1、Unit 4 Information TechnologyLesson 1 AvatarsWarming-upWhat does“avatar”mean?An avatar is a personalized graphical illustration that represents a computer user,or a character or alter ego(另一个我)that represents that user.An avatar can be represented either in three-dimensional form(for example,in game
2、s or virtual worlds)or in two-dimensional form as an icon(图像)in Internet forums and virtual worlds.What is an avatar?Digital identities,known as avatars,are a key part of how people use the Internet to communicate and express themselves.Warming-upLook at the screenshot of our class WeChat group,choo
3、se one or two avatars and guess who its user is,then try to find your classmates and talk with her/him about your avatars.Describe your avatar and share the reason/story why you adopt it.Guess and TalkExample:I used/adopted _ as my avatar in order to/because _.I use a cartoon character avatar instea
4、d of a photo to protect myself online.Pre-readingYou are going to read an article about avatars.What would you like to learn from it?Write down your questions in the diagram.AvatarsDefinitionHistoryViewsUsesDesignMeaning.While-readingRead the article and check how many of your questions are answered
5、.The article mainly talks about the following aspects.Introduction/definitionWhat is an avatar?An avatar is the digital identity one uses online.A digital image that represents an Internet user.AvatarsHistory/developmentUses/purposesof avatarsDifferent viewsPeople use avatars to _.While-readingRead
6、the article again.Complete the information below.The first simple 2D avatars appeared in role-playing computer games.Avatars were being used in web chats like instant messenger.The Avatars you choose says a lot about your personality and avatars let you express yourself.Avatars give you room for cre
7、ativity.People can create avatars and create new identities that do not look or act like their real selves.People spend so much time in virtual worlds that they are becoming afraid of meeting people in the real world.People look forward to a time when their avatars will act like a real person and tr
8、avel around bigger,more exciting virtual worlds.Post-readingComplete the following paragraph with the words below.personality,selection,creativity,source,page,hairstyles,fancy,images,charactersI read an article about avatars on a web 1 _ yesterday.It was informative and interesting.I agree with it s
9、aying that your choice of avatars says a lot about your 2 _.I chose my avatar from a 3 _ of ready-made 4 _.She is one of my favorite cartoon 5 _.I like her because she is kind and helpful.pagepersonalityselectionimagescharactersPost-readingpersonality,selection,creativity,source,page,hairstyles,fanc
10、y,images,charactersMy cousin Wang Ming is very creative.He finds that avatars give him lots of room for 6 _.He has created several avatars for different occasions.He dressed them in 7 _ clothes with beautiful 8_ and they all act more or less like him.But the article warns that the use of several ava
11、tars can be a 9 _ of risk.creativityfancyhairstylessourceSpeakingPair WorkAsk and answer questions about avatars using the information in the table.Then introduce avatars to your partner.1.What is an avatar?2.How have avatars developed over decades?3.How do people use avatars?4.What are peoples view
12、s on the use of avatars?SpeakingWork in groups and discuss the following questions.1.Why do people obviously make their avatars look better than they do in real life?2.What does the writer mean by“the avatar you choose says a lot about your personality”?Do you agree with the writer?Give examples to
13、support your opinion.3.Can you give examples of the risks of using avatars?What can we do to prevent such risks?AssignmentOrganize your group discussion into a short passage.Try to use newly-learnt expressions as many as possible.Notes1.They could dress their avatars in _ clothes,or they could try b
14、eing someone of the opposite sex,and call themselves“Andy”instead of“Anna”!fancyfancy adj.异常复杂的；精致的；绚丽的；昂贵的Harry took me to a fancy restaurant for our anniversary.哈里带我去一家高级餐厅庆祝我们的结婚纪念日。What do you fancy doing,anyway?你想做什么呢?fancy v.想要；想做 fancy doing sth.设想做某事；想象做某事；喜欢做某事Notes2.Most people create avat
15、ars that have similar features to their personalities and that look _ like them and act like them.more or less more or less 有几分；约；大概I was meeting these chaps who were mostly more or less my own age.我见到了这帮小伙子，他们多数和我年龄相仿。I suspect that he is more or less involved in the affair.我怀疑他和这件事多少有些牵连。Notes3.In
16、 most web chats,people choose an avatar from _ ready-made images,or create their own images.a selection of a selection of 一系列；汇集了精选的I did not know at the time that he had translated a selection of Han Shan poems,and he didnt mention the fact.那时我并不知道他曾翻译过寒山的诗歌，他自己也没提过。selection n.选择；挑选；被挑选的人（物）；可供选择的事物Goodbye!
