SSC English First Paper - Unit Ten - Dreams

Unit Ten: Dreams

After we have studied the unit, we will be able to
• listen for specific information.
• participate in conversations and discussions.
• understand and narrate problems.
• take and give interviews.
• complete a grid.

Lesson: 1 | I have a dream

A. Read these texts and say what is common among them.

Hi, I'm Moitry Mutsuddi. My father is a freedom fighter and my mother is a teacher. They both dream for a golden Bangladesh and inspire me to do something significant, something positive for the country. Often I think what to do to fulfill their expectations in future. Finally I've decided to be a politician and work for my motherland. How is it?

Hello! I'm Mofakkhar Hasan. I live in a slum with my parents and sisters. I know how cruel poverty can be! My heart bleeds to see the poor, suffering people in my slum. After I have finished my education, I'll be a social worker and fight against social injustice and poverty. 'Change' is the word I believe in to make Bangladesh a golden Bengal.

I'm Amitabho Kar. When I say to my friends that I would like to be a space traveller, they laugh. But I really want to be that. If people from other countries can conquer the moon, and roam in the space, why not we? To be honest, I visualise that one day I'm stepping on Mars from a space shuttle. Please wish me the best so that my dream comes true.

My name is Ruth Antara Chowdhury. I believe that a society cannot be enlightened without proper education. Education lights the candle in people's heart. So I will be a teacher. Most of the times, people laugh at me and say, 'You are a brilliant student. Why not be a doctor or an engineer?' I tell them, 'I want to be a teacher because I'm brilliant'.

B. Read the texts again and then work in pairs. Which person do you think is most like you and why? Write a similar text stating your own dream.

C. Read this interview between Swati, a successful student in JSC and a newspaper reporter, Animesh Roy. The interview is jumbled up. Read the text and then organize the conversation properly.

Animesh : So you mean learning from each other?

Swati : There is no magic behind my success. I just worked hard. I followed our teachers' advice, 'The more you read, the more you learn'. I'm grateful to my teachers and parents for guiding me properly.

Animesh: Well Swati, we are really so proud of you for your brilliant performance in the JSC exams. Please tell us how you could

achieve this success. 

Swati : Ohh....and I'm grateful to my school and friends too. 

Animesh : That's great!

Swati : In my school, we had a nice study group. Whenever we had any problem, we discussed it in our group first. We tried to help each other. And it always worked. Never forget, two heads are better than one.

Animesh : I understand why you are grateful to your school but would you explain how you arc grateful to your friends, please?

Swati: Exactly that!

Animesh : By the way, Swati, what are your dreams for the future?

Swati: To keep up the success in next exams and make my dreams come true. I want to be a scientist. Since my childhood I've known that many people in Bangladesh are under arsenic threat. They are taking arsenic directly from their drinking water and indirectly from the crops and vegetables they cat. It's a kind of slow poisoning. People are helpless. They are suffering from many kinds of diseases. Therefore, 1 have a dream to carry out a research on how to get rid of this problem, using our own recourses and expertise.

Animesh   : Wish you luck.

D. Now listen to the Audio and check whether your answer is correct. 

Listening text 8

E. Work In pairs. Make questions for your partner to know about his/her dreams and take his/her interview.

Lesson: 2 | What I dream to be

A. Work in groups. Read the following words. How are they related to dreams?

imagination, emotion, passion, obsessions, strong desire, colour, rosy, future, mind, brain, plan

B. Work in groups, and discuss the following questions:
1 Do you consider dreams important for life? Why/ Why not?
2 What do you dream at this moment as a student?
3 What, according to you is the dream of Bangladesh at present?
4 Give examples of some dreams that are commonly shared by Bangladesh as a nation.
5 Do you think the world has any common dream? What is that?

C. Listen to the Audio. Three persons are telling about their dreams. Take notes In the following grid to show what they plan to do and what they don't want to do.

Listening text 9

	plans to	doesn't want to
1. Catherine Aich
2. Masum Billah
3. Nirmal Drong

D. Listen to the texts again and check (✓/ x) the statements.
1 Masum Billah desires to study agriculture as his teacher suggests him to do that.
2 If Masum qualifies, he will get admitted to a university in his ^ rural area.
3 Catherine's mother died in a doctor's hand.
4 If Catherine's family had brought a trained nurse, her mother might have survived.
5 If Najmun Sultana came a few months ago, Nirmal could take admission to a foreign University.
6 If Nirmal's dreams come true, his near and dear ones will be more conscious about their rights.

E. Now make sentences from the following substitution table.

If Masum	becomes a nurse	he will be a leader in the field
If Catherine	deserves any merit	of education.
If Nirmal	has opportunities	she will serve her community.
If Najmun	called a trained medical person	she could save her mother's life.
Sultana	came to Nirmal's class a few days ago	he will be a farmer's friend.
		they could learn more.

F. Work in pairs and make sentences reflecting your own life using if clauses as in the table above.

G. Write a composition about some event in your life that has inspired you to have a dream. Then briefly describe the dream. Make predictions and possibilities.

Lesson: 3 | They had dreams 1

A. Shanta was chatting with one of her foreign friends Jenny. Read the dialogue and tell what the subject of their conversation is.

Jenny  : Shanta, what's your dream for the future?

Shanta : To be a good human being first and then work for my country-no matter whether I become a social worker, an artist, or a professional.

Jenny  : Wow!I really appreciate your thought! By the way, Shanta, does anyone inspire you in your dreams?

Shanta : Certainly. I'm always influenced by the great personalities in our country and abroad. Whenever I read the biography of great people, I try to understand how their dreams could help them to be what they have been.

Jenny  : Would you please tell me about some of your favourite dreamers?

Sbanta : Sure! Read the following texts to know  about   some dreamers in my country. They are my icons as well.

B. Read the text

Pritilata Waddedar was born in Chittagong on 5 May 1911. She was a meritorious student at Dr Khastagir Government Girls' School in Chittagong and Eden College, Dhaka. She graduated in philosophy with distinction from Bethune College in Kolkata. In her college days, Pritilata was an activist in the anti-British movement All through hex life, she dreamt of two things: a society without gender discrimination, and her motherland free from British colonial rule.

So abe decided to fight against the British rule. Soon after, Pritilata became the head teacher of Nandankanon Apama Charan School in Chittagong. Gradually she involved herself in Surja Sen's armed resistance movement. Surja Sen was a famous anti-British movement ofgmn^er revolutionary activist in Chittagong area at that time. In 1932, Surja Sen planned an attack on the Pahartali Euro¬pean Club. Die club was well-known for its notori¬ous sign at its entrance: Dogs and Indians not allowed. 

Pritilata European Club

Surja Sen assigned Pritilata to lead a team of 10-12 men to attack the Club. The raid waa successful but Pritilata, dressed as a man, foiled to get out of the Club. She committed suicide by taking potassium cyanide to avoid anest She proved that women can work like men. She also proved that women too needed to be prepared to sacrifice their lives for freedom from the British colonial rule. Her dream finally came true. Die British rule came to an end in 1947 though she couldn't see it during her lifetime.

C. Read the words in Column A and match them with the meanings in Column B.

Column A	Column B
graduated	a member of a certain social or political group
activist	fight
movement	took a university degree
gender discrimination	rule by a powerful country over a weaker county
colonial rule	battle
combat	inequality between male and female
gradually	slowly
resistance	give responsibilities
notorious	activities
assign	dishonourable

D. Now answer the questions.

1 Where did Pritilata fight?

2 When did she fight?

3 Why did she fight?

4 What was Pritilata's profession?

5 What do you learn from Pritilata's life?

E. Now make questions from the substitution table and match the answers. One is done for you.

Lesson: 4 | They had dreams 2

A. Look at the picture. He is a great son of our country. Who is he? What do you know about him?

B. Read the text.

Zahir Raihan was one of the most talented film makers in Bangladesh He was bom on 19 August 1935 in the village Majupur in Feni district. He was an active worker of the Language Movement He was one of the ten students to go out in a procession on 21 February 1952 despite a ban on such activities imposed by the authorities. As a result, he and many others were arrested and taken to prison. Raihan was also present at the historical meeting of Amtala on 21 February 1952. He also took part in the mass movement in 1969. In 1971, he joined the Liberation War.

All through his life, Zahir Raihan dreamt of a democratic society, a society that would ensure freedom of speech. He had many dreams about our film industry too. He made a legendary film Jibon Theke Neya based on the Language Movement of 1952. It was a protest against the autocratic government then ruling our country. The family portrayed in that film symbolically represented East Pakistan. The family was ruled by an autocrat who had to go to prison for her conspiracy. During the Liberation War in 1971, this film was shown outside Bangladesh. Celebrated film makers like Satyajit Ray, Mrinal Sen, and Ritwik Ghatak appreciated the film. Raihan gave all the money the film made to the Freedom Fighters' trust Besides, his great documentary on Pakistani atrocities, Stop Genocide, helped create world sentiment in favour of our liberation war.

On 30 December 1971, someone informed Raihan about an address somewhere at Mirpur where he might find his brother, the famous writer Shahidullah Kaiser, who had gone missing from 14 December 1971. Kaiser was captured and killed by the Pakistani army and the local collaborators during die last days of the war. Accordingly, Raihan left home to get his brother back but he never returned. Zahir Raihan's dream was fulfilled. He could see the emergence of an independent Bangladesh though he did not get back his brother. And if s a pity that this dreamer could not live to see his dream come true.

C. Use appropriate information from the text above to complete the grid.

Zahir Raihan
participated in	famous as	best documentary	movie based on language movement	missing since	his dream

D. Read the following sentences and complete them.

1 Zahir Raihan is famous as...............

2 Raihan was imprisoned because...............

3 He participated in............... and...............

4 Jibon Theke Neya symbolizes...............

5 He donated...............

6 He worked to organize............... by his great documentary Stop Genocide.

7 His disappearance is a great...............

E. Work in pairs. Discuss.

1 Why is Zahir Raihan considered a freedom fighter though he was a film maker?

2 How does the title of the lesson fit the story of Zahir Raihan?

F. Project. Work in groups. Meet a freedom fighter in your locality. Interview him/her. Then write a paragraph on him/her.