Read the following passage about tea.
India and tea are so intertwined together that life without the brew is unimaginable. Tea entered our life only in the mid-nineteenth century when the British started plantations in Assam and Darjeeling. In the beginning, though, Indians shunned the drink as they thought it was a poison that led to umpteen diseases. Ironically, tea colonized Britain where it became a part of their social diary and also led to the establishment of numerous tea houses. Today, scientific research across the world has attempted to establish the beneficial qualities of tea - a fact the Japanese and the Chinese knew anyway from ancient times, attributing to its numerous medicinal properties.
[Source: ‘History: Tea Anytime’ by Ranjit Biswas from Literary review, The Hindu, 1 October 2006]
Collect information about tea, e.g. its evolution as a drink, its beneficial qualities. You can consult an encyclopedia or visit Internet websites. Then form groups of five and play the following roles: Imagine a meeting of a tea planter, a sales agent, a tea lover (consumer), a physician and a tea shop owner. Each person in the group has to put forward his/her views about tea. You may use the following words and phrases.
- I feel…… - It is important to know….
- I disagree with you - I think that tea
- I would like you to know - I agree with
- It is my feeling… - I suggest…
- May I know why you… - I am afraid…
