, so we have to understand that currently the world is being changed completely because of the human beings' choices and actions. 

By students in IV AL

Mistakes to be avoided Written Test IV BL


1)NEWS (Uncountable) but it was used in the plural!!!! 
ex The news are good

Correct forms 
Tell me if  there's some news
That's the best (piece of) news I've heard  for a long time!

2) POISON (a substance that can make people or animals ill or kill   them if they eat   or drink it)
    POTION( a liquid that is believed  to have a a magical effect on someone who drinks  it)

Correct the following mistakes

3) HE denys????

4) an holy shrine

5) I lost a very great party 

6) at the Juliet's party

7) There weren't people  

8) determinated! determinate!

9) I waited her for all night!

10) Romeo thought that Juliet was death

11) She's death

12) a chocolate's cake 

13) I was talking to the phone?!!!

14) ........she would have took an umbrella

15) expecially 

16) They fall in love at the first sight 

17) I can't remember what was that praise

18) I asked for directions to a person!

19) We had a discuss!

20) I didn't think to her!

21) read the news by their mobiles

22) the theme of love interest!!!

23) the problem of TENSE COHERENCE!!!!

Romeo is very courageous because when he found Juliet apparently dead, he decided to kill himself

24) the count Paris 

25) in the people lifes!!!

26) get a decision

27) Juliet appears died!!!

A Conversation with Jacqueline Wilson 
(taken from AREA INVALSI    Listening Comprehension LEVEL B1)
https://invalsiareaprove.cineca.it/docs/2019/1_A%20Conversation%20with%20Jacqueline%20Wilson.mp3

0 Jacqueline Wilson is launching 

A a nonfiction contest for teenagers.      B a writing game for children.

       C an essay competition for adults.           D a story writing contest for kids. T

Q1 Children often ask Jacqueline Wilson how to

A publish their books.                                               B write good stories.

C become successful writers.                                    D have their stories advertised.

Q2 One of the prizes will be to

A receive a collection of books.                       B share J. Wilson's passion for books.  

C spend one day with J. Wilson.                      D be included in one of J. Wilson's books.

Q3 Participants must

A be children over 12.                                               B come from England.

C be at least 7.                                                          D attend primary school.

Q4 The competition will accept

A very short stories.                                                  B stories in J. Wilson's style.

C stories of various kinds.                                        D only detective stories

Q5 The competition wants to

A develop creativity and enjoyment.                        B check spelling and grammar.

C increase the length of the stories.                          D find a new talented writer.

Q6 The best story should

A show grammar accuracy.                                       B have a formal style.

C give strong emotions.                                            D be new and imaginative.

Q7 J. Wilson believes that all children stories nowadays

 A deal with sentiments.                                            B are  about unoriginal topics.

 C have troubled characters.                                     D are about historical events

FIRST CLASSES


Mistakes to be avoided
Correct the following sentences

My aunt HAVE got a white cat
Madonna hasn't got A short hair
She's from FRENCH
His hair ARE red

IT'S LONG BROWN HAIR
IT's BLUE EYES
He's A QUIET tall
IT's BROWN HAIR
Their eyes IS blue
They're german
Are they good-looking? Yes, there are.

His nationality is Ireland
Their hair ARE red
Her hair it's brown
In my opinion, Sean HAS good-looking
They are GERMANY
They've got A fair hair
Cecile HAVE 16 years old
Sean came from Ireland
Cecile HAS 16 years old

Her hair IT'S brown
THEYR eyes are blue
He CAMES from ireland

Days of the Week, Months and Seasons in English

Answer the questions

How many days are there in a week?
How many days  in November?
How many days  in  December?
How many days begin with S?
How many days begin with T?
Which days do you go to school?
Which day don't you go to school?
What is the name of the first day of the week?
Which days do you have English?
How many months are there in a year?
How many months in 2 years?
How many weeks are there in a month?
How many weeks are there in a year?
When is your birthday?
How many days are there in a year?
Which month is the coldest in your country?
Which month do you like best?
Which month does summer begin?
Which month does winter begin?
Which month does your school begin?
Which month does your school end?


Write the name of the day that comes before:

 ____________ comes before Monday.

 ____________ comes before Friday.

 ____________ comes before Saturday.

 ____________ comes before Wednesday.

 ____________ comes before Sunday.

 ____________ comes before Tuesday.

 ____________ comes before Thursday.

Write the name of the day that comes before:

 Sunday comes after ____________.

 Tuesday comes after ____________.

 Saturday comes after ____________.

 Monday comes after ____________.

 Wednesday comes after ____________.

 Friday comes after ____________.

 Thursday comes after ____________.