News Podcasts

Hi Students!

Thanks for your hard work on this project.  Your News Podcasts are great! I'm very happy with the work that you have done.  I hope you enjoy your classmates' podcasts as much as I have.

It's been a short but busy semester, and we've done a lot together. However, I appreciate the fact that you have done most of the hard work. Thank you again for your participation and the effort you've put into class discussions, homework assignments, and presentations.

Here are the podcasts:

J.P. and Kazuki's News Podcast

Bruno and Debora's News Podcast

Hideki's News Podcast

Masako's News Podcast

Qi's News Podcast

Ana and Icaro's News Podcast

Jimmy and Kallen's News Podcast

Kenta's News Podcast

Murilo and Osvaldo's News Podcast

Mastewal's News Podcast

Saki's News Podcast

HW for Wednesday, July 18th

1. Act. A (p. 116)
*Find three questions you don't know the answer to and do a Google search to find the correct answer.

2. Act. B (p. 117)

3. Act. C (p. 117-118)

4. Act. B-C (p.114) (OPTIONAL)
**Listen again and check your notes.

Final Exam Review

The following information details what will be on the Unit 2, Chapter 4 test. Please read this information carefully and let me know if you have any questions.


Part One: Listening and Note-taking

• Listening #1: Lecture "Emerging Nations in a Global Economy" (p. 120-125) (Tracks 17-20 on CD)
• Listening #2
• **Topic will be similar to Listening #1
• Tasks
• Listen and take notes.
• Answer questions on topic, main idea, and supporting details/examples.

Part Two: Vocabulary

• Words you should know:
• Act. B (p. 99)
• Act. C (p. 103)
• Act. B (p. 112)
• Act. C (p. 113)
• Act. C (p. p. 117)
• Act. A (p. 119)
• Tasks
• Use context to choose the best definition.
• Listen to sentence and use the context to choose or write the best definition.
• Write an original sentence.

HW for Friday, July 13th and Monday, July 16th

HW for Friday,  10 am (July 13th)
1. Email your Problem-Solution Presentation outline.

Problem-Solution Presentation Outline (Word)

HW for Monday, July 16th
1. News Presentation #2 Video Podcast
**Upload to a flash drive and bring to class.

2. Formal Presentation #2: Problem-Solution

3. Watch Josh and Judy's News Podcast; answer the questions (see post below). (collected)

4. Act. A-C (p. 112-113) (Chapter 4, Part 4)
**You should have already done this!

5. Chapter 4, Part 3 (Optional)
**Use the chapter 4 CD to complete Part 3.

Comments on Formal Presentation #1

Hi students,

I'd like to say that our first round of formal presentations was quite successful. In fact, I was very happy with each presentation, and more importantly, I learned  A LOT from your presentations. However, there is always room for improvement! Below you will find a few comments I have about the presentations in general.

The Positive:

• Everyone seemed well prepared.
• The use of technology was great.  I liked that some students chose to try a new presentation technology (Prezi), while others used Power Point in both effective and new ways.
• All presentations were incredibly informative. As I said above, I learned a lot; our class visitors (Vera and Laura) also mentioned how much they learned from the presentations. 
• Your presentations were very well organized. 
• In general, pronunciation was clearer than the first News Presentations. 
• Students asked great questions at the end of each presentation; indeed, discussions that followed were often so good that I wanted to let you all continue talking rather than interrupting the discussion due to time limitations. 
• On a similar note, students did an excellent job of responding to their classmates' questions.

To be improved: 

• Only a few students did a thorough analysis of the cultural values/factors that underlie each of the cultural topics discussed in the presentations. This was an important component of the first presentation, and I felt that some students could have spent more time analyzing and/or explaining the question, "Why do we do this in our culture?"
• Introductions could have been a little more "attention-getting." Therefore, students might consider starting their presentation a short (but funny/interesting) anecdote or surprising statistics.
• A few students spoke a little too slowly; other students talked a little too fast. 
• There were some students (not all!) who read too much. This often resulted in pronunciation that was choppier and less natural than those students who only glanced at their notes now and then rather than reading large parts of the presentation. 
• This isn't something we have worked on in class (maybe we will now!), but hardly any students used gestures (body movements) during their presentations. 

To be continued.....

Josh and Judy's News Podcast

You can read the article here! Feel free to fact-check if you like. Just make sure to report any errors you notice!

Comprehension Questions
Directions: Please listen to the news podcast and then answer the questions. You can read the article when you have finished responding to the questions. **Note: To answer #5, you must read the article and then watch the podcast again. 

1. What is the news podcast about? 


2. Why have the proposed changes to this year's wolf hunt generated such a huge response from the public? 


3.  Why is wolf hunting so controversial in Montana?


4. How is Idaho's wolf hunt similar to OR different from Montana's?


5. Read the article and then watch the podcast again. Find ONE (or more) errors in the information presented by Josh and Judy. (***There is at least one error!)

HW for Wednesday, July 11th

1. Current News Presentation #2
*Choose a topic, find a story (article, podcast, news program, etc.), and email me your article.
*You DO NOT need to start your presentation.

2. Formal Presentation #2
*Complete tasks 6-10 on handout from Monday's class.

3. Act. A-C (p. 112-113) (Chapter 4, Part 3)

HW for Monday, July 9th

1. Podcast HW #5

Please go to the following two websites to complete your second podcast HW:

Ted Talks

TOEFL Lecture #4


2. Chapter 4 Activities

a. Activities B-C (p. 103)
b. Activities A-B (p. 104) (**track 2)
c. Part 4: Activity A (p. 112)
d. Check test answers; bring questions if you still have them!

HW for Monday, July 2nd

1. Podcast HW #2

Please go to the following two websites to complete your second podcast HW:

Ted Talks

TOEFL Lecture #3


2. Chapter 4 Warm-up Reading and Discussion
**Students: Please complete the following activities and be prepared to discuss your answers in class on Monday. Please note that there are EXTRA questions below that you must respond to (in writing) for Activity E.

• Activity A (p. 98)
• Activity B (p. 99)
• Activity C (p. 99-100)
• Activity E (p. 101) (collected)
• **Please also WRITE responses to the following questions: 
• Which of the articles you read in Activity C describes a project or technological development SIMILAR TO the short videos you watched and responded to for Wednesday's HW ('Open Source Housing" & "Rwanda Strives...") What are the similarities? Are there any important differences? 
• Out of all of these projects (in the articles and the videos), which project do you think has the potential to create the most positive change in developing countries? Please fully explain your answer. 

HW for Wednesday, June 27th

Hi students,

Please watch the following videos. While watching these short clips, please take notes on a clean piece of paper. After you have finished, answer the questions below. I will collect your notes and question responses in tomorrow's class.

See you tomorrow.

Video #1: The Open Source Housing Project (**you might need to turn up the volume!)

Questions for Video #1:

1. What housing challenges do many people in developing countries face? 
2. What is "sustainable housing?" 
3. What are the three main principles of the "Open House Sustainable Housing Project?" Which of these is the most important, in your opinion?
4. In your opinion, what are the benefits of an collaborative international  project like this one? Please explain at least 3 advantages.

Video #2: Rwanda Strives to Become High Technology Hub for Africa

Questions for Video #2:

1. How has Kayra Iranga (first man interviewed in video) benefited from access to internet and the acquisition of internet skills? 
2. What is a "knowledge-based" society? Based on your definition, is your country a "knowledge-based" society? Please explain. 
3. What steps must be taken in order to provide access to information communication technology (ICT) in Rwanda?
4. What are the challenges a country like Rwanda faces in developing ICT plans?
5. In what ways might the successful development of ICT infrastructure in Rwanda benefit other African countries?

HW for Monday, June 25th

1. Prepare for test #1.

• Listening (p. 54-58)
• Study vocabulary.

2. Prepare Presentation #1
**Bring questions for Monday if you have them!
***Bring your Power Point or other presentation tool with your presentation on it if you like. I can check for things like grammar errors, organization, etc.

3. Read "Presentation Tips" (post below).

Presentation Tips!

1. Prepare!

• Practice your presentation with a friend, in front of a mirror, by yourself, etc. 
• Make sure you feel confident and ready to present. If you are ready, you will feel confident. 

2. Try not to read!

• Reading your presentation is not an effective way to connect to your audience. 
• Looking at your notes every now and then is OKAY. 

3. Refine your pronunciation.

• Identify and practice difficult words before your presentation. You can find the pronunciation for a word on most online dictionaries, or you can ask your teacher for help. 
• STRESS IMPORTANT WORDS when you TALK (like I just did in this sentence!). That is, focus on the most important content words in each sentence. To do this, make these words LOUDER and LONGER. 
• Don't talk too fast! Even though you might feel nervous, talking to fast could make your pronunciation less clear. 

4. Don't "overload" your power point (or other pres. tool) slides with too much information.

• Your power point or other presentation tool is just a basic outline to help your audience follow your presentation. 
• Each slide should include only the most important information. 
• You don't need complete sentences. 
• You can include details, but you don't need to explain the entire detail: just include the basic detail and then explain the specific information during your presentation. 

5. Ask your teacher for assistance/advice. 

Recent Articles on Neanderthals

1. Neanderthal Cave Paintings

2. Neanderthal and Modern Human DNA Link

3. Neanderthal Extinction

HW for Wednesday, June 20th

1. Read "Unit 1 Test Review" post below and bring questions about test. 
2. Chapter 2, Part 5 Pre-task HW

a.      Watch video (see below)

b.      Take notes (you can use your own paper!) (collected)

c.       Complete primate quiz (p. 50)

d.    Mark which questions can be answered from video and which cannot.

Unit 1 Test Review

The following information details what will be on the Unit 1 test (chapters 1& 2). Please read this information carefully and let me know if you have any questions.


Part One: Listening and Note-taking

• Listening #1: Lecture "Human Nonhuman Primate Behavior" (p. 55-58)
• Listening #2 Possible Topics:
• Radio Broadcast on "feng shui" (cultural anthropology)
• OR
• Lecture on "humans and neanderthals" (physical anthropology)
• Tasks
• Listen and take notes.
• Answer questions on topic, main idea, and supporting details/examples.

Part Two: Vocabulary

• Words you should know:
• Act. B (p. 7)
• Act. C (p. 17)
• Act. D (p. 23)
• Act. C (p. 34)
• Idioms/Slang (p. 46)
• add weight to
• can't hack it
• do (someone) in
• wimp out
• Act. A (p. 53) (**added 6/20)
• Tasks
• Use context to choose the best definition.
• Listen to sentence and use the context to choose or write the best definition.
• Write an original sentence.

HW for Monday, June 18th

1. Podcast HW #3

BBC Podcasts

2. Chapter 2, Part 4 Pre-task HW
*Choose two questions from Act. A (p. 44) and use the internet to research answers for Monday's class.

3. Presentation Outline (you can email it to me if you like)

4. Read p. 40-41 (Expressing your opinion)

5. Chapter 2, Part 3 Activities (optional)

Presentation Tools Tutorials

Hi students,

Please watch these three tutorials and decide which presentation tool you would like to use.  You should try to decide by Wednesday if possible. Please let me know if you need more help or information.

1. Power Point

2. Prezi

3. Google docs Presentations

HW for Wednesday, June 13th

1. Activity D (p. 23) (collected)
**Write one original sentence for each word.

2. Formal Presentation Brainstorming Tasks #1 (collected)

• Choose a topic.
• Find 2-3 sources on your topic (you may have to complete an internet search).
• Decide what you will say about your topic (3-4 main points).
• Choose a technology tool to use (see #3 below).
• Bring a piece of paper that states your topic, your main points, your sources, and what type of technology you will use. 

3. Watch "Presentation Tools" tutorials (see post above) and choose one (Power Point, Prezi, or Google Presentations) for your first presentation.

4. Chapter 2 Warm-up Listening and Note-taking (collected)

Task 1: Watch the first two parts of the film "Koko: A Talking Gorilla" and complete the task handout given to you in class. (collected)

Task 2: Activities A-C (p. 32-34)

Part One

Part Two

News Presentation Resource Links

Hi news presenters!

Here are some links that I hope help you find an interesting story to present for your News Presentation.
Please let me now if you have any questions or need any help.

Ted Talks

NPR

BBC

CNN

New York Times Video News

HW for Monday, June 11th

1. Podcast HW #2

Please go to the following two websites to complete your second podcast HW:

Ted Talks

TOEFL Lecture #2

• Step 1: Listen to the lecture, take notes on the podcast handout, and answer the questions that follow the lecture.
• Step 2: Complete the rest of the podcast handout activities. OR (OPTIONAL) Listen again and complete the rest of the podcast handout activities.

2. Read p. 22 and 24

3. Act. D (P. 23) 

Example News Presentation Information

1. Title: The Uniqueness of the 2012 Election

2. Author: Linton Weeks

3. Published: June 5th on npr.org

4. Read the story here: The Uniqueness of the 2012 Election

HW for Wednesday, June 6th

1. Act. D (p. 6)

2. Act. B Original Sentences (p. 7) (collected)
*Activity Directions: .Write one original sentence for each vocabulary word. Please use your own ideas; in other words, do not copy sentences from the internet or a dictionary.
3. Optional HW
a. Act. D (p. 10)
b. Pronunciation and Listening Activities (p. 12-13)

HW for Monday, June 4th

1. Podcast HW #1

Please go to the following two websites to complete your first podcast HW:

Ted Talks

TOEFL Lecture #1

• Step 1: Listen to the lecture, take notes on the podcast handout, and answer the questions that follow the lecture. 
• Step 2: Complete the rest of the podcast handout activities. OR (OPTIONAL) Listen again and complete the rest of the podcast handout activities.

2. Act. A, B, C (p. 4-5) (in book)