Unit 8: ENGLISH SPEAKING COUNTRIES

I. Fill in each blank of the passage with the words in the box.
a snack open gardens start stay go to work close finish
Life in Britain
Homes: Most British people live in houses, not flats. Most houses have (1) .
Daily life: Most office workers (2) at about nine o'clock in the morning and finish at about five
or six in the evening. People don't go home for lunch. People usually eat a big in the evening - they just
have (3) at lunchtime
School life: Children start school at about nine o'clock and (4) at about half past three. Most
children have lunch at school. Children (5) school when they are four or five years old
and leave when they are sixteen or eighteen.
Shops and restaurants: Shops (6) at about nine o'clock in the morning and (7)
at about ten in the evening. Normally, they don't close for lunch. Most shops open on Sunday,
too. Many supermarkets (8) open twenty-four hours, but most pubs and restaurants
close at about eleven o'clock in the evening.

II. Complete the sentences with the appropriate present tense of the verbs in brackets.
1. Canada made up of 10 provinces and 3 territories. (be)
2. Australia a range of different landscapes, including urban areas, mountain ranges,
deserts and rain forests. (have)
3. Annually, the National Eisteddfod festival of Wales place for eight days at the
start of August. (take)
4. The Statue of Liberty over 12 million immigrants entering the USA through New
York Harbor since 1900. (welcome)
5. Each of the 50 states an official state flower so far. (adopt)
6. Since 1965, the maple tree with the leaves the most well - known Canadian
symbol. (become)
the most well-
7. At present, the National Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington, D.C. to
celebrate spring's arrival. (occur)
8. Maori recognized as an official language of New Zealand since the Maori Language Act
of 1987. (be)
III. Choose the word or phrase among A, B, C or Dthat best fits the blank space in the following passage.
Maple Tree
Trees have (1) a meaningful role in the (2)
development of Canada and continue to be of commercial, environmental and
aesthetic importanceto all Canadians. Maples contribute valuable wood products,
keep the maple sugar (3) alive and help to beautify the landscape.
Since 1965 the maple leaf (4) the most important feature of the
Nation Flag of Canada and the maple tree with
the leaves has become the most well-known
Canadian (5) , nationally and
internationally. Maple leaf and badges are proudly (6) by
Canadians abroad, and are recognized around are the world. (7) the
maple leaf is closely associated with Canada, the maple tree was never officially recognized (8)
Canada's emblem until 1996.
1. A. taken B. given C. done D. played
2. A. history B. historical C. historic D. historian
3. A. industry B. industries C. industrial D. industrially
4. A. was B. have been C. has been D. is
5. A. sign B. symbol C. tree D. leaf
6. A. wear B. wore C. worn D. to be worn
7. A. Because B. So C. But D. Although
8. A. of B. with C. as D. for
IV. Choose the word or phrase among A, B, C or D that best fits the blank space in the following passage.
Gherkin
The Gherkin is one of several modern buildings that have been built
over the years in a historic area of London. The (1) skyscraper
was built in 2004, and its unique, and energy-efficient design has won
the Gherkin many (2) .
The cigar-shaped structure has a steel frame (3) circular
floor planes and a glass facade with diamond-shaped panels. The
building's energy-saving (4) allows the air to follow up
through spiraling wells. The top of the tower, (5) visitors find
an open hall covered by a glass conical dome, is even more spectacular. From here you have great (6)
over the city.
1. A. 41 stories B. 41-stories C. 41-story D. story-41
2. A. awards B. rewards C. stories D. achievements
3. A. of B. with C. at D. in
4. A. machine B. machines C. system D. systems
5. A. where B. at where C. from where D. there
6. A. sights B. scenes C. signs D. views
III. Read the passage and then decide whether the statements are true (T) or false (F)
The Kiwi
The kiwi lives only in New Zealand. It is a very strange bird because it cannot fly. The kiwi
the same size as a chicken. It has no wings or tail. It does not have any fathers like other birds.
A kiwi likes a lot of trees around it. It sleeps during the day because the sunlight hurts its
eyes. It can smell things with its noise. It is the only bird in the world that can smell
things. The kiwi's eggs are very big.
There are only a few kiwis in New Zealand now. New Zealanders want their kiwis
to live. There is a picture of a kiwi on New Zealand money. People from New Zealand
are sometimes called kiwis.
T F
1. Kiwis live in Australia and New Zealand.  
2. A kiwi has a tail but no wings.  
3. It sleeps during the day because light hurts its eyes.  
4. People in New Zealand do not want all the kiwis to die.  
5. The kiwi is a strange New Zealand bird.  
IV. Choose the item among A, B, C or D that best answers the question about the passage.
The Hopi of Arizona
 The Hopi live in the northwestern part of Arizona inthe United States. With modern things all around them,
the Hopi keep their traditions.
There are about ten thousand Hopi and they live in twelve villages in the desert. The weather is very hot in
summer, but in winter it freezes. The wind blows hard. Farming is difficult. Corn is the Hopi's main food, but
they plant vegetables, too. They raise sheep, goats, and cattle. They also eat hamburgers, ice cream and drink
soft drinks. They live in traditional stone houses, but many of them have telephones, radios. and television.
They have horses, but they have trucks too.
Kachinasare an important part of the Hopi religion.Kachinasare spirits of dead people, of rocks, plants, and
animals, and of the stars. Men dress as kachinas and do religious dance. People also make wooden kachinas. No
two wooden kachinasare ever alike.
The children attend school, and they also learn the Hopi language, dances, stories. The Hopi want a
comfortable, modern life, but they don't want to lose their traditions.
1. The Hop .
A.want modern things instead of traditional ones
B.want traditional things instead of modern ones
C.don't want to remember their traditions
D. want both modern and traditional things
2. Winters in this part of Arizona are .
A. hot B. warm C. cool D. cold
3. The main Hopi food is .
A. corn B. hamburgers C. beef D. vegetables
4. Kachinas are .
A. men B. something to eat C. animals D. spirits
5. The Hopi don't want to their traditions.
A. lose B. hit C. remember D. learn
6. The main idea of the passage is .
A.the Hopi raise crops and animals in the Arizona desert
B.kachinas are spirits of the things around the Hopi
C. the Hopi keep their traditions even with modern life all around them
D. the Hopi want a comfortable, modern life
V. Read the text carefully, and the do the tasks that follow.
Multicultural Britain
1. Britain has always been a mixed society. In the distant past, Celts, Romans, Saxons, Vikings and Normans
all settled in Britain. During the 150 years, people from Ireland, the former British colonies and the
European Union have also come to Britain.
2. In the 1840s, there was a terrible famine in Ireland. A million people died and a million more left Ireland,
and never returned. Most went to the USA, but many came to Britain.
3. In the 1950s and 1960s, the British government invited people from Britain's former colonies to live and
work in Britain. The majority was from the West India and Hong Kong.
4. People from countries in the European Union are free to travel, live, and work in any other EU country.
Recently, a lot of people have arrived from Central and Eastern Europe.
5. There are thousands of Indian and Chinese restaurants in the UK. Immigrants from the West Indies started
the Notting Hill Carnival in 1965. It is now the biggest street festival in Europe. There are lot of Irish pubs
in Britain and Irish folk music is popular.
Task 1: Match the headings (A-E) with the paragraphs (1-5) of the text.
A. The European Union
B. Ireland
C. Introduction
 D. The former colonies
E. How have immigrants influenced British life?
Task 2: Match the highlighted words in the text with their meanings.
_______ 6. settled A. countries which another country controls
_______ 7. colonies B. most
_______ 8. famine C. came and lived
_______ 9. majority D. not long ago
_______ 10. recently E.a time when there is very little food
_______ 11. immigrants F. people who come and live in another country
Task 3: Are the sentences true or false?
T F
12. Immigration into Britain started in the 19 century.
th
 
13. People left Ireland in the 1840s because there wasn't enough food to eat.  
14. Many Irish people left Ireland and returned later.  
15. The West Indies, India, and Pakistan are former British colonies.  
16. In the 1950s and 1960s, the British government tried to stop immigration.  
17. In the last few years, a lot of people have arrived from southern Europe.  
VI. Read the passage carefully, and then answer the questions below.
Easy English?
English is an important global language, but thatdoesn't mean it is easy. Many experts have tried to make
English easier to learn, but they weren't always successful.
In 1930, Professor CK Ogden of Cambridge University invented Basic English. It had only 850 words (and
just eighteen verbs) and Ogden said most people could learn it in just thirty hours. The problem was that people
who learned Basic English could write and say simple messages, but they couldn't understand the answers in
‘real’ English! It was also impossible to explain a word if it wasn't in the Basic English word list.
RE Zachrisson, a university professor in Sweden, decided that the biggest problem for learners of English
was spelling, so he invented a language called Anglic. Anglic was similar to English, but with much simpler
spelling. ‘Father’ became ‘faadher’,‘new’ became ‘nue’ and ‘years’ became ‘yeerz’. Unfortunately, for some
students of English, Anglic never became popular.
Even easier is the language which ships’ captains use: it is called ‘Seaspeak’. Seaspeak uses a few simple
phrases for every possible situation. In Seaspeak, for example, you don't say,‘I didn't understand, can you repeat
that?" it is just, "Say again." No more grammar!
In the age of international communication through the Internet, a new form of English might appear. A large
number of the world's e-mails are in English and include examples of ‘NetLingo’ like OIC (Oh, I see) and
TTYL (Talk to you later)
l. What is the role of English?
_________________________________________________________________________________________
2. When did Professor Ogden invent Basic English? How many words did it have?
_________________________________________________________________________________________
3. Why did Professor Zachrisson invent Anglic? What happened to it?
_________________________________________________________________________________________
4. What is the feature of Seaspeak?
_________________________________________________________________________________________
5. What has appeared in the age of international communication through the Internet?
_________________________________________________________________________________________
VII. Read the passage and do the tasks that follow.
The Sydney Opera House
The Sydney Opera House is built on Bennelong Point, in Sydney Harbour, close to the Sydney Harbour
Bridge. The first known concert on Bennelong Point was held in March 1791. Public pressure to build a suitable
concert facility in Sydney became greater in the 1940s. In 1955, the New South Wales government announced
an international competition for the design of "an opera house". Danish architectJornUtzon’sentry was selected
as the winning design. His design was for a complex with two theatresside by side on a large podium. This was
covered by interlocking concrete shells, which acted as both wall and roof. A third smaller shell set apart from
the others was to cover the restaurant.
The construction of the Opera was sometimes difficult andcontroversial withJornUtzonresigning from the
project in 1966. However, the OperaHouse was officially opened by Queen Elizabeth II on 20 October 1973.
The Sydney Opera House became a UNESCOWorld Heritage Site in 2007.
Task 1: Match the underlined words in the text with their meanings, and write each answer in the blank.
_______ 1. entry (n) A. joined together, especially by one part fitting into other
_______ 2. podium (n) B. causing public discussion and disagreement
_______ 3. interlocking (adi) C. a thing that is entered for a competition
_______ 4. controversial (adj) D. a platform
Task 2: Read the passage, and then decide whether the statements are true (T) or false (F).
T F
5. It is a short distance between the Sydney Opera House and the Sydney HarbourBridge.  
6. The site for the Sydney Opera House had never been used for concert before the  
modern construction.
7. The New South Wales government had the plan to build the Sydney Opera House  
because of public pressure.
8. Architects from any countries in the world could send their entries to the competition.  
9. Interlocking concrete shells have acted as the walls and roofs of the two theaters.  
10. The third shell was built for a restaurant.  
11. JornUtzon had no difficulty in directing the construction.  
12. The Sydney opera House became a UNESCO World Heritage site when the Opera had  
been in operation for 20 years.