Unit 6. Great Britain

Pre - reading activities

1. Practise the pronunciation of the following words.

monarchy ['m2nqkI], govern ['g0vFn], urban ['3:bqn], rural ['r4qrFl], access ['1kses], deposit [dI'p2zIt], valuable ['v1lj4qbl], rare [rEq].

2. Memorize the words.

1. mere a – простой

2. govern v – править, управлять

3. elect v – выбирать, избирать

4. urban a – городской

5. rural a – сельский

6. accessible a – доступный

7. valuable a – ценный

8. grade n – сорт

9. rare a – редкий

10. significant a – значительный

11. amount n – количество

12. iron ore n – железная руда

13. manganese n – марганец

14. copper n – медь

15. lead n – свинец

16. tin n – олово

17. limestone n – известняк

18. self-sufficient a – экономически самостоятельный

19. lack n – нехватка, отсутствие

3. Answer the following questions before you read Text A.

1. What is the official name of Great Britain?

2. What are the four political divisions of Great Britain? Name their capitals.

3. What is the ruling political party in Great Britain at present and who is the Prime Minister?

Read Text a and fulfill the tasks which follow.

Text A

Great Britain

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is situated on the British Isles and consists of four parts: England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. The capital of England and the UK is London, the capital of Wales is Cardiff, the capital of Scotland is Edinburgh and the capital of Northern Ireland is Belfast.

The English Channel and the Straits of Dover separate Great Britain from the continent. The territory of the UK is about 244,000 sq.km. The population is about 60 mln. About 80 % of the population is urban.

The UK is a constitutional monarchy and the Queen is the head of the state. But the monarchy is a mere formality. In practice the country is governed by the elected government with a Prime Minister at the head.

There are three main political parties in the in the UK: Labour, Conservative and Liberal Democrats.

Great Britain is not rich in natural resources. Many of Britain’s most valuable and accessible deposits have been worked out. The absence of high-grade iron ore, manganese, chrome, nickel and many other rare metals has always made the British economy greatly dependent on imported raw materials. There are significant amounts of coal, zinc, copper, lead and tin. Many non-metallic minerals are found in Britain: clay, chalk, sand and gravel, limestone, slate, dolomite, gypsum, common salt, rock salt and others.

With the discovery of oil and natural gas in the North Sea the country has become self-sufficient in energy.

In spite of the lack of some important raw materials and problems connected with the balance trade deficit, the UK is one of the most highly industrialized countries in the world.

POST-READING ACTIVITIES

1. Match the words on the left to those on the right. Make 10 word partnerships and translate them into Russian.

1. urban a. formality

2. constitutional b. resources

3. rare c. government

4. significant d. deposits

5. natural e. population

6. elected f. monarchy

7. mere g. materials

8. valuable h. salt

9. raw i. amounts

10. rock j. metals

2. Find in the text the English equivalents for the following Russian collocations.

1. состоит из четырёх частей; 2. конституционная монархия; 3. простая формальность; 4. страной управляет; 5. самые ценные и доступные залежи уже выработаны; 6. имеются значительные запасы; 7. страна стала обеспечивать себя энергией; 8. несмотря на недостаток сырья; 9. дефицит торгового баланса; 10. делали экономику зависимой от ввозимого сырья.

3. Choose the best alternative to complete the sentence.

1. Many …deposits in Britain have been worked out.

a) rural b) industrial c) valuable d) expensive

2. Such… metals as manganese and nickel are absent in Britain.

a) pure b) rare c)mere d) black

3. The deposits of lead and copper are …

a) little b) small c) rare d) significant

4. British economy depends on imported …

a) raw materials b) rock salt c) common salt d) brown coal

5. About 80% of the population in Britain is ….

a) rural b) urban c) young d) old

4. Complete the sentences.

1. The head of the state is …

2. In reality the country is governed by …

3. … separates Great Britain from the continent.

4. The economy of Great Britain is dependent on …

5. The country has become self-sufficient in energy with ….

6. … have been worked out.

5. Say whether the following statements are true or false.

1. About 80% of the population of the UK is rural.

2. The UK is rich in natural resources.

3. The British economy is greatly dependent on imported raw materials.

4. The amounts of coal and zinc are small.

5. Great Britain is not self-sufficient in energy.

6. The UK is governed by the Queen.