Text 2 My Working Day

My working day begins early. I always get up at 7 o’clock. Before I leave for the Institute I have a lot of things to do. First of all I do my morning exercises. When doing them I usually open the window and switch on the radio. I like to do my morning exercises to music. Then I go to the bathroom where I wash, clean my teeth and dress. At a quarter to eight I am ready to have breakfast. While having breakfast I often listen to the latest news on the radio or look through the newspapers.

It doesn’t take me long to have breakfast. At a quarter past eight I leave home for the Institute. As I live far from the Institute I go there by bus or by metro. It usually takes me half an hour to get there. I seldom walk to the Institute in the morning because I have no time and I am afraid to be late for classes.

I am never late. I always come to the Institute in time. Between classes we have short breaks. At 12.20 we have a long break for dinner. I usually have dinner in the dining room of our Institute which is always full of people at this time.

As a rule we have three lectures or seminars a day. Classes are over at twenty minutes to four. If I don t have a meeting, I go home. Sometimes I stay at the Institute if I have some social work to do. There is a Students’ Scientific Society at our Institute. I am a member of this Society. Once a month I attend its meetings. I am also a member of the English circle which meets on Tuesdays.

Sometimes I stay at the Institute because I need a book or an article which I only can get in the reading room. Before and after classes in the reading room there are always a great many students who read different books and articles, work at their reports or do their homework.

After classes I usually walk home. I like to walk after a busy working day. When I come home I have dinner and a short rest. Then I prepare my lessons. It usually takes me about three hours. In the evening I have supper and watch TV. Sometimes if I have time, I go to the cinema. I usually go to bed at 11 o’clock.

Answer these questions:

1. Is John a student? 2. When does his working day begin? 3. What does he do in the morning? 4. When does he have breakfast? 5. What does he do during breakfast? 6. How long does it take him to have breakfast? 7. He lives near the Institute, doesn’t he? 8. How does he get to the Institute? 9. Does he walk to the Institute in the morning? Why? 10. Is he often late for classes? 11. When does he usually have dinner? 12. How many lectures does he usually have a day? 13. What does he do after classes? 14. Does he prepare for his lessons after he comes home? 15. How does he spend his evening? 16. When does he go to bed?

Text 3 a Student’s Day

My working day begins early as a rule. On weekdays I usually get up at a quarter past 7. I make my bed and go to the bathroom where I wash my hands and face, clean my teeth and comb my hair. It doesn’t take me long to dress.

Then I take my dog for a walk in the park. Less than half an hour later I return home to have breakfast. My mother usually cooks the meals for our family. I seldom do morning exercises as I am often short of time in the morning. I have to hurry to the University because I hate being late for classes.

I leave home at 10 minutes to eight and it takes me not more than ten minutes to get to University on foot. That’s why I almost always come in time. Our classes begin at a quarter past eight. As a rule we have 5 or 6 lessons a day. When the classes are over I go back home. Sometimes I have to stay in the reading-hall to read for my homework or do some social work. I like to take a walk together with my friends after my study. On my way home I often go shopping if my mother asks me to.

When I return home from the University I take my dog for a run at once, have a short rest and then we have dinner which my mother has prepared. After dinner I often help my mother to wash the dishes and to clean up the rooms if it is necessary. After that I begin doing my homework. It never takes me more than two hours to get everything ready.

I seldom have much time to spare but when I have some I like to read an interesting book, or to watch an interesting programme on TV, or to go to the movies with my friends to see a new film. If my father is not very busy we sometimes play chess. I never stay up late. Before going to bed I read a little and get ready for the following working day. I usually go to bed at about 11 p.m.

Answer these questions:

1. When does your working day begin? 2. Who usually cooks your breakfast? 3. Do you do your morning exercises? 4. When do you leave home? 5. How many lessons do you usually have a day? 6. Why do you have to stay after classes? 7. What do you do after dinner? 8. Do you have much time to spare? 9. When do you go to bed?

Text 4

My Daily Routine

On week-days the alarm-clock wakes me up and my working day begins. It is seven o’clock. If it is spring or summer I jump out of bed, run to the window and open it wide to let the morning air in. The bright sun and the singing of birds set me into a cheerful working mood. In winter I am not so quick to leave my bed, and I bury my head under the pillows pretending not to hear the alarm clock. But all the same, it is time to get up and I start getting ready for my work.

I make up my bed and go to the bathroom where I turn on the hot and cold taps. While the water is running into the bath, I clean (brush) my teeth. Then I turn off the taps and have my bath. Sometimes I have a shower. If I am not short of time, I tidy up the room. I am through with it in 10 minutes. While I am having breakfast, I switch on the radio and listen to the news. Breakfast, as doctors say, must be the most substantial meal of the day. But I have neither time nor inclination to cook it, so I just have a cup of coffee and some sandwiches.

I leave the house at 10 minutes to 8, and as I live quite near the station I like to walk there in any weather. My train to town leaves at 8.10 I arrive in town at a quarter to 9.

My working day starts at 9 sharp, I work till half past 12 and then I go out for dinner to a canteen which is just round the corner. It does not take me long to have my meal. I return to work at half past 1 and work till 6. During my working hours I haven’t a spare moment to think of my University classes. I am a student at the Evening Department of the University.

We have classes four times a week, and on other days I often spend my evenings in the reading-room of our library preparing my homework. It’s not easy to work and study at the same time, but I feel great satisfaction when I think of the future.

Sometimes friends come to my place and we play chess; sometimes we go to the pictures or the theatre, but not very often. In summer I like to get out more; so in the evenings I go to the tennis court for a few sets of tennis, or take out my bike for a run in the country.

Answer these questions:

1. When does your working day start? 2. What do you do in the morning? 3. When do you usually leave the house? 4. When do you have dinner? 5. Are you a student? 6. How many classes do you have a week? 7. How do you spend your evenings? 8. Where do you go with your friends? 9. What do you do in summer?

Holidays and Travelling