Intro
What does the date December 21, 2012, mean to you? If all you can come up with is that it’s the winter solstice, or that it’s four days before Christmas, then you’ve been out of the loop. This is the date when the calendar used by the Mayans, an ancient Central American people, ends. And that’s got some people convinced that it’s also the end of time.
So what that means is that lots of people are freaking out. They’re convinced that an apocalypse is coming. Zombies, superstorm, who knows what form the catastrophe will take? For all the believers, there are plenty of skeptics, too. Find out whether Marni and Greta believe in this English lesson about the apocalypse.
So what that means is that lots of people are freaking out. They’re convinced that an apocalypse is coming. Zombies, superstorm, who knows what form the catastrophe will take? For all the believers, there are plenty of skeptics, too. Find out whether Marni and Greta believe in this English lesson about the apocalypse.
Dialogue (Download Here)
Marni: I’ve been preparing. Because you know what 2012 is.Greta: It’s the end of the Mayan calendar.
Marni: That it is. And I saw this great comic that was two people talking, two Mayans talking, and he had this Mayan calendar and he’s saying, “I only had enough room to go up to 2012.” The other character says, “That’s really gonna freak people out someday.” And I laughed, and I thought, I hope that’s true, you know? But yeah, a lot of people are really preparing for the end of time. So what do you think about that?
Greta: I think it’s a little silly. What form do you think the apocalypse will take?
Marni: When I think about things like huge storms and, you know, monsoons and typhoons and all those crazy natural disasters, I sort of think about, is this the end of times? When I think about those things happening. But, you know, it seems like it’s happening a lot more, but then things settle down, and we all sort of get back into daily routines, and I don’t know.
Greta: I’m hoping, if there is an apocalypse, that it’s a zombie apocalypse. I feel like I’m the most prepared to deal with that kind of apocalypse.
Marni: Really? Well, I’ll have to get some tips on how to survive the zombie apocalypse.
Discussion
Marni tells Greta that she has been getting ready for the big event at the end of 2012: the end of the Mayan calendar. Marni describes a cartoon that she saw in which two Mayans realized that ending the calendar would probably scare people. She thinks the cartoon was funny, but she also doesn’t know what to think about the end of time.Greta thinks the whole thing is pretty silly. She asks Marni what kind of apocalypse she predicts will happen. Marni brings up all the extreme weather that’s been happening recently. She thinks the apocalypse could look something like that.
Greta takes a more humorous approach. She says that if zombies arrive for the apocalypse, then she’ll be ready.
Have you heard about the theory that the world is going to end on December 21? Do you believe it? If the world was going to end, what would you do to prepare?
Grammar Point
Comparatives and Superlatives
Greta says that she’s the most prepared to deal with a zombie apocalypse. She is comparing all of the possible types of apocalypses, and using the superlative to describe how prepared she is for the zombie apocalypse.
Comparatives and superlatives help us compare people, places, or things. Comparatives compare two things, while superlatives compare more than two things.
One way to form comparatives is to use the word more before an adjective. One way to form superlatives is to use the word most. For example, you might say, “I am more scared of zombies than I am of vampires.”
Which is correct, “I have three cousins, and Johnny is my more annoying cousin,” or, “I have three cousins, and Johnny is my most annoying cousin”?
Greta says that she’s the most prepared to deal with a zombie apocalypse. She is comparing all of the possible types of apocalypses, and using the superlative to describe how prepared she is for the zombie apocalypse.
Comparatives and superlatives help us compare people, places, or things. Comparatives compare two things, while superlatives compare more than two things.
One way to form comparatives is to use the word more before an adjective. One way to form superlatives is to use the word most. For example, you might say, “I am more scared of zombies than I am of vampires.”
Which is correct, “I have three cousins, and Johnny is my more annoying cousin,” or, “I have three cousins, and Johnny is my most annoying cousin”?
Quiz
- Why is the comic Marni describes funny?
- Which are examples of natural disasters?
- Which person is freaking out?
- Which sentence is written correctly?
Answer Key: 1:C 2:D 3:B 4:A
Vocabulary
solstice: the longest or shortest day of the year
Ex: I can't wait for the winter solstice, because after it the days will start getting longer again.
out of the loop: not aware of what's going on
Ex: Since when did Justin Bieber get so popular?
Man, I'm really out of the loop.
freaking out: feeling extremely surprised, amazed or confused; feeling very excited; feeling overwhelmed; feeling shocked; feeling scared; feeling a lot of fear
Ex: "I was totally _*freaking out*_ when I saw _*Anna Kournikova*_ at the athletic club. She is so beautiful! I didn't know what to do."
"Marie is _*freaking out*_ about her wedding. She's really worried about everything. She wants it all to be perfect, so she gets really upset whenever there is a small problem."
"OK mom - you have to promise that you won't _*freak out*_ when I tell you this. I'm really sorry about it. I broke your lamp. It was an accident. Please don't be mad at me."
"Marty totally _*freaked out*_ yesterday when he found out that he failed the math test. He studied really hard for that test. I feel sorry for him."
"I'm totally _*freaking out*_ right now. I lost my mobile phone last night and I have no idea where it is. I don't know what I'm going to do. I use it so much. I'm totally lost without it."
catastrophe: disaster, gigantic bad event, complete failure
Ex: He was really excited about his new girlfriend, but it ended in catastrophe. He's now bankrupt and depressed.
skeptic: a person who has doubts; a person who doesn't believe in something
Ex: I've always been a skeptic. I don't believe in things like ghosts and stuff.
comic: comic book, magazine with illustrated stories
Ex: Comic books always used to be about super heroes but now they're often about villains and a variety of other characters.
natural disaster: an occurence which is caused by nature and causes damage to an area.
Ex: Earthquakes and hurricanes are both natural disasters that can cause a lot of damage.
Prepare: get ready
Ex: If you don't prepare for the test, you won't do very well.
Zombie: a walking dead person, a mindless person.
Ex: He's like a zombie when he's in front of the television.
"Marie is _*freaking out*_ about her wedding. She's really worried about everything. She wants it all to be perfect, so she gets really upset whenever there is a small problem."
"OK mom - you have to promise that you won't _*freak out*_ when I tell you this. I'm really sorry about it. I broke your lamp. It was an accident. Please don't be mad at me."
"Marty totally _*freaked out*_ yesterday when he found out that he failed the math test. He studied really hard for that test. I feel sorry for him."
"I'm totally _*freaking out*_ right now. I lost my mobile phone last night and I have no idea where it is. I don't know what I'm going to do. I use it so much. I'm totally lost without it."
catastrophe: disaster, gigantic bad event, complete failure
Ex: He was really excited about his new girlfriend, but it ended in catastrophe. He's now bankrupt and depressed.
skeptic: a person who has doubts; a person who doesn't believe in something
Ex: I've always been a skeptic. I don't believe in things like ghosts and stuff.
comic: comic book, magazine with illustrated stories
Ex: Comic books always used to be about super heroes but now they're often about villains and a variety of other characters.
natural disaster: an occurence which is caused by nature and causes damage to an area.
Ex: Earthquakes and hurricanes are both natural disasters that can cause a lot of damage.
Prepare: get ready
Ex: If you don't prepare for the test, you won't do very well.
Zombie: a walking dead person, a mindless person.
Ex: He's like a zombie when he's in front of the television.
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