City, suburbs or small town?

What's in the lesson

1. 1Warm-up
2. 2In this lesson
3. 3Guess the words (1)Vocabulary exercise
4. 4Guess the words (2)Vocabulary exercise
5. 5Check the wordsVocabulary
6. 6Check your understandingReading comprehension
7. 7Listen: from Brooklyn to a small townListening comprehension
8. 8Use the new wordsVocabulary exercise
9. 9What do they mean?Grammar exercise
10. 10Contrast and purposeGrammar rule
11. 11Choose the right wordGrammar exercise
12. 12The JohnsonsGrammar exercise
13. 13Say it naturallySpeaking practice
14. 14Help them chooseSpeaking practice
15. 15Let's discussDiscussion
16. 16Wrap-up

Homework

1. 1Homework: closest meaningVocabulary exercise
2. 2Homework: your sentencesVocabulary exercise
3. 3Homework: join the ideasGrammar exercise
4. 4Homework: where would you rather live?Discussion

Words

• suburb/ˈsʌbɜːrb/

  an area where people live, outside the center of a city (the suburbs)

• commute/kəˈmjuːt/

  to travel to work or school and back every day, often a long way (also a noun: a long commute)

• settle down/ˌsetl ˈdaʊn/

  to start a calmer life in one place, often with a partner or a family

• sacrifice/ˈsækrɪfaɪs/

  to give up something important to get something else (also a noun)

• convenience/kənˈviːniəns/

  the quality of being easy and useful, or something that makes life easier

• crowded/ˈkraʊdɪd/

  full of people

• affordable/əˈfɔːrdəbl/

  cheap enough for most people to pay for

• close-knit/ˌkloʊs ˈnɪt/

  with people who know each other well and help each other

• cost of living/ˌkɔːst əv ˈlɪvɪŋ/

  how much money you need for things like rent, food and transportation

• lively/ˈlaɪvli/

  full of energy, people and things to do

Two slides from the lesson

Warm-up

Let's talk about where you live.

1. Do you live in a city, a suburb, a small town or the countryside?
2. What do you like most about where you live? What would you change?
3. Have you ever moved to a new place? How was it?

Grammar rule

Contrast and purpose

Contrast: although, even though, despite

• although or even though + a clause (subject + verb): Although my apartment is tiny, I love it. I love it even though it's tiny.
• despite + a noun or -ing (no subject + verb): Despite the long winters, I would never leave. Despite living far from the city, they go to concerts every month.

Not despite the rent was high (use despite the high rent or although the rent was high), and not despite of (in spite of is correct: in spite of the high rent). Don't use but with although: Although it's small, but I love it is wrong.

Purpose: in order to, so that

• in order to (or just to) + verb: We moved in order to have more space.
• so that + a clause, often with can, could, will or would: I take the train so that I can see my friends. They moved so that their kids could have a yard.

Not for to have more space: in order to have, or to have.