Unit 12: Unique Buildings
This unit is about famous unique buildings around the world — the Leaning Tower of Pisa, the Leaning Tower of Teluk Intan, Ripley's Building, the Basket Building, and the Elephant Tower. Pupils learn about architects, articles (a/an/the), rhyme schemes, and read 'Meeting Peter Pan'.
An architect is the person responsible for designing buildings. Some unique buildings discussed:
The Piano House, China — by architectural students at Hefey University of Technology
Kansas City Library, USA — architect Louis Curtiss
The Snail House, Bulgaria — architect Simeon Simeonov
The Earth House, Switzerland — architect Peter Vetsch
The Upside Down House in Tamparuli, Sabah — first of its kind in South East Asia, opened February 2012
Reading about three unusual buildings:
Ripley's Building (Branson Museum, Canada): built to reflect the 1812 Missouri earthquake; cracks are its unique feature
The Basket Building (Ohio, USA): owned by Dave Longaberger, has 7 floors, handles heated in winter to prevent ice
The Elephant Tower (Bangkok, Thailand): ears are glass-enclosed balconies, eyes are windows, tusks are management offices — elephant is a symbol of Thai culture
Comparison of two leaning towers, and two rhyme schemes used in poetry.
Leaning Tower of Pisa: Pisa, Italy; built 1178; 8 floors; viewing platform; 7 bells; sank due to unstable soil
Leaning Tower of Teluk Intan: Teluk Intan, Perak; built 1885; 3 floors; used as a water tank; clock chimes every 15 minutes; leaned after 4 years due to underground system
Alternate rhyming lines: line 1 rhymes with line 3, line 2 with line 4
Rhyming couplets: pairs of lines that rhyme (smallest / largest, me / free)
'A' and 'an' are indefinite articles. 'The' is a definite article.
| a | before a consonant sound: a building, a dragon, a giant basket | |
| an | before a vowel sound or silent 'h': an architect, an earthquake, an hour | |
| the | for a particular person/thing, plural nouns, or the only one of its kind: the moon, the Sun, the Solar System | |
| exception | use 'a' before a vowel that makes a 'y' sound: a unicorn, a university, a used car | |
Wendy, John, and Michael are sleeping in London when Peter Pan and Tinker Bell arrive. Tinker Bell sprinkles pixie dust and the children fly to Neverland.
Neverland is a beautiful island with mountains, jungles, flowers, and green bushes
Animals walk freely on the island
It is home to Peter Pan, Tinker Bell, and the Lost Boys
Activity: imagine Neverland as a holiday destination — create a poster to promote it
Use 'a' before consonant sounds (a building), 'an' before vowel sounds or silent 'h' (an hour, an architect). Use 'the' for a particular thing, plural nouns (the people), or something unique (the Sun). Don't use 'a' or 'an' before plural nouns. Exception: 'a university' (sounds like 'yoo').
📝 Kosa Kata
The Leaning Tower of Pisa leans because it was built on soft, unstable soil. It started leaning during construction! Engineers have since stabilised it so it now leans at about 4 degrees — and it should stand for at least another 200 years.
Uji Minda!
17 soalan • Boleh buat!