Module 2 III

Storytelling
What will you find in this module?
You will be learning about:
Storytelling
Folktales, fairy tales, legends
The power of story & personal stories
Get ready for the Hands On!
Let's interview and write and article about people from the
National University

Advanced
 Module 2
Storytelling

PART 1 Introduction to Storytelling

SPEAKING
a. Work in small groups and discuss these questions.
USE OF ENGLISH TIP
1. Why do we tell stories? Expressing opinions
2. In which ways or forms do we tell stories?
I think…
3. What purpose does each form have?
In my opinion…
b. With your group, look at at the following images and videos and then discuss. If you ask me…
In my experience…
1. What is storytelling?
From my point of view...
2. Are these images/videos forms of storytelling? Why or why not?
3. Discuss your thoughts and come up with a definition for “Storytelling”.

Image: https://calvinandhobbes.fandom.com

Image: https://medium.com Image: https://temporausch.com

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 Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sPtjKrLPIbs Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RKso1lbD_Vg

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eOrNdBpGMv8 Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pphUfE0ERt0

c. Look at the definitions of ‘storytelling’ and ‘story’. Do you agree with these
definitions? Why? Why not?

STORYTELLING: noun & STORY: noun USE OF ENGLISH TIP

gerund & adjective 1. an account of imaginary or Agreement / Disagreement
Cambridge Dictionary real people and events told
Definition: I agree with that because…
for entertainment.
• the activity of writing, I feel the same way
2. an account of past events
telling, or reading stories; Absolutely/definitely/exactly
in someone’s life or in the
• the art of telling stories I don’t agree with that because...
development of something.
I disagree
I have a different opinion
I beg to differ
National Storytelling Network Definition:
I´m afraid I disagree
A statement by the National Storytelling Network defines Storytelling
as an ancient art form and a valuable form of human expression.
Because story is essential to so many art forms, however, the word
“storytelling” is often used in many ways.
Here is what most of Storyteller Practitioners mean by “storytelling”:

Storytelling is the interactive art of using words

and actions to reveal the elements and images
of a story while encouraging the listener’s
imagination.

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d. What do you think is the purpose of Storytelling? Work in pairs and check the ones that you think are true. Compare
your answers with the class.

to inform to give meaning to something

to educate to tell the truth
to influence to entertain
to connect with others to tell a lie
to share ideas to narrate an event

READING & SPEAKING

a. Read the following quote. Do you think this is true? Why or why not? Discuss in pairs and the with the whole class.

Image: http://www.livesinprogress.net

b. Read the following articles and answer some specific questions.

ARTICLE 1
Considering the previous quote is true, how do you think stories could be used in a teaching or educational setting?

Image: https://education.cu-portland.edu

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 Teaching English Through Stories: A Meaningful and Fun
Way for Children to Learn the Language
Excerpt from the article written by Nohora Ines Porras Gonzalez, Universidad Cooperativa de Colombia, August 2009-2010

The use of storytelling in the second language classroom creates a good learning environment and provides meaningful and
comprehensible input. Through stories, the language acquisition device is activated and it is easy for children to induce the
language elements from the data provided by the stories (Krashen, 1981).
Storytelling has special pedagogical values for the foreign language classroom, as Rossiter (2002, p. 1) points out below:
Stories are effective as educational tools because they are believable, memorable, and entertaining. The believability
stems from the fact that stories deal with human-like experience that we tend to perceive as an authentic and credible
source of knowledge. Stories make information more memorable because they involve us in actions of the characters. In
so doing, stories invite active meaning making.
Language learners can benefit from storytelling because stories help them to develop the ability to understand spoken language and
engage in thinking skills. In connection to this, Castro (2002, p. 52) reports on a study carried out in Colombia and stresses that
“Listening to stories develops children’s listening and concentration skills and their ability to receive and understand information
expressed in words. Besides, with the stories children develop learning strategies such as listening for general meaning, predicting,
guessing meaning and hypothesizing”.
Through the stories, the learners become aware of cultural values different from theirs, sharpen their memory and develop the
ability to predict and infer. Telling stories provides the opportunities for students to speak the foreign language creatively, integrate
information and knowledge they learn from other sources, and become more confident in the ability to express themselves
spontaneously.

c. Match the highlighted words to the definitions. d. Answer the following questions in pairs.

Provides ( ) a. credible, or convincing 1. What is the main argument/opinion of the author?

2. According to the article, why are stories effective
device ( ) b. give particular importance to
educational tools?
points out ( ) c. tool
3. The article discusses ways in which language learners
believable ( ) d. gives benefit from storytelling. List five of those possible
stems from ( ) e. to put into execution, complete a task benefits.

f. discuss, include, or explore, grapple e. Reflection and conclusion questions. Discuss in pairs
deal with ( )
with or small groups.
g. say something to make someone
engage in ( ) 1. Have you ever had a teacher use stories to help you
aware of a fact or circumstance
learn? Was it effective? Why or why not?
carried out ( ) h. improve
2. Do you agree with the main argument of the article?
stresses ( ) i. originates Why? why not?
sharpen ( ) j. to take part or be involved in

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ARTICLE 2
Read the following article. Look at the title and the next line. What does ‘become more active’ mean? What do you think
the article will be talking about?

Our brain on stories:

How our brains become more active when we tell stories
We all enjoy a good story,
whether it’s a novel, a movie, “When the woman spoke English,
or simply something one of the volunteers understood
our friends is explaining to us. her story, and their brains
But why do we feel so much synchronized. When she
more engaged when we hear a had activity in her insula, an
narrative about events? emotional brain region, the
listeners did too. When her
It’s in fact quite simple. If we frontal cortex lit up, so did
listen to a powerpoint presentation with boring bullet points, theirs. By simply telling a story,
a certain part in the brain gets activated. Scientists call this the woman could plant ideas,
Broca’s area and Wernicke’s area. Overall, it hits our language thoughts and emotions into the
processing parts in the brain, where we decode words into listeners’ brains.”
meaning. And that’s it, nothing else happens.
Anything you’ve experienced, you can get others to experience
When we are being told a story, things change dramatically. Not the same. Or at least, get their brain areas that you’ve activated
only are the language processing parts in our brain activated, that way, active too:
but any other area in our brain that we would use when
experiencing the events of the story are too. Evolution has wired our brains for storytelling—how to
If someone tells us about how delicious certain foods were, our make use of it
sensory cortex lights up. If it’s about motion, our motor cortex
gets active: Now all this is interesting. We know that we can activate our
brains better if we listen to stories. The still unanswered
“Metaphors like “The singer had a question is: Why is that? Why does the format of a story, where
velvet voice” and “He had leathery events unfold one after the other, have such a profound impact
hands” roused the sensory cortex. […] on our learning?
Then, the brains of participants were
scanned as they read sentences like The simple answer is this: We are wired that way. A story, if
“John grasped the object” and “Pablo broken down into the simplest form, is a connection of cause and
kicked the ball.” The scans revealed effect. And that is exactly how we think. We think in narratives all
activity in the motor cortex, which day long, no matter if it is about buying groceries, whether we
coordinates the body’s movements.” think about work or our spouse at home. We make up (short)
stories in our heads for every action and conversation. In fact,
A story can put your whole brain to work. And yet, it gets Jeremy Hsu found [that]:
better:
“personal stories and
When we tell stories to others that have really helped us shape gossip make up 65% of our
our thinking and way of life, we can have the same effect on conversations.”
them too. The brains of the person telling a story and listening
to it can synchronize, says Uri Hasson from Princeton:

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f. Read the article again and guess what the highlighted words mean in the context.

g. Find the expressions from the text that mean each of these definitions.

1. to invent or create
2. to separate into smaller parts, to take apart
3. the way our brains are set up, how connections in our brain are organized
4. to develop or become clear going forward
5. to sound smooth and soft

h. Work in pairs and answer the questions below.

1. This article is mostly about…

2. What does it mean to “be engaged” in something?
3. What happens to our brain when we hear a story?
4. In what way do our brains synchronize with the speaker’s experience?
5. The author says that a story in its simplest form is....?

i. Work in pairs and answer the following questions. Then share your answers with all the class.

1. After reading this article, what do you think about the initial quote: Stories are 22 times more memorable than facts alone?
2. What new information did you learn from this article? What did you find interesting?

USE OF ENGLISH TIP

Get

One of the most dynamic and common verbs in

English is ‘get’. Depending on the context it may
refer to obtain something, arrive in a place, show
a transformation or even cause something to
happen:
• If it’s about motion, our motor cortex gets active.
• you can get others to experience the same.
Go to the Use of English Reference for
more information

USE OF ENGLISH TIP USE OF ENGLISH TIP

Sequencing, summarizing, retelling events Discussing cause & effect

First before at first in the beginning as a result since

Next as soon as Then after that later on because of when
at last finally in the end so due to

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 PART 2 Folktales, fairy tales, legends
LISTENING
a. Listen to the recording of a Colombian folktale in English.
b. Listen again and follow the script.

Translated, adapted/added and read by Celine O’Malley from bogotavive.com

the Mohan knows, for he considers them to be his home.

He has kidnapped many women, and these tales combine
to create grand legends, both surreal and terrifying.

One once said that one day a beautiful, young woman from
a nearby village went to the river to wash clothes. There
in the shadows of the forest was the Mohan, smoking a
big tobacco pipe to keep away the insects. He watched the
woman, hidden from view, his eyes twinkling and a wicked
grin forming on his lips. He wanted this woman for his own,
so he waited and waited, until the sun dipped down behind
The Mohan character is one of the most legendary, well
the mountains and the sky turned a deep purple with the
known and respected tales in Colombia. It is one of the
sunset. The woman finished her washing, and stood up to
most important tales in the mythology of the region of
return to her town. But the Mohan quickly transformed
Tolima, and it can also be found in the Amazon region, as
himself into a handsome young man. He appeared out of
well as many others. Also known as El Poira, the Mohan
the shadows of the cave, and walked towards the young
appears in the form of a human, with a face burned by the
woman. Good evening my dear, he said. At first she was
sun, long dark hair, and wicked, penetrating eyes.
afraid of the stranger, but then she became enchanted
People say that he is a pursuer and ravager of women. with his sparkling dark eyes, and his beautiful shiny long
He is mischievous and robs the peace and calm of young hair. Come with me, he said. She couldn’t stop herself and
people. He does this by luring them in with tricks and she left her washing by the river, following the Mohan
disguises. deeper and deeper into the forest. The woman was never
to be found again.
His exploits are well known, and his existence cannot be
doubted after hearing stories from the people who live in People tell these stories to young women, reminding them
the countryside. They say that the Mohan used to live in the to never go to the river alone, for fear that they will be
deepest ponds, the most dangerous rivers and the creeks taken away by the Mohan, never to be seen again.
where there are many caves and hidden caverns that only

Image: https://www.bogotavive.com

c. Summarize & retell the story with a partner. Use the

following questions to help you. USE OF ENGLISH TIP
Infinitive, gerund or infinitive without to
1. What is the story about?
Remember that in English we can have a verb in infinitive,
2. What happens in the story? Sequence the events from
gerund or infinitive without to, depending on the context
beginning to end and the use of the verb. There are plenty of examples in
3. What is the purpose of the Mohan story? Why do the texts you are about to read.
people tell it? Go to the Use of English Reference for more
information BEFORE READING THE STORIES.

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READING & SPEAKING
a. Work in groups of 3 or 4 students. Each group is given one story summary. Read the summary in group, then summarize,
sequence and retell it, putting it into a graphic organizer structure (can be found at the end of the readings). Finally,
discuss what they think the purpose of each story is. Then, share the stories with other groups.

USA - PAUL BUNYAN

This is the story of Paul St. Lawrence River so that maple
Bunyan, the biggest child sugar barges could get to their base
ever born in Maine. When he of operations. After a while, a terrible
was a baby, his parents had blizzard started and did not stop for
to anchor his cradle in the several years, until Paul’s cow ate all the snow and brought
harbor because he roamed summer back. After celebrating this triumph, Paul and his
the neighborhood collecting men traveled west again, but became so discouraged by
trees for his father’s logging the heat in the west that Paul dragged his axe along the
business. ground in his exhaustion to make the Grand Canyon.
When the complaints about Desperate for food, Paul headed east and bought a barn
Paul became too much, the filled with corn, which he dragged through the desert until
family moved to the woods, the corn exploded and it began raining popcorn. Everyone
where Paul grew up to be strong and big and often wrestled was so overjoyed and made it to the west coast, where Paul
with grizzly bears. When he was a boy, he found a young gave up the logging business and traveled north with his
calf, who became his best friend and grew just as large as cow, still searching for pristine wilderness.
Paul did. As Paul became a man, he realized that he needed Today, people still tell his stories. Some say he was last seen
more space, so he moved west to start his own logging in Alaska, or even the Arctic Circle. Another tradition says he
business. As Paul and his team moved west, they battled still returns to Minnesota every summer. It says Paul moves
ogres and made a giant griddle so that they could feed the in and out of the woods, so few people ever know that he
growing number of people with pancakes. is there.
Taken & adapted from https://childrenslitclassics.wordpress.com |
Paul and his friends cleared out the Great Plains, carved https://learningenglish.voanews.com
the Rocky Mountains, and Paul dug the Great Lakes and Image: https://pinterest.com

GREECE - THE TORTOISE AND THE HARE

This is the story of Paul family moved to the woods, where
Bunyan, the biggest child Paul grew up to be strong and big
ever born in Maine. When he and often wrestled with grizzly bears.
was a baby, his parents had When he was a boy, he found a young
to anchor his cradle in the calf, who became his best friend and grew just as large as
harbor because he roamed Paul did. As Paul became a man, he realized that he needed
the neighborhood collecting more space, so he moved west to start his own logging
trees for his father’s logging business. As Paul and his team moved west, they battled
business. ogres and made a giant griddle so that they could feed the
When the complaints about growing number of people with pancakes.
Paul became too much, the Paul and his friends cleared out the Great Plains, carved

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the Rocky Mountains, and Paul dug the Great Lakes and St. the corn exploded and it began raining popcorn. Everyone
Lawrence River so that maple sugar barges could get to their was so overjoyed and made it to the west coast, where Paul
base of operations. After a while, a terrible blizzard started gave up the logging business and traveled north with his
and did not stop for several years, until Paul’s cow ate all cow, still searching for pristine wilderness.
the snow and brought summer back. After celebrating this Today, people still tell his stories. Some say he was last seen
triumph, Paul and his men traveled west again, but became in Alaska, or even the Arctic Circle. Another tradition says he
so discouraged by the heat in the west that Paul dragged still returns to Minnesota every summer. It says Paul moves
his axe along the ground in his exhaustion to make the in and out of the woods, so few people ever know that he
Grand Canyon. is there.
Taken & adapted from http://www.storyarts.org
Desperate for food, Paul headed east and bought a barn Image: https://cdn.quotesgram.com
filled with corn, which he dragged through the desert until

AFRICA - WHY THE SUN AND THE MOON LIVE IN THE SKY
asked the water to come
and visit him.
When the water arrived,
one of his people called
out to the sun, and asked
him whether it would
be safe for the water
to enter, and the sun
answered, “Yes, tell my
friend to come in.”
The water began to flow
Many years ago, the sun and water were great friends, and in, followed by the fish and all the other water animals. Very
they both lived on the earth together. The sun very often soon, the water was knee-deep in the house, so he asked
used to visit the water, but the water never returned the the sun if it was still safe, and the sun again said, “Yes,” so
visits. At last the sun asked the water why he never visited. more of them came in. When the water was at the level
The water replied that the sun’s house was not big enough, of a man’s head, the water said to the sun, “Do you want
and that if he came with all his people, he would drive the more of my people to come?” Not knowing any better, the
sun out of his home. sun and the moon both said, “Yes,”. More and more of the
The water then said, “If you want me to visit you, you will water’s people came in, until the sun and the moon had to
have to build a very large house. But I warn you that it will sit on top of the roof.
have to be very large, as my people are numerous and take The water once again asked the sun if it was still okay to
up a lot of room”. The sun promised to build a very large keep coming in. The sun and moon answered yes, so more
house, and soon afterwards, he returned home to his wife, and more of the water’s people came in. The water soon
the moon, who greeted him with a broad smile. The sun overflowed the top of the roof, and the sun and the moon
told the moon what he had promised the water, and the were forced to go up into the sky. They have been there
next day, they began building a large house to entertain the ever since.
Taken & adapted from https://www.worldoftales.com
water and all his people. When it was completed, the sun Image: https://oldnaija.files.wordpress.com

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 TURKEY - THE MAN WHO WAS A LIAR
There is a Turkish outside to pick up some more wood.
saying that says ‘A He got distracted and was gone for a
person who tells many while. When he finally returned to his
lies is usually not home with the wood, he saw in horror
believed or trusted by that a fire had started in his kitchen. He ran out of his home
anyone after a while.’ and hurriedly went to the center of the town. There in the
The folktale goes like center of town he shouted to all around, “My neighbor,
this: There was once please help me. My home is burning.” He stopped one
a lonely man who woman and asked her for her help. She did not believe him
lived in a small town. and continued walking. Next, he asked a man passing by,
Everyone in the town “Please my friend, my home is burning, I need your help
knew everyone else. to save it”. The man shook his head and walked away,
Most of the people who were living in that town knew the believing that it was yet another one of the man’s lies. He
man because he was a liar. shouted and yelled and asked for help from anyone that
The man had once had a family and a good job. But he passed by, but nobody believed him. They assumed he was
began to tell small lies to his customers. Then, he started to lying like always, so they didn’t go to his home to help him.
tell big lies to both his customers and his family. Because of That day, his home burned down completely, and he was
this, he and his family faced a lot of problems. left homeless.
He promised to be honest about his job, but he didn’t keep There is a famous Turkish saying: The candle of someone
his promises, so he lost his job. He promised to tell the truth who lies almost always burns just to midnight. After his candle
to his wife, but he broke that promise too. Soon, his wife left goes out, nobody gives him any light. He remains without light.
him. Then his children left him. Almost all the people who
A Traditional Turkish Folktale, Retold by Turhan Ece from Turkey and
were living in the town did not trust or believe him. adapted from http://www.topics-mag.com
One day, the man was cooking in his kitchen and he went Image: https://www.thehindu.com

RUSSIA - VASILISA THE BEAUTIFUL (RUSSIAN CINDERELLA)

Once upon a time there and a little to eat, and it comforted
was a merchant who had her.
a single daughter, who After a time, her father remarried;
was known as Vasilisa the the new wife was a woman with two
Beautiful. When the girl was daughters. Vasilisa’s stepmother was very cruel to her, but
eight years old, her mother with the help of the doll, she was able to survive.
died. On her deathbed, she One day her father, the merchant had to embark on a
gave Vasilisa a tiny wooden journey. His wife sold the house and moved them all to
doll with instructions to give a gloomy hut by the forest. One day they ran out of light
it a little to eat and a little to in the house, and so the stepmother sent Vasilisa into the
drink if she were in need, forest to search for light at Baba Yaga the witch´s house.
and then it would help her. Vasilisa was afraid, but her doll told her to go, and so she
As soon as her mother died, Vasilisa gave it a little to drink went, carrying the doll with her in her pocket.

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When she arrived, Baba Yaga the witch told Vasilisa that witch becomes afraid of the girl and throws her out of the
if she wanted her to give her fire and light, she must first house.
complete many tasks or else she would kill her. She had to Vasilisa and her doll take with them a lantern full of coals to
clean the house and yard, make the fire, do the laundry and bring back to her family. When they enter the stepmother´s
cook all the meals. Baba Yaga left the house and Vasilisa home, the coals burn the stepmother and stepsister, and
tried to finish the chores. But she became exhausted and they die. Vasilisa buries the coals in the ground so they
worried that she would not complete them in time. Then, cannot hurt anyone else. But she finally is happy because
her doll whispered to her that she could help. While Vasilisa she has been saved from the cruelty of her stepmother and
slept, the doll completed the tasks. stepsisters.
Retold by Celine O’Malley using various versions of the folktale as
When Baba Yaga returned to the house she was suspicious reference
of how Vasilisa was able to finish all the chores in time. The Image: https://curiator.com

IRELAND - THE HARP OF DAGDA

This tale is one first, so of course there was plenty
of the oldest of warfare between the two as they
folklore stories in fought for ownership of the land.
Ireland. During one particular battle, the great
Dagda was one hall of the Tuatha de Dannan was left unguarded since
of the primary every single tribe member was off fighting or aiding the
gods of Irish fight. The Fomorians saw an opportunity and entered the
mythology, said hall, stealing Dagda’s harp from the wall and taking it away.
to have been Since the harp only answered to Dagda, they could not
the father and make it play. When the Tuatha de Dannan discovered that
protector of the Dagda´s harp had been stolen, they ran to the great hall of
first tribe that the Fomorian´s.
journeyed to and settled on the island, known as the Tuatha There they found the harp hanging on the wall above the
de Danann. Like the rest of his tribe he was superhuman men and women feasting. Dagda barged in during the feast
and had exceptional powers and weapons. He used a and called to his harp, which magically leapt off the wall
magical harp made from rare wood, gold and jewels. This and into his arms. He struck three chords; the first played
harp would play its music only for Dagda, and the notes the Music of Tears and made every man, woman and child
he played held people spell-bound – literally as well as in the hall weep and wail with incomparable sorrow. The
figuratively. He played it before battles to rally his men, second chord played the Music of Mirth, making them
after battles to soothe them, at feasts to create all night laugh hysterically and maniacally. The final chord was the
celebrations, and so on – each time, no matter what the Music of Sleep, which made each and every Fomorian in the
men and women were feeling before, once they heard the hall fall into a deep and long lasting slumber. Although not
music of the harp they were transformed. defeated forever, their enemies would be unable to trouble
There was only one slight problem with the Tuatha de them for some time, and the Tuatha de Dannan were free
Dannan’s situation; they were not the first people to inhabit to roam as they pleased.
Taken & adapted from https://www.claddaghdesign.com
the island. A tribe known as the Fomorians had been there Image: http://tooeleonline.com

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 JAPAN - PRINCESS KAGUYA
her friends who were kind and fun
and full of joy. Sadly, she found the
forest cut down and that her friends
had all moved away. She collapsed in
the snow and fell into a deep sleep. When she awoke she
was back at the Palace. She wondered if what she saw was
real, or if it was only a dream.
Soon it was time for the Princess to be married. Many
suitors came to see her and tell her how beautiful she
was. One said she was as beautiful as the stone bowl of
Buddha. Another said her beauty compared to a jewel from
a dragon’s neck. And a third told her that she reminded him
Once upon a time, there was an old couple living by the
of the lovely jeweled branches from the island of Horai. She
mountains and a big beautiful forest. The old man was a
told them all that if they really believed what they said, and
woodcutter and one day, while cutting down bamboo in
truly wished to marry her, they must go and find the things
the forest, he found a glowing bamboo stick. Inside he
they had compared her to, and bring them to her.
discovered there was a glowing baby girl! He believed the
No one was able to complete the tasks, or when they did
baby was a divine being and so he took her home to his
they had done it falsely. This is when the Emperor took
wife. The old couple cared for the baby and she grew and
notice of the Princess and tried to become close to her. He
grew, quite quickly into a beautiful young woman. She
did not respect her wishes when she said no, and when the
made good friends with the other young people in the
Emperor tried to grab her, she disappeared into thin air,
village, who were kind and fun and joyful.
reappearing on the other side of the room!
Soon after, the woodcutter was in the forest again and he
That night, the Princess told her family that in fact she was
discovered another bamboo stick, but this time it is filled
originally from the Moon and that is why she was able to
with gold. The next day he found another one, filled with
disappear. In that moment she had prayed to the Moon to
fine robes fit for a princess. He believed they were a sign
protect her and help her, and the Moon had listened. She
from the Heavens, a good omen for his family and the
explained to her family that she came to Earth because she
young girl.
had broken the rules on the Moon, and she wanted to know
The old man decided that the best thing to do for the
what it was like to be mortal and live among other humans.
girl was to take her to the Palace, where she could have
But now, because she had called to the Moon to help her,
a chance to grow up as real royalty, like he believed she
she must return once again to its kingdom.
deserves. The couple took the girl to the Palace and met
On the next full moon, a procession of Moon beings
with the Emperor. They paid the Emperor with the gold
descended from the sky to take the Princess home, and she
to give her lessons on how to be a good royal figure. She
floated up to join them. She was sad to leave her life on
learned many things and was given a new name, Princess
Earth, but she knew that it was what she had to do. The
Kaguya because they said she was filled with light. But she
Moon beings put a robe around her that wiped away all her
was unhappy and wondered if that was what life should be,
memories of her time on Earth. She no longer remembered
with all the gold and riches, but without much laughter or
the sadness and impurities of Earth, but just the same she
joy.
lost all memory of the love and joy she had felt with her
One night at a party she heard the noblemen gossiping,
family and friends.
and saying that she was really just a peasant who didn’t Retold by Celine O’Malley using various versions of the folktale as
reference
deserve to be noble just because of money. Distressed, she Image: https://www.theverge.com
fled the castle in search of her old home in the forest, with

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b. With your group, summarize, sequence and retell the story of your choice by putting it into the graphic organizer
structure found below. Then, discuss with your group what the purpose of each story could be. Then, share the stories
with other groups.

GRAPHIC ORGANIZER

Story Title:
Origin:

SUMMARY

SEQUENCE

In the beginning/First…

Then….

Next….

Finally….

In the end...

PURPOSE / MORAL OF THE STORY

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 PART 3 The power of story and personal stories
SPEAKING
a. Work in pairs or small groups and answer these questions.

1. Why do we tell personal stories?

2. What purpose do they serve in your life?
3. What purpose do they serve in society? Provide examples.

Stereotypes & Perceptions: Inner circle-Outer Cirtcle

b. Look at the instructions below and follow them. Write on the circle provided below.

1. In the outside circle write down words or descriptions of things that people think about you when they first see you by
answering the following question: What do others assume about you, or what do you think others see when they
look at you? Then inside the inner circle, answer the next question: What are things that others cannot see about
you, but that you feel are an important part of your identity?
2. Share with a partner what you’ve written in your circles.

For example:

Outside: white, does not speak a lot, really serious, rich, arrogant.
Inside: introverted, funny, speaks three languages, does not have a lot of money, plays guitar, loves drawing.

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 HUMANS OF UNAL
c. Form groups. Your group has a station and you are given someone’s story and photo. Walk around the classroom and
visit the other groups’ stations. Look at the images and write down your ideas of who each person is, what their story
is. Here are some examples of questions you can think about and answer.

1. Where is this person from?

2. What language do they speak?
3. What are they like (personality-wise)?
4. What interests do they have?
5. What do they do (career or hobbies)?

d. After you having visited all stations and seen all images, return to your station and read and read, to the rest of the
class, the story of the person your group had to work on.

e. Discuss the following questions:

1. Were your first impressions correct?

2. How did you perception of the people in the images change once you read their story?
3. What is one thing you will take away from this activity?

f. Choose one of the images and its story. What kinds of interview questions do you think the person was asked to have
answered the way they did? Make a list of possible questions. Share your answers in a padlet.

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 Module 2
Hands On
Humans of UNAL

1. After reading and listening the stories of the four people on the

previous activity, interview one or two people from the National

University who you think are interesting.

2. Look at the format of the Humans of UNAL and try to write a

short article in the same way.

3. Take a picture of the person if possible and add it to your article.

4. Finally, present the article to your class.

5. Decide which article was the most interesting one, which one

was the most surprising, which was the happiest, etc.

6. Have fun meeting people and getting to know about them!

Images: https://www.freepik.com

A story...

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Module 2
Academic Production
ACADEMIC SPEAKING

BEGINNING THE
ACADEMIC ESSAY
INTRODUCE THE ESSAY
The beginning lets your readers know what the essay is about, the

topic. The essay’s topic does not exist in a vacuum, however;part

of letting readers know what your essay is about means

establishing the essay’s context, the frame within which you will

approach your topic. The point here is that, in establishing the

essay’s context, you are also limiting your topic. That is, you are

framing an approach to your topic that necessarily eliminates

other approaches. Thus, when you determine your context, you

simultaneously narrow your topic and take a big step toward

focusing your essay.

FOCUS THE ESSAY

Beyond introducing your topic, your beginning must also let

readers know what the central issue is. What question or

problem will you be thinking about?You can pose a

question that will lead to your idea (in which case, your

idea will be the answer to your question), or you can make

a thesis statement. Or you can do both: you can ask a

question and immediately suggest the answer that your

essay will argue.

ORIENT READERS
Orienting readers, locating them in your discussion, means providing

information and explanations wherever necessary for your readers’

18
understanding. Orienting is important throughout your essay, but it is
 Beyond introducing your topic, your beginning must also let

readers know what the central issue is. What question or

problem will you be thinking about?You can pose a

Module 2 question that will lead to your idea (in which case, your

Academic Production
idea will be the answer to your question), or you can make

a thesis statement. Or you can do both: you can ask a

question and immediately suggest the answer that your

essay will argue.

ORIENT READERS
Orienting readers, locating them in your discussion, means providing

information and explanations wherever necessary for your readers’

understanding. Orienting is important throughout your essay, but it is

crucial in the beginning. Readers who don’t have the information they need

to follow your discussion will get lost and quit reading.(Your teachers, of

course, will trudge on.) Supplying the necessary information to orient your

readers may be as simple as answering the journalist’s questions of who,

what, where, when, how, and why. It may mean providing a brief overview of

events or a summary of the text you’ll be analyzing.

QUESTIONS OF LENGTH AND ORDER

How long should the beginning be? The length should be

proportionate to the length and complexity of the whole essay. For

instance, if you’re writing a five-page essay analyzing

a single text, your beginning should be brief,no more than one or two

paragraphs. On the other hand, it may take a couple of pages to set

up a ten-page essay.

Does the business of the beginning have to be addressed in a

particular order? No, but the order should be logical. Topic and

context are often intertwined, but the context may be established

before the particular topic is introduced. In other words, the order in

which you accomplish the business of the beginning is flexible and

should be determined by your purpose.

REMEMBER
After working your way through the whole draft, testingyour thinking

againstthe evidence, perhaps changing direction or modifying the

idea you started with, go back to your beginning and make sure it

still providesa clear focus for the essay. Then clarifyand sharpen

your focus as needed. Clear, direct beginnings rarely present

themselves ready-made; they must be written,and rewritten, intothe

sort of sharp-eyed clarity

Source of information
https://writingcenter.fas.harvard.edu/pages/beginning-academic-essay

LET’S WORK!
We are going to write a full essay, part by part. Start by beginning your essay. Try to start an essay on the most amazing fact you
have discovered in your major/program. It won’t be a long essay. Let’s start with 400 words for this part. Further in the units you
will find more information to advance on your writing.

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 USE OF ENGLISH REFERENCE
GET

Get is an irregular verb. Its three parts are get, got, got. In to happen. We call this pattern the get passive:
American English, the past participle form gotten is common. The cottage got really badly damaged in the floods last year.

Get is a very common verb, especially in informal speaking and • Sorry we’re late. The train got delayed for over an hour
writing. Get has many different meanings and is used in many outside Manchester.
idioms. We use it less often in formal writing. Get has many
different grammatical patterns depending on the meaning. Get meaning ‘cause something to happen’

Get meaning ‘fetch’, ‘receive’, ‘obtain’ When we use get + object (o) + verb in past, we say that we
cause something to happen or to be done. It is a less formal way
We commonly use get + object or get + indirect object + direct of saying have something done:
object when we mean, very generally, ‘fetch’ or ‘receive’ or
‘obtain’. In these examples the object is underlined: • I’m getting the computer repaired on Monday.
• I’m going to the supermarket so I’ll get your jacket cleaned
• When are you going to get your new car? if you like.
• They were all dismissed from the firm but two of them
managed to get new jobs within a week. We also use get + noun phrase object + object complement to
mean that we cause something to happen:
These examples have an indirect object (io) and a direct object
(do): • [at a hotel reception desk] Sorry to keep you waiting. We’re
just getting the bill ready for you now.
• Can you get [IO]me [DO]an ice-cream? Thanks.
• Can we stop here? I need to get [IO]Fiona and Steven [DO] Get + object + infinitive with to, and get + object + -ing form
some cash from the cash machine. have similar meanings of ‘cause or persuade to happen’:

Get meaning ‘become’ • They got me to talk to the police, even though I knew it
wouldn’t help. (They persuaded me to talk to the police …)
We commonly use get + adjective to mean ‘become’ or to • Can you help me get this printer working?
describe a change of state or situation:
Adapted from: https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/grammar/british-grammar/get

• Put your coat and scarf on or you’ll get cold.

• Let’s hope she gets better soon.
• It’s getting dark.

Get describing negative events

We can use get + -verb in past to describe things that happen to

us, often things which are unfortunate and which we don’t want

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 USE OF ENGLISH REFERENCE
GET

EXERCISE 1

Look at the following examples and change get for another verb so the sentence has the same meaning.

1. It will take about an hour to get there.

2. In this job you get four weeks holiday a year.
3. Brown bears are omnivorous, eating anything that they can get their paws on.
4. We need to get this finished as quickly as possible.
5. We may need to go inside now, it is getting cold.
6. Try not to get too dirty!
7. Come out and get some fresh air.
8. Can you get me my jacket?
9. I think I can get Jack to help us tomorrow.
10. Unfortunately we couldn’t travel because our flight got cancelled.

EXERCISE 2

Complete the sentences below with the right form of get + one of the words from the box.

Involved Work across Older to speak

more difficult the job wet There their food

1. The lights changed to red before I could get across.

2. We underestimated how long it would take to get there.
3. There was such a crowd round the distinguished visitor that I could not get to speak to him.
4. The Army has set up mechanisms to help jobless ex-soldiers get work.
5. Don’t be late for your interview, or you won’t get the job.
6. You’ll get wet if you go out now.
7. As you get older, you have all sorts of aches and pains.
8. They crowded around the table to get their food.
9. It was stupid of you to get involved.
10. Every time is getting more difficult to find a good job.

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 USE OF ENGLISH REFERENCE
GERUNDS AND INFINITIVES

1. VERBS FOLLOWED BY A TO + INFINITIVE

Some verbs can be followed immediately by a to-infinitive:

Afford Agree arrange ask begin choose

continue decide demand fail forget hope
help Intend learn mean (= intend) manage plan
need Offer prefer pretend promise remember
refuse Start try want

• I can’t afford to go on holiday.

• It began to rain.
• She hopes to go to university next year.
• My mother never learnt to swim.
• Did you remember to ring Nigel?

2. VERBS FOLLOWED BY + ING

Some verbs are normally followed by the -ing form, not the to-infinitive:

admit avoid (can’t) help (can’t) stand consider

dislike enjoy fancy feel like finish
imagine Involve keep (on) mind miss
put off Risk deny give up practice

• I always enjoy cooking.

Not: I always enjoy to cook.
• We haven’t finished eating yet.
Not: We haven’t finished to eat.
• She keeps changing her mind about the wedding.

New subject before -ing

Some of these verbs (e.g. can’t stand, dislike, imagine, involve, mind, miss, put off and risk) can be used with a new subject before
the -ing form. If the new subject is a pronoun, it is in the object form (me, him, her, us, them):

• We just couldn’t imagine Gerry singing in public.

• Do you mind me being here while you’re working?
• I don’t want to risk him losing his job.

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 USE OF ENGLISH REFERENCE
GERUNDS AND INFINITIVES

3. VERBS FOLLOWED BY A TO-INFINITIVE OR -ING

Hate, like, love, prefer

Hate, like, love and prefer can be followed either by -ing or a to-infinitive. The difference in meaning is often small. The -ing form
emphasises the verb itself. The to-infinitive puts the emphasis more on the preference for, or the results of, the action.

Compare:
to-infinitive -ing form
• I like to drink juice in the morning, and tea at • I love cooking Indian food. (Emphasis on the
lunchtime. (Emphasis more on the preference or process itself and enjoyment of it)
habit)
• I hate to be the only person to disagree. (Emphasis • She hates cleaning her room. (Emphasis on the
more on the result: I would prefer not to be in that process itself and no enjoyment of it)
situation.)
• We prefer to drive during the day whenever we can. • Most people prefer watching a film at the cinema
(Emphasis more on the result and on the habit or rather than on TV. (Emphasis on the process itself
preference. The speaker doesn’t necessarily enjoy and enjoyment of it)
the process of driving at any time of day.)

Be careful: When we use would + love / like / hate, etc., the next verb uses to + infinitive.

• I’d hate to fail the exam after revising that much!

• I’d love to go to Susan’s party.

To-infinitive or -ing form with a change in meaning

Some verbs can be followed by a to-infinitive or the -ing form, but with a change in meaning:

go on mean need regret

remember try stop want

Compare:
to-infinitive -ing form
• I didn’t mean to make you cry. (I didn’t intend to • Working in London means leaving home at 6.30.
make you cry.) (Because I work in London, this is the result or
consequence.)

• He went on singing after everyone else had finished. • She recited a poem, then went on to sing a lovely folk
(He continued singing without stopping.) song. (She recited the poem first, then she sang the
song.)

• I tried to email Simon but it bounced back. (I tried/ • I tried searching the web and finally found an
attempted to email him but I did not succeed.) address for him. (I searched the web to see what
information I could find.)

• We stopped to buy some water at the motorway • She stopped crying as soon as she saw her mother.
service area. (We were travelling and we stopped (She was crying, and then she didn’t cry anymore.)
for a short time in order to buy some water.)

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 USE OF ENGLISH REFERENCE
GERUNDS AND INFINITIVES

4. VERBS FOLLOWED BY AN INFINITIVE WITHOUT TO

Let, make
Let and make are followed by an infinitive without to in active voice sentences. They always have an object before the infinitive:
• Let me show you this DVD I’ve got.
• They made us wait while they checked our documents.
Not: They made us to wait …

Help
Help can be followed by an infinitive without to or a to-infinitive:
• She helped me find a direction in life.
• Everyone can help to reduce carbon emissions by using public transport.

5. VERBS FOLLOWED BY -ING OR AN INFINITIVE WITHOUT TO

A group of verbs connected with feeling, hearing and seeing can be used with -ing or with an infinitive without to:
feel hear notice
overhear see watch

When they are used with -ing, these verbs emphasise the action or event in progress. When they are used with an infinitive
without to, they emphasise the action or event seen as a whole, or as completed.

Compare
-ing infinitive without to
• She heard people shouting in the street below and • I heard someone shout ‘Help!’, so I ran to the river.
looked out of the window. (Emphasises that the (Emphasises the whole event: the person probably
shouting probably continued or was repeated) shouted only once)
• A police officer saw him running along the street. • Emily saw Philip run out of Sandra’s office.
(Emphasises the running as it was happening) (Emphasises the whole event from start to finish)

6. VERBS FOLLOWED BY A DIRECT OBJECT AND A TO-INFINITIVE

Some verbs are used with a direct object (underlined) followed by a to-infinitive. These verbs include:

advise ask challenge choose forbid hate

help instruct intend invite like love
need order persuade prefer recommend remind
request teach Tell want

• I advised him to get a job as soon as possible.

• Did Martin teach Gary to play squash?
• They want me to go to Germany with them.

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 USE OF ENGLISH REFERENCE
GERUNDS AND INFINITIVES

A. Complete the sentences with a verb from the box in the most suitable form – to + infinitive / ing.

dance sleep listen watch call

talk move write rent buy
eat get work walk

1. I often go dancing on a Saturday night. 8. I don’t mind calling them if you don’t want to.

2. When I finish writing this letter, I’ll come and help you. 9. You need to practice listening.

3. I am planning to buy a new laptop soon. 10. Did anyone volunteer to work on Saturday?

4. I need to sleep at least eight hours a night. 11. He refuses to talk to me.

5. I want to move to London next year. 12. I enjoy watching romantic movies.

6. She avoids walking in the rain. 13. We can’t afford to rent this flat anymore.

7. Emily promised to eat all her vegetables. 14. I managed to get there on time.

Adapted from: https://www.ecenglish.com/learnenglish/lessons/gerund-vs-infinitive-practice

B. Read the article below and choose the best form of the verb in brackets in every case (to + infinitive / …ing / infinitive
without to).

A huge trash-collecting system designed (clean up) ________ to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
plastic floating in the Pacific Ocean is finally picking up plastic, Several of these patches exist in the world’s oceans.
its inventor announced Wednesday. The Netherlands-based There have been setbacks which Slat called “unscheduled
nonprofit the Ocean Cleanup says its latest prototype was (learn) ________ opportunities,” since the system set sail from
able (capture) ________ and hold debris ranging in size from San Francisco in September 2018. In December, the group
huge, abandoned fishing gear, known as “ghost nets,” to tiny announced that the system wasn’t picking up trash.
microplastics as small as 1 millimeter. Then, a 60-foot section broke free in January and the whole
“Today, I am very proud (share) ________ with you that we are thing had (be) ________ towed back to shore, along with more
now catching plastics,” Ocean Cleanup founder and CEO Boyan than 4,400 pounds of trash that it had collected.
Slat said at a news conference in Rotterdam. Officials launched the new System 001/B in June and after some
The Ocean Cleanup system is a U-shaped barrier with a net-like more trial and error, they got things working.
skirt that hangs below the surface of the water. It moves with “We now have a self-contained system in the great pacific
the current and collects faster moving plastics as they float by. garbage patch that is using the natural forces of the ocean
Fish and other animals will be able to swim beneath it. The new to passively catch and concentrate plastics, thereby (confirm)
prototype added a parachute anchor (slow) ________ the system ________ the most important principal behind the ocean cleanup
and increased the size of a cork line on top of the skirt (keep) system,” Slat said.
________ the plastic from (wash) ________ over it. There are still some hurdles (overcome) ________ before they can
It’s been deployed in “The Great Pacific Garbage Patch” -- a scale up the system. He said the final system will need (be able)
concentration of trash located between Hawaii and California to be able to survive for years in the difficult ocean conditions
that’s about double the size of Texas, or three times the size and be able (hold) ________ the plastic for months between
of France. Ocean Cleanup plans (build) ________ a fleet of these pickups, in order for the plan (be) ________ financially viable.
devices and predicts it will be able to reduce the size of the
patch by half every five years.
Garbage patches are formed by (rotate) ________ ocean currents
called “gyres” that pull marine debris into one location, according

Adapted from: https://edition.cnn.com/2019/10/02/tech/ocean-cleanup-catching-plastic-scn-trnd/index.html

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INTENSIVE ENGLISH & INTERNATIONALIZATION
Explora UN Mundo - Program Coordination
Nohra Vargas
Module Content Coordination
Fernando Alexander Calderón
Module Content Design
Alexandra Barton
Celine O’Malley
Charlotte Scott
Sarah Pitts
Shelby Coghill
Layout & Visual Design
Camilo Mancera Rozo

SECOND EDITION

Explora UN Mundo - Program Coordination

Kelly Vera
Module Content Revision
Claudia Prieto
Layout & Visual Design
Camilo Mancera Rozo

2019-2021

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