Чтение (True/False/Not stated)
1. Christmas Tree Memories
My name is Ted. I grew up in the 50s, but my childhood memories are still alive. The most pleasant of them is the family Christmas tree. Besides my mum and dad, there were five children in the family. We all took part in decorating the Christmas tree, one way or another. It was a special time for me as dad took us for a trip to the winter forest.
The experience was special as only boys were allowed to go to the countryside to pick out the tree. At the age of five I felt proud to be in a man’s adventure. I remember walking through the forest with dad looking for the perfect, large tree. We had a tall ceiling in the living room, so a small tree did not look right there.
At the age of five, even a small tree seemed great to me. To measure a tree I raised my hands above my head and looked up. If I could reach the top of the tree I thought it was big enough. Dad, however, always chose the perfect tree very carefully.
Once he had made his choice, he took out an axe to cut down the tree. I wanted to help my dad and brothers, but they always told me to stand back. When the cutting began, I tried to hold the tree up. I was afraid the tree would fall on them and I felt strong enough to hold it.
After the tree was down we took it to the car and went back home. I don’t remember how we got that large tree through the door, but it was always right. Then dad got the tree to stand up and we could start the decorating. The tree, the boxes with decorations and a tall ladder took up the whole room.
All the family took part as mum gave everyone a task. I had to pass the decorations. What I liked best about the Christmas tree were the lights. When everybody else had left I stayed in the room and watched the lights travelling up and down the Christmas tree.
Dad had one more special job that day. Mum took her favourite ornament, a lighted angel, which she had got as a present from her family. Dad climbed up the ladder and fixed the angel at the top of the Christmas tree. When I looked at the angel, I thought Santa was close to my house.
Everyone, and the decorated shining tree, was ready to celebrate Christmas. It was so big that it nearly touched the ceiling. I felt I was a small part of a big adventure. The last few years we lived in that house the trips to the forest with dad ceased. We bought an artificial tree instead.
1) Ted’s family had a tradition of decorating the Christmas tree together.
2) When Ted’s father went to choose their Christmas tree, Ted stayed at home.
3) Ted’s family lived in a small town.
4) Ted’s father always chose a tall tree for Christmas.
5) Ted’s mother preferred the Christmas decorations created by her children.
6) A lighted angel was Ted’s favourite Christmas decoration.
7) There was a star on the top of the Christmas tree in Ted’s house.
8) Finally the family stopped having a live Christmas tree.
2. Shakira
Shakira Ripoll was born on February 2, 1977, in Colombia. She was the only daughter of a well-respected jeweller and his wife. In naming the newborn daughter, her mother chose from several names, containing the letter "K". She thought about Karime and Katiuska but finally chose Shakira. It’s an Arabic name which comes from the word "Shukram" meaning "Grace". So Shakira’s full name is translated as "a woman of Grace".
When Shakira was a child, her mother discovered that the girl had a gift for learning. Shakira knew the alphabet by the age of eighteen months and at three she knew how to read. By the time she was four, she was ready for school. School was not just a place where little Shakira learnt her arithmetic and geography. There she began to understand such great things as kindness, love, trust, and other human ideals. She realized what real friendship was and how much her family meant to her. Later it helped her to decide what to do with the big money she earned.
Shakira loved attention and wished to find a way to get it. She sang a lot for her schoolmates and teachers. However, the music teacher told her that she sounded "like a goat". Shakira wasn’t too upset about it and soon found a more original way to become the centre of attention. It was dancing. It helped her to express herself and become famous in school. What is interesting is that no one had ever taught her to dance.
In school Shakira was disciplined, but absent-minded. She was usually writing lyrics for her songs on the back of her notebooks. However, Shakira was a good student because she was a quick learner and could understand her teachers’ explanations faster than others.
As soon as the bell rang after class, Shakira was the first one to run and get in line for the cafeteria. She usually bought a pepsi, a hamburger and something sweet, like a muffin or a piece of cake. She seldom took a packed lunch from home. Though Shakira was a lover of fast food, she had no weight problems, as she loved dancing.
When she was eight, Shakira's father lost all his money because his business went bankrupt. For a while Shakira had to stay with her relatives in Los Angeles. When the girl returned, she was shocked to see almost everything that her family had, had been sold. She later said: "In my childish head, this was the end of the world."
To show her that things could be worse, her father took her to a local park to see the homeless children. What she saw shocked her deeply and she said to herself: "One day I’m going to help these poor kids when I become a famous singer or dancer".
Between the ages of ten and thirteen Shakira was invited to various dance events and became very popular in the area. It was at this time that Shakira met a local theatre producer, who was impressed with her performance and as a result tried to help her career. This woman organized a meeting with the managers of the Sony company. After Shakira sang, they decided to sign a contract for three albums with the talented girl.
1) Shakira’s name was chosen by her father.
2) Shakira went to one of the most well-known schools in Columbia.
3) At school Shakira was more successful in dancing than in singing.
4) Shakira published her first lyrics in a youth magazine.
5) At school Shakira was careful to eat only healthy food.
6) Shakira was upset when she learnt about the family’s financial problems.
7) When Shakira became a famous singer, she set up a charity fund to help homeless children.
8) The meeting with Sony managers went successfully.
3. Nike
Take a look around. How many people are wearing Nike right now? There is at least one, trust me. Nike is the number one manufacturer of footwear and clothes, and it has become a world famous brand on the same level as Coca Cola, McDonald’s, and Apple.
Nike was originally known as Blue Ribbon Shoes. It was founded in 1964 by the runner Philip Knight and his coach Bill Bowerman. They established the company to import cheap Japanese running shoes for sale in the U.S. At the very beginning they had no room or shop, so Philip Knight sold the shoes out of the back of his car. Meanwhile Bill Bowerman worked on improvements to the footwear. He tore the shoes apart to see how he could make them lighter and better.
In 1967 a third person joined Blue Ribbon Shoes. It was Jeff Johnson. A runner himself, Johnson became the first full-time employee of Blue Ribbon Shoes. His contribution to the company is so great that it's hard to estimate. Johnson created the first product brochures, print adverts and marketing materials, and even took the photographs for the company’s catalogues. He established a mail-order system and opened the first company shop.
At about the same time the company became ready to take a big move forward. They no longer wanted to be distributors, but wished to start designing and manufacturing their own brand of athletic shoes. Here again Johnson made an enormous contribution to the company. One night, he dreamed of Nike, the Greek goddess of victory, and suggested the name to his bosses.
Yet, another thing was missing – a memorable logo. One was created by a graphic design student Carolyn Davidson. She had become acquainted with Philip Knight who asked her for her design ideas and Carolyn agreed to do some freelance work for his company. Soon she presented a number of designs to Philip Knight and the other company managers, and they finally selected the mark which today is the Swoosh. That has been the Nike logo ever since then. Amazingly, Carolyn asked just $35 for her work.
In 1988 Nike started an advertising campaign with its world famous slogan 'Just Do It'. The slogan was born during a Nike meeting with the advertising agency. The slogan has become so closely associated with Nike that as soon as most people hear or see those three words, they remember Nike, even if the company name is not mentioned. Today, the words 'Just Do It' and the Nike "swoosh" brandmark are all that are needed to identify something as a Nike product.
Isn't it amazing how a small symbol we call a logo can make a company into a huge success!
1) Nike and Blue Ribbon Shoes are the names for one and the same business.
2) The business was founded by Japanese businessmen.
3) The business started with renting a large shop.
4) P.Knight, B.Bowerman and J.Johnson were responsible for different spheres of the business in the company.
5) Famous athletes were employed to advertise the company’s shoes.
6) The company Nike was called after a character from an ancient myth.
7) Nike’s logo was created by a famous advertising company.
8) The Nike company paid a large amount of money for creating the slogan ‘Just Do It’.
4. Peer pressure
"Peer pressure"* is very strong, especially among young people. Almost everyone can remember a moment when they did something because their friends were doing it. Teenagers often buy something just because their friends have it, and this thing comes into fashion. If teenagers didn’t imitate their friends’ behavior, there would be fewer social problems: smoking, crime and so on.
On the other hand, “peer pressure” can also produce positive results. Youth crime and vandalism in one of the districts of Bristol, a city in England, fell by 20% last year. Why? Because young people stopped doing stupid and anti-social things. Now they are trying to keep out of trouble. And it's all the result of a new project.
Two Bristol policemen organised a football league for teenagers in one of the poorest parts of the city. The idea is to prevent teenagers from committing crimes. They want to show teenagers how they can spend their free time in a better way.
The policemen introduced a system in which football results are connected to young people's behaviour outside the football grounds. Teams get points for winning their matches, but lose points if any team-member does anything he shouldn't on the football field or off it! For example, teams get ten points for winning a match, but if any player is arrested, the team loses ten points. If a member is caught doing an act of vandalism, such as spraying graffiti, the team loses five points. Three points are lost for less serious crimes.
The results in Bristol are great. None of the teenagers playing in the football league has been arrested by the police. Instead of doing antisocial things and causing problems these teenagers are trying to behave properly!
The idea is already getting popular in other parts of Britain, and similar programmes will be started in other cities. Social workers are also trying to use “peer pressure" to get other positive results. If some more original ways are found, levels of crime among young people will soon be falling quickly.
Some people also think that a similar system should be used for professional footballers. If a professional player gets into a fight on the football ground, his team loses points. In this way footballers will try to behave with more respect to other players.
Another example of positive “peer pressure” is that there are fewer teenagers who smoke or take drugs. This is the result of the growing popularity of mobile phones. A mobile has become a new symbol of growing up. Teenagers no longer need to smoke to show that they are adults. Now they want to get a phone as cool as their classmates have.
*Peer pressure – the strong influence of a group, especially of children, on the members of that group to behave as everyone else does.
1) Teenagers try to follow their friends’ habits.
2) The Bristol football league for teenagers was started by a social worker.
3) The aim of the project is to prepare professional footballers.
4) The results of football matches are sent to school.
5) The football team loses points when its member commits a crime.
6) Social workers are against using “peer pressure” method.
7) Professional players fight a lot on the football ground.
8) Mobile phones make teenagers give up bad habits.
5. The Best Job in the World
Have you ever heard of the Great Barrier Reef? It is the world's largest coral reef system along the eastern coast of Australia. In February 2009 an extraordinary position was advertised by the Australian Tourism Office. The advertisement ran that the Great Barrier Reef needed a caretaker for half a year. It was for a special person who would look after the Reef.
The job offered a large salary, free accommodation in a luxury villa, and transportation there and around the islands. All expenses would be paid: the winner wouldn't need to spend any extra money on anything.
The job's duties were pretty simple. You could only dream of such requirements. First, the person had to speak English and swim well. Second, on the island his responsibility included writing a weekly Internet blog. That's right, weekly, not even daily! The job description also required the successful applicant to explore the islands of the Great Barrier Reef, swim, make friends with the locals and generally enjoy the tropical climate and lifestyle. A real dream!
Within the first 2 days of the contest, the tourism office received more than seven thousand online applications. All told, 34,000 people of all different nationalities applied. Each made and presented a 60-second video resume. They had to be creative and they were. In the end 16 people were chosen, who flew to Australia for the final selection. The candidates were interviewed and the winner was Ben Southall from the UK.
Ben greatly enjoyed the dream job he had got. He realised that people knew very little about the Earth and its treasures. Living in big cities, they forgot how important the flora and fauna of this world were. Every time Ben went outdoors, he could discover something new. "Every time I dived or went underwater, I forgot about all the troubles above water and concentrated on living in the moment. It was a good way to clean the mind and build respect for the natural world," Ben said.
Ben's life on the island was not just fun. It was very busy, busier than most people imagined, and certainly busier than Ben himself had imagined. He worked seven days a week and up to 19 hours a day. The Best Job included travelling to over 60 islands of the Reef almost every day. It was not just looking after the Reef, Ben had a lot of meetings, press conferences and interviews. He was getting a lot of attention all the time and he couldn't get away from it. That was probably the hardest part of the job.
Moreover, any adventure has a certain degree of risk. Swimming and diving on the Great Barrier Reef was not different. Ben had to deal with whales, sharks and other huge sea creatures. Surprisingly, the most dangerous thing was a small jellyfish about the size of a little finger. It's considered to be extremely poisonous and Ben was stung by it. He had to spend a couple of days in hospital but luckily recovered after a course of antibiotics.
Ben often says that the project has taught him a few valuable lessons. Working with the Internet is one of those jobs you can do 24 hours a day. Ben realised it was hard to separate life and work, but this he had to do. He also said: "I've learned that we get one life on earth so we have to use it. There'll always be other countries to visit, other people to meet and other adventures to meet. This is what I wish to do. I'm planning to go to Asia in a few years time".
1) The Australian Tourism Office employs a new caretaker twice a year.
2) There was no Internet on the islands of the Great Barrier Reef.
3) People from different countries applied for the job.
4) Ben Southall was a good swimmer.
5) While working as a caretaker Ben Southall had lots of free time.
6) To do his job Ben Southall had to communicate with journalists.
7) Ben Southhall was taken to hospital after a shark attack.
8) Ben Southall is going to make a film about his work on the islands.
6. Louis Armstrong
Louis Armstrong played jazz, sang jazz and wrote jazz. He recorded hit songs for fifty years and his music is still heard today on television, radio and in movies.
Louis Armstrong was born in New Orleans, in the state of Louisiana on August 4th, 1901. His father was a factory worker and left the family soon after Louis's birth. Young Louis was desperately poor. He lived with his sister, mother and grandmother in the poorest area of New Orleans known as ‘the Battlefield’ because of the fighting and shooting that often happened there.
When Louis was eleven years old, he was arrested for firing a gun into the air on New Year's Eve. He was sent to a reform school, where he learned to play the trumpet in the school's band. Eighteen months later Louis was back home and already dreaming of the life of a musician. He sold newspapers, unloaded boats and sold coal. However, in the evenings Louis played the trumpet with local groups or went to clubs to listen to jazz bands. He soon became friends with one of the greatest musicians of the time, Joe Oliver, who became young Louis's teacher. As Louis's skills developed, he began to perform professionally.
He was soon able to stop working on manual labour jobs and began concentrating full-time on music, playing at parties, dances, and at local cafés. He joined Joe Oliver's band and moved to Chicago. Later, Louis organised his own band and began to record one of the greatest series of songs in the history of jazz. Louis developed a unique style of singing: he could make his voice sound like a musical instrument and he could make an instrument sound like a singer's voice. Louis enjoyed singing improvised melodies and rhythms. Armstrong was an easy-going and communicative person. His fellow musicians called him ‘Satchelmouth’ because of his wide smile. Later, it was shortened to ‘Satchmo’.
Armstrong's biggest hits came later in his life. In 1964, his version of the song ‘Hello Dolly’ was a top hit around the world. It even replaced a top-selling hit by the hugely popular British group, the Beatles. Three years later, he appeared in the film version of ‘Hello Dolly’ with the singer Barbra Streisand. The song ‘What a Wonderful World’, recorded in 1968, was his final big hit.
Louis Armstrong never finished the fifth grade in school, yet he wrote two books about his life and many stories for magazines. He appeared in more than thirty movies. He composed many jazz pieces. He won several gold records and many other awards. Armstrong performed about three hundred concerts each year, travelling all over the world. He became known as the legend and symbol of jazz.
1) Louis Armstrong spent his childhood in a peaceful and respectable part of New Orleans.
2) Louis Armstrong did well at school.
3) As a teenager Louis Armstrong did several jobs.
4) Joe Oliver taught Louis Armstrong to play the trumpet.
5) Louis Armstrong got his nickname due to his smile.
6) Louis Armstrong never performed in a film.
7) Louis Armstrong was sorry that he had not completed his school course.
8) Louis Armstrong gave concerts only in the United States.
7. The Santa Claus Wait
Christmas Eve is a special time for children. Every year they wait for their presents from Santa Claus. Magic is everywhere in Tim and Robert’s house which is decorated with greeting cards, candles and lights. The sweet smell of Mum’s homemade cookies also brings to mind the coming wonders.
Throughout the month before Christmas Tim and his brother Robert regularly made their beds, set the table and followed their parents’ instructions about the house. As usual, each of them wrote a letter to Santa to ask for a toy. They knew Santa wouldn’t visit naughty children.
The same thing happened each year until the brothers were nine. They suddenly began to doubt that Santa could decorate their tree and millions more trees in a single night. It also seemed hard for Santa to deliver all the gifts before daybreak. Besides, they kept asking Dad how Santa could get inside their house without a chimney!
Dad usually answered that Santa would surely come, but that the children should be good and go to bed early. So on Christmas Eve, after Mum had checked that there was enough food left for Santa, the boys were sent to bed as usual. Robert was soon asleep, but Tim silently lay in bed, hoping to hear Santa coming. It seemed the longest night of Tim’s life.
In the early morning, when the other members of the family were still asleep, Tim bravely went to the living room to check for presents from Santa. When he switched on the light, he cried “Wow! He’s come!” In the room the Christmas tree stood in the middle of a big platform that looked like a small town with a toy railroad. It was unbelievable: a toy wonderland!
Tim spent an hour among the toys and then decided to wake up Robert and his parents to see the presents. While running upstairs he saw that the cookies had disappeared. In excitement he went into his parents’ bedroom but didn’t notice that they seemed a little bit more tired than usual.
“Mum! Dad! Quick! Robert! It’s fantastic!” he shouted. Everybody went down. Robert immediately saw his new car. It was wonderful. Poor Robert was upset because the car wouldn’t run. Dad said he couldn't understand why the car wouldn't start. The batteries in the car had been absolutely new.
He didn’t know Tim had turned on the car and had forgotten about it when he was checking out other gifts earlier. Within that hour the batteries died, in those times they didn't last long. Tim kept silent as he didn’t want to be punished on Christmas Day.
1) Tim was the only child in the family.
2) Tim got good marks at school before Christmas.
3) Tim had never believed that Santa existed.
4) On Christmas Day, Tim’s father usually dressed up like Santa.
5) Tim was the first to get up on Christmas Day.
6) Some tasty things were left for Santa on that Christmas night.
7) There were presents for the parents under the Christmas tree.
8) Tim told his father that he had damaged the car.
8. Banksy
Where do you expect to see graffiti? Probably not in a museum. Bristol Museum and Art Gallery, in the south-west of England, was the kind of place where you could see classical pictures and statues. However, in the summer of 2009 the exhibition ‘Banksy versus the Bristol Museum’ opened. The exhibition presented more than a hundred works by Banksy, one of the world’s most famous graffiti artists.
Banksy is a puzzle to all. He keeps his identity secret. He hardly ever gives interviews and likes to remain anonymous. Nobody knows much about his life or his background but many people believe that his real name is either Robert Banks or Robin Banks and that he was born in England, somewhere near Bristol.
Banksy’s street art is always provocative. It's his way of communicating with society. His graffiti is characterised by bright and frequently shocking images, often combined with slogans. His work is often a personal protest against wars, social policy or people's behaviour. Although graffiti is not allowed in cities, Banksy's works have become immensely popular.
Banksy believes that art should not be used for advertising. He has refused four times to do adverts for Nike, a famous sportswear company.
A year after the Bristol exhibition, Banksy made a film called ‘Exit Through the Gift Shop’. The film tells the story of a street artist. It got many positive reviews from the critics and from the general audience.
Another curious fact from Banksy's biography is that once he was named among the 100 most influential people in the world. He actually found himself in the company of Barack Obama, Steve Jobs and Lady Gaga. When he was asked to send a photo, Banksy sent a picture of himself with a paper bag (recyclable, naturally) over his head. His fans still don’t really know who he is.
Bristol isn’t the only place in Britain to welcome and accept graffiti. A park in Dundee, Scotland, has the longest legal graffiti wall (almost 110 metres long) in the UK. Anyone can paint on the wall any time they like. The idea of this graffiti wall project is to demonstrate the positive side of graffiti and to organise workshops and graffiti classes for local children.
Even the capital of the country could not stay free of street art. There's a special website dedicated to London's street art and artists. The site's team is a group of enthusiastic young people who are closely connected with the street art world. They try to record and register all the works and display them on their ‘Street Art London’ site. That is quite a job to do! The reason is that street art is very temporal and short-lived: graffiti is soon covered by another wall painting so they have to be quick to take a picture and post it on the website.
1) Banksy sold his works to Bristol Museum and Art Gallery.
2) Banksy's personality remains mysterious to people.
3) Banksy often takes part in advertising campaigns for different goods.
4) The film reviews strongly criticised Banksy's film.
5) Banksy's film was based on his autobiography.
6) Banksy was put on the list of the most important world figures.
7) Graffiti is officially allowed in Dundee park, Scotland.
8) The website about London’s street art and artists is administered by Banksy.
9. Mark Twain
Mark Twain wrote ‘The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn’ in 1884. Since then, the book has been published in at least sixty languages, and some people say it is the best book ever created by an American writer. American students have ‘The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn’ on their school reading list and parents, teachers and literary experts still debate the problems touched in the book.
The writer’s real name was Samuel Clemens. Samuel was born in 1835. He grew up in the state of Missouri on the Mississippi River. After his father died, young Samuel went to work as an assistant to a publisher. Ten years later, he became a pilot on a steamboat that sailed on the Mississippi. He heard the riverboat workers call out the words "mark twain!" That was a measure for the depth of water. Later he used this word combination as a pen-name.
In 1861 Clemens travelled west and became a reporter for newspapers in Nevada and California. He wrote news stories, editorials and sketches under his pen-name Mark Twain. He became one of the best known storytellers in the West. He developed his own narrative style – friendly, funny, and often satirical, which won him a wide audience. The first success came with the story ‘The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County’.
Mark Twain travelled a lot during his lifetime not only round the USA but also to Europe and the Holy Land. He naturally began writing books about his travels. ‘The Adventures of Tom Sawyer’ was published in 1876, and soon after he began writing a sequel, ‘The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn’.
It took Mark Twain longer to write ‘The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn’ than any of his other books. He started writing in 1876, but put the story away after about two years of work. He returned to it in 1883, and the following year it was published.
From the beginning, the book was strongly debated. Some critics praised its realism and honesty but the others strongly disliked it. They protested against the personality of Huck – a rough, dirty and disobedient boy. They could not agree that such a person should be the main character of a book. What's more, critics disliked the way Mark Twain used the language of a common, uneducated person to tell the story; no writer had ever done that before.
Today there is no longer any debate about the importance of ‘The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn’ in American literature. In 1935 Ernest Hemingway wrote: "All modern American literature comes from one book by Mark Twain called 'Huckleberry Finn.' There was nothing before. And there has been nothing as good since."
No wonder then, that the novel ‘The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn’ was a great inspiration for film producers – more than 20 screen versions of the book have been shot not only in America but in Europe, Russia and Japan. There are feature films, musicals, cartoons and even Japanese anime.
1) The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn’ was Mark Twain’s last book.
2) The writer took his pen-name when working as an assistant to a publisher.
3) Samuel Clemens enjoyed his job as a steam boat pilot.
4) Mark Twain’s stories became popular due to his manner of writing.
5) It took Mark Twain two years to write ‘The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn’.
6) Literary critics expressed different opinions of ‘The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn’.
7) Ernest Hemingway strongly criticised ‘The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn’.
8) The novel ‘The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn’ has been made into a movie in different countries.
10. Helen Keller
Life is not always easy. Sometimes it presents us serious problems that make us sad and even depressed. When it comes to this, you may remember the example of Helen Keller, born in a small American town in 1880.
The illness struck Helen Keller when she was a baby and left her deaf and blind before she learned to speak. As a child Helen was wild and disobedient. She seemed not to understand what was going on in the world around her. In spite of Helen’s illness her parents decided that she should have some education and started looking for a teacher.
Helen Keller's new life began on a March day in 1887 when she was seven years old. On that day Anne Mansfield Sullivan, a 20-year-old graduate of the Perkins School, came to the town to be her teacher. From that day, the two of
them – teacher and pupil – were inseparable.
Miss Sullivan began her first lesson by handing Helen a doll and pressing "d-o-l-l" into the child's hand. In this way she hoped to teach Helen to connect objects with letters. Helen quickly learned to form the letters correctly and in the correct order. In the days that followed, she learned to spell lots of different words.
Helen Keller was a talented pupil and quickly learnt how to read and write. She enjoyed reading books written for blind children. In 1890, when she was just 10, she decided to learn to speak. Somehow she had found out that a little deaf-blind girl in Norway managed to do it.
At first Helen had difficulty with speaking, but with the time and help from Anne she developed a clear voice. Later, she was able to speak in public for large crowds which came to her whenever she gave her lectures. There was usually a storm of applause after her every lecture.
After school Helen went to college and graduated it with honours. She got a Bachelor of Arts degree. Throughout those years and until her own death in 1936, Anne Sullivan was always by Helen's side. She pressed book after book and lecture after lecture into her pupil's hand.
One of Helen’s professors was so deeply impressed by her essays in English that he suggested the girl writing the story of her life. Helen followed the advice and wrote the book while still at college. It was a cheerful account of how a young girl was able to live a happy life in spite of her terrible misfortunes. Later she wrote several books more. In her books and lectures Helen did everything possible to help and encourage those who were blind. For the rest of her life, Helen Keller worked for improving education for the blind and deaf.
Helen Keller lived in many different places – Alabama; Cambridge and Wrentham, Massachusetts; Forest Hills, New York, but perhaps her favorite residence was the house in Easton, which she called "Arcan Ridge." She moved to that white house in 1936, after her beloved teacher's death. And it was “Arcan Ridge” she called home for the rest of her life. She died in 1968.
1) Helen Keller was born deaf and blind.
2) Helen’s parents found a young teacher for their daughter.
3) First Miss Sullivan taught Helen to count.
4) Helen’s favourite books were about animals and nature.
5) Helen’s lectures were popular.
6) Helen Keller finished college successfully.
7) Helen’s book about her life was translated in many languages.
8) Helen never left her home town.
11. "The 1900 House"
"The 1900 House" was a reality television programme in Britain. It took people back a hundred years to the time of Queen Victoria, when there were no computers, mobile phones or the Internet. The idea of the show was to give people an experience of living in the past.
A modern family, the Bowler family, spent three months living like people at the beginning of the 20th century. There were the parents (Paul and Joyce) and their four children (three daughters and a son). The cameras recorded them every day. The house didn't have a telephone, a fridge, a TV set or even central heating. The Bowlers wore clothes from 1900 and ate the food that existed in England at that time. There wasn't much to choose from. The main dishes on the table were meat and fish, and the day usually started with a cup of tea and porridge.
The father of the family, Paul Bowler, still went to work but in an old-fashioned uniform. He couldn't read newspapers or use a computer. The mother, Joyce, became a housewife and stayed home. She did all the cleaning, washing and cooking. The children still went to school, but they changed their clothes on the way to and from school so their classmates wouldn’t know anything about this unusual project.
The Bowlers noticed that life at the beginning of the century was much slower. It was rather hard for them to get used to the new speed. For example, it took 28 minutes to boil water and make a cup of tea. And can you imagine cleaning the house without a vacuum cleaner or washing clothes without a washing machine? There wasn't any toothpaste or modern shampoo. Without central heating nobody thought about a warm bath or a shower in the morning. Toothbrushes were made of pig and horse hair. Toothpaste was expensive so most people cleaned their teeth using salt or soda. The children thought it was horrible.
11-year-old Hilary said: "The most difficult thing was finding entertainment. We couldn't go to the cinema or to a café. It was a new experience to be with the family for half a day or more. It was new and hard to be nice to each other all the time. But I really think we all became closer."
17-year-old Kathryn remembered that she couldn't wear any make-up. She had to wear a corset every day and had only three sets of clothes: one to wear every day, the second – to wear while cleaning, and the third was for special events, like celebrations.
When the show was over the Bowlers were asked: what did you miss most from the modern world? The father said it was a hot shower. The mother had longed to have a quick cup of tea. The daughters said it was the music, the hot water, shampoo and "normal sounds like the washing machine" which they missed. For the son it was pizza and the computer.
It's interesting that the family was allowed to keep anything they wanted after the project. Joyce took her corset and each of the children took something from the house to remind them of their experience.
1) "The 1900 House" is a programme about Queen Victoria.
2) The family didn't like the food and clothes they had.
3) The children kept the project a secret from their classmates.
4) The family didn't have any modern equipment in the house.
5) During the project Mr Bowler took a hot shower in the morning.
6) Because of the project Hilary had to spent more time with her family.
7) Kathryn changed her clothes three times a day.
8) The family bought a new house after the project.
12. Halloween
Halloween dates back to an ancient Celtic festival. The Celts, who lived 2,000 years ago in the area of Ireland, the United Kingdom and northern France, celebrated their new year on November 1. This day showed that the summer was over and winter had come. Because of the cold and darkness, winter was associated with human death.
Celts believed that on Halloween night the ghosts of the dead returned to earth. With their help, the Druids or Celtic priests, could predict the future. It was important because people depended on the natural world which was dangerous and changeable. They wanted to know what their life would be like in the next year.
For this event the Druids built big bonfires, where the people gathered to burn crops and animals. It was a gift to the Celtic gods. During the celebration, the Celts wore costumes made of animal heads and skins. They sang, danced and listened to the stories the Druids told them. When the celebration was over, they went home and brought burning pieces of wood with them. They lit their fires and hoped it would ensure good fortune and protect the family during the winter.
The first celebrations of Halloween in America were public events. Neighbours got together to celebrate the harvest and tell each other stories of the dead. They also sang and danced. By the middle of the nineteenth century, these autumn festivals were common, but Halloween was not yet celebrated everywhere in the country.
In the second half of the nineteenth century, lots of immigrants started coming to America. They helped to make the celebration of Halloween a popular national event. Americans began to dress up in frightening costumes and go from house to house asking for food or money. The most popular characters were witches, ghosts, and vampires. Everyone tried to look as ugly and scary as possible.
Halloween is closely associated with the Jack-o’-lantern, a pumpkin with a candle inside that shines through the holes to make a horrible face. Most people think that the Jack-o’-lantern is an American tradition. However, the original Jack-o’-lantern was not a pumpkin but a man who, according to the old Irish legend played a trick on the devil himself. He was punished for that and was accepted neither to heaven nor to hell. The Irish people shared the legend with the Americans and showed them how to make Jack-o’-lantern out of the pumpkin.
By the 1930s, Halloween had been celebrated with parades, town-wide parties and lots of other entertainment. Later a new tendency appeared. By the 1950s, Halloween had changed into a holiday directed mainly at children. On that evening children in costumes travel from house to house in order to ask for treats (such as some sweets, a small present or a few coins) with the question “Trick or treat?” The trick is a threat (usually not working) to perform mischief on the owner of the house if no treat is given. “Trick or treat?” has become a traditional practice on Halloween in many countries.
1) For the Celts Halloween was associated with the change of the seasons.
2) The Celts paid the priests for their predictions.
3) In ancient times fires were prohibited on Halloween night.
4) The church strongly disapproved of Halloween celebration in America.
5) Halloween came to the USA only in the 20th century.
6) The Irish immigrants taught Americans how to use pumpkins for Halloween ceremonies.
7) From the middle of the 20th century, children have taken an active part in Halloween celebrations.
8) “Trick or treat” means “we wish you good luck”.
13. Pirates
There have always been people who robbed ships in the open sea. We know them as pirates or corsairs. Many of them were sailors who lost their jobs, others were just young men and women looking for adventure. Thousands of pirates were active from 1650–1720. These years are sometimes known as the 'Golden Age' of piracy. Probably the most famous pirates of this period are Blackbeard, Henry Morgan, William 'Captain' Kidd, and the Barbarossa brothers.
The "Jolly Roger" is the well-known pirate flag. There are a number of theories about its origin. It is thought that the first pirates used a red flag, which was common in sea attacks. A red flag told other ships that there would be no pity and no prisoners would be taken. This red flag was called Joli Rouge (pretty red) in French. Most probably, English people pronounced it in their own way "Jolly Roger". Another theory says that "old Roger" was another name for the devil.
Another popular image from the pirate world is a parrot, sitting on the captain's shoulder. Well, there's no historical proof of that. No doubt, pirates often travelled to faraway exotic lands and brought unusual animals as souvenirs with them. Parrots were particularly popular because they were colourful, could be taught to speak, and were easier to care for than, say, monkeys. However, you can't imagine a pirate fighting with a bird on the shoulder. This image possibly began with the book 'Treasure Island'. In the book, the ever famous Long John Silver carried a parrot as a pet.
Before joining a ship each pirate signed an agreement called "Articles". This explained the rights and laws on board the ship, how much a person was paid, what to do in case of emergency, etc. For example, playing cards for money was not allowed. For breaking the rules a pirate would be shot or left on a desert island with a bottle of water and a gun.
A pirate ship was organized democratically. After a successful attack they divided the treasures equally, only the captain and the cook got more. They sometimes decided together which ship to attack or where to sail next. Most pirates were paid four times more than they had when they were sailors. But on land they were criminals and lots of money was offered to those who caught them.
However, for some time the English government supported pirates. There were lots of pirates in the sixteenth century when England was at war with Spain and the Dutch Republic. Queen Elizabeth I ordered them to rob Spanish ships and bring gold, silver and jewels to the country. Sir Francis Drake was one of the most famous pirates. He brought lots of treasures to England and also was the first Englishman to sail all the way around the world. Because of this, he was made a knight by Queen Elizabeth I.
1) Professional sailors never became pirates.
2) The flag "Jolly Roger" meant death for ships’ sailors and passengers.
3) The name for the flag "Jolly Roger" is of English origin.
4) Parrots brought luck to pirates at sea.
5) "Articles" regulated pirates’ behaviour at sea.
6) After the attack the captain took all the treasures.
7) In the past pirates did some jobs for English queens and kings.
8) Francis Drake was the richest English pirate.
14. Cambridge University
Cambridge University is the second-oldest university in the English-speaking world (after the University of Oxford) and the seventh-oldest in the world.
The story of Cambridge University begins in 1209 when several hundred students arrived in the little town of Cambridge after having walked 60 miles from Oxford. These students were all churchmen and had been studying in Oxford at that city's well-known schools. It was a hard life at Oxford for there was constant trouble, even fighting, between the citizens of the town and the students. Then one day a student accidentally killed a man of the town. The Mayor arrested three other students who were innocent and they were put to death. In protest, many students left Oxford, some of them went to Cambridge. And so the new University began.
It was Cambridge University. Of course, there were no Colleges in those early days and student life was very different from what it is now. Students were of all ages and came from anywhere and everywhere. Life in College was strict. Students were forbidden to play games, to sing (except sacred music), to hunt or fish or even to dance. Books were very rare and all the lessons were in the Latin language which students were supposed to speak even among themselves.
In 1440 King Henry VI founded King's College, and other colleges followed.
Nowadays there are more than 30 different colleges, including five for women students and several mixed colleges, in the University. The number of students in colleges is different: from 30 to 400 or 500.
The training course lasts 4 years. The academic year is divided into 3 terms. The students study natural and technical sciences, law, history, languages, geography, medicine, economics, agriculture, music and many other subjects. After 3 years of study a student may proceed to a Bachelor’s degree, and later to the degrees of Master and Doctor.
There are many ancient traditions that are still observed at Cambridge. Students are required to wear gowns at lectures, in the University library, in the street in the evening, for dinners in the colleges and for official visits. One more tradition is to use Latin during public ceremonies of awarding degrees.
All the students must pay for their education, examinations, books, laboratories, university hostel, the use of libraries. The cost is high. It depends on college and university speciality. Very few students get grants.
Many great men studied at Cambridge, for example, Bacon (the philosopher), Milton and Byron (the poets), Cromwell (the soldier), Newton (the outstanding physicist), Darwin (who is famous for his theory of evolution) and Kapitsa (the famous Russian physicist).
1) Cambridge University was started by the students of Oxford University.
2) In early days of Cambridge University the students were taught in English.
3) The first students of Cambridge University got only religious education.
4) There are several female colleges in Cambridge University.
5) The students of the University study Oriental languages.
6) The students wear uniform in the University.
7) The education at Cambridge University is free.
8) There are famous scientists among the graduates of Cambridge University.
15. The Art of Campfire Cooking
Pat Mac and Mike Faverman first met when they were comedians going on tour and organising shows around the country. Later, their love of food became a new hobby they had in common and a new project.
Before they met in 2005, Mac had grown up cooking in his father’s restaurant in Idaho, and Faverman had worked as a chef in restaurants across the US. They decided to combine their two hobbies – making people laugh and cooking good food – into a travelling road show called Ultimate Outdoor Cooking. The idea of the show was to prove that cooking by campfire out in the woods is exciting but not always simple.
Mac had had a lot of camping experience before he met Faverman and it had taught him that food was extremely important for people on vacation. Interestingly, better food brought more people to the campground. When it was their turn to cook, the new campers started to give up eating hot dogs and hamburgers and started to create new recipes.
Mac and Faverman have tried different types of camping together, each time experimenting with the most suitable recipes. Their favourite dish for car camping, for example, is steak in lemon juice mixed with salt and pepper. To keep the meat fresh, they keep it cool in a car while travelling. Afterwards, when they get to the campsite, the steak is barbecued with red potatoes.
For travelling on foot with a rucksack they suggest either red potatoes with grilled and salted fish or sausages with different vegetables like zucchini, cabbage, carrots and onions. The only secret to keeping the vegetables nice and fresh while walking is to pack them properly and leave them until ready to cook in a pan over the fire at the campsite.
As they do a lot of cooking, the most useful instruments for Mac and Faverman are plastic bags, knives, a wooden rack to cut the food on and also matches and a lighter. Besides the latter, they use electric things, which can be a little risky at times. For example, a couple of years ago Mac was using an oven to slow-cook meat on a little grill. Suddenly one of the legs of the oven broke; the grill itself and the pot fell to the ground and the meat fell straight onto the dirt. Luckily, Mac used the “five-second rule”: just wash the meat off and put it back on the grill. He said later that it tasted a bit sandy, but the campers didn’t notice.
Unlike Mac, at the beginning of the project Faverman was usually unsuccessful at making a fire and putting up a tent because he didn’t have enough experience. Later, he became quite a skillful camper who could give a useful tip or two to beginners. The best piece of advice from the pair for cooking in the woods is to design the menu ahead of time and to know exactly what you are going to cook on the first and second days. A good camper should try to make the first meal easy because setting up camp takes a lot of time and effort.
1) When Mac and Faverman met for the first time, they both were actors.
2) Mac’s father approved of the idea of Ultimate Outdoor Cooking show.
3) According to Mac’s experience, campers were indifferent to the food at the campsite.
4) When Mac and Faverman travel by car, they prefer to cook meat.
5) Mac and Faverman recommend buying vegetables from the local farmers.
6) The “five-second rule” means that meat should be kept on the grill for 5 seconds.
7) From the start Faverman was a better camper than Mac.
8) Mac and Faverman think that planning meals is important for camping.