Bahasa Inggeris notes, unit 6

Time out

Textbook Full Blast Plus 4 Student's Book (Form 4), MM Publications, CEFR-aligned, pages 81-96

What this chapter covers

I can talk about free-time activities and use idioms such as had a whale of a time, get a kick out of and wind me up (6.6)
I can read an article about parkour and freerunning, decide the writer's attitude and find the main facts (6.1)
I can use the Passive Voice in simple, perfect, modal and continuous forms, including verbs with two objects (6.2)
I can use verbs with prepositions, verbs beginning with over-, nouns ending in -ness and -ity, and phrases with take (6.3)
I can write a semi-formal letter or email asking for and giving information, using direct and indirect questions (6.5)
I can express result, concession and purpose with so ... that, such ... that, although, despite, so that and in order to (6.4)
I can talk about TV programmes and give an opinion politely, taking turns and interrupting politely (6.6)
I can write a film review with general information, a short summary, comments and a recommendation (6.7)
I can describe feelings, character and appearance with adjectives, using the legend The Princess of Mount Ledang (6.8)

This unit is about free time: sport, computer games, television and films. It builds the skills you need for SPM Paper 1 (grammar and vocabulary in context) and Paper 2 (a semi-formal email and a review).

6.1Reading: parkour and freerunning

The article Urban Playground (p.82) explains a fast-growing extreme sport. Know these facts.

Point	Detail
Who and where	Two bored teenagers, David Belle and Sebastien Foucan, in Paris in the 1980s
Traceur	A person who practises parkour; from the French tracer (to trace). In Parisian slang it also means to go fast.
Parkour	Overcoming obstacles without overdoing it; a way of thinking that helps you control fear and mind; not competitive
Freerunning	More spectacular tricks and somersaults that are not really necessary
Where	Any place with obstacles: parks, playgrounds, malls; councils and schools now provide safe places and classes

Attitude: the writer's feeling about the topic. Here it is positive: the writer stresses fitness, the mind, and the good response in schools.

To find the writer's attitude, look at adjectives and what is stressed in the last paragraph, not at one detail.

6.2The passive voice

Use the passive when the action or the receiver matters more than who did it. Form: be (in the right tense) + past participle. Add by + agent only if it is important.

Tense	Active	Passive
Present Simple	They sell helmets here.	Helmets are sold here.
Future	They will deliver my sofa.	My sofa will be delivered.
Present Perfect	They have built two galleries.	Two galleries have been built.
Past Perfect	The firefighters had put out the fire.	The fire had been put out.
Modal	You should wear strong trainers.	Strong trainers should be worn.
Present Continuous	They are building a centre.	A centre is being built.
Past Continuous	Two men were robbing the bank.	The bank was being robbed.

Verbs with two objects

Verbs such as give, show, send and tell have a person object and a thing object. Two passives are possible.

Model

They showed Wayne the best place. → Wayne was shown the best place. / The best place was shown to Wayne.

Common mistakes.

Forgetting be: ~~The skatepark won't completed~~ → won't be completed.
Using the base verb: ~~was be shown~~. After be, always the past participle.
Putting a passive in the continuous with only one be: ~~is building~~ → is being built.

Rewrite in the passive: (a) Somebody took my phone. (b) They are teaching us parkour.

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(a) My phone was taken. (b) We are being taught parkour.

6.3Vocabulary: prepositions, over- and nouns

Verbs with prepositions (p.84, 96)

Verb	Preposition	Example
prevent ... from	from	The helmet prevented him from getting hurt.
concentrate	on	Concentrate on your schoolwork.
cope	with	I can't cope with the heat.
beg	for	People were begging for money.
depend	on	It depends on the weather.
apologise	for	He apologised for being late.

Verbs beginning with over-

Over- can mean too much, or it can add a different meaning.

Verb	Meaning
overdo	do too much
overcome	deal with and defeat a problem
overhear	hear by accident
oversleep	sleep longer than you should
overlook	not notice, or ignore
overcook	cook for too long
overtake	pass a moving vehicle or person
overflow	be so full that the contents spill over

Nouns

Add -ness or -ity to many adjectives: dark → darkness, kind → kindness, popular → popularity, possible → possibility. Some are irregular: strong → strength, high → height, deep → depth, weigh → weight, angry → anger, believe → belief, grow → growth.

Phrases with take (p.90)

take part in (join), take place (happen), take control of, take time off, take it easy (relax), take it for granted, take your mind off things, take something the wrong way, take it seriously, take it any more (bear).

Complete: (a) The final will take ___ on Sunday. (b) Don't take your health for ___.

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(a) place (b) granted

6.4Result, concession and purpose

Idea	Pattern	Example
Result	so + adjective + (that) such + (a) + adjective + noun + (that) so many / such a lot of	The bus was so crowded that we couldn't get on. It was such a crowded bus that ...
Concession (contrast)	Although / Even though + clause Despite / In spite of + noun or -ing	Although my dad was angry, he said nothing. Despite being angry, he said nothing.
Purpose	to / in order to / so as to + base verb so as not to / in order not to so that + clause (can, could, wouldn't)	He walked round the field so as not to spoil the crops. ... so that he wouldn't spoil the crops.

Common mistake. Do not put a clause after despite: ~~Despite it was raining~~ → Despite the rain / Although it was raining.

Join with the word given: Kelly bought a DVD. She wanted to exercise at home. (so that)

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Kelly bought a DVD so that she could exercise at home.

6.5Semi-formal letter or email

A semi-formal letter is for a person you know but who is not a friend or relative, such as a club secretary. The style is neutral: not too informal, not too formal. In Aiman's reply to the Putrajaya Century Bike Ride (p.86) he introduces himself, says why he is interested and then asks for details.

Part	What to do
Greeting	Dear Ms Samad, (or Dear + first name)
Opening	Say where you saw the notice and why you write
Give information	Name, age, experience
Ask information	Use a mix of direct and indirect questions; one paragraph
Closing	Looking forward to your reply. Yours sincerely, + name

Indirect questions (p.87)

They are more polite. Use an opener, then statement word order with no auxiliary and the same tense.

Direct	Indirect
How much is the fee?	I would like to know how much the fee is.
Will the team train first?	I was wondering if / whether the team will train first.
What do I need to bring?	Could you tell me what I need to bring?

Openers: Can / Could / Would you tell me ... ; Do you know ... ; I was wondering ... ; I would be grateful if you could tell me ... Questions with no question word need if or whether.

Common mistake. ~~Could you tell me where is the office?~~ → where the office is.

Make polite: Does the trip include lunch? (Do you know ...)

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Do you know if / whether the trip includes lunch?

6.6TV, games and idioms

Idioms with a positive meaning: had a whale of a time (enjoyed greatly), makes my day, get a kick out of, thrilled to bits. Negative: a bit of a downer, bored stiff, winds me up, gets on my nerves.

Phrasal verbs from the game adverts (p.88): lock up (put in prison), count on (trust to do something), try out (test), hook up with / hang out with (meet and spend time), run into (meet by chance), build up (develop), show off (try to impress).

TV vocabulary: sitcom, soap opera, documentary, talent show, game show, chat show, commercials, reality TV, viewers, presenter, contestants. When discussing, take turns and interrupt politely: Sorry to interrupt, but ... / Hold on. Are you saying that ...?

Is "The film was a bit of a downer" positive or negative?

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Negative: it was a little disappointing or depressing.

6.7Writing a film review

The sample review of Ola Bola (p.92) has four paragraphs. Follow the same plan.

Paragraph	Content	Useful phrases
1 Introduction	Title, type of film, director, stars	It is a sports film. It was directed by ... The role of ... is played by ...
2 Plot	Short summary and setting; do not reveal the ending	The film is set in ... It tells the story of ...
3 Comments	Plot, acting, soundtrack, special effects, costumes, message	The most outstanding feature is ... It is action-packed / full of suspense.
4 Opinion	General opinion and recommendation	All in all, I found it ... It is worth seeing. It is a waste of time and money.

Useful adjectives: spectacular, unforgettable, predictable, original, unrealistic, terrifying, disappointing, superb. Use the Present Simple for the plot and Present or Past Simple for comments.

Do not tell the whole story. Two or three sentences for the plot is enough, then spend your words on opinions with reasons.

Rewrite with an adjective from the list: "I knew the ending from the beginning."

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The film was predictable. (The ending was predictable.)

6.8Let's Read 3: The Princess of Mount Ledang

A Melaka sultan hears of the beauty of the princess and sends nobles with gifts to ask her to marry him. She asks for seven gifts, including bridges of gold and silver and, last, a bowl of the blood of his only son. He fulfils six, making his people work night and day, then realises he cannot pay the price and that his people are suffering. Moral: ambition and selfishness can hurt others, and a ruler's first duty is to his people.

Group	Adjectives from the lesson
Feelings	irritated, offended, overjoyed, discouraged, satisfied
Character	arrogant, devoted, witty, reserved
Appearance	bald, well-built, underweight, handsome, slim, graceful

Summary

Passive: be + past participle; two-object verbs have two passives; continuous: is / was being + participle.
Result: so ... that, such ... that. Concession: although, despite. Purpose: to, so as (not) to, so that.
Indirect questions use statement word order; add if / whether for yes-no questions.
Semi-formal email: Dear Ms ..., information given, information asked, Yours sincerely.
Film review: introduction, plot, comments, opinion, in the Present Simple.