Unit 4. Life in the past. Lesson 1. Getting started

Teacher: Huynh Phong Dinh
WELCOME TO OUR CLASS 9/1
Unit 4: Life in the past
Lesson 1: Getting started
Who do you think the people in the picture are?
What do you think the people in the conversation are talking about?
How do you understand the title “Preserving the past”?
2. Listen and read.
Father: This is a present for you, son.
Nguyen: A kite! How cool! Thank you, dad.
Father: I made it for you, just like your grandfather used to make one for me.
Nguyen: Is it a family tradition?
Father: Yes, for generations.
Nguyen: I love it. So when you were a kid, what did you use to do for entertainment?
Father: Oh, it was all very simple back then. We didn`t have television or the internet. A mobile movie team used to come once every two months, and everyone from the village would be there. The children were always early, trying to get a place near the screen.
Nguyen: I suppose it was a special occasion, wasn`t it?
Father: Sure.
Nguyen: I wish there were movie teams like that now.
Father: Yeah, it was a lot of fun.
Nguyen: Then how did you get to know about the world outside?
Father: We had the radio; actually, only wealthy people did. The whole village used to listen to the news programme through a loudspeaker.
Nguyen: Wow, I can`t imagine that.
Father: I know. The world`s changed a lot, son. It`s much easier now.
Nguyen: Do you miss the past, dad?
Father: I suppose I do. Sometimes I wish I could go back to that time.

New words:
How cool!
: expressing appreciation
A mobile movie team
suppose
wealthy
A loudspeaker
: to think or believe that something is true
= rich
a. Underline the sentences with : used to + infinitive.
- I made it for you, just like your grandfather used to make one for me.
- So when you were a kid, what did you use to do for entertainment?
- A mobile movie team used to come once every two months.
-The whole village used to listen to the news programme through a loudspeaker.
b. Check the things Nguyen’s father used to have or use when he was young.
STRUCTURE: Read LISTEN AND READ
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a. Read the conversation again and answer the questions.
What is a tradition in Nguyen`s family?


How often did the movie team come to the village?


What did the children use to do when the movie team came to the village?


Who in the village had a radio?


Does Nguyen`s father miss the past? What did he say?
- Fathers make kites for sons.
- Once every two months.
- They used to come early, trying to get a place near the screen.
Only wealthy households.
- Yes, he does. He said: “Sometimes I wish I could go back to that time.”
b. Match the expressions from the conversations with their meanings.
Can you add some more expressions with the same meaning?
1. How cool!
2. Sure.
3. Wow, I can’t imagine that.
4. I wish I could go back to that time.
a. expressing agreement
b. expressing a wish
c. expressing appreciation
d. expressing surprise
c. Choose suitable expressions from 1b to complete the conversations.
Would you like to participate in this `Preserving
the Past` project?

2. Marriages used to be arranged by parents.

3. I`ve finished my painting. Look!

4. Children used to play outdoors with things they found, like stones or feathers.

5. The time machine in a science fiction novel by
H. G. Wells can take people back to the past.

6. It`s a tradition in Russia for people to take a bath in a hole dug in the ice at New Year.
- Sure.
- I can’t imagine that.
- How cool!
- I wish I could go back to that time.
- How cool!
- I can’t imagine that.
2. Use the words/phrases in the box to complete the sentences.
1. A ________________is used to make the sound much louder so that many people can hear it from a distance.
2. Every country has its own customs and ________________ .
3. There is always a big gap between ________________ . The old sometimes find it difficult to understand the young.
4. People in the past were slower in accepting ___________
than they are today.
5. Traditionally, weddings and funerals are considered important village ________________ in Viet Nam.
6. A wedding is ________________ , not only for the bride and
groom but also for other attendants as they can meet friends and relatives.
a. loudspeaker
c. generations
e. events
b. technological changes
d. traditions
f. a special occasion
loudspeaker
traditions
generations
technological changes
events
a special occasion
b. Check the things Nguyen’s father used to have or use when he was young.
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Make the sentences with “used to”
Nguyen’s father used to have a kite when he was young.
3. In groups, brainstorm some of the events and practices in your area. Make a list and present them to the class.
Example:
Women in Hue used to go swimming at the beach fully clothed, to wear palm leaf conical hats, to wear the traditional long dress whenever they went out, to stay at home as housewives, ...