Part III. Home

Listening and speaking

1. Listen to five people talking about where they live. Listen to five people talking about where they live. Fill in the chart (see FILE 1).Talk about where you live.

1) Do you live in a house or in a flat?

2) How many rooms are there?

3) Do you have a garden? A terrace?

5. What’s in your bedroom?

2. Work in a round. Answer the questions.

1. What’s the name of your street? And why is it called so?

2. What places are the nearest to your home city?

3. How would you describe your home? Is it a bungalow, a flat, or a house? Which way does the front of your home face? What is it built of? Is it built out of bricks, out of stone, out of wood, or out of concrete? What are the windows like in your home? Do you have sash windows which slide up and down or do you have casement windows which open on hinges?

4. What are the main historical places near your home?

5. Which is your nearest river? Airport? Railway station? Your nearest public library?

6. Are there any shops nearby? Restaurants?

3. 1) Imagine that your granny has a country house; describe it in detail; speak about advantages and disadvantages of having a country house.

2) Say what is more important: a large well-equipped kitchen or a good sitting-room. Why?

4. Read the polylogue and act it out.

Rita: My room is nice: it’s 15 ft long, 12 ft wide and 9 ft high. It’s a single room with a bathroom. I also have a balcony. The room’s light and sunny. And I have a lovely view.

Peter: Good. We’re glad you like it.

Thomas: Peter and I share a double room with a shower.

Peter: It is not very comfortable.

Rita: Why? What’s wrong? Can I help?

Peter: I’m afraid not. You see, there’s a sofa and a bed in it: the sofa’s short, the bed’s small, I’m tall, so I can fall off.

Linda: What a pity! Poor Peter! I have a bedroom and a sitting room of my own .The furniture’s beautiful there: there’s a desk on the right, and an armchair near it, there’s a colour TV, and a sofa opposite it, there’s a bookcase and a wardrobe, and a small shelf there. There’s a refrigerator in the corner. There’s a large mirror on the wall and a thick carpet on the floor. There are thin curtains on the windows. And finally there’s a magnificent crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling. It’s a lovely room. I like it very much. I feel at home there.

5. Study the vocabulary and make up a story about your flat, using the following scheme (see FILE 2):

a 10-storied block of flats– 10-этажный жилой дом

just across from...-как раз напротив ...

nearby-поблизости, неподалеку

a three-room flat-3-х комнатная квартира

all modern conveniences-все удобства

a view -вид

an elevator-лифт

an entrance hall-прихожая

a bathroom-ванная комната

a sitting room- гостиная

well-equipped-хорошо оборудованный

nicely furnished-прекрасно обставленный

a kitchen – unit -кухонный гарнитур

a washing – machine-стиральная машина

a dishwasher -посудомоечная машина

a microwave oven -микроволновая печь

cozy-уютный

a wall – unit -мебельная стенка

a lamp – stand -торшер

a carpet -ковер

a curtain -занавеска

furniture-мебель

a night table-тумбочка

padded – stool-пуфик

three-leafed mirror-трельяж

6. Find a photograph or a picture of an interior in which you recognize a taste that is radically different from your personal style. Tell your classmates what you like or dislike about it.

7. If you have travelled abroad, speak about the difference in interior decorations which one may observe in foreign (British, American, German, etc.) and Russian homes.