Unit 4 Task Writing an e-mail to give information.

Unit 4 Task

Writing an e-mail to give

information

Skills building 1:

listening to instructions

When you are listening to instructions,

you need to listen for key expressions that

tell you what to do. Here are some key

expressions to listen for:

Decide how to…

You should phone/e-mail…

Have a look at/on…

You will need to check…

You will have to go…

Ask the assistant/teacher…

Please send a letter/an e-mail to…

Remember to tell him/her/them that…

Remind him/her/ them that…

If you are going somewhere for

holiday, what do you need to plan?

where to go

when to go there

how to go there

how much money to spend

who to go with

what to do there

Step 1: taking notes for future action

A.Wei Jing lives in Nanjing. Her uncle l

ives in Beijing. Her family and her un

cle’s family are planning to visit a frie

nd in Dalian during the holiday.

Her parents have asked her to decide

about transport and to buy the tickets.

Listen to the conversation you and

complete her notes on her parents’

instructions.

1. Decide _______________.

2. ___________ Mr An and ask him for

advice.

3. Search the _______ for information.

4. Speed no more than _____ yuan on t

ransport.

how to get there

Phone/Call

Internet

2,300

Things to do for the holiday trip

5. Go to the ___________ and find out

about the _________.

ticket office

schedule

6. Decide on the time to ______.

7. _______________ to uncle with all

the information and _______ him not

to be late.

leave

Send an e-mail

remind

B. Wei Jing is calling Mr An. Listen to

the telephone conversation and mak

e some notes about the information

Mr An gives.

Means of

transport

Disadvantages Advantages

Ship

Coach

Train

takes a long time; father does not like shipsit takes 16 hours just get to Beijing

there are many to choose from, leaving at different times; rather fast; most convenient

can be crowded

C. Wei Jing has found a website about

Dalian. Read the web page below an

d help complete the next part of her

notes.

Won’t choose

______ because _________________

_______ because ________________

_______________________________

___________

by air mum hates flying

by road the floods washed

away soil along the road and it is still

under repair

_______ because ____________________

_____________________________________

_____________________________________

__________________________________

by ferry sometimes the slow

ferries are not very punctual and there is

no guarantee that you can get a ticket

during holidays

Will choose _______ because __________

____________________________________

____________________________________

____________________________________

________

by train a new se

rvice has just opened between Beijing a

nd Dalian, so we can first take a train to

Beijing and then change a train to Dalia

n.

Skill building 2: finding out different information

If you are going somewhere, what

information should you know before

you go on the trip?

pay attention to the following matters:

• different ways to travel

• the beat way to travel

• the travel schedule

• travel time

• travel cost

Step 2: buying tickets

Wei Jing has decided to travel by train.

She is now at the railway station trying t

o buy tickets. Pretend that you are Wei

Jing. Find a partner to be the ticket selle

r and ask him/her questions. Then comp

lete your notes below. Switch roles when

you have finished.

Train No.

Depart Arrive Travel time

Ticket price (yuan)

Hard

seat

Hard

sleeper

Soft

sleeper

G 32 09.33 13.41 4 hr 8 min

445 / /

K 46 15.18 05.07 13 hr 49 min

150 265 417

T 66 22.38 09.33 10 hr

55 min

150 265 417

D350 23.16 07.14 7 hr 58 min

274 / 580

Nanjing→Beijing

Beijing → Dalian

Train No.

Depart Arrive

T 225

K 681

18.16

20.06

05.42

08.08

11hr 26 min

12 hr2 min

Travel

timeHard seat

Hard sleeper

Soft sleeper

/

248

260

390

409

Cost (yuan)

140

From Nanjing to Beijing

Train No.:

From Beijing to Dalian

Train No.:

__________________________________

Total travel time:

Total cost for six people:

T 225

T 66

22 hr 2 min

2,283 yuan

Skills building 3

giving reasons for choices

Sometimes when we inform others of

our decisions, we need to give reasons

for our choices. In this task, Wei Jing

had to:

1 find out about transport from Nanjing t

o Dalian and choose the best way to trav

el. The reasons for Wei Jing’s choice we

re:

• speed of travel

• problems with roads and boats

• fact that Wei Jing’s mother does not

like flying

2 decide on time of departure. The re

asons for Wei Jing’s choice depend

on:

• the travel time

• the budget

• level of comfort

Wei Jing is writing an e-mail to her unc

le. She needs to say that she has decided

that they families should travel by train

and explain why. She also needs to tell

him the time when they will be leaving

and remind him not to be late. Help her

with her e-mail.

Step 3: writing an e-mail about a

travel plan

Dear uncle,

We’ve decided to go to Dalian by train

after comparing different means of tra

nsport. Dalian is a port city and it is co

nvenient to get there by ship, but we wi

ll have to go to Shanghai first while you

will have to go to Qinhuangdao.

One possible version

The problem is, during holidays the ferri

es are usually full of passengers, and ther

e is no guarantee that we can get the part

icular ferry we want. Besides, we can’t go

there by air because Mum is afraid of flyi

ng and the air tickets would be very expe

nsive. The travel allowance for this trip is

no more than 2,300 yuan.

Concerning the above matters, we decide

d to take trains and meet you in Beijing.

First, my parents and I will take Train T

66 that leaves for Beijing at 23.51 on the

30th, and we will arrive at 10.27 on May

1st. Then we’ll meet you and take T225 t

o Dalian. The departure time is 18.16. W

e’ll get to Dalian at 05.42 on May 2nd. Th

e ticket for T66 is 265 yuan

and for T225 248 yuan for one person. S

o we will spend 2,283 yuan on the train ti

ckets altogether. We’ll meet at the Beijin

g Train Station. Remember the departur

e time and don’t be late for the train.

Best wishes

Wei Jing

Homework

1. Finish the exercises on Page 133.

2. Finish the writing exercise in

Part B.

3. Preview Project.