In Class Activity - English Language

Activity 1

Summarize in not more than 120 words, describing the author's trip in Cherokee. 

You may adopt the author's point of view.
 
During my vacation last May, I had a hard time choosing a tour. Flights to Japan, Hong Kong and Australia are just too common. What I wanted was somewhere exciting and exotic, a place where I could be spared from the holiday tour crowds. I was so happy when Joan called up, suggesting a trip to Cherokee, a county in the state of Oklahoma. I agreed and went off with the preparation immediately.We took a flight to Cherokee and visited a town called Qualla Boundary Surrounded by magnificent mountain scenery, the town painted a paradise before us. With its Oconaluftee Indian Village reproducing tribal crafts and lifestyles of the 18th century and the outdoor historical pageant Unto These Hills playing six times weekly in the summer nights, Qualla Boundary tries to present a brief image of the Cherokee past to the tourists.

Despite the language barrier, we managed to find our way to the souvenir shops with the help of the natives. The shops are filled with rubber tomahawks and colorful traditional war bonnets, made of dyed turkey feathers. Tepees, cone-shaped tents made from animal skin, are also pitched near the shops. "Welcome! Want to get anything ?" We looked up and saw a middle-aged man smiling at us. We were very surprised by his fluent English. He introduced himself as George and we ended up chatting till lunch time when he invited us for lunch at  a nearby coffee shop.

"Sometimes, I've to work from morning to sunset during the tour season. Anyway, this is still better off than being a woodcutter ..." Remembrance weighed heavy on George's mind and he went on to tell us that he used to cut firewood for a living but could hardly make ends meet. We learnt from him that the Cherokees do not depend solely on trade for survival. During the tour off-peak period, the tribe would have to try out other means for income. One of the successful ways is the "Bingo Weekend". On the Friday afternoons of the Bingo weekends, a large bingo hall will be opened, attracting huge crowds of people to the various kinds of games like the Super Jackpot and the Warrior Game Special. According to George, these forms of entertainment fetch them great returns.

Our final stop in Qualla Boundary was at the museum where arts, ranging from the simple hand-woven oak baskets to wood and stone carvings of wolves, ravens and other symbols of Cherokee cosmology are displayed.

Back at home, I really missed the place and I would of course look forward to the next trip to another exotic place.
 

Activity 2

Summarize in not more than 120 words, the various communicative methods practiced by animals in the wild.
 
Communication is part of our everyday life. We greet one another, smile or frown, depending on our moods. Animals too, communicate, much to our surprise. Just like us, interaction among animals can be both verbal or non-verbal.Singing is one way in which animals can interact with one another. Male blackbirds often use their melodious songs to catch the attention of the females. These songs are usually rich in notes variation, encoding various kinds of messages. Songs are also used to warn and keep off other blackbirds from their territory, usually a place where they dwell and reproduce.

Large mammals in the oceans sing too, according to adventurous sailors. Enormous whales groan and grunt while smaller dolphins and porpoises produce pings, whistles and clicks. These sounds are surprisingly received by other mates as far as several hundred kilometers away.

Besides singing, body language also forms a large part of animals' communication tactics. Dominant hyenas exhibit their power by raising the fur hackles on their necks and shoulders, while the submissive ones normally "surrender" to the powerful parties by crouching their heads low and curling their lips a little, revealing their teeth in friendly smiles.

Colors, which are most conspicuously found on animals are also important means of interaction among animals. Male birds of paradise, which have the most gaudy colored feathers often hang themselves upside down from branches, among fluffing plumes, displaying proudly their feathers, attracting the opposite sex.

The alternating black and white striped coats of zebras have their roles to play too. Each zebra is born with a unique set of stripes which enables its mates to recognize them. When grazing safely, their stripes are all lined up neatly so that none of them loses track of their friends. However, when danger such as a hungry lion approaches, the zebras would dart out in various directions, making it difficult for the lion to choose his target.

Insects such as the wasps, armed with poisonous bites or stings, normally have brightly painted bodies to remind other predators of their power. Hoverflies and other harmless insects also make use of this fact and colored their bodies brightly in attempts to fool their predators into thinking that they are as dangerous and harmful as the wasps too.

Activity 3

Summarize in not more than 120 words, the purpose of snakes' bite, the venom's fatality and also the remedy for such bites.
 
All snakes are hunters and predators, feeding on the animals and sometimes their eggs. Having no limbs, snakes cannot hold their preys down to bite; hence they usually swallow them whole. Poisonous snakes sometimes do immobilize their preys with their venom to make consumption easier.Most poisonous snakes are conspicuously colored to warn others off. One example is the redheaded krait which has a bluish-black body and scarlet head and tail. Snakes like the cobras, which have less outstanding body colors, display their fatality by lifting the front part of their body and spreading their hoods.

It is truly a myth that poisonous snakes attack humans for food. Humans can never be their targets for food as we are normally too large for them to swallow. in cases where snakes do bite, these attacks are usually defensive ones and the venom injected is normally little or sometimes even none. The full, fatal dose of the venom is only released on smaller animals which the snakes can swallow easily. Besides helping in the killing and immobilizing of their preys, the poison also acts as digestive agents for snakes.

Why then is the venom so deadly ? In general, there are three kinds of poisons in the venom, though in varying amounts, depending on the type of snake in question. Venoms usually contain substances that weaken the blood corpuscles and the lining of the blood vessels. Profuse bleeding, often a common result of snake-bites, is caused by the anticoagulants present in the poison which prevents blood clotting. The paralysis of the heart and respiratory muscles is performed by the nervous system attacking toxins.

Though these bites are deadly, certain actions can be taken to slow down the spread of the venom, hence saving the victim's life. Attempting to incise and suck at the spot of the bite is more likely to be harmful than a cure. The poisonous venom usually travels fast into the body upon being released; hence sucking at the mouth of the wound will not help remove the poison, rather, incising the bite may lead the victim to great pain and further profuse bleeding. Instead, a broad, firm crepe bandage should be applied over the would and up the full limb to compress the tissues and prevent the spread of the venom. After which, the victim must be duly sent to the hospital for professional treatment.

Activity 4

Summarize in not more than 120 words, how Bombay's existing situation contradicts its flourishing economic status.
 
Bombay is often regarded as India's Capital of Hope. Often wondering why this is so, I made a fruitful trip down to the busy city, solving most of my queries.Bombay consists of seven islands, joined by land reclamation. Many Indians, especially those from the rural areas, regard Bombay as their paradise, since they could find work relatively easily here, as compared to their homelands.

Being the pillar for revenue collection, Bombay's economic growth has far outperformed the other cities. In fact, its per capita (head) production of goods and services is about three times greater than that of Delhi - India's second most prosperous city. Despite the economic boom, Bombay gives me an astonishing image of deterioration when I first stepped into the city.

The ostentatiously dignified imperial buildings, erected by the British, are so overly populated that they look as if they are toppling over any minute. There are the 1950s kind of black and yellow taxis, which appeared as if brutally thrashed, lining up like ants trails, clotting up the small avenues. Amidst the dins of traffic jams, stood the oppressed-looking buildings of Benetton outlets, foreign car dealerships, croissant-serving outlets and so on.

Though unemployment is not a significant problem in Bombay, housing is. A visit in Dharavi, a slum area in Bombay will help clarify our imagination. The Bombayites' so called "houses" are actually movable shacks, built from unwanted bits of tarpaulin, tin and cardboard. There are so many of them that a maze of alleys emerged, passable only when I walked sideways like a crab between them. Curious about the living conditions, I wondered around the maze, meeting groups of scantily clad kids and hungry, stray dogs. Popping my inquisitive head into one of the small huts, I was totally amazed by their living conditions. Estimating about twelve or more Bombayites living in each hut, these two-storey houses are usually partitioned by rough platforms with ceilings no higher than five feet from the ground. Furthermore, `these shacks look absolutely bare -- no furniture and I deduced that the inhabitants eat and sleep on the ground.

In spite of the poor living conditions, many Indians still hope to migrate to Bombay. Interviewing a few of the newcomers, a majority of them said that they came to Bombay to find jobs. There are some who regard Bombay as buoyant floats, saving them from natural disasters and tyrannies in their homelands.

Activity 5

Briefly describe Uncle Chin's charcoal manufacturing process. Your account, which should be continuous, must not not be longer than 120 words.
 
"Have you started the fire?" shouted my mum from the kitchen. "Yes!" I replied, feeling frustrated after having some difficulties in starting the fire with charcoal. It is the eve of the annual Dragon Boat Festival again and my mum is busy making dumplings. She has specifically chosen to cook the dumplings with charcoal, claiming that the rice will then be uniformly cooked and fragrant. I still prefer to use the gas cooker. "It's just more convenient and cleaner too!" grumbling helplessly, I stared at both of my soiled hands.Fanning the hot stove, I watched my mum lower down two strings of dumplings. "Stay put and watch over them. Mind the time too!" She instructed sternly, knowing what a fantastic daydreamer I am. Feeling bored only minutes after she had left, my mind starts to wonder about. Reminiscing the life back at home town, I recalled myself popping over at Uncle Chin's charcoal manufacturing factory frequently when I was a child. Being inquisitive, I would always ask Uncle Chin questions which sometimes were repetitive. What an irritating kid I had been?

Charcoal was made by burning woods in a charcoal-kiln. Uncle Chin's charcoal kiln was about fifteen feet tall and it had an arched cross-sectional opening. Clay made, the top of the kiln was always covered with attap leaves. The daily charcoal-making work was well divided among the workers. Every morning, the workers took turns to collect mangrove woods from the nearby swamps. Upon returning, they sawed the wood into appropriate lengths to fit the kiln. Uncle Chin would then stack the pieces of woods vertically in the kiln. When the kiln was full, the fire would be started and the woods were burnt from the top, downwards, just like a burning joss stick.

Staying by the kiln, Uncle Chin would explain that the fire must not be red hot; otherwise, the wood pieces would be reduced to ashes. Instead, a slow, greenish fire should be maintained for the wood to be sufficiently smouldered.

"Uncle Chin, then, how do we maintain such an appropriate fire?" As usual, I would continue my endless questions.

"It's all through experience..." With a grin on his face, Uncle Chin recalled how he was scolded by his teacher for not being able to judge the appropriate hotness of the fire.

The aroma of the cooked dumplings brought me back to the present. "Oops! Time's up. Mum, the dumplings are ready?" I shouted in excitement, waiting to try one of the mouth-watering dumplings

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