My house

I live in a house near the sea. It’s an old house, about 100 years old, and it’s very small. There are two bedrooms upstairs but no bathroom. The bathroom is downstairs next to the kitchen and there’s a living room where there’s a lovely old fireplace. There’s a garden in front of the house. The garden goes down to the beach and in spring and summer there are flowers everywhere.

I live alone with my dog, Boxer, but we have a lot of visitors. My city friends often stay with me.

I love my house for many reasons: the garden, the flowers in summer, the fireplace in winter, but the best thing is the view from my bedroom window.

Part B. Write a similar description of your house or flat in about 180 words.

Paragraph 1: Where is it? Is it old or new? How many rooms are there? Is there a garden?

Paragraph 2: Whom do you live with?

Paragraph 3: Do you like it? Why? What is the best thing?

Role-play the following situations:

1. You are meeting your friend whom you haven’t seen for a long time. He tells you that he has received a new flat. You congratulate him on this occasion. He invites you to come and see his flat.

2. You are asking your friend about his flat: where this flat is situated, what the rent is, whether his flat has a balcony, how many rooms are in his flat, what conveniences are in his flat, whether he has a telephone; you unfortunately have no telephone.

3. While you are describing your flat, its space, the furniture and where it is, ask your friend to make a plan of it. Check it afterwards to see if the sketch is like your description.

 Reading

What is student accommodation like in Great Britain?

Generally British students live in “Halls of Residence.” These are often newly constructed buildings with a large number of individual “study-bedrooms,” consisting of a bed, a table, a chair, bookshelves, cupboards and with sometimes a washbasin. Students usually have a single room but sometimes they have to share for one year with another person. There is a bathroom, a kitchen and a laundry on each floor for communal use. There is also a “common room” (a room where students can meet), a TV room and a game room. Breakfast, lunch and evening meals are usually provided for the students in a self-service cafeteria, within the Hall. The student pays for his residence at the beginning of each academic term. Prices vary quite a lot from university to university.

These “Halls of Residence” are for “Red Bricks” (Victorian) universities, such as Manchester, Leeds, Birmingham, and Liverpool or more modern universities, such as Warwick.

The ancient, traditional universities, such as Oxford, Cambridge, Durham and London, have a “collegiate system”. In many ways they are similar to Halls of Residence, but there are a few differences. In the first place, the student lives in a college. The buildings are usually very old, some dating from the Middle Ages. Colleges are more traditional than Halls of Residence. For example, many college students have to wear black gowns during the evening meal! Such a collegiate student has a tutor who acts as a “moral” and “academic” adviser. Perhaps the greatest difference is that students in these traditional universities have fewer accommodation difficulties than students in newer universities: one is guaranteed accommodation in college for 3 (or 4) years, if one so wishes, although many students choose to “live out” rather than “live in” as they feel that they have more independence. It must be added that many British students experience accommodation difficulties during their studies.

Usually the students study in the University Reading-Room, but those who want to prolong their working hours can work in their study-bedrooms or in specially appointed study rooms. The Halls provide a homely atmosphere conducive to studying.

Speaking

What is student accomodation like in Ukraine? Is it the same as in Great Britain? Speak about the way Ukrainian students live.