www.themegallery.com,Unit 6 Cultural Geography,Teaching Material: Section A: Maya, the Riddle of a Lost Civilization Teaching Objectives: 1) Grasp the main idea and structure of the text; 2) Master key language points and grammatical structures in the text.,Teaching Focus and Difficult Points: 1) The main idea and structure of Section A. 2) The understanding of Section A. Teaching Methods: 1) Interactive Teaching 2) Communicative Teaching Teaching Aids: Teaching notes prepared by the teacher, blackboard, computer and projector.,玉米神香炉,),Step 1: Background Information,The Olmec奥尔梅克人: ancient Indians living in the southeast of Mexico. The Olmec civilization was one of the first civilizations in the Americas. They thrived between 1200 and 400 B.C. and settled in the forests, savannas稀树草原, and rivers of the Gulf of Mexico. They mainly used stone and clay in their architecture. Their architectural style included large clay platforms and terraces梯田, usually painted bright shades of red, yellow, and purple. For special buildings, such as ceremonial 仪式centers, the Olmecs used multicolored clays on the floors to add decoration to the building.,Step 1: Background Information,The Toltec托尔特克人: ancient Indians settled primarily in what is now known as Mexico, from 10th century A.D. until mid 12th century A.D. They were a militaristic军国主义 society. Their architecture was simple, and often unchanged because they were more concerned with function than form. The other purpose of their architecture was to induce诱发 fear. For example, they built large columns of fearsome warriors to guard a temple, and often added tzompantlis (low platforms where they made sacrifices and displayed severed human heads) to their buildings.,Step Two Pre-reading Tasks,Scan the whole passage to get the general idea and find the answers to the following questions. 1. When did the Maya adopt a hierarchical system of government? 2. When did the Mayan civilization start to decline? 3. Who is Xib Chac? 4. Who is IX Chel? 5. What is the Milky Way in Mayan mythology?,Step Two Pre-reading Tasks,Scan the whole passage to get the general idea and find the answers to the following questions. 1. When did the Maya adopt a hierarchical system of government? A: Around 300 B.C. 2. When did the Mayan civilization start to decline? A: Around 900 A.D. 3. Who is Xib Chac? A: Xib Chac is the Mayan rain god. 4. Who is IX Chel? A: Ix Chel, the “lady rainbow”, was the old Moon goddess in Mayan mythology. 5. What is the Milky Way in Mayan mythology? A: Mayans take it as the mystic road along which souls walk into the Underworld.,Step 4: Main idea of each paragraph,Part one: (para.1) the splendid of Mayan civilization. Part two: (para.2) the fall of Mayan dynasty. Part three: (para.3-23) the great influence of Mayan faith Part four: (para.24-32) some explainations for the rise and fall of the Mayan Empire,Step 5. Reading Comprehension. Fill in the form with the detailed information from the text.,Step 5. Reading Comprehension. Fill in the form with the detailed information from the text.,Step Three: key language points,1. Originating in the Yucatan around 2600 B.C., They rose to prominence around 250 A.D. in present-day southern Mexico, Guatemala, northern Belize and western Honduras.（para1） rise to prominence: become prominent, standing out, or easily seen E.G. Energy issues rise to prominence since then. He rose to prominence in the Civil War.,2. The Maya were equally skilled as weavers and potters, and cleared routes through jungles and swamps to foster extensive trade networks with distant peoples.（para1） foster: promote the growth of, help develop, help grow, nurture E.G. The mother tried to foster her daughters interest in music.,3. It started to decline around 900 A.D. when - for reasons which are still largely a mystery- the southern Maya abandoned their cities.（para 2) decline: v. grow worse, smaller, wane E.G. The prices for promotion have declined. 2) refuse in a roundabout way E.G. She declined my invitation to dinner. n. the process or result of declining, especially a gradual deterioration E.G. After his wifes death, he fell into a decline.,4. This individual would reveal, while in a state of enchantment, the messages sent by the gods to be interpreted by the priests.(para11) Meaning: In a state of enchantment着魔, this individual would reveal the messages sent by gods, which will be interpreted by the priests. Note: In this sentence, the infinitive phrase “to be interpreted by the priest” is used as an attribute to modify “gods”.,5.Not only was he a god of the four elements, he was also a creator god and the god of resurrection and reincarnation.(para16) the four elements: According to Aristotle, the earth was at the center of the universe, composed of the four elements: earth, water, air and fire.,6. descend means “move downward and lower, but not necessarily all the way”. The antonym of “descend” is “ascend”(para 20) E.