Unit 8. The story of my village

Unit 8: The story of
my village
Past A:Reading


I. Before you read
Work in pairs. Look at the
picture:
1. what are the people in
the picture doing?
2. how are they working?
3 what do you think of the
crop?
4.what helps produce good
crops?

They’re rice from the fields
They’re working hard and
merrily
3.I think it’s a good crop.
4.To get good crops, besides
good farming mcthod(s). it
requires hard work and
suitable weather


II.While you read
Many years ago, my village was
very poor. The villager had to
work hard in the field all day and
could hardly make ends meet.

Their lives were simple and they
were in need of many things.
Many people had to live in houses
made of straw and mud, and few
families had a radio or a TV set.
However, in spite of the
shortages, the villagers managed
to send their children to school
and college. They hoped that with
an education of science and
technology, their children could
find a way of bettering their lives.

    Cách đây nhiều năm, làng tôi rất
nghèo. Dân làng phải làm việc cực
nhọc ngoài đồng cả ngày và ít khi
có đủ tiền mua những thứ cần
thiết- Cuộc sống của họ giản dị và
họ cần nhiều thứ. Nhiều người
phải sống trong những ngôi nhà
bằng rơm và bùn, và ít gia đình
có ra-đi-ô hay truyền hình. Tuy
nhiên mặc dù thiếu thốn, dân làng
cố gắng gởi con đến trường và đại
học. Họ hy vọng rằng với vốn học
về khoa học và kỹ thuật, con cái
của họ có thể tìm ra phương thức
cải thiện cuộc sống của họ.

The children have met their
parents’ wishes. When they
came back from college or
technical high school, they
introduced new farming
methods, which resulted in
bumper crops. They also helped
the villagers grow cash crop for
export. Soon, the lifestyle of my
village changed. Today, people
live in brick houses. In the
evening, they can listen to the
news on the radio or watch TV
for entertainment.. Sometimes
they go to town on their
motorbikes to do some shopping
or to visit their friends.

      Con cái của họ đã thỏa mãn
ước mơ của cha mẹ chúng. Khi
chúng từ trường đại học hay
trung học kỹ thuật trở về,
chúng giới thiệu những phương
pháp canh tác mớì đưa đến
những vụ mùa bội thu. Chúng
cũng giúp dân làng trồng các
cây thương phẩm để xuất khẩu.
Chẳng bao lâu, cuộc sống của
làng tôi đã thay đổi. Ngày nay,
người dân sống trong những

ngôi nhà gạch. Buổi tối họ có
thể nghe tin tức trên máy vô
tuyến hoặc xem truyền hình để
niải trí. Đôi khi họ có thể ra
tỉnh thành trên những chiếc xe
gắn máy để mua sắm hay thăm
bạn bè.


“Our lives have changed
a lot thanks to the
knowledge our
children brought
home” said an old
farmer, “and I always
tell my grandchildren
to study harder so that
they can do even more
for the village than
their parents did.

Một nông dân già nói,
“Nhờ kiến thức con cái
chúng tôi mang về
nhà, cuộc sống chúng
tôi đã thay đổi nhiều,
và tôi luôn luôn bảo
các cháu chúng tôi học
siêng năng hơn để
chúng có thể làm cho

làng nhiều hơn cha mẹ
chúng đã làm.”


1.Task 1
A

B

1 Make ends meet

a.Making one’s life better

2. In need of many things

b. have just enough money to pay for
the things that you need

3. Bettering one’s life

c. Crops to be sold , not for use by
the people who grow it

4. Bumper crops

d. Having to have many things that you
do not have

5.Cash crops

e. Good crops


1.Task 1:
1-b

2-d

3-a

4-e

5-c


2.Task 2:
Areas of change
house

Radio and TV

Before

Now

3

2

Farming methods

4

crops

travel

1

Made of straw and mud

7

9

6

8

Motobike


1 made of brick 
2  few families had a radio  
3   many families had  or a TV set     
4  these things old, by hand   
5 new,with machines
6    poor       
7 good / bumper
8  on foot/by cart   

9    by motorbike


3.Task 3:
1.What was life like in the author's village many years ago?
- It was poor and simple
2Why did the villagers want to send their children to school and college in
spite of their shortages?
-Because they hoped that with an education of science and technology,
their children could find a way of bettering their lives.
3How did the children help improve the lifestyle in the village when they
finished college or technical high school?
-They introduced new farming methods which resulted in bumper crops.
They also helped to grow cash crops for export.
4.What did an old farmer say about the effect of the knowledge the young
people brought home?
-He said their lives had changed a lot thanks to the knowledge their
children brought home from technical high schools or colleges.
5. What exactly did he tell his grandchildren?
-He told his grandchildren, “Study harder so that you can even do more
for the village than your parents did”.


III. After you read
How can people with an education help make the life of their
community better?
-People with an education can help to make the life of the community
better by applying new methods, new technique and knowledge in
working. And thanks to this, the work gets more effective and
produces better results.