CHRISTMAS TRADITIONS
Christmas season is the most festive time of the year in Britain
and in the United States. Students at schools and colleges usually have a 2 week vacation,
beginning before Christmas and ending soon after the New Year. There are a lot
of parties to celebrate the birth of Christ and the arrival of the New
Year.
Although no one knows exactly when Jesus was born. Christians everywhere
in the world celebrate his birthday on December 25th . This day was
a festival long before Christianity because ancient people believed this was
time when the son god started his journey back to the earth and it was a custom
to give presents to each other.
Now children are
told that Santa Claus or Father Christmas in a red suit, red hat and with a
long white beard puts presents for them into their stockings by the fireplace.
The winter tradition of decorating homes with evergreens began in
ancient times too.
Branches of fir were thought to bring
good luck and guarantee the return of spring. The Germans were the first to use
the Christmas tree in their celebrations.
In the 19th century the decorated fir tree became popular in Europe and in the USA.
Carol singers began to go from house to house in groups singing traditional
Christmas songs asking for charity.
The greeting cards are sent on Christmas too. The most popular wishes on
these holiday cards are: “Merry Christmas”, “Peace on Earth”.
I. Find true and false statements.
1.
Christmas is the
most widely celebrated festival in Great Britain.
2.
The
25th of December was celebrated after Christmas.
3.
Students
have a month winter vacations.
4.
Ancient
people gave each other presents at this time.
5.
Father
Christmas puts children’s presents into stockings by the fireplace.
6. It is a modern tradition to decorate
the house with a fir tree.
II. Choose the right answer.
1.
How many days of
vacation have the students got at schools and colleges?
a)
a week vacation
b)
a 10 days vacation
c)
a 2 weeks vacation
d)
3 months vacation
2.
When do people
usually celebrate the birth of Christ?
a)
on the 25th
of December
b)
on the 20th
of December
c)
after the New
Year
d)
long before the
New Year
3. What did
the ancient people believe in?
a)
they believed in
god
b)
that was the time
the sun god started his journey back to the earth
c)
that the ancient
people were very kind
d)
they believed in
their happy future
4. What are
the children told?
a)
they are told
that everything will be all right
b)
the Santa Claus
dressed in a red suit puts presents for them in their stockings
c)
the Father
Christmas will sing them songs
d)
they will
celebrate the New Year around the fir tree
5. When did
the tradition of decorating homes begin?
a)
many centuries
ago
b)
two weeks ago
c)
at present days
d)
in ancient times
6. What did
ancient people think of the branches of fir?
a)
they would bring
them good luck and return of spring
b)
they would bring
them good mood
c)
they would bring
them much bread and butter
d)
they would bring
them happiness
III. Complete the sentences
1.Students at schools and colleges
usually have a … vacation.
2.There are a lot of parties to celebrate
the birth of … and the arrival of the … .
3.The winter … of decorating homes with
evergreens began in ancient times.
4.The Germans were the first to use the …
in their celebrations.
IV. Write down what you have
remembered about Christmas celebrations.
ALI BABA AND FORTY THIEVES
Ali Baba was such a poor man that he had only one shoe for his two feet.
Even mice in his house were hungry.
One day his wife said, “We have no food in
the house. No rice. No potatoes. Go and collect leaves in the forest so that I
can make a soup.”
Ali was a lazy man. He looked for leaves
for about ten minutes and then he climbed a tree to sleep. He was afraid of
wolves. When he woke up he was surprised to see forty thieves on forty horses.
They stopped in front of the big rock.
“Open, Sesame!” shouted the leader. A door
in the rock opened. The thieves carried sacks full of gold into the cave. When
they had finished, the leader shouted, “Close, Sesame!” and the door closed. As
soon as the thieves had disappeared, Ali Baba jumped down from the tree and
said, “Open, Sesame” and went into the cave.
There were shelves all around the walls.
The shelves were full of sacks. The sacks were full of gold. Ali took a sack
home with him.
One of the thieves saw Ali’s footprints on
the sand. He followed them to Ali’s home. He took out his knife and made a
cross on the door.
“Now I shall know which house it is”, he said.
He rode off to get the other thieves. But Ali had seen the thief.
He and his wife took the brooms and swept
away the footprints. Then he made crosses on every door in the street. When the
forty thieves arrived they had their knives between their teeth. But they never
found Ali – or the gold. And Ali and his wife lived happily ever after.
I. Find true and false
statements.
1)
Ali Baba was a poor
man.
2)
When he woke up
he saw forty wives on forty horses.
3)
“Open, Sesame!”
thought the leader.
4)
The thieves
carried sacks full of gold into the cave.
5)
The sacks were
full of gold and brilliants.
6)
Ali took a sack
home with him.
7)
One of the
thieves saw Ali’s footprints on the sand.
8)
He took out his
knife and made a cross on the floor
9)
Ali and his wife
took the brooms and flew away .
10) But forty thieves never
found Ali – or the gold.
II.
Choose the
correct answer
1) What
kind of man was Ali Baba?
a) busy and
serious; b) stupid and lazy; c) poor and lazy; d) happy and lazy
2) Why did
Ali’s wife tell him to go and collect leaves?
a) because
they had no food; b) they liked leaves; c) his wife couldn’t cook; d) they had
no leaves
3) What did
the leader of the thieves shout to open the cave?
a) Don’t
close, Sesame! b) Never open, Sesame! c) Open the door! d) Open, Sesame.
4) What
were there on the shelves in the cave?
a) sacks with
silver; b) sacks with gold; c) sacks with sugar; d) sacks with salt
5) What did
Ali take home?
a) nothing; b)
a sack with gold; c) a sack with silver; d) a sack with salt
6) Why did
the thief follow Ali’s footprints?
a) to kill
him; b) to thank him; c) to know where he lived; d) to help him
III. Answer
the questions
1) What did
the thief carve on the door?
2) Who took
brooms and swept away the footprints?
3) What did
forty thieves have between their teeth?
4) Whom did
the thieves never find?
IV. Write a short
composition about 8-10 sentences, answering the question.
What are
you going to do if you find a sack of gold?
ALLIGATORS
The boys now returned to their tent. They
lay down on the grass and talked about bears and alligators. As Paul was a
young naturalist he knew a lot of interesting
things about alligators. Here is what he told his brother about them.
He said that they were found in the rivers
of Africa, in South and North America and in the West of India. There were a lot of alligators in the Ganges and other Indian rivers.
An alligator itself is long but his legs
are very short. Alligators cannot turn round
quickly, and it is easy to hunt them on
land. One must only keep away from the alligator's big teeth and strong
tail. He can even kill a man with it.
Alligators lay eggs as big as those of
geese and put them in the sand where they
are warmed by the heat of the sun.
The number of eggs is often nearly two hundred.
"Is it true that old father alligators
eat their own young
ones?" asked Paul's brother.
"Yes, it is true. I saw it myself. The
first concern of the
mother is to get young alligators to the water where she can hide them better
from their father but still many of the young are eaten by old alligators.
"When the young ones grow up they run
away from their fathers as they are quicker
in their movements. Small alligators
often ride on the backs of their fathers.
They know that the fathers cannot do anything with them in that situation."
"They can eat anything that comes in
their way," added Paul, "but fish
is their favourite food. They usually eat very slowly. Alligators
don't need mush food. They sleep during the
winter without any food."
I.
Fill in letters.
Fill in letters.
1) wa...m 2) qui...kly; 3)
favo...rite
4) the...r 5) he...t 6) mov...ment
II. Fill in the suitable words.
1.
Paul knew a lot of … things about
alligators.
2 Alligators have short …
3. An alligator can kill a man
with its … .
4. Alligator lay eggs in the … .
5. Old
alligators can … their children.
6. The fathers can do nothing
when small alligators are on their…
III. Answer the questions.
1. Where can we find
alligators?
2. Where
is it easy to catch alligators?
3. How many eggs do alligators
usually lay?
4. Why
can't the fathers catch their children?
5. What
is alligators' favourite food?
6. What
do they do in winter?
IV.
Pretend you are a guide and your job is to tell something interesting about the place where
you work. Write
about it ( it can be in the jungle, at the seashore, on the bank of the river, etc.)
THE SECRET ICE CREAM
Ancient manuscripts tell that the Greek commander Alexander Makedonsky used to
have different fruits arid juices mixed with ice and snow for dessert.
In Russia for holidays people
used to put a dish with frozen little pieces of sweet milk next to the dish with
pancakes. In old times in some countries the recipes of cold dainties were
kept in secret, for their divulgence the court cooks could be sentenced
to death. Besides, it wasn't easy to cook ice cream, especially in summer. Ice and
snow were delivered to Alexander Makedonsky's palace from the mountains. Later
people
began to sell ice. The ships with huge blocks of ice would hurry to the shores of the hot countries. That
lasted till the first ice-making machines
appeared. They were called refrigerators. That happened about one
hundred years ago. Now ice cream is sold everywhere and of any kinds: fruit and berry, milk and chocolate.
And it is available to everybody.
By the way, if you have a sweet tooth you can make ice cream yourself. It's quite easy
for those who can cook. The recipe is not a secret: eggs, sugar, milk, sour cream are
mixed together, boiled for one or two minutes, cooled and frozen in the refrigerator.
Add some nuts-or jam and enjoy this delicious product
I.
Say if the sentence is true false:
1. The Greek commander
Alexander Makedonsky used to have fruits and juices mixed with ice and snow for dessert.
2. Russian people
usually ate frozen pieces of sweet juice with pan-
cakes for holidays.
3. In old times the cook
who had told somebody the recipe of ice cream could be sentenced to death.
4.Ice and snow were made
at the court of Makedonsky, there were no problems with it
5.People used to sell ice.
6.The ships with huge
blocks of ice would bring ice from the shores of the hot countries.
II. Fill in the words
1.
In old times in some countries … of cold dainties
were kept in secret.
2.
Besides, it wasn't easy to cook ice
cream, especially in … .
3.
The ships with huge blocks of ice would hurry
to the shores of the
… .
4.
That lasted till the first … machines appeared.
5.
Now ice cream is sold … and of any kinds.
6.
By the way, if you have a sweet tooth you
can make … yourself.
III. Answer the questions
1. Which
of Greek commanders liked to have fruits and juices mixed with ice and
snow for dessert?
2.Was
there a kind of ice cream in Russia in old times?
3.What
was it like?
4.Were the recipes of
ice cream available to everybody?
5.Where
did the cooks of Alexander Makedonsky get ice and snow for ice cream?
6.How
were the blocks of ice carried to hot countries?
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