Major Steps:
Step 1 Pre-reading (3 minutes)
T: Today we come to the reading. It's about Franklin's kite experiment. As we all know, Benjamin Franklin is a famous politician. But today we will read a passage about him as a scientist. We should learn about his serious attitude towards science. Let's see how Franklin made his famous electricity experiment by flying a kite.
T: Do you have the experiences of flying a kite? Have you ever made a kite by yourself?. Why do you often go out to play kites?
Students share their own ideas with each other.
(Justification: Activate students' background knowledge, and help the teacher introduce the theme of the text.)
Step 2 While-reading (14 minutes)
(1) Fast reading (4 minutes)
Ask the students to read the passage quickly and match the paragraphs with the main ideas (on the screen).
Show the following on the screen:
Paragraph 1The Tip of doing the experiment
Paragraphs 2-3Introduction to Franklin's experiment
Paragraphs 4-6The process of the experiment
Students browse the text quickly to get the general idea.
(Justification: Train students' ability of skimming for the main idea.)
(2) Careful reading (10 minutes)
①Ask students to read the text carefully to find relevant information:
A. List all the materials that are needed to make a kite.
B. List what are needed to do the same kite experiment as Franklin did.
C. Get students to read the text and then decide whether the following statements are true (T) or false (F).
a. In 1752, scientists already knew what electricity is. ( )
b. Franklin was helped by a friend to do the experiment. ( )
c. Franklin made the kite of silk because wet silk does not conduct electricity. ( )
d. A condenser was used in the experiment to store electricity. ( )
e. The key tied to the string was put into the door to stop the kite from flying away. ( )
Students finish the reading task and report to the whole class.
(Justification: Train students' ability of scanning for detailed information.)
② Use the multimedia to present Franklin's experiment.
Students are asked to fill out the form about Science Report.
Title: Experimenter's name
Justification:
Procedure:
Results:
Conclusion:
(Justification: Teach students how to write a science report.)
Step 3 Post-reading (8 minutes)
Present some questions:
①Why is the kite made of silk better than the one made of paper?
②Do you think Franklin's experiment was dangerous? And why?
③ What do you learn from this experiment?
Students are asked to think about the questions, discuss with classmates and report to the whole class.
(Justification: Help students understand the text better and offer them opportunities to communicate with their classmates.)