Facultad de Educacin

Departamento de Ingls
Blended Language Courses

UNIT 3: WORLD CULTURES

A. Talk about aspects of your culture

South Korea

We have so many different dishes. One typical dish is Kim-bap. Its made
with rice and vegetables, and wrapped in dried seaweed. And its eaten
cold. Its delicious!

Min Hee Park.

Peru

Peru has some beautiful handicrafts. A lot of them are exported

nowadays, and theyre sold all over the world. But its still worth visiting a
local market. These earrings are made locally. Theyre made of silver.

Elena Camacho.

Simple present passive

We use the passive when the doer of the action is not known or not important.

Subject + am is are + Past participle + complement

We know that:

I am He You

She Is We are

It They

Examples:

1.- This food + is + eaten + cold.

(you eat this food cold)

2.- These earrings + are + made of + silver.

(people make this earrings of silver)

Facultad de Educacin
Departamento de Ingls
Blended Language Courses

3.- Handicrafts + are + exported + all over the world.

(Peru exports handicrafts)

Active tense vs. passive tense

Active Passive

1.- How do you make kim-bap? 1.- How is kim-bap made?

They make it with rice and vegetables. Its made with rice and vegetables.

2.- Do they eat it hot or cold? 2.- Is it eaten hot or cold?

They eat it cold. They dont eat it hot. Its eaten cold. Its not eaten hot.

3.- They carve the sculptures out of ice

3.- The sculptures are carved out of
ice.

If the doer of the action is important, you can introduce it with by.

Example: The sculptures are carved out of the ice by teams from all over the world.

I.- Complete the questions about your countrys culture with the
simple present passive. Then ask and answer the questions with a
partner.

1.- Whats the national anthem? When is it sung (sing)?

The national anthem is called Himno Nacional de Chile and its sung at special
events.

2.- Whats your favorite traditional dish? How ______________________________

(make)?

What ____________________________ (serve) with?

3.- What do you think are the most important festivals? When
______________________ (celebrate)?

4.- Is there a national costume? When _____________________________ (wear)?

5.- What are your national sports? ____________________________ (play) by both men
Facultad de Educacin
Departamento de Ingls
Blended Language Courses

and women?

6.- Is there any traditional folk music? Where ________________________ (play)?

II.- Complete the conversation with the simple present passive.

III.- Rewrite each sentence using the simple present passive. Use by when
the doer of the action is given.

1.- Some Native Americans carve totem poles out of wood.

Totem poles are carved out of the woods by some Native Americans.

2.- They make the traditional Spanish dish, paella, with chicken, seafood and
saffron.
Facultad de Educacin
Departamento de Ingls
Blended Language Courses

___________________________________________________________________________________

3.- In Mexico, they celebrate the Day of the Dead on the first two days of November.

___________________________________________________________________________________

4.- In Taiwan, parents give children red envelopes with money inside on New Years
day.

___________________________________________________________________________________

b. Talk about manners, customs, and culturally appropriate behavior

Manners:

Its rude to

You should try to

You can offend someone by not

Its impolite

Its polite

Its acceptable (not) to

You should be careful

In Chile:

You can offend someone by not saying hello when you first meet him/her.
Its impolite to go to a friends home for dinner without calling first.
Its polite to say hello when you are arriving at a place.
Its not acceptable to call someone, who is not your friend, very late.

Verb + ing (as a subject) Position of NOT

Not comes before the word it negates.

1.- Eating in public is bad manners. Be careful not to pint at people.

2.- Not shaking hands is impolite. You can offend people by not bowing.

Verb + ing (after prepositions) Notice the difference in meaning:

Facultad de Educacin
Departamento de Ingls
Blended Language Courses

1.- You can offend people by eating in Its acceptable not to tip cabs drives=
public. Its optional.
2.- People might stare at you for not
shaking hands. Its not acceptable to tip cab drivers=
You shouldnt do it.

To + verb after its

Its bad manners to eat in public.

Its impolite not to shake hands.

I.- Use the words in the box to complete the sentences with either verb + ing or
to be + verb.

cut in line - eat - hold hands - shake hands - kiss - show - stand up - take off

1.- Italy: Its customary to kiss friends and family when you meet.

2.- South Korea: ____________________ your bare feet to elderly people is

disrespectful.

3.- Indonesia: ____________________ and drinking before you are asked to by your
host is rude.

4.- The U.S.A: Its impolite____________________ at the bus stop or in a bank, for
example.

5.- Mexico: ____________________ is the normal way to greet people in a business

situation.

6.- Japan: Its important ____________________ your shoes before you enter someones
home.

7.- Saudi Arabia: ____________________ in public is a sign of friendship.

8.- Germany: If youre sitting, its polite ____________________ when greeting people
and shaking hands.
Facultad de Educacin
Departamento de Ingls
Blended Language Courses