WEATHER

1. When would you expect to see a rainbow? Role-play the dialogue.

- What’s the weather like in Omsk?

- Lovely! It’s 28 degrees and sunny! And what was the weather like in Washington?

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Pic. 9g ____________ Pic. 9h ____________ Pic. 9i ____________

Pic. 9p ____________ Pic. 9q ____________ Pic. 9r ____________

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3. Look at the photos (pic. 9s – 9t) and ask your partner about the weather.

Unusually hot weather is called a heatwave.

4. True or false?

If a sentence is false, write a true sentence about the weather conditions.

a. In winter it is usually hot.

b.It often pours with rain in the desert.

c.December and January are the coldest months.

d.A shower is a strong wind.

e.When it is freezing, roads become icy.

f.In autumn it rains a lot.

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5. Match the sentences on the left with the related sentences on the right:

What ………/………/………/………weather!ИLet’s go down to the beach!

6. Put the following adjectives into the correct pattern below:

lovely miserable beautiful horrible fabulous glorious terrible foul

What ………/………/………/………weather! It hasn’t stopped raining all

day.

Pic. 10

8. Read what Victor says about the weather in Siberia. Put one of these adverbs in each sentence:

always even never normally often sometimes still usually

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Here in the most parts of Siberia the winter is ___________1) very long and freezing! Rain turns to snow in November and the snow doesn’t

______________4) much colder. When it’s – 35 degrees children can’t go

to school, but adults __________5) go to work! We wear a lot of warm clothes: socks and boots, sweaters, hats, and fur coats. All the houses have

central heating so it’s __________6) cold inside. In winter, we close all the windows to stop the wind from getting in, and we don’t open them again until spring.

In spring it’s a little warmer, but it rains a lot, and we hardly ever see the sun. The weather is terrible and there are a lot of huge puddles. When the temperatures fall below zero the roads become icy. In summer it’s

__________7) about 25 degrees, but the weather’s very changeable. One day it’s 30 and the next day it’s chilly – about 10. A day can start warm

3. I was on holiday in Thailand last month. It was so ………all the time. My clothes were always wet. Thank goodness the hotel had airconditioning.

4. It was pretty hot down at the beach but there was a lovely

………breeze.

5. It’s a bit ………in here. I think I’ll put the heating on.

11. Is it true or false? In Siberia

 In winter drivers have to take extra-care.

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In spring you’d better take a raincoat or an umbrella when you go for a walk.

In summer you can catch a cold.

12. Match the words:

1) strong; 2) pouring with; 3) icy; 4) cloudless; 5) weather; a) rain; b) sky; c) wind; d) forecast; e) roads.

13. Read the weather forecast and write your own one for the next two days.

Weather: England and Wales will start cloudy without breaks of rain. However, brighter, showery weather already over Scotland and Northern Ireland will slowly spread south and east throughout the day. The showers will be heaviest and most frequent in the north, falling as sleet or snow over hills and mountains, with drifting occurring in places. It will feel cold

took shelter in a shepherd’s hut. “YourАcountryДis very fine,” said the traveler to the shepherd, “but thereбare often storms and it rains always.”

“No, sir,” said the shepherd, “the weather in Scotland is not so bad; it does not always rain, it snowsиsometimes.”

2. -Why, Tommy, why do you have your umbrella open? It isn’t raining. -Well, you see, when it rains, Dad always takes the umbrella. I get it only when we have fine weather.

3.-What do we see over our heads in fine weather? -The blue sky, sir.

-And when it rains? -An umbrella, sir.

4.MOTHER: Get up, you lazy boy. See, the sun is up and you are still in bed.

BOY: Yes, but the sun goes to bed at six o’clock, and I go to bed at nine.

5.“How did you find the weather in London?” asked the friend of the returned traveler.

“You don’t have to find the weather in London,” replied the traveler. “It bumps into you at every corner.”

6.A local forecaster of the weather was so often wrong in his predictions that he became the laughing stock of the community. He, therefore, askedС

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headquarters to transfer him to another station. A brief correspondence ensued.

“Why,” asked headquarters, “do you wish to be transferred?”

“Because,” the forecaster promptly replied, “the climate doesn’t agree with me.”

7. “Is this a healthy climate?” asked a stranger of a native of a certain region in the West.

“It sure is,” replied the native. “When I came here I couldn’t utter a word; I had scarcely a hair on my head. I hadn’t the strength to walk across the room, and I had to be lifted from my bed.”

“That is wonderful,” exclaimed the stranger. “How long have you been

“That’s nothing,” said his rival. “Where we were the words came out of

our mouths in pieces of ice, and we had to fry them to see what we were talking about.”

States,” said the American. “I canАrecollect one winter when a sheep, jumping from a hillockиinto a field, became suddenly frozen on the way,

9. An American and a Scotchman were discussing the cold experienced in winter in the north of Scotland.

“But, man,” exclaimed the бScotchman, “the law of gravity wouldn’t allow that.”

“Why, it’s nothing at all compared to the cold we have in the United

and stuck in the air like a mass of ice.” С

“I know that,” replied the American, “but the law of gravity was frozen, too.”

10. - What is the weather like? - It’s so cloudy I can’t see.

15. Study the following dialogue. Underline the correct word to complete each sentence. The first one has been done for you.

STUDENT FROM SIBERIA: Oh! The heat/hot is just awful! I’m being roasted alive by this sun/moon.

STUDENT FROM AFRICA: But it’s not so hot!

STUDENT FROM SIBERIA: Suppose you will laugh at me, but I love the cold/coldest. I’ve lived all my life in Siberia, and although the winters/winds are severe, they are exhilarating.

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STUDENT FROM EGYPT: Is it really so coldest/cold there?

STUDENT FROM SIBERIA: Not to me, of course. I’m used to it, and can bear the cold very well, whereas I can’t stand the heat. Where I live it’s never very hot. You sleep/see, we’re exposed to the cold north wind, and snow.

STUDENT FROM FRANCE: That’s so. I remember enough of my chemistry/geography to know that. You have extremes in summer and winter temperatures which we of Western Europe haven’t got.

STUDENT FROM CRIMEA: Now, we, on the southern shore/shoe of the White/Black Sea, have an exceptionally warm climate, because there we are protected from the northern winds by mountains. It’s like the Mediterranean/ Meditirranean climate, with a maximum of rainfall/snowfall in

STUDENT FROM EGYPT: I don’t mind/kind it either. Not a bit. On the

STUDENT FROM THE FAR NORTH: Well, no wonder, the greater part

of Africa is within the tropics/topics. We all like the climate we are accustomed to.

Where I live, however, on the Mediterranean,А close to the bank of Nile, it is simply wonderful. иYou would call it hot, no doubt, but there are cool

STUDENT FROM EGYPT: Of course, I fully agree with you. But the

STUDENT FROM THE FARбNORTH: There is much mixture/moisture, isn’t there?

scorching heat of the Desert of Subaru/Sahara is too much even for me.

breezes/freezes from the sea, - at least we consider them cool. С

STUDENT FROM EGYPT: Oh, yes, and because of that the soil is remarkably fertile/versatile. You should see the luxuriant vegetation/vegetables! You have never seen the like of it. You must all come and visit us!

16. Circle in the text the synonyms to the words in italics.

1. I can’t stand the heat. 2. We are separated from the warm southerly winds by mountains. 3. We have a great amount of rainfall in winter, and a small amount in summer. 4. I don’t object to the heat at all. 5. This climate is just what I like. 6. And what is your opinion? 7. We get used to our own climate and like it. 8. I have the same opinion as you. 9. I’ve never seen anything like this luxuriant vegetation.

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17.Compose short dialogues (about climate) between: 1) an inhabitant of Siberia and a guest from Cuba;

2) a student from the Crimea and a student from California; 3) an inhabitant of Georgia and a guest from Romania;

4) a student from Latvia and a guest from England.

18.Read the following letter from a London student.

April 28th, 2009

Dear Helen,

I have just come back from Russia. Every one of us had such a wonderful time, and learned so much about your country and people!

You promised to come in the autumn, and so I’ll be expecting you. If you could

mate is much milder than yours, on the whole. I must admit that sometimes I shiv-

manage to pay us a visit in the spring, or even in the winter, it would be so much better. I don’t say it will be cold in November; notИat all. You know that our cli-

ered with cold in Moscow and in St. Petersburg. In the Crimea it was more pleasant, of course. I think the climate of London isДabout the same as that of the Crimea

and the south of Russia. But London has a more even climate than either of these places.

Well, anyway, in spite of the fact thatАa London fog, especially in November, is as thick as pea-soup; it’s worth seeing!

All the same, whenever you come, you will be welcome. We’ll make a trip to Ire-

land, where the climate is just perfect. I often spend my summer holidays there.

lamps are lighted even иin broadбdaylight, fog signals are heard on the Thames and the trains are out of schedule.

You know Ireland is called “The Emerald Isle” because the grass is green there al-

most all the year round.

When a fog appears suddenly, the traffic gets hopelessly disorganized, the streets С

But never mind; after all, it’s not so bad as I’m painting it. Anyhow, it will be a great experience for you and we’ll go sightseeing together. I’ll show you everything worth seeing in and about London.

Give my love to your mother.

Your friend,

Sam.

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ADDRESS

Name and surname

Number and name of the street

Name of the town

Post code/ Zip code

Country

D. How to end a letter

I am looking forward to hearing from you soon.

I hope we’ll see each other very soon.

Have a good time and write often.

Take good care of yourself.

Best regards.

Please give my love to everyone.

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All is well with me here in London. The weather is fine. It is not raining.

Please (7) ________________ my love to everyone.

(8) ________________, Mike

21. Write a letter to your friend in London. Include a description of the climate in your region.

22. Be ready to discuss some interesting facts about nature and climate. Student A, B, C, …, you are geographers (you will have to prepare a short presentation concerning the climate). Student D, F, G, …, you are tourist agents (you will advertise your tours using the information presented by the geographers). The information below can be helpful.

1. In the Strait of Gibraltar the strong winds, the light winds, the foggy

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winds, nearly always blow from the west or from the east. Because of the mountains, the winds scarcely ever blow from the north or south at sea level, though they quite often do so at heights above the mountains tops. For this reason the airport at Gibraltar needs to have only one runway, which lies from east to west; aircraft can then land and take off facing the wind.

2.In the equatorial belt, on either side of the Amazon River, there are dense tropical forests, where giant trees spring up and grow so close together that they no branches except at the top. The struggle is not for moisture, of which there is much at all seasons, but for light and air.

3.Water retains heat longer than the land. The temperature of the air over and near the sea is more uniform than that over the land, while the climate near the sea is subject to less extremes of temperature.

4.The higher the land, the rarer the air and the lower the temperature.

5.Dog-days are the hottest days of the summer.ИThey cover a period of 40 days, from July 3d to August 11th, when Sirius, or the dog-star, rises and sets with the sun. The ancient superstitionДwas that this star exercised a direct influence on dogs.

6.Sometimes the clouds are so low in the mountains that an airplane pilot can see only the tops of high mountains.АWhen it is raining in the valleys, it may be snowing higher up in the mountains. The nights are cold in the mountains; in the valleys itбmay be stifling hot.

7.The beautiful colour effect, which we call a rainbow, is visible to the observer when he standsиwith his back to the sun and faces a rain shower. A rainbow is caused by the refraction and reflection of sunlight in minute water droplets in theСair. From high in the air it would be possible to see a rainbow as a complete circle. From the ground the most that can be seen is a semi-circle when the sun is just on the horizon; the higher the sun is, the smaller the arc of the rainbow.

8.There are no thunder-storms and lightning in Polar Regions because the clouds all freeze too quickly.

9.Sunday, in ancient times, was the day on which the sun was worshipped. The first Sunday law, establishing Sunday a rest day, was made by Constantine the Great (Roman emperor from 323 A. D.) in 321 A. D., in which it was decreed that all should rest from their labours upon “the day of the sun”.

10.February, when first introduced into the Roman calendar, about 713 B. C., was the last month of the year and preceded January. It was not until

450B. C. that it became the second month.

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11.In the old Roman calendar, March (named after Mars, the god of war)

was the first month. May, named after the goddess Maia, was the third month. September was the 7th month; the name was changed several times

by different emperors, but none of the new names survived for long. October was the 8th month. November was the 9th; but from 713 B. C., when January and February were added, it became the 11th month. December was originally the 10th month.

12.The Harvest Moon is the full moon that occurs nearest to the autumnal equinox, in September. It rises for several nights running about the same time, and yields an unusual series of moonlight nights.

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Self-Assessment

1. Look through Module 1 to find the answers to the questions 1 – 20.

1.How do you usually greet someone you already know. Think of possible greetings and replies used for the first meeting.

2.Which topics of conversation are suitable when you meet someone for the first time? Why?

3.What do you do in your free time?

4.What sort of music/films do you like?

5.Do you live in the centre or the suburbs? Describe the houses in your neighbourhood.

6.Describe your boyfriend/girlfriend (both appearance and character).

7.Draw your own family tree and tell about your family.

8.How do you think being “firstborn” affected people?

9.Tell about a typical working day for you. И

10.What’s your favourite room? Why?

11.Describe a house of your dream. Д

12.What are springs like in Omsk?

13.What is winter like in Omsk?

14.How do you spend your summerАholidays?

15.What types of letters do you know? What are the reasons to write them? б

16.What is the structure of a typical letter?

17.List the rules of writingиa letter.

18.What do you write to begin and end a formal/informal letter?

19.Who were MarchСand May named after in the old Roman calendar?

20.Where do you go for your holidays?

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2. There are at least 20 hidden words. Find them!

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T

1 U P S E T G M K V Q D W U B O S S Y H S

2 C M M A Z K O J R A I G X R U I O O Z E

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