Textploitation Back to Work: Writing Skills – complex sentences

Read the text below and with your partner decide what words might fill the gaps.

This text was homework for an 8-year-old girl from New York. When her mother saw it, she was furious so she decided to rewrite the homework assignment.

Discuss the questions below and make some notes in the box.

- Why do you think she felt this way? - What do you think of the homework?- What do you think her version of the homework was like?- What would you change?

Back to WorkLisa was not happy. Her mother was BACK at work.

Before Lisa was born, her mother worked in a big office. Yesterday, she told Lisa that she was going back to WORK.

The morning was terrible. Lisa had to get to school on time. Her father had to get to work on time. And now, her mother was in a RUSH / HURRY too.

Lisa’s father made breakfast. It was not too good. And he asked Lisa to wash the DISHES. That was not too good either.

Lisa did not like her day at school. On the way home, she thought about it. “I wonder what time Mommy will come home. I will be lonely at home.”

But when Lisa arrived at home, there was her MOTHER. “I leave the office early so we can be together after school,” she said.

Lisa feels fine now.

ANSWERS WILL VARY but essentially she found it to be quite sexist as it suggested that the mother was wrong for going back to work and that her daughter was suffering as a result. It suggested that a woman’s place was in the home

Textploitation Back to Work: Writing Skills – complex sentences

Read her mother’s version. Do you like her version? Why? Why not?

Vocab Focus:

1) Find a synonym for “when”- UPON2) What kind of word follows this synonym? – NOUN / GERUND3) Do you think it’s more/less formal than “when”? - MORE4) What is the difference between “house” “home” and “household”?

House – physical building Home – People turn a house into a home with their possessions and presenceHousehold – the people of the house working together as a unit

5) What do you think “state-of-the-art” means? – HAVING THE LATEST TECHNOLOGY

Dictionary skills:

1) Look up “misogyny”. Do you feel the first story was misogynistic? – ANSWERS WILL VARY

Preposition Focus:

Cover the text and complete the gaps below. Check your ideas in the text.

1) To be back AT work.2) She made a contribution TO her

workplace.3) She got to work ON time.4) She always cleaned UP AFTER

herself.5) He was ON paternity leave.

Writing Focus:

- Reread the two texts above. Which text seems more natural when you read it? - SECOND

- Why do you think that is? – THE SENTENCES ARE NOT AS SIMPLE

- In general, which text has more simple sentences? – THE FIRST

- Examine the sentence in the box to the right and answer the questions.

“Her father was on his paid maternity leave, caring for Lisa’s younger brother and contributing equally to the running of the household”

- How many main verbs are there in this sentence? – 3 (WAS / CARING / CONTRIBUTING)

- Underline the subjects of these verbs. HER FATHER- Why have they used the “ing” form of “caring” and “contributing”? – THIS IS THE

PROGRESS FORM. - Are there any words missing?