The control-reading for the 6th form pupils
I. Read the text and do the tasks.
A Smart Lesson
Harry was always making excuses for forgetting to do things. His usual excuse was "I was too busy" or "I didn't have time". Harry's parents were worried about him. "He mustn't go through life making excuses all the time", his father said. "No one will trust him to do anything. He won't be able to keep a job. No sensible girl will want to marry him".
"I don't know what we can do", his mother said.
"I have an idea", his father said. "If this doesn't work, nothing will".
The next day was Harry's birthday. He was really looking forward to getting exciting presents. He woke up expecting his parents to wish him "Happy Birthday!" but all they said was "Good morning. Harry. Hurry, or you'll be late for school". There were no presents, not even a card. He was very disappointed. "Never mind", he thought. "There'll be a surprise for me after school". But there wasn't. Sadly he said to his parents at dinner, "Today's my birthday". "Oh!" his father said. "So it is. I forgot.'
"So did I", his mother said. "How could you forget?" Harry asked. "There must be a reason". "Well, yes", his father said. "We have a really good excuse for forgetting your birthday, Harry. We didn't remember your birthday because we were too busy". Poor Harry. He never had a silly excuse for not doing something again.
1. Answer the questions.
1) What did Harry make excuse for?
2) Whose birthday was it the next day?
3) What was he hoping to get?
4) What was he expecting when he woke up?
5) What did he get for his birthday?
II. Read the second text.
2. Put the parts of the text in the correct order.
Thanksgiving
A Today people remember those difficult times, .All the families get together on this holiday. They celebrate this holiday by eating a traditional dinner of turkey,
fruit and vegetables.
B The Americans celebrate Thanksgiving on the fourth Thursday in November each year. Many years ago people from England came to live in America. They had hard times during the first years of their living in a new land.
C In the evenings cities have parades with fireworks on this day. People wear costumes and go to the streets to have fun with their families and their friends.
D The Indians helped them to live out the difficult winter and to have a good harvest. The settlers from England prepared a dinner and invited the Indians to share it.
3. Write if the sentences are true or false. Correct the false sentences.
1) 2) 3) 4) 5) 6)
The Americans celebrate Thanksgiving Day at the beginning of November People had happy times when they came from England to America.
The settlers helped the Indians to live out the winter. The settlers had dinner together with the Indians.
Nowadays all the families get together on Thanksgiving Day. People don't like to go outdoors or have parades on this day.
4. Match the words with their definitions and write the letter in the correct box.
1 )The place where you can get the information. 2) Very old.
3) A part of the computer with many buttons.
4) A place where you can go in for sports.
5} A group of people, playing the same music together. 6) A group of people dressed in costumes,
going along the street.
5. Write the letter of the correct item.
a) keyboard b) parade
c) library d) ancient e) gym
f)orchestra
1) St Nicholas' Day is celebrated in
a) Ukraine b) Britain c) the USA
2) People give each other boxes of chocolate on
a) Christmas Day b) Victory Day c) St Valentine's Day
3) Children put on funny costumes on
a) Halloween Day b) Easter c) Thanksgiving Day
4) People give flowers to the veterans on
a) Independence Day b) New Year Day c) Victory Day
5) Children like to paint the eggs for
a) Christmas Day b) New Year Day c) Easter
Thank you for your letter. I would like to tell you about my last summer vacation.
As for me, I like travelling. Every summer during holidays I travel with my parents. We usually travel abroad. This summer we went to Hurgada, Egypt. We went there by plane. We had a lot of plans. We didn't want just to sunbathe. That is why we bought a two-day trip to the capital of Egypt - Cairo. We went there by bus. It was a long trip, but it was worth it. We visited the Museum of Egyptian Antiquities, also known as the Egyptian Museum or Museum of Cairo. It was very interesting. Also we went sightseeing and of cause we saw the Giza Pyramids. We spent the night in the hotel. I was really impressed by Cairo. After that trip, we returned to Hurgada and spent the rest of the holiday in our hotel. Unfortunatelly we didn't visit any theatres during our vacation. We were enjoying the Red Sea. The memories of this vacation will stay with me forever.
And have you ever been to Hurgada? Do you like travelling? Where did you go last summer?
Hope to hear from you soon. Sincerely yours, Pete.
As a child she studied constitutional history and law as well as art and music. In addition she learned to ride and acquired her enthusiasm for horses. As she grew older she began to take part in public life, making her first broadcast at the age of 14.
The marriage of the young Princess Elizabeth to Philip, Duke of Edinburgh took place in November 1947. She came to the throne after her father's death in 1952 and was crowned in Westminster Abbey in June 1953.
Among Queen Elizabeth's many duties are the regular visits she makes to foreign countries, and especially those of the Commonwealth, whose interests and welfare are very important to her. The Queen has allowed the BBC to make a documentary film about the every day of the royal family. She also started the tradition of the "walkabout", an informal feature of an otherwise formal royal visit, when she walks among the public crowds and stops to talk to some people.
The annual Christmas broadcast made by the Queen on radio and television has become a traditional and popular feature of the season, and there were widespread celebrations and special programmes of events in 1977 to mark her Silver Jubilee.
The Queen's husband, Duke of Edinburgh, was born in 1926 and served in the Royal Navy. He takes a great deal of interest in industry, in the achievements of young people (he founded Duke of Edinburgh's Award Scheme in 1956) and in saving raise wild animals from extinction.
The Queen's heir is Charles, Prince of Wales, who was born in 1948, married Lady Diana Spencer and has two children, Prince William and Prince Harry. The Prince of Wales is well-known as a keen promoter of British interests.
In recent years he has become outspoken on such controversial topics as modern architecture, violence in films and on television, and the standard of English teaching in schools. His wife Diana, Princess of Wales (often called in mass media Princess Di), won the affection of many people by her modesty, shyness and beauty. Unfortunately, she died in a car accident in August, 1997.
The Queen's other children are Princess Anne (born in 1950), Prince Andrew (born in 1960) and Prince Edward (born in 1964). Anne, Princess Royal, has acquired a reputation for being arrogant, but in recent years has become quite popular with the general public.
The Queen is widely known for her interest in horses and horse-racing. She is now president of the Save the Children Fund, Chancellor of the University of London and carries out many public engagements.
Prince Andrew, Duke of York, served as a helicopter pilot in the Royal Navy. In 1986 he married Miss Sarah Ferguson (Fergie, for short) and has two daughters.
Prince Edward is keen on the theatre. This interest began while he was at university. He quit the Royal Marines, and is now pursuing a career with a theatrical company.
The Queen Mother, the widow of the late King George VI, celebrated her one hundred birthday in 2 000 and died in 2002. The Queen's only sister, Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, is well-known for her charity work.