Прочитайте текст два раза и выполните следующие задания. Nine months ago Victor and Sally Wilkings withdrew1 their two elder children from a small country school which

Nine months ago Victor and Sally Wilkings withdrew¹ their two elder children from a small country school which, Sally says, «had nice teachers and a friendly atmosphere.» It was not this particular school but a belief that all schools have a damaging effect that prompted the withdrawal of Seth, aged nine, and Esther, aged six and a half.

Sally feels that schools rob children of the personal responsibility for use of their own time. She also thinks that children are exposed² to conflicting opinions and examples which confuse³ them. The influence of television also worries her.

A typical education-at-home day begins with a few domestic chores. These done, Seth and Esther settle down at the table in their cosy kitchen. The children usually choose what they do, select three or four subjects from a list which includes story-writing, reading, maths games and puzzles, science, history and music. The children keep a daily diary of their work and Sally corrects the balance if on occasions she feels something is being neglected. She also encourages them to finish whatever they begin. After a couple of hours it's time for refreshments and a story. The afternoons, when Victor is sometimes free to join them, are usually spent out of doors — gardening, or enjoying an outing or nature walk. During the evenings and at week-ends the children often attend local clubs.

Victor admits that he was a bit uneasy about home education when Sally first talked about it. «I suppose I thought that other people might think we were being irresponsible. In fact it's quite the opposite. I was also worried that it would be too much for Sally to take on. What made the decision easier for me was going to a conference organised by Education Otherwise and finding that even academics were disillusioned with the school system. After that we decided to give it a year's trial.

Now that I see how happy the children are I wouldn't dream of sending them back to school.»

¹ withdraw —забирать

² to be exposed to —быть незащищенным от

³ to confuse —запутывать

Test № 22

I. Определите, верны (True) или неверны (False) сле­дующие утверждения.

1. Victor and Sally withdrew their children from school because it was a small country school.

2. Sally believes that watching television does the children a lot of good.

3. When Sally finds that something is neglected she makes the children keep a diary.

4. Sally was the first to think about educating their children at home.

II. Ответьте на следующие вопросы.

1. Why, according to Sally, is it not good for children to hear conflicting opinions?

2. What does a typical education-at-home day begin with?

3. Who recommends the children which subjects from the list they should select?

4. Why was Victor uneasy about home education at first?

III. Исправьте предложения в соответствии с содержани­ем текста.

1. At week-ends the children often attend the local cinema.

2. Going to a conference made Victor feel uneasy about home education.

№23

Поиск по сайту: