1. My Family Unit I: Meet My Family

My name is Alexander. I'm a first-year student of the Siberian Automobile and Highway Academy. I study at the Automobile Transport Faculty. I’m eighteen. I was born in Omsk. This year I have left secondary school and entered our academy. I'm studying to be an engineer. I'm a hard worker and like to do everything well. When I have spare time I like to go in for sports. I'm fond of sport games and my favourite one is football. I'm fond of music too. I like to listen to music and collect information about popular singers.

I have a family. We are five. My father is a teacher of English. Besides English he knows French and German. He is a man of forty-five. He is a good-looking man, tall and handsome. He is always well-dressed, in good taste. My mother is a house-wife. She is a pretty woman of about forty with warm brown hair and soft dark brown eyes. She is kind and gentle and she manages her house very well. My father is a clever man, but a little unpractical, and my mother needs to look after him. My mother, on the other hand, is very practical and full of common sense.

I have a brother and a sister. My elder brother is a student too. He studies economics and is going to be an economist. He has dark curly hair and good grey eyes. He is not very tall, but strong. He swims well and is a good footballer. My brother is good-hearted and likes a joke. He knows a lot of funny stories.

My younger sister is a lovely little girl. She has golden hair and blue eyes. Her spirit is always bright and happy, full of joy. She isn't fond of study, but she likes music and dancing. We all are very friendly. I love my family very much.

Exercises:

I. Read the following words from the text:

Siberian favourite manage lovely popular common

highway besides heart faculty handsome economist

entered pretty curly our eyes economics

engineer kind automobile

II. Complete the following sentences using the text:

1) Alexander is a… 2) He studies at… 3) This year he… 4) He likes to do everything well, he is a… 5) He is fond of… 6) His father is… 7)… is very practical and… 8) She likes music and dancing but she… 9) His … will be an economist as he…

III. Work in pairs. Correct wrong statements. Begin your answers with the following expressions:

That's right. Exactly so. Precisely so. You are right. I agree with you. You are incorrect. You are not right.

1) Last year Alexander left secondary school and entered the Institute.

2) Alexander likes music and dancing but he is not fond of study.

3) His brother is fond of sport games and his favourite one is basketball.

4) Alexander is fond of collecting information about popular footballers.

5) His brother is fond of swimming and listening to music.

6) Alexander has a lovely elder sister.

7) His mother is always well-dressed in good taste.

8) His younger brother is going to become an economist.

9) His father is about forty-five, tall and handsome.

10) His mother has golden hair and blue eyes.

IV. Give English equivalents for the following word-combinations and use them in the sentences of your own.

первокурсник (второкурсник, …), поступить в институт, любимый (например, предмет), учиться в институте, быть трудолюбивым, заботиться о ком-либо, увлекаться чем-либо, заниматься спортом.

V. Read the following words and say: a) what relatives by birth; b) what relatives by marriage you or other members of your family have.

Relatives by Birth:

parents	['pFqrqnts]		родители
a mother (mum)	['mADq]		мать (мама)
a father (dad)	['fRDq]		отец (папа)
a son	[sAn]		сын
a daughter	['dLtq]		дочь
a sister	['sIstq]		сестра
a brother	['brADq]		брат
grandparents	['grxnpFqrqnts]		дедушка и бабушка
a grandmother (granny)	['grxnmADq], ['grxnI]		бабушка (бабуля)
a great-grandfather	[greIt'grxnfRDq]		прадедушка
grandchildren	['grxnCIldrqn]		внуки
a grandson	['grxnsAn]		внук
an uncle	['ANkl]		дядя
an aunt	[Rnt]		тетя
a nephew	['nFvjH]		племянник
a niece	[nJs]		племянница
a cousin	['kAzn]	двоюродный брат (-ая сестра)

Relatives by Marriage:

a husband	['hAzbqnd]	муж
a wife	[waIf]	жена
a father-in-law	['fRDqrqnlL]	тесть (свекор)
a son-in-law	['sAnqnlL]	зять
a brother-in-law	['brADqrqnlL]	деверь (муж сестры), шурин, зять
a stepfather	['stFpfRDq]	отчим
an adopted child	[q'dOptId]	приемный ребенок
an orphan twins heir a widow (-er) divorced a distant relative immediate family generation	['Lfn] [`Ofn] [Fq] [`widqu(q)] [di`vO:st] [`distnt] [I`mi:dIqt] [GFnq`reISn]	сирота Близнецы Наследник Вдова (вдовец) Разведенный (-ая) Дальний родственник Семья, состоящая из ближайших родственников поколение

Translate these words without dictionary:

a great grandchild; a granddaughter; a mother-in-law; a sister-in-law; a daughter-in-law; stepmother

VI. Fill in the missing words:

1) My mother's sister is my… and her brother is my…

2) My wife’s mother is my… and her father is my…

3) My wife’s sister is my… and my wife’s brother is my…

4) My uncle's son is my… and my aunt's daughter is my… too.

5) My mother has a sister; her son is my mother's…

6) My father has a brother; his daughter is my father's…

VII. Study the following passage and make up 5 sentences of your own using some of the underlined words:

In Britain most people have three names¹:

1) first name = Christian name = forename (mainly in official documents);

2) middle name (it is not used very often);

3) surname = family name = last name.

• For example: My name is James Brown. My first name is James, or Jimmy. My middle name is Clarke. My surname is Brown, as I said. My full name is James Clarke Brown.

VIII. Remember the following expressions on age and use them in the sentences or situations of your own:

1) He is 16. He is 16 years old. He is a sixteen-year old boy. He is over l6 (under 16). He is about 16. He has just completed his 16^th year. He is entering (on) his 17^th year.

2) He is in his teens (i.e. 13-19). I've just entered my teens. He is a teen-ager.

3) My sister is eight years older than I. He is 2 years senior (junior) to me. She is half my age. He is twice as young as I am.

4) He is advanced in years. He is a middle-aged person. He is an aged (elderly) person.

5) He doesn't look his age. He looks much younger.

6) They are of the same age.

IX. a) Study the following expressions:

1. He lives in England. 2. She lives in America. 3. He lives in Scotland.

He is from England. She is from America. He is from Scotland.

He is English. She is American. He is Scottish.

He is an Englishman. She is an American. He is a Scot.

He is a Scotsman.

b) Match the countries and their nationalities, make up sentences to introduce one and the same person in different ways.

Great Britain	[greIt'brItqn]	Swede	[swJd]
England	['INglqnd]	Australian	[Os'treIlIqn]
Scotland	['skOtlqnd]	Scot	[skOt]
Wales	[weIlz]	Canadian	[kq'neIdIqn]
Northern Ireland	['nLDqn'aIqlqnd]	New Zealander	['njH'zJlqndq]
The USA	[DJ'jH'es'eI]	German	['GWmqn]
Australia	[Os'treIlIq]	Irishman	['aIrISmqn]
Canada	['kxnqdq]	Scotsman	['skOtsmqn]
Russia	['rASq]	Frenchman	['frFnCmqn]
China	['CaInq]	Danish	['deInIS]
France	[frRns]	British	['brItIS]
Germany	['GWmqnI]	Scottish	['skOtIS]
Japan	[Gq'pxn]	English	['INglIS]
Sweden	['swJdn]	Japanese	[Gxpq'nJz]
Denmark	['dFnmRk]	American	[q'mFrIkqn]
New Zealand	['njH'zJlqnd]	Welsh	[wFlS]
		Englishman	['INglISmqn]
		Irish	['aIrIS]
		Russian	['rASqn]
		Chinese	[CaI'nJz]
		Swedish	['swJdIS]

X. a) Make up 5 sentences about the occupations of your relatives. Use the following words:

schoolboy	['skHlbOI]	школьник
student	['stjHdqnt]	студент
teacher	['tJCq]	учитель
doctor	['dOktq]	доктор, врач
nurse	[nWs]	няня, медсестра
clerk	[klRk]	служащий
worker	['wWkq]	рабочий
engineer	[FnGI'nIq]	инженер
civil engineer	['sIvIl]	инженер-строитель
driver	['draIvq]	водитель
docker	['dOkq]	грузчик
cook	[kuk]	повар
lawyer	['lLjq]	юрист, адвокат
economist	[I'kOnqmIst]	экономист
farmer	['fRmq]	фермер
librarian	[laI'brFqrIqn]	библиотекарь
artist	['RtIst]	художник
musician	[mjH'zISqn]	музыкант
secretary	['sFkrqtqrI]	секретарь
accountant	[q'kauntqnt]	бухгалтер
businessman	['bIznIsmqn]	коммерсант
housewife	['hauswaIf]	домохозяйка
pensioner	['pFnSqnq]	пенсионер
builder	['bIldq]	строитель
turner	['tWnq]	токарь
carpenter	['kRpIntq]	столяр
journalist	['GWnqlIst]	журналист
locksmith	['lOksmIT]	слесарь
tailor	['teIlq]	портной
salesman	['seIlzmqn]	продавец
shop-assistant	['SOpq'sIstqnt]	продавец, продавщица

в) Work in pairs. Let your partner guess the occupations of your relatives. Use only general questions.

XI. Read the following words and make up some sentences about your hobby and hobbies of your relatives.

• Model: My hobby is fishing.

I like to go fishing.

I like fishing.

I like fishing very much.

I’m crazy about fishing.

I’m fond of fishing.

I am keen on fishing.

I find pleasure fishing. I enjoy fishing very much.

knitting	['nItIN]		вязание
sewing	['squIN]		шитье
to go hiking	['haIkIN]		ходить в походы
hunting	['hAntIN]		охота
philately	[fI'lxtqlI]		филателия
collecting post-cards, stamps, coins, books, records, compact disks, knives	['pqustkRd], [stxmp], [kOIn], [naIvz]		коллекционирование открыток, марок, монет, книг, пластинок компакт-дисков, ножей
reading books (newspapers)			чтение книг (газет)
learning foreign languages	['fOrIn'lxNgwIG]		изучение иностранных языков
music	['mjHzIk]		музыка
photography	[fq'tOgrqfI]		фотография
work in the garden (gardening)	['gRdnIN]		работа в саду, (садоводство)
growing flowers	['flauq]		выращивание цветов (цветоводство)
playing computer games	[kqm'pjHtq]		компьютерные игры
cooking	['kukIN]		приготовление пищи
watching television	['wOCIN]		смотреть телевизор
sport (go in for sport)			спорт (заниматься спортом)
carpentry	['kRpIntrI]		плотницкие работы
motoring	['mqutqrIN]		ездить на автомобиле
painting	['peIntIN]		рисование
amateur theatricals	['xmqtq TI'xtrIklz]		любительский спектакль, художественная самодеятельность
playing the piano (chess, draughts)	[pI'xnqu]		играть на пианино (в шахматы, шашки)
skating	['skeItIN]		кататься на коньках
skiing	['skJIN]		кататься на лыжах
travelling	['trxvlIN]		путешествовать

XII. Read the survey and ask each other about your hobbies. Use only general questions (Is your hobby…?).

Ho do young people spend their free time? What leisure activities do they prefer? The sociological study shows, that 13% of St. Petersburg students have not been to the theatre once during the year; 33,5% have not been to an opera or ballet; 41,4% ignore concerts of classical music; 33,2% do not go to the museums or exhibitions and less than half of the young people are interested in books. They prefer going to cafes and clubs instead of reading.

XIII. Define the main idea of the following essay and say whether you think it right or wrong. Prove your statement.