Celebration Festivals
Part A Warm-up:
1. Look at the photos. What are the people celebrating?
Key Words: graduation, a birthday, Christmas, passing an exam, winning a scholarship, a sporting victory, the Mid Autumn Festival, the New Year, a wedding, Halloween, the Dragon Boat Festival
2. What have you celebrated recently?
Part B Reading: Festivals
Before you start
1. What’s your favourite season? What festivals happen during your favourite season?
Festivals
A: Autumn
Every year in September or October, the Mid-Autumn Festival is celebrated by the Chinese people all over the world. On this day, the moon is said to be its biggest and brightest. People like to meet in the evening and watch the moon.
The Mid-Autumn Festival is important because it is a special occasion for family. It is also a day for special foods like moon cakes. There are all kinds of moon cakes. Traditional moon cakes are usually made with bean paste, but nowadays, there are many different kinds of moon cakes including fruit, coffee, chocolate and even ice-cream moon cakes. B: Winter
The Lantern Festival falls on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. It marks the end of the Chinese New Year celebrations.
There are many stories about how the Lantern Festival started. In one story, lanterns were lit to celebrate the power of light over darkness. In another story, a town was almost destroyed but the light from many lanterns saved it. The story was about a god who wanted to burn down the town. He was fooled when he saw thousands of lanterns. He thought the town was already burning.
In the past, lanterns were usually lit by candles and decorated with pictures of birds, animals and flowers, etc. Nowadays, most lanterns are made with light bulbs and batteries, and they come in many shapes and sizes. In the north-eastern part of China, there are even ice-lanterns.
The special food for the Lantern Festival is the sweet dumpling. Sweet dumplings are boiled and served in hot water. C: Summer
The Dragon Boat Festival falls on the fifth day of the fifth month of the lunar year, As it is in early summer, it marks the beginning of the hottest season of the year.
The tradition of the Dragon Boat Festival started more than 2,000 years ago. In the old days, dragon boat races were organized only by Chinese people. However, in recent years, people from other cultures have also taken part in races and enjoyed the fun.
There is a special food for the festival. It is called zongzi, which is sticky rice in fresh bamboo leaves
Read to learn
2. Read the texts again and fill in the table with the information you read from the texts. Add another typical festival that you know well. Festivals The Mid-Autumn Festival The Lantern Festival The Dragon Boat Festival
voice your opinion
3. Do you think too much money is spent at festival times? Why or why not?
4. Which festival in China is most important for children? Young people? Old people? Women and men?
Season& date/ month Typical activity or food Part C Grammar: The Passive
5. Look at the first sentence in each group and complete the second sentence with the correct verb forms. (1) …the Mid-Autumn Festival is celebrated by Chinese people all over the world. Traditional moon cakes (make) with beam paste. (2) In one story, lanterns were lit to celebrate the power of light over darkness. In the old days, dragon boat races only (organise) by the Chinese people. 6. Look at the given sentences and work out the correct verb forms of the other sentences.
(1) A school fot the blind has been opened in the area. The wedding celebration (arrange). (2) The theatre is being built in the centre of the city. The money (collect) for the disabled. (3) The girl was being operated on in the hospital. The house (paint) white when I was there. ★ We use the Passive in the following cases: (1) 不知道也不需要知道谁做的这件事时： The streets were decorated with flowers. (2) “动作执行者”显而易见时： Rice is grown in the south of China.
(3) 动作本身比“动作执行者”更重要，或不想指出谁做的这件事时： These beliefs were not encouraged by the church.
(4) 在书面语，特别是在科技报告、报刊文章中，被动语态比主动语态更正式。例如：
Each country was allowed to design their own Euro coins which could be used in any of the participating countries.
The Internation Space Station is now being built in the Earth’s orbit.
时态 一般现在时 现在进行时 一般过去时 过去进行时 现在完成时 （被动）形式
7. Put the verbs in brackets into the Passive. Use the Present Simple or Past Simple tense.
Every year in April, the Water Festival (celebrate) among the Dai people in Xishuangbanna. During this festival, water (splash) everywhere to wash away the old and welcome the new. Buckets of water (carry) around the streets and people attack each other by splashing anyone and everyone.
Tourists (tell) that they are welcome to join in but they cannot splash senior citizens, small children and police on duty!
The festival marks the Dai New Year and (relate) to Buddhist traditions. Over
three days, Buddha statues (wash), dragon boats (race) and rockets (launch) in celebration.
8. Change the following sentences into the Passive. (1) Stress is affecting my health.
(2) They are moving people out of the houses. (3) He has already invented the mini-helicopter. (4) They have put out the forest fire. (5) He was repairing the car when I got there.
(6) They were decorating the house when the accident happende.
Part C Grammar
9. Choose the words below and complete the sentences.
burn down, celevrate, mark, light, decorate, include, boil, take part in (1) The room by dozens of candles. (2) Tom his room with some photos of sports stars. (3) A firework display was organised to the Queen’s birthday.
(4) The party is for students to their graduation with family and friends. (5) I in the soccer team when the best player broke his leg. (6) The school by a mad man. Only two classrooms still stand. (7) Would you like to the race tomorrow? You have to run 10km. (8) The water must to make sure it is clean and safe to drink.
1. We can finish the work in two days.
The work ________ _________ _________ in two days. 2. They produce silk in Suzhou. Silk _________ _________ in Suzhou. 3. The children will sing an English song.
An English song ________ _________ ________ by the children. 4. You needn't do it now.
It _________ _________ _________ by you now. 5. Lucy sent me a New Year Card last week.
A New Year Card _________ _________ ________ me by her last week.
北师大版高中英语必修一unit3 lesson1 Festivals
