18. Ex.2. Make up the questions on the text.

Ex.3. Speak on the topics.

1. Presidents of the United States of America.

2. The first Soviet and Kazakhstan President.

Ex.4. Suggest the stories of your own about two presidents of America (George Washington, Abraham Lincoln) using the words listed below. The order in which the words are given here may be used as a guide.

The Father of the Nation

Virginia

a planter’s family

England

private school

to ride a horse

to hunt

to shoot

to sail and swim

to be good at arithmetic

to measure land

a career in the service of his country

to serve two terms

to respect for one’s courage

honesty and wisdom.

a big plantation

the 16^th President of the USA

to fight Indians

to push the borders of the US

to live in poverty

to encourage the boy to study

a pioneer

a born story-teller

shy young man

to advice to study law

honest Abraham

to be elected

the four terrible years of war

to hate slavery

to be in Ford’s Theatre, Washington

Ex.5. Give a brief summary of the text.

Ex.6. Respond to the following by expressing agreement or disagreement.

1. The War of Independence was in 1775-1783.

2. In 1887 all the states sent their representatives to Philadelphia where they wrote the Constitution.

3. The first branch of the tree of government is the Congress.

4. The Congress meets in the US Capitol in Hollywood.

5. The number of congressmen from each state depends of number of people who come to the state.

6. One important power of the Congress is the power to declare war.

7. The second branch of government is the Senator and his helpers.

8. The judges work in the Supreme Court as long as they live.

9. The Bill of Rights was made in 1991.

10.The 19^th amendment gave women the right to vote.

Срсп 6 customs, traditions and holidays in the usa

1. Christmas

Christmas Day, 25th December • Most Families Decorate Christmas Tree • The Tradition of Giving Gifts • Children Leave a Long Sock or Stocking for Presents, Fruit and Nuts -Boxing Day, 26th December

If you try to catch a train on 24th of December you may have difficulty in finding a seat. This is the day when many people are traveling home to be with their families on Christmas Day, 25th December. For most British families, this is the most important festival of the year, it combines the Christian celebration, of the birth of Christ with the traditional festivities of winter.

On the Sunday before Christmas many churches hold a carol' service where special hymns are sung. Sometimes carol-singers can be heard on the streets as they collect money for charity. People are reminded of Charles Dickens' story 'Christmas Carol'. Most families decorate their houses with brightly-colored paper or holly, and they usually have a Christmas tree in the corner of the front room, glittering with, colored lights and decorations.

There are a lot of traditions connected with Christmas but perhaps the most important one is the giving of presents. Family members wrap up their gifts and leave them bottom of the Christmas tree to be found on Christmas morning. Children leave a long sock or stocking at. the end of their beds on Christmas Eve. 24th December, hoping that Father Christmas' will come do the chimney during the night and bring them small presents, fruit, and nuts. They are usually not disappointed! At some time on Christmas Day the family will sit down to a big turkey dinner followed by Christmas pudding. They will probably pull a cracker with another member of the family. It will make a loud crack and a colored hat, small toy and joke will fall out!

In the afternoon they may watch the Queen on television as she delivers her traditional Christmas message to the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth. If they have room for even more food they may enjoy a piece of Christmas cake or eat a hot mince pie. 26th December is also public holiday, Boxing Day, and this is the time to visit friends and relatives or watch football.

Ex.1. Answer the questions.

1. How do American people celebrate their holidays?

2. Explain and bring out the essence of their holidays.

3. How does a holiday in America differ from the one in Kazakhstan?

4. Do American people like to celebrate their holidays?

5. What is the role of people in celebrating holidays?

Ex.2. Make up a dialogue.

One Kazakhstani student is at the Christmas party. He is asking his American friend a lot of questions about Christmas.

Ex.3. Inquire about your friend’s favorite holiday.

1. What holiday does he like to celebrate most of all?

2. Does he like to celebrate it at home (outside, with his friends)?

3. Does he have any traditional dish?

4. How does he usually organize it?

5. Does he decorate the place where he is going to celebrate his holiday party?

6. Does he like to get presents any time?

7. What time does he usually celebrate his holiday at?

8. Does it matter if it morning, dinner or evening?

Ex.4. Write a composition on the following topics.

1. I don’t like to celebrate my birthday party.

2. I’m very hospitable in our family.

3. Holidays and traditions of my country.

4. The difference between American and Kazakhstan celebration of New Year.

Ex.5. Read the short passages and answer the questions about them giving your impressions to the point.

1. Some people find it difficult to tell the difference between a custom and a habit. Customs are social and habits are personal. Smoking is a bad habit and certainly an expensive one. Customs are common to a large number of people who belong to a society or a nation. For men giving up their seats to old people, to women carrying babies, to people who are ill should be a national custom.

Can you describe any national customs giving your impressions of them?

2. I have always been attracted by the people of unusual habits, I mean quit, orderly people who enrich their humdrum existences by adopting odd quirks and passions, unlikely routine or harmless mania for useless objects.

Life, I am sure, would be very much poorer without such people in it. Sometimes, I feel, I am lacking in personality since I have none of these strange habits.

And what do you think of people who have such unusual habits as collecting dolls, railway carriages or something like that? Could you describe any such hobbies and share your impressions of the people indulging in them?

3. Tradition is a chain which links the present with the past, part of our task is to interpret the life and the activity of tradition as a formative and perfecting factor in the development of men in society.

What do you think of the role the tradition plays in our life and what does the successful performance of that role depend on?

4. Story-telling and story-collecting used to be an old tradition in the times well before the scientific and technological revolution. Scotland has stories of so many different sorts that the richness of their variety is almost beyond believing. The tales and legends have been handed down by word of mouth often for generations. Many were passed on by wandering storytellers, others were composed for special occasions such as weddings and christenings.

No matter what brings folk together, you may be sure that there will be a grand feast spread, and the singing of old songs and ballads, the dancing of reels and most probably speeches to follow. But in the old days, the high point of the entertainment was the story.

Can you give your impressions of a traditional wedding you recently attended (Russian, Kazakhstani, Moldavian etc.)? Could you describe the old and new customs and rituals you saw there?

Ex.6. Problems for the discussion.

1. The advantages and problems of multinational states for the development of national traditions.

2. The continuity of folk traditions in modern world.