TASK 1 - THEMATIC CONTENT 2

ENGLISH THREE
THE CITY THROUGH MY EYES, YOUR EYES, THEIR EYES
 ENGLISH THREE:
THE CITY THROUGH MY EYES,
YOUR EYES, THEIR EYES
THEMATIC UNIT: PEOPLE TO KNOW
THEMATIC CONTENT: HEROES AND VILLAINS

TASK: You and a classmate want to nominate a candidate. You will

write a newspaper profile to send it to the organizers of the event.
The report has to include the following: a) their biodata (50 words);
b) an account of their deeds; and c) a list of arguments as to why this
person should be the winner of the award.

Context: A contest has been announced to award somebody for his/her actions in the city.

GOALS:
• To show comprehension of specific information in an oral-text.

LANGUAGE FOCUS
Dates: When is your birthday?. My birthday is on June 17th, Yesterday, it was
November 3rd.
Feelings and Emotions: I feel stressed, I am overwhelmed. He is great. I am so
2 thankful.  
Countries and Nationalities: Where are you from?. Have you visited any other country different
from Colombia?. What is your favorite country?
-ed  and –ing Ending Adjectives: I am puzzled. The class is boring. This report is amazing,
Tenses: Simple Past, Past Continuous and Present Perfect (Affirmative and Negative): I wrote
an essay. I did not finish the task. I was carrying out an interview. I was not developing the
project. I have read an academic article. I have not completed the bio-statement.  
Expressions: How long, For, Since: How long have you studied your program? I have lived in
Medellin for 15 years. I have worked since last semester.
Community Places: I was in the school for 13 years. I will visit the hospital to conduct a study, I
have been to the bank to get cash.
Shapes Vocabulary: This is a triangle. Those are pyramids.
Sizes Vocabulary: The team is big, the teacher left us a huge amount of work. The universe is
enormous.    
Materials: My pencil is made of graphite. Glass is used in labs.
Prepositions of Place (around, in front of, behind , between, on the corner) The research center
is between the coffee shop and the library.
Currency The dollar exchange rate is 3.000 pesos. The Euro went up yesterday.
Simple Past, Past Continuous and Present Perfect Questions: What has been your greatest
achievement in college? What was your favorite course last semester? What were you doing at
the lab?

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 Information Questions (How long, how far, how much, how many, how big, etc): How much
does a course cost? How long does it take to study a Masters? How far should I go to take the
metro?  
Comparatives and Superlatives: She is the greatest person of all. She is the best person in the
community. He works harder than me.
Adjective Order:  She had a small round black wooden box to keep her memories.
Time Expressions in Future: I will study a Masters. I will pursue a PhD. I will be in an exchange
program.  
Sequence, comparison and Addition Connectors: first, meanwhile, later, until, before, after, then,
later, finally, afterwards, eventually.
Future Tense: going to:  It is going to be a hard time solving the midterm exam in just one hour. I
am going to the United States next semester.
Verbal Patterns: Infinitive and Gerund:  I really love studying. I prefer writing than speaking
Invitations and Requests (Let’s... / Shall... / Would.../) Would you like to have something to
drink? Shall we start the discussion now?

Pronunciation

ACTION ONE: Choose a person important for you and fin d out some
biographical information about him or her. Write a tribute speech and deliver it to your 3
class.
PRE:
I. Before watching the video: David Bowie is honoured with BRITs Icon Award | The BRIT
Awards 2016, discuss with a classmate the questions in the box below. Then, share your opinion
with the group.

• Who was David Bowie?

• What were his accomplishments?
• What made him famous in the music world?
• What is his most famous song? Why?
• What song of his do you like most? Why?
• What singer in your city was influenced by David Bowie?

II. Watch the video: David Bowie is honoured with BRITs Icon
Award | The BRIT Awards 2016. Complete the missing spaces with
the words you hear from the tribute speech.

Minute 1:10
“For me, it’s ______________
almost impossible to mention Bowie’s name in the past tense. Everything
he ______________
represented as an artist was and always will be ______________
vital and incredibly present.
cutting edge artistic ______________,
As a ______________ genius he continues to live on through his music.”

ENGLISH THREE
THE CITY THROUGH MY EYES, YOUR EYES, THEIR EYES
 Minute 2:30
“There was no one and nothing else like him. He was truly ______________.
unique A quintessential,
______________,
visionary pushing the limits of his shape-shifting persona, the ultimate iconoclast:
______________,
gracious ______________,
dangerous and ______________.
legendary The ______________
legacy of his extraordinary
sound and vision will be loved and ______________
rebirth for as long as the earth still spins.”

Minute 5:48
“‘Music has given me over 40 years of extraordinary experiences. I can’t say that life’s pains or
more tragic episodes have been ______________
diminished because of it, but it has ______________
aloud me so
many moments of companionship when I have been lonely and a ______________
sublime means of
communications when I have wanted to touch people. It has been both my ______________
doorway of
perception and the house that I live in.’”

Minute 6:23
“Over his career, David ______________
challenged and ______________
changed our understanding of the medium,
whether in music or in life, he emphasised originality, experimentation, exploration, and in his
very unique way, he also ______________
reminded us to never take ______________
ourselves too seriously.”

What Annie Lennox says about David Bowie… What Gary Oldman says about David Bowie…

David Byrne says that he was

impressed when he listened David
Bowie for the first time. He also say
that rock and roll needed a shot in the
arm. This expression means that the
rock music was waiting for a new
composer that break everything and
there was David. He felt that Bowie´s
music was familiar, necessary,
essential, glamorous, sexy, confused.
His music had pain, freedom,
liberation. His music was like waking
up after a nightmare. His music, Byrne
said, was a dialogue between rock
and literature, sex and drugs, and
anything you can imagine. Bowie´s
style was a reckless bet for became
the most big artist in the popular music.

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 IV. Make a list of ten possible candidates for you to acknowledge. Then, write a 150-word
text for the event organizers where you describe the accomplishments of the person you
chose to acknowledge.
Nominees: Carlos Vives, Juanes, Shakira, Totó la momposina, Margarita Siempre Viva, Aterciopelados,
Cabas, I.R.A, Los carrangueros de Ráquira and Guafa Trío.
vv I want to nominate a few personalities that I consider they are so
important in the Colombian landscape. Because in some
particular way each one of them have changed the life of a young
generation. The first one is a very special woman that made travel the
Colombian culture around the world. She was a Gabo´s friend, and she sang in
the Nobel ceremony when he received this important award. His real name is
Sonia Bazanta Vides, but his nickname, familiar to all of us, is Totó la Momposina.
Sadly, this year she announced that she will leave the stages. So is a perfect
opportunity to tell her that she has been a beautiful influence for us.

POST:
LANGUAGE FOCUS
Read the following text and complete it using the verbs in the appropriate 5
tense

David Bowie: Early Years

Known as a musical chameleon for his ever-changing appearance and sound, David Bowie

______________
was born (be born) David Robert Jones in Brixton, South London, England, on January

8, 1947.

David ______________
showed (show) an interest in music from an early age and ______________
began (begin)

playing the saxophone at age 13. He ______________

was (be) greatly influenced by his half-brother

Terry, who ______________

was (be) nine years older and ______________
exposed (expose) young David to

the worlds of rock music and beat literature.

But Terry ______________

had (have) his demons, and his mental illness, which ______________
forced

(force) the family to commit him to an institution, ______________

haunted (haunt) David for a good

deal of his life. Terry ______________

committed (commit) suicide in 1985, a tragedy that ______________
became

(become) the focal point of Bowie’s later song, “Jump They Say.”

After graduating from Bromley Technical High School at 16, David ______________
started (start)

ENGLISH THREE
THE CITY THROUGH MY EYES, YOUR EYES, THEIR EYES
 working as a commercial artist. He also ______________
continued (continue) to play music, hooking up

with a number of bands and leading a group himself called Davy Jones and the Lower Third.

Several singles ______________

came out (come out) of this period, but nothing that ______________
gave (give)

the young performer the kind of commercial traction he ______________

needed (need).

Out of fear of being confused with Davy Jones of The Monkees, David ______________
changed (change)

his last name to Bowie, a name that was ______________

inspired (inspire) by the knife ______________
developed

(develop) by the 19th century American pioneer Jim Bowie.

Eventually, Bowie ______________

went out (go out) on his own. But after recording an unsuccessful

solo album, Bowie ______________

exited (exit) the music world for a temporary period. Like so much

of his later life, these few years ______________

proved (prove) to be incredibly experimental for the

young artist. For several weeks in 1967 he lived at a Buddhist monastery in Scotland. Bowie

later ______________
started (start) his own mime troupe ______________
called (call) Feathers.

Around this time he also ______________

met (meet) the American-born Angela Barnett. The two

______________
married (marry) on March 20, 1970, and ______________
had (have) one son together, whom

they ______________
nicknamed (nickname) “Zowie,” in 1971, before divorcing in 1980. He is now known

6 by his birth name Duncan Jones.

Taken from used for educational purposes only: http://goo.gl/rT7lXE
Adapted and modified by: Juan Carlos Vásquez García

ACTION TWO: Read about a controversial person in the city or world. Identify the actions
that make him or her controversial and discuss them in class.
I. Take another look at the text called David Bowie: Early Years, answer and discuss the following
questions with a mate

PRE:
• Where was David Bowie born? Where is he from?
• Why was David Bowie called a ‘chameleon’? Give examples
• What kind of demons could have inspired his musical persona?
• What were the kind of actions that made him an important artist in
the entertainment world?

II. Read the following excerpt from David Bowie’s biography. First, underline the unknown
words: there will be a space below where you can write them down and their meaning. Second,
identify in the box (on the right side of this page) the facts (actions or events) that triggered
David Bowie’s inspiration to become a ‘chameleon’.

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WHILE:
POP STAR
By early 1969, Bowie had returned full time to
music. He signed a deal with Mercury Records
and that summer released the single “Space
Oddity.” Bowie later said the song came to him
after seeing Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space
Odyssey. “I went stoned out of my mind to see the
movie and it really freaked me out, especially the
trip passage.”
The song quickly resonated with the public,
sparked in large part by the BBC’s use of the
single during its coverage of the Apollo 11 moon
landing. The song enjoyed later success in the
United States, when it was released in 1972 and
climbed to number 15 on the charts.
Bowie’s next album, The Man Who Sold the
World (1970), further catapulted him to stardom.
The record offered up a heavier rock sound than
anything Bowie had done before and included the
song “All the Madmen,” about his institutionalized
brother, Terry. His next work, 1971’s Hunky Dory,
featured two hits: the title track that was a tribute
to Andy Warhol, the Velvet Underground and
Bob Dylan; and “Changes,” which came to embody
Bowie himself.
Meet Ziggy Stardust
As Bowie’s celebrity profile increased, so did
his desire to keep fans and critics guessing. He
claimed he was gay and then introduced the pop
world to Ziggy Stardust, Bowie’s imagining of
a doomed rock star, and his backing group, The
Spiders from Mars.
His 1972 album, The Rise and Fall of Ziggy
Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, made him
a superstar. Dressed in wild costumes that spoke
of some kind of wild future, Bowie, portraying
Stardust himself, signaled a new age in rock
music, one that seemed to officially announce the
end of the 1960s and the Woodstock era.
Bowie was named the Chameleon
Event
because he was a multifaceted
musician. With every song he proposed a new to
understand the dialog between music and plastic arts.
His identity was an oddity. As he said, when he
watched for the first time Kubrick´s Odyssey, he would
never be the same. This movie changed his way to see
the life, and his music talked about that. To David the
space will be a way to talk about the loneliness,
freedom and craziness.
Then, when The Man Who Sold the World became one
7
of the most iconic albums of the century, David was
catapulted to stardom. This work was characterized
for a rougher style and lyrics about Bowie issues.
stoned out: when someone use drugs.
freaked me out: when someone is afraid.
sparked: when something arouses the interest.
charts: Success list.
further: additional.
stardom: Fame.
featured: outstanding.
embody: personify something.
stardust: dust of stars.
guessing: to predict something.
claimed: ask for something that is yours.
doomed: Someone that must pay a sentence.
stoned out: when someone use drugs.
freaked me out: when someone is afraid.
used for educational purposes only
ENGLISH THREE
THE CITY THROUGH MY EYES, YOUR EYES, THEIR EYES
 III. Write 5 questions from the previous text. Use expressions such as for, since
and how long.

1. As for the publication years of David Bowie´s albums, which decade do you think

is the most important in his career?

2. Since David´s stardom arrived so quickly, do you think that affected his music?

3. If suddenly David see finished his career, what part-time job do you think would
he take?

4. Nowadays, what kind of astronomical event David´s music can join it?

8
5. For how long the chameleon will be one of the most iconic rock music personalities?

Questions about a controversial person from my community.

I want to bring the story of one of the most controversial people in my town. It is the
case of Alexander, a kid that realized that he wants to be a woman when he grows up.
Some people think that he does not have the age to know or decide anything about
his identity. I think that people say that, not for his well-being but by their prejudices.

What do you think about transsexual discussion in the childhood?

If you were alexander´s father or mother, would you support him in his decision?

What do you think that is the most difficult thing about being a man or a woman?

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 LANGUAGE FOCUS

Write a 150 word-text about a controversial person. Use expressions

such as for and since:

BILL GATES was the richest person in the world for many years.
Give more examples.

As for these controversial people that caused a commotion in my town, I must say
I think they are necessary in our day-to-day. Without them, our days would be the

same since characters as María put some happiness on the Carmen de Viboral

streets. As for Eduardo, the crazy dog’s man, without him we would probably
not understand what is the value of be kind with our pets. Each of them is

fundamental in the town life, since these controversial people teach us about
singularity. When our kids play soccer with Armando, Bruno and Clarita, they

come home with a smile in their faces and happiness in their hearts. So,
9
if we think about strange people, we quickly realize that they are part of our families.

They are strange, but they are our strange friends.

ENGLISH THREE
THE CITY THROUGH MY EYES, YOUR EYES, THEIR EYES