1、Teaching ObjectivesMaster the key words and structures, and learn what kind of disaster the text talks about. The students should not only know the disaster mentioned in this text, but also do some research on some other disasters in history. Teaching ProceduresKey Points Vocabulary StructuresReadin
2、g Skillscancel, contract, creature, customary, dispute, drift, efficiently, eventually, fault, inform, investigation, lack, meanwhile, radio (v.), reveal, reverse, shorten, tourism, virtuallycall at, clean up, depend on, leave for, one by one, in place, take on, wipe out in order that as well as How
3、 to read fasterLead-in; Reading of the Text; Exercises; Listening and Speaking; Phonetics; Use the Right Word; Grammar Tips; Hands-on Exploration; Practical Reading; Practical WritingText Study Lead InLanguage ApplicationListening and SpeakingConsolidationDrills for PRETCO TestLead In 1. Disasters 2
4、. Amoco Corporation3. The Persian Gulf 4. The English Channel5. Topic-related Words and Phrases Text Study 1. Global Reading2. Detailed ReadingQuestions and Answers Text Analysis Consolidation1. Dictation2. Words and Phrases3. Listening Practice4. Group Discussion2. SpeakingListening and Speaking1.
5、Listening3. PhoneticsPractical ReadingLanguage ApplicationPractical WritingLetter of Inquiry1. Sample2. Notes of Writing3. Basic Patterns4. Do It YourselfDrills for PRETCO Test1. Listening Comprehension2. Vocabulary and Structure3. Translation Either natural or man-made, a disaster negatively affect
6、s life, property, livelihood or industry, often resulting in permanent changes to human societies, ecosystems and environment.Disasters Amoco Corporation Amoco was a United States oil c o m p a n y f o r m e d f r o m t h e dissolution of Standard Oil. It was originally Standard Oil of Indiana, or S
7、tanolind, despite the fact that its headquarters was in Chicago, Illinois. Early operations centered on the WhitingWhiting, Indiana refinery. Standard Oil of Indiana expanded from its Midwest roots by acquiring The American Oil Company (Amoco) along the eastern U.S. coast and Pan-Am Petroleum in the
8、 southeastern U.S. In 1998 the company merged with British Petroleum to form BPAmoco, which was later renamed simply BP. Even though BP is currently changing existing Amoco stations to the BP livery, they are using the Amoco brand name for their gasoline and diesel fuel.An extension of the Gulf of O
9、man between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran, the Persian Gulf contains the island kingdom of Bahrain and is borderedbordered by Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, and Iraq. The Persian Gulf Satellite photo of the Persian Gulf made by NASAIt has long been a maritime tra
10、de route between the Middle East and South Asia; its modern economy is dominated by petroleum production. The English Channel The English Channel is the part of the Atlantic Ocean that separates the island of Great Britain from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. In French it i
11、s called La Manche (“the sleeve”). It is about 350 miles long and at its widest is 240 km (150 miles). The Strait of Dover is the narrowest point, only 34 km (21 miles), from Dover to Cape Gris-Nez.oil pollution: Large oil spills typically result from oil tanker accidents such as collisions and grou
12、ndings. It is true that oil pollution, one of the ugliest forms of marine pollution, is sometimessometimes caused by oil spills, but this is actually just a small percentage of the total world oil pollution problem. Offshore drilling pollution comes from operation discharges and drilling accidents d
13、uring oceanic oil exploration. In addition to all this, there is also natural oil pollution, which has occurred for thousands of years.Topic-related Words and Phrases natural disasters: avalanche, drought, earthquake, flood, hurricane/typhoon, heat/cold in excess, mudflow, tornado, tsunami, volcano,
14、 wildfire, winter storm, etc.man-made disasters: biological, chemical, civil disorder, data loss, explosions, nuclear blast, public relation crisis, radiation, terrorism, war, etc.Questions and AnswersDirections: Skim the paragraphs for answers to the following questions. To save time.Paragraph 1:Qu
15、estion: Why did the captain decide to keep the tanker near the coast? Answer: Something was wrong with the steering gear, and the ship could not be controlled properly.Paragraph 2:What happened to the ship at about 10 a.m. that day? Answer:Question:A pipe in the hydraulic system was broken, and oil
16、was pouring out. Paragraph 3:What made the ship uncontrollable? Answer:Question:He radioed for a tug to help instead of seeking help from the French authorities. Paragraph 4:What did the captain do to solve the problem? Answer:Question:The two captains had a dispute on the customary salvage contract
17、.Why was an immediate action delayed?Answer:Question:A fault occurred to the steam system and after a small explosion the anchor was lost. Besides, the Pacifics attempt to tow a second time was delayed when the tanker swung sideways in the heavy seas. Paragraph 5:What killed Amoco Cadizs final hope?
18、Answer:Question:It caused heavy oil pollution on over 100 miles of the shore, killed thousands of fish, seabirds and other marine creatures. Whats worse, the impact of the accident on Brittanys fishing industry and tourism was cataclysmic.Paragraph 6:What was the outcome of Amoco Cadizs accident? An
19、swer:Question:Text AnalysisAmoco Cadizs journey to Lyme Bay. The bad weather and the problem with the steering engine. The cause of the faulty engine and the failure in repair work. Para. 1Para. 2Para. 3The captains wrong decision and the failure of the tug in its initial endeavors to tow the tanker
20、. Para. 4Main Ideas Paragraphs Para. 5The foolish stubbornness of the tankers captain and the fruitless efforts to save the tanker. Para. 6The disaster and its outcome. Main Ideas Paragraphs In 1978, the tanker Amoco Cadiz called at a port in the Persian Gulf, took on 220,000 tons of oil and left fo
21、r Europe. Her destination was Lyme Bay, on the south coast of England. To get there, the Amoco Cadiz had to sail round Africa and up the West coast of France. On the 16th of March, the ship was not far from the English Channel. Her Italian captain decided to keep the tanker near the coast to shorten
22、 the journey and save time. Oil pollution has destructive effects on sea-life, tourism and local communities. In fact, such a disaster did happenRead InThe Amoco Cadiz Repairs soon proved impossible, and the hydraulic equipment lacked the necessary pressure.The weather was terrible, with storms and
23、huge waves beating against the ship. The strong winds were from the north-west, howling across the Atlantic Ocean towards the dangerous rocks off the French coast. At about 10 a.m., a sailor informed the captain that the ships steering gear was not working efficiently, so he could not control the sh
24、ip. A quick investigation revealed that a pipe in the hydraulic system which powered the steering was broken, and oil was pouring out from the system. The captain decided not to inform the French authorities of his problem. The ship drifted towards the French coast, and the captain radioed for a tug
25、 to help the Amoco Cadiz. Within an hour, the German-owned Pacific had arrived. It was the only powerful tug in the area at that time. A dispute between the captains prevented immediate action. The captain of the tanker would not at first accept the customary salvage contract offered by the captain
26、of the tug. However, the Pacific eventually shot a towing line to the supertanker and tried to pull her but without much success. The lines finally broke, and it took several hours to get a second line in place. Meanwhile, the Amoco Cadiz was being blown closer and closer to rocks near the French sh
27、ore. At this point, the captain of the supertanker still had not warned the French authorities that a major disaster appeared very likely. Instead, he tried desperately to stop the ship from moving nearer to shore. He tried unsuccessfully to back away from the land by putting his engines in reverse,
28、 but that failed because he could not control the direction of the ship properly. When he tried to drop the ships anchor, he found that it had not been prepared properly. There was a fault in the steam system which powered the anchor. There was a small explosion and the anchor was lost. The Pacific
29、was delayed when it tried to pull the tanker a second time, because the Amoco Cadiz had swung sideways in the heavy seas. By the time the tug was able to pull again, it was too late to prevent a major disaster.Soon after 9 p.m., the tanker was forced onto the rocks of Britanny on the French coast. O
30、il poured from the ship, and the captain radioed the French authorities, who sent helicopters to carry the crew to safety. Then one by one, the ships tanks burst open, covering over 100 miles of the shore with thick, sticky oil. Thousands of fish, sea-birds and other marine creatures died. The peopl
31、e of Brittany suffered badly because they depended heavily on fishing and tourism. When tourists heard of the oil-covered beaches, they cancelled their bookings. Although great efforts were made to clean up the oil, both industries were virtually wiped out for at least a year by the worlds worst oil
32、 pollution disaster at that time.destructive: a. 1) causing destruction 毁灭性的毁灭性的e.g.This rocket has sufficient destructive power to blow a battleship to pieces.e.g.Are all small children destructive?2) fond of, in the habit of, destroying 喜好或习惯于破坏的喜好或习惯于破坏的 Extended words: destruction; destroyRelate
33、d word: constructive community: n. 1) the people living in one place, district or country, considered as a whole 社会，社区社会，社区e.g. Members of our club are drawn from all sections of the local community. e.g. the Jewish community in London2) group of persons having the same religion, race, occupation, e
34、tc. or with common interests 由同宗教、由同宗教、同种族、同职业或其他共同利益的人所构成的团体同种族、同职业或其他共同利益的人所构成的团体call at: pay a short visit; go to sb.s house/office etc.; stop at 拜访；访问；停于拜访；访问；停于e.g.I wouldnt take a bus that calls at every stop.I called at Mr. Greens house this morning, but he was out.Related expressions: call o
35、n; call for; call sth. off; call sb./sth. up take on: take aboard; (of a train, etc.) allow to enter 允许进入允许进入e.g.The bus stopped to take on some children. Related expressions: take sb. in; take sth. over (from sb.); take to destination: n. place to which sb. or sth. is going or is being sent 目的地目的地e
36、.g. After six hours of hiking, we eventually arrived at our destination.Extended words: destine; destinyHer Italian captain decided to keep the tanker near the coast to shorten the journey and save time.Paraphrase:The tankers Italian captain decided that the ship should sail closely to the coast so
37、that they could make the journey short and save time.shorten: v. make or become shorter 使短；变短；使不使短；变短；使不足；变不足足；变不足e.g.The days begin to shorten when it gets cold.e.g.darken, strengthen Word formation: -en: (in verbs) (cause to) be, become, or havebeat: v. 1) hit repeatedly (esp. with a stick) 连续地击打连
38、续地击打All the children took on a curious look when he began to beat the African drum. e.g.Ill beat you to the top of the hill, race you and get there first. e.g.2) defeat; do better than 击败；优于击败；优于3) move up and down regularly 有规律地上下动有规律地上下动Her heart was beating with joy. e.g.inform: v. give knowledge
39、 to 通知；报告；告诉通知；报告；告诉He subscribed to a few magazines to keep himself informed of the fresh developments of this research field.e.g.Extended words: information; informative Related words: notify; teach; instructsteer: v. direct the course of (a boat, ship, car, etc.) 驾驾驶驶e.g.It was his first time to
40、steer a car by the stars in the desert.She tried to steer the conversation away from such dangerous topics. At about 10 a.m., a sailor informed the captain that the ships steering gear was not working efficiently, so he could not control the ship. Paraphrase:At about 10 a.m., a sailor reported that
41、something was wrong with the steering gear, and as a result, the ship could not be controlled properly.investigation: n. careful and thorough inquiry 调查；审查调查；审查e.g.The car accident that happened last night is under investigation.e.g.The police are investigating the causes of the air crash.Extended w
42、ords: investigate; investigator cf. survey: n. a general examination or study, esp. carried out by asking people questions 调查调查; ;概观概观e.g.The most recent survey shows a majority in support of government policy.reveal: v. 1) allow or cause to be seen; display 显示显示e.g.He drew the curtains aside to rev
43、eal the beautiful garden. 2) make known 泄露；透露泄露；透露e.g.The doctor did not reveal to him his fathers hopeless condition.Extended word: revelation Related words: discover; disclose pour: v. 1) cause to flow in a continuous stream 使流动；浇；灌使流动；浇；灌e.g. He poured me another cup of coffee.She poured out her
44、tale of misfortunes.2) flow in a continuous stream; come freely (out/off, etc.) 流；泻流；泻e.g. Tourists poured into the newly opened amusement park.e.g. It never rains but it pours.3) (of rain) come down heavily 倾注倾注 lack: 1. v. be without; not have; have less than enough of 缺乏；没有；缺少缺乏；没有；缺少e.g. The com
45、pany rejected his job application and said that he lacked work experience. e.g. By the end of that extremely dry summer, all the plants in my garden had died for lack of water.2. n. want; need; shortage 缺乏；不足缺乏；不足A quick investigation revealed that Paraphrase:After a quick examination, the crew foun
46、d that Repairs soon proved impossible.Paraphrase:They soon found it impossible to fix the broken pipe.authority: n. 1) power or right to give orders and make others obey 权威；威信权威；威信e.g.An officer has authority over the soldiers under him.He has made his authority felt, by showing the other children t
47、hat he has power to make them obey when the teacher is away.Extended words: authorize; authorization; authorized 2) person or group of persons having authority 掌权之人；掌权之人； 当局当局 e.g. After her husbands death, she sold their house to the local authority and left the city.Related words: expert; governme
48、nt; permission drift: v. 1) be carried along by, or as by, a current of air or water 漂流漂流e.g. The snow had drifted everywhere. e.g. Lacking adequate management and good opportunities, the factory is drifting towards bankruptcy. 2) gradually change from being in one condition, situation etc. into ano
49、ther 渐渐趋向渐渐趋向A dispute between the captains prevented immediate action.Paraphrase:The two captains did not agree with each other on how to solve the problem, thus an immediate action was delayed.dispute: n. debate; argument 辩论；争论辩论；争论e.g. The matter in dispute is whos going to be the one to take ove
50、r his fathers position. Extended expressions: beyond dispute; in dispute with e.g. This is beyond dispute the best book I have ever read on the subject. e.g. The basketball players are in dispute with the management on salary issues.customary: a. in agreement with, according to, custom 合于风俗习惯的；根据风俗习
