( Christmas, April Fools Day, Easter Day, Halloween, Valentine's Day, Thanksgiving Day, Obon...)

Step three: Pre-reading

Let students think about the questions:

1) What is your favourate holiday of the year? Why?

2)What festivals or celebrations do you enjoy in your city or town? Do you like spending festivals with your family or with friends? What part of a festival do you like best- the music, the things to see, the visits or the food?

Step Four: Language Points

1.mean to do 打算做某事

mean doing 意味着....

I never meant him to work for us.

Passing the entrance examination means being admitted into college.

2. celebrate vt.

(1) do sth to show that a day or an event is important 庆祝；祝贺

　　celebrate Christmas / one's birthday / a wedding anniversary / a victory

(2) praise and honor 赞扬；称颂

　　The names of many heroes are celebrated by the poets.

词语辨析：celebrate, congratulate

celebrate后常接日期、事情或场合。而congratulate后常接人，多为 congratulate sb. on/upon sth.表示为某事而祝贺某人。如：congratulate you on your marriage. 有时还表示私自庆幸的意思。如：I congratulated myself on my escape from being punished.

3.take place vi.

英语中表示"发生"的词或短语均为不及物，不用于被动语态。主语为所发生的事。

　　词语辨析：take place, happen, occur, come about

take place "发生，举行"，常用来指按计划发生的事，带有"非偶然"的意思。

happen ，普通用词，含义很广。常指具体客观事物或情况的发生，含有"偶然"的意味。当以具体事物、事件作主语时，happen 和 occur 可以换用；但当happen用作"碰巧"之意时，不能用occur代替，但可以与come about 互换。

occu，出现",较正式用词，可指事情偶然地、意外地发生或思想突然浮在心头。occur to 有"想起"的意思。

come about "发生", 常指偶然发生的事情。且很多时候与how 连用。与happen 用法较接近。