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NINTENDO: Product Innovation
Elementary Level:
Unit Objectives
In this unit:
• Grammar: Adjective or Adverb
• Pronunciation: N - NG - GN - KN
• Functional Vocabulary: uses of Get
• Listening: Nintendo history and the Wii
• Reading: Wii – The Product
• Role Play: Describe a company using adjectives and adverbs
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INTRODUCTION:
What do you know about Nintendo?
LISTENING 1:
Visit www.businessenglishstudy.com for the free MP3 listening file
Listen to a spokesperson talk about Nintendo, and answer these questions.
1. What does the word Nintendo mean in English?
2. What was Nintendo’s first product?
3. What is the name of Nintendo’s famous character?
4. When was the Wii launched?
5. How many units of the Wii has Nintendo sold by June 2008?
PRONUNCIATION: N – NG – GN - KN
Practice pronouncing these words & discuss their meanings with your teacher:
SIGN - NINTENDO - ANGRY - DESIGN - THING - HUNGRY - KNOWN – SIGNAL
FUNCTIONAL VOCABULARY - Get
Look at these examples:
How many emails do you get each day? I normally get
20, but yesterday I got over 100. I will get more tomorrow.
FORM:
GET is present simple
GOT is the past simple
WILL GET is the future simple.
USES:
1. We can use GET to mean ‘receive’.
e.g. Did you get the message from Paul? Yes, I got it.
2. We can also use GET to mean ‘arrive.’
e.g. I usually get to the office at 9am but yesterday I got here at 8am
What time does the train get here? At 4.30
EXERCISE: Complete the sentences using GET in the correct tense.
1. We more orders next month.
2. The Wii always good reviews from our customers.
3. I a pay rise last week.
4. They to Japan by tomorrow evening.
5. I a new computer every year.
6. What time she normally to the office?
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READING: The Wii
Read the article and fill in the gaps with: Get - Got – Will Get.
Nintendo introduced the Wii in November 2006 and it 1. a great reception.
By 2008 there was a Wii in 15% of all Japanese and American homes.
The game is more popular than the Sony PS3, but the high demand for the Wii is
causing problems for Nintendo.
Stores around the world cannot 2. enough games to meet customer demand.
Nintendo’s President said that they 3. the idea for the Wii from customers
who wanted more interactivity.
Nintendo produces 750,000 Wii games per month. This number 4. higher at
Christmas and Nintendo will then invest in better products and more innovation.
The Name:
Nintendo said: Wii sounds like 'we', and is for everyone. The ‘i’s in the word represent
two people playing the game, and the word Wii is easily remembered by everybody.
You 5. a clear sound from the name. No abbreviation. No confusion. Just Wii.
Speaking Practice:
• What do you think of the name, ‘Wii’?
• Are names of products and companies important?
• Can you think of any other strange products or companies names?
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GRAMMAR PRACTICE: Adjective or Adverb
ADJECTIVES are used to give more information about nouns.
e.g. It is an expensive machine.
He speaks good English
ADVERBS are used to give more information about verbs.
e.g. She works slowly.
He speaks English well.
EXERCISE: Complete each sentence with an Adjective or Adverb from the box.
Quickly - Well - Good - Cheap - Really - Funny
1. I think it is a idea.
2. I am happy to work for Nintendo.
3. She speaks Japanese .
4. Super Mario is a man.
5. The Wii is compared to the Playstation3.
6. We sell the games very .
Supplement this task with relevant exercises from a good grammar book
LISTENING 2:
Visit www.businessenglishstudy.com for the free MP3 listening file
Listen to the second part of the listening and answer these questions:
1. Who are the Wii’s main competitors?
2. What is the video game industry worth?
3. There was low demand for Play Station 3 because …?
4. What is the price difference between Playstation3 and the Wii?
5. How many units of the Wii does the company predict it will sell by 2009?
ROLE PLAY: In teams, describe a business you know well. Describe its
activities and company profile. Use adjectives and adverbs e.g.
Good – Big – Usually – Modern – Quickly – Well – Really – Total – Fast – Slow - Old
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Audio 1 – Elem. Nintendo
Nintendo - elementary level.
In English the word Nintendo means: "leave luck to God."
Nintendo started in 1899, and manufactured playing cards for a Japanese game,
called Hanafuda.
In the 1950’s it began to make toys and in 1970, Nintendo started to produce
computer games.
One of its most famous characters is Super Mario, and he was a global success.
In 1989 Nintendo created Gameboy, and by 2007 the company sold over 120 million
units.
In 2006 Nintendo launched a new game, called the Wii.
It is an interactive game where the players stand up and use their arms and legs to
move the action on the TV screen.
It is a very popular game and Nintendo has sold nearly 30 million units by June 2008.
Audio 2 – Elem. Nintendo
And who are the Wii’s main competitors?
Sony’s PlayStation3 and Microsoft’s Xbox 360.
Both the Playstation3 and the Wii were released in November 2006 and compete
with the Microsoft Xbox 360, a more powerful game machine.
And it is a market with big profits. The video game industry is worth $20 billion a year.
In 2007 the Wii was the market leader.
Sony reported low demand for the PlayStation3 because of technical problems and
its high price. PlayStation3 costs around $700. The Wii is $200.
But can Nintendo continue to attract customers to the Wii or is it a passing fashion?
The answer is not clear although the signs are good for Nintendo. The company
predicts sales of the Wii to be over 50 million units by 2009.
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LESSON PLAN – Nintendo – Elementary
Key objectives – to practise aural and oral Business English
INTRODUCTION: Ask the students what they know about Nintendo.
Teacher (T) – Students (SS) 5 mins
Go To
LISTENING 1: Next tell students they are going to hear a spokesman talking about
Nintendo. They need to answer the questions at the end. Play the listening and ask
students the questions. (T) – (SS) 10 mins
Go To
PRONUNCIATION: Ask the students to pronounce the words. (T) – (SS) 5 mins
Go To
FUNCTIONAL VOCABULARY: Go through the rules and the exercise. (T) –
(SS) 10 mins
Go to
READING: Find out if the students the lead in questions. Go through the reading and
gap fill exercise. Encourage them to use the grammar and the functional vocabulary.
(S) – (T) 15 mins
Go To
GRAMMAR
Ask the lead-in questions and go through the rules of Reported Speech and do
the exercise that follows. Ask students to read the questions and answers out
loud. (S) – (T) 10 mins
Go To
LISTENING 2: Tell students they are going to hear the 2nd part of the listening. Play
the listening and students answer the questions (SS) – (T) 10 mins
Go to
ROLE PLAY: Go through the instructions and begin the role-play. Make sure they
practice the grammar and vocabulary learnt in the lesson. Get the other students to
discuss and offer feedback. (SS) – (SS) 20 mins
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EXERCISE ANSWERS
LISTENING 1:
1. Leave luck to God.
2. Playing cards for a Japanese game, called Hanafuda.
3. Super Mario
4. 2006
5. Nearly 30 million units by June 2008
FUNCTIONAL VOCABULARY:
1. We will get more orders next month.
2. The Wii always gets good reviews from our customers.
3. I got a pay rise last week.
4. They will get to Japan by tomorrow evening.
5. I get a new computer every year.
6. What time does she normally get to the office?
READING EXERCISE:
1. Gets
2. Get
3. Got
4. Will Get
5. Get
GRAMMAR EXERCISE:
1. I think it is a good idea.
2. I am really happy to work for Nintendo.
3. She speaks Japanese well
4. Super Mario is a funny man.
5. The Wii is cheap compared to the Playstation3.
6. We sell the games very quickly
LISTENING 2:
1. Sony’s PlayStation3 and Microsoft’s Xbox 360
2. $18 billion a year
3. Technical problems and its high price
4. PlayStation3 costs around $700. The Wii costs $200.
5. Over 50 million units
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