Reading   School life in the UK

    reading   school life in the uk
step 1: lead-in
          
do any of you happen to have had the chance to go on a tour in the uk or have taken part in some exchanging programmes? please bring some photos to school to pass them around and make brief descriptions of the photos. you can use the information to discuss the difference and try to think of the reasons for these differences.
step2: fast reading for general ideas
go through the passage as quickly as possible and try to find answers to the three questions in part a. you need only focus on and identify the most important information.
1.how long did wei hua stay in britain? (for one year )
2.what was the name of wei hua’s class teacher? (mr heywood)
3.what did wei hua make in her woodwork class? (a small table)
step 3: detailed reading for important information
1. dealing with c1 and c2
now reread the passage and complete part c1 and c2 individually. questions in part c1 are to check your ability to read and locate specific information. statements in part c2 serve as a strengthening activity for your comprehension of this passage.
answers
 
c1   1. school begins at around 9 a.m.               2. 29
3. because all the homework was in english      4. she had an extra french class
5. lots of desserts                           6. manchester
c2   1. t   2. t   3. t    4. f    5. f   6. t   7. f
2. dealing with specific aspects
go through the article first and find out what topics are covered in it.
some aspects that reflect school life in the uk are mentioned in wei hua’s letter. try to find out what specific aspects are mentioned and then fill in the form with relevant information.
are the following aspects of school life mentioned in the article?
teachers, classmates, friends, subjects, homework/assignments, grades, timetable, activities, school facilities, host family, food, hobbies, customs, traditions, festivals
3. focus on the two exercises
now we’ve found out the most important information and got the main idea of the article. but i’m curious about the reading method you use when reading the article. can you tell me how you find the main idea in such a shorttime? do you think you have to read the whole article slowly and carefully in order to get a brief understanding of it?