armada ports trading fleets admiral

V

Lesson 8A

Vocabulary Lesson 8A

command (v.) to order someone with less authority to do something

accompany (v.) to go somewhere with someone; to play music together

accumulate (v.) to collect, to gather together an increasing quantity of something

depart (v.) to leave

commodity (n.) something of value that is bought and sold

via (prep.) by way of or means of

subsequent (adj.) later in time or order from something just referred to

fascinate (v.) to hold someone’s attention because it is so interesting

coincide (v.) to happen at the same time

terminate (v.) to end something

lines 1-2

lines 59 lines 65-67

1371: Ma He was born. 1402: Ma He renamed Zheng He and given job as Admiral. 1405: Zheng He departs on 1st voyage, ands in Vietnam 1422:end of Zheng He’s 6th voyage, new emperor comes to power with change in policy. 1431:final voyage to Africa’s East Coast, pilgrimage to Mecca. 1433: On return voyage to China, Zheng He dies.

fascinated via Subsequently accumulated

departed accompanied terminated coincided

A. Answer will vary.

1. An explorer; recreate Sindbad’s voyages; 2. by boat,9,656 km; 3. All place names.

Lesson 8B

Vocabulary Lesson 8B

minister (n.) a person in charge of a government department

crew (plural n.) a group of people working together

on behalf of (prep. phrase) as a representative of someone or for the benefit of others

comprise (v.) to consist of or include parts

accelerate to go faster and faster

brief (adj.) short in amount or length of time

violent (adj.) using physical force or weapons to injure or kill other people

struggle (n.) a long and difficult attempt to overcome problems

generous (adj.) kind, willing to give more time or money than expected

tale (n.) a story

lines 18-19

5th paragraph lines 67 lines 84-91

c,e,f a b,d,g

5 4 2 1 3

tale crew comprised

struggled violent crew generously accelerate brief

A. People make journeys to religious places or to places that have special significance for them.

comprises subsequently via accumulation

commanded tale struggle brief depart

For More Information http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RMS_Titanic

Key Words for Internet Research Around the World in Eighty Days Chinese Armada Haj pilgrimage Jules Verne Mecca Sindbad the sailor Tim Severin Thor Heyerdahl Titanic Zheng He

Reading Skills

Reading for Gist Reading for gist is reading to get a general sense of what a reading passage is basically about. In other words, we read to understand the main topic, or theme of the passage. For example, a reading passage might basically be about a new type of technology, or a tourist's vacation trip, or a story about a fictional character.

Identifying Detail Identifying details in a text to answer specific questions (eg: who, what, when, where, why) is often achieved through a strategy known as ‘Scanning’ for details. This is actually a technique often used in daily life when looking up a word in the telephone book or dictionary. Also when you read a newspaper, you're probably not reading it word-by-word, instead you're scanning the text for important information of interest.

Defining Vocabulary Often a reading passage contains definitions or explanations of new words related to the topic. The definitions in the text may be given through different clues to help you identify how the author has explained its meaning. It is important to understand synonyms or parallel expressions are often used to define target vocabulary items.

Understanding Reference Understanding Reference in a text is an important reading skill which involves focusing on specific meaning of ‘pronoun references’ used throughout a passage (eg: this, those, their, it). This is an important skill to help develop full comprehension of significant details of a section of a passage which refer back to previous statements made.

Identifying Paraphrase Paraphrasing involves the skill of identifying a restatement of a section in a passage that retains the basic meaning while changing the words, often explained in a more simplified form. A paraphrase often clarifies a more ambiguous original statement in the text by putting it into alternative words that are often more easily understood.

Making Inferences When we read a text, the author does not tell us everything. Therefore, we must be able to guess some things and make clear assumptions from the information, facts, opinions and author’s feelings presented in the passage. Such a process of guessing and critical thinking is called Making inferences.

Understanding Main ideas (Skimming) Once we've determined the text type of a passage, and what it's generally about, we usually then read on to understand the main idea of the passage. In other words: What is the writer basically telling us? Or, What is the writer's main message? Understanding the main idea of a text means being able to identify the most important point or information in the passage.