張 文

(安慶師范大學(xué)外國(guó)語(yǔ)學(xué)院，安徽 安慶 246133)

《新編大學(xué)英語(yǔ)》第1冊(cè)第3單元“More Than Words”是關(guān)于nonverbal communication的話題，為促使學(xué)生更好地理解課文內(nèi)容，老師可以采用讓學(xué)生開展角色扮演活動(dòng)、小組討論和口頭描述等方式。

Ⅰ.Role-Play

Work in groups to role-play the story.

Three Roles：Narrator Salesman Student

Narrator：In North America，nodding one’s head means”I approve or agree”，while in conversation among Japanese，it often means”I am listening.” While speaking with a salesman，one Japanese student in the US nodded his head politely to show that he was paying attention.

The next day the salesman brought a new computer to the Japanese student’s apartment.

Salesman： Hello，this is the computer you want.

JS： Sorry，I’m afraid I don’t understand what you mean.

Salesman： You told me you would like me to bring you a new computer to your apartment.

JS： Sorry，but I don’t remember saying that.I said nothing like that yesterday.

Salesman： You nodded your head when I asked about your opinion.Didn’t it show that you agree to buy one?

JS： I nodded my head… but that doesn’t mean want a computer.

Salesman： That’s strange indeed!

JS： Oh，I’m sorry，but it seems there is a misunderstanding! In my country，nodding head down simply means I am listening to you.

Salesman：Really? But it is quite different here! I learned from your nodding that you agreed to get one.Oh，it’s really queer!

Ⅱ.Group Discussion

1)Can you think of more nonverbal communication signals in addition to those mentioned in the text?

Shaking hands is the common form of greeting all over the world.

A person may point to his nose or chest to indicate himself.

A person may pat his head to show that he is thinking hard.

A person may shake his hand to say”No!”

2)Do you know any unacceptable gestures or body movements in your country or other cultures? Name some of them.

eating with your left hand in India；

the”O(jiān)K” sign in Germany and Brazil；

the thumbs-up gesture in Australia；

conversing with hands in pockets in France；

touching or pointing at someone with your feet.

Ⅲ.Talk about how animals communicate in each group

Dogs stretch their front legs out in front of them and lower their bodies when they want to play.

Elephants show affection by entwining their trunks.

Gorillas stick out their tongues to show anger.

Horses rub noses as a sign of affection.

Kangaroos thump their hind legs to warn others of danger.

Whales breach repeatedly to send messages to other whales.