4.
SOCIE
ETY LIFE
Learning Objectives:
After completing this unit,, students are expected to be able to:
1. know the words in the reading passage related to urban life
2. use the words in the right context
3. correctly answer different types of questions in the reading passage (main
idea, detail, reference, inference, and vocabulary
vocabula questions)
4. build sentences using the words learned in this unit
1. WARM UP
Discuss these questions with a partner.
1. Why do people live in cities?
cities
2. What are some of the world’s most important
imp rtant cities?
3. In your opinion, which is the best city in your country to live in
in? which
is the worst city to live in? Why?
In 2015, there will be 21
cities that with a
population of ten million
or more.
In 1950, only one city in the world had more than ten million people – New York.
By the year 2030, 60 percent of the world’s population will live in cities.
Many residents of large urban areas will face problems with housing, pollution (for
example, of the air and water), and crime.
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2. PRE-READING
A. Discussion. Study the map and the information. Then answer the questions below.
1. What was the first city to have a population of more than ten million?
2. In 2015, how many cities will have ten million people or more?
3. Where will most of these cities be? What will be three of the largest cities?
4. What issues will people in these large cities face?
B. Predict. What can we do about the problems of city life? List two ideas. Then
read the passage. Are any of your ideas mentioned?
1 Worldwide, cities
gain a million
people a week. This
kind of growth
5 brings problems,
and today many of
the world’s largest
cities face similar
high housing costs, pollution, and crime (to name a few). Sao Paulo, Brazil.
10 What are some urban planners doing to fix these problems Worldwide, cities grow by a million
and improve people’s lives? people a week.
Hyderabad, India (Population: More Than 5 Million)
To improve residents’ lives, Hyderabad is planting trees and
parks. The city is even creating “greener” buildings that use
15 less water and less electricity for power. Adding green to a
city has a number of advantages. For example, trees remove
pollution from the air and make it cleaner. In Hyderabad,
streets were gray and ugly a few years ago. Today, they are
filled with trees and flowers, making the city cleaner and more
20 colorful. Green areas also give people places to relax or
exercise and walk. A study in the US showed something else
interesting: the greener a neighborhood is, the less crime
there is against people and property—especially buildings and
cars.
25 Sao Paulo, Brazil (Population: More Than 18 Million)
Many people work in the center of Sao Paulo, but they don’t
live there. They’ve spread out to neighborhoods outside the
city, where housing is cheaper. Every day, these people travel
into the city, and traffic is very heavy. Urban planners are
30 using different strategies to address this issue. First, they are
building better subways. Another goal is to make it cheaper
for people to live in the downtown area. Doing this will shorten
the distance people travel for work and reduce traffic and
pollution in the city.
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3. READING COMPREHENSION
A. Multiple Choice. Choose the best answer for each question.
1. What is the main purpose of this passage?
a. to show how two cities are improving people’s lives
b. to describe the benefits of smaller cities
c. to explain why more people are moving into cities
d. to describe the life an urban planner
2. Which reason for making a city greener is NOT stated in the passage?
a. It makes a city cleaner
b. It helps people work better
c. It lowers crime rates
d. It makes it easier to exercise
3. In line 14, what does the word “greener” mean?
a. more brightly colored
b. better for the environment
c. taller
d. more full of trees
4. According to the passage, what problem does Sao Paulo have?
a. a lot of people don’t have jobs.
b. too many people live in the city center
c. a lot of people are moving out of the city.
d. too many people drive into the city every day.
5. In line 27, what does the word “there” refer to?
a. Brazil c. In a city
b. Outside Sao Paulo d. Central Sao Paulo
B. Classification. Match each answer (a—f) with the place it describes.
Hyderabad Sao Paulo a. is finding ways for people
to live near their
workplace
b. is adding trees and parks
to the city
c. has less than ten million
residents
d. is trying to reduce
pollution
e. is making buildings that
use less energy
f. is improving public
transportation
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4. VOCABULARY PRACTICE
A. Completion. Complete the information with the correct form from the box.
One word is extra.
challenge colorful exercise growth property
traffic urban garden cycle art
Golden Gate Park, in San Francisco, California, is one
of the largest 1.__________ parks in the United States.
Today, over one million 2.__________ flowers, trees,
and other plants 3.__________ in the park. But
originally, most of the park was covered in sand.
Creating a park in this environment was a big
4.___________, but after a lot of work, the park was
established in the 1870s. Today, Golden Gate park is
home to the oldest public Japanese 5._________ in the
USA, as well as a number of 6._________ and science
museums. People also visit the park to relax or 7.
____________. There are places to play basketball,
soccer, golf, and many other sports. The park is also
closed in many places to 8.______________ so people
can walk, 9.______________, or skate freely.
Golden Gate Park contains the
oldest public Japanese garden
B. Words in Context. Complete each sentence with the
in the USA.
best answer.
1. If you fix something, you ______________.
a. make it work again b. break it
2. If something is ugly, it ____________ nice to look at.
a. is b. is not
3. If a city experiences growth, its population____________.
a. goes up b. goes down
4. Without electricity, the _____________ in your house will not work.
a. lights b. water
5. If your remove a table from, you ____________ the room.
a. bring in to b. take it out of
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5. SENTENCE BUILDING
Make one sentence using the word(s) given on each item. The sentence must be at least
five (5) words long.
challenge colorful exercise growth property traffic
urban garden cycle art
1. challenge / city
____________________________________________________________________
2. rural / urban
____________________________________________________________________
3. traffic / improve
____________________________________________________________________
4. cycle / park
____________________________________________________________________
5. population / housing
____________________________________________________________________
6. increase / crime rate
____________________________________________________________________
7. greener / pollution
____________________________________________________________________
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