Keeping the Harbour Still
C2 reading: The preservation committee's most popular image showed the harbour at low tide: three wooden boats, a row of warehouses and no visible advertising. Includes vocabulary, six comprehension questions, discussion prompts and full-sentence answers.
What’s in the worksheet?
- 4 vocabulary explanations
- Six comprehension questions and two discussion prompts
- Separate full-sentence answer key and teaching notes
Analyse the difference between preserving a harbour's appearance and sustaining its working life. Contrasting images and competing proposals expose tensions within both redevelopment and preservation.
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Page 3 of 3 · Answer key · A4 printable PDF
A simple way to teach it
Before the lesson
Prepare the reading and key and review authentic, weathered, continuity and prescribing. The fictional case calls for balanced interpretation, not assuming either side is wholly right.
- Compare the attractive harbour image with the van and broken heater. Explain why both show an authentic part of the same place.
- Answer the questions about the developers' 'texture', campaigners' competing demands and the temporary agreement. Identify legitimate objections as well as contradictions.
- Review evidence-based interpretations, then discuss the ending's paradox: a historical-looking harbour can lose the activities that give it continuity.
Support and extension
Support with appearance / activity / access distinctions. Extend by evaluating one safeguard and what could happen when it expires, rather than assuming a caption or compromise solves the problem.
Suggested approach. Adjust the pace and number of questions to suit your class.
