人教版高中英语选必一Unit4预习单

      LISTENING TO HOW BODIES TALK

We use both words and body language（肢体语言）to express（表达）our thoughts and opinions（观点）in our interactions（交流，互动）with other people. We can learn a lot about what people are thinking by watching their body language. Words are important, but the way people stand, hold their arms, and move their hands can also give us information（信息）about their feelings（情绪，感受）.

Just like spoken language, body language varies from culture to culture（肢体语言因文化而异）. The crucial（至关重要的）thing is using body language in a way that is appropriate（合适的，恰当的）to the culture you are in. For example, in some countries,looking into someone’s eyes（注视某人的眼睛）is a way to display（展示，表露）interest. In other countries, by contrast（相比之下）, it is not approved of（赞成，认可）. For example, in many Middle Eastern countries, it is not polite for men and women to make eye contact（进行眼神交流）. In Japan, it may demonstrate（表明，展示）respect to look down when talking to an older person.

Thegesture（手势，姿势）for “OK” has different meanings in different cultures. In Japan, someone who witnesses（目睹，看见）another person employing（使用）the gesture might think it means money. In France, a person encountering（遇见，碰到）an identical gesture may interpret（理解，解读）it as meaning zero. However, you should avoid（避免）making this gesture in Brazil and Germany, as it is not considered polite.

Even the gestures we use for “yes” and “no” differ（不同，有区别）around the world. In many countries, shaking one’s head（摇头）means “no”, and nodding（点头）means “yes”. By comparison（相比之下）, in Bulgaria and southern Albania, the gestures have opposite（相反的）meanings. There are also differences in how we touch each other and how close we stand when we talk. In France and Russia, people may kiss their friends on the cheek（在脸颊上）when they meet. Elsewhere, people favour（偏爱，更喜欢）shaking hands（握手）,bowing from the waist（弯腰鞠躬）, or nodding the head when they meet someone else.

Some gestures seem to have the same meaning everywhere. Placing your hands together（双手合在一起）and resting them on the side of your head while closing your eyes means “sleep”. A good way of saying “I am full” is moving your hand in circles over your stomach after a meal.

Some body language has many different uses. Perhaps the best example is smiling. A smile can help us get through（渡过，熬过）difficult situations（处境，情况）and find friends in a world of strangers. A smile can break down barriers（消除隔阂）. We can use a smile to apologise（道歉）, to greet someone, to ask for help, or to start a conversation. Experts（专家）suggest smiling at yourself in the mirror to make yourself feel happier and stronger. And if we are feeling down（情绪低落的）or lonely, there is nothing better than seeing the smiling face of a good friend.

HOW DO I KNOW MY STUDENTS?

As an educator（教育工作者，教师）, people often ask me how I know what is going on in the minds of my students. Many students are quite shy and don’t speak all that much. At the same time, in a classroom of more than forty students, it is hard to have many one-on-oneconversations with each person. So, how can I really know what makes each student tick（产生兴趣，有动力）?

My answer? I look at their body language.

It is easy to recognise（识别，认出）when students are interested in a lesson. Most tend to look up（抬起头）and make eye contact. When I make a joke, they smile. When I talk about something difficult, they look confused（困惑的）. I know when students are really interested, however, because theylean forward（身体前倾）and look at me. People have a tendency（倾向，趋势）to lean towards whatever they are interested in. So if a student has his head lowered to look at his watch, it implies（暗示，表明）he is bored and just counting the minutes for the class to end. If two friends are leaning their heads together, they are probably writing notes to each other. Of course, not everyone who looks up is paying attention in class. Some students look up, but there is an absence（缺乏，没有）of eye contact. Their eyes barely（几乎不）move, and they always have the same distant（漠然的，遥远的）expression on their faces. It is as though they are asleep with their eyes open.

Some students are amused（觉得好笑的）by something else. They spend all their time looking anywhere but at me. Then again, some students’ favourite activity is daydreaming（做白日梦）. With their chins（下巴）on their hands, they occupy（使忙于，占据）themselves by staring out of the window（盯着窗外）or up at the ceiling（天花板）. They are certainly interested in something, but who knows what. The main thing is reminding distracted（分心的，注意力不集中的）students that they need to pay attention（集中注意力）in class.

While it is easy to perceive（察觉到，感知）when students are interested, bored, or distracted, it is sometimes much harder to distinguish（辨别，区分）when students are troubled（苦恼的，有麻烦的）. Students who are angry, afraid, or experiencing anxiety（焦虑）may have their arms crossed in front of their chests（胸部）and their legs closed or crossed, like they are guarding（保护，守卫）their bodies. Students who are sad or worried will nearly always wear a frown（皱眉；愁容）. They may also hide their faces in their hands like they are embarrassed（尴尬的）or ashamed（羞愧的）. Some students act this way merely（仅仅，只不过）because they are afraid ofbeing called on（被点名）by the teacher. However, if a student does not bother to（费心去做）brush her hair and her eyes are red from weeping（哭泣）, then I can infer（推断）that there are deeper issues at work. It could be that she is having serious conflicts（冲突，矛盾）with other students or at home.Whatever it is, I know I need to inquire（询问）and assess（评估）what is going on.

Ultimately（最终，最后）, my duty is helping every student to learn. Their body language lets me know when to adjust（调整）class activities, when to intervene（干预，介入）, and when to talk to students individually（单独地，个别地）, so they can all get the most out of（充分利用，收获最多）school. Reacting to body language is an important component（组成部分）of being a teacher.