Unit 3: BECOMING INDEPENDENT
Lesson 1: GETTING STARTED
An independent person
What is an independent person like?
determined
responsible
reliable
confident
well-informed
do one`s job well
Self-reliant
Good time management skills
WARM UP
Task 1. Listen and read.
Mai: I can see that you and Hoang Minh have become close friends, Lan.
Lan: We have. I really like him because he doesn`t rely on other people for help and isn`t influenced by other people`s opinions.
Mai: I see. So he`s very independent.
Lan: Yes. He`s also a very responsible student. He always completes his tasks on time, and never needs to be reminded about assignments and other schoolwork.
Mai: Right.
Lan: He`s also reliable. Last week, our group worked on a project and he was assigned the most difficult part of it. He tried very hard and did it well.
Mai: It`s good to have a friend you can rely on. He seems very determined.
Lan: He is. Last month, we were given a very hard Maths problem. While most of us gave up, he spent the whole night on it and solved it in the end.
Mai: That`s amazing!
Lan: Yeah. Even our Maths teacher was very surprised to read his answer. Another good thing about him is that he`s self-reliant. He always tries to find solutions to his problems and seldom needs help from others.
Mai: His parents must be really pleased to have such a son.
Lan: Of course. He also helps around the house a lot. But he still has time to read, so he`s well-informed about what`s happening around the world. It`s interesting to talk to him.
Mai: I`ll talk to him sometime.
Lan: Yes, you should. He`s also very confident and decisive. He always believes in himself, and I really admire his ability to make decisions so quickly. He`s a very independent person.
Mai: That`s great! You`re lucky to have a close friend like him.
a. feeling certain about your own ability to do things and be successful.
Task 2. Read the conversation again. Match the words with their definitions. (book p.31)
b. able to make decisions quickly.
f. having a lot of knowledge about current topics or a particular subject
c. strongly motivated to do something and not allowing anyone or any difficulties to stop you.
d. that can be trusted to do something well; that you can rely on
e. capable of doing or deciding things by yourself, rather than depending on other people for help
1. reliable
2. self-reliant
3. decisive
4. determined
5. well-informed
6. confident
Task 3. Answer the questions about the conversation.
Why does Lan like Minh?
2. Why does Lan think Minh is a very responsible student?
3. What is an example showing that Minh is very determined?
4. Why does Lan think that Minh is self - reliant?
5. What are the characteristics of an independent person according to Lan and Mai?
Choose one characteristic you want to have. You have to give the correct answer to each question to have the points for your team. With each correct answer, you will receive 10 points.
GAME
1. Why does Lan like Minh?
 Because Minh doesn`t rely on other people for help and isn`t influenced by other people`s opinions.
 Because he always completes his tasks on time, and never needs to be reminded about assignments and other schoolwork.
2. Why does Lan think Minh is a very responsible student?
3. What is an example showing that Minh is very determined?
 He tried hard and spent the whole night on a hard Maths problem when most students in the class had given up.
4. Why does Lan think that Minh is self - reliant?
 He always tries to find solutions to his problems and seldom needs help from others.
5. What are the characteristics of an independent person according to Lan and Mai?
 Responsible, reliable, self-reliant, determined, well-informed and confident.
6. Which of Minh`s characteristics do you have? Which do you like most?
Task 4:Complete the table with words that have the same roots as the adjectives in the first column. Some adjectives do not have all the corresponding word forms. Use a dictionary, if necessary.
reliability 
confidence  
independence 
self-reliance  
decisiveness  
determination 
responsibility 
reliably 
confidently 
independently 
decisively
determinedly
responsibly
Task 5: Complete the sentences with some of the words from task 4.
1. Ann is a very _________ person. Whenever you ask her to do things for you, you can expect her to do them well.
2. You must believe in your abilities and have ___________ in yourself to succeed.
3. To keep _______________ on current topics, you need to read newspapers and watch the news.
4. She has a very ____________ attitude towards work. She doesn`t need to be reminded about her duties.
5. Lan has been taught ____________ from an early age, so she is very independent now.
6. In case of emergency, you have to act very ____________.
7. Vietnamese people celebrate their ______________ Day on September 2nd.
reliable
confidence
well-informed
responsible
self-reliance
decisively
independence
HOMEWORK
- Learn new words by heart
- Practice the conversation in “Listen and read” again.
- Prepare: Language (page 32)