Ursula Le Guin is a famous author known for her novel A Wizard of Earthsea. She has won many awards for her writing. In an interview, she answered questions about her work: 1) She prefers using her imagination rather than copying dreams for her stories. 2) The names of two islands in her stories are the same as her children's names, but she keeps which islands secret. 3) She enjoys watching the science fiction show Star Trek and the British time travel show Dr. Who. 4) She doesn't think dreams can change reality, but they can change how a person thinks.

1. Opinions
11.1 Can you take a decision?
Unit11
1 Circle the correct option. 4 Fill in the gaps with the correct word.
a She’s making / doing her homework. agree agree boring don’t
b He does / makes his bed every morning. uniforms think true trousers
c They made / did a mess in the kitchen. They
were making / doing lunch!
d Come on, let’s do / make some exercises
to warm up before the match!
e She did / made a good job! Her room is
really tidy now.
2 Match the pictures with these
suggestions.
AMALIA: I (a) __________ our school uniform
think
is very old-fashioned.
SARA: (b) _____________ you think boys
and girls should wear the same
1 uniform? I think (c) ___________
are better than skirts.
2 A: I don’t (d) __________. I would
prefer a school without any
(e) _________!
3
S: I don’t agree. I think it’s OK. I think
(f) ___________ are a good thing.
A: I don’t agree, I think they are
4 5
(g) __________. Everyone looks
a Let’s make a poster for the rock concert! the same!
__________
2 S: (h) __________! And I think mixed
b Why don’t we do a fun run? __________ schools are better than single-sex
c What about ordering a pizza? __________ schools.
d Why don’t we make dinner? __________ A: I (i) __________, but I don’t think
e How about going to see a film? __________ the boys would like wearing skirts!
3 Unscramble these responses to the 5 Circle the correct words
suggestions in Activity 2.
Hi Jo,
a don’t / I / this / sorry / like / music / , / I’m I am (a) making / doing my homework at the
_______________________________________
I’m sorry, I don’t like this music. moment, what are you (b) doing / making? I
b let’s / now / start / ! / great / , (c) don’t think / am not thinking it is a good
_______________________________________ idea to go shopping on Thursday after
c good / haven’t got / a / it’s / any / idea / school. Why (d) don’t we / we don’t go on
but / I / money / ! Friday night? You said your sister
_______________________________________ (e) likes / would like to come with us, and
_______________________________________ that’s OK. (f) Let’s / Why don’t we have
d really / , / yes / hungry / I’m / ! something to eat after shopping? Mail me
_______________________________________ back as soon as you can!
e a / idea / what / good / ! Bitsy
_______________________________________ xx
52 © Richmond Publishing, 2004 PHOTOCOPIABLE

2. Opinions
11.2 Vocabulary Unit11
1 Find ten different types of music hidden 3 Put the sentences into a logical order.
here.
C R R W U U G R
L O P E R A Y A
A C O S O U L G
S K P T A C T T
S N A E W A O I
I R A R E E O M
C O U N T R Y E a Ask for permission from the club leader. ____
A L G R U N G E b Publicity — phone the local radio. ____
L L G A R A G E c Decide to raise funds for Amnesty
International. ____
1
d Make a plan with your friends — concert or
2 Use the clues to complete the fun run? ____
crossword. e Distribute leaflets and sell all the tickets. ____
Across ➔ f Decide to organise a concert in the local
1 music for when you’re sad youth club. ____
5 loud music sometimes played by people g Enjoy the concert! It’s a great success! ____
with long hair h Design the posters and print the tickets. ____
6 a type of lover — or Ricky Martin’s music
7 you can live here or listen to it 4 Fill in the missing vowels.
Down a pr_m_t_v_
i i i e
➔
2 another name for people or traditional b p_p_l _r
music c _nj _y_bl_
3 modern or traditional Black American music d _dd_ ct _v_
4 a new version of a song made by a DJ e _nt_r _st_ng
5 you can dip your nachos in this or dance f d_nc_ _bl_
to it g c_mm_rc_ _l
2
5 Now use words from Activity 1 to fill
3
in the gaps.
1 B L U E S One of the most (a) __________ types of
primitive
4 music is jazz. It is very old but also extremely
(b) ___________ with both young and old
5 music lovers. It is (c) _________ that it appeals
to so many people from different countries
6 and cultures. House is very different to jazz,
and is not so (d) _____________ with different
7 groups. However, young people who find
house (e) _____________ say it is because the
music is so very (f) _____________. It is true
that its repetitive rhythm could also be called
(g) ______________, forcing you to tap your
foot, even if you don’t really like the music.
© Richmond Publishing, 2004 PHOTOCOPIABLE 53

3. Opinions
11.3 Can you compare music? Unit11
1 Unscramble these kinds of music. 4 Complete the conversation with
a etocnh __________
techno comparisons.
b uynctor dna newtser _______ ___ ________
c saclsilca __________
d geraeg __________
e olus ________
f osehu _______
g azjz _______
h oklf ______
i eyahv eatml ______ _______
j leusb ______ CARRIE: I think The Lemondrops are much (a)
____________ (good) than The
better
2 Write the name of the instrument Swerve. They are (b) ______________
(commercial), but their songs are
which is defined.
(c) _______________ (popular).
drums electric guitar keyboard recorder JON: I don’t agree. I prefer The Swerve.
saxophone trumpet violin Their lyrics are (d) ________________
a They are very noisy. _______________
drums (interesting) and their music is
b You need to use all your fingers to play it. (e) ________________ (sophisticated).
______________ The new CD is amazing!
c It has black and white keys. C: I think Phil Smith, the lead guitarist
________________ of The Lemondrops, is a (f) ___________
d It is usually played by children. _____________ (talented) player than
________________ Jo Grundy and the keyboard player
e It is very difficult to play. You must blow hard. is (g) ____________ (good) than
________________ anybody else in the world!
f It is a wind instrument. ___________________ J: That’s because you think you are
g It is the same shape as a guitar. in love with him!
___________________
5 Write comparisons about music.
3 Complete these sentences with your a heavy metal / classical (primitive)
_______________________________________
Heavy metal music is more primitive than
opinions about music.
_______________________________________
classical music.
a I really like listening to _________________.
classical music b techno / reggae (danceable)
b I don’t like ____________________________ _______________________________________
at all. _______________________________________
c I think ______________________ music is c the saxophone / the trumpet (difficult to
very primitive. play)
d My least favourite instrument is _______________________________________
___________________________. _______________________________________
e My favourite singer is d the piano / the electronic keyboard
___________________________. (enjoyable to listen to)
f In my opinion, the best group is _______________________________________
___________________________. _______________________________________
g I love ______________________, it’s very e jazz / house (old-fashioned)
danceable. _______________________________________
_______________________________________
54 © Richmond Publishing, 2004 PHOTOCOPIABLE

4. Opinions
1 11.4 Reading and writing Unit11
1 Write the numbers of the questions in the right places.
Long before the famous boy-wizard at Hogwart’s, Ursula Le Guin wrote A Wizard of Earthsea in
which she imagined a school for wizards. She won a prize for that novel in 1968 and has won many
more prizes since then. She is the author of nineteen novels, many short stories and translations.
Here are some questions we asked Ursula about her stories.
1 Are any of your novels based on dreams?
2 Two of the islands in your stories are names of your children. Which islands, or is it a secret?
3 Have you got a favourite TV programme?
4 Do you think dreams can change reality?
5 Where did you get the idea of using names to make magic?
6 How do you pronounce your name?
a Q: _____
6
A: Well, in the US and UK it’s pronounced a bit like Luh Gwinn. In France it’s pronounced
differently because it’s really a French name.
b Q: _____
A: It's a very old idea in magic all over the world. The idea that words are powerful like magic is
quite natural and a lot of people believe it.
c Q: _____
A: A dream can change the way a person thinks, but I don't think dreams change reality.
d Q: _____
A: Some writers copy their dreams for their stories, but I write better stories when I am awake!
I like to use my imagination.
e Q: _____
A: It's a secret.
f Q: _____
A: Star Trek — that’s quite famous, I think — and when I lived in England I watched a programme
called Dr Who all the time. Dr Who is a time traveller who travels everywhere in a very
old-fashioned telephone box, like the ones in the street!
2 Now match these ideas to the answers in Activity 1 they describe best.
1 ____
b Ursula thinks words are important and have strong effects.
2 ____ Ursula doesn’t want to say something.
3 ____ Ursula likes some science fiction programmes.
4 ____ Ursula doesn’t like to use her dreams as ideas for her stories.
5 ____ Ursula doesn’t think that dreams have an effect on the real world.
© Richmond Publishing, 2004 PHOTOCOPIABLE 55

5. Opinions
11.5 Culture Unit11
Hip hop — the new jazz?
1 What do you know about jazz? Read and check.
How do you say the grey words in your language?
The Jazz Age started in the 1920s. Jazz was born from the
social, political and economic suffering of the black population in
the cities of the USA. It comes from and represents people who
were economically disenfranchised, politically abandoned, socially
repressed or poor and without power. The music has strong
rhythm and often involves improvisation. It is a combination of
music, dance, speech, fashion, graphic representation and aesthetics.
The music was not about money but about the reality of everyday life. It started on street corners,
but it is everywhere now and it is everybody’s music too: young and old, black and white, rich and
poor, men and women all enjoy and play jazz. Originally a cultural product of the USA, it is popular,
profitable and now international.
It is not just music – it is a means of communication. The artists who create the music and the
culture speak about their ideas, problems, and desires through the music, the clothes, the lifestyle,
the philosophy, etc. It is a cultural phenomenon. The word jazz is a noun, (I love jazz), an adjective
(A jazzy jacket = colourful and modern) and a verb (Let’s jazz this party up = Let’s make it more
interesting and fun). It is music, something you do and a lifestyle.
2 Circle all the words which are different from those in Activity 1.
How many of these are the same (or look very similar) in your language?
The Hip Hop Age started in the 1990s. Hip hop was born from young
people’s demands for democracy, justice and equality in the USA. It
comes from and represents people who were economically
disenfranchised, politically abandoned, socially repressed or poor and
without power. The music has strong rhythm and often involves
improvisation. It is a combination of music, dance, speech, fashion,
graphic representation and aesthetics.
The music was not about money but about the reality of everyday life.
It started on street corners, but it is everywhere now and it is
everybody’s music too: young and old, black and white, rich and poor,
men and women all enjoy and play hip hop. Originally a cultural
product of the USA, it is popular, profitable and now international.
It is not just music — it is a means of communication. The artists who create the music and the
culture speak about their ideas, problems, and desires through the music, the clothes, the lifestyle,
the philosophy, etc. It is a cultural phenomenon. The words hip hop refer to a way of life — but the
music is called rap. It is music, something you do and a lifestyle.
3 Cover the text and answer these questions. Write the answers in your notebook.
a How are jazz and hip hop different?
b How are they similar?
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