Emerald Greed

Lead-in

  • Why do people wear jewelry?
  • Are you interested in investing in precious stones? Why or why not?
  • Why are some people obsessed with jewelry?
  • Which of the pieces of jewelry below do you use most?

Presentation

Pre

  • What do you think of mining for resources like coal, precious stones or metals?

Top Down

  • The following book review has two paragraphs. What do they focus on?

Emerald Greed is an adventure set in the Pantanal, vast, inhospitable wetlands in the center of South America at the headwaters of the Rio Paraguay. This book tells of the emerald trade, cocaine smuggling and of politics as practiced in Brazil. The story begins with Jack Tate in Rio de Janeiro, working to reestablish the industry contacts he had prior to leaving for Africa to trade in the “blood diamonds” that were fueling the Angolan Civil War. This African venture which ended in a Zairian prison left him destitute and therefore desperate enough to head off into the Brazilian hinterlands in search of the fabled Borba Mine, knowing that Joaquim Fontes, the geologist who re-discovered it, and another gem dealer sent to find him have both disappeared. As the story unfolds so does a romance between Jack and Joaquim’s daughter, Marisa, who eventually leads him to the mine where their quest begins.

Brian Ray Brewer is an author and inventor with many patents to his credit. He was once a merchant seaman, a naval officer, a jeweler and an engineer who worked in South American oilfields and power plants. Brian lives with his wife and daughters on water in Brazil. Books by this Author: Novels– The Face of God, Emerald Greed, Bilongo, The Diving God, The Rapture (Coming in 2023) and Perdition (Coming in 2024). Poetry– From a Seaman to his Wife and Cries Primeval. Author’s Education: United States Merchant Marine Academy: BS, Marine Engineering & Marine Transportation, 1987. Gemological Institute of America: Graduate Gemologist, 1995. California State University, Dominguez Hills: MA, Humanities, 1999. Harvard University Extension School: ALM, Creative Writing and Literature, 2022.

Source

Bottom Up

  • Look at the words in bold. Using context clues, talk about what you think they mean. Check your accuracy with an online dictionary.
  • Read the text again and answer the following questions.
  1. Emerald Greed is a book about drug dealing.
  2. Jack Tate wants to leave Brazil.
  3. Jack falls in love with the daughter of the geologist who re-discovered Borba Mine.
  4. They find the mine.
  5. The author had several jobs, from a merchant seaman to an engineer at oilfields.
  1. Emerald Greed is a book about drug dealing. False
  2. Jack Tate wants to leave Brazil. False
  3. Jack falls in love with the daughter of the geologist who re-discovered Borba Mine. True
  4. They find the mine. True
  5. The author had several jobs, from a merchant seaman to an engineer at oilfields. True

Post

  • After reading this review, how interested are you in the story? How come?

Target Language

Mixed Tenses

As we see in the text, we don’t always use only Past Simple or only Present Perfect. Some texts have a mixture of tenses. Here is a table of verb tenses.

Past

Simple

  • I went to school.
  • She made me do it.

Continuous (be + ing)

  • I was taking a shower.
  • They were playing soccer.

Perfect (have + Past Participle)

  • She had already left.
  • They had drunk too much.

Present

Simple

  • I go to school.
  • She makes me do it.

Continuous (be + ing)

  • I am taking a shower.
  • They are playing soccer.

Perfect (have + Past Participle)

  • She has already left.
  • They have drunk too much.

Future

With Auxiliary Verb ‘Will’ + Regular Verbs

Simple

  • I will go to school.
  • She will make me do it.

Continuous (be + ing)

  • I will be taking a shower.
  • They will be playing soccer.

Perfect (have + Past Participle

  • She will have already left.
  • They will have drunk too much.

Controlled Practice

  • Complete the table below.

Past

Simple

  • He

Continuous (be + ing)

  • He

Perfect (have + Past Participle)

  • He

Present

Simple

  • He falls.

Continuous (be + ing)

  • He

Perfect (have + Past Participle)

  • He

Future

Simple

  • He

Continuous (be + ing)

  • He

Perfect (have + Past Participle

  • He

Past

Simple

  • He fell.

Continuous (be + ing)

  • He was falling.

Perfect (have + Past Participle)

  • He had fallen.

Present

Simple

  • He falls.

Continuous (be + ing)

  • He is falling.

Perfect (have + Past Participle)

  • He has fallen.

Future

Simple

  • He will fall.

Continuous (be + ing)

  • He will be falling.

Perfect (have + Past Participle

  • He will have fallen.

Freer Practice

  • Use the vocabulary from the Target Language and make sentences using different verb tenses.
    • Present Simple
    • Present Continuous
    • Present Perfect
    • Past Simple
    • Past Continuous
    • Past Perfect
    • Future Simple
    • Future Continuous
    • Future Perfect

Production

  • Use the verb tenses and vocabulary from the Target Language to make sentences.

FUEL – VENTURE – DESTITUTE – HINTERLANDS – FABLED – DEALER – UNFOLD – QUEST

    1. Present Perfect + Past Simple
    2. Future Simple + Present Simple
    3. Future Perfect + Present Continuous
    4. Future Perfect + Past Simple
    5. Present Simple + Present Continuous + Present Perfect
    6. Past Simple + Past Continuous + Past Perfect

Homework

Look at the pictures and try to remember what they represent regarding the Target Language.

Choose the best option.

  1. Fabled / Fueled / Ventured with rage, he was able to lift up the car with his bear hands
  2. Although he’s just been arrested, everyone in the neighborhood already knew he was a destitute / quest / dealer.
  3. The way events unfolded / fabled / ventured was quite unfortunate.
  4. So the king sent his loyal guards on the noble venture / hinterland / quest of protecting the cript.
  5. Destitute / Fueled / Fabled from his post, he decided to leave the company and pursue his childhood dreams
  6. Those unfolded / fueled / fabled predictions of JM Keynes that technology would allow a four-hour working day and the opportunity for productive leisure seem further away than ever.
  7. The number of people who unfold / venture / quest to Llangennith is negligible compared to most of Devon or Cornwall, but the road is like a funnel and it doesn’t take much to get jammed.
  8. For the East-Coast rich, banishing one’s offspring to the dealer / hinterlands / venture is a time-honoured summer tradition.
  1. Fueled with rage, he was able to lift up the car with his bear hands
  2. Although he’s just been arrested, everyone in the neighborhood already knew he was a dealer.
  3. The way events unfolded was quite unfortunate.
  4. So the king sent his loyal guards on the noble quest of protecting the cript.
  5. Destitute from his post, he decided to leave the company and pursue his childhood dreams
  6. Those fabled predictions of JM Keynes that technology would allow a four-hour working day and the opportunity for productive leisure seem further away than ever.
  7. The number of people who venture to Llangennith is negligible compared to most of Devon or Cornwall, but the road is like a funnel and it doesn’t take much to get jammed.
  8. For the East-Coast rich, banishing one’s offspring to the hinterlands is a time-honoured summer tradition.

Use the words to make sentences. Remember conjugate the verbs correctly.

Example: the / We / open / go / when / store / it > We will go to the store when it opens.

  1. the gun / always / start / as soon as / The athletes / go off
  2. when / see / too late / Yesterday / I/ it / it / be
  3. I / we / done / by the end of the week / promise / have / it
  4. They / the / arrive / must / as soon as / left / cops
  5. after / go / dinner / be / dance / I
  1. The athletes always start as soon as the gun goes off.
  2. Yesterday, when I saw it, it was too late.
  3. I promise we will have it done by the end of the week.
  4. They must have left as soon as the cops arrived.
  5. I’m going dancing after dinner.

Use the words in brackets to complete the sentences. Remember to conjugate the verbs.

Example: Chico Borba should have been exhausted, but he ____ (be). > Chico Borba should have been exhausted, but he wasn’t.

  1. Two weeks before, Dom Pascoal Moreira Cabral, the comandante of the bandeira, ____ (make) him a lieutenant as a reward for the bravery and ability he displayed along their 1,600-kilometer trek from São Paulo.
  2. The Indians ____ (fight) desperately and bravely but in vain, and with the capture of their chief came their surrender and something even more important.
  3. “We ____ (find) out where it is one way or another, so save yourself and your tribe.”
  4. Send word to me when you  ____ (be)done. I ____ (be) in my tent.
  5. This slave before you ____ (be) unwilling to cooperate with his masters. He ____ (tell) us of the home of the green stones, and now you must see what happens to slaves who ____ (cooperate).
  1. Two weeks before, Dom Pascoal Moreira Cabral, the comandante of the bandeira, had made him a lieutenant as a reward for the bravery and ability he displayed along their 1,600-kilometer trek from São Paulo.
  2. The Indians fought desperately and bravely but in vain, and with the capture of their chief came their surrender and something even more important.
  3. “We will find out where it is one way or another, so save yourself and your tribe.”
  4. Send word to me when you are done. I’ll be in my tent.
  5. This slave before you was unwilling to cooperate with his masters. He wouldn‘t tell us of the home of the green stones, and now you must see what happens to slaves who don‘t cooperate.

Correct the sentences.

  1. I have bought tomatoes yesterday.
  2. She works as an engineer for 2 years now.
  3. John was look at the clock when I saw him.
  4. The trains leaves in 10 minutes!
  5. This time tomorrow I was traveling abroad.
  1. I promise, tomorrow I’m paying the water bill.
  2. What are you do tomorrow for lunch?
  3. Do you already been to Europe?
  4. We are late. By the time we get there, the movie has started.
  5. I take this medicine since I was a kid.
  1. I bought tomatoes yesterday.
  2. She has worked / been working as an engineer for 2 years now.
  3. John was looking at the clock when I saw him.
  4. The trains leave in 10 minutes!
  5. This time tomorrow I will be traveling abroad.
  1. I promise, tomorrow I will pay the water bill.
  2. What are you doing tomorrow for lunch?
  3. Have you already been to Europe?
  4. We are late. By the time we get there, the movie will have started.
  5. I have taken / been taking this medicine since I was a kid.

Writing

Write a review for a book, movie or series you like.