LESSON PLAN
LEVEL:
C1.1
GROUPS:
A, B, C
DATE: October 19th-22nd,
2020
UNIT 1:
CITIES
In this
unit, we will talk about urban problems and how to tackle them, about changes
in urban areas and we will tell stories and urban myths. We will also learn how
to describe different aspects of cities and city life. Regarding grammar, we
will revise perfect tenses. Eventually, we will mediate in an oral and written
format to solve problems related to urban life for people who can’t understand
Spanish.
Reading:
To begin
with, you will read three texts about three different cities in the world:
·
Bogota, page 185, file 1.
·
Manchester, page 186, file 2.
·
Bilbao, page 197, file 3.
Task 1: After
reading these texts, you should compare them and write down the similarities
between these three cities.
Task 2:
Go to page 10 in your textbook, activity 5. Read the 8 sentences and decide
which city each sentence refers to: Bogota, Manchester or Bilbao.
Task 3:
Go to page 10 in your textbook, activities 1 and 6. Answer those eight
questions (there are two questions in activity 1 and 6 questions in activity 6).
Vocabulary:
Task 1:
Go to page 11 in your textbook, activity 7. Use the verbs in the box to
substitute the words in italics in the 8 given sentences. Remember to use the
right verbal form.
Task 2:
Go to page 11 in your textbook, activity 8. Individually, give examples of
those five items.
ANSWER KEY:
Reading, Task 1. Possible
answers:
All three cities have managed to overcome huge
obstacles.
They all used to be more run-down / divided / poor
than they are now.
They all reinvented space in the city.
They’ve placed an emphasis on bringing the city
centres back to life.
They’ve all been the victims of violence / terrorism.
There’s been some criticism of each project, claiming
it’s benefitted some more than others, affecting working class people, etc.
Reading, Task 2:
1
Bilbao: Other cities trying to replicate the so-called “Guggenheim effect” may
have failed because they didn’t take up the other strands of Bilbao’s
regeneration project.
2
Bogotá: Peñalosa’s administration then expropriated the land of a private
country club in the north side of the city. Its golf course and polo fields
were converted into a free park with sports facilities for all.
3
Manchester: Making more of the city’s historical sites and creating the Urbis
building, which now houses The National Museum of Football. In turn, these
changes have been key in attracting new investors such as the Qatari royal
family, who own Manchester City Football Club.
4
Bogotá: They also imposed restrictions on car use and increased taxes on
petrol, the proceeds from which went back into the new transport system.
5
Bilbao: Up until the early 80s, Bilbao had been dominated by steel plants and
shipbuilding. To halt the decline, the city embarked on a strategy to reinvent
itself as a centre for culture, tourism and new technologies. It alsomodernised
what remained of its more traditional industries and attracted new companies to
the technology park on the outskirts of the city.
6
Bogotá: The ex-mayor of Bogotá, Enrique Peñalosa, has argued that if we ever
achieve a successful city for children, we will have built the perfect city for
all citizens.
7
Bilbao: Nevertheless, it’s difficult to deny it’s been a success which has seen
the city return to its previous population levels and survive the major
recession that began in 2008.
8
Manchester: So, dreadful though the bombing was, it actually provided an
opportunity to start again that might not have happened otherwise.
Reading, Task 3. Possible answers for activity 1, page 10, second
question:
an economic downturn: businesses go bankrupt,
people get made redundant, poverty increases, homelessness goes up, crime may
well go up
a hurricane: destroys buildings, devastates
areas
an armed conflict: may result in men getting
drafted and civilian deaths, affects the economy, leads to problems
reintegrating soldiers after the war, spikes in domestic violence, etc.
an earthquake: buildings collapse, people are
crushed to death, can be hard to get relief and aid into the areas if they’re
remote; can lead to frustration with the government
flooding: people drown, houses get flooded,
areas have to be evacuated, costs a fortune to repair damage, frustration with
government can develop if relief efforts are slow
a high crime rate: middle class people leave the
area, it goes downhill, gangs take over whole areas, areas become no-go zones
for the police
severe pollution: people go out less, health is
affected terribly, middle classes move out
terrorism: destroys infrastructure, kills
innocent people, leads to fear and possible demonising of and revenge attacks
on groups seen as being responsible, costs a lot to rebuild, affects tourism
a huge fire: destroys buildings, maybe kills
people, causes traffic chaos
The answers for the first question in activity
1, page 10 and for the questions in activity 6 are personal. We will talk about
them in our next face-to-face session.
Vocabulary, task 1 (page 11, activity 7 in your
textbook)
1 undergone (undergone is more academic than
gone through)
2 poured (invested is more academic than poured)
3 demolished (demolished is more academic than
knocked down)
4 initiated (initiated is more academic than set
out)
5 been neglected (been neglected is more
academic than become run-down)
6 flourishing (flourishing is more academic than
doing very well)
7 soared (soared is more academic than gone up a
lot)
8 imposed (imposed is more academic than brought
in)
Vocabulary, task 2 (page 11, activity 8 in your
textbook)
The
answers for this activity are personal. We will talk
about them in our next face-to-face session.
