Иностранный язык (английский) Учебно-методическое пособие для развития устной речи
методическая разработка

Министерство образования и науки РФ

Южно-Российский государственный политехнический

университет (НПИ) имени М.И. Платова

Шахтинский институт (филиал) ЮРГПУ(НПИ)

им. М.И. Платова

Иностранный язык (английский)

Учебно-методическое пособие

для развития устной речи

09.03.04 «Информационные системы по отраслям»

Новочеркасск 2015

УДК 82.085+ 159.94(076)

Рецензент – канд. социол. наук В.Ю. Дементьева

Составители: Быкадорова О.А.

Иностранный язык (английский): учебно-методическое пособие/ Южно-Российский государственный политехнический университет (НПИ) имени М.И. Платова. – Новочеркасск:

ЮРГПУ(НПИ), 2015. - 20 с.

Учебно-методическое пособие включает программу учебного курса, темы практических занятий, практические задания и упражнения, контрольные вопросы и задания.

Предназначено для студентов, обучающихся по направлению 09.03.04 «Информационные системы по отраслям» всех форм обучения.

УДК 82.085+ 159.94(076)

© Южно-Российский государственный

политехнический университет(НПИ)

имени М.И. Платова, 2015

СОДЕРЖАНИЕ

Введение ………………………………………………………………………..4

Topic 1. My family………………………………………………………………5

Topic 2. Russian Cuisine…………………………………………………………7

Topic 3. Meals in Britain…………………………………………………………9

Topic 4. My Week-day…………………………………………………………..10

Topic 5. Seasons and Weather……………………………………………………11

Topic 6. Travelling………………………………………………………………11

Topic 7. Moscow…………………………………………………………………12

Topic 8. Russia……………………………………………………………………15

Topic 9. Russian holidays and traditions………………………………………….16

Topic 10. Education in Russia…………………………………………………….18

Список литературы ……………………………………………………………20

Введение

Предлагаемое учебно-методическоепособиеразработанона основании типовой программы обучения иностранным языкам в неязыковых учебных заведениях с учетом современных требований гуманитаризации среднетехнического образования, а также формирование функциональной грамотности.

Учебно-методическое пособие предназначено для студентовобучающихся по направлению 09.03.04 «Информационные системы по отраслям» всех форм обучения учебных заведений неязыковых специальностей и включает следующие разделы: программа курса; методические указания; обучающие задания , тексты для развития письменной речи и навыков чтения литературы по специальности на английском языке.

При составлении учебно-методического пособия использовался страноведческий материал, научно-техническая и популярная литература, справочники по грамматике и отраслевые словари.

Работа с материалом данного пособия поможет студентам приобрести соответствующий необходимый лексический минимум и сформировать языковые и речевые навыки и умения.

Topic 1. My family.

Family problems.

Families today face many difficulties – for example financial difficulties – low-income families are not rare today. It’s a problem because children in families, which suffer from poverty, are likely to commit a crime one day.

Another family problem is connected with the relationship between the parents. More than a half of all marriages in well-developed countries end in divorce. Children suffer greatly during a divorce, but it’s better to live in a single-parent family, than with two parents who are unhappy.

Generation gap is also a problem in many families. Teenagers often consider their parents old-fashioned. And parents don’t want to understand their children’s needs. Our parents sometimes don't want to understand modern views, ideals and our system of values. They say that teenagers are cruel, brutal, heartless and rude. Sometimes when we talk to our parents, they listen only to their own point of view. They say that wisdom always comes with age and that they know better.

Do you have your own family traditions?

There are some family traditions in my family. For example, we always have dinner together. Every evening, when my parents come home from work, we have a family dinner. We discuss the important events of the day.

The second tradition is connected with household duties. Everyone in our family has his own duties. For example, my mum is responsible for cooking, while my dad always does the shopping. I’m responsible for the pets and plants, while my older sister is responsible for washing the dishes and vacuum-cleaning.

The third tradition is celebrating holidays together. We especially like celebrating New Year and Christmas. The traditional New Year dishes in our home are a roast chicken, a couple of salads and my mum’s specialty — a vanilla cake. We always prepare postcards and presents for one another.

What will you ask your British friend about his/her family?

• How many members are there in your family?
• What can you tell me about your parents?
• Do you have brothers or sisters?
• Do you have any family traditions?
• Do you love your family?

Family problems.

Families today face many difficulties – for example financial difficulties – low-income families are not rare today. It’s a problem because children in families, which suffer from poverty, are likely to commit a crime one day.

Another family problem is connected with the relationship between the parents. More than a half of all marriages in well-developed countries end in divorce. Children suffer greatly during a divorce, but it’s better to live in a single-parent family, than with two parents who are unhappy.

Generation gap is also a problem in many families. Teenagers often consider their parents old-fashioned. And parents don’t want to understand their children’s needs. Our parents sometimes don't want to understand modern views, ideals and our system of values. They say that teenagers are cruel, brutal, heartless and rude. Sometimes when we talk to our parents, they listen only to their own point of view. They say that wisdom always comes with age and that they know better.

Do you have your own family traditions?

There are some family traditions in my family. For example, we always have dinner together. Every evening, when my parents come home from work, we have a family dinner. We discuss the important events of the day.

The second tradition is connected with household duties. Everyone in our family has his own duties. For example, my mum is responsible for cooking, while my dad always does the shopping. I’m responsible for the pets and plants, while my older sister is responsible for washing the dishes and vacuum-cleaning.

The third tradition is celebrating holidays together. We especially like celebrating New Year and Christmas. The traditional New Year dishes in our home are a roast chicken, a couple of salads and my mum’s specialty — a vanilla cake. We always prepare postcards and presents for one another.

What will you ask your British friend about his/her family?

How many members are there in your family?

What can you tell me about your parents?

Do you have brothers or sisters?

Do you have any family traditions?

Do you love your family?

Topic 2. Russian Cuisine.

To my mind, delicious food is one of the greatest pleasures in our life. I've been living in St. Petersburg since my birth and can tell you many interesting things about its restaurants of Italian, French, Chinese, Japanese and Indian cuisine. However, first of all I'd like to share some secrets of typical Russian cuisine with you.

Russian cuisine is indeed original. Its distinctive feature is not only in original recipes but also in the fact that it reflects a certain way of life. Russian people usually have meals three times a day. In the morning they have breakfast, in the afternoon — dinner and in the evening it's time for supper.

Let us start with breakfast. This meal doesn't usually take much time to prepare, due to the fact that people, as a rule, are in a hurry for work, school or somewhere else. It may include just sandwiches, fried or scrambled eggs, corn flakes or muesli and various kinds of porridges. It can be cream of wheat, oatmeal porridge, rice or buckwheat porrige. It is more common for Russian people to drink black tea with jam or honey but there are ones who prefer coffee in the morning. You may think there is nothing special in this set of dishes. You are right. But it was a description of a typical working day breakfast, when people have little time to prepare something. Now I'd like to call your attention to breakfast of a day off.

Have you ever tried traditional Russian sirniki? I'm sure, if you live in Russia, at least once in your life your grandmother or mother prepared them for you. Nothing can be compared with sirniki, made of fresh village cottage cheese and fried on a pan. They are usually served with sour cream and sugar. Perhaps, the only dish which is as delicious as sirniki is blini or pancakes. In Russia they say that the thinner blini are made the tastier they are. Blini are served rolled with a variety of fillings but the most delicious ones are pancakes with jam, honey and sour cream.

A traditional Russian dinner consists of three courses. It is the main meal of the day. First of all snacks are served. It can be caviar, herring, salt cucumbers and sauerkraut. All these salt dishes are served in order to excite the appetite. In general Russian cuisine is famous for its pickles.

Then comes the first course — soup. There is a great variety of different soups in Russia but the most famous is "borsch". Shchi, rassolnik, shchaveleviy soup and cold soup — okroshka are also cooked in Russia. Of course, it is not the whole list of traditional Russian soups, but these are the most popular ones.

After the soup the second course follows. It usually includes meat or fish and garnish. The Russians prefer freshwater fish like carp and pike. As for meat, it may be pork, beef, veal, lamb, turkey or chicken. The most famous meat dishes in Russia are zharkoye (stewed beef with potatoes, onions, carrots and garlic seasoned with salt and pepper), beef Stroganoff (the dish consists of pieces of beef served in a sauce with sour cream) and cutlets (the dish made of minced meat). The main course is usually served with garnish — mashed, baked or fried potatoes, pasta or vegetables. Russian people often eat pelmeni (meat dumplings) for the second course. Pelmeni are often cooked by the whole family. Firstly, the filling of minced meat is made due to the particular recipe, then they roll out the pastry and after that everybody sits at the big dinner table and makes pelmeni. Sometimes the preparation of this dish takes almost the whole day. Very often people cook pelmeni for a holiday. The Russians eat everything with bread but sometimes pies are served instead of bread. These pies may be stuffed with various fillings: fish, spring onions and eggs, meat, chicken, potatoes and mushrooms. Sweet pies are served for tea. They are usually stuffed with different fresh berries or jam. Every housewife has her own cooking secret.

As for the third course, it is usually a drink — compote, kissel or mors. In old Russia there existed another popular drink — Medovukha which is derived from the word "honey" (in Russian it sounds as "mjod"). Sometimes this course includes desserts. It may be ice-cream, baked apples or some fresh fruit.

Supper is the longest meal of the day, since it is time when the whole family can gather at one table and discuss some news. Russian people usually have a substantial meal for supper. It may be fried potatoes, potatoes in their skin with herring, fried fish or chicken. But there are also people who prefer light supper such as cottage cheese with sugar or milk and jam, an apple cake called "sharlotka", or a potato cake, or some vegetables. It will depend just on a person's preference.

It is worth saying that Russian cuisine is famous for its natural products. Russian people are fond of gathering, drying and using mushrooms and all kinds of forest berries in their dishes.

In my opinion, Russian cuisine is one of the most varied and delicious in the world but tastes differ. As far as I know, people from other countries consider Russian people heavy eaters not only because of the amount of food we eat per day, but also due to its fat content. Anyway, if you are not keen on Russian cuisine, it is up to you to choose any other food.

Questions:

1. Do you like Russian cuisine?
2. What is your favourite cuisine? Why?
3. How often do you go to a restaurant?
4. What do you prefer to eat for breakfast?
5. What do you usually eat for dinner?
6. What is your favourite kind of soup?
7. Does your family usually gather together for dinner?
8. Are you good at cooking?
9. What traditional Russian dishes do you know?
10. Do you think it is important to keep our Russian cuisine traditions? Why?

Topic 3. Meals in Britain.

Traditionally English people have three meals a day: breakfast, lunch and dinner. Breakfast is served in the morning. It used to be a large meal with cereal, eggs and bacon, sausages, tomatoes. But such a large breakfast takes a long time to prepare and is not very healthy. Nowadays, Britain's most popular breakfast consists of cereal, toast with marmalade, juice and yogurt with a cup of tea or coffee.

Lunch is a light meal. Most people have no time to go back home for lunch so they eat at school, cafes, pubs or restaurants.

The main meal is dinner, which is usually between 6 and 7 p.m. A typical evening meal is a meat dish with vegetables and dessert.

The most important meal of the week is the Sunday dinner, which is usually eaten at 1 p.m. The traditional Sunday dish used to be roast beef, but nowadays pork, chicken or lamb are more common.

On Sunday evenings people have supper or high tea. The famous British afternoon tea is becoming rare, except at weekends. 

Questions:

1. How many meals a day do English people have? 
2. What did they use to eat for breakfast? 
3. What do they usually eat nowadays? 
4. Is lunch a large meal? 
5. Where do English people eat lunch? 
6. What dishes are served for dinner? 
7. What is the most important meal of the week? 
8. Is British afternoon tea still popular?

Topic 4. My Week-day.

I am very busy on my week-days. My week-days do not differ much one from another. On week-days my working day begins early in the morning. My school starts at 8 o'clock, so I have to get up at 7, to be ready in time.

I never wake up myself, my mother always wakes me up. Sometimes I do my morning exercises, then I rush to the bathroom. I clean my teeth, wash my face. The cold water makes me feel not so sleepy. Then I go back to my room, make the bed. I switch on my radio, usually I listen to radio.

I put on my clothes, comb my hair, put a little make-ups. By that time my breakfast is ready (my mother cooks it for me). At a quarter to eight I grab my bag and rush to my school. My school starts at 8 o'clock and I don't like to be late.

Usually I have six or seven lessons a day, it lasts till 3 o'clock. After each lesson there is a break, so I can talk to my friends or eat my sandwich. When school is over I go home.

First of all I need to walk my dog. Then I have my dinner and a little rest. The teachers give us a lot of homework, so I start doing it about 16.30 or 17.00. As a rule it takes me two or three hours to do my home assignments.

My parents get home about six o'clock. We watch soapopera on TV, have supper together. We share all the news, I tell about the lessons and school. After it, I help my mother to do some work about the house — wash dishes, sweep the floor, clean the room.

Twice a week in evenings I go play tennis. When I do not go to play tennis, I stay home and watch TV, listen to the music, read magazines. Sometimes my friends call me and we go for a walk.

At eleven o'clock tired after a long working day I go to bed and fall asleep. 

Questions:

1. What time do you get up on your week-days? 
2. Do you usually do your morning exercises? 
3. Who cooks your breakfast? 
4. What time do you leave your house to go to school? 
5. How many lessons do you have a day? 
6. Do you usually do your homework? 
7. What do you do in the evening? 
8. What time do you go to bed?

Topic 5. Seasons and Weather.

Everyone knows that there are four seasons in a year: spring» summer, autumn and winter. Each of them lasts 3 months.

Spring comes in March and ends in May. It often rains in spring, especially in April.

Summer is the hottest season in the year. It begins in June and ends in August. In summer the sky is clear and cloudless. The days are long and the nights are short and warm. Summer brings fruits and vegetables. It is pleasant to spend this season by the seaside or somewhere in the country.

Autumn months are September, October and November. The days are becoming shorter, the sun loses its force. It often rains. It is the season of harvesting.

Winter lasts three month as well: December, January and February. It is getting colder day by day. The sun shines rarely and it snows of fen. But everything looks so pretty covered with snow.

So in every season there are bright and dark sides. But we must be thankful together whatever the weather.

Questions:

1. How many seasons are there in a year?
2. How long does each month last? 
3. What is the hottest season?
4. What are autumn months?
5. What are winter months?
6. What is the weather like in each season?

Topic 6. Travelling.

Millions of people all over the world spend their holidays travelling. They travel to see other countries and continents, modern cities and the ruins of ancient towns, they travel to enjoy picturesque places, or just for a change of scene. It is always interesting to discover new things, different ways of life, to meet different people, to try different food, to listen to different musical rhythms.

Those who live in the country like to go to a big city and spend their time visiting museums and art galleries, looking at shop windows and dining at exotic restaurants. City-dwellers usually like a quiet holiday by the sea or in the mountains, with nothing to do but walk and bathe and lie in the sun.

Most travellers and holiday-makers take a camera with them and take pictures of everything that interests them — the sights of a city, old churches and castles, views of mountains, lakes, valleys, plains, waterfalls, forests, different kinds of trees, flowers and plants, animals and birds.

Later, perhaps years later, the photos will remind them of the happy time they once had.

People travel by train, by plane, by boat, and by car. All ways of travelling have their advantages and disadvantages. And people choose one according to their plans and destinations.

If we are fond of travelling, we see and learn a lot of things that we can never see or learn at home, though we may read about them in books and newspapers and see pictures of them on TV. The best way to study geography is to travel, and the best way to get to know and understand people is to meet them in their own homes.

Topic7. Moscow.

Moscow is the capital of Russia and the most populous city in the country. Founded in 1147 on the Moskva River by Prince Yury Dolgoruky, the city grew rapidly and in the 16th century Moscow was made the capital of the country by Tsar Ivan the Terrible.
Today Moscow is the largest city in Europe and one of the largest cities in the world with the population of more than 10 million people. It is a major political, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia.
Red Square with the Kremlin is the centre of Moscow. These are the most popular tourist destinations. Read Square is the place for parades and big national and international concerts.
St. Basil's Cathedral in Red Square is a masterpiece of Russian architecture. The Cathedral was erected to commemorate Russia's victory over the Kazan Kingdom in the 16th century. The monument to Minin and Pozharsky, the oldest monument in
Moscow built in memory of the victory over the Polish invaders, can be seen in front of the Cathedral. The State History Museum, the museum of Russian history, is situated opposite St. Basil's Cathedral. It is one of the biggest museums in Moscow with the exhibitions that range from relics of the prehistoric tribes inhabiting present-day Russia to priceless artworks acquired by members of the Romanov dynasty.
On the territory of the Kremlin one can see ancient cathedrals that are real architectural masterpieces.The Bell Tower of Ivan the Great, the Cathedral of the Dormition, the Cathedral of the Annunciation, the Palace of Congress, the Tsar-Cannon and the Tsar-Bell, the biggest cannon and bell in the world can be seen there. The Spasskaya Tower, the tallest tower, is the symbol of the Kremlin. Alexander Garden is situated outside the Kremlin walls. It was one of the first urban public parks in the city. The park comprises three separate gardens, which stretch along the western Kremlin wall. The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier with the eternal flame is a memorial to the soldiers who died in World War II.
Moscow is a big cultural centre with plenty of cinemas, concert halls, numerous drama and musical theatres, including world-famous ones like the Bolshoi Theatre and the Maly Theatre, and clubs. The city is also proud of its museums and art galleries. Moscow's biggest museum is the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts, which houses one of the world's largest collections of ancient, classical and oriental works of art. The Tretyakov Gallery is famous all over the world and contains a great collection of Russian artists' works.
Moscow has as a lot of green spots scattered around the city. There are 96 parks and 18 gardens in the city, including 4 botanical gardens. Gorky Park was founded in 1928. It borders on Neskuchny Garden, the oldest park in Moscow. The Garden has the Green Theatre, one of the largest open amphitheatres in Europe with the capacity of 15 thousand people.
Izmailovsky Park opened in 1931 is one of the largest urban parks in the world along with Richmond Park in London. Its area is six times bigger than that of Central Park in New York.
Sokolniki Park, named after the falcon hunting that often took place there in the past, is one of the oldest parks in Moscow. The centre of the park is marked with the fountain and the network of birch, maple and elm tree alleys that radiate from it.
Kuzminsky Park is another green spot of Moscow. The district is a family nest of the Golitsyn Princes, a summer house settlement in the past, which was famous for its great location, remarkable parks, and picturesque ponds. Today there is a museum there. This preserved nature complex of the city is of unique ecological, scenic, historical and cultural value.
Losiny Ostrov National Park is situated partly in Moscow, partly in Moscow Region. This is the first national park in Russia and is considered the largest forest in a city.
The Main Botanical Garden of the Academy of Science, founded in 1945, is the largest in Europe. It contains a collection of more than 20 thousand different plants from various parts of the world as well as a scientific research lab. There is also a rose garden with 20 thousand rose bushes in the Garden, a tree nursery, and an oak forest with the trees that are more than 100 years old.
Other popular attractions include the Moscow Zoo, a zoological garden of nearly a thousand animal species. Every year the zoo attracts more than 1.2 million visitors.
Moscow is a big sports centre too. There are various sports facilities in the city including sixty-three stadiums. Luzhniki Stadium is the 4th largest stadium in Europe (it hosted Summer Olympic Games in 1980). There are also seven horse racing tracks in Moscow, the largest of which is Moscow Central Hippodrome, founded in 1834.
The so-called "Seven Sisters", seven massive skyscrapers scattered throughout the city, are among the most famous buildings in the city. They stand at the equal distance from the Kremlin and are among the tallest constructions in central Moscow apart from the Ostankino Tower, which, when it was completed in 1967, was the tallest free-standing building in the world and today remains the world's fourth tallest tower after Burj Khalifa in Dubai, Canton Tower in Guangzhou and the CN Tower in Toronto.
Moscow is a large educational centre with plenty of schools, colleges, institutes and universities. The biggest and most famous university is Moscow State University on the Vorobyovy Hills. The University was named after Mikhail Lomonosov who helped to found it. Students from all over Russia and international students study at MSU.

QUESTIONS

1. Who founded Moscow and when?
2. When did Moscow become the capital of Russia? What Tsar did that?
3. What is Moscow like today?
4. What is Moscow center famous for?
5. What interesting places can you see in the Kremlin?
6. What is Alexander Garden famous for?
7. Why is Moscow considered to be a large cultural center of the country?
8. What are the biggest museums and art galleries in Moscow?
9. Have you ever been to any of them?
10. What can you tell about largest Moscow parks? What is Losiny Ostrov?
11. What botanical garden is the most famous in Moscow and what can you see there?
12. What's the place where you can see animal species from all over the world?
13. Why is Moscow called a big sports center?
14. What are the most popular sports facilities in Moscow?
15. What are the "Seven Sisters" and what is interesting about them?
16. What is the tallest free-standing building in Moscow?
17. Can Moscow be called an educational center of Russia? Why?

Topic8. Russia.

The first thing I am going to tell my foreign visitor about is the geography and climate of Russia, as the geographical position and climate of a country influence the country's economy; the second reason is that they influence lifestyles and the health of its people, as well as the national character.

The Russian Federation, or Russia is the largest country in the world. Its vast territory lies in the eastern part of Europe and the northern part of Asia. The country is washed by three oceans (the Arctic, the Atlantic, the Pacific) and twelve seas (the White Sea, the Barents Sea, the Okhotsk Sea, the Baltic Sea, the Black Sea, the Caspian Sea, the Azov Sea and others). Russia borders on many countries: Norway, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania in the north, China, Mongolia, North Korea and others in the south-east, Poland, Belarus, Ukraine in the west, and others.

The land of Russia varies very much from forests to deserts, from high mountains to deep valleys. Mountain ranges are found along the southern borders, such as the Caucasus and the Altai, and in the eastern parts, such as the Verkhoyansk Range. The Caucasus contain Mount Elbrus, Russia's and Europe's highest point at 5,633 m. The more central Ural Mountains, a north-south range that forms the primary divide between Europe and Asia, are also notable. There are a lot of great rivers and deep lakes in the country. Notable rivers of Russia in Europe are the Volga, Don, Kama, Oka and the Northern Dvina, while several other rivers originate in Russia but flow into other countries, such as the Dnieper and the Western Dvina. In Asia, important rivers are the Ob, Yrtysh, Yenisei, Angara, Lena, Amur and Kolyma. The largest lakes are Baikal, Ladoga and Onega. Baikal is the deepest fresh-water lake in the world and its water is the purest on Earth. The climate of Russia is varied, from arctic and subarctic in the north, continental in the centre, to subtropical in the south.

The Russian Federation is extremely rich in natural and mineral resources. It has deposits of oil, gas, iron, gold, non-ferrous metals and many other minerals.

The second thing I am going to speak about is Russia's economy as I believe economy is a foundation of any country's life.

The economy of Russia is going through a transitional period from the centrally planned socialist economy to a market economy. After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 the greater part of industries were privatized, agriculture and land underwent partial privatization later and are still undergoing it. After the crisis of 1997 and the depreciation of the rouble followed by sharp deterioration in living standards for most of the population, Russia's economy faced recession. The economy started recovering in 1999, partially because of high export prices on oil and gas which Russia is rich in. Russia is still heavily dependent on export of oil, gas and timber, while its industrial and farming sectors are still weak as compared with those of the developed countries, but the rate of economic growth of the country is very high. If the rate is the same within a period of several years, Russia will be the second largest European economy after Germany.

The third point I am going to touch upon is Russia's political system.

The current population of Russia is about 143 million people. The capital of the Russian Federation is Moscow, with a population of about 11 million people.

Russia is a parliamentary republic. Head of State in the country is President, directly elected for a four-year term, who has considerable executive power and is head of the executive branch of the government. The government consists of three branches: legislative (the Federal Assembly, consisting of the Federation Council and the State Duma), executive (the government, or the Cabinet of Ministers) and judicial (the system of courts, including the Constitutional Court, the Supreme Court and other courts). The national flag of Russia is a white-blue-and-red banner. The national language of the Russian Federation is Russian. The Orthodox Church is the dominant religion in Russia.
And finally, I am going to speak about Russian culture.

Russian culture abounds in names which are famous all over the world. Actually, there is no field in science or arts where Russia failed to contribute to the world's intellectual and artistic treasure-houses, (see 'Outstanding People')

Topic9. RUSSIAN HOLIDAYS AND TRADITIONS

Every country has customs and traditions. I want to tell you about some holidays and traditions of my country.

Russians really love holidays. We usually celebrate them with a lot of food, presents and in big companies of relatives and friends.

There are three types of holidays in Russia. They are family holidays, state holidays and religious holidays.

Let me tell you about family holidays first. They include birthdays, anniversaries, weddings and others. Each family has its own traditions of celebrating this or that holiday. For example, my family celebrates my birthday for two days. On the first day I celebrate it with my parents, grandparents, my uncle and aunt. The second day of celebration is only for my close friends. They usually come in a big group with a lot of presents. I like my birthday very much.

State or public holidays in Russia include Constitution Day, New Year's Day, the International Women's Day, May Day, Victory Day and Russia Day. During these holidays, people do not work. They spend time with their families and friends or go to the center of big cities to celebrate there. Banks, companies and some shops do not work on these days either.

New Year's Day is the major holiday in Russia. We put up a New Year tree and decorate it with colorful toys and glass balls. The main fir-tree of the country is put up in the State Kremlin Palace. Small fir trees are put up in shop windows, in streets and squares, even on roofs of buildings. A lot of people like buying natural fir trees, others prefer plastic ones. Children like the holiday a lot. They can stay up late and then get their presents. At ten minutes to midnight on the 31st of December families gather in front of the TV-set and watch the president making his traditional speech. After the clock on the main tower of the Kremlin strikes midnight, everybody says Happy New Year and drinks champagne. After that the time for presents comes. Russian children believe that Father Frost brings presents. After all the presents are given out, Russians have fun, drink, eat, and play games all night long.

Victory Day is a very important holiday for Russian history. On this day we remember those who protected our country from the German invaders during World War II. A great parade is held on this day in Red Square. Numerous war and patriotic films are shown on television. On this day people congratulate veterans and give them flowers.

The so-called religious holidays include Christmas, Easter and others. There is also a pagan holiday — Shrovetide or Pancake Day. These holidays are not state, so people usually work and study on these days. At Shrovetide, people see spring in, eat pancakes and burn a scarecrow, which symbolizes winter.

Russian Christmas is celebrated on the 7th of January, but there is no exact date for Easter, it is different every year.

Nowadays foreign celebrations are becoming more and more popular in Russia. They are Halloween and St. Valentine's Day. On Halloween Day some clubs organize parties and masquerades. St. Valentine's Day is mostly popular with young people. They usually buy presents for their girlfriends and boyfriends such as chocolate and sweets and make greeting cards in the shape of a heart.

I like Russian holidays and look forward to celebrating each of them!

Questions:

1. What are the three types of holidays in Russia?
2. What are family holidays? How does your family celebrate them?
3. What are the state holidays in Russia?
4. What is the maj or holiday in the country? What do Russians do on this day? What are the traditions of this holiday?
5. What is Victory Day and when is it celebrated?
6. What do religious holidays include? How are they celebrated?
7. What foreign celebrations are there in Russia?

Topic10. EDUCATION IN RUSSIA.

Every Russian citizen has the right to free education. Before going to school children may go to nursery schools or kindergartens. At the age of six children start going to school. First they go to primary school where they learn to read, write and count. Primary school finishes in the 3rd form. Then pupils go to secondary school. After the 9th form pupils take school exams and get a school certificate. After it they can choose either to stay at school or go to a college to get a profession. Most pupils stay at school and finish it with a school diploma which allows them to enter an institution of higher education.

After finishing school pupils can go on to higher education. There are a lot of institutes and universities in Russia. They offer various departments which an entrant can choose according to his or her abilities. It is difficult to enter an institute. Entrants should attend university courses and then pass entrance exams. Nowadays a new examination system is being introduced. The so-called General State Exam allows pupils to enter any Russian university if they get good and excellent marks for it. This system hasn't been settled yet, but in some regions of Russia it works already. Pupils take this examination after the 11th form.

Students in Russian universities usually have five years of studies. At the end of every semester students have an examination session and take exams. If students pass the exams well they get a scholarship paid by the government. In most universities and institutes graduates have to pass

State exams and defend their final project. After graduating from an institution of higher education they can continue studies and enter a post-graduate school. After defending a dissertation they get a Master's Degree. In medical universities students usually study for 6 years.

Questions:

1. What right do Russian children have?

2. When do children start going to school? What can they attend before going to school?

3. What do children do in primary school?

4. What can a pupil do after finishing secondary school?

5. Do pupils have any exams after the 11th form?

6. What new system is being introduced into Russian education? What is special about it?

7. What do entrants have to do to enter an institution of higher education?

8. Do students have any examinations during the period of studies in a university?

9. What must students do to graduate from an institution of higher education?

10. What can they do after graduation?

Список литературы

1. Айвазова А. Smart Book. Основы разговорного английского языка (американский вариант). - М.:КРОН-ПРЕСС, 1996.-288 с.
2. Андрианова Л.Н., Багрова Н.Ю. Книга для чтения технических вузов. М.: Высш. шк., 1998.
3. Бгашев В.Н., др. Английский язык для машиностроительных специальностей вузов М.: Высш. шк., 1990.
4. Загонова Т.В. Английский язык. Страноведение: Учебное пособие. - Братск: БрИИ, 1995.- 142 с.
5. Качалова К.Н. Практическая грамматика английского языка М., ЮНВЕС, 1995.
6. Миронова О.Ф. Пособие по английскому языку для студентов II курса юридических факультетов. М., 1996.
7. Немчина Н.Н., Краснова И.Е. Знаете ли вы грамматику? Москва, 1996.
8. Новицкая Т.М., Кучин Н.Д. Практическая грамматика английского языка. – М., 1983.
9. Сатинова В.Ф. Читаем и говорим о Британии и британцах. – 2-е изд., стереотип. – М.: Высш.шк., 1997. – 255 с.: ISBN 985-06-0333-x.
10. Синявская Е.В., Улановская Э.С. Учебник английского языка для технических колледжей. – М.: Высш. шк., 1990.
11. Хведченя Л.В., Васючкова О.И., Елисеева и др. Английский язык для студентов очной формы обучения (гуманитарные специальности): Учебное пособие. 2-е изд., перераб. и доп. – М.: Высш.шк., 1998. – 416 c.
12. Английский язык. Программа, методические указания и контрольные задания для студентов-очников средне-специальных учебных заведений (факультетов) неязыковых специальностей. 2-е изд., 
    испр. – М.: Высш. шк., 1989.

Учебно-методическое издание

Иностранный язык (английский)

учебно-методическое пособие

для развития устной речи

Составители: Быкадорова Оксана Анатольевна

Отв. за выпуск Кузнецова И.И.

Темплан 2015 г. Подписано в печать 16.09.2015 г.

Формат 60х841/16. Бумага офсетная. Ризография.

Усл.-печ.л. 3,02 . Уч.-изд. л. 3,25. Тираж 100 экз.

Южно-Российский государственный политехнический

университет (НПИ) имени М.И. Платова

Адрес ун-та: 346428, г. Новочеркасск, ул. Просвещения, 132

Отпечатано в Шахтинском институте (филиале)

ЮРГПУ(НПИ) им. М.И. Платова