Text B. A Typical English Family

Hi, my name is Craig. I am English because I was born in England, but I am also British because England is part of Great Britain and is in the UK.

I live in a typical English family. I have a father, mother and a sister and we all live together in our house in a town in the south east corner of England. At the back of our house we have our garden where I play with my sister.

My family has a car, a computer, a colour telly with DVD, a washing machine, dishwasher and a cat. Mum and dad both have mobile phones and I am hoping to get one soon.

What is a day like for a child in England? The day starts at about 7 o'clock when Dad and mum get up. We have breakfast at 8 o' clock.

After breakfast, my sister and I put on our school uniform. I wear grey trousers, a white shirt and a blue sweat shirt. We all leave the house by 8.30. Dad goes to work. He works with computers. Mum, my sister and I walk to school. My mum then catches a bus to her work place. She teaches in a different school.

My favourite subjects at school are science and history. My favourite topic in history is learning about the ancient Egyptians. I also enjoy PE (Physical Education) lessons - we play football, netball (нетбол – різновид баскетболу), cricket and sometimes we go cross-country running.

Mum picks up from school at 3:15. Sometimes we go downtown to the shops and, if we are really lucky, mum will buy us a McDonalds Happy Meal. However, most days we will go straight home and my sister and I watch the telly, or play on the computer.

I have to help mum wash up (wash the dishes) when I have eaten. I also have to tidy my bedroom.

In the evenings, I usually do my homework before watching more telly. Mum helps me with my homework. My family likes to watch Eastenders, and Coronation Street (English soap operas).

I also go to Karate (наголос на другому складі) on Thursdays and my sister goes to Ballet (вимовляється [‘bælei]) on Wednesdays.

I like building fires (розпалювати багаття) and cooking on them. It is good fun sleeping in the tents too. We usually go camping about twice a year.

Every Saturday, my family and I go into town to the open market. People sell vegetables, clothes, toys, posters, and nearly anything else out on the street. Mum buys her fruit and vegetables there. I enjoy just wandering looking at all the things for sale, hoping my parents will buy me something. Sometimes I am lucky.

Unit 3

 

Text A. First Morning at aLanguage School

----It is 9 o’ clock on Monday morning and the sun is shining through the windows of a tall building in Central London. Inside, a line of students is walking slowly up the stairs to a large room on the first floor.

Two middle-aged women are sitting at a table at the front of the room. They are looking at a list of students’ names. A tall man is standing just inside the door. He is telling the students where to sit.

"Please fill the chairs at the back of the room!" he says in a loud voice.

The tall man is a teacher, but this is a big school. There are many teachers. The other teachers are waiting in a room on the second floor.

One of the middle-aged ladies stands up. Most of the chairs are now occupied. She can see faces from many different countries. She looks at the students to get their attention.

"Good morning!" she says in a lively voice.

Some of the students say "Good morning!" but many are silent. She is not happy with their silence.

"You’re all here to speak English! ... Let’s try again! ... Good morning!" she repeats in a louder voice.

All the students say "Good morning!" in very loud voices. Then she smiles at them.

"My name’s Mary Palmer (вимовляється [‘pa:m∂]) and I’m your Course Director. This is my assistant, Angela Leach. She’s going to check your passports. We’re both very happy to welcome you to the English Language College. We’ve got the best teachers in London and we’re sure that your English will get better. You’ll also make a lot of new friends. There are people in this school from all over the world! Stand up all the students who come from Japan! ... Thank you! ... Now stand up if you come from Spain!"

There are eleven students from Japan - eight young ladies and three young men. But there are only two students from Spain. One of them is a waiter from Gijon (вимовляється Хіхóн). His name is Arturo. The other is a psychology graduate from Madrid. She is called Rosa.