Unit 6 Shopping
Teaching Aims,
In this unit students are required to,
1) get to know some useful information concerning the topic of the reading passages in this unit and to know more about English culture;
2) do some preparation activities such as discussion,group work,etc,to practice their spoken skill and communicative skills;
3) grasp some new words and try to use these words which help them to enrich their vocabulary;
4)read the in-class reading passage in a limited time and grasp some expressions and grammatical points in the in-class reading passage to improve their reading comprehension;
5) do some post-reading exercises and some after-class reading to practice what they have got to know in class to improve their English comprehensive skills.;
6) translate some typical sentences into Chinese or English by using some expressions learned in the reading passages to acquire some translating skills and better their translating abilities.
I,Useful Information
Shopping was once a local activity conducted out of daily necessity,If people could not find the things they needed fairly near their homes,it was rarely feasible to look elsewhere,There were small neighborhood shops and vendors along the street with little variety to choose from,and marketplaces or bazaars where many vendors could gather,but no modern malls or department stores,The marketplace or the bazaar might be some distance from home,and travel was often on foot,The best way to get a good bargain was to be a good haggler (讨价还价者)，and the honesty of vendors was something suspect,One might never see them again,and receipts were rarely given,The producer and the vendor were often one and the same,with no factories to standardize production and protect quality,The tradition of craftsmanship was the consumer’s best protection.
II,Preparation
Describing the Cartoons on page 145
1.1) b 2) a 3) d 4) c
2,1) Two youngsters are coming out of a health food store,One of them is having some ice-cream,He explains to his friend that the health,food store sells junk food ( candy,sweets,etc.) secretly,Normally a health food only sells wholesome,healthy foods.
2),A big woman is climbing onto a floor refrigerator trying to find the freshest milk,Her handbag is on the floor,A shop assistant is standing beside her and looks puzzled,He says:,Madam … the dates on the milk are all the same.
3) This scene takes place in the paint department f a large store.,A woman is holding a bottle of paint in her hand,She wants to show that the paint doesn’t sprays it,But unfortunately this time the spray works and it sprays directly onto the shop assistant’s face,Now the shop assistant’s face looks black.
4) A woman is standing in front of an ad,The ad has toe magnetic bar codes and says:,TODAY ONLY”,“MARKED DOWN TO”,It is intended to tell consumers that there is a sale,But it doesn’t provide any information than that,Obviously people don’t know what is on sale or the price,since the magnetic bar codes can only be read by electronic scanners,So the woman looks confused,
3 Getting to Know Your Partner’s Shopping Habits
Sample
I go shopping once a week,I usually buy some food,such as fruit,cookies and some stationery,I usually go shopping with my roommates,I get information from the newspapers,TV and also my friends,If my friends say a particular brand is good,I’ll buy that brand,I think a private source is more reliable than ads.
III,Pre-Reading
From the most important to the least important,they are quality,price,brand,service,material,color,style,taste for food,package especially for gifts,and expiration date for food.
IV,Passage Reading
1,Finishing reading the passage within 16 minutes,and point out the main idea of the passage.
Filling the blanks in the reading comprehension exercises.
3．Language Points
appreciate (L.2)
常用的意思有：understanding and enjoy ; value highly 理解并欣赏；高度评价
e.g,You can’t fully appreciate foreign literature in translation,
Her abilities are not fully appreciated by her employer,
thank someone for something they have done,
e.g,I would appreciate it if you would turn the music down,
understand
e.g,I don’t think you appreciate the difficulties his absence will cause,
consumption-oriented (L.11)
此类的词还有：money-oriented,research-oriented,student-oriented,family-oriented,politically-oriented
occur (L.17)
happen
e.g.,When did the accident occur?
exist,to be found
e.g,Misprints occurred to me,我有主意了。
It never occurred to her to ask anyone,她从未想过问问他人。
last well into (L,36)
Here,well” is used for emphasizing something,
e.g,It was well after 12 o’ clock when they arrived,
I’m well aware of the problems involved.
She paid well over 200 RMB for that sweater.
at any given time / point (L.47)
This phrase means at any particular time,point,ect,
e.g,The distance from the center of a circle to the edge is the same at any given point,
The bomb could go off at given time and at any given place,
,Given” in the above two sentences is an adjective,It can also be used as a preposition,meaning,taking something into account”
e.g,Given that she is interested in children,I am sure teaching is the right career for her,
Given the government’s record on unemployment,their chances of winning the election look poor,
“prefer” (L.65)
prefer somebody / something to somebody / something else,
e.g,I much prefer digs to cats
prefer to do something,
e.g,Many people living in the cities would actually prefer to live the country,
prefer (doing ) something:
e.g,Tom prefers traveling by train,
These days I prefer classical music,
V,Post-Reading Activities
1．Group Discussion
Sample
In my home,my mother always does the shopping,She buys groceries every other day,She puts the meat and vegetables we cannot finish in the refrigerator,She likes to go to the grocery store around 9’clock in the morning when it is not rush hour,When she goes to the market,she doesn’t like to bargain with vendors,because she thinks it’s a waste of time,According to her,the money saved is not worth the effort,Time is money!
For major purchases,we usually go together as a family,so that I can have a word as to which brand to buy,Once we wanted to buy a TV set,My mother wanted to buy a TV set that was made by a factory in our home city so that we could have better service if anything went wrong with it,But I insisted on buying another one that was of better quality although it was produced from another city,I tried to convince my parents that if the quality was good,we wouldn’t have any trouble fixing it,And if the quality was poor,it wouldn’t matter how good the after-sale service was,Finally,my parents agreed me and bought the one I suggested.
2．Translation
All the arrangements should be completed prior to your departure.
Such behavior may result in the executive being asked to leave.
Our products compete with those of other factories in terms of quality,reliability and,above all,variety.
The team’s performance was greatly affected by the heavy rain.
I appreciate your reasons for objecting to the proposal.
To some extent,she should be responsible for the accident.
I’m deeply troubled by the thought that life is just too comfortable.
Women tend to live longer than men.
VI,Further Development
Old Sayings
1) All that glitters is not gold,(from The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare)
2) The buyer needs a hundred eyes,the seller not one,(from Jacula Prudentum by George Herbert)
3) He who will not economize will have to agonize,(Confucius)
4) Never buy what you do not want because it is cheap; it will be dear to you,(Thomas Jefferson)
5) Beware of little expenses,for a small leak will sink a great ship,(Benjamin Franklin)
6) The cautious seldom err,(Confucius)
Writing an Effective Complaint Letter
Sample
Dear Mr,Harrison,
May 1,1998,I purchased a Speedo Vacuum Cleaner Model XYZ from The Floor Store,212 Main Street,Columbus,N,J.1) (A copy of the receipt is enclosed.) 2) Unfortunately,I have had problems with both the product and the service I have receive.
Specially,I have the following complaints,3)
First,the vacuum doesn’t work efficiently to pick up dust or dirt on either bare floors or carpets.
Even after I have gone over the same area several times,the dirt remains,The power shuts off by itself when the vacuum has been running for several minutes,then comes back on after 30 to 60 seconds.
Second,when I went back to the Floor Store,I was told that because the vacuum was on sale,I could not exchange or return it,which I was not told when I made the purchase,I was also treated rudely by the salesman,Robert Rule,and then by the manager,Alfred Adams.
I am requesting that you provide me with a new vacuum cleaner,on condition that if this one proves to be unacceptable,I will receive a refund,4) I also ask that you investigate the business practices of the First Store,as they are poor representatives of your company.
I can be reached during the day at (806) 827-9318 or after six in the evening at (806) 444-2897.
5) May I hear from you before July 31?
Yours truly,
John Smith
3,Writing
Directions,Write a composition on one of the following topics,You can base your composition on the result of your debate and discussions,You should write at least 100 words,remember to write neatly.
On Bargains
Media and Shopping
On Bargains
Sample 1
Bargains are products that are reduced in price,Some bargains are real bargains,because they are cheaper in price but the quality is good,Some bargains are very poor quality because the shopkeeper merely marks prices higher than normal and then marks them down,This is,in fact,a trick to cheat customers,I think this kind of bargains is bad and should be prohibited.
But I like the real bargains,It is important to be able to buy goods you want with less money,But it takes a lot of time,and you have to hunt for bargains,Once I bought a pair of leather shoes at half price,I felt very happy,But sometimes I feel cheated when the shop assistant says that the original price was 300 yuan,for example,but now it’s only 100 yuan and I know he is not telling the truth,Some customers who cannot resist the temptation will buy the product,Later when they find out that they have been cheated,they will be very angry.
In a word,bargains are good if the rare real bargains,However,one has to be careful in buying bargains,It’s also wise never to buy anything you don’t really need just it’s cheap.
Sample 2
There are a lot of bargains in stores and markets when we go shopping,I think these bargains are good for consumers even if the price has been reduced only a little.
There are many reasons why there are so many bargains,Some shops mark down prices in order to attract customers,some in order to defeat their opponents in the market competition,and some to sell their goods as quickly as possible,Though they cut prices,shops can still make money from the goods,But the customers can spend less money on the same commodities,so we welcome bargains.
Though there are a lot of bargains,we shouldn’t buy things if we don’t need them,Other wise we are just wasting money,We should buy only what we really need,If we can do that,bargains can really be useful for us and we can really save money.
So I think bargains are good and we need them,However,we should always be careful when we are tempted by a bargain,It pays to be intelligent shopper
Media and Shopping
Sample 1
Nowadays,shopping is closely related to media,When you read the morning newspaper,when you watch TV,or listen to the radio,you see and hear many advertisements about various products,The advertisements make every effort to stimulate consumers to purchase,I like watching ads on television,not only because they provide information but also because they are often clever or beautiful,Sometimes I buy a brand only because I have seen it advertised on the television,So I’m like most people,My shopping behavior is influenced by the media.
To a certain degree,people trust media more than themselves,They might buy something that does not look perfect,but because it was advertised in the media,they will buy it,Perhaps people trust the media too much,and just listen to what the ads say.
However,the media help stimulate consumption,Consumers are informed quickly and they are urged to buy and to spend their money.
Sample 2
I think media such as TV,radio and newspapers affect people’s shopping behavior greatly,The most common way is through advertisements,We can see or hear ads everywhere,in the newspapers,in the street,on the buses or on the radio,We are usually interested in these ads and often want to buy the products advertised,This is just what the manufacturers hope for,They spend a lot of money to advertise their products through various media,The ads can provide you with a lot of information about the various items,So ads are beneficial not only to manufacturers but also to shoppers.
In modern society,computers have also become a new medium,People get information about the products on the Internet,This is a faster,easier and more exact way for both shopping and advertising than any other way,I think the Internet will play an increasingly important role in people’s shopping.
Teaching Aims,
In this unit students are required to,
1) get to know some useful information concerning the topic of the reading passages in this unit and to know more about English culture;
2) do some preparation activities such as discussion,group work,etc,to practice their spoken skill and communicative skills;
3) grasp some new words and try to use these words which help them to enrich their vocabulary;
4)read the in-class reading passage in a limited time and grasp some expressions and grammatical points in the in-class reading passage to improve their reading comprehension;
5) do some post-reading exercises and some after-class reading to practice what they have got to know in class to improve their English comprehensive skills.;
6) translate some typical sentences into Chinese or English by using some expressions learned in the reading passages to acquire some translating skills and better their translating abilities.
I,Useful Information
Shopping was once a local activity conducted out of daily necessity,If people could not find the things they needed fairly near their homes,it was rarely feasible to look elsewhere,There were small neighborhood shops and vendors along the street with little variety to choose from,and marketplaces or bazaars where many vendors could gather,but no modern malls or department stores,The marketplace or the bazaar might be some distance from home,and travel was often on foot,The best way to get a good bargain was to be a good haggler (讨价还价者)，and the honesty of vendors was something suspect,One might never see them again,and receipts were rarely given,The producer and the vendor were often one and the same,with no factories to standardize production and protect quality,The tradition of craftsmanship was the consumer’s best protection.
II,Preparation
Describing the Cartoons on page 145
1.1) b 2) a 3) d 4) c
2,1) Two youngsters are coming out of a health food store,One of them is having some ice-cream,He explains to his friend that the health,food store sells junk food ( candy,sweets,etc.) secretly,Normally a health food only sells wholesome,healthy foods.
2),A big woman is climbing onto a floor refrigerator trying to find the freshest milk,Her handbag is on the floor,A shop assistant is standing beside her and looks puzzled,He says:,Madam … the dates on the milk are all the same.
3) This scene takes place in the paint department f a large store.,A woman is holding a bottle of paint in her hand,She wants to show that the paint doesn’t sprays it,But unfortunately this time the spray works and it sprays directly onto the shop assistant’s face,Now the shop assistant’s face looks black.
4) A woman is standing in front of an ad,The ad has toe magnetic bar codes and says:,TODAY ONLY”,“MARKED DOWN TO”,It is intended to tell consumers that there is a sale,But it doesn’t provide any information than that,Obviously people don’t know what is on sale or the price,since the magnetic bar codes can only be read by electronic scanners,So the woman looks confused,
3 Getting to Know Your Partner’s Shopping Habits
Sample
I go shopping once a week,I usually buy some food,such as fruit,cookies and some stationery,I usually go shopping with my roommates,I get information from the newspapers,TV and also my friends,If my friends say a particular brand is good,I’ll buy that brand,I think a private source is more reliable than ads.
III,Pre-Reading
From the most important to the least important,they are quality,price,brand,service,material,color,style,taste for food,package especially for gifts,and expiration date for food.
IV,Passage Reading
1,Finishing reading the passage within 16 minutes,and point out the main idea of the passage.
Filling the blanks in the reading comprehension exercises.
3．Language Points
appreciate (L.2)
常用的意思有：understanding and enjoy ; value highly 理解并欣赏；高度评价
e.g,You can’t fully appreciate foreign literature in translation,
Her abilities are not fully appreciated by her employer,
thank someone for something they have done,
e.g,I would appreciate it if you would turn the music down,
understand
e.g,I don’t think you appreciate the difficulties his absence will cause,
consumption-oriented (L.11)
此类的词还有：money-oriented,research-oriented,student-oriented,family-oriented,politically-oriented
occur (L.17)
happen
e.g.,When did the accident occur?
exist,to be found
e.g,Misprints occurred to me,我有主意了。
It never occurred to her to ask anyone,她从未想过问问他人。
last well into (L,36)
Here,well” is used for emphasizing something,
e.g,It was well after 12 o’ clock when they arrived,
I’m well aware of the problems involved.
She paid well over 200 RMB for that sweater.
at any given time / point (L.47)
This phrase means at any particular time,point,ect,
e.g,The distance from the center of a circle to the edge is the same at any given point,
The bomb could go off at given time and at any given place,
,Given” in the above two sentences is an adjective,It can also be used as a preposition,meaning,taking something into account”
e.g,Given that she is interested in children,I am sure teaching is the right career for her,
Given the government’s record on unemployment,their chances of winning the election look poor,
“prefer” (L.65)
prefer somebody / something to somebody / something else,
e.g,I much prefer digs to cats
prefer to do something,
e.g,Many people living in the cities would actually prefer to live the country,
prefer (doing ) something:
e.g,Tom prefers traveling by train,
These days I prefer classical music,
V,Post-Reading Activities
1．Group Discussion
Sample
In my home,my mother always does the shopping,She buys groceries every other day,She puts the meat and vegetables we cannot finish in the refrigerator,She likes to go to the grocery store around 9’clock in the morning when it is not rush hour,When she goes to the market,she doesn’t like to bargain with vendors,because she thinks it’s a waste of time,According to her,the money saved is not worth the effort,Time is money!
For major purchases,we usually go together as a family,so that I can have a word as to which brand to buy,Once we wanted to buy a TV set,My mother wanted to buy a TV set that was made by a factory in our home city so that we could have better service if anything went wrong with it,But I insisted on buying another one that was of better quality although it was produced from another city,I tried to convince my parents that if the quality was good,we wouldn’t have any trouble fixing it,And if the quality was poor,it wouldn’t matter how good the after-sale service was,Finally,my parents agreed me and bought the one I suggested.
2．Translation
All the arrangements should be completed prior to your departure.
Such behavior may result in the executive being asked to leave.
Our products compete with those of other factories in terms of quality,reliability and,above all,variety.
The team’s performance was greatly affected by the heavy rain.
I appreciate your reasons for objecting to the proposal.
To some extent,she should be responsible for the accident.
I’m deeply troubled by the thought that life is just too comfortable.
Women tend to live longer than men.
VI,Further Development
Old Sayings
1) All that glitters is not gold,(from The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare)
2) The buyer needs a hundred eyes,the seller not one,(from Jacula Prudentum by George Herbert)
3) He who will not economize will have to agonize,(Confucius)
4) Never buy what you do not want because it is cheap; it will be dear to you,(Thomas Jefferson)
5) Beware of little expenses,for a small leak will sink a great ship,(Benjamin Franklin)
6) The cautious seldom err,(Confucius)
Writing an Effective Complaint Letter
Sample
Dear Mr,Harrison,
May 1,1998,I purchased a Speedo Vacuum Cleaner Model XYZ from The Floor Store,212 Main Street,Columbus,N,J.1) (A copy of the receipt is enclosed.) 2) Unfortunately,I have had problems with both the product and the service I have receive.
Specially,I have the following complaints,3)
First,the vacuum doesn’t work efficiently to pick up dust or dirt on either bare floors or carpets.
Even after I have gone over the same area several times,the dirt remains,The power shuts off by itself when the vacuum has been running for several minutes,then comes back on after 30 to 60 seconds.
Second,when I went back to the Floor Store,I was told that because the vacuum was on sale,I could not exchange or return it,which I was not told when I made the purchase,I was also treated rudely by the salesman,Robert Rule,and then by the manager,Alfred Adams.
I am requesting that you provide me with a new vacuum cleaner,on condition that if this one proves to be unacceptable,I will receive a refund,4) I also ask that you investigate the business practices of the First Store,as they are poor representatives of your company.
I can be reached during the day at (806) 827-9318 or after six in the evening at (806) 444-2897.
5) May I hear from you before July 31?
Yours truly,
John Smith
3,Writing
Directions,Write a composition on one of the following topics,You can base your composition on the result of your debate and discussions,You should write at least 100 words,remember to write neatly.
On Bargains
Media and Shopping
On Bargains
Sample 1
Bargains are products that are reduced in price,Some bargains are real bargains,because they are cheaper in price but the quality is good,Some bargains are very poor quality because the shopkeeper merely marks prices higher than normal and then marks them down,This is,in fact,a trick to cheat customers,I think this kind of bargains is bad and should be prohibited.
But I like the real bargains,It is important to be able to buy goods you want with less money,But it takes a lot of time,and you have to hunt for bargains,Once I bought a pair of leather shoes at half price,I felt very happy,But sometimes I feel cheated when the shop assistant says that the original price was 300 yuan,for example,but now it’s only 100 yuan and I know he is not telling the truth,Some customers who cannot resist the temptation will buy the product,Later when they find out that they have been cheated,they will be very angry.
In a word,bargains are good if the rare real bargains,However,one has to be careful in buying bargains,It’s also wise never to buy anything you don’t really need just it’s cheap.
Sample 2
There are a lot of bargains in stores and markets when we go shopping,I think these bargains are good for consumers even if the price has been reduced only a little.
There are many reasons why there are so many bargains,Some shops mark down prices in order to attract customers,some in order to defeat their opponents in the market competition,and some to sell their goods as quickly as possible,Though they cut prices,shops can still make money from the goods,But the customers can spend less money on the same commodities,so we welcome bargains.
Though there are a lot of bargains,we shouldn’t buy things if we don’t need them,Other wise we are just wasting money,We should buy only what we really need,If we can do that,bargains can really be useful for us and we can really save money.
So I think bargains are good and we need them,However,we should always be careful when we are tempted by a bargain,It pays to be intelligent shopper
Media and Shopping
Sample 1
Nowadays,shopping is closely related to media,When you read the morning newspaper,when you watch TV,or listen to the radio,you see and hear many advertisements about various products,The advertisements make every effort to stimulate consumers to purchase,I like watching ads on television,not only because they provide information but also because they are often clever or beautiful,Sometimes I buy a brand only because I have seen it advertised on the television,So I’m like most people,My shopping behavior is influenced by the media.
To a certain degree,people trust media more than themselves,They might buy something that does not look perfect,but because it was advertised in the media,they will buy it,Perhaps people trust the media too much,and just listen to what the ads say.
However,the media help stimulate consumption,Consumers are informed quickly and they are urged to buy and to spend their money.
Sample 2
I think media such as TV,radio and newspapers affect people’s shopping behavior greatly,The most common way is through advertisements,We can see or hear ads everywhere,in the newspapers,in the street,on the buses or on the radio,We are usually interested in these ads and often want to buy the products advertised,This is just what the manufacturers hope for,They spend a lot of money to advertise their products through various media,The ads can provide you with a lot of information about the various items,So ads are beneficial not only to manufacturers but also to shoppers.
In modern society,computers have also become a new medium,People get information about the products on the Internet,This is a faster,easier and more exact way for both shopping and advertising than any other way,I think the Internet will play an increasingly important role in people’s shopping.
