2.1: Reading a Tourism Website: Welcome to East County

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Pre-Reading Activity

With your instructor or classmates, discuss a travel vacation you have taken in the past or a travel vacation you will take in the future. What activities do you enjoy the most when you travel for a vacation?

Vocabulary Preview

Examine these photos. Do you know the words for these places and activities?

Reading

Go to this website and read the tourism blurb.

Reading Questions

After you read, answer these questions to check your understanding.

What is the title of the web page? Where did you find the title?
What location is the web page describing?
Who might like to read this web page? (the audience)
- Children in elementary school
- Tourists who want to travel to Southern California
- Immigrants who want to move to San Diego
- Politicians who want to understand the problems in the area
What is the purpose of the web page? In other words, what does the author want the reader to do?
- Explain why East County is a good place to live
- Give information about East County
- Convince the reader to visit East County on vacation
- Give the history of East County
How did you decide the purpose of the web page? In other words, what parts of the page tell you its purpose?

Understanding and Using Adjectives and Noun Modifiers

Form: Adjective + Noun Combinations

Identify the adjective + noun combinations in the following sentence.

"San Diego's East County wilderness is one of the most diverse areas in the county featuring rolling hills, majestic mountains, sparkling lakes, deep canyons, and desert landscapes plus Indian casino gaming."

Adjectives: diverse, rolling, majestic, sparkling, deep, desert

Nouns: areas, hills, mountains, lakes, canyons, landscapes.

What is the rule for adjective + noun word order?
- DETERMINER + ADJECTIVE + NOUN
- Examples: a sparkling lake, some rolling hills, the majestic mountains

Form: Noun Modifiers

In this sentence, which word tells us 'what kind of sports?'

People use lakes for water sports.

Both the word water and the word sports are nouns. But water is telling us what kind of sports.

In this phrase, sports is the head (or main) noun, and water is the noun modifier.

Find the noun and noun modifier in this sentence.

San Diego has many beautiful golf courses.

golf= noun modifier

courses= head noun

Meaning: Adjectives and Noun Modifiers

Read the two paragraphs below. Which paragraph is more interesting? Which paragraph makes you want to visit East County? Why? Discuss with your classmates and instructor.

In addition to outdoor adventures, East San Diego County boasts plenty of entertainment. Sizzling Las Vegas-style Native American casinos, luxurious resorts tucked right into the rugged landscape, challenging golf courses built around natural obstacles, historic sites and highways, and annual festivals and rodeos can be enjoyed, all within the expansive landscape of this California wilderness country.
In addition to adventures, East San Diego County has entertainment. Casinos, resorts, golf courses, site and highways, and festivals and rodeos can be enjoyed, all within the landscape of this country.

In the first paragraph above, identify the words that are missing in the second paragraph

Why do we use adjectives in a composition? Choose all that apply...
- To add interesting details
- To convince the reader that something is good or bad
- To help the reader make a picture in their mind
- Other (please specify)
What is the usual word order for adjective and noun combinations?
- (Article) + adjective + noun
- (Article) + noun + adjective

Vocabulary

Descriptive Adjectives

Examine the text of "Welcome to East County." For each adjective in the first list, write the noun that follows. Then match the phrase in the first list with the words in the second list that show its meaning...

Outdoor _________
Luxurious ________
Rugged _________
Sharp __________
Challenging _____
Vast __________
Diverse _______
Natural _______
Historic _______
Annual _______
Favorite ______
Friendly ______

Places that different a lot from each other
A very big natural place
A big and clear difference
Fun activities outside
Parties that happen every year in a town or city
An area in nature like a mountain or forest that is wild and difficult to walk in
A place to play the game of golf that is fun and difficult
A village or place that has an interesting history
A village where people smile and talk to each other
A thing in nature that blocks the way
A preferred journey to take for just a day
Expensive and beautiful hotels