The violence of Nature

module 3  the violence of nature
learning paper 3    extensive reading

learning aim: to practice learning skills and revise words and expressions in this module
learning methods: group work, discussing, etc.
activity 1  read the passage on page 29 and answer these questions
1. where and when was the worst chinese earthquake?

2. which earthquake caused the worst natural disaster in american history?

3. what was the most dangerous thing about the california earthquake of 1906?

4. how many people were killed by the earthquake in the whole of california?
5. what caused the 1906 earthquake?
activity 2  read the passage on page81-82 and do exercise 11-12 on page 82.
homework: reading comprehension
a
    mr. black and mr. white were two very famous artists in the city. their drawings were also very popular in the city. but they tried to see who could draw the best picture.
    one day they asked an old man to be the judge. mr. black drew an apple tree. he put his picture in the field. soon the birds came and tried to eat the apples. the old man saw it and said, “you have certainly won. mr. white cannot draw so good a picture as yours. but we will go to see his picture.”
    they went to mr. white’s house. there were nothing but red beautiful curtains on the wall. the old man asked, “where is your picture, mr. white?” he said, “l(fā)ift the curtains, and you will find my picture.” the old man tried to lift the curtains but found that they were drawn there. they were mr. white’s picture. the old man said, “birds thought the apples were real. men thought the curtains were real. so mr. white won. his picture is the best one.”
1. mr. black drew       .
 a. an apple tree  b. the best picture c. curtains d. birds
2. the old man thought mr. black’s picture was good because       .
   a. it was in the field  b. it was an apple tree  
c. the birds liked it   d. the birds thought it was real
3. mr. white’s picture was       .
   a. an apple tree  b. curtains c. nothing d. an old man
4. which of the following statements is true?
a. the birds came and ate the apples up.  
b. the old man said mr. white’s picture was the best one at last.
c. the two pictures were not so good.
d. the curtains on the wall were real.