Օտար լեզվի ընտրությամբ դասընթաց
Մարիամ Գևորգյան 6-րդ դաս
.Տաթև Գրիգորյան 7-րդ դաս
.Իվետա Մեյթարջյան 7-րդ դաս
Գայանե Բալաբանյան 7-րդ
Տոնոյան 7-րդ դաս
Արտյոմ Զաքարյան 7-րդ դաս
Գրիգոր Ստեփանյան 7-րդ դաս
Լևոն Ավետիսյան 7-րդ դաս
Էմիլ Դանիելյան 7-րդ դաս
Սեդա Ենգիբարյան 7-րդ դաս
Հրանտ Ավետիսյան 7-րդ դաս
Աքսել Ղազարիան 7-րդ դաս
Նարեկ Գրիգորյան 7-րդ դաս
Արեգ Փարսիլյան 6-րդ դաս.
Վիկտորիա Հովհաննիսյան 7-րդ դաս
Նարե Ենգիբարյան 7-րդ դաս.
Գաբրիել Գասպարյան 7-րդ դաս.
Անի Բաղդասարյան 7-րդ դաս
Միքայել Սարգսյան 7-րդ դաս
May 19, 21
Կատարում ենք թարգմանություն անգլերենից
The interesting most boring man in the world
A voicemail message
Listen to a voicemail message and answer the questions to practice your listening skills.
National Tea Day
Tea is the world’s second most popular drink (after water!). In the UK, you can even celebrate drinking it on 21 April.
Do the preparation task first. Then read the article and do the exercises.ShowPreparation
If you’ve ever spent time in the UK, you’ll surely have had a nice ‘cuppa’. There’s tea for breakfast, tea during break time, tea when visiting a friend’s house, tea to wake up, tea to relax … you get the idea. Tea even gets its very own special day in the UK, 21 April.
Is the UK the ‘capital’ of tea?
In short, no. While drinking tea is certainly a centuries-old tradition in the UK, many countries have their own strong cultural practices involving tea. The nation which drinks most tea is Turkey, where a 2013 survey showed that people drank an average of ten cups a day! This was followed by Ireland, with the UK coming in third place. Other countries with an obsession with tea include Iran, Russia and Morocco. It is also a popular drink in China and India, where most of the world’s tea is grown.
What do the British consider to be tea?
Many forms of tea exist around the world. Green tea is popular in China and Japan. In India, tea is often prepared with spices and boiled in both water and milk, and Tibetans commonly drink tea with butter and salt. In the UK, tea is typically a variety of black tea and can be prepared with loose tea or teabags. It is made with boiling water, allowed to brew for about five minutes and then mixed with a little milk (and possibly some sugar). And thus, the perfect British cuppa is ready!
Milk: before or after the tea?
Despite the fact that tea has been popular in the UK for hundreds of years, the question of when to add the milk is one which still provokes many an argument! Most people first pour the tea into the cup, then add the milk, but others disagree. It is said that this was a way for the rich to show off their wealth. They often drank tea in porcelain cups, and it was only the better-quality porcelain that could withstand the temperature of very hot tea. This meant that people who had lower-quality cups needed to first pour the milk so that the cup wouldn’t break.
What is a tea party?
Many cultures have traditions of people meeting to sit together and drink tea. For example, Japanese tea ceremonies can be formal, elegant affairs which last for hours. In the UK, such gatherings range from formal to very informal. The most famous British ‘tea’ stereotype is probably afternoon tea, where people dress formally and meet in hotels or cafés to enjoy tea and cakes, all served on beautiful fine porcelain. Nowadays, going out for a formal afternoon tea is rare, and people will more often simply have a nice cup of tea and some biscuits with friends or family, catching up round the kitchen table.
What happens on National Tea Day?
On 21 April, tea parties are held in cafés, pubs, hotels and tea rooms across the UK. Many of these events aim to encourage people to try different varieties of tea and to appreciate how drinking it with others can enrich their lives. Some of these events also promote sustainably produced tea and better prices and working conditions for farmers, while others raise funds for different charities from the sales. However people observe this special day, it’s about appreciating the opportunity that sharing a cup of tea gives to people to connect with one another.
Want to know more about tea celebrations this April? Search for #NationalTeaDay on social media. And remember, tea-drinking isn’t just for April – it’s always the right time for a delicious cuppa.
Source:
http://www.nationalteaday.co.uk
Task 1
Task 2
Discussion
Is tea popular where you live? What is the best way to enjoy a cup of tea?
April 27
Money
If there is a topic that everyone loves deep down, it has to be money. People love talking about money. Well, may not if they’re broke—but even if they are, it’s a good, relatable topic that gets conversations going. Great questions include:
- How well do you manage your money?
- Why do some people have money problems?
- What are some good ways to make money?
- What would you do if I gave you $20/$2,000/$2,000,000?
- How often do you save money? Why?
April 6-9
Homework is one of the least interesting tasks for students. They tend to avoid writing homework assignments because they are repetitive and boring. Exams are less stressful because they come occasionally and remain for a week or so. Home tasks are repetitive and monotonous. Students hate to attempt these assignments because they do not have enough time to give to each subject and assignment.
From a student’s point of view, home tasks are unnecessary. From a teacher’s point of view, these tasks are important to help the students revise the concepts taught in class and perform better at the subject.
This article talks about the advantages and disadvantages of home assignments for students. Everything has good and bad things about it. Home tasks have their good and bad sides as well. Research shows that students should have two hours of studying at home after the school assignments during high school. The amount of home tasks has increased greatly since the past two decades. This makes it difficult for students to cope up with. Average amount of home tasks is perfectly fine for the students.
Below are the pros and cons of home task assignments
- It helps the students improve their understanding of the subject. They can develop a better understanding of the subject and its applications when they attempt assignments on their own
- Students who have trouble in grabbing the concepts will learn better when they attempt the assignment
- It will help them revise the concepts they read in school
- It motivates them to take initiative and carry out research to attempt the home task
- It is a good way to prepare for exams and tests. They will practice the assignment and get prepared for the exam
Even though there are many advantages of home tasks, but they can have some drawbacks as well if in excess amount
- Students cannot take time out to dedicate to each assignment
- They do not find time for their other activities and extracurricular tasks
- They do not have enough free time to learn and develop their personal skills
- Students who have excess home work may feel anxiety and stress if they cannot complete the paper on time
- It can be challenging for parents to sit with students and help them out in their academic tasks
- It may make the student hate the subject itself
There is a longstanding tradition of instructors assigning homework to students as a means to further their education. It is generally accepted that homework helps students improve their grades and pass courses based on the measured improvement that comes from homework assignments. But for many decades there have been a growing number of detractors who say homework as a tool for learning is outdated and may actually be causing more harm than good. Here are some of the pros and cons:
Homework is viewed as especially helpful to students who have trouble with lessons in class. The additional work supplements their learning and increases their chances of passing standardized tests, where before their success would be measured only by their performance in class.
Those who insist school homework is harmful believe that there are some factors that aren’t considered. For one, parents and families are asked to be active when it comes to student homework, but for some families this simply isn’t an option. Another factor that isn’t considered is that some students don’t have resources such as internet or computer access to complete some assignments. In both these cases, it is common for students to fall behind in class.
There is also the danger that students will often grow tired of seemingly meaningless work and will eventually ignore assignments and fall behind. Students who find homework assignments too difficult are also in danger of failing since they are often discouraged from taking initiative and seeking help.
Lastly, school homework is rarely corrected quickly enough to reinforce classroom lessons. Because of this, students actually start losing interest and take assignments less seriously.
After hearing the pros and cons of assigning students homework, the issue may seem even more complicated than before. Perhaps the solution rests somewhere in the middle. Educators could take a more balanced approach, where the time spent on homework aligns with the student’s grade level or age. But this approach also requires that the assignments be relevant to the core concepts learned in class. No matter which direction we go, it is clear the debate will go on for years to come.
READ THE TEXT AND ANSWER THE QUESTION.
WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN YOU ARE AWAY FROM HOME AND YOU GET SICK?
Living abroad more often than not means living in a completely new and unknown place as well. Normally this is fine, you get to meet a load of fun new people, live with exciting new friends or try out the experience of living alone. You are never really tempted to stay in and laze about on the internet as there is too much to do and see. It is exciting. But there are times where this does become a problem, at least for me, this is when I am sick.
In Mexico, travellers’ sickness happens to everyone at one point or another. (An interesting fact: In Mexico travellers’ sickness is affectionately known as Montezuma’s revenge. Supposedly it is the revenge that the last Aztec emperor who was at power during the time of the Spanish conquest exacts on European visitors) I am lucky in that I lasted 2 and half months before I succumbed.
It hasn’t been all bad, many of my friends and colleagues have been helping me taking me to the doctor and the pharmacy, helping me to get medicines and explain all the weirdSpanish medical words that I don’t understand, however none of this makes up for the fact that I am sick and my mum is 1000s of miles away and unable to look after me. It is quite sad and pathetic, I know. I am meant to be a strong independent woman who can live wherever she wants and adapt to anything. But when I get sick I regress to the childlike state of wanting my mum to bring me cut up apples, take my temperature and generally look after me. All while telling me that everything will be alright and I will get better soon. It is wonderful to realise that I have many friends who care and worry about me, but none of them can even come close to taking the place of my mum when I am sick.
Do you think you would like to live alone?
Four years ago I was living in a boarding house with more than 20 girls, and last year I lived in a uni house with 5 girls. Now I find myself living alone … There are definitely both advantages and disadvantages to my new living situation!
Since I’ve lived by myself I can get away with doing things that I couldn’t do when I lived with other people. For example, last week I ate Pringles for breakfast and ice cream for dinner and no one was here to judge me! It also means I can dance as ridiculously and sing as loudly as I want and no one is here to tell me to be quiet or capture these embarrassing moments on camera.
One of the best things about living alone is that I don’t have to deal with annoying habits and messy housemates. I’ve had many different roommates and flatmates and however much I’ve loved (some) of them, everyone does irritating things and not everybody is a tidy person.
Despite these advantages, there are times when I miss living with other people. Firstly, I miss making and eating dinner with others. Secondly, I miss coming home to flatmates and telling them all about my day and hearing about theirs. Finally, and most importantly, I can no longer watch horror films (my favourite genre) because I get too scared by myself!
March 15-19
Famous Women in history
Students choose a woman they feel contributed something important to society and then create a presentation about her and the contribution. A variety of choices are offered.
Jill Biden-first lady in America
Tatev Grigoryan
Levon Avetisyan
VANGA Grigor Stepanyan
Famous women Ani Baghdasaryan
Narek Grigoryan
Sofi Tonoyan
Emil Danielyan Monroe
Read the passage. Then answer the questions below.
Summer Rain
The worst days of any summer are the rainy ones. We spend all year looking forward to nice weather and long, hot days. All of winter, with its dreary gray days and bitter cold, we dream of those endless days at the beach, laying on the sand and soaking in the bright and burning sun. And then, summer comes, and it rains. As a child, I would wake up to rainy summer days and come close to crying. It wasn’t fair. We suffered through months of school and miserable weather for those scant ten weeks of freedom and balmy weather. Any day that I could not spend at the beach or playing ball with my friends seemed like a punishment for something I didn’t even do. On those rainy summer days, I had nothing fun to do and could only sit inside, staring out at the rain like a Dickensian orphan. I was an only child, so there was no one else to play with. My father worked from home, so I was not truly alone, but he could not actively play with me since he was technically at work. It was those days that I would resign myself to whatever was on television or any books that I could find lying around. I’d crawl through the day and pray each night that the rain would not be there the next day. As an adult, though, my opinion of summer rain has changed. When you have to work every day, summer is not as eagerly anticipated. Mostly, the days run together, bleeding into each other so that they no longer seem like separate entities and instead feel like continuations of the same long day. Everything seems monotonous and dull, and an ennui or listlessness kicks in. Such a mindset makes you cheer for anything new or different. I spend the winter dreaming of summer and the summer dreaming of winter. When summer comes, I complain about how hot it is. And then I look forward to the rain, because the rain brings with it a cold front, which offers a reprieve—admittedly one that is all too short—from the torture of 100° and humid days. Rainy days are still the worst days of the summer, but summer rain today means positively beautiful—and considerably cooler—weather tomorrow.
1) The passage makes use of language that is
A. metaphorical
B. rhetorical
C. formal
D. ambiguous
2) According to the passage, summer is different for adults because
A. rain brings with it cold temperatures for the following days
B. the weather is much warmer than it is for children
C. they do not get a long time off from work for the season
D. they better know how to occupy their downtime
3) According to the passage, which of the following is a true statement about the narrator as a child?
A. He or she was often bored on summer days.
B. He or she preferred cooler weather.
C. He or she liked staying indoors.
D. He or she had no siblings.
4) Compared to how he or she was as a child, the narrator as an adult is
A. more realistic
B. less excitable
C. more idealistic
D. less calm
5) As used in the final paragraph, the word reprieve most nearly means
A. a permanent conclusion
B. a short continuation
C. a higher level of pain
D. a temporary break
6) The author of this passage describes his or her feelings about rainy summer days. In general, how do you feel about such days? Do you agree with the author’s opinions, or do you not mind this type of weather? Briefly explain your views below.
Read the text and choose the best answer for each question.
Today, millions of people want to learn or improve their English but it is difficult to find the best method. Is it better to study in Britain or America or to study in your own country?
The advantages of going to Britain seem obvious. Firstly, you will be able to listen to the language all the time you are in the country. You will be surrounded completely by the language wherever you go. Another advantage is that you have to speak the language if you are with other people. In Italy, it is always possible, in the class, to speak Italian if you want to and the learning is slower.
On the other hand, there are also advantages to staying at home to study. You don’t have to make big changes to your life. As well as this, it is also a lot cheaper than going to Britain but it is never possible to achieve the results of living in the UK. If you have a good teacher in Italy, I think you can learn in a more concentrated way than being in Britain without going to a school.
So, in conclusion, I think that if you have enough time and enough money, the best choice is to spend some time in the UK. This is simply not possible for most people, so being here in Italy is the only viable option. The most important thing to do in this situation is to maximise your opportunities: to speak only English in class and to try to use English whenever possible outside the class.
1. What is the article about?
How many people learn English.
The best way to learn English.
English schools in England and America.
2. What is one of the advantages of going to the UK to learn English?
There are no Italians in Britain.
You will have to speak English and not your language.
The language schools are better.
3. What is one of the advantages of staying in your country to learn English?
The teachers aren’t very good in Britain.
You have to work too hard in Britain.
Your life can continue more or less as it was before.
4. People who don’t have a lot of time and money should…
Learn English in Britain.
Try and speak English in class more often.
Go to Italy to learn English.
Do you always agree with your best friend? Do you ever argue?
Amy normally hated Monday mornings, but this term had been different. Kamal was in her art class and she really liked Kamal. She was waiting outside the art class when her friend Tara arrived.
“Hi Amy! Your mum texted me. You forgot your inhaler and your phone’s switched off again!” Amy wasn’t good with technology. She never sent text messages and she didn’t have a Facebook account either.
“So, did he ask you to the disco then?” Amy wished she hadn’t told Tara about her feelings for Kamal. Tara was Amy’s best friend and she thought that gave her the right to know everything about Amy’s life. “I don’t think he’s interested,” said Amy. “Anyway, you can never see him on his own. He’s always with Grant.” Neither of them liked Grant.
“Have you heard about their art project?” asked Amy. “Yes, it’s something to do with graffiti, I think,” said Tara. “They’ve been working on it at that abandoned house behind the factory.” “But isn’t that really dangerous?” asked Amy. “Aah, are you worried your boyfriend’s going to get hurt?” Tara teased. “Shut up! Hey look, here they come now!”
Kamal and Grant walked over, whispering to each other. “Hi Kamal!” said Tara, ignoring Grant. “Are you going to the Halloween disco tomorrow?” “Maybe. Hi Amy,” Kamal said, smiling. “Do you want to come up to the house and see our graffiti project after school?” Tara elbowed Amy. “I’m coming too!” she insisted.
After school that day, Kamal took the girls to the abandoned house. No one had lived there for years. There was rubbish everywhere. The windows were broken and there was mould on the walls. It was creepy and Amy didn’t like it. The boys had cleared the rubbish out of one room and the walls were covered in paintings of zombies and skeletons. “We’re going to take photos and enter them in the school competition,” said Kamal proudly. Amy didn’t seem impressed. “Very nice,” she said sarcastically. “Where’s Grant?” asked Tara. “Er, he’s gone to buy paint.” Kamal looked away quickly. “Aaah, have you two had a fight, then?” Tara jeered. “It’s getting dark,” said Amy. “Can we go now?” She had had enough of zombies for one day.
Just then, they heard a loud groaning noise coming from a cupboard in the corner of the room. “What was that?” Amy looked frightened. “I didn’t hear anything,” said Kamal. Something started banging against the door and moaning in a low voice. Someone or something was behind the door. “Oh no! What is it?” Amy was trembling now. “What are you talking about? There’s nothing!” Kamal was trying not to smile when the door suddenly burst open and a horrible, bloodstained zombie appeared, moaning and waving its arms. Amy screamed and covered her eyes. “Oh, very funny, Grant!” said Tara, looking bored. Kamal and Grant started giggling. “Ha ha, I scared you!” Grant laughed, very happy with himself. Tara turned to Amy to suggest leaving and noticed her friend was having trouble breathing. Kamal looked worried now. “Is she OK? We were only joking.” “No she’s not OK, you idiot. She’s having an asthma attack and she hasn’t got her inhaler.” Tara took out her phone. “I’m calling her dad.”
The next evening was Halloween. The girls were at the school disco. “Are you sure you’re OK now?” asked Tara. “I’m fine,” said Amy. “It wasn’t a serious attack. I think it was the paint fumes that started it.” Tara looked around. “So, where are the zombies?” “Who cares?” Amy said. “I don’t want to see Kamal again. Come on, let’s dance!”
Amy and Tara were having a great time when Grant arrived, looking worried. “Hi, my phone has been stolen. Have you seen Kamal? He told me to meet him here. Can you phone him?” “Get lost, idiot!” Tara turned away and didn’t stop dancing. Grant looked hurt. “Tell him I’m looking for him if you see him,” he called as he left. Tara really didn’t like Grant.
Just then Tara’s phone beeped and she looked at the screen. “Ha!” she said, “I don’t believe it!” “What?” Amy asked. “Kamal just sent a text. Listen to this!” Tara read Kamal’s text.
“I’m at the house. I’m trapped. Please help. My battery is running out. Call an ambulance.”
The girls continued dancing. Lots of their friends had seen Kamal’s text too, but Tara told everyone to ignore it. It was just another one of his jokes.
The next morning, Amy’s mum and dad were listening to the news on the radio while they were having breakfast. “Is Amy up yet?” Dad asked. “No, today’s a holiday and she didn’t get back home from the disco until midnight,” said Mum, turning the volume up on the radio.
“This morning, police are asking if anyone has information about the tragic death of a sixteen-year-old schoolboy last night in an abandoned house on Moortown Road…”
Dad put down his newspaper and looked at the radio. “But that’s where Amy went with her friends on Monday.”
“…The boy, who died from loss of blood, was discovered early this morning partly buried under a pile of rubble and has been identified as Kamal Naseer…”
The Last Leaf
In a little district west of Washington Square the streets have run crazy and broken themselves into small strips called “places.” These “places” make strange angles and curves. One Street crosses itself a time or two. An artist once discovered a valuable possibility in this street. Suppose a collector with a bill for paints, paper and canvas should, in traversing this route, suddenly meet himself coming back, without a cent having been paid on account!
Read more here,
See here
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Why is Charlie so cool … like? – level 2
DISCUSSION
Are you a fan of Charlie McDonnell? Which of his videos do you like best? You can watch Charlie in action in our Video zone.
In April 2007, a 16-year-old boy named Charlie McDonnell was studying for his exams. But he was bored, so he turned on his laptop and started surfing the Internet. He soon found a website called YouTube and watched a video of another teenager just like him, sitting in his bedroom and talking to his computer about how bored he was. “I could do better than that!” thought Charlie. So, using his computer and a webcam, he made his first video blog and posted it on YouTube under the name Charlieissocoollike.
YouTube started in 2005 and is now the world’s largest video sharing website, with hundreds of millions of users. 48 hours of video are uploaded to YouTube every minute and more than 3 billion videos are watched every day. A large number of those are video blogs: videos of people simply talking to a camera about their lives or things that interest them. In fact, video blogging is becoming more popular with teenagers than television.
A few days after Charlie posted his firstvideo, he saw that he had 150 subscribers, so he decided to make more. He soon became quite popular, and a few months later Oprah Winfrey, the famous American TV host, showed one of his videos called How to be English on her programme. In this video, he wears a suit and tie, talks in a funny accent and shows viewers how to make a cup of tea. This made Charlie suddenly very famous in the United States too, and it is still one of his more popular videos, with nearly 3 million views.
In January 2008 he reached 25,000 subscribers. As a way to thank his fans Charlie made a video called Challenge Charlie, inviting people to suggest funny or difficult things for him to do in his videos. Challenges included drinking tomato ketchup, wearing all of his clothes at once, giving himself an electric shock and painting himself purple!
Charlie also realised he could use his fame to help other people. On his 18th birthday he raised £5,000 for charity by shaving all his hair off on live TV. Topping that, in 2010 he raised more than four times as much when he co-presented a live show on the Internet. He stayed awake for 24 hours performing challenges from viewers. All the money went to the children’s charity UNICEF.
But did you know that Charlie is also a singer and songwriter? His most popular videos are of him singing and playing the ukelele. In Duet with Myself, he uses special effects to sing a duet with himself about what a boring person he is. This has now been watched over 7 million times!
Charlie’s best friend, Alex Day, is also a musician and video blogger. They met through YouTube when they discovered that they were both fans of the British science fiction series Doctor Who. They decided to form a band together, but this is not an ordinary band: they are called Chameleon Circuit and they only sing songs about Doctor Who! They have now made two albums together and performed several concerts. Their second album, Still Got Legs, reached number 23 in the charts.
With more than one and a half million subscribers, Charlie is now the most popular video blogger in the UK. He has now made enough money from YouTube to buy a house in London with his friend Alex. But what is the secret of his popularity? “I just make videos that I would want to watch,“ he says, “and I’m not trying to sell anything.” And when asked how all this fame has affected him, Charlie says, “I’m still a guy who sits in his bedroom talking to his camera, and that’s it for me.” His honesty and modesty are perhaps the main reasons why Charlie is so well liked.
And if you were wondering how Charlie did in his exams back in 2007… well, he passed with nine A grades and one B! He says that he wants to go to university in the future but decided to try and make a career on YouTube before that. So far, it seems to be going very well!
Brendan Dunne
Trick Questions, January 11-15
What’s the Color of Mirror?
How many seconds are there in a year
How many letters are in the alphabet?
What has a thumb and four fingers but isn’t actually alive?
How Much Of Our Brain Do We Use?
Where Is The Center Of The Universe?
Which Came First – The Egg or The Chicken?
How Much Money Is There In The World?
What is always coming, but never arrives?
What is it that lives if it is fed, and dies if you give it a drink?
What can one catch that is not thrown?
Some months have 31 days, others have 30 days, but how many have 28 days?
What is it that goes up, but never comes down?
What starts with “e” and ends with “e” but only has one letter in it?
What will you actually find at the end of every rainbow?
Good manners, bad manners
We have a saying in English “Manners make the man”. “Make the” is an old form of “makes” or “make”. So the expression means that, if you want to be a real man, you have to have good manners.
“Manners” means the way that you behave to other people, particularly in public. If you have good manners you are polite and courteous. You remember to say “please” and “thank you”. You make people feel welcome and at ease. And if you have bad manners you are rude and discourteous. You say unpleasant things to people. You make them feel unwelcome and upset.
If someone has good manners, we can say that they are “well mannered”; and if they have bad manners, we can say that they are “bad mannered” or “ill mannered”.
Now let’s meet Heidi Withers. She is 28 years old and works as a personal assistant in a company in London. She is engaged to be married to her boy-friend, Freddie Bourne. Freddie runs a business that sells bicycles and parts for bicycles on the internet. Recently, Heidi and Freddie went to visit Freddie’s father and step-mother, who live in Devon in the south-west of England. Most people are nervous about their first meeting with their future father-in-law and mother-in-law. Most people would be polite and well mannered. They would try to create a good impression. Maybe Heidi tried to do these things. However, it did not work. Freddie’s step mother, Carolyn Bourne, thought that Heidi was rude and bad mannered.
After the end of the visit, Carolyn thought that it was important to tell Heidi about her bad manners. She said to herself, “If I don’t tell her, she will never know.” So she sent Heidi an e-mail. “?It is high time someone explained to you about good manners,” she started, “because it is obvious that you don’t have any”.
She went on to talk about some of the terrible things that Heidi did:
Heidi stayed in bed too long.
Heidi complained about the food.
At meals, Heidi started eating before other people.
Heidi made jokes about Freddie’s family.
Heidi did not send Carolyn a card to thank her for her hospitality.
Carolyn also had things to say about Heidi’s plans for her wedding. Heidi and Freddie plan to get married in a castle. Carolyn does not think that this is a good idea. ? She wrote, “No one gets married in a castle unless they own it. It is brash, celebrity style behaviour.” Carolyn thinks that, because Heidi’s parents do not have a lot of money, it would be better for Heidi and Freddie to have a smaller, less expensive wedding.
What would you do if your future mother-in-law sent you an e-mail like this? Perhaps you would burst into tears. Perhaps you would send a reply to say how sorry you were about your behaviour and how very much you wanted to have a good relationship with your husband’s family. Heidi did not do this. Instead, she sent copies of the e-mail to her friends. And her friends sent the e-mail to their friends. And a few days later, the story was on lots of websites and in the newspapers, and we were all talking about it. Heidi’s father told the newspapers that Carolyn was haughty and arrogant. (Actually, he said some rather ruder things than that, but it would not be polite to repeat them on a respectable website like Listen to English). Freddie’s mother, and Heidi’s friends, and all sorts of other people, told the newspapers what they thought. Only Freddie, Heidi’s boyfriend, was sensible enough to keep quiet.
What do you think? Who has the worse manners – Heidi or Carolyn? And will Carolyn be invited to the wedding, and will there be a fight if she goes? It is all very exciting!
Use the tip verbs in a proper past tense reading the story about Julie and David.
She (lose) track of time because she (think) about the most important decision she’d ever had to make in her life.
Things (not, be) the same between Julie and her fiance, David, since he accepted a job in Paris. They (know)
They (seem) to be finding fault with each other and disagreeing about everything.
For the first time, she (start) to wonder if she (be) ready for marriage.
And with the wedding only twenty days away, she (need) to make up her mind soon.
Everything in Julie’s life (go) well until her world fell apart just a month before.
A large company (offer David an important position that would require him to move to France.
As his wife, Julie would have to go, too. Why hadn’t he discussed his decision with her?
Although Julie (always, want to live abroad she felt very confused.
Was she ready to move halfway across the world, leaving behind her friends and family and the only home she had ever known?
If the answer was no, (she, be) ready to say goodbye to the only man she (ever, love)
November 30-December 12
Oxford word skills, pages 30-32
Action verbs, people, parts of body.
Page 30, ex-ces 1,2
Page 31, ex-ces 4,5
Page 32, ex-ces 1,2,3
Let’s read translate.
Alberto’s new neighbours
October 19-30
Oxford word skills
review. basic English units 1-5
Heroes
- What is a hero for you? Do they exist?
- Not every heroic person or organisation is famous. Can you think of any examples?
- What happens to people when they become heroes? In what way do they change? In what way do our expectations of them change?
- Can you think of any heroes who have suddenly become villains because of scandals? If they had been “ordinary people” would they have had the same problems?
- Many sports stars are heroes. Should they live their lives differently because they are heroes? Why? Why not?
- What do you think of the salaries sporting heroes receive?
- Do you have any personal heroes? Why?
- Have you ever had a personal hero who let you down in some way?
- Would you like to be a hero? What sort?
- What makes a hero a hero?
- Which superhero do you want to be?
- What are some problems with being a hero?
- Who are some (choose nationality) heroes?
- What are the benefits of being a hero?
- What’s the difference between a hero and a fool?
- Why do people need heroes?
- How do heroes change the world?
- How do heroes impact our daily lives?
- Would you call yourself a hero?
- How would you describe a hero?
October 1
Read the story.
Elephants, bananas and Aunty Ethel
Read the story and do the exercises.
So, I was walking along the street on my way to work as usual, but for some reason I was in a hurry. I wasn’t really sure why I was in a hurry. And then I realised that I was holding a banana in my hand. I didn’t know why I was holding a banana in my hand, but I knew that the banana was really important for some reason. The banana had something to do with the reason that I was late and in a hurry. It was a really important banana, only I didn’t know why the banana was so important. Then I met my Aunty Ethel on the street corner. It was strange, because I hadn’t seen Aunty Ethel for about twenty years.
‘Hello!’ I said to her. ‘I haven’t seen you for about twenty years!’
I was really surprised to see her, but she didn’t seem surprised to see me.
‘Be careful with that banana!’ she said. And I laughed, because I knew that it was a really important banana and, yes, I had to be careful with it. Aunty Ethel decided to walk to work with me, which was a problem because I was late and in a hurry, and she walked really, really slowly. Then, when we went round the corner, there was an elephant blocking the street. It depends where you live, I guess, but in Manchester it’s pretty strange to see an elephant blocking the street. The strange thing was, though, that I wasn’t really that surprised. ‘Oh no!’ I was thinking. ‘Another elephant blocking the street … what a pain! Especially this morning when I’m late and in a hurry, and with Aunty Ethel, and this really important banana …’ Then I started to get really worried, and then … I woke up.
I breathed a sigh of relief. ‘Thank goodness for that,’ I thought. How strange dreams are … I wonder why I was dreaming about elephants and bananas and Aunty Ethel. The radio was already on. The radio comes on automatically at 7 o’clock to wake me up. I looked at the clock. It was already ten past seven. I had to get up quickly. I went into the shower, and I could hear the news on the radio. I couldn’t hear it very well, but there was a story on the news about an elephant that had escaped from a local circus. The elephant was causing a lot of trouble walking around the town. I thought this was an incredible coincidence, but then I realised that I had probably heard the news story on the radio when I was half asleep. That was why I was dreaming about an elephant. I quickly got dressed and went into the kitchen to get some coffee before I went to work. I work for a film company. We get ideas for films and film scripts and then we try to produce the films. I thought a film about an elephant in Manchester would be great.
There was a note on the kitchen table. It was from my wife. ‘Don’t forget to buy bananas on your way home from work today!!!’ it said. It was a good job she had written the note, because I had completely forgotten about the fact that she has to eat a lot of bananas because of the crazy diet she’s on at the moment. I tried to remember to buy bananas on my way home from work and rushed out of the house. As I was walking down the road my mobile rang. It was my mum.
‘Hello, Mum!’ I said. ‘What are you ringing at this time for?’
‘I’ve got some sad news, I’m afraid, love,’ she said. ‘Do you remember your Aunty Ethel?’
‘Just about,’ I said. ‘But I haven’t seen Aunty Ethel for about twenty years.’
Yes, well, she was very old … and I’m afraid she died last night. She’d been very ill … I told you a couple of weeks ago …’
‘That’s sad,’ I said.
So there I was, walking down the street, late for work, thinking about Aunty Ethel and bananas and elephants, and of course I realised that it was all exactly the same as my dream. And as I started to think more about this, I realised I was walking more and more slowly, and I looked down and saw that the street was turning into hot, wet, sticky toffee, and it was sticking to my shoes, and the quicker I tried to walk, the slower I went. I looked at my watch and saw that my watch was going backwards. ‘That’s OK,’ I was thinking. ‘If my watch is going backwards, then it means that it’s early and not late, so I’m not late for work at all …’ And then I woke up. Again.
Now this was strange. This was very, very strange. I got up and pinched myself to make sure I was really awake this time. ‘Ouch!’ The pinch hurt. This meant I really was awake, and not dreaming this time. It was early. I wasn’t late. The radio alarm clock hadn’t come on yet. It was only half past six. My wife was still at home.
‘Have you got enough bananas?’ I asked her. She looked at me as if I was crazy.
‘What do you mean “bananas”?’ she asked.
‘I thought you had to eat lots of bananas for your special diet …’
‘I have no idea what you’re on about!’ she said. ‘Why? Do you think I need to go on a diet? Do you mean that I’m fat?’
‘No, no, no … not at all … By the way, have you heard anything about an elephant?’
‘An elephant?’
‘Yes, an elephant which has escaped from a circus …’
‘We live in Manchester. There aren’t any circuses in Manchester. And there certainly aren’t any elephants. Listen, are you suffering from stress or something? You’re working too hard on that new film you’re trying to produce, aren’t you? Perhaps you should just stay at home today, take it easy …’
‘Perhaps you’re right,’ I said. ‘I’ll just phone my mum.’
‘Why do you need to phone your mum at half past six in the morning?’
‘Oh … nothing important,’ I said.
‘Well, I’m off to work. See you later, and take it easy today, OK?’
‘OK!’
I phoned my mum.
‘Hello, Mum!’
‘Hello, love. What are you calling this early for?’
‘Do you remember Aunty Ethel?’
‘Of course I do … but I haven’t seen her for about twenty years or so …’
‘How is she?’
‘I’ve got no idea. Why on earth are you worried about your Aunty Ethel who you haven’t seen for twenty years?’
‘Oh nothing … bye!’
I made a cup of tea and went back to bed. Perhaps my wife was right. Perhaps I should just relax and take it easy today. I phoned up my boss.
‘Listen,’ I said, ‘I’m not feeling too good today … perhaps too much stress with the production schedule of the new film project …’
‘That’s a shame,’ said my boss. ‘We’ve just got a really exciting new idea for a film … I wanted to talk to you about it today. It’s a kind of action movie. It’s a great story. You have to hear this – an elephant escapes from a circus in a big city and it has eaten some strange, radioactive bananas, so it’s going completely crazy. They eventually manage to stop the elephant by covering all the streets with sticky toffee, so that it can’t walk!’
‘I see,’ I said. ‘And where does my Aunty Ethel come into it?’
‘Aunty who?’
I hung up the phone and hoped that I would wake up. Soon.
Chris Rose
Discussion
September 17
Murphy Unit 12
May 25-June 5
Project. Let’s translate
May 11-22
Murphy Unit 11
“A day without your mobile phone”
April 20-30
“A day without your mobile phone”
Describe what mobile phones you use and for what.
Let’s collect advantages and disadvantages of mobile phones.
A day without my mobile phone – how would you feel?
Write an interesting short story: “A day without mobile phone”. It can be both imaginary and real.
Murphy Unit 9 (I have….I have got)
Unit 10
What is the most recognizable object in the world? Could it be a football? Or a Big-Mac? No, the answer is a Coca-Cola bottle. The famous Coca-Cola bottle is almost 100 years old !
The story of Coca-Cola
Footballs and big macs are certainly part of life for lots of people; but Coca-Cola is now a permanent part of world culture. People know and drink Coca-Cola all over the world.
It is said that the Coca-Cola bottle is the most recognised object in the world. Hundreds of millions of people can recognise a Coke bottle by its shape, even if they cannot see it! And the famous Coca-Cola logo is the most famous logo in the world. Unlike any other famous commercial logo, it has not changed in 100 years!
But the story of Coca-Cola is even older than that. It was in 1886 that John Pemberton, a druggist in Atlanta, Georgia, invented a new type of syrup, using coca leaves, sugar and cola nuts, plus a few other secret ingredients! Pemberton sold it as a medicine; and with its coca (the source of cocaine), it must have made people feel good!
Nevertheless, Pemberton’s medicine was not very successful, so he sold his secret formula to another druggist, Asa Candler. Candler was interested, because he had another idea; he thought that Pemberton’s “medicine” would be much better if it was mixed with soda.
Candler was thus the man who really invented the drink Coca-Cola. At first he sold it in his drugstore; then he began selling the syrup to other drugstores, who used it with their soda fountains. Candler also advertised his new drink, and soon people were going to drugstores just to get a drink of Coca-cola.
Before long, other people became interested in the product, including a couple of businessmen who wanted to sell it in bottles. Candler sold them a licence to bottle the drink, and very quickly the men became millionnaires. The famous bottle, with its very distinctive shape, was designed in 1916.
During the First World War, American soldiers in Europe began asking for Coca-Cola, so the Coca-cola company began to export to Europe. It was so popular with soldiers, that they then had to start bottling the drink in Europe.
Today, Coca-Cola is made in countries all over the world, including Russia and China; it is the world’s most popular drink.
As for the famous formula, it is probably the world’s most valuable secret! The exact ingredients for making Coca-Cola are only known to a handful of people. And as for the “coca” that was in the original drink, that was eliminated in 1903. It was a drug, and too dangerous. Today’s Coca-Cola contains caffeine, but n in 1903. It was a drug, and too dangerous. Today’s Coca-Cola contains caffeine, but not cocaine!
April 13-17
Breakfast or Lunch
It was Sunday. I never get up early on Sundays. I sometimes stay in bed until lunch time. Last Sunday I got up very late. I looked out of the window. It was dark outside. “What a day!” I thought. “It’s raining again”. Just then, the telephone rang. It was my aunt Lucy. “I’ve just arrived by train.” She said, “I’m coming to see you“.
“But I’m still having breakfast,” I said.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
“I’m having breakfast,” I repeated.
“Dear me,” she said. “Do you always get up so late? It’s one o’clock!”
Exercises
- Write out these two paragraphs again. Give the right form of the words in brackets:
- I am looking out of my window. I can see some children in the street. The children (play) football. They always (play) football in the street. Now a little boy (kick) the ball. Another boy (run) after him but he cannot catch him.
- I carried my bags into the hall.
“What you (do)?” my landlady asked.
“I (leave), Mrs Lynch,” I answered.
“Why you (leave)?” she asked. “You have been here only a week”.
“A week too long, Mrs Lynch,” I said. “There are too many rules in this house. My friends never (come) to visit me. Dinner is always at seven o’clock, so I frequently (go) to bed hungry. You don’t like noise, so I rarely (listen) to the radio. The heating doesn’t work, so I always (feel) cold. This is a terrible place for a man like me. Goodbye, Mrs Lynch.”
- Note the position of the words in italics in these sentences :
My friends never come to visit me.
I frequently go to bed hungry.
I rarely listen to the radio.
I always feel cold.
I never get up early on Sundays.
I sometimes stay in bad until lunch time.
- Write this sentences again. Put the words in brackets in the right places.
1.She answers my letters (rarely)
2.We work after 6 o’clock. (never)
3.The shops close on Saturday afternoons. (always)
4.Do you go to work by car?(always)
5.Our teacher collects our copybooks.(frequently)
6.We spend our holidays abroad.(sometimes)
7.I buy gramophone records (often)
8.Do you buy gramophone records (ever)?
- Write these sentences again. Each sentence must begin with What.
- This is a wonderful garden!
- This is a surprise!
- He is causing a lot of trouble!
- They are wonderful actors!
- She is a hard-working woman!
- It is a tall building!
- It’s a terrible film!
- You are clever boy!
- She is a pretty girl!
- He is a strange fellow!
March 30-April 10
Mother’s Day
15-Questions-For-Kids-to-Ask-About-Mom
God could not be everywhere, and therefore he made mothers.
— Rudyard Kipling
Honor your Mother!
Can YouTube help us learn a foreign language?
Discussion
What do you think, can YouTube help us learn a foreign language?
It’s a website that everyone has heard of. Perhaps most people even use it on a daily basis, and it’s a form of both entertainment and social media. But can we use YouTube to help us learn a foreign language?
Of course there are channels which produce video classes dedicated to helping us learn.
In my opinion, they’re a way of being able to experience the way in which real people talk. This can make a good change from the listening exercises we hear in class, which aren’t always authentic. For example, many English speakers have different accents or use lots of colloquial words and phrases – have you ever heard them say ‘all right, guys’ as a greeting in a listening clip? Some English learners don’t have the chance to talk to native speakers in person, so surely YouTube videos can offer an invaluable alternative.
To add to this, there is more to learning a language than simply words, phrases and grammar. It’s also about the culture of the language’s speakers. As YouTube increases in popularity, it also offers an insight into popular culture. As well as the channels themselves that are popular, through watching them we can learn about a country’s fashion trends, popular video games and simply how people spend their daily lives.
However, some people would argue that listening to You Tubers will only make us fall into bad habits. Not only do they often use colloquial words, but sometimes their speech is even grammatically incorrect. Why would we want to risk learning to speak in a way that isn’t even right? Then again, others say that this is the way that people really talk, so we should get used to it.
It is debatable whether YouTube can help with language learning. But one thing for certain is that it can be a great source of entertainment!
Murphy, unit 7
Change the verb into the correct form:
- I …(love) you.
- This … (weigh) 20 kilograms.
- Ron ….(seem) serious.
- We …(like) tomatoes.
- The boy… (want) to play.
- You… (need) to sleep.
- They … (agree) with me.
- She …. (hear) something strange.
- The box… (contain) food.
- Emma …. (appear) sad.
- David …(know) how to fix a car.
- Daniel and Liz… (seem) happy.
- This… (smell) bad.
- I … (believe) you.
- We… (be) number one!
Present Continuous
Add the ending “-ing”
1. camp __
2. swim __
3. travel __
4. walk __
5. have __
6. write __
7. cook __
8. shop __6
Complete the sentences
1. His dad and brother __ (cycle) to the shops.7
2. We __ (not travel) in Japan.6
3. I __ (sunbathe) on the beach.5
4. She __ (not watch) TV.4
5. They __ (not swim) in the sea.3
6. Sue __ (stay) at home today.2
Write the questions and the short answers
1. your dad / work / today /?7
__
Yes, __
2. you / have a good time / on holiday / ?2
__
Yes, __
3. your mum / cook dinner / now / ?5
__
Yes, __
4. your friends / play football / ?4
__
Yes, __
Complete the dialogues
1. a. I´m going on holiday.
b. Where __ ?
2. a. He´s cooking dinner.
b. What __ ?
3. a. My sister is going to England.
b. Who __ ?
4. a. We aren´t staying in a hotel.4
b. Where __ ?
Complete the sentences1
A.
1. I __ (watch) a reality show on TV.
2. My favourite team __ (win)!
3. Someone __ (swim) in the sea.
4. Two people __ (cook) dinner on the beach.
5. We __ (not watch) a soap opera.1
6. I __ (not do) my homework.1
7. Mum __ (read) a magazine.1
8. My brother __ (not listen) to the radio.2
9. Dad __ (not cook) dinner.
10. Tara __ (talk) by phone.
11. Joe __ (play) on the computer.
12. Who __(watch) TV?
13. Tina __ (do) grammar exercises.
14. I __ (eat) a pizza.
15. We __ (sit) in the classroom.
16. I __ (not write) an email.
17. Amy __ (not go) to school today.
18. We __ (not have) fun today.
19. My team __ (not win) the match.
20. My parents __ (drive) to work now.
21. __ they __ (read) magazines? Yes, they are.
22. __ you __ (learn) English? Yes I am.
23. __ Helen __ (write) a letter? No, she isn´t.
24. __ Sarah __ (play) the guitar? Yes, she is.
25. We __ (not play) basketball.
B.
1. Trina __ (walk) past the supermarket.
2. Where are you? We __ (wait) for you!
3. I´m on a bus and it __ (not move).
4. When __ you __ (come) to see me?
5. I __ (sit) on a bus.
6. Pete´s mother __ (not have) a burger.
7. John´s friends __ (play) football at the Sports Centre.
8. My best friend __ (sit) next to me.
9. I __ (not wear) something blue.
10. My teacher __ (not stand) behind me.
C.
1. I __ (learn) how to swim.
2. I __ (eat) my lunch.
3. I __ (watch) television.
4. She __ (read) a book.
5. Dad __ (bake) a cake.
6. My sister __ (listen) to music.
7. Peter __ (clean) his car.
8. The dog __ (bark) in the garden.
9. We __ (sing) our favourite song.
10. My brother and I __ (play) a computer game.
11. The teachers __ (show) us a film.
12. They __ (bring) a TV in the classroom.
13. She´s bored. Her friend __ (watch) TV again.
14. Martin´s excited. Chelsea __ (win) the match.2
15. I´m scared. A big dog __ (stand) in front of me.
16. She´s happy. She __ (not work) today.
17. I´m worried. It __ (rain) and I haven´t got an umbrella.+
18. The teacher is annoyed. We __ (not listen).
19. What __ you __ (wait) for? I´m __ (wait) for John.
20. __ it __ (snow)? No, it __ (rain).
21. What __ you __ (do) today? We __ (go) to the park.
22. __ you __ (listen) to me? No, I __ (listen) to the radio.
23. __ you __ (watch) TV? No, we __ (study).
24. What __ you __ (do)? I __ (do) my homework.
25. __ they __ (sleep)? Yes, they are.
To Be Exercises
- My teacher _________ English.
- I ________ married.
- My favourite color _______ blue.
- My favourite sports _______ tennis and windsurfing.
- My best friend ______ a student.
- Peru _______ in Asia.
- _________ you from Britain?
- __________ Sean Connery from Scotland? Yes, _____ _______.
- How old ______ your sisters?
Complete the questions with ‘is’ or ‘are’. Give true answers for you.
a) You/ a good singer?
b) Your teacher/ married?
c) Tennis/ your favourite sport?
d) Your shoes / new?
e) Your best friend / English?
f) You / very intelligent?
Choose the correct form of be (am, are, is).
- I
am
are
is
a girl. - My father
am
are
is
at work. - Trixi and Susiam
are
is
my cats. - The hamster
am
are
is
in the cage. - I
am
are
is
a painter. - My green pencil
am
are
is
on the floor. - Emma and Betty
am
are
is
good friends. - Am
Are
Is
you from Scotland? - His sister
am
are
is
seven years old. - We
am
are
is
children.
February 18
Read and answer
Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Boys and girls should attend separate schools. Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
If boys and girls attend the same schools and universities, they will get equal opportunities of education. When they are together, they will study in the same laboratories, attend the same libraries, and learn from the same professors. In contrast, if they are separated, most of countries would take care of boys’ education more than girls’. Thus, it is important to have boys and girls together, to have the same chances of learning at schools.
If boys and girls attend the same schools, they will have better personalities in future. They will learn to talk together without being afraid or shy of each other. They will communicate and work better in their future jobs. If they grew up in separate schools, they would tend to be timid and less cooperative at work in the future. Thus being together will ensure that they will be successful and creative in their professionals.
Attending school together will help them to have a wonderful relationships when they grown up. When boys and girls are together in the same place, they will get to know each other better. Boys will know what girls like and dislike, what their interests, and how to handle some emerging problems with them. The same thing, girls will know boys’ characters better. This helps them to be a great spouses or life partners in the future with successful families.
To sum up, some countries may encourage a separate school for boys and girls while others support coeducational school. I believe that the last one is better because it will help boys and girls to be more social individuals with strong personalities and gorgeous relationships. Also they will gain the same rights of having equal education.
February 11
Robot teachers
DISCUSSION
February 4
Read the following text
This is John Smith. He’s Colombian but he lives in Brazil. He is a prisoner. Mr Smith is 33 years old. He doesn’t work or study. Mr Smith cannot read or write but he can play the guitar very well. He plays the guitar every day at 6:30 pm after dinner. The other prisoners all like his music. Mr Smith likes POP ROCK but he doesn’t like SAMBA. Mr Smith likes Brazilian food and drinks…He loves brown chocolate but he doesn’t like white chocolate. His room number in the prison is 333 on the 3rd floor. People call Mr Smith “The Music Man”. Mr Smith is a happy prisoner. He wakes up at 5:15am and has breakfast; he eats very much!!! He has black coffee and bread in the morning but he doesn’t eat fruit or drink milk. He smokes very much!!!
: Describe the person using the information given.
Name: Mark Spencer
Age: 43
Country:Italy
Phone number: 00 334 379 561
Marital status: single
Occupation: Civil Servant
Languages: Italian, French, English
Learn English: Job, Travel, Translate
Sports:Football
Favourite food: Pizza, bread
Car: Mercedez Benz
Music: Classical music, Romantic
Abilities: Play the piano, juggle, cook
Answer the following questions
1. Which metal is heavier, silver or gold?
2. How many legs do butterflies have?
3. Which is the country with the most people?
4. Which state is the biggest in the US?
5. Which country has the largest area of land?
6. Which is the country hosting the 2008 Olympic Games?
7. Which indoor sport is the most popular in the US?
9.Do you like going to concerts?
10.Have you got a computer at home?
January 14-17
BY THE BROTHERS GRIMM
FIRST STORY
A shoemaker, by no fault of his own, had become so poor that at last he had nothing left but leather for one pair of shoes. So in the evening, he cut out the shoes which he wished to begin to make the next morning, and as he had a good conscience, he lay down quietly in his bed, commended himself to God, and fell asleep. In the morning, after he had said his prayers, and was just going to sit down to work, the two shoes stood quite finished on his table. He was astounded, and knew not what to say to it. He took the shoes in his hands to observe them closer, and they were so neatly made that there was not one bad stitch in them, just as if they were intended as a masterpiece. Soon after, a buyer came in, and as the shoes pleased him so well, he paid more for them than was customary, and, with the money, the shoemaker was able to purchase leather for two pairs of shoes. He cut them out at night, and next morning was about to set to work with fresh courage; but he had no need to do so, for, when he got up, they were already made, and buyers also were not wanting, who gave him money enough to buy leather for four pairs of shoes. The following morning, too, he found the four pairs made; and so it went on constantly, what he cut out in the evening was finished by the morning, so that he soon had his honest independence again, and at last became a wealthy man. Now it befell that one evening not long before Christmas, when the man had been cutting out, he said to his wife, before going to bed, “What think you if we were to stay up to-night to see who it is that lends us this helping hand?” The woman liked the idea, and lighted a candle, and then they hid themselves in a corner of the room, behind some clothes which were hanging up there, and watched. When it was midnight, two pretty little naked men came, sat down by the shoemaker’s table, took all the work which was cut out before them and began to stitch, and sew, and hammer so skilfully and so quickly with their little fingers that the shoemaker could not turn away his eyes for astonishment. They did not stop until all was done, and stood finished on the table, and they ran quickly away.
Next morning the woman said, “The little men have made us rich, and we really must show that we are grateful for it. They run about so, and have nothing on, and must be cold. I’ll tell thee what I’ll do: I will make them little shirts, and coats, and vests, and trousers, and knit both of them a pair of stockings, and do thou, too, make them two little pairs of shoes.” The man said, “I shall be very glad to do it;” and one night, when everything was ready, they laid their presents all together on the table instead of the cut-out work, and then concealed themselves to see how the little men would behave. At midnight they came bounding in, and wanted to get to work at once, but as they did not find any leather cut out, but only the pretty little articles of clothing, they were at first astonished, and then they showed intense delight. They dressed themselves with the greatest rapidity, putting the pretty clothes on, and singing,
“Now we are boys so fine to see,
Why should we longer cobblers be?”
Then they danced and skipped and leapt over chairs and benches. At last they danced out of doors. From that time forth they came no more, but as long as the shoemaker lived all went well with him, and all his undertakings prospered.
Desember 17
Discussion: Christmas
- Do you know why Christmas is celebrated around the world?
- Do you know the history of Christmas?
- Do you remember when you found out that Santa Claus wasn’t real
- Do you see your relatives at Christmas time?
- Do you think we will have a white Christmas this year?
- Do you usually put up Christmas decorations in your house? (Do you usually decorate your home?)
- Does you school have a Christmas play?
- Does your family have any special Christmas traditions?
- Does your town get decorated at Christmas?
- What kind of decorations?
- Have you already finished your Christmas shopping?
- Have you ever celebrated Christmas in a foreign country?
- Have you ever made your own Christmas cards?
- If so, how did you make them?
- How do you usually spend New Year’s Eve? How about New Year’s Day?
- How long do you keep your Christmas tree up after Christmas?
- How long is your Christmas vacation?
- How many Christmas cards did you receive last year?
- How many Christmas cards do you send?
- How many presents do you usually give?
- If you could go anywhere during Christmas vacation, where would you go?
- In how many languages did you write Christmas cards?
- Is there a holiday similar to Christmas in your home country?
- Is your Christmas tree a real tree or an artificial tree?
- What are some popular foods for the Christmas season?
- What are you going to buy your boyfriend/girlfriend for their Christmas present?
- What did you do last year on Christmas Day?
- How did you celebrate Christmas last year?
- What do you eat on Christmas Day?
- What do you usually do for Christmas?
- What do you want Santa to bring you for Christmas?
- What does your family eat for Christmas dinner?
- What is Christmas like in your hometown?
- What is Christmas like in your country?
- What is the most expensive Christmas present you plan to buy?
- What is the typical menu for a Christmas meal in your family? (… in your country?)
- What is the weather like in your country around Christmas time?
- What is your favorite Christmas carol?
- What is your favorite Christmas song?
- What kind of presents do you expect to get this Christmas?
- What time do you wake up on Christmas day?
- What time does your family open the presents?
- What traditions do you have during the Christmas season?
- What was the best present your received last Christmas?
- Do you ever think about the real meaning of Christmas?
- Do you go skiing at Christmas time?
- Whose birthday is celebrated on Christmas?
- Which comes first, Christmas or New Year’s Day?
«The Gift of the Magi» by O. Henry
The Gift of the Magi by O. Henry (intermediate). Listen online:
One dollar and eighty-seven cents. That was all. And sixty cents of it in the smallest pieces of money — pennies. Pennies saved one and two at a time by negotiating with the men at the market who sold vegetables and meat. Negotiating until one’s face burned with the silent knowledge of being poor. Three times Della counted it. One dollar and eighty-seven cents. And the next day would be Christmas.
There was clearly nothing to do but sit down and cry. So Della cried. Which led to the thought that life is made up of little cries and smiles, with more little cries than smiles.
Della finished her crying and dried her face. She stood by the window and looked out unhappily at a gray cat walking along a gray fence in a gray back yard. Tomorrow would be Christmas Day, and she had only one dollar and eighty-seven cents to buy her husband Jim a gift. She had been saving every penny she could for months, with this result.
Jim earned twenty dollars a week, which does not go far. Expenses had been greater than she had expected. They always are. Many a happy hour she had spent planning to buy something nice for him. Something fine and rare — something close to being worthy of the honor of belonging to Jim.
There was a tall glass mirror between the windows of the room. Suddenly Della turned from the window and stood before the glass mirror and looked at herself. Her eyes were shining, but her face had lost its color within twenty seconds. Quickly she pulled down her hair and let it fall to its full length.
Now, Mister and Missus James Dillingham Young had two possessions which they valued. One was Jim’s gold time piece, the watch that had been his father’s and his grandfather’s. The other was Della’s hair.
Had the Queen of Sheba lived in their building, Della would have let her hair hang out the window to dry just to reduce the value of the queen’s jewels.
So now Della’s beautiful hair fell about her, shining like a brown waterfall. It reached below her knees and made itself almost like a covering for her. And then quickly she put it up again. She stood still while a few tears fell on the floor.
She put on her coat and her old brown hat. With a quick motion and brightness still in her eyes, she danced out the door and down the street.
Where she stopped the sign read: «Madame Sofronie. Hair Goods of All Kinds.» Della ran up the steps to the shop, out of breath.
«Will you buy my hair?» asked Della.
«I buy hair,» said Madame. «Take your hat off and let us have a look at it.»
Down came the beautiful brown waterfall of hair.
«Twenty dollars,» said Madame, lifting the hair with an experienced hand.
«Give it to me quick,» said Della.
The next two hours went by as if they had wings. Della looked in all the stores to choose a gift for Jim.
She found it at last. It surely had been made for Jim and no one else. It was a chain — simple round rings of silver. It was perfect for Jim’s gold watch. As soon as she saw it she knew that it must be for him. It was like him. Quiet and with great value. She gave the shopkeeper twenty-one dollars and she hurried home with the eighty-seven cents that was left.
When Della arrived home she began to repair what was left of her hair. The hair had been ruined by her love and her desire to give a special gift. Repairing the damage was a very big job.
Within forty minutes her head was covered with tiny round curls of hair that made her look wonderfully like a schoolboy. She looked at herself in the glass mirror long and carefully.
«If Jim does not kill me before he takes a second look at me,» she said to herself, «he’ll say I look like a song girl. But what could I do—oh! what could I do with a dollar and eighty-seven cents?»
At seven o’clock that night the coffee was made and the pan on the back of the stove was hot and ready to cook the meat.
Jim was never late coming home from work. Della held the silver chain in her hand and sat near the door. Then she heard his step and she turned white for just a minute. She had a way of saying a little silent prayer about the simplest everyday things, and now she whispered: «Please God, make him think I am still pretty.»
The door opened and Jim stepped in. He looked thin and very serious. Poor man, he was only twenty-two and he had to care for a wife. He needed a new coat and gloves to keep his hands warm.
Jim stopped inside the door, as immovable as a dog smelling a bird. His eyes were fixed upon Della. There was an expression in them that she could not read, and it frightened her. It was not anger, nor surprise, nor fear, nor any of the feelings that she had been prepared for. He simply looked at her with a strange expression on his face. Della went to him.
«Jim, my love,» she cried, «do not look at me that way. I had my hair cut and sold because I could not have lived through Christmas without giving you a gift. My hair will grow out again. I just had to do it. My hair grows very fast. Say ‘Merry Christmas!’ Jim, and let us be happy. You do not know what a nice— what a beautiful, nice gift I have for you.»
«You have cut off your hair?» asked Jim, slowly, as if he had not accepted the information even after his mind worked very hard.
«Cut it off and sold it,» said Della. «Do you not like me just as well? I am the same person without my hair, right?
Jim looked about the room as if he were looking for something.
«You say your hair is gone?» he asked.
«You need not look for it,» said Della. «It is sold, I tell you—sold and gone, too. It is Christmas Eve, boy. Be good to me, for it was cut for you. Maybe the hairs of my head were numbered,» she went on with sudden serious sweetness, «but nobody could ever count my love for you. Shall I put the meat on, Jim?»
Jim seemed to awaken quickly and put his arms around Della. Then he took a package from his coat and threw it on the table.
«Do not make any mistake about me, Dell,» he said. «I do not think there is any haircut that could make me like my girl any less. But if you will open that package you may see why you had me frightened at first.»
White fingers quickly tore at the string and paper. There was a scream of joy; and then, alas! a change to tears and cries, requiring the man of the house to use all his skill to calm his wife.
For there were the combs — the special set of objects to hold her hair that Della had wanted ever since she saw them in a shop window. Beautiful combs, made of shells, with jewels at the edge —just the color to wear in the beautiful hair that was no longer hers. They cost a lot of money, she knew, and her heart had wanted them without ever hoping to have them. And now, the beautiful combs were hers, but the hair that should have touched them was gone.
But she held the combs to herself, and soon she was able to look up with a smile and say, «My hair grows so fast, Jim!»
Then Della jumped up like a little burned cat and cried, «Oh, oh!»
Jim had not yet seen his beautiful gift. She happily held it out to him in her open hands. The silver chain seemed so bright.
«Isn’t it wonderful, Jim? I looked all over town to find it. You will have to look at the time a hundred times a day now. Give me your watch. I want to see how it looks on it.»
Instead of obeying, Jim fell on the couch and put his hands under the back of his head and smiled.
«Dell,» said he, «let us put our Christmas gifts away and keep them a while. They are too nice to use just right now. I sold my gold watch to get the money to buy the set of combs for your hair. And now, why not put the meat on.»
The magi were wise men—wonderfully wise men—who brought gifts to the Baby Jesus. They invented the art of giving Christmas gifts. Being wise, their gifts were wise ones. And here I have told you the story of two young people who most unwisely gave for each other the greatest treasures of their house. But in a last word to the wise of these days, let it be said that of all who give gifts, these two were the wisest. Everywhere they are wisest. They are the magi.
Listen Here: The Gift of the Magi – O. Henry’s most famous story http://englishstory.ru/the-gift-of-the-magi-o-henry-s-most-famous-story.html#ixzz67gfGBYzM
December 3
Book 1, pages 44-46, read the text Farm.
Winter
Winter is a beautiful and magical time of the year. This cold season consists of three months: merry December, snowy January and frosty February. The winter season brings us large snow flakes, snowstorms, icicles hanging from the roofs of houses, amazing patterns on the windows. The real winter days do not hurry to come, they appear with the first frosts, snowflakes and hoarfrost in the morning. Fallen snow during the night, every morning glitters and shimmers in the rays of the cold sun, and blinds the eyes of people who are rushing to work and leaving intricate lines of tracks in the snow. Snow lies everywhere: on the roofs of buildings, on benches, on paths and roads. Trees proudly stand dressed in snow-white outfits.There is the frosty breath of the coming winter in the air. Nature sleeps hiding under a snow blanket in anticipation of spring.
But the sky begins to frown and is covered with dark clouds. The first snowflakes appear. Some of them randomly fly in the air and melt before they fall to the ground. Others slowly cover everything around, speeding up their pace. Watching this fabulous snowfall, you can feel both indescribable joy and mild sadness.
Winter is a time of joy, festive mood and fun. You can play with your friends in snowballs, build snow castles and fortresses, sculpt snowmen, ride sledges, skis and skates. Many birds flew away to hot countries, and for those who stayed, it possible to make feeders and feed them all winter with bread and corn. In winter, all people are looking forward to the New Year holidays. Decorate trees, go to visit. The New Year brings many chocolates and gifts. Children have fun with Santa Claus and Snow Maiden on children’s matinees.
November 19
Book 1 Pages 38-41
Lesson Five, read and translate
Exercises on page 41
Counting more than half a billion individuals and over 70 different breeds, cats are the world’s most popular pets. Even though they are curious animals who like to explore and hunt, cats are also a truly social species. They communicate with humans through mewing, purring or sometimes grunting, and it is possible to even learn cat-specific body language to better understand their needs and wishes.
November 12
Book 1, pages 30-32
Exercises on page 34, 35
November 5
A dog’s life, Listen here
Short story
Hi. I’m Dino, the family dog. I help keep people safe, especially on the
roads. Take a look at my diary to see what I did last week.
Sunday
Some children really don’t think. Our neighbour’s boy ran in front of a
car to get his ball. The car almost hit him. I saved him though.
Remember, always look and listen.
Monday
Walking on the street at night can be very dangerous, especially if you wear dark clothes. Car drivers
can’t see you very well, just like these two I had to take home. Luckily I never go out without my
reflective jacket and collar. Remember, BE SEEN!
Tuesday
People can get very angry when driving, usually for silly reasons. One driver started shouting at Mum
today when she stopped to let some children cross the road. I soon made him stop.
Wednesday
One thing makes me really mad. Grrrrrr. People walking on a dangerous road when they can walk on
the safe pavement. I saw two girls doing that today but I soon made them change their minds.
Thursday
Seat belts can save your life! I make sure everyone in our car wears their seat belt. If they forget, I
soon remind them. Even I’ve got one.
Friday
I like Fridays. The roads are quieter. But you still have to be careful. I caught Dad talking on his mobile
phone while driving. I soon stopped him though. Don’t worry, he got his phone back.
Saturday
Today Mum took me for a walk. One car was parked in a very dangerous place. It was right on the
corner of the street. Don’t worry though. I left him a message!
A dog’s life
dog car ball look listen night
clothes angry cross the road pavement seat belt mobile phone
Match the days with what Dino did.
Sunday He made an angry man stop shouting.
Monday He reminded the family to wear seat belts.
Tuesday He saved a boy on the road.
Wednesday He left a message on a car parked dangerously.
Thursday He made two girls walk on the pavement.
Friday He took two children home.
Saturday He stopped Dad talking on his mobile.
October 24
Simple Present or Present Progressive
- Andy sometimes … comics. (to read)
- We never … TV in the morning. (to watch)
- Listen! Sandy … in the bathroom. (to sing)
- My sister usually… in the kitchen. (to help)
- My mother… breakfast now. (to make)
- They often … the bathroom. (to clean)
- Look! The boys … home. (to come)
- Every day his grandfather …for a walk. (to go)
- I with my friend …at the moment. (to chat)
- Cats … mice. (to eat)
1. Every day Julie (take) the bus to go to her office.
2. At the moment you (do) an English exercise.
3. Tom and Julie (learn) English this year.
4. The bank (open) at 9.30 every morning from Monday to Friday.
5. Our cousins (come) to see us next Sunday.
6. Tom (read) the newspaper every morning on the train.
7. Julie usually (clean) the house on Saturdays.
8. At the moment she (write) a letter to a client.
9. Julie (speak) three languages : English, French and Spanish.
10. Today is Sunday. Tom and Julie (relax) in their garden.
October 10
Drinking water
The tap water is generally safe, as it comes directly from mountains, but you may also purchase bottled water. You can get both mineral water with gas and normal spring water on almost every street corner. This water is available in both the rural areas and the capital. You can open the tap either at work or in a house and drink running water. It’s absolutely safe for drinking and even tasty. In the streets and yards of Yerevan you can see certain water springs. The unique one-meter-high bubbling jet offers clean and tasty Armenian water. Come close and drink. It is completely free.
Homework
Use the new words from the text in the sentences:
spring-1. գարուն, 2. աղբյուր, 3 զսպանակ,
both… and…-և….և…
either… or… կամ… կամ…
neither… nor… ոչ…. ոչ…
trap-ծուղակ
tap-ծորակ
October 1
Tom’s Job
Tom works at a bank. He is the manager. He starts work every day at 8:00 am. He finishes work every day at 6:00 pm. He lives very close to the bank. He walks to work every day. His brother and sister also work at the bank. But, they do not live close to the bank. They drive cars to work. They start work at 9:00 am. In the bank, Tom is the boss. He helps all the workers and tells them what to do. He likes his job. He is also very good at his job. Many customers like Tom, and they say hello to him when they come to the bank. Tom likes to talk to the customers and make them feel happy. Tom really likes his job.
1. Question
What time does Tom start work?
2. Question
Does Tom drive a car to work?
3. Question
Does Tom live close to the bank?
4. Question
Does Tom talk to customers?
5. Question
How does Tom feel about his job?
Simple Present Story 1
Hank is a cowboy. He lives on a farm. He has a horse named Ginger. Hank loves Ginger. He rides Ginger every day. Sometimes they walk slowly, and sometimes they run fast. They always have a good time.
Ginger is Hank’s horse. She is light brown. Her tail and mane are dark brown. She is three years old. She lives in the stable by the house.
Ginger waits for Hank every morning. She enjoys their time together. Often, Hank gives her apples. After long rides, Hank always washes and brushes Ginger. He usually brushes her tail. Then he gives her food and fresh water. Ginger loves Hank.
September 24
Complete the following sentences using appropriate articles.
1. She gave me ……………………. book.
2. Put ……………………. book on …………………… table.
3. There is …………………… apple in the fridge.
4. If you are hungry, you can eat ………………………… banana.
5. She told me ………………………. interesting story.
6. My brother has ………………………… pet dog.
7. I want …………………… glass of water.
8. I watched ……………………… movie yesterday.
9. I have seen ………………….. movie you are talking about.
10. I have ……………………. sister.
11. She can play ……………………… violin and ………………….. piano.
12. I went to ……………………….. hospital to see Jane.
Read the text
A Good Boy
Billy always listens to his mother. He always does what she says. If his mother says, “Brush your teeth,” Billy brushes his teeth. If his mother says, “Go to bed,” Billy goes to bed. Billy is a very good boy. A good boy listens to his mother. His mother doesn’t have to ask him again. She asks him to do something one time, and she doesn’t ask again. Billy is a good boy. He does what his mother asks the first time. She doesn’t have to ask again. She tells Billy, “You are my best child.” Of course Billy is her best child. Billy is her only child.
| Listen here |
«Մխիթար Սեբաստացի» կրթահամալիր Անահիտ Մելքոնյան 