Vocabulary practice

1. Match column A with column B.

Column A	Column B
People have it in their home or outside and like to decorate it	a. presents
name of the 24th of December	b. decorations
an animal which has a lot to do at Christmas	c. snow
things that make the home look more attractive at Christmas	d. Christmas eve
Santa Claus comes through it	e. stockings
when there is enough of it, you can go skiing	f. reindeer
children hang them up on 24th December	g. chimney
children (and parents) like them very much	h. Christmas tree

2. Match the dates with the festivities.

1. Christmas 2. St. Valentine’s day 3. Thanksgiving day 4. New Year’s eve 5. April Fool’s day 6. Mother’s day 7. New Year’s day 8. Christmas eve

a) 31st December b) 1st January c) 1st April d) 8th March e) 4th Thursday in November f) 24th December g) 25th December h) 14th February

3. Choose the right variant from the box to guess which holiday it is.

Valentine’s Day, New Year’s day, Thanksgiving day, Easter, Christmas, April Fool’s day, Halloween

1. On ……… we celebrate the end of the year and the beginning of the new one.

2. ……….. commemorates the miracle of Jesus coming back to life, after being crucified. Bunnies and eggs are the symbols of this holiday.

3. October 31^st is a special night for kids as they celebrate ……. .They wear dress up as ghosts and monsters and go "trick or treat". They expect adults to give them sweets.

4. On ………… people from the US give thanks to God for all the blessings they received during the year.

5. …………. celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ. Houses are decorated with holly, bows and candles. Christmas trees bear shiny ornaments and stockings are filled with gifts.

6. February 14^th is a day to tell people you love them and exchange cards. Girls often receive flowers or chocolates on ……… .

7. Playing tricks on April 1^st dates back a long way. Today, …….. is celebrated with harmless pranks and jokes.

4. Here are some days connected with Easter. Match the names with their descriptions.

Name	Description
Ash Wednesday	a) the day of Christ’s Resurrection
Pancake Day	b) the day of Christ's Crucifixion
Easter Sunday	c) the day before the beginning of Lent
Good Friday	d) the day before Christ’s Ręsurrection
Palm Sunday	e) the day Christ rode to Jerusalem
Easter Eve	f) the first day of Lent
Maundy Thursday	g) the day of the Last Supper

5. Choose the right variant out of two.

1. Easter is a Christian religious holiday that commemorates the crucifixion and ……….. (resurrection / revival) of Jesus Christ. These days, Easter has a lot of……… (secular / sectional) traditions as well, which is why many non-Christians also celebrate it.

2. Good Friday commemorates the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. It is an ………. (efficient / official) or “public” holiday in some parts of the English-speaking world.

3. Easter and all of its related holidays (Good Friday, Lent, etc.) are known as …….. (movers / moveable) feasts / holidays, which means their date changes from year to year.

4. One of the main Easter traditions is ……. (decorating / dressing) eggs – which involves painting them in a variety of colours.

5. On Easter Sunday, many people participate in a traditional Easter egg ……. (look / hunt) – the coloured eggs are hidden by the parents, and the children have to look for them.

6. Many Christians (even the ones who don’t normally go to church) attend ……. (mass / sermon) on Easter Sunday.

7. A very popular symbol of Easter is the Easter ……. (Bunny / Hare), – traditionally, he's the one who “hides” and delivers the eggs.

8. Many families place colored eggs, and other decorated items, in an Easter ……… (basket / bowl). These are given to children when they wake up on Easter Sunday.

9. In England, many people …… (exchange / change) chocolate eggs instead of real ones.

10. Lent is a period of ……. (fasting / feasting) – when one is not allowed to eat certain foods – which starts 40 days before Easter. Most people no longer …….. (absolve / observe) Lent.

6. Read the following dialogues.

A:Are you going to the party on Saturday?

B:I was thinking about it. Are you?

A:Yeah, I heard it’s going to be a lot of fun.

B:Really? Well, what time does it start?

A:It starts at 8:00 pm, and I really think you should go.

B:Well, who all is going to be there?

A:Everybody from school.

B:How do you know it’s going to be so fun?

A:This party is going to have a DJ, food, and drinks.

B:Wow, that does sound like it’s going to be fun.

A:So am I going to see you at the party?

B:Yeah, I will be there.

*****

A:Do you have any plans for the weekend?

B:I haven’t given it much thought. What were you thinking of doing?

A:I was planning on taking a trip up the coast to the beach.

B:What a perfect thing to do on a beautiful weekend!

A:Would you like to come along?

B:I think I would enjoy that a lot. When would we leave?

A:Saturday morning around 8:00.

B:Good. That would get us there with time to look around. There is a music festival in Santa Barbara on the beach that day.

A:Yes, I was hoping to be able to go to the festival.

B:I am so glad we talked. Thank you for inviting me to the beach with you.

7. Read the text and do the activities.

In many parts of the world, Christmas is the day when people celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ in Bethlehem two thousand years ago. People who remember Christmas as a religious holiday celebrate the birth of Jesus and his coming into this world. To them, he is recognized as the Son of God and the Saviour of the world. According to the Bible, Jesus was born in a manger because there was no room for him and his parents, Mary and Joseph, in an inn.

Today, people often attend church, organize family gatherings, and decorate their homes and businesses (with real or artificial Christmas trees). People feel the giving spirit and donate their time and money to worthy causes, or provide volunteer service to the needy. Christmas is also celebrated as a secular holiday when parents and children talk about Santa Claus and Rudolf the Red Nose Reindeer.

a. Discussion

1. Is Christmas celebrated by people in your country?

2. What kinds of Christmas gifts do people give to each other? If not, do you have other holiday traditions or days at the end of the year?

3. What meaning does Christmas day have for you or other people you know?

b. Online investigation

Although Christmas is not celebrated by all people around the world, it does have important significance in the lives of many people. Choose a country and use the Internet to find out how Christmas is celebrated in that country.

8. Writing options. Try to make a story on the offered topics.

1. Why do we celebrate Easter? How do you celebrate Easter in your country?

2. If you could visit any other country during winter holidays, where would you go?

3. What are three holidays that you like to spend with your family?

4. What special foods (clothing / customs) are associated with your favourite holiday?

5. Do you celebrate holidays differently now than you did when you were a child?

6. What new holidays are needed in your country?

7. Is there any religious holiday that has a special meaning for you?

8. What do you think of Father’s Day? Mother’s Day? Parent’s Day?

HUMOUR TIME

“Can I invite a few friends to your Halloween party?”

“Sure. The more, the scarier!”

*****

“Why are you studying your Easter candy?”

“I’m trying to decide which came first – the chocolate chicken or the chocolate egg!”

*****

“Dear Father Christmas, could you please send me some Crocodile shoes!”

Father Christmas: “Can’t do that one. He hasn’t said what size his crocodile takes!”

*****

“How did you get that bruise on your arm?”

“I ate some Easter candy.”

“Eating Easter candy won’t give you a bruise.”

“It will if it’s your big brothers candy!”

LESSON 15

Ukraine

He loves his country best who strives to make it best.

The love of one’s country is a splendid thing. But why should love stop at the border? 

Men love their country, not because it is great, but because it is their own.

The proper means of increasing the love we bear our native country is to reside some time in a foreign one.

TOPICAL VOCABULARY

1. Geographical position, climate	1. Географічне положення, клімат
to extend(ed) / to stretch(ed)	простягатися, тягтися
to border (on)	межувати
to be washed (by)	омиватися
boundary	кордон, межа
black-soil / picturesque steppes	чорноземні / мальовничі степи
temperately continental	помірно континентальний
damp / dry	вологий / сухий
resort area	курортна місцевість
mineral (natural) resources / deposits	природні ресурси / поклади (родовища)
iron / coal / ore / oil	залізо (чорний метал) / кам’яне вугілля /руда/ нафта
crops / rye / wheat / corn / sugar beet	урожай / жито / пшениця / кукурудза / цукровий буряк
2. National symbols	2. Національні (державні) символи
coat of arms (National Emblem)	герб
trident/ flag	тризуб / прапор
anthem / verse	гімн / вірш
3. Political system	3. Політична система / устрій
authority,power / state power	влада / державна влада
single-chamber Parliament	однопалатний Парламент
to vote(d) for	голосувати (за)
elections / election campaign	вибори / виборча кaмпанія
to be ruled by law	керуватися законом
to adopt(ed) the law	прийняти закон
to be nominated (by) / to be appointed	призначати (на посаду)
to cooperate(d) / to participate(d)	співпрацювати / брати участь
system of state administration	система державного управління
the National Armed Forces	Національні збройні сили
the Security Service	Служба безпеки і охорони
to establish good relations	налагоджувати гарні стосунки
economic ties	економічні зв’язки