A Beijing school day

A Beijing school day
You are going to read a story about a school day at a school in Beijing.
Before you read the whole story, you are going to match pictures of the school to descriptions of what is happening in the picture in this worksheet .

Now check your answers to the worksheet and read the whole story on news.bbc.co.uk

Discuss:
How different is your school?
How different are your school days?

In this section, you are going to read about Katy and her experiences starting secondary school.
Before you start reading, do the following:

  1. Discuss with your classmates:
    Were you afraid (=bang, bezorgd) of going to secondary school?
    If so, what were you afraid of? Or, why were you not afraid?
  2. Look up on the internet:
    When does secondary school start in England?

Now, to prepare you for the reading exercise, match the following words from the text to their definition. Write words you find difficult to remember down in your notebook.

Now read the story about Katy's experiences starting secondary school and answer the questions.

My experiences starting secondary school  

The new school term has begun and lots of you have gone to secondary school for the first time. In her report Press Packer Katy shares her experiences of starting secondary school and offers some useful advice.
"I started a new school a year ago and I can't believe how quickly the year went!
I wasn't that nervous on my first day, I was really looking forward to it. I knew a bit about what to expect because I had an older sister at the same school.

It will be fine!
For anyone who's starting a new school, don't worry. The stories that you hear aren't usually true - I don't know anyone who's been bog-washed!
I've met lots of new people and made loads of new friends since I started.
I thought the work would suddenly get really hard but it was just like primary school really. I also thought that I'd be flooded with homework but the amount I got in my first year was quite easy to handle.

Katy's tips
Here's my advice for anyone who's worried about going to a new school:
  • Relax and think about all the positives of moving to secondary school
  • Don't be shy, introduce yourself to people!
  • Be yourself, don't try to brag because people might think you're big-headed

Good luck!"
Katy, 13, Edinburgh
 

bron: CBBC Newsround

You have now read the text and have had a look at difficult words.
The meanings of three of the difficult words will be discussed here.
You are going to try to guess the meaning of a word from its context (numbers 1 and 2) and you are going to try to look up the meaning of an informal word that is not present in standard dictionaries (number 3).

Discuss with your partner what the meanings of the words in bold in numbers 1 and 2 could be. It does not matter if you do not know the precise meaning, but being able to guess what words more or less mean will help you with your reading skills!

  1. I also thought that I'd be flooded with homework but the amount I got in my first year was quite easy to handle.
  2. Be yourself, don't try to brag because people might think you're big-headed.

The following sentence (number 3) is an example of informal language.
You will not find this word in standard dictionaries. How can you find out what it means then? Try to have a look at what both parts of the word ('bog' and 'washed') mean in a dictionary and discuss with a partner what you think 'bog-washed' means.

  1. The stories that you hear aren't usually true - I don't know anyone who's been bog-washed!

At the beginning of a new school year, you usually need new school supplies! Together with a classmate, make a list of ten school supplies you usually buy at the beginning of a new school year.
If you need inspiration (or repetition) have a look at the following presentation.


Also have a look at www.theworks.co.uk .

In this section you are going to read a poem about learning a language.

  1. Discuss with a classmate.
    Do you think learning a language is easy or difficult?
  2. Now read the poem.
    Does the writer think learning a language is easy or difficult?
Learning a language

Learning a language
is like doing a jigsaw puzzle
of a million pieces
with a picture that keeps changing.
It's like getting lost in a foreign city
without a map.
It's like playing tennis without a ball,
like being an ant in a field of grasshoppers.
It's being an acrobat with a broken leg,
an actor without a script,
a carpenter without a saw,
a storyteller without a middle or an end.

But then gradually
it's like being out in the early morning
with the mists lifting.
It's like a chink of light under a door,
like finding the glove you were looking for,
catching the train you thought you were going to miss,
getting an unlooked-for present,
exchanging a smile.

And then one day it's like riding a bicycle
very fast downhill.

Olivia McMahon
(Britisch Council Webpage)

The poem is divided into three parts. Each part consists of (=bestaat uit) comparisons (=vergelijkingen). Work together with a classmate.
Each of you chooses one comparison from each part (so you must have six in total).
Look up difficult words in a dictionary as for example: www.macmillandictionary.com .

Explain your comparisons to each other.

The three parts in the poem are different.
What is the difference (in meaning) between the three parts?

Work together with a partner.
Can you think of an extra comparison for each of the three parts with a similar meaning?

To cater for kinesthetic learners a miming activity including the different comparisons from the poem may work well.
The other students of class must then try to guess the comparison expressed by the pair in front of the class.