Writing a proposal

1. What is a fact?

2. What is an opinion?

A fact is a piece of information that is proved to be true.

An opinion is a feeling or belief that is not certain or proved.

Skills building 1

What words might we use to describe this picture?

clown

painted face

colourful

circus

smiling

Facts Opinion

funny

weird hair

scary

happy

ugly

Which of the following are Facts and which of them are Opinions?

1. China has a total land area of over 9.6 million km2.

2. On 15 October 2003, China sent its first astronaut into space.

3. I believe our painting is worth quite a lot of money.

Facts

Facts

Opinion

4. Suzhou is over 80 km away from Shanghai.

5. It seems that people prefer living in urban areas.

6. I think that you should find a secure job.

7. Mr. Wang came home to find his computer broken.

Facts

Facts

Opinion

Opinion

Listening

Listen to a recording. Decide whether each of the speakers is stating a fact or expressing an opinion. Circle the correct words.

1. Fact

2. Fact

3. Opinion

4. Fact

5. Opinion

6. Opinion

Key:

Can you name any Wh-words?

Skills building 2

who, whose, which, where, when, why, how many, how old, how often, how much, what, how far, …

Can you make Wh-questions with Wh-words? What do you want to do?

Why does she have a break when she’s doing work?

Where are you going?

How do you finish it?

How many birds can you see in the picture?

Work in pairs. Complete the questions according to the answers.

1. _______ do you usually go to your local cinema to watch a film? I usually go on Saturday evenings.

2. ________ do you go there to watch a film?

I go there twice a month.

When

How often

3. ________ do you think so many people would like RealCine?

Lots of people would like RealCine, because they can experience something that they might never experience in real life.

4. ________ problem(s) do you think RealCine could have?

Tickets for this kind of experience might be too expensive.

Why

What

5. ______ do you think can be done to solve this problem?

I think better and newer computer technology can be used to reduce the cost of making virtual reality programs.

What

1. Usual time of use _______________

2. How often it is used ______________________________________________

3. Reasons for use ________________

in the afternoon.

three times a week: Monday, Thursday, Friday.

for school work.

Listen to the interview and complete the interview form below.

buy new computers and new software.

4. Problems found _____________________________________________________________

5. Suggestions for improving the computer room

___________________________________

keyboards, speed, memory, no Internet connection.

What are the general rules we should follow when we write a business proposal, a report or a letter to a stranger?

Skills building 3

Dos

Always be polite.Be very serious. Use formal greetings and endings.Use titles and family names.Use Dear Sir / Madam if you don’t know the person’s name.

Don’ts

Do not be personal.Do not tell jokes or try to be funny.Do not use contractions.Do not use slang.

Answers: 1. Casual 2. Formal

3. Casual 4. Formal

5. Casual 6. Formal

7. Casual 8. Casual

Example sentences of formal and casual writing

1

2

3

Formal Casual

It gives me much pleasure to inform you.

I’m pleased to tell you.

We are writing with reference to ...

We are writing about ...

Mr. Brown informed me of your decision.

Mr. Brown told me that you had made up your mind.

Writing a proposal for a new computer room

1. Interview your classmates and gather more information about school computer room.

2. Read your notes and then complete the summary of the survey for the school newspaper.

你是一名高中的学生，要给市长写一封信 , 反映学校门前交通拥挤现象。包括以下要点 : 问题 : 学校和一所小学毗邻 , 对着大街 , 高 峰期交通繁忙 , 加之孩子小 家长接 送。交通更拥挤 , 学生过街在车辆中穿 行危险。 建议 : 政府应采取措施如修天桥等。参考词汇 : 穿行 thread one’s way 天桥 overpass

Dear Mayor,I am a student of No. 7 Middle School. Here I have something to tell you.Beside my school is a primary school. The gates of the two schools both face the main road. In rush hours, there are many cars, buses and bikes. The students have to cross the road to the school. Crowds of people often thread their way through the moving cars and buses. What’s worse, some pupils are too

young to go to school by themselves, so many parents have to go along with them to make sure that their children are safe, which makes the street more crowded.I think the government should do something about this. Maybe an overpass can be built over the road. At the same time, we’d better teach students more about road safety. Otherwise accidents are sure to happen. I am looking forward to your reply.Yours,_______