Exercises:

1. Make up 10 questions to the text.

2. Retell the text. Be ready to discuss.

22. Rocks

Rocks fascinated people who lived long ago. People who lived during the Stone Age used rocks as tools. They fit rocks to pieces of wood to make hammers. They chipped rocks to make knives and points for spears. They also struck pieces of flint and rocks containing iron together to make a spark for the fires they used to cook and keep warm.

Centuries ago, African people, especially those in northern areas such as Nigeria and Ethiopia, made figures out of bronze, gold, and other metals. They were also good at rock painting and pottery making.

The longest wall ever built is the Great Wall of China. It is almost 6,400 kilometers (4,000 miles) long. It is made of rocks, bricks, and soil. The wall was built to protect China from invaders. It took hundreds of years to build.

The ancient Egyptians built pyramids out of rocks. They were tombs for important people. About 80 pyramids are still standing in Egypt.

The Anasazi were a group of Native Americans who lived in southwestern Colorado about 1,000 years ago. They were called cliff-dwellers because they built whole towns in rock cliffs. Their rock homes had bedrooms, living rooms, corn-grinding rooms, storage rooms, and rooms used for religious meetings.

Notes

hammer - молот;

spear - гарпун, спис;

flint - кремінь;

pottery - гончарня, гончарна справа;

tomb - могила, склеп, гробниця.

1. Amaze your students

Stonehenge is the ruins of a monument in England that’s over 5,000 years old. Its stone columns are arranged in a circle and align with the sunrise at certain times of years. There is evidence that Stone Age people used the monument as a religious center and to predict the time of sunrise and sunset, eclipses, and the longest and shortest days of the years.

II. Answer the following questions.

1. What were rocks used for in the stone Age?

2. Who were Anasazi? Why were they called cliff - dwellers?

3. How people used rocks breaks? What do you see inside?

III. Discuss the following points:

1. Are the rocks useful, or are they in the way?

2. Astronauts brought back rocks from the moon, and a space-craft sent back pictures of rocks on Mars. Do you think these rocks are the same as those on Earth, or different?

3. Will you connect these two words: rocks and culture?

IV. Retell the text.

23. Rocks identification

Scientists who study rocks and their makeup identify rocks on their mineral composition. To identify minerals test are done to determine their specific physical properties. In addition to hardness, color, shine or luster, and the way a mineral breaks (called cleavage / fracture), scientists look at the mineral’s streak color, density, and crystal shape. Some minerals have unique properties that aid in identification. For example, magnetite is natural magnetic; fluorite glows under ultraviolet light. Other minerals have a specific taste, such as salt. By taking all these properties into account, scientists can identify the mineral components of a rock. After determining the mineral content and how the rock was formed, scientists are able to classify and name it.