Lesson 1

Have a look at the pictures below and figure out the title of the unit. 

Read the Unit Goals and the Vocabulary Mindmap

Read the timeline and answer the questions. 

9/11 TIMELINE

On a clear, sunny late summer day in September 2001, Al Qaeda terrorists aboard three hijacked passenger planes carried out coordinated suicide attacks against the World Trade Center in New York City and the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., killing everyone on board the planes and nearly 3,000 people on the ground. A fourth plane crashed into a Pennsylvania field, killing all on board, after passengers and crew attempted to wrest control from the hijackers. Below is a chronology of the events of 9/11 as they unfolded. All times are Eastern Daylight Time (EDT).

• 7:59 am – American Airlines Flight 11, a Boeing 767 with 92 people aboard, takes off from Boston’s Logan International Airport en route to Los Angeles.

• 8:14 am – United Airlines Flight 175, a Boeing 767 with 65 people aboard, takes off from Boston; it is also headed to Los Angeles.

• 8:19 am – Flight attendants aboard Flight 11 alert ground personnel that the plane has been hijacked; American Airlines notifies the FBI.

• 8:20 am – American Airlines Flight 77 takes off from Dulles International Airport outside of Washington, D.C. The Boeing 757 is headed to Los Angeles with 64 people aboard.

• 8:24 am – Hijacker Mohammed Atta makes the first of two accidental transmissions from Flight 11 to ground control (apparently in an attempt to communicate with the plane’s cabin).

• 8:40 am – The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) alerts North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD)’s Northeast Air Defense Sector (NEADS) about the suspected hijacking of Flight 11. In response, NEADS scrambles two fighter planes located at Cape Cod’s Otis Air National Guard Base to locate and tail Flight 11; they are not yet in the air when Flight 11 crashes into the North Tower.

• 8:41 am – United Airlines Flight 93, a Boeing 757 with 44 people aboard, takes off from Newark International Airport en route to San Francisco. It had been scheduled to depart at 8:00 am, around the time of the other hijacked flights.

• 8:46 am – Mohammed Atta and the other hijackers aboard American Airlines Flight 11 crash the plane into floors 93-99 of the North Tower of the World Trade Center, killing everyone on board and hundreds inside the building.

• 8:47 am – Within seconds, NYPD and FDNY forces dispatch units to the World Trade Center, while Port Authority Police Department officers on site begin immediate evacuation of the North Tower.

• 8:50 am – White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card alerts President George W. Bush that a plane has hit the World Trade Center; the president is visiting an elementary school in Sarasota, Florida at the time.

• 9:02 am – After initially instructing tenants of the WTC’s South Tower to remain in the building, Port Authority officials broadcast orders to evacuate both towers via the public address system; an estimated 10,000 to 14,000 people are already in the process of evacuating.

• 9:03 am – Hijackers crash United Airlines Flight 175 into floors 75-85 of the WTC’s South Tower, killing everyone on board and hundreds inside the building

• 9:08 am – The FAA bans all takeoffs of flights going to New York City or through the airspace around the city.

• 9:21 am – The Port Authority closes all bridges and tunnels in the New York City area.

• 9:24 am – The FAA notified NEADS of the suspected hijacking of Flight 77 after some passengers and crew aboard are able to alert family members on the ground.

• 9:31 am – Speaking from Florida, President Bush calls the events in New York City an “apparent terrorist attack on our country.”

• 9:37 am – Hijackers aboard Flight 77 crash the plane into the western façade of the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., killing 59 aboard the plane and 125 military and civilian personnel inside the building.

• 9:42 am – For the first time in history, the FAA grounds all flights over or bound for the continental United States. Some 3,300 commercial flights and 1,200 private planes are guided to airports in Canada and the United States over the next two-and-a-half hours.

• 9:45 am – Amid escalating rumors of other attacks, the White House and U.S. Capitol building are evacuated (along with numerous other high-profile buildings, landmarks and public spaces).

• 9:59 am – The South Tower of the World Trade Center collapses.

• 10:03 am – After passengers and crew members aboard the hijacked Flight 93 contact friends and family and learn about the attacks in New York and Washington, they mount an attempt to retake the plane. In response, hijackers deliberately crash the plane into a field in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, killing all 40 passengers and crew aboard.

• 10:28 am – The World Trade Center’s North Tower collapses, 102 minutes after being struck by Flight 11.

• 11 am – Mayor Rudolph Giuliani calls for the evacuation of Lower Manhattan south of Canal Street, including more than 1 million residents, workers and tourists, as efforts continue throughout the afternoon to search for survivors at the WTC site.

• 1 pm – From a U.S. Air Force base in Louisiana, President Bush announces that U.S. military forces are on high alert worldwide.

• 2:51 pm – The U.S. Navy dispatches missile destroyers to New York and Washington, D.C.

• 5:20 pm – The 47-story Seven World Trade Center collapses after burning for hours; the building had been evacuated in the morning, and there are no casualties, though the collapse forces rescue workers to flee for their lives.

• 6:58 pm – President Bush returns to the White House after stops at military bases in Louisiana and Nebraska.

• 8:30 pm – President Bush addresses the nation, calling the attacks “evil, despicable acts of terror” and declaring that America, its friends and allies would “stand together to win the war against terrorism.”

Now watch the video and complete the timeline.

Lesson 2

Read the culture note below (Shine Brighter, p.72)

9/11 terrorist attacks

Nearly 3,000 people lost their lives in the 9/11 attacks, leaving thousands more deeply traumatised, Many survivors and first responders have suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) ever since. Exposure to toxic dust and fumes caused deadly illnesses in the following years. 

1. What does it reveal about the importance of 9/11?

Have a look at the title and the picture. What is the text about?

FOR MANY WHO WERE PRESENT, THE 9/11 ATTACKS HAVE HAD A LASTING MENTAL HEALTH IMPACT

Like most Americans, Kristina Lozano remembers exactly where she was when the planes hit the World Trade Center on the morning of Sept. 11, 2001.

"The first time the first plane hit, I was actually in homeroom, where they take attendance," says Lozano, who was 16 then and attending Murry Bergtraum High School, just blocks from the twin towers. "By the time the second plane hit, I was in English class."

She remembers the school building shaking and being hit by debris. Soon, her school was evacuated. With no trains running, and many roads blocked off, Lozano tried to find a way back home on foot with a friend. The two teenagers eventually found themselves taking one of the bridges to Brooklyn.

"I remember running on the Manhattan Bridge with my friend Sonia and someone actually saying there's another plane coming, which set everyone to run," Lozano says.

In the weeks and months that followed, Lozano struggled to sleep and felt easily anxious. "Any little noise that was loud, like maybe an airplane passing by, [I remember] being a bit paranoid."

She also began to lose interest in things she once loved such as sports. "I began to really doubt myself, my abilities, just in terms of performing in school. And not really caring as well," she says. "I was living almost on autopilot."

Many people in New York City and neighboring areas who witnessed the disaster experienced symptoms of trauma in the months that followed. Researchers studying the health of survivors, recovery workers and witnesses such as Lozano say the event led to increased rates of mental health problems such as depression and post-traumatic stress disorders.

[…]"This disaster of 9/11 in New York City has had long-term impacts on both the responders and civilians," says Mark Farfel, director of the World Trade Center Health Registry, which has tracked the health of more than 70,000 people directly exposed to the attacks who voluntarily enrolled in the registry in 2003 and 2004.

[…]People with PTSD can experience a range of symptoms related to the traumatic event, such as nightmares of the event — they are often easily startled and anxious about something bad happening.[…]

His research, as well as studies by the World Trade Center Health Registry, have revealed some of the other risk factors for longer term symptoms of mental illness.[…]

"A lot of times what they're doing is self-medicating," Rothbaum says. "So they're smoking a lot of marijuana to try to get to sleep tonight. They're drinking a lot to try to get to sleep tonight. But then obviously that can turn into a problem of its own."

[…]For Lozano, enrolling in the World Trade Center Health Registry did pave the way for seeking help.

"I sought help in college," she says. "I got therapy, and therapy was a huge eye-opener for me."

That's when she was diagnosed with anxiety and depression and started to work on her recovery.

Today, she works as a life coach. With the 20th anniversary of the attacks, she says she feels emotional but is no longer anxious or depressed.

By Rhitu Chatterjee, September 8, 2021 on NPR.org

1. Find information about Kristina Lozano's situation on 9/11.
2. Identify the consequences of the attacks on her life. 
3. What are other consequences mentioned in the text and the culture note?
4. Explain why we can talk about a national trauma.

=> 1. She was at school in homeroom when the 1st plane hit. She studied close to the Twin Towers, she was 16. She was in English when the second plane hit. When her school was evacuated she ran away with her friend Sonia crossing on the Manhattan Bridge.
2. She had difficulties sleeping and felt anxious. She also became depressed, not caring about things she loved before. She was diagnosed with anxiety and depression. She is now a life coach and no longer feels anxious or depressed. 
3. People have started self-medicating to decrease their symptoms, sometimes using Marijuana or drugs and alcohol. There is also people suffering from illnesses due to smoke inhaling and some died after being exposed to toxic dust and fumes.
4. Everyone has been impacted by those attacks. Survivors but also people who knew victims can feel the results of 9/11. The registry records that 70,000 people were directly exposed but some have not enrolled which means more people are affected. This large number of victims validates the idea of a national trauma. 

Now read the grammar point and do the exercices. 

Each pair of students will be given one of the paragraphs below. Identify which forms of speech is used and then changed into the other one. Check with another pair of students who worked on the same number before giving the correction to the rest of the class. 

1. Like most Americans, Kristina Lozano remembers exactly where she was when the planes hit the World Trade Center on the morning of Sept. 11, 2001.

2. "The first time the first plane hit, I was actually in homeroom, where they take attendance," says Lozano, who was 16 then and attending Murry Bergtraum High School, just blocks from the twin towers. "By the time the second plane hit, I was in English class."

3. She remembers the school building shaking and being hit by debris. Soon, her school was evacuated. With no trains running, and many roads blocked off, Lozano tried to find a way back home on foot with a friend. The two teenagers eventually found themselves taking one of the bridges to Brooklyn.

4. "I remember running on the Manhattan Bridge with my friend Sonia and someone actually saying there's another plane coming, which set everyone to run," Lozano says.

5. In the weeks and months that followed, Lozano struggled to sleep and felt easily anxious. "Any little noise that was loud, like maybe an airplane passing by, [I remember] being a bit paranoid."

6. She also began to lose interest in things she once loved such as sports. "I began to really doubt myself, my abilities, just in terms of performing in school. And not really caring as well," she says. "I was living almost on autopilot."

To finish, watch the video and answer the questions. 

1. Say what the following figures correspond to: 1/3 - 1,100 - 3,000
2. Explain why it is particularly relevant today to teach students about 9/11.
3. Identify who is in charge of sharing his experience of 9/11. How impactful can it be? 

=> 1/3: nb of American born after the attacks.
1,100 : in miles, the distance between DesMoines IOWA and Ground Zero
3,000: nb of people killed during the attacks
2. Because they did not live it and they need to understand the national trauma as well as the consequences worldwide.
3. Chris Theilacker was 25 on 9/11 and deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan after the attacks. He is now an high school teacher and wants students to learn about the global war on terror and the resilience of the people. 
Why do you think it is important for you as well to know about it? 

Here is a reminder:

PHONOLOGY SPOT

En anglais, la graphie <ea> peut se prononcer de différentes façons. Ecoute bien la video et entraine toi sur les mots suivants: 

teach / weapon / learn / nearly / years / teacher / already / heard

Lesson 3

Read the text below and answer the questions:

A MUSEUM DESIGNED TO EVOKE MEMORIES WITHOUT CAUSING FRESH PAIN

The National September 11 Memorial & Museum officially opens to the public Wednesday, but Charles G. Wolf saw the inside days ago. Wolf lost his wife, Katherine, in the World Trade Center attack and he and other family members were among the first to visit the museum. "It's just amazing what you see down there", Wolf said after his visit. "Absolutely amazing."

Not all who go to the museum will share Wolf's feelings. 

To plan for the varied reactions of visitors, the lead exhibit design team for the museum, Think Design, hired clinical psychologist Billie Pivnick in late 2006. "We focused on how to create something that would honor the lives of people", Pivnick said, "but also be a safe place where people could experience their emotions". "It's the ethical obligation of memorialization" she said. 

One exhibit, a long steel column from the South Tower, is accompanied by touchscreens where visitors can write their thoughts. Their comments are then projected onto the wall in front of the steel column. 

"It's a chance for people to experience that they're all part of the story of this event", she said. "Even though they may all have different perspectives, when you add all those perspectives together they make a collective memory".

Hannah Fraser-Chanpong, CBS News, 2014.

1.Explain why "not all who go to the museum will share Wolf's feelings".
2. Identify the choices made by the museum officials to respect all visitor's feelings. What could be those feelings?
3. Say how this visit can be both a personal and a collective experience.

=> 1. He thought it was amazing but he went there as a family member of one of the deceased. Some might not go there for the same reasons and therefore not feel the same thing in the end.
2. They created something to honour the victims and their lives and also a place where people could mourn or feel close to the victims. People could come to mourn, to remember, to learn or just with curiosity. 
3. Your reasons for going are your own but in the end, you will share the experience with others and therefore take part in the memorialisation process. 

Now watch the video and link this video to the previous text. Explain what it is about and how it is linked with the memorialisation process. 

What other ways could you imagine to show respect and pay tribute to the victims of 9/11? 

Lesson 4

Watch the video. What do you see? 

Now, for each elements you've seen appeared in the timelapse, add a short description with the information given in this second video.

Now, read the poem about the Survivor tree and pick out the expressions belonging to the lexical fields of destruction and life/hope and comment on the contrast they create. 

SURVIVOR TREE

There in core of the
World Trade Center
this pear tree stands. 

It grew from ash of bodies
clasping hands falling in air.
Cared for by those who
believe in life.

Now reaching for heaven
despite the hatred of men
screaming in streets.

Look how sunlight touches
each leaf. Think of 
every leaf being completely unique.

There are none so blind
who will not see all that
has been given to us.

Joan McNerney, 2011.

Create a map of the memorial with small indications of what everything is. Try to make it as accurate as possible. 

Lesson 5

Create the first track of the audioguide welcoming visitors to the 9/11 Memorial and Museum. 

It needs to have:

• an opening sentence
• a summary of the historical context
• what the visitors will see and why
• a conclusion wishing them a good visit

Try to emphasise on the memorialisation process and why this memorial was created and for whom.