Lesson 6: Paradigm Shifts
I had a change of heart about him staying in Fukuoka.

I can listen to and understand someone talking about a paradigm shift.

INTRODUCE

People’s opinions and beliefs about something may change due to unexpected events in society or in their own personal lives. It’s good to be able to understand how they change.

PRESENT

STEP A EXPRESSIONS

I. Go over the expressions with your tutor.

    1. To open someone’s eyes means to make a person realize something that he/she was not aware of before.

    My previous job opened my eyes to how important teamwork is.

     

     

    2. If someone has a change of heart, he/she has changed his/her opinion about something.

    I was going to throw away my son’s old toys, but I had a change of heart. I decided to keep them to remember these special years.

     

     

    3. An aha moment is when someone suddenly has a realization or gets a new idea.

    We almost gave up on the problem, but then Josh suddenly had an aha moment and figured how to solve it.

     

    II. What would you say in the following situations? Use the expressions above.

    You didn’t like being a leader

    before. Then, you learned

    the importance of

    leadership.

    You realized that you

    can use garden tools

    to create musical

    instruments.

    You changed your

    negative opinion about

    spicy food after eating

    Korean food.

STEP B PRONUNCIATION

When one word ends with a consonant sound and the next word starts with a vowel sound, they are often linked together.
Phrase Example

have a

/ ha-vuh /

 I didn’t / ha-vuh / change of heart.

an aha

/ a-nah-hah /

It was / a-nah-hah / moment.

UNDERSTAND

LISTENING

Saori and Catherine are talking.

TRIVIA

Do you know how to say tanshinfunin (単身赴任) in English? There is no direct translation, but the best way to say it in English is to live away from one’s family. Because of cultural differences, this is not as common in the West as it is in Japan.

PRACTICE

STEP A EXERCISE

Read the story. Then, complete the summary using the expressions in the box. The form of some expressions may need to be changed.

an aha moment
open someone’s eyes
have a change of heart

1

2

3

At first, I didn’t care about the environment so much. But then, I saw some kids trying to clean a river that was full of garbage. I thought to myself, if kids could do something for the environment, then maybe I should do something too.

Then, I got an idea: What if I could turn the garbage into something useful? After a lot of research, I figured out how to make bricks out of used plastic!

Those kids cleaning the river really made me realize how one person can make a big change.
  1. At first, he didn’t want to do the project. But, he __________.
  2. He had __________ about turning plastic into bricks.
  3. Those kids cleaning the river _____ to how one person can make a big change.

STEP B EXERCISE

Summarize the situations using the expressions in the box. The form of some expressions may need to be changed.

have a change of heart
an aha moment
open someone’s eyes

ex. There was power outage, so the band couldn’t play like they normally do. But Drake suddenly got an idea to play acoustic songs instead.

→ Drake had an aha moment.

 

  1. My husband was originally against the idea of adopting a child, but when I took him to the orphanage, he completely changed his opinion.
  2. I didn’t think that learning a foreign language was important for an engineering student, but my professor made me realize how useful it can be for everyone.
  3. The sweets shop was losing to a competitor until the owner got a new idea: to put fresh fruits into ice pops.

CHALLENGE

Challenge 1

While waiting for your friend at a café, you were browsing your social media feed and found a video interview with your favorite writer, Touya Masukawa. Listen to the interview. Then, tell your friend about it once he/she arrives.

Today's Expressions

  • open someone's eyes
  • have a change of heart
  • an aha moment

Challenge 2

Discuss your ideas.

If Time
Allows
1

AHA MOMENTS
2

A CHANGE OF HEART
3

OPENING SOMEONE’S EYES
1

AHA MOMENTS

  1. Do you often have an aha moment when there’s a problem?
  2. When was the last time you had an aha moment?
  3. Do you remember anyone who has had a brilliant aha moment in the past?
  4. When you have an aha moment, how do you react (ex. jump, yell)?

2A CHANGE OF HEART

  1. What can make a person who hates politics have a change of heart?
  2. What can make a person who hates exercise have a change of heart?
  3. What can make couples who don’t like children have a change of heart about starting a family?
  4. What can make a person who hates raw food have a change of heart about eating sashimi?

3OPENING SOMEONE’S EYES

  1. Has anyone ever opened your eyes to something?
  2. Have you ever opened a person’s eyes to something?
  3. What’s something that’s difficult to open people’s eyes to (ex. political corruption, a cheating spouse)?
  4. What’s something that you would like to open people’s eyes to (ex. the joy of cooking, the dangers of technology)?

FEEDBACK

I can listen to and understand someone talking about a paradigm shift.

LESSON GOAL ACHIEVEMENT

  • 4
    Very Good

    Could complete the task with ease

  • 3
    Good

    Could complete the task with some clarifications

  • 2
    Fair

    Could complete the task with additional instructions

  • 1
    Poor

    Could somehow complete the task with difficulty

PERSONALIZED FEEDBACK