Unit 4 The art of having fun Developing ideas 英文教案 2024-2025学年外研版（2024）七年级英语下册

Unit 4 The art of having fun-Developing ideas 【教学目标】 Language Ability: Master vocabulary (e.g., creative, leisure, technique) and grammar (simple present/past tense) to describe art forms. Cultural Awareness: Explore global art traditions (e.g., origami, street art) and appreciate cultural diversity in fun activities. Thinking Skills: Analyze how art combines creativity with practicality, and infer the role of art in daily life. Learning Ability: Develop strategies to integrate art into leisure, such as DIY projects or group art activities. 【教学重难点】 Key: Use "it’s + adj. + to do" structure to discuss art’s fun; describe art forms with specific verbs (e.g., fold, paint, carve). Difficult: Differentiate between "creative" vs. "creativity", and apply complex sentences to explain art’s connection to happiness. Avoid tense errors when sharing personal art experiences. 【教学过程】 Step 1: Warming-up (5 minutes) T: Good morning, class! Before we start our new lesson today, let's have a little chat. You all have hobbies, right? Some of you might like reading books, some enjoy playing basketball, and some love drawing. Hobbies are great ways to have fun. Now, I want you to think about this: have you ever thought that your hobby could become your job in the future? Can you imagine making money from doing something you really love? Let's share some ideas. Who wants to start? S1: I like reading stories. Maybe I can be a writer one day and write interesting books for others to read. T: That's a wonderful idea! Writing stories can be a great career if you are passionate about it. What about others? S2: I like playing the piano. I hope I can be a pianist and play beautiful music in big concerts. T: Fantastic! Being a pianist means you can bring joy to many people through your music. Well, today we are going to learn about some people who have turned their interests into lifelong careers. It's going to be really interesting. Are you ready? Step 2: Introduction to Guinness World Records (3 minutes) T: First, let's talk about something really exciting - Guinness World Records. Have you ever heard of it? Ss: Yes! T: Great! Guinness World Records started in 1955. It's a collection of all kinds of amazing achievements from around the world. It includes things like the quickest marathon time, the tallest building, and even the biggest mosquito! Many of these records are really fun and make people amazed. Now, let's look at some pictures of Guinness World Records on the screen. (Show pictures) Can you see how interesting these records are? There are people who have achieved extraordinary things, and it all shows the limitless possibilities of human beings. So, today, we'll hear about a person who set a Guinness World Record related to his interest. Step 3: Listening 1 (8 minutes) T: Now, we are going to listen to a news report. Listen carefully and choose the main idea. Here are the options on the screen. (Show options: a. Zhao Li discovers a large mosquito. b. An insect museum will open in Chengdu. c. Tourists can now visit the museum.) Get ready, and let's start listening. (Play the news report) T: Okay, time's up. Have you made your choice? Raise your hands if you choose option a. (Count the hands) Option b? Option c? Now, let's see the correct answer together. The main idea is that Zhao Li discovers a large mosquito. So, option a is correct. T: Now, let's listen to the news report again. This time, you need to complete the introduction to Zhao Li. Here is the form on the screen. (Show the form with blanks: Name Zhao Li, Title Director of the 1 ________ of West China, Achievement Zhao Li 2 ________ a new Guinness World Record by finding the world’s 3 ________ mosquito. It’s 4 ________ cm wide and 5 ________ cm long. He spends his life 6 ________ insects.) Listen carefully and fill in the blanks. (Play the news report again) T: Alright, let's check the answers. For the first blank, it's “Museum”. Zhao Li is the Director of the Museum of West China. Second blank, “set”. He set a new Guinness World Record. Third blank, “largest”. He found the world's largest mosquito. Fourth blank, it should be a number. Listen to that part again. (Play the relevant part of the news report) It's “over 11” cm wide. Fifth blank, “about 26” cm long. And for the last blank, “protecting”. He spends his life protecting insects. Well done, everyone! Step 4: Learning Strategy - Listening for Information (4 minutes) T: Now, let's talk about a very useful learning strategy - listening for information. When we listen to something, we often need to find out specific information. For example, just now, we needed to find out information about Zhao Li, like his title, his achievement, and details about the mosquito. Before listening, it's important to know what kind of information we are looking for. If it's names, numbers, or specific events, we should pay special attention to related words and expressions. For instance, when we were listening for the size of the mosquito, words like “wide” and “long” were clues. We listened for numbers related to these words. Next time when you listen to something, try to use this strategy. First, figure out what information you need, and then listen carefully for connected words and expressions. Step 5: Listening 2 (10 minutes) T: Next, we are going to listen to an interview with Zhao Li. This time, listen carefully and complete the notes. The questions are on the screen. (Show the questions: When did your interest in insects start? What do you like most about insects? Is it challenging to study insects? Why did you make it your job then? Do you like this name “the Prince of Butterflies”?) Let's start listening. (Play the interview) T: Okay, stop here. Let's check the answers one by one. For the first question, when did his interest in insects start? S3: When he was four or five years old. T: Correct! What about the second question, what does he like most about insects? S4: Fun! Insects are fun. He really enjoys studying them. T: Right! Now, for the third question, is it challenging to study insects? S5: Yes, he used to ride his bike four or five hundred kilometres to find insects. Sometimes, he had to wait for days just to take photos of a butterfly. T: Great! Fourth question, why did he make it his job then? S6: Because he loves it! Studying insects gives him joy. He has also set up a museum to encourage people like him. T: Exactly! And for the last question, does he like this name “the Prince of Butterflies”? S7: He says he's not a prince, just an insect lover. T: Well done, everyone! Now, let's listen to the interview again. This time, pay attention to how the interviewer changes the subject. Notice the words and expressions the interviewer uses to move from one question to another. (Play the interview again) T: Okay, let's talk about it. How does the interviewer change the subject? S8: The interviewer uses words like “Now, let's talk about...” and “Next question” to change the subject. T: Very good! These are examples of guiding language. Step 6: Learning Strategy - Using Guiding Language (5 minutes) T: Now, let's learn about this important strategy - using guiding language. We use guiding language to introduce a subject or move onto another subject in a conversation. Expressions like “Now, we're going to...”, “Next”, “Let's move on to the next topic” are guiding language. Also, we can ask specific questions to guide the listener through different subjects. For example, in the interview, the interviewer asked “When did your interest in insects start?” and then moved on to other questions. Using guiding language makes conversations easier to follow. Now, I want you to work in pairs. One of you be the interviewer and the other be the interviewee. Use guiding language to start and change the subject during your conversation. You can talk about your hobbies. For example, the interviewer can start with “Now, let's talk about your hobbies. What's your favorite hobby?” Then, change the subject like “Next, why do you like this hobby?” After a few minutes, we'll share some conversations with the class. Step 7: Pair Work - Research and Discussion (10 minutes) T: Alright, now it's time for some pair work. You can choose a person from the list on the screen. It includes Walt Disney and Huang Yongyu. Or you can choose someone you know who has turned their interest into a career. Do some research on this person. You can use your mobile phones or the information I provided. Then, talk about what they got from having fun. For example, if you choose Walt Disney, you can talk about how his love for painting led to creating amazing cartoons. What did he get from having fun with painting? How did it turn into his lifelong career? You can use the conversation example on the screen as a reference. (Show the conversation example: A: Let’s start with Walt Disney’s passion. What did he like most about painting? B: I think he had a lot of fun by painting. A: Next, why did he decide to make cartoons? B: He wanted to share his paintings with other people. He created a lot of characters, like Mickey Mouse. They brought people so much fun.) Start your research and discussion now. (Students start working in pairs) T: (Walk around the classroom, offer help and guidance) Remember to use the language we learned today and think deeply about how their interests became their careers. Step 8: Class Sharing (7 minutes) T: Okay, time's up. Let's share your findings. Which pair wants to start? Pair 1: We chose Walt Disney. He loved painting. From painting, he got a lot of joy. He decided to make cartoons because he wanted to share his fun of painting with more people. He created Mickey Mouse and other famous characters. These characters brought happiness to millions of people around the world. His interest in painting became a huge career that changed the world of entertainment. T: Wonderful! That's a great analysis. What about other pairs? Pair 2: We chose Huang Yongyu. He was interested in art from a young age. Through art, he expressed his feelings and ideas. He got recognition and respect from people. His art became his lifelong career, and he influenced many young artists. He used his art to show the beauty of life and different cultures. T: Very good! It seems that both Walt Disney and Huang Yongyu turned their interests into amazing careers. What can we learn from them? S9: We can learn that if we love something and work hard on it, our interests can become our jobs. T: Exactly! Having a passion for something and working hard can lead to great achievements. Step 9: Summary (3 minutes) T: Now, let's summarize what we have learned today. First, we learned about Guinness World Records and heard about Zhao Li, who set a record related to his interest in insects. We learned how to listen for specific information, which is a very useful skill. Then, we learned about using guiding language in conversations. Also, we discussed how some people, like Walt Disney, Huang Yongyu, and Zhao Li, turned their interests into lifelong careers. Remember, having fun and following our interests can sometimes lead us to great things in life. So, keep exploring your interests and who knows, one day, your hobby might become your dream job. Step 10: Homework (2 minutes) T: For homework, I want you to write a short passage about a person you admire who has made their interest into a career. You can choose someone we talked about today or someone else you know. In your passage, include information about their interest, how they turned it into a career, and what they got from it. Make sure to use the words and expressions we learned in this class. Bring your passages to class next time and we will share them. That's all for today's class. Goodbye, class! 学科网（北京）股份有限公司 学科网（北京）股份有限公司 学科网（北京）股份有限公司 学科网（北京）股份有限公司 $$