New Horizon English

New Horizon English

Book 1

Unit 1

Contents

• Section A

• Section B

• Writing

Paragraph 1

• Learning a foreign language was one of the most difficult yet most rewarding experiences of my life. Although at times, learning a language was frustrating, it was well worth the effort.

Paragraph 2• My experience with a foreign language

began in junior middle school, when I took my first English class. I had a kind and patient teacher who often praised all of the students. Because of this positive method, I eagerly answered all the questions I could, never worrying much about making mistakes. I was at the top of my class for two years.

Paragraph 5

• That was the situation until a couple of years later, when I was offered an opportunity to study English through an online course. The communication medium was a computer, phone line, and modem. I soon got access to the necessary equipment, learned the technology from a friend and participated in the virtual classroom 5 to 7 days a week.

Paragraph 6

• Online learning is not easier than regular classroom study; it requires much time, commitment and discipline to keep up with the flow of the course. I worked hard to meet the minimum standards set by the course and to complete assignments on time.

Paragraph 7

• I practiced all the time. I carried a little dictionary with me everywhere I went, as well as a notebook in which I listed any new words I heard. I made many, sometimes embarrassing, mistakes. Once in a while I cried with frustration, and sometimes I felt like giving up. But I didn't feel intimidated by students who spoke faster than I did because I took all the time I needed to think out my ideas and wrote a reply before posting it on the screen. Then, one day I realized I could understand just about everything I came across, and most importantly, I could "say" anything I wanted to in English. Although I still made many mistakes and was continually learning, I had finally reaped the benefits of all that hard work.

Paragraph 8

• Learning a foreign language has been a most trying experience for me, but one that I wouldn't trade for anything. Not only did learning another language teach me the value of hard work, but it also gave me insights into another culture, and my mind was opened to new ways of seeing things. The most wonderful result of having learned a foreign language was that I could communicate with many more people than before. Talking with people is one of my favorite activities, so being able to speak a new language lets me meet new people, participate in conversations, and form new, unforgettable friendships. Now that I speak a foreign language, instead of staring into space when English is being spoken, I can participate and make friends. I am able to reach out to others and bridge the gap between my language and culture and theirs.

Although at times, learning a language was frustrating, it was well worth the effort.

Read these sentences and see which situations can Read these sentences and see which situations can not be described as not be described as frustrationfrustration..

1. You say hello to a friend on the road, but he ignores your greeting. Your friend’s attitude is frustrating.

2. We planned to go out. Then it began to rain. The weather was frustrating.

3. We arrived the station in a hurry, but our train disappeared round the bend. It was rather frustrating.

4. He found that his money was stolen by a pickpocket. He was rather frustrated.

Frustrating?

1. You can be annoyed by your friends attitude because your friend is being impolite.

4. Frustration is too weak for this situation. You may be mad.

1. 这台机器修一修还可以用。

The machine is worth repairing.

2. 这种流行作家的作品值得我们密切关注吗？ Are the works of this kind of popular writers worth our close attention?

3. 听说这个培训班 (training course) 很贵，他决定不放过任何一个练习，不让他的钱白花。

Learning that the training course is expensive, he is determined that he will do every exercise to make it worth his money?

Put the following sentences into English, using worth.

Summary

• worth is an adjective, used in the pattern be worth sth./doing sth.

Although at times, learning a language was frustrating, it was

well worth the effort.• Find other words to replace effort in the sentence.

hard work, trying, learning

Rewrite the following sentences using effort.

She knew that even if she tried hard, it was useless.

She knew that her effort was useless.

They worked very hard for the whole semester, but they still failed in the end.

All their efforts in the whole semester failed in the end.

The task is simple. It is easy. The task is simple—it doesn't need much

effort.

You have to spend a lot of time learning a foreign language.

Learning a foreign language takes a lot of effort.

My experience with a foreign language began in junior middle school

• Can you use learning to replace experience here?

Yes.

experience =doing

Rewrite the following sentence, using experience.

I once lived together with the farmers in the countryside, and I learned a lot about their life.

My experience in the countryside helped me understand farmers' life better.


I had a good English teacher. She taught me for three years. I learned quite a lot when she taught me.

My experience with this good teacher was very rewarding.


I went to Tibet last year. I saw a different life, and it made me think again of the meaning of my present life. My experience of a different life in Tibet last year raised a question in my mind: what is the meaning of my life?


I cheated in the exam and the teacher found it. He did not punished me, but made me understand why cheating was wrong. This thing made me understand that we must have principles in our life.

The cheating experience in the exam made me aware of the importance of a principled life, of course with the patient advice by the teacher who found my wrong behavior.

Because of this positive method, I eagerly answered all the questions I could positive =goo

d

What is the sign of positive?

+

What is this sign “-“?

negative

Rewrite the following sentence, using positive.

The visitors spoke highly of the investment environment of the city. The mayor was more sure that the project would be a successful one.

The positive impression of the visitors about the investment environment of the city made the mayor more confident of the success of the project.


The teacher often praised me. I felt I was able to do the assignments by my own.

The teacher's positive methods led to my belief in my own ability to do the assignments.


Mothers know that if they often encourage their baby, the baby will learn more quickly how to walk and how to speak.

Mothers know that their positive attitude toward their baby will help it learn walking and speaking more quickly.


Do you agree with this plan?

Are you positive of this plan?

Rewrite the following sentence, using access.

We cannot borrow those rare books if we don’t have the permission from the professors.

We don’t have access to those rare books without the permission from the professors.


The school allows us to use the Internet for 30 hours per semester and we don't have to pay money.

The school gives us 30 hour free access to the Internet per semester


If you have a QQ account, you can find your friend on the Internet.

A QQ account can give you access to your friend on the Internet.


If you are not a member of the company, you have no way to get that information.

You have not access to that information unless you are a member of the company.

Word Formation

access: ac- (a variant [ 变异 ]of ad-, meaning “to”, “toward”) + -cess (go)

= go to: way to (see the previous example)

access is a noun. Its most frequently used patterns include:

access to sth. havegetgive sb.What verb can we use here?

it requires much time, commitment and discipline to keep up with the flow of the course

• A Chinese saying about learning says: If you work hard, you can grind an iron bar into a needle.

• Does this saying include commitment?

commitment = effort

Of the following careers, which needs the least commitment?

sportsman statesman

businessman studentfarmerworker

pop singerresearcher

Rewrite the following sentence, using commitment.

The scientists of the 50’s and 60’s worked very hard and they made our own nuclear weapons that greatly strengthened our country.

The making of our own nuclear weapons, which greatly strengthened our country, was the result of the commitment of the scientists of the 50’s and 60’s.


He does not want to marry because he doesn't like to earn money to support a family, take care of children and pay for their education.

He doesn't want to marry because he doesn't want to make commitment to a family.


These people are very kind and they believe it is their duty to do something to improve the life in the community.

These kind people believe they have commitment to improve the life quality of the community.

it requires much time, commitment and discipline to keep up with the flow of the course

Who is a typical example of having discipline?

Solders

Read the definition in your book (p.4) and mention key concepts the word discipline includes.

order, control

Tell the class what a disciplined student would do in school?

Get up at 7, attend every class, do all assignments on time, go to bed before midnight.

Translate the following into English

公司需要责任心强（ responsibility ）和严以律己的员工（ employee ）。

The company needs employees with strong responsibility and high discipline.

Translate the following into English

课堂上闹哄哄的。

The teacher can’t keep discipline in her classroom.

I made many, sometimes embarrassing, mistakes. Which of the following does not make sense?

an embarrassing question

an embarrassed question

an embarrassing look

an embarrassed look

an embarrassing student

an embarrassed student

an embarrassing mistake

an embarrassed mistake

令人尴尬的问题

X

令人尴尬的样子尴尬的样子

令人尴尬的学生

尴尬的学生令人尴尬的错误 X

Once in a while I cried with frustration, and

sometimes I felt like giving up. Can you use other words or phrases to replace once in a while in the sentence?

sometimes

from time to time

now and then at times

occasionally

on occasion

every so often

Once in a while I cried with frustration, and sometimes I felt like giving up.

Study the following sentences with feel like:

I feel like going to bed. I’m tired.

Do you feel like a game of tennis?

Maybe Tom feel like helping out.

I feel like a cup of tea.

feel like = want

Pattern: feel like sth. /doing sth.

Note: feel like is an informal expression.

one day I realized I could understand just about everything I came across

come across = meet with, meet by chance

Rewrite the following sentences, avoiding the phrase come across:

You are the most diligent student I’ve ever come across.

You are the most diligent student I’ve ever known. I’ve just come across a method of curing cold with hot chicken soup in this book.

I’ve just read a method of curing cold with hot chicken soup in this book. He came suddenly across an idea.

He suddenly had an idea.

Learning a foreign language has been a most trying experience for me

Use your own words to replace trying in the sentence

difficult

hard

frustrating

demanding

Put the following sentence into English, using trying.

我觉得这热天气令人难受。

I find this hot weather very trying.


在电脑上工作很伤眼睛。 Working on the computer is trying to our eyes.


她丈夫死后要抚养三个孩子，真是很困难。

She had a trying time raising three children after the death of her husband.

it also gave me insights into another culture

Use your own words to rewrite the sentence.

It also made me understand another culture better.

Rewrite the following sentences using insight:

We listened to his lecture and understood the problems of education very well.

His lecture gave us an insight into the problems of education.

I worked on a farm for a long time and I knew well the life of a farmer.

I worked on a farm for a long time and so got an insight into the life of a farmer.

Now that I speak a foreign language, instead of staring into space when English is being spoken, I can participate and make friends.

Read the following sentences with now or now that and determine whether now or now that in each sentence has a similar meaning with now that in the original sentence.

(1) Now that is what he actually thought of. Do you still want him?

(2) Now you’re here, you may as well make yourself useful.

(3) Now listen to me—we should not do that again.

(4) Now that we are alone, we can speak freely.

Similar meaning: (2), (4)

now (that) is used as a conjunction introducing a subordinate clause (like when, where, because, etc.). In other words, the clause it introduces can not stand alone.

Do you know synonyms of now that?

because

since

as

Writing Exercises

• Detail Development

• Useful Sentence Patterns

Information SortingParagraphs 2 – 4 concern the author’s learning experiences in schools. Sort the information in these paragraphs by completing the following table. (Write as fewer words as possible)

School State of Learning Cause Example

Junior

Senior

College

good (at the top of my class)

a kind and patient teacher

praises all of the students

terrible (lose desire to say anything at all)

an impatient teacher

punished those who gave incorrect answers, a stick

shaken up and down

not good (intimidated, stayed at the same level)

class too big little chance to speak, many students were better


Junior

Senior

College

good (at the top of my class)

a kind and patient teacher

praises all of the students

terrible (lose desire to say anything at all)

an impatient teacher

punished those who gave incorrect answers, a stick

shaken up and down

not good (intimidated, stayed at the same level)

class too big little chance to speak, many students were better

Close your book and write the author’s experiences in learning English. Don’t try to recall the sentences in the text. Write your own sentences. Your sentences don’t have to be beautiful, but they must be correct.


Junior

Senior

College

Write your own experiences in English learning at these three levels, but complete the following table first. The process can help you organize the things you are going to write.

My experience with a foreign language began in junior middle school, when I took my first English class.

Rewrite the sentence, using more direct and simpler language.

When I was in junior middle school, I began to learn English.

Pattern:

experience (difficulty, achievement, interest, suffering) … when … (I did sth, / sth happened)

Write sentences based on the guides given. 1. they, detailed questions, me embarrassed.

My embarrassment appeared when they started to ask more detailed questions.

2. they, leave village, forest, real adventure

The real adventure began when they left the village for the forest.

3. he, observe, mice, alive, 24 hours, doubt, from his mind The doubt emerged from his mind when he

observed that the mice were still alive after 24 hours. 4. new funds, project, crisis, solveThe crisis was solved when new funds were added into the project.

Paragraph 1• While regular schools still exist, the

virtual classroom plays an important role in today's learning community. Job opportunities for students are expanding rapidly and more people of all ages are becoming aware of online learning that allows them to study at home. Online students, however, require unique qualities to be successful. The following list discusses some ideal qualities of successful online students.

Paragraph 3• Many different people find that the online

method requires them to use their experiences and that online learning offers them a place to communicate with each other. This forum for communication removes the visual barriers that hinder some students from expressing themselves. In addition, students are given time to reflect on the information before replying. In this way, students can help to keep the online environment open and friendly.

Paragraph 5 In the virtual classroom nearly all

communication is written, so it is critical that students feel comfortable expressing themselves in writing. Some students have limited writing abilities which need to be improved before or as part of the online experience. This usually requires extra commitment by these students. Whether working alone or in a group, students share ideas, perspectives and discussions on the subject being studied, and read about those of their classmates. In this way, students gain great insight from their peers, learning from each other as well as the instructor.

Paragraph 7 Remember that instructors cannot see their

students in an online course. This means students must be absolutely explicit with their comments and requests. If they experience technical difficulties, or problems in understanding something about the course, they MUST speak up; otherwise there is no way anyone can know something is wrong. If one person does not understand something, possibly several others have the same problem. If another student is able to help, she/he probably will. While explaining something to others, students reinforce their own knowledge about the subject.

Paragraph 8

Take the program seriously

Paragraph 9 Online learning is not easier than study in regular classro

oms. In fact, many students say it requires much more time and effort. Requirements for online courses are not less than those of any quality program. Successful students, however, see online learning as a convenient way to receive their education-not an easier way. Many online students sit at computers for hours at a time during evenings and on weekends in order to complete their assignments. When other people are finished and having fun is most likely the time when online students do their course work. Online students need to commit 4 to 15 hours a week for each course.

Paragraph 11 Online courses require students to

make decisions based on facts as well as experience. It is absolutely necessary for students to assimilate information and make the right decisions based on critical thinking. In a positive online environment, students feel valued by the instructor, by their classmates and by their own work.

the virtual classroom plays an important role in today's learning community

Find in the context a word that means learning community. students

Do you have a word for the following expressions in italic?

in the city were enraged at the news. The Chinese communityThe Chinese

However, was greatly encouraged by the award.

the local electronic game communityThe local electronic game players

Do you think the book will become popular among

the reading community?the readers?

Find a word to replace unique here. Online students, however, require

qualities to be successful. uniquespecial

Explain why special can replace unique in the sentence.

The author is going to talk about some qualities. Our experience about language use tells us that if these qualities were not special, they would not be worth discussing about.

This forum for communication removes the visual barriers that hinder some students from

expressing themselves. What does this forum for communication refer to? online learning

Can you find a word in the context to replace the word forum?

and that online learning offers them a place to communicate with each other.

a place

visual barriers By looking up in a dictionary, we know the phrase means

视觉障碍 . However, the Chinese definition doesn't help much. Look at the Chinese translation of the sentence: 这一交流场所消除了一些学生自我表达的视觉障碍。

Such as a curtain ( 窗帘 )?

The back of the head of the guy sitting in front of you?

But they don’t make sense here.

You still have to ask yourself: what on earth is 视觉障碍 ?

Solution

Find some specific example that makes 视觉障碍 sensible in the sentence. For example,

the teacher’s doubtful look when listening to your talk

Therefore the visual barriers does not mean usual visual barriers in our life, i.e. something between our eyes and the thing we want to see. We have to figure out the meaning the author conveys: negative visual feedback.

In addition, students are given time to reflect on

the information before replying. Rewrite the sentence, changing the

following words: in addition, given time, reflect on and replying.

Teachers also allow students to think about the information before they answer.

We know in addition to is used in the pattern: in addition to A, B…

Question: Which is new information, A or B?

Join the following ideas into a sentence using in addition to:

Agent Action 1 Action 2

we the cowboy moviea Mickey Mouse cartoon

the aim of the training

improve the computer skills

develop the sense of teamwork

the students

a reduction of the number of courses

more accessibility of the library resources

we the cowboy movie a Mickey Mouse cartoon

We saw a Mickey Mouse cartoon in addition to the cowboy movie.

The aim of the training is to develop the sense of teamwork in addition to improving the computer skills for the staff members.

the aim of the training

improve the computer skills

develop the sense of teamwork

The students demanded more accessibility of the library resources in addition to a reduction of the number of courses they were learning.

the studentsa reduction of the number of courses

more accessibility of the library resources

so it is critical that students feel comfortable expressing themselves in writing.

Rewrite the sentence, avoiding using critical, feel comfortable.

So it is important (necessary) that students find it easy (are able) to express themselves in writing.

Whether working alone or in a group, students share ideas, perspectives and discussions on the subject being studied Use your own word to replace perspectives. opinions, views

Put the following sentences into Chinese.

It is useful occasionally to look at the past to gain a perspective on the present.

偶尔回顾过去有助于了解现在。

I've been so close to the problem I have no perspective on it. 这个问题我太熟悉，无法有全面的看法。

perspective also means: 透视法

• What is special of oriental （东方的） paintings?

Oriental artists (and many Western artists before the Renaissance [ 文艺复兴时期 ]) traditionally made little use of linear perspective （线条透视） .

students must be absolutely explicit with their comments and requests

• Use your own words to express this sentence, avoiding using explicit, comments, requests.

Students must express clearly their ideas and questions.

Take the program seriously What does program mean here?

Does program in the following sentences have the same meaning?

• I want to watch that TV program.

• Does the school offer any graduate program?

• The government spends a lot of money on the free medicare program.• The general manager wants you to take charge of the program.

• Can you write a program for my computer?

program

Besides program, what other words do you know which mean 课程，课？

lesson

class

course

subject

major

When other people are finished and having fun is most likely the time when online

students do their course work.

Analyze the structure of the sentence.

Pattern: when … is the time when …

Translate the following into English, using this pattern or similar patterns. • 你来时他则该走了。

When you come is the time when he should go.

• 你上大学之日便是你的父母开始失去对你控制之时。 When you enter the university is the day when your parents begin to lose control of you.

• 他祖父在这个国家入境（ land ）之处便是他祖父母浪漫史的起步之地。

Where his grandfather landed in this country was where the romance between his grandparents began.

• 你所求者即我所欲。

What you desire is what I want.

It is absolutely necessary for students to assimilate information and make the right decisions based on

critical thinking.

• assimilate ：消化，吸收• Do you find any familiar part in assimilate?

similar 相似

Word Formation

as- (a variant of ad-, meaning “to, toward”) + similar + -ate (verb ending) = to make similar

Documents

New Horizon English