Дополнительные задания к книге “Britain in Brief” В.В. Ощепковой и И.И. Шустиловой
HABITS AND WAYS
Text 1.
Holidays and Customs
Imagine you are in a medium-sized English town. It is Saturday morning in April and the market place is full of noise. You hear the sound of music, at least one accordion, a drum, tin whistle and fiddle. As you come closer you see an interesting sight. There are some men dressed in white clothes but decorated in the strangest way with bright ribbons, flowers and small bells. They dance, leaping into the air, stamping their feet, and perform the most complicated pattern of movements. They perform a Morris Dance and what they are doing is anything up to eight hundred years old.
 Now you are at the seaside. It is the end of July and the school holidays have just begun. There is a strange little red and white striped tent, and sitting in front of it on the sand, a whole crowd of little children laughing and shouting. They are watching a puppet theatre, Punch and Judy. Mr. Punch in his bright red clothes is, as usual, hitting Judy over the head with a stick, while Toby, the dog, patiently watches.
These are just two examples of customs which, despite television and other social changes, are alive and well in England. There are many, many more, some of them so local that they are only known in the villages where they take place. Many villages have Maypoles which are decorated in early summer and around which children dance.
In the matter of holidays the British are less well-off than other Europeans. Most people have only three weeks paid holiday per year, and the bank holidays put Britain at the bottom of the list of Common Market countries as far as public holidays are concerned. British “bank holidays” are New Year’s Day, Good Friday, Easter Monday, May Day, Spring Bank Holiday, Summer Bank Holiday, Christmas Day and Boxing Day. Only when the UK joined the E.E.C. did New Year’s Day become a public holiday. The patron saints days are not celebrated with a holiday. They are St. David’s Day (March 1st) in Wales, St. George’s Day (April 23rd) in England ans St. Andrew’s Day (November 30th) in Scotland. Only Ireland, both North and South, has a holiday on St. Patrick’s Day, (March 17th).
REFERENCES
Punch and Judy - “Панч и Джуди” (традиционное уличное кукольное представление наподобие русского Петрушки; его главные действующие лица: горбун Панч с крючковатым носом – волплощение оптимизма и Джуди, его жена, неряшливая и нескладная)
Toby - Тоби (кличка собаки одного из главных действующих лиц в представлении “Панч и Джуди”)
bank holiday официальный выходной день (общий день отдыха, помимо воскресенья)
New Year’s Day - Новый год
Good Friday. Великая пятница
Easter Monda - первый понедельник после Пасхи
May Day - День первого мая
Spring Bank Holiday - весенний день отдыха (в мае или начале июня)
Summer Bank Holiday - летний день отдыха (в августе или сентябре)
Christmas Day - Рождество (25 декабря)
Boxing Day - день рождественских подарков (26 декабря)
the patron saints days - дни святых, считающихся покровите-лями той или иной части Великобритании
St. David’s Day - день св. Давида (национальный день Уэльса, 1 марта)
St. George’s Day - день св. Георгия (национальный день Англии, 23 апреля)
St. Andrew’s Day - день св. Андрея (национальный праздник Шотландии, 30 ноября)
St. Patrick’s Day - день св. Патрика (национальный праздник Ирландии, 17 марта)
I. COMPREHENSION
1. Read the text. Are these statements true or false? If false, rewrite them with the correct information.
1. The market place is full of the sound of music, at least one accordion, a piano, a bagpipe and fiddle.
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2. A Morris Dance is a very popular modern dance.
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3. The traditional heroes in a british puppet theatre are Punch, his wife Judy and their dog Toby.
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4. Mr. Punch in his white clothes is as usual cooking dinner for his wife and dog.
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5. Television has killed traditional English customs.
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6. New Year’s Day has always been a public holiday in Britain.
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II. VOCABULARY
Match the words similar in meaning:
Key: 1. c; 2. e; 3. a; 4. f; 5. b; 6. d
III. WRITING
A personal letter. You are in Great Britain. Write a letter to a friend telling him/her about the customs or holidays of people in Great Britain.
1. Think about any British custom you know about. Note down five words about it. Use them in your letter.
2. Use this plan to help you write.
Greeting: Dear+Name: friendly and informal
Paragraph 1: Why are you writing? What is the letter about? What is your opinion of the custom or holiday? Two sentences.
Paragraph 2: What can you see, hear, smell, taste? Describe the best/worst thing about this custom or holiday. Say what you think about it. Three sentences.
Paragraph 3: When and where is this custom or holiday observed? How do you spend the morning, afternoon, evening? What is the most/least interesting thing you have seen or done? Would you like this custom or holiday to be celebrated in our country? Why/why not? Three sentences.
Paragraph 4: Closing remark. Will you write again? Do you want your friend to write back? Two sentences.
Sign off: Will you see your friend soon? Keep it friendly and informal.
IV. SPEAKING
Warm up
1. Which holidays do you celebrate at home?
2. What do you do on a holiday?
3. What do you like about a holiday?
V. TASK
You are going to celebrate a holiday with your friend. Discuss the holidays you like. Decide on one holiday you will celebrate and the way you are going to do it:
• activities
• clothes
• meals
• musiacal instruments
Remember to:
1. Discuss several holidays;
2. Make suggestions and invite your friend to make suggestions;
3. Give your reasons for your choices;
4. Find out your friends opinions;
5. Come to an agreement.
Text 2.
Ghosts and Witches
 Hallowe’en means “holy evening”, and takes place on 31st October. Although it is a much more important festival in the United States than in Britain, it is celebrated by many people in the UK. It is particularly connected with witches and ghosts.
At parties people dress up in strange costumes and pretend they are witches. They cut horrible faces in potatoes and other vegetables and put a candle inside, which shines through the eyes. People may play difficult games such as trying to eat an apple from a bucket of water without using their hands.
In recent years children dressed in white sheets knock on doors at Hallowe’en and ask if you would like a “trick” or a “treat”. If you give them something nice, a “treat”, they go away. However, if you don’t, they play a “trick” on you, such as making a lot of noise or spilling flour on your front doorstep!
REFERENCES
Hallowe’en - канун дня всех святых, 31 октября (в некоторых местах сохраняется традиция ходить с фонарями, сделанными из тыквы, картофеля, турнепса и других овощей со вставленной в них свечкой)
trick or treat - проказа или угощение
I. COMPREHENSION
1. Answer these questions:
1. When does Hallowe’en take place?
2. Is this holiday more important in the UK or in the USA?
3. What do people prepare for this holiday?
4. How do children dress for the holiday?
5. What is a usual “trick” they might play on you?
2. Are the following statements true or false? If the statement is false, say why it is and correct it.
1. Once people believed that ghosts could be seen the night of 31 October.
2. Halloween is more popular in the UK than in the USA.
3. People are very serious on Halloween and never have parties.
4. Children are not allowed to to dress up for the night.
5. Children make a lot of noise or spill flour on front doorsteps if they are treated well.
II. VOCABULARY
Match the words and their definitions:
Key: 1. b; 2. a; 3. d; 4. e; 5. c
By Viktoria Oschepkova, Irina Shustilova
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