every day is a holiday€¦ · day of the poet’s death. in the lunar calendar, this is the fifth...

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PRE-READING QUESTIONS

1. How many types of boats do you know in English?2. What is the difference between a canoe and a dragon boat? 3. Why do you think dragon boats have drums? 4. Do you enjoy watching races? Which do you prefer car, boat, foot, ski, or swim races?

PRE-READING VOCABULARY TASK Match the words on the left to the definitions on the right.

_____1. exile_____2. banish _____3. protest _____4. corruption _____5. rush out _____6. spirit _____7. paddler _____8. bow _____9. steering ____10. synchronize

a. dishonesty b. away from one’s country due to banishmentc. send away from a location as punishment d. a person who moves a boat forward with a long stick called a paddlee. express one’s disagreement or anger about somethingf. the moving of a vehicle in a certain directiong. the front of a boath. the inner soul of a person; not the bodyi. leave quickly to get somewhere as soon as possiblej. do at the same time as others

Dragon Boat FestivalCan you hear the sound of the drum? It’s the annual Dragon Boat Festival. People around the world enjoy dragon boat racing. The sport originated in China over 2000 years ago. One legend says that the festival honors the life of a poet named Qu Yuan. This ancient statesman was living in exile after a jealous king banished him from the state of Chu. Qu Yuan wrote poetry while he was away from his beloved homeland. To protest the corruption in his state, he committed suicide by jumping into the Miluo River. The people who loved him rushed out in fishing boats and beat drums to scare off the fish. They also threw rice in the water. They hoped the fish would eat the rice instead of their beloved poet’s body. According to Chinese legend, Qu Yuan’s spirit appeared and told the people to wrap their rice gifts in silk packages to keep the river dragon away. The festival is held each year on the day of the poet’s death. In the lunar calendar, this is the fifth day of the fifth moon. Today, the dragon boat festival symbolizes health, and the chasing away of disease and evil spirits. Traditional dragon boat teams had 40-50 paddlers. A typical dragon boat today has 20 paddlers, 1 caller and 1 sweep. The caller sits at the bow and plays the drum. The sweep stands at the back and controls the steering. The two people in the front seats are called the leads. To win the race, the other paddlers must synchronize their strokes with the leads. On the day of the festival, the boats are decorated with a dragon’s face and tail.

Dragon Boat Festival Every Day is a Holiday

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COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS

1. Who banished Qu Yuan from the state of Chu?2. How did Qu Yuan protest the corruption in his homeland?3. What did Qu Yuan’s loved ones do when they heard about the suicide?4. When is the annual Dragon Boat Festival held, and why is that the chosen date?5. What does the person at the back of the boat do?

VOCABULARY REVIEW Spot the Error: Circle the vocabulary error in the sentences below.

1. Paddlers in a dragon boat have to chronicle their strokes with the lead paddlers. 2. Qu Yuan’s loved ones mushed out in boats to scare off the fish. 3. Steering is the job of the sweep at the bow of the boat.

4. While he was in excel, Qu Yuan wrote poetry. 5. Qu Yuan committed suicide to protect the corruption in his

homeland.

DEVIL’S ADVOCATE

Work with a partner. Take turns arguing against these statements.

1. Dragon boating looks a lot easier than canoeing. 2. The caller has the easiest job on the dragon boat. 3. Poetry is a lost art. Few people enjoy writing or reading it anymore.4. It’s more fun to watch a dragon boat race than to participate in one.

CLASS DISCUSSION

1. Qu Yuan is often named as the earliest patriot in Chinese history. Think of some other patriots. (past or present) Who is/was the most patriotic?

2. How do legends get passed on? Is the telling of legends a lost art?3. What do dragons symbolize? Why are dragons important in China?

(If nobody knows the answer, do a little research for homework.)

Web 2.0 ChallengeUse a web tool, such as Storybird or Flickr to create a digital story. Write your own legend of how the dragon boat festival originated.

Share your story on our blog: http://esl-library.com/blog/dragonboat




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Answer Key

Pre-Reading Vocabulary Task:

1. b 2. c 3. e 4. a 5. i 6. h 7. d 8. g 9. f 10. j

Comprehension Questions:

1. A jealous king banished Qu Yuan from the state of Chu.2. Qu Yuan protested the corruption in his homeland by committing suicide. He jumped into the Miluo River.3. Qu Yuan’s loved ones threw rice in the water when they heard about the suicide. They wanted to keep the fishes away from the poet.4. The annual Dragon Boat Festival is held on the fifth day of the fifth moon in the lunar calendar. According to legend, this is the day that Qu Yuan died. 5. The person at the back of the boat is the sweep. He steers the boat.

Vocabulary Review

A. Spot the Error

1. Paddlers in a dragon boat have to synchronize their strokes with the lead paddlers.

2. Qu Yuan’s loved ones rushed out in boats to scare off the fish.

3. Steering is the job of the sweep at the back of the boat.

4. While he was in exile, Qu Yuan wrote poetry.

5. Qu Yuan committed suicide to protest the corruption in his homeland.

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every day is a holiday€¦ · day of the poet’s death. in the lunar calendar, this is the fifth...

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