Which Christmas custom... ?

A. appeared with new technology

B. can be very pleasant for people who like tasty things

C. can be very pleasant for people who love each other

D. can tell you that you'll be happy next year

E. was not allowed for some time

F. lets people know that Christmas holiday is coming

1.3. Education in the United Kingdom

1. The school system in the UK may seem rather confusing for people from other countries. There are two types of schools in the UK. Most of schools are state schools where education is free. But there are also private schools where you have to pay. Such schools are often very expensive. It may seem strange, but private schools an Britain are called public.

2. A long time ago when education was a privilege of the rich, the only schools where poor people could go got the money from charity (бла­готворительный) organizations. As it was public money, the schools for the poor were called public schools. Some of these public schools were very successful and later they became expensive private schools for rich people. But the conservative British continued to call them public schools.

3. Harrow School was founded in 1572 as a public school for the children of poor families but soon became one of the most prestigious private schools in the country. It is known as the place where Winston Churchill and six other Prime Ministers of Great Britain were educated. The poet Lord Byron also attended this school.

4. Harrow is an all-boys school with 800 pupils. It has nineteen boarding houses. A boarding house is a building.where pupils sleep and rest. Each boy has a separate bedroom or shares a room with another boy. The teachers also have their own rooms to stay in the school all the time and make sure that pupils get a lot of evening and weekend activities.

5. The first thing you need to have is money as studying at some public schools costs up to 20,000 pounds a year. There are some grants for bright, pupils from poor families but the places are few and the competition is very strong. It's not surprising that only six percent of the people in the UK can study at public schools.

A. Schools for rich people

B. Schools for boys

C. The history of public schools

D. Living and studying

Ё. The famous school

F. Schools in Great Britain

1.4. What do you know about Scotland?

1. Every schoolchild in Scotland learns the legend of how the thistle saved the country in the Middle ages, when the Scots and the Norsemen were at war. Under cover of darkness, the Norsemen managed to land unobserved on the coast of Scotland. Removing their boots, they crept on bare feet towards the unsuspecting Scottish army. Suddenly, a sharp cry of pain shattered the stillness: a Norse soldier had stepped on a thistle. Thus alerted to the surprise attack, the Scots sprang into action and drove invaders from their shores.

2. Bagpipes are found in many countries besides Scotland, but they have become so linked with Scotland that the country and its instrument are practically synonymous. Pipes take many dif­ferent shapes and forms, and though formerly used in pastoral celebrations, today they are used for every kind of festival activities. They have
been adopted by military bands; no weddings or parties can do without piping.

3. A traditional Scottish kilt is made of 100 percent woolen material. It should sit high on the waist, with the bottom edge at the center of the knee. It can cost from $400 to $700. Kilts don't have pockets, so a special purse or bag is attached to the leather belt to carry keys, money etc. Kilts are generally accepted at both formal and informal events. Prince Charles often wears a traditional kilt on ceremonial occasions.

4. The word tartan originally came from France and gradually came to be applied to the pattern of interlocking stripes forming checks of different colours. Tartan is traditionally used for making kilts, skirts, shawls and what not. Certain colours and pattern schemes are common in certain regions. Nowadays tartan patterns are extremely popular all over the world and are widely used in modern fashion.

5. Highland Games are held throughout the year in Scotland and many other countries of the world as a way of celebrating Scottish and Celtic culture and heritage. Certain aspects of the games have become emblematic of Scotland, such as bagpipes, the kilt, and sporting events. While centered around competitions in piping and drumming, dancing and Scottish heavy athletics, the games also include entertainment and exhibits related to other aspects of Scottish and Gaelic culture.

A. Scottish sports

B. National clothes

C. National music

D. Scottish celebrations

E. National fabrics

F. National plant

1.5. Прочитайте тексты (1—8) и установите их соот­ветствие с заголовками (A—F). Один заголовок лишний. Занесите свои ответы в таблицу.

The history of gardening

1. The modern garden has a history going back many thousands of years. Early humans were hunters and gathered plants, and they didn't stay in one place for a long time. They traveled from place to place following the food (plants and animals) according to the seasons. About 10,000 years ago this slowly began to change; humans started to grow some plants, which meant they
could remain in one place. The first were vegetable gardens, where early humans cultivated different plants for food.

2. Early agriculture included not just edible plants, such as wheat, but also ornamental plants for decorative purposes. Plants for medicine were also grown, as were herbs and spices for flavouring or preserving food. Certain plants also had spiritual value and were used in religious ceremonies.

3. Almost everybody has heard about the
Hanging Gardens of Babylon which are called one of the seven wonders of the Ancient World. This garden was created around 2,600 years ago near the river Euphrates and contained many plants, flowers -, fruit trees, stone columns and waterfalls. It was designed in terraces so the river could water it easily and as a result it was green all year round.

4. In the past gardens were planted to honour the gods, or used in religious ceremonies such as funerals or weddings. Some trees were also sacred in some cultures, as were sycamores in Egypt. Ancient Greeks planted groves — small woods — for their Gods, and many cultures believed gardens were holy.

5. As gardens have developed over the years, design and beauty have become more and more important. People have learnt to control nature and to design gardens like a building. The gardens of Versailles, in France, are an excellent example of "garden architecture" — everything is sym­metrical and even the trees are cut in a special way to fit in with the design.

A. The most famous garden

B. Works of art

C. Not a recent invention

D. The best place to rest

E. A tribute to Gods

F. Plants for different aims

Задание № 2

2.1. Прочитайте текст. Выберите правильный вари­ант ответа (а — True, b — False, с — Not stated). Занеси­те свои ответы в таблицу.

Cuckoo!

Tom was given a cuckoo clock on Ms birthday. Every morning at seven o'clock the little wooden bird popped out and sang seven "Cuckoos!" to let j Tom know that it was time to wake up. But Tom liked to lie inside his warm bed, and not to get up until Mummy called, "Breakfast's ready!" Then he did all in a great hurry and left his house and j walked to the bus stop at the corner of the street. But sometimes he was so late that he had to run to catch the school bus in time.

One day Tom woke as usual at seven o'clock, when the little wooden cuckoo called to him seven times. He yawned and stretched.

"I shan't get up until my cuckoo calls out eight times!" he told himself. At that moment the little doors opened above the clock face, and the little cuckoo popped out and sang eight "Cuckoos!".

"Eight o'clock," thought Tom. "Now I will get up!"

But cuckoo gave another call. This surprised and frightened Tom.

"It's nine o'clock!" he cried. "I am late for the bus!"

He jumped out of bed, out of pyjamas, put on his clothes, then rushed downstairs.

He ran down the road, turned the corner — and there was the bus, still waiting for him! He jumped into it, sat down heavily, blowing and puffing, and looked round. That was funny! There was no one else in the bus at all.

At that moment the bus driver appeared. "You're early today! It's only ten minutes past eight," the driver said.

"But my cuckoo clock called out nine times and it never makes a mistake!"

1. The bus driver laughed aloud. "That was a real cuckoo you heard!" he said. "I heard it myself this morning. Listen! If we keep quiet, we may hear it again." Away in the distance they heard "Cuckoo!" and then "Cuckoo!" again. There was a big brown bird on a branch of the tree near Tom's bedroom window. Tom was given a cuckoo clock by his parents.
a) True b) False c) Not stated

2. Tom's mother called him to breakfast at seven o'clock.
a) True b) False c) Not stated

3. The school bus took him to school at half past eight.

a) True b) False c) Not stated

4. Once the cuckoo sang more "Cuckoos" than Tom expected.

a) True b) False c) Not stated

5. The driver also heard Tom's cuckoo.

c) Not stated

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