Explorations in English

- Book Two -
LESSON 3. DESCRIBING PEOPLE (Part I)

GOAL: To understand descriptions of others and describe how others look.

A. REVIEW OF PREVIOUS LESSONS:
Answer the questions below-

  1. Is your schedule hectic this week?
  2. How's the humidity today?
  3. How was your weekend?
  4. What's the chance of rain today?
  5. Is today's expected high over 300 C?
  6. Did you do anything special on Sunday?
  7. Have you received any unexpected visitors recently?
B. PRONUNCIATION FOCUS: Clipped pronouns
Circle the words in brackets you hear, then practise both words -

   1.  you / her   >  D'ya like 'er?  2.  he / him     > Did 'e find 'im?
   3.  it /  yours > Is 't  yers?     4.  they / them  > Are 'ey cumin' after 'em?
C. VOCABULARY REVIEW
Match the words on the left with the drawing on the right -

a. forehead

b. eyes (round/oriental)

c. eyebrows

d. sideburns

e. moustache

f. beard (long/short)

g. mole (dark/light)

h. lips (thick/thin)

i. nose (flat/thin, long/short)

j. head

j. bald

D. PRE-LISTENING QUESTIONS
Discuss these questions in small groups -
  1. Are Japanese growing taller or shorter?
  2. How have hairstyles in Japan changed over the last twenty years?
  3. What sort of clothing is fashionable now in Japan?
  4. When do most people in Japan start using make up?
E. LISTENING/SPEAKING FOCUS
Hitomi and Bart are chatting together in a pub.

Part A - Read this dialog and try to guess the missing words,
then listen to the dialog -

Hitomi:*
Bart: *
Hitomi:*
**
Bart: *
Hitomi:*
Bart: *
**
Hitomi:*
Bart: *
Hitomi:*
Bart: *
Hitomi:*
Bart: *
Hitomi:*
Bart: *
Hitomi:*
Have you met my friend 1?
No, what's 2 look like?
3 an attractive 4 of medium height in
5 early twenties.
Please give me a better description.
6 has an oval face, flat nose, and mole on
7 chin.
What sort of hair does 8 have?
Its long, black, and straight. 9 also has wavy bangs.
I don't think I know 10. What's she like?
Vivacious with friends, but reserved 11 strangers.
What's 12 into?
Dancing 13 karaoke.
14 sounds like dynamite.
Yeah, I'll introduce 15 some day.
I'd love to meet 16.
continue. . .

Part B - Now practice the dialog with a partner.
Look at your partner as you speak.
Part C - This time change the dialog to fit your own experience.
Feel free to depart from the text and improvise.
F. CONTENT QUESTIONS:

Write the answers to these questions-

  1. How tall is Hitomi's friend?
  2. Is her face square, round, or oval?
  3. How vivacious is Hitomi's friend?
  4. What does she do in her free time?
G. DESCRIPTION EXERCISES

Work in groups of 3-5 people on this game:


   PERSON A - Describe any famous person, but don't mention their name. Your team mates 
                 will try to guess who the person is.
                       
   OTHERS - Listen as a few famous people are described. Try guessing who the person is. 
                 Ask questions to help you guess.
EXAMPLE :"He is an Italian-American actor. He is average height and has powerful muscles. Now he is in his 50's. He has black hair (maybe there is some gray now.) He has round, deep eyes, a strong neck, and tight muscles. His most famous films were Rocky and Rambo."
H. COMMON MISTAKES
Correct these mistakes - 

            1. *She is in mid-20s.    2. *She is average high. 
            3. *She is a round face.  4. *Her nose is high.
I. DISCUSSION

1. What shape is your father's face?
2. Are your eyebrows thick or thin?
3. Do you have oriental eyes?
 4. What sort of hair does your mom have?
5. How popular are sideburns now?
6. Do you have any moles?
7. Continue to ask more questions. Sample patterns: What color? How popular? etc.

J. FEEDBACK

Write your comments about today's lesson in the space below.
Either Japanese or English is OK.


What was most useful about this lesson?
What was least useful about this lesson?
Any ideas, suggestions, or comments?




K. HOMEWORK


Describe yourself in detail. Mention your hair style, facial shape, and clothing.

________________________________
copyright (c) 1997 by Tim Newfields

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