Life Upper Intermediate: 1D A Face from the Past p.16

(Supplementary Material for Specific Textbooks--Life Upper Intermediate)

Lead-in (docs, pub)--Questions adopted from here

Transcript (docs, pub)

How well do you keep in touch with your old friends?

When you meet an old friend, what do you say?

Do you get nervous when you meet someone you haven’t seen for a long time?

When was the last time you met an old friend?

What did you talk about?

Had they changed a lot?

How important is it to keep in touch with old friends?

Have you ever forgotten the name of an old friend or acquaintance?

Talk about an old friend that you would like to meet again.

What do you like most about meeting old friends?

What do you like least about meeting old friends?

What is one thing that many people, even your old friends, don't know about you?

How far apart do people stand from each other when they talk in your culture?

Do people in your culture use a lot of body language when they communicate, or do they keep their bodies relatively still?

Do people in your culture show their emotions when communicating with others or do they hide some feelings? How do they show their emotions? What kind of feelings might they hide?

ask after somebody catch up getting there look someone up snowed under ups and downs off the ground tanned

having too much to do having darker skin than usual because you have been in the sun moving slowly towards success When a plan or activity begins a mixture of good and bad things happens to come and visit someone to meet old friends and learn everything that has been happening in their lives to ask for information about someone, especially about their health:

asking after, catch up, getting there, look her up, snowed under, ups and downs, off the ground, tanned

Greta: Tim, hello.  Fancy bumping into you here.  How are you?

Tim: Oh hi Greta.  Yeah, I’m doing fine, thanks. Wow, what a surprise…

Greta: It’s been ages.  What have you been up to?

Tim: I know.  It’s been far too long.  Umm… I’ve been working abroad for the last eighteen months.

Greta: Anywhere exciting?

Tim: Yes, in India, actually.  I had a contract with the British Council, doing some teacher training.

Greta: Well, it obviously suits you.  You’re looking very (1)______________ and relaxed.

Tim: Oh, thanks.  It’s been a lot of fun.  And you?  You’re looking well too.  How are things?

Greta: Oh you know, busy as ever.  I’ve been completely (2)______________  with work the last few months, trying to get my online shoe shop business (3)______________ .

Tim: It is going OK?

Greta: Well, you know.  It has its (4)______________ .  But we’re (5)______________ .

Tim: And what about Amanda?  Do you see much of her?

Greta: Yeah, we still get together now and then.  She was (6)______________  you the other day, actually.

Tim: Oh.  Well I probably won’t have time to (7)______________  this time. I’m only back for a week.  But do give her my regards.

Greta: I will.

Tim: And the next time I’m back, perhaps we can all meet and (8)______________.

Greta: Yeah, that’d be great.  How long will you be gone for?

Tim: I’ve just got to do another two months over there.  Then I’ll be back in the UK for a while, I hope.

Greta: OK.  Well give me a call when you’re back. You’ve got my number, haven’t you?

Tim: Yes, if it’s still the same one.

Greta: Yeah, it is.  I’ll look forward to that.  Is Sarah going out there with you?

Tim: She has been with me, but um…. she’s staying back this time.

Greta: Oh. Well, say hello to her from me… er … Look, I don’t mean to be rude, but I need to get back to work--but it was really nice to see you.  Hope the trip goes well.

Tim: Thanks, yeah I’ve got to rush too.  Anyway, great to see you too, Greta.  Take care … and see you soon.  Good luck with the business.

Answers:

Greta: Tim, hello.  Fancy bumping into you here.  How are you?

Tim: Oh hi Greta.  Yeah, I’m doing fine, thanks. Wow, what a surprise…

Greta: It’s been ages.  What have you been up to?

Tim: I know.  It’s been far too long.  Umm… I’ve been working abroad for the last eighteen months.

Greta: Anywhere exciting?

Tim: Yes, in India, actually.  I had a contract with the British Council, doing some teacher training.

Greta: Well, it obviously suits you.  You’re looking very (1)tanned and relaxed.

Tim: Oh, thanks.  It’s been a lot of fun.  And you?  You’re looking well too.  How are things?

Greta: Oh you know, busy as ever.  I’ve been completely (2)snowed under with work the last few months, trying to get my online shoe shop business (3)off the ground.

Tim: It is going OK?

Greta: Well, you know.  It has its (4)ups and downs.  But we’re (5)getting there.

Tim: And what about Amanda?  Do you see much of her?

Greta: Yeah, we still get together now and then.  She was (6)asking after you the other day, actually.

Tim: Oh.  Well I probably won’t have time to (7)look her up this time. I’m only back for a week.  But do give her my regards.

Greta: I will.

Tim: And the next time I’m back, perhaps we can all meet and (8)catch up.

Greta: Yeah, that’d be great.  How long will you be gone for?

Tim: I’ve just got to do another two months over there.  Then I’ll be back in the UK for a while, I hope.

Greta: OK.  Well give me a call when you’re back. You’ve got my number, haven’t you?

Tim: Yes, if it’s still the same one.

Greta: Yeah, it is.  I’ll look forward to that.  Is Sarah going out there with you?

Tim: She has been with me, but um…. she’s staying back this time.

Greta: Oh. Well, say hello to her from me… er … Look, I don’t mean to be rude, but I need to get back to work--but it was really nice to see you.  Hope the trip goes well.

Tim: Thanks, yeah I’ve got to rush too.  Anyway, great to see you too, Greta.  Take care … and see you soon.  Good luck with the business.

Youtube Videos Authentic Listening: Floating Away

(Youtube Videos Authentic Listening)

Google Drive Folder HERE



I used this video as a lead-in to a lesson from the Life Upper Intermediate Textbook--1C Bloodlines p.14-15

Slideshow (slides, pub)
transcript (docs, pub)

bribes bustling deemed ethnic evacuate expelled justifications sentiment

to judge or consider something in a particular way money that you give to a government official so that they will help you.  This is illegal. a reason or explanation for something to force someone to leave to move people from a place relating to a particular race of people a thought, opinion, or idea based on a feeling about a situation, or a way of thinking about something full of people and activity

Match the vocabulary to the sentences

This is all that remains of what was just a month ago a (1)_____________ floating fishing community on the banks of the Mekong River.  The ethnically Vietnamese residents of Arek Sat village were told on the 5th of June that they were considered illegal immigrants, and just had 3 weeks to (2)_____________.

Boy Yang Doc is the district director of the Vietnamese Association.  He has buried family and friends here, and can’t understand why his community has suddenly been (3)_____________ illegal aliens.  

Subtitled: “Seven or eight families came here in 1979 to find land to use as a cemetery.  The Cambodian people sold this land to the Vietnamese. They kick us out by calling us illegal immigrants.  So how does that make us illegal?  We have been here since around 1980.  The authorities gave my family the yellow family record book residency documents.  We have been allowed to vote, so how can we be accused of being illegal?”

So far this year, the Cambodian government has (4)_____________ more than 1,000 (5)_____________Vietnamese from the country.  This deportation offensive is widely seen as a government strategy to defuse one of the opposition’s oldest political draw cards: anti-Vietnamese (6)_____________.  

The (7)_____________ given to the residents of Arek Sat are varied depending on who you talk to, but make no mention of politics.

Subtitled: “The authorities told us that living on the water is not clean, and it needs to be done another way.  They asked us to leave, and they didn’t allow us to say anything.  They didn’t inform us a year ago.  They just gave us a couple of weeks to get out.”  

Subtitled: “They have been living here since 1979.  They initially were a fishing community who fed the Vietnamese soldiers.  The community has increased in numbers as the families have grown, and former residents who were born here have returned to live here.  The last group came from Chroy Changvar.  Vietnamese from Chroy Changvar have been living here about more than five years.”

For those who, unlike Boy Yang Doc, don’t possess residency documents, the evictions look just like another case of local authorities preying on them for (8)_____________.  

Subtitled: “They should keep us in one place.  Everywhere we go they ask for money, but we don’t have money to give.  We can’t earn enough money because they chase us out and say we need to pay them $100. Sometimes we have fish to sell, but sometimes we don’t.  So this makes it hard to make money to pay them.  To be honest, they can chase us anywhere.  I don’t care if they say I need to pay them $100.  I don’t have money to pay them.  If they ask us to leave, we will have to go.  we don’t know what to do.  We will just keep floating wherever.”

Answers:

This is all that remains of what was just a month ago a (1)bustling floating fishing community on the banks of the Mekong River.  The ethnically Vietnamese residents of Arek Sat village were told on the 5th of June that they were considered illegal immigrants, and just had 3 weeks to (2)evacuate.

Boy Yang Doc is the district director of the Vietnamese Association.  He has buried family and friends here, and can’t understand why his community has suddenly been (3)deemed illegal aliens.  

Subtitled: “Seven or eight families came here in 1979 to find land to use as a cemetery.  The Cambodian people sold this land to the Vietnamese. They kick us out by calling us illegal immigrants.  So how does that make us illegal?  We have been here since around 1980.  The authorities gave my family the yellow family record book residency documents.  We have been allowed to vote, so how can we be accused of being illegal?”

So far this year, the Cambodian government has (4)expelled more than 1,000 (5)ethnic Vietnamese from the country.  This deportation offensive is widely seen as a government strategy to defuse one of the opposition’s oldest political draw cards: anti-Vietnamese (6)sentiment.  

The (7)justifications given to the residents of Arek Sat are varied depending on who you talk to, but make no mention of politics.

Subtitled: “The authorities told us that living on the water is not clean, and it needs to be done another way.  They asked us to leave, and they didn’t allow us to say anything.  They didn’t inform us a year ago.  They just gave us a couple of weeks to get out.”  

Subtitled: “They have been living here since 1979.  They initially were a fishing community who fed the Vietnamese soldiers.  The community has increased in numbers as the families have grown, and former residents who were born here have returned to live here.  The last group came from Chroy Changvar.  Vietnamese from Chroy Changvar have been living here about more than five years.”

For those who, unlike Boy Yang Doc, don’t possess residency documents, the evictions look just like another case of local authorities preying on them for (8)bribes.  

Subtitled: “They should keep us in one place.  Everywhere we go they ask for money, but we don’t have money to give.  We can’t earn enough money because they chase us out and say we need to pay them $100. Sometimes we have fish to sell, but sometimes we don’t.  So this makes it hard to make money to pay them.  To be honest, they can chase us anywhere.  I don’t care if they say I need to pay them $100.  I don’t have money to pay them.  If they ask us to leave, we will have to go.  we don’t know what to do.  We will just keep floating wherever.”

Life Upper Intermediate: 1C Bloodlines p.14-15

(Supplementary Material for Specific Textbooks--Life Upper Intermediate)

Lead-in (docs, pub) lead-in questions taken from here

Why do people immigrate to other countries?

Is immigration from one country to another a problem? In what ways do you see it as a problem?

Do you know any immigrants?

Do you think that immigrants are treated well in most countries?

Is local culture threatened by immigration?

How far should immigrants retain their culture?

Do immigrants have a good or bad reputation in your part of the country?

Should students be allowed to wear clothes with cultural or religious symbolism at school?

Do you know anyone that is married to an immigrant?

Do you know any people who have emigrated from your country?

Would you ever think of emigrating? Why would you think of emigrating?

What would be some of the issues that would concern you about emigrating?

Are there a lot of immigrants in your community?

Do immigrants in your community isolate themselves into a certain area?

Should immigrants be required to learn the local language?

How would you help an immigrant learn the local language?

How would you encourage children of immigrants to become bilingual by maintaining the original language and becoming fluent in the local language?

Should immigrants be educated in their original language or the local language?

To what extent should official documents be written in several languages to accommodate immigrants?

How does immigration affect the economic situation in your community?

To what extent has the culture of your community become richer by immigrants?

How is your community incorporating immigrants into the life of the community?