alex cassidy alex cassidy

Reading: Suffering scientists
Upper-Intermediate level

Description

In this lesson, will do a reading about four different scientists who killed or injured themselves by their own experiments or inventions. We will have a brief warmer where we will talk about science, scientists, and the different fields of science. Before we read, we will go over some blocking vocabulary. Then we will move on to doing a quick reading for gist, then a deeper reading for comprehension. Next we have a language focused activity where students will try to guess what different highlighted words mean. Lastly, if we have time we will do some story-telling, where Ss will make up stories of their own about a scientist and report to the class. If time is short, then I will do a wrap-up activity where Ss can discuss what kind of scientist they would like to be.

Materials

Abc Picture from Google
Abc pg. 96-97 EF
Abc matching wrksht
Abc Picture from Google
Abc Picture from Google

Main Aims

  • To provide gist and detailed reading practice using a text about scientists in the context of killing or injuring themselves with their own experiments.

Subsidiary Aims

  • If time permits (15 min+): To provide process writing practice of story-telling in the context of a scientist who killed or injured himself or herself in an experiment.(10 min or <): To provide fluency speaking practice in a conversation in the context of which kind of scientist they'd like to be and what they'd like to study.

Procedure

Warmer/Lead-in (3-5 minutes) • To set lesson context and engage students

I will show an image of the periodic table on the projector. I will elicit science language from Ss and get them talking about science. I will put them in pairs, and discuss if they could be any kind of scientist, what kind would they be?

Pre-Reading/Listening (6-8 minutes) • To prepare students for the text and make it accessible

I have created a matching exercise for S to do their blocking vocabulary for exercise b. I have created this worksheet to make my blocking vocab more S centered.

While-Reading#1 (8-10 minutes) • To provide students with less challenging gist and specific information reading tasks

Ss will do a quick read of all the scientists and try to find out which scientists were killed, and which ones were only injured.

While-Reading#2 (14-16 minutes) • To provide students with more challenging detailed, deduction and inference reading/listening tasks

Ss will do a deeper reading of the text and answer the questions in b that are more specific to each scientist. They will read and work alone, check in pairs, and then we'll do WCFB.

Post-Reading (10-15 minutes) • To provide with an opportunity to respond to the text and expand on what they've learned

What I'd really like to do is a writing/story-telling exercise. But I think I'm being over-zealous and I won't have time. If I do have time, I'd like the Ss to make up a story about a scientists, what he or she studied, and how they died. I really think it would be a lot of fun. If time is short, then we'll either do the same question/topic but as a speaking exercise, which should take less time.

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