VIP Class Notes (Raph)[S][R]

Vocabulary

Taxidermy (n): 1- the activity of cleaning, preserving, and filling the skins of dead animals with special material to make them look as if they are still alive.
E.g.: Many hunters use taxidermy to preserve their most glorious kills.

Synopsis (n): 1- a short description of the contents of something such as a film or book.
E.g.: I just read the synopsis of Meryl Streep’s new movie and now I really want to watch it.

Tragedy (n): 1-  a very sad event or situation, especially one involving death or suffering.
E.g.: Hitler’s invasion of Poland led to the tragedy of the Second World War.
E.g.: Not long after they moved, tragedy happened – their son was killed in an accident.
E.g.: It’s a tragedy (that) so many young people are unable to find jobs.

Chant (n): 1- a word or phrase that is repeated many times.
E.g.: The fans started to sing the familiar football chant, “Here we go, here we go, here we go!”

Hostage (n): 1-  someone who is taken as a prisoner by an enemy in order to force the other people involved to do what the enemy wants. 2- 人质
E.g.: She was taken/held hostage by the gunmen.
E.g.: The terrorists have seized 20 hostages and are threatening to kill one a day unless their demands are met.

Congress (n): 1- 国会

Lobbying (n): 1- 游说

U.S. Student Walkout To Protest Gun Violence
(Source: www.breakingnewsenglish.com/1803/180317-student-protests.html)

Students in the USA took part in a protest on Wednesday. Tens of thousands of high-schoolers walked out of their schools to protest against gun violence. They chose March 14 for their protest as that marks a month since the February 14 Florida shooting in which 17 students lost their lives. At Stoneman Douglas High School, where last month’s tragedy took place, students gathered on the football field for 17 minutes to remember their lost classmates. One student said: “The walkout was for those who will never be here again, but we’re fighting for those who might be next.” Another student said: “I came out because of what happened in Florida, but also because of what happens in my neighborhood every day.”

In the U.S. capital, Washington DC, hundreds of students gathered outside the White House to protest. They sat with their backs turned to the building for 17 minutes. They then took part in chants against the powerful gun group the National Rifle Association (NRA). U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren joined the crowds and spoke at a rally outside the Capitol building. She said: “The NRA has held Congress hostage for years now. These young people have shown up to free us. I believe the young people will lead us.” Many of the students in the crowd wanted to remind President Donald Trump that they would be old enough to vote in the 2020 elections, so he should listen to them now.

Original:

Few days ago I watched a movie about a bear, it’s a bear can speak English. One day he go to a city to find a human friend, so he came to London. But he didn’t know how to find his friend, so he find a family to accept him. At the very beginning he didn’t know how to use the tools in the house, so he make many, many mistakes. The family’s member very like him, because he’s very cute, honest, but very bad woman find him and wanted him to be a part of his artists. Someday the bear is arrested by the bad woman, then his family try to rescue him from the bad woman. At last his family beated the bad woman and rescued him successfully.

Edited:

A few days ago I watched a movie about a bear who can speak English. One day he went to London to find a human friend, but he didn’t know how to find him, so he found a family to accept him instead. At the very beginning he didn’t know how to use the tools in the house, so he made many, many mistakes. The family members really liked him, because he was very cute and honest, but a very bad woman found him and wanted to kill him for taxidermy. One day the bear was captured by the bad woman, and his family tried to rescue him from her. At last they beat the bad woman and rescued him successfully.

Grammar

I looking for more big company. – I’m looking for a bigger company. / I want to work for a bigger company.

Teacher told me this website. – My teacher told me about this website.

Pronunciation

Plural: /ˈplʊr.əl/

Rice Paddy: /ˈraɪs ˌpæd.i/

Beer: /bɪr/

Bear: /ber/

Honest: /ˈɑː.nɪst/

Rescue: /ˈres.kjuː/

Taxidermy: /ˈtæk.sɪ.dɝː.mi/

Lost: /lɑːst/

Tragedy: /ˈtrædʒ.ə.di/

Image: /ˈɪm.ɪdʒ/