EAP for the 21st century learner

LESSON 1: THE SLOW MOVEMENT TEACHER NOTES

Age: Young adult New York Micro Units This scheme is based on
Level: Intermediate (B1) City, NY, USA the idea of ‘humane and
minimal living spaces’. Many
Time: 60 minutes + Project
Americans today live in huge
Focus: Reading, Vocabulary homes with huge costs.
Materials: One copy of the worksheet per student The scheme aims to reduce
Overall Aims: In this lesson, students will: housing costs by eliminating
1. develop an awareness of big city problems and unnecessary space.
several solutions to ‘slow down’ Tokyo, Japan Candle This Far Eastern scheme has
2. learn new vocabulary to talk about cities and Night the motto ‘Turn off the lights,
Take it slow’. It advises
the environment
turning off the lights for two
3. be able to find main ideas and supporting hours on summer and winter
details in texts solstice from 8 to 10 p.m.
in order to slow down and
spend quality time with our
LEAD-IN loved ones. Recommended
activities include listening
Aims: to lead in to the lesson by activating students’
to music, having a special
previous knowledge/experience of living in urban centres; meal or storytelling.
to build expectations; to raise awareness of the issues
discussed in the lesson.
GLOCALISATION IDEA: Look around you to find
Approximate time: 15 mins local initiatives that aim to slow down the pace of life.
Bringing these to class will enable students to better
PROCEDURE:
conceptualize the idea. A Google search may help you
1. Distribute the worksheet and ask the students what
find a local initiative. For example, the Walking School
they know about the cities in the pictures. Check that
Bus (or its sister Bicycle Train) exists in some form or
they know where they are located and that they are all
another in many parts of the world. Also, a number of
big cities (The population of Tokyo is above 35 million,
big cities with populations over 50,000 now express
NYC above 20 million and Auckland above 1.5 million).
an interest in applying Slow Life principles. They are
Ask them to complete activity 1 (the matching known as ‘Cittaslow Metropole’ cities. They include
activity) by paying attention to the clues given in the Barcelona in Spain, Busan in South Korea and
explanations. This may be pair work or individual work. Wenzhou in China among others. Check the Cittaslow
Elicit the answers. website to find out what is happening in your country:
http://www.cittaslow.org
Answers:

City Scheme Explanation

2. Ask students to discuss the common goal of these
Auckland, The Walking This scheme from the
schemes with a partner. When they are done, hold
New Zealand School Bus Pacific involves having
groups of students walk a short discussion. While there is no right or wrong
to their schools under the answer, make sure you emphasize the concept of ‘slow
supervision of parents. and simple living’.
It aims to reduce traffic
pollution and create NOTES ABOUT VOCABULARY IN THIS COURSE: The
liveable, walkable streets.
vocabulary covered here is based on Averil Coxhead’s
(2000) Academic Word List, a well-recognised list of
academic words. Each lesson includes a list of Key
Words and Academic Words. Key Words are topic
based words necessary to understand and speak/write

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LESSON 1: THE SLOW MOVEMENT TEACHER NOTES

about the topic. They are introduced early on in the NOTES ABOUT READING IN THIS COURSE: In order
lesson. Academic Words are high-frequency academic to foster critical thinking and creativity, the reading
words mentioned in Coxhead’s list. These may be tasks involve both lower and higher order questions.
words that express abstract concepts such as ‘theory’, The first few questions, which check that students
descriptions such as ‘unique’, processes such as can understand literal information from the text (e.g.
‘evaluation’, and academic tasks such as ‘definition’. Questions 1 and 2), are aligned to Bloom’s levels of
These words are not taught explicitly but students Knowledge and Comprehension. Others are at higher
are exposed to them throughout and a short set of levels of the taxonomy, such as Application, Analysis,
exercises provided at the end of each lesson. You may Synthesis and Evaluation, which require students to
encourage students to keep a vocabulary journal and engage with the text at a deeper level (e.g. Questions 7
review these words on their own outside class times. and 8 here). For more information on Bloom’s taxonomy
– a set of hierarchical models of learning objectives
KEY WORDS based on complexity in cognitive, affective and sensory
domains – go to www.bloomstaxonomy.org.
Aims: to learn new vocabulary to talk about cities and the
environment
PROCEDURE:
Approximate time: 15 mins 1. Let students read the text and answer the questions.

PROCEDURE:
TEACHING TIP: We language teachers generally
1. Tell the students they need to know several key words
do not like silent time in class. For an alternative
to understand the passage they will read. The words
view on the value of silent reading/thinking in the
are given in a list here. Ask them to work through the
classroom, visit: https://aylingraves.wordpress.
list in pairs and distinguish the words they already
com/2016/05/01/honouring-silence/
know from those they do not. They should then use an
online dictionary (e.g. the Macmillan English Online
2. When students have answered all the questions, let
Dictionary) to look up any new words. The aim here is
them compare their answers briefly with a partner
to foster ownership of learning and collaboration.
before you elicit them.
2. Get them to match the underlined words in sentences
a - h with the definitions 1 - 8. TEACHING TIP: Comparing answers with others
gives students confidence and ensures higher
Answers:
participation during elicitation.
a. 3
The flipped learning approach introduces students
b. 6
to content at home so they have had time to think
c. 5
before interaction takes place in the classroom. If you
d. 8
have shorter time with your students than envisioned
e. 2
here, you may also choose to flip your classroom (e.g.
f.  1
by encouraging students to do the reading before
g. 4
class). There is a lot of information on the Internet
h.  7
about flipped classrooms, but this may provide a good
starting point: http://flippedlearning.org
READING TEXT
Aims: to become acquainted with Cittaslow; to be able to Possible Answers:
find main ideas and supporting details in texts 1. When the people of Rome started to protest against
fast food.
Approximate time: 30 mins
2. According to the Slow Food Movement, eating is
not just satisfying hunger. It should also be a fair and

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LESSON 1: THE SLOW MOVEMENT TEACHER NOTES

enjoyable experience. LESSON 1 WORD LIST

3. The Slow City Movement was born out of the Slow Food
Each lesson finishes with a two-column word list. The Key
Movement (You may wish to teach the word ‘offshoot’
Words column includes topical words explicitly taught
here: The Slow City Movement is an offshoot of the Slow
in the lesson. These words will be recycled in Lesson 2.
Food Movement).
The other column, Academic Words, includes words from
4. Slow City is a movement which values local foods,
Coxhead’s Academic Word List that university students
small shops, unique cultural traditions, quality of life,
frequently encounter in English medium classes (and may
fair use of resources, participatory democracy and the
already be familiar with). These are peppered in each
environment.
given lesson and are presented in a list so that students
5. The six criteria are:
can pay attention to them. A short vocabulary exercise
- Having small population
follows each word list.
- Using local products
- Protecting traditional architecture Academic Vocabulary Exercises
- Encouraging traditional arts and crafts
Answers:
- Preventing air pollution
1. environment
- Encouraging slow food restaurants
2. goal
6. There are many criteria to be fulfilled to become
3. approximately
a Cittaslow.
4. major
7. This must be the main idea because the paragraph
5. scheme
starts with the sentences ‘So how can a city or town apply
6. create
to become a Cittaslow? There are many criteria to be
fulfilled.’ (You may want to mention the concept of ‘topic
HOMEWORK AND INDEPENDENT LEARNING
sentence’ at this point, or you may introduce them to the
concept of ‘main idea’ and wait for the formal term ‘topic You may ask the students to complete the online quiz at
sentence’ to come up in Lesson 4). Normally the topic the following link to find out if they live in the fast lane:
sentence is a single sentence that summarizes what the http://www.richardwiseman.com/quirkology/pace.html
paragraph is about, but in the example above the main
theme in the paragraph is dependent on the question and
answer. It is usually at the very start of the paragraph.
8. Treat this question as a Post-Reading Discussion
Activity. Answers will vary based on where your students
come from.

PROJECT
Ask your students to develop a scheme similar to the
ones they studied at the beginning to slow down the
life of residents in their city. Give them 2-3 minutes to
present their schemes. This may be done individually
or in groups, inside or outside class, depending on the
time available. With this project, you will give students a
chance to practice the following Four Cs: Communication
and Collaboration.

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LESSON 1: THE SLOW MOVEMENT WORKSHEET

LEAD-IN
1. Below are three cities, three schemes (ideas) from them and their explanations. Can you match the cities with the
right scheme and explanation?

Cities:

Tokyo Auckland NYC

Schemes:

Micro Units Candle Night The Walking School Bus

City Scheme Explanation

In this scheme from the Pacific, groups of students walk to their

schools under supervision of adults. The scheme reduces traffic
pollution and creates liveable, walkable streets.

This scheme is based on the idea of ‘humane, minimal living

spaces’. Many Americans today live in huge homes with high
costs. The scheme encourages people to live in mini apartments
to reduce housing costs and simplify their lives.

The motto of this Far Eastern scheme is ‘Turn off the lights, take
it slow’. It advises turning the lights off several nights a year to
spend quality time with our loved ones. Recommended activities
include listening to music, having a special meal and storytelling.

2. Is there a common goal in these schemes? Make some notes and then discuss your ideas with a partner. 

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LESSON 1: THE SLOW MOVEMENT WORKSHEET

KEY WORDS
1. Work with another student. Look at the words below and put them in two groups.

cuisine (n, u) advocate (v, tr) establish (v, tr) apply (v, tr)

local (adj) unique (adj) criteria (n, c, pl) display (v, tr)

Words we know ... Words we are not sure about ...

2. Match the underlined words in sentences a–h with the definitions 1–8.

a. When most people think of French cuisine, they think of

expensive restaurants, seafood and wine. Environmentalism is
a philosophy that advocates protection of the environment.    1. special, rare, only, one of a kind

b. Environmentalism is a philosophy that advocates protection

of the environment.    2. regional, from the same city or
town
c. Greenpeace was established to protect the environment and
promote world peace.    3. cooking, food

d. If you have lost your student ID card, you must apply for a
new one.    4. basis, guidelines

e. Local food is fresher than food that has travelled from the
other side of the country.    5. create, set up, found, build

f. Cappadocia in Turkey is a unique town with its geographical

formations known as ‘fairy chimneys’.   
6. support, promote, argue for
g. The criteria to become a UNESCO World Heritage Site include
having natural or architectural importance, or representing a
major stage of human history.    7. show, exhibit

h. Traditional arts and crafts are displayed in the farmer’s market

on Sundays.    8. make a formal request

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LESSON 1: THE SLOW MOVEMENT WORKSHEET

Now let’s read the text and learn about Cittaslow.

   READING TEXT

Cittaslow: Life in the Slow Lane

Cittaslow — the Slow City Movement — started in March 1986 with the opening of the first McDonald’s in Italy.
After this opening, the people of Rome, who are proud of their national cuisine, started a protest against fast-
food. This was the beginning of the ‘Slow Food Movement’. It advocates the view that eating is not just satisfying
hunger. The experience of eating should also be a
fair and enjoyable one, from initial production all
the way to the presentation of food on the table.

Thirteen years later, Cittaslow was established

in Orvieto, Italy by applying the ‘Slow Food
philosophy’ to cities. Cittaslow means ‘Slow City’
and values local foods, small shops, unique cultural
traditions, quality of life, fair use of resources,
participatory democracy and the environment.
Today, there are approximately 150 slow cities around the world.

So how can a city or town apply to become a Cittaslow? There are many criteria to be fulfilled. First, the
population of the town needs to be under 50,000. Obviously, a large metropolis cannot become a slow city.
Secondly, people should use local products. Slow cities do not transport their food and products from the
other side of the country. Of course, it is not enough to eat locally-grown foods; these should be organic
too. Thirdly, traditional architecture should be protected.
In other words, people should look after old and traditional
buildings. Next, traditional arts and crafts should be
encouraged. These should be displayed and sold in small
shops. Another criterion is that pollution should be
prevented and air quality should be improved. This is
done through reducing traffic and using alternative energy
sources. Last but not least, slow cities should of course
encourage slow food restaurants!

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LESSON 1: THE SLOW MOVEMENT WORKSHEET

?
  QUESTIONS
1. How did the Slow Food Movement start?

2. How is eating defined by the Slow Food Movement?

3. Explain the relationship between the Slow Food and Slow City Movements.

4. Define the Slow City Movement in one sentence.

Slow City is a movement which …

5. List the six criteria mentioned in paragraph 3 to become a Cittaslow.

6. Look at paragraph 3 again. What is the main idea of this paragraph?

7. How do you know that this is the main idea?

8. Do you think your hometown can become a Cittaslow one day? Answer by referring to the criteria in the text.

PROJECT
Create a scheme similar to Candle Night or Micro Units to slow down life in your city or town. Note down some ideas for
discussion. Prepare a mini talk to present to your classmates.

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LESSON 1: THE SLOW MOVEMENT WORKSHEET

LESSON 1 WORD LIST

Key words Academic words
advocate approximately
apply create
criteria environment
cuisine goal
display major
establish paragraph
local scheme
unique text
topic

In this lesson, you studied the Key Words on the left.

You also encountered the Academic Words on the right. These words are frequent in academic life. Here are some
exercises with them:

ACADEMIC VOCABULARY EXERCISES

Use the words below to complete the sentences. Do not change them:

create goal major environment approximately scheme

1. You can help protect the           by not wasting water and electricity.

2. The           of Cittaslow is to introduce an alternative way of life.

3. Tokyo is a densely populated city with           35,000,000 residents.

4. Air pollution is a/n           problem in big cities.

5. The increasing number of accidents made the government start a new road safety          .

6. Many people are nowadays trying to           a slow lifestyle for themselves in big cities.

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