Unit 8 Why don’t you get her a

scarf ?

八年级英语（下）

Period 4

pot-bellied pig

1. Why do you think pot-bellied pigs are popular?

2. What are the advantages and disadvantages

of keeping such a pet?

Pot-bellied pigs make good friends.

The advantages are that they can watch TV on the sofa when they are small.

The disadvantages are that they get too big to sleep in the house and they need a lot of love.

1. The most popular pets these days are dogs.

2. The name of David Smith’s pet is Jerry.

3. Life with a pig is always perfect.

4. The pig eat little food when she was small.

5. David made the pig a special house because she is too big to sleep in the house now.

The trendiest kind of pet these days is the pot-bellied pig. David Smith of North London has a pot-bellied pig named Connie. “Pot-bellied pigs make the best pets,” said David. “She watches TV on the sofa with me every night. She’s my best friend.” However, life with a pig isn’t always perfect. “When I got my pig, she was small,” said David, “but she eats a lot. Now she’s too big to sleep in the house, so I made her a special pig house. Also, pigs need a lot of love. Sometimes I don’ have enough time to spend with her.”

trendy—trendier—trendiest adj. 流行的

perfect adj. 完美的；理想的

3b Look at these notes about hamsters and write an article about them.

hamsters are popular, quiet, clean

easy to take care of

cheaper than rabbits or cats

small

sometimes noisy at night

sleep all day

n. 兔；野兔

adj. 清洁的干净的

rabbitrabbitss

Hamsters are popular pets. People like them because they are quiet and clean. People think they are easy to take care of and they are cheaper than rabbits or cats. They are very small so people don’t need to have a special room. Though sometimes they are noisy at night, most of the time they just sleep all day. They are very lovely.

3c What kind of animal do you like? Write a magazine article about the animal, but don’t say what the animal is.

• This pet is unusual. It’s a kind of bird. It usually lives in a cage. It’s easy to take care of. It looks very beautiful with a long mouth and colorful feather. It likes to talk following a man. And it is sometimes noisy because it likes to talk too much!

It’s white and black. It likes eating fish. It always keeps clean. If it feels hungry, it always calls “Miao”. When it is small, it can catch the mouse well. When it catches the mice, it’s very brave.

Nowadays, the pet are very popular to many people. Someone thinks keeping pets in an apartment is good . However, someone disagrees. What’s your opinion?

Fill in the blanks with the words given.

expensive boring cheap

special interesting

1. Today is Jim’s birthday. His

mother is going to make a ______

meal for him.

special

Self Check

2. My shoes were really ______. They

only cost $5.

3. My aunt took us out to dinner at an

_________ restaurant, but the food

was not good at all.

4. The movie was ______. I fell asleep

half way through it.

cheap

expensive

boring

5. It’s important to choose subjects

that you find __________.interesting

2 Read the passages and then write about the most popular gifts among your friends and family.

Everyone likes gifts. Some little kids think they don’t get enough gifts. Some old people think they get too many gifts. Different people like different kinds of gifts. Some presents are never too small. A little child may give his mother a leaf from a tree. It is enough to make her very happy.

present n. 礼物make sb. / sth. + 形容词 使某人 / 某事… What he says makes me rather angry. 他所说的话让我非常生气。 The flowers made the house beautiful. 鲜花让房子美丽。

Gift giving is different in different countries. In Japan, people sometimes give special gifts. But they are not opened. Later, the same gift may be given away to someone else. Many people have enough things and don’t want too many gifts themselves. In Canada, many people will not give big gifts to someone else. They will pay for a park bench or a tree to help remember a person. In the USA, some people ask their families and friends to give money to charity rather than buy them gifts. In Sweden, doing something for someone is the best gift. People don’t need to spend too much money. Instead, making a meal is enough.

open v. 开；打开 give away 赠送 give—gave—given

bench n. 长凳；长椅 rather than 胜于 Sweden 瑞典instead adv. 代替；而不是 If you don’t want to go, I will go instead.

Helping do some housework is the best gift for my mother. The best gift for my father is my good mark. My sister likes the dolls best, and my friend likes the interesting books best.

Write about the most popular gifts among your friends and family.

My pet is a cat. It’s white and black. I have kept it since it was two months old. It likes eating fish. When it was small, it could catch the mouse well. It always keeps clean. If it feels hungry, it always calls “Miao”. When it catches the mice, it’s very brave. I like it very much.