Lesson 4

The lesson plan

1. Oral test on the homework (15 min)

2. Lexical exercises (40 min)

3. Speaking practice (30 min)

4. Homework (3 min)

Oral test on the homework

Students’ hometask was to compose a story about the problems they’ve faced buying a new computer. Ask some students to tell their stories to the class.

LEXICAL EXERCISES

I. Ask students to give definitions to words and word combinations which they have learnt at the previous lesson and to spell them:

to replace – to substitute a person or thing for; put in place of

a writable drive– a drive that you can make a disc on, such as a CD or in this case a DVD

to burn something, a DVD or CD– to record something

specs– specifications

a microprocessor– a single integrated circuit performing the basic functions of the central processing unit in a small computer

to be a whiz at something– to be very good at, to be an expert

PC– personal computer

processor– another name for central processing unit

to give someone your two cents worth– to give your opinion

memory– a part of a computer in which information is stored for immediate use by the central processing unit

to act up– to cause you problems

heart of hearts– deep down, what you really, surely believe or what you really and surely like

DVD– digital video disk: an optical disk used to store audio, video, or computer data, esp feature films for home viewing

word processing– typing documents, letters

a monitor– the unit in a desk computer that contains the screen

to throw out something– to give someone information

a central processing unit– the part of a computer that performs logical and arithmetical operations on the data as specified in the instructions. Abbreviation: CPU

to be over your head– to be too difficult

RAM– random access memory: semiconductor memory in which all storage locations can be rapidly accessed in the same amount of time. It forms the main memory of a computer, used by applications to perform tasks while the device is operating

data (sing. datum) – the information operated on by a computer program

a mouse– a hand-held device used to control the cursor movement and select computing functions without keying

a blank CD or a blank DVD– an empty DVD

II. Learning new vocabulary for the theme “COMPUTER”. Ask students to match computer terms written in bold with definitions given below. Then ask them to read matched pairs aloud and put between the term and its definition the verb “is”. For example,

Hitis a visit to a Web site.

cursor	B:movable indicator on computer screen
network	C:system of electronically joined computers
to download	A:to copy a file or program onto a personal computer
virus	D:digital infection or poison
browser	A:software that allows you to explore , or browse the Internet
to boot	D:to start up a computer
server	A:central computer sharing resources and data with other computers on a network
modem	D:connecting device between computers over a phone line
glitch	C:error; malfunction
pixel	A:picture element; basic unit of an on-screen image
link	C:related site on Internet
scanner	A:machine that reproduces images onto a computer
shareware	D:free trial software often requiring later payment
gigabyte	B:unit of storage, roughly a billion bytes

III. Compose sentences using terms from the previous exercise using as many terms as they can.

Sample sentences:

1. He put the cursor after the last typed word.

2. A network offers many opportunities for sharing information.

3. She downloaded the transcript of the trial.

4. The virus wreaked havoc with the bank’s accounting.

5. The journalist submitted her article by modem.

6. A gigabyte of work was saved on her home computer.

IV. Ask students to listen to the audio text “Computer terms: Good Hackers, Bad Hackers and Busy Bloggers” and to write down terms pronounced in the text and their definitions.