Unit 4 literature for Self-Section 4 Expanding Our Horizons 教案-2025-2026学年高中英语冀教版选择性必修第一册

Language competence: Master key words and sentences to express literary feelings and self-understanding.

Cultural awareness: Understand the connection between literature and self-growth across cultures.

Thinking quality: Develop critical thinking to analyze literary works.

Learning ability: Form autonomous and cooperative learning habits in literary exploration.

Key points: Grasp the main idea and emotional connotation of the literary materials in this section; master the usage of core vocabulary and complex sentences.

Difficult points: Analyze the role of literature in self-understanding and express personal views in fluent English.

Step 1: Lead-in (Lead-in Activity)

The teacher starts the class with an open-ended question: “Have you ever read a book or a story that made you think deeply about yourself? What did you learn about yourself from it?” Then, the teacher invites 2-3 students to share their experiences in English. After the sharing, the teacher summarizes: “Literature is not just a form of entertainment; it is a mirror that helps us see ourselves clearly. Today, we will explore how literature expands our horizons and promotes self-understanding in Section 4 of Unit 4.”

Design Intention: The lead-in question is closely related to students’ daily reading experience, which can quickly arouse their emotional resonance and interest in the topic. By inviting students to share, we can activate their existing knowledge and language reserve, lay a foundation for the subsequent study of literary materials, and naturally introduce the core theme of this section—literature for self-understanding. At the same time, it helps cultivate students’ oral expression ability and encourages them to bravely express their own views in English.

Step 2: Pre-reading (Vocabulary and Background Preview)

First, the teacher presents the core vocabulary and phrases of this section on the screen, including “self-reflection”, “perspective”, “insight”, “broaden one’s horizons”, “gain a deeper understanding of”, “confront”, “overcome”, etc. For each word and phrase, the teacher provides simple and easy-to-understand English definitions and example sentences related to literature and self-understanding. For example, for “self-reflection”, the example sentence is “Reading literary works encourages us to do self-reflection and find our own strengths and weaknesses.” Then, the teacher organizes students to work in pairs to make their own sentences with these words and phrases, and invites several pairs to present their sentences to the class for comment.

Next, the teacher briefly introduces the background of the literary materials in this section: the materials are selected from classic literary works and essays that focus on self-exploration, involving the authors’ reflections on life, growth and self-identity. The teacher explains: “These works come from different cultural backgrounds, but they all convey a common theme—through reading and thinking, we can expand our horizons and understand ourselves better.” The teacher also reminds students to pay attention to the emotional tone and writing style of the materials when reading.

Design Intention: Vocabulary is the foundation of language learning. Previewing core vocabulary before reading can help students remove language barriers, improve reading efficiency, and ensure that they can focus on understanding the content and connotation of the materials during reading. Making sentences in pairs not only helps students master the usage of vocabulary and phrases, but also cultivates their cooperative learning ability. The brief introduction of the background helps students understand the context of the materials, establish a connection between literature and self-understanding, and