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this as a civil engineer. Travelling over your country I saw thousands of nicelooking private houses cropping up around big towns and industrial centres.

Yes, I for one am also building a country summer house on a river, a dacha as Russians say.

X.Make up special questions to the sentences:

1)My address is: House 56, Flat 71, Lenin Street, Omsk, Russia. 2) I rent a house from a private landlord. 3) I live in London. 4) I live in flat 52. 5) I have a four-room flat in a new block.

XI. Answer the questions:

1) What town (city) do you live in? 2) Do you live in the student hostel or at home? 3) Does your family rent a flat or do you have a home of your own? 4) What is your address? 5) Is the flat you have good for your family? 6) Do you live in a private house? 7) What can you say about the living conditions of Russian students? 8) What can you say about the rent in Britain? 9) What can you say about the housing problems in Russian? 10) What can you say about the privatisation of flats and houses in our country?

XII. a) Read the advertisements and describe the flats to let.

To Let

A separate flat facing the river on the second floor, central heating, hot water, a bathroom, a big kitchen, a spacious living-room with three large windows, a bedroom. All the rooms are furnished and in perfect order. The landlady is middle-aged, friendly, kind, always willing to help. The rent is $100 a month.

A separate room on the fifth floor for a single man, with furniture and a separate bathroom. There is a desk, three chairs, a sofa, a TV-set and a bookcase. The telephone is in the hall. There is no lift. The room is small but warm and cosy. The rent is only $50 a month.

b) Imagine that you are a landlord (landlady), make up your own advertisement about the flat (room) you rent.

XIII. Make up dialogues on the following situations:

You want to correspond with your friend, so you have to exchange your addresses.

You want to know as much as possible about the home of your friend who lives in a student hostel.

You are discussing the living conditions of your friend who lives in a modern block of flats.

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XIV. Describe your own flat or the house you live in.

XV. Translate and discuss the following texts:

A.The majority of the British population live in small houses built close together. A typical house of this kind is built with two floors. The front door, which faces the street, opens into a hall with two rooms, one on each side of the hall. One of them is the dining-room the other may be called the sitting-room or the living-room. The most modern name for this room is the lounge.

The rooms upstairs are bedrooms; they are often very small. Often the dining-room is the most comfortable room in the house, and the one that is used all the time. The other members of the family bring their hobbies and games to the table.

Very many houses of this type were built in British cities in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Today the land on which they stand has become very valuable and the owners either sell it, or pull down the old houses and build large blocks of flats. In this way the owners make more money.

Many British people give their suburban house a name, such as the Cedars, the Poplars, the Rhubarb Cottage, even though there are no trees or vegetables in their gardens. People of high social position have country houses with names, so a house with a name seems “better” than a house with a number. Numbers make the postman’s work much easier, but this is not important.

B.My friend spent a day in an English family. This is what she wrote to me about her visit.

“… Before coming to England, I had read that the English were not very hospitable. A well-known proverb says that an Englishman’s house is his castle. So you understand I

brighter and more organised.

The house itself is a two-storeyed brick structure with lots of flowers in front of the main door. On the ground floor they have a dining-room, a lounge and a kitchen. The French window of the lounge opens into a green lawn. The lawn is extremely smooth. As Paddy explained, it had taken the English many centuries to make their lawns look so beautiful. On the first floor there are their bedrooms, a library and a room for guests, which is very often occupied. On both floors there are bathrooms and lavatories. I want to emphasize that the house is not big, the lounge being the largest.

I had a marvellous time in this family! They all were so friendly and well-disposed towards me that soon I began to feel at home. With such hospitable and sociable people as the Weldings, the time passed very

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quickly. In the evening they took me for a drink to the local pub. The pub I’ve been to occupies the ground floor of an average two-storeyed house. It consists of several rooms that are furnished by comfortable arm-chairs and small tables. In the corner of one of the rooms there’s a colour TV-set. In fact, the pub is the place where you can just sit and have a glass of beer and have a chat with your friend.

I enjoyed my visit to an English family. And I think there were tears in the women’s eyes when we were saying good-bye. But on the other hand, they did not ask me to come once more or to give them my home address; they did not give me their address either. So I still wonder if the Englishman’s house is his castle.

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4. My Working Day

I am a first-year student of the Siberian Automobile and Highway Academy. Not long ago I finished school. In July I took my entrance examinations, passed them well and was admitted. My dream has come true and I am happy.

As a rule, on weekdays the alarm-clock wakes me up at 6.30 and my working day begins. I'm not an early riser, that's why it's very difficult for me to get out of bed, especially in winter. I air the room, switch on my tape-recorder and do my morning exercises to music. Then I go to the bathroom, take a warm shower, brush my teeth and shave. After that I go to my bedroom to get dressed.

Usually my mother makes breakfast for me. But when she is away on business or just doesn't have to get up early I make breakfast myself. While having breakfast I listen to the latest news on the radio.

I leave the house at about 7.30 and go to the nearest bus stop. I usually walk to the Institute. It takes me half an hour to get there. But sometimes when I get up later than usual I go to the Institute by bus. On my way I read a book or a newspaper.

My classes begin at 8.20 and I arrive at the Institute at 8 sharp. I usually have three or four lectures. During the break I go to the canteen and have lunch. For the first course I sometimes take milk soup. For the second course I take roast or stewed meet or beefsteak with mashed potatoes. For sweet I always take a cup of coffee.

The classes are over at 13.05. Occasionally I have to stay at the Institute till 5 o'clock. So, by the end of the week I get very tired. All I can do on Sundays is to sleep till 11 o'clock, watch TV, listen to the music and read books.

And I still always look forward to my next working day because I like to study. I think I get a lot of useful experience.

Exercises:

I.Read the words:

II.Complete the following sentences:

1) In July… 2) The alarm-clock… 3) It's difficult… 4) In the morning I…

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5) I do my morning exercises… 6) I sometimes… myself. 7) While… I listen to… 8) At about 7.30 I… 9) It… to get to the Institute. 10) I go to the Institute… 11) … I read. 12) At 8.20… 13) During the break… 14) At 13.05… 15) By the end of the week…

III.Give English equivalents for the following words and use them in the sentences or situations of your own:

среди недели, готовить завтрак, вставать (просыпаться), завтракать, будить, под музыку, обедать, приходить в, добираться автобусом, по дороге, на первое, на третье, оставаться в, до 5-ти часов, мне приходится, с нетерпением дожидаться, заканчиваться.

IV. Make up sentences:

1)am, an, riser, a, as, I, not, early, rule.

2)to, takes, dressed, five, it, set, me, minutes.

3)days, early, always, get, working, I, on, my, up.

4)Academy, go, the, by, to, usually, tram, I.

5)at, I, at, to, arrive, the, minutes, five, Academy, nine, usually.

6)I, a, to, up, as, have, early, get, rule, very.

7)very, on, I, tired, weekdays, got, usually.

8)to, I, my, look, day, always, working, forward.

9)at, my, are, one, over, half, usually, classes, past.

V. Make up sentences:

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14)When do your classes begin?

15)When do you arrive at the Institute?

16)What do you usually do during the break?

17)When are your classes over?

18)How long do you have to stay at the Institute?

19)When do you come home from the Institute?

20)What do you do when you come home from the Institute?

21)Do you get tired by the end of your working day?

22)What do you do in the evenings?

23)When do you go to bed on weekdays?

24)What do you do on Sundays?

25)Do you look forward to your next working day?

VIII. Read the supplementary words:

IX. Answer the questions using the word-combinations from the previous exercise:

1)Do you regularly do your morning exercises?

2)Do you wash your face and hands with soap in the morning?

3)How many times a day do you clean your teeth with a toothpaste?

4)Who usually makes your bed?

5)How long does it take you to comb your hair in the morning?

6)Are you always short of time in the mornings? Why?

7)Do you go to the Institute on foot?

8)What bus do you usually take to get to the Institute?

9)Are you always (sometimes, never) late for your classes?

10)Do you cope with all the subjects at the Institute?

11)Who does shopping in your family?

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12)Who usually does your room (flat)?

13)When did you fall asleep yesterday?

14)Do you have a good time on weekends?

15)What do you always (sometimes, never) do on your days off?

X.a) British and American people speak the same language – right? Wrong. Although they both speak English, there are a lot of differences between the two varieties of English. Here are two descriptions of one and the same day, but written in British and American English. Read these texts and try to notice differences between them.

A. (Great Britain).

I got up at half past seven. After my bath I had breakfast with my parents on the terrace. Our flat is on the fifteenth floor, so the view is terrific. At eight o'clock my mum and I took the lift to the car park under our block of flats. First we stopped for petrol, and then she drove me to school. The motor way was very busy - cars everywhere.

School was OK, except that we had a maths exam before break. I think I failed it. Anyway, after school I took a bus to the city centre to meet my sister, Susan. She became a primary school teacher after she left university. We went out for dinner to a Chinese restaurant. I ordered chips. After sweet and coffee we left. It was raining and the pavements were wet. At home I did some history homework for the next day, watched a film on the TV and went to bed at about half past eleven. I was very tired.

Vocabulary:

В. (The USA). Read this text without dictionary.

I got up at seven-thirty. After my bath I ate breakfast with my parents on the deck. Our apartment is on the sixteenth floor, so the view is terrific. At eight

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o'clock my mom and I took the elevator to the parking lot underneath our apartment block. First we stopped for gas, and then she drove me to school. The freeway was very busy - automobiles everywhere.

School was OK except that we had a math test before recess. I think I flunked it. Anyway, after school I took a bus downtown to meet my sister, Susan. She became a grade school teacher after she left college. We ate out at a Chinese restaurant. I ordered french-fries. After dessert and coffee we left. It was raining and the sidewalks were wet. At home I did a history assignment for the next day, watched a movie on TV and went to bed around eleven-thirty. I was pooped.

Be careful while reading the following words:

b) Now copy the table into your notebook and fill it in:

British English American English

1.половина восьмого

2.завтракать

З. терраса

4.16-тый этаж

5.лифт

6.стоянка, место стоянки

7.бензин

8.шоссе

9.автомобиль

10.большая перемена

11.начальная школа

12.университет

13.центр города

14.тротуар

15.на третье

16.домашняя работа

17.кино (фильм)

18.около половины двенадцатого

XII. Speak on your own working day.

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5. Environmental Protection

Ecological problems are among the greatest facing the world today. Ways of resolving them are sought by many countries and by the world community as a whole.

Nowadays numerous sciences join together to regulate the interrelations between man and nature. Man uses natural resources as the material for his creative work, and nature itself as his workshop. But he will cease to be HOMO SAPIENS if he doesn't think about the consequences that may be brought by his transforming activities.

While creating machines and technologies, which save time and effort, people “consume” mountains and forests, overuse water resources, let myriads of factory stacks contaminate the atmosphere. Technological progress can often overstep the line when it becomes an enemy of the natural resources.

Billions of tons of raw materials are processed by the world’s industries every year. Millions of tons of smoke and dust are discharged every year into the atmosphere. One of the most significant changes in the earth’s atmosphere is that, which began with the industrial revolution in the last century. Industry demanded coal and oil, and we began to burn lots of it, so raising the level of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the air. Today the concentration of CO2 is increasing rapidly each year. The scientists state that high levels of CO2 will lead to the greenhouse effect slowly warming the earth’s climate.

Air pollution has been going at a fast rate. The smokes discharged by factories are carried by winds hundreds and thousands of km. away from industrial areas. On contacting atmospheric moisture, compounds of sulphur and nitrogen turn into acid. Acid rains affect open-air plants, small animals, the amount of fish, the quality of forests, etc.

The heaviest impact has been on the world ocean and inland water bodies, such as lakes and rivers. Water pollution is a serious problem at the present time, as fast-growing cities discharge increasing amount of factory effluents into rivers. Because of extensive extraction of oil, the world ocean is getting heavily polluted.

Among numerous ways of solving the ecological problems are the purification of industrial effluents and the development of low-waste, waste-free and resource-saving technologies.

Nuclear power can be an alternative to solid fuels, but lots of people are against the nuclear power engineering, especially after the Chernobyl accident in 1986.

Nowadays motor vehicles are being equipped with special devices to neutralize engine fumes. Industrial enterprises undergo ecological inspection. Trees are being planted in the cities.

Environmental protection is an important question in the state policies of

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