Lesson 1

COMPUTER

Unit IV

prepared by

Svetlana Konyaeva

e-mail: [email protected], [email protected]

The lesson plan

1. Introduction to the theme (2 min)

2. Prereading discussion (5 min)

3. Active vocabulary (10-15 min)

4. Reading text (10-15 min)

5. Reading comprehension (5-8 min)

6. Speaking practice (15-20 min)

7. Writing practice

– I (8-10 min)

– II (15 min)

8. Homework (1 min)

Introduction

As an introduction to the lesson “COMPUTER” for students a teacher may use the following passage:

The history of computer science began long before the modern discipline of computer science that emerged in the twentieth century. The progression, from mechanical inventions and mathematical theories towards the modern concepts and machines, formed a major academic field and the basis of a massive world-wide industry. Today computers do much more than simply compute: supermarket scanners calculate our grocery bill while keeping store inventory; computerized telephone switching centers play traffic cop to millions of calls and keep lines of communication untangled; and automatic teller machines let us conduct banking transactions from virtually anywhere in the world. But where did all this technology come from and where is it heading? To fully understand and appreciate the impact computers have on our lives and promises they hold for the future, it is important to understand their evolution.

Wikipedia

Prereading discussion

Ask students to discuss the following questions:

1. Who uses computers today? Give examples of the impact they have on our lives.

2. When did the first personal computer appear? How was it different from the computers that precede it?

3. How have computers changed since the first one was introduced in the early 1940s?

ACTIVE VOCABULARY

Ask students to give if possible definitions of the following words and word combinations and to pronounce them correctly:

computer science – the study of computers and their application

computation – a calculation involving numbers or quantities

abacus (pl abaci) – a counting device that consists of a frame holding rods on which a specific number of beads are free to move. Each rod designates a given denomination, such as units, tens, hundreds, etc., in the decimal system, and each bead represents a digit or a specific number of digits

circa – (used with a date) at the approximate time of

BCE – abbreviation for Before Common Era

to employ – to give somebody a job to do for payment

to refer to – to be relevant (to)

to perform – to do, to carry out something

gradually – slowly, over a long period of time

onset – a start; beginning

digital – using a system of receiving and sending information as a series of the numbers one and zero, showing that an electronic signal is there or is not there

value – a particular magnitude, number, or amount

to store – to enter or retain (information) in a storage device

analog – using a continuously changing range of physical quantities to measure or store data

logical – performed by, used in, or relating to the logic circuits in a computer

purely – only, completely

to invent – to create or devise (new ideas, machines, etc.)

Turing machine – a hypothetical universal computing machine able to modify its original instructions by reading, erasing, or writing a new symbol on a moving tape of fixed length that acts as its program

to evolve – to develop or cause to develop gradually

Turing test – a proposed test of a computer's ability to think, requiring that the covert substitution of the computer for one of the participants in a keyboard and screen dialogue should be undetectable by the remaining human participant

to run – to launch, to perform a program

READING TEXT

Ask students to read the text “HISTORY OF COMPUTER SCIENCE” paying attention to pronunciation and to the discussed words and word combinations.

READING COMPREHENSION

I. Ask students to fill in the blanks with suitable words.

- Many thousands of computers were ………………….. (employed) in different spheres of people’s life.

- Human clerks that performed computations were called …………….. (computers).

- The original style of abacus, the earliest known tool for use in computation, has been ………………….. (invented) circa 2400 BCE.

II. Ask students to write given certain statements and write ‘T’ against true statements and ‘F’ against false statements.

- Alan Turing is known as the Father of such a logical computer known as the Manchester Baby. (F) (Alan Turing, known as the Father of Computer Science, invented such a logical computer known as the Turing Machine, which later evolved into the modern computer.)

- A logical computer was able to do anything that could be described "purely mechanical". (T)

- The earliest known tool for use in computation was the wheel. (F) (The earliest known tool for use in computation was the abacus, and it was thought to have been invented in Babylon circa 2400 BCE.)

- The phrase computing machine gradually gave away, after the late 1940s. (T)

- The first practical computer that could run stored programs appeared in 1948. (T)

Speaking practice

Ask students to discuss the topic “COMPUTERS” with their partners using newly learnt words and introduce their final work to the class. Ask them to discuss all periods of computer science development and to try to assess the role of computers in our century.

The periods of computer science development:

circa 2400 BCE

before the 1920s

after the 1920s

after the late 1940s

in 1948

Writing practice

I. Ask students to compose sentences as many as they can, using the following words and discuss them with their partner:

Computer, invention, to load, program, microprocessor, to contribute.

Sample sentences:

– Our sales information is processed by computer.

– Fax machines were a wonderful invention at the time.

– Wait for the program to load.

– An engineer loaded the program into the computer.

– The microprocessor became the heart of the computer.

– Immigrants have contributed to British culture in many ways.

II. Ask students to read the paragraph as many times as they can in 4 minutes. Then ask them to entitle it and tell their partner as much info as they can remember without looking into the text.

Sample title:

Prosperous Business

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