Great Britain

1. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is situated on the British Isles. The British Isles consist of two large islands, Great Britain and Ireland, and about five thousand small islands.

2. The United Kingdom is made up of four parts: England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. England, Wales and Scotland occupy the territory of Great Britain. Northern Ireland is situated in the northern part of Ireland.

3. The territory of the United Kingdom is about 244,000 square kilometres. Its population is over 57 million. The capital of the country is London.

4. The surface of Great Britain varies greatly. The northern and western part of the country is mountainous and is called the Highlands. All the rest parts (south, east and centre) is a vast plain which is called the Lowlands. The mountains are not very high, Ben Nevis in Scotland is the highest mountain (1,343 m). Scotland is also famous for its beautiful lakes. There are a lot of rivers in Great Britain, but they are not very long. The most important are the Severn and the Thames.

5. The mountains, the Atlantic Ocean and the warm waters of the Gulf Stream influence the climate of Great Britain. It is mild all year round.

6. The country is not very rich in mineral resources, it has some deposits of coal and iron ore and vast deposits of oil and gas that were discovered in the North Sea.

7. The UK is a highly developed industrial country. The new "high tech" industries produce and export machinery, electronics, textiles, aircraft and navigation equipment. One of the chief industries of the country is shipbuilding. The main industrial centres are London, Birmingham, Manchester, Leeds, Liverpool Glasgow and Bristol.

8. Great Britain is a country with old cultural traditions and customs. The most famous educational centres are Oxford and Cambridge universities. They are considered to be the intellectual centers of Europe.

9. The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy and the Queen is the head of the state. But in practice the power of the monarch is limited by Parliament, which is made up of the House of Lords and the House of Commons. Members of the House of Lords are appointed, and the members of the House of Commons are elected by the people. The government is formed by the political party in power. The head of the government is the Prime-Minister.

10. The official language of the UK is English. It is spoken in many countries of the world: the USA, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, India and others. The state symbol is the Union Jack flag. The national emblem is the lion.

ACTIVE VOCABULARY:

1. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland	- Соединенное Королевство Великобритании и Северной Ирландии
2. to separate	- отделять, разделять
3. to be made up of	- состоять из
4. surface	- поверхность
5. to vary	- варьироваться, разниться, меняться
6. mountainous	- гористая
7. a vast plain	- обширная равнина
8. influence the climate	- влиять на климат
9. to be rich in mineral resources	- быть богатым минеральным cырьем
10. deposits	- залежи
11. coal	- уголь
12. iron ore	- железная руда
13. oil and gas	- нефть и газ
14. highly developed	- высокоразвитая
15. "high-tech" industries	- отрасли высоких технологий
16. to produce	- производить
17. machinery	- машиностроение
18. textiles	- текстиль
19. aircraft and navigation	- самолетостроение и навигация
20. equipment	- оборудование
21. shipbuilding	- кораблестроение
22. customs	- обычаи
23. educational centres	- образовательные центры
24. constitutional monarchy	- конституционная монархия
25. to limit	- ограничивать
26. the House of Commons	- палата общин
27. to elect	- избирать
28. to consider	- рассматривать
29. government	- правительство
30. political party in power	- правящая политическая партия, партия власти

ADDITIONAL VOCABULARY

1. island	- остров
2. hereditary	- наследственный, переходящий из поколения в поколение
3. to include	- включать, состоять из
4. general impression	- общее впечатление

Learn the geographical names:

The United Kingdom	Соединенное королевство
The British Isles	Британские острова
The English Channel	Ла-Манш
The North Sea	Северное море
Ireland	Ирландия
The Gulf Stream	Гольфстрим
Wales	Уэльс
Scotland	Шотландия
The Thames	Темза
The Severn	Северн

Learn the names of places of interest in London:

The Tower of London	Лондонский Тауэр
Big Ben - the tower clock	часы на башне Парламента
The Palace of Westminster	Вестминстерский дворец
Westminster Abbey	Вестминстерское аббатство
Saint Paul's Cathedral	Собор Святого Павла
The Houses of Parliament	Здания Парламента
Buckingham Palace	Букингемский дворец
The British Museum	Британский музей
The Tower Bridge	Тауэрский мост
The National Gallery	Национальная галерея
The Nelson Column	Колонна Нельсона
Trafalgar Square	Трафальгарская площадь
Hyde Park, with its famous Speakers' corner	Гайд парк с известным уголком спикеров.

Ex.1 Practice reading the words:

island, isles, consist of, separated, official name, country, climate, mild, mountain, capital, university, monarchy, power, appoint, elect, parliament, language, head, queen, separate.

Ex.2 Read and translate the geographical names words:

Great Britain, Europe, British Isles, England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, the United Kingdom, the English Channel, Gulf Stream, Thames, London, Manchester, Leeds, Bristol, Edinburgh, Birmingham, Cambridge, Oxford, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, India.

Ex.3 Find the English equivalents:

находится в северо-восточной части Европы; состоит из нескольких частей; официальное название страны; отделена от континента; население страны составляет приблизительно; столица государства; расположена на Темзе; климат мягкий и теплый; реки не длинные и не глубокие; самая большая река; высоко развитая промышленная страна; важные промышленные центры; богата старыми традициями и обычаями; конституционная монархия; глава государства; власть ограничена; правительство возглавляет; главные политические партии.

Ex.4 Study the following patterns and then use them in your speech:

1. The United Kingdom consists of England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.

2. The United Kingdom is situated in the British Isles, the largest isles of Europe.

3. The British Isles are separated from Europe be The British Channel.

4. The capital of Britain is London, the largest city in the UK, is one of the most interesting cities in the world.

5. The supreme legislative power in Britain belongs to the Parliament consisting of two chambers - the House of Lords and the House of Commons.

6. Great Britain is a highly developed industrial country.

7. The main industrial centres are: London, Birmingham, Manchester, Sheffield, Leeds,

8. Newcastle, Liverpool and others are important centres in the capitalist world.

9. Manchester is known as a centre of the textile industry.

10. Glasgow is the centre of shipbuilding industry.

11. Newcastle is an important centre of the coal - mining industry.

Ex.5 Complete the sentences:

1. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Island is situated on ….

2. The British Isles are separated ….

3. The United Kingdom is made up....

4. The surface of Great Britain ….

5. The mountains are not ….

6. There are a lot of rivers ….

7. The climate of the country ….

8. The country is not very rich in ….

9. The new "high tech" industries t produce and export ….

10. The main industrial centres are ….

11. Great Britain is a country with ….

12. The United Kingdom is ….

13. The power of the monarch is ….

14. The head of the government is ….

Ex.6 Agree or disagree with the statements avoiding a simple negation. Use the following phrases: I think so…; I suppose so…; Sure…; It's quite right…or I don't think so; That's correct (exact, logical) …

1. The official name for the country which language we study is the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

2. The United Kingdom, populated by 56 million, consists of the following parts: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

3. The English Channel separates the British Isles from Scandinavia.

4. The population of Great Britain is about 40 million.

5. The state system of the country may be defined as a constitutional monarchy.

6. The supreme legislative authority in Britain is the Parliament.

7. The main items of British exports are oranges, bananas and wheat.

8. Britain imports coal, steel and aircraft.

9. The seats in the House of Lords are elected but not hereditary.

10. Britain heads the British Commonwealth of Nations, whose members, among others, are Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

Ex.7 In pairs, give the answers to the following questions:

1. Where is the United Kingdom situated?

2. What islands do the British Isles consist of?

3. What oceans and seas are the British Isles washed by?

4. How many parts does the Island of Great Britain consist of and what are they called?

5. Are there any high mountains in Great Britain?

6. How do you think what sea most of the rivers flow into?

7. What mineral resources is Great Britain rich in?

8. What is the climate like in Great Britain and why is it mild and warm?

9. What is the population of Great Britain?

10. What can you say about the political system of the country?

11. What English speaking countries do you know?

12. Do you think that knowledge of English is important nowadays? Why? Why not?

Ex.8 Imagine that you have just come from Great Britain. You were a participant of a students' exchange program. You have learnt a lot about Great Britain. Speak on the topic.are.

Begin your story with:- It was my first visit to Britain. I always dreamt about visiting it. And my lifetime dream to visit the United Kingdom came true. It is interesting to know that Great Britain consists of England, Scotland and Wales and doesn't include Northern Ireland. But in everyday speech "Great Britain" is used in the meaning of the "United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland". So …

Ex.9 Memorize these dialogues. Practice them in pairs.

A.: As far as I know Britain is a parliamentary monarchy. How's that?

B.: It's simple: there's the King or the Queen, and there's a parliament enjoying the right to pass laws and elect the government.

A.: I see. And speaking about the British Parliament, how many chambers are there in it?

B.: There are two of them - the House of Lords and the House of Commons.

A.: The seats in Parliament are hereditary, aren't they?

B.: Not exactly. The seats are hereditary in the House of Lords, but as to the members of the House of Commons, they are elected every five years.

A.: Which chamber is more important?

B.: The House of Commons is surely considered more important. It is the real governing body of the United Kingdom.

A.: Well, how did you enjoy your staying in London?

B.: Oh, very much, indeed. I was able to see a great deal during those fifteen days of my visit.

A.: What did your program include?

B.: I visited London, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Stratford-on-Avon, Shakespeare's country.

A.: What is your general impression?

B.: It isn't easy to describe it in one word. I think, Britain is a very interesting country.

Ex.10 a). Imagine that you are talking to your school friend on the telephone. Speak about your visit to Britain. Begin your dialog with the words: - Do you know that I visited Great Britain in summer? It was my first visit to a foreign country.

Let your friend to ask the questions. Make up a dialogue.

b). You know Britain rather well. You have visited the country and read a lot about it. Your friends are studying English and they want to know as much as possible about

Great Britain. Speak on the topic.

Unit 6

the united states of america

Read and translate the text: