ТЕМЫ К ЗАЧЁТУ 9 класс

Темы для зачёта.                                                  2013-2014 гг.

1. Preferences in reading.
2. Mass-media.
3. Trip to the UK.
4. School. Ways of self education.
5. Future profession.
6. Leasure time.
7. Travelling
8. Friends in your life.
9. Your trip to London.
10. Healthy way of living.
11. Modern society is consumers’ society. Do you agree?
12. About yourself to an English friend family.
13. Foreign languages.
14. Russia.
15. Technological progress. Computers.
16. St. Petersburg.
17. Holidays and traditions in Russia and Britain.
18. Outstanding people.
19. Global issues nowadays.
20. Ecological problems. 

1. Books and stories.

           Books are certainly one of the greatest inventions of Man. Nowadays it is impossible to imagine our life without books. We can classify them into three main classes. Firstly, special books on different subjects. Secondly, text books, reference books, dictionaries for learning and teaching. And the last, books for reading at leisure, books of all kinds and genres, for all ages and tastes.

There are different kinds of books: novels, short stories, fairy-tails, fables, poems, plays, memoirs, atlases, dictionaries and text-books. Books can be humorous, adventurous, detective, fantastic, historical, political, and scientific. They can be interesting, thrilling, exciting, useful, unusual, original, amusing, true to life, well-written, badly-written, boring. In each book we can enjoy something. An interesting, exciting book can impress reader, arouse lots of feelings in him, a boring book can disappoint reader or leave him indifferent.  

The choice of books can characterise the reader, his interests and education. For example, a non –fiction book wouldn’t be interesting to a general reader, but only to a reader interested in a particular subject.

Why do people read?  Most people read for entertainment or for information. Good books develop imagination, logical thinking, broaden outlook. We learn about the world around us, other countries and people, animals, plants, space. Books teach us to love our country, to be hard-working, to be brave and honest, to understand the beauty of nature. Books can help us to become a strong personality. They influence us, can make us cleverer and kinder, they form moral values.  They expand the boundaries of the familiar world, and fill our life with great expectations of joy and happiness. . They give us a unique chance to link up with people of the past in different ages and countries. With their help we can not only look into the past but also foresee the future. A book is a faithful and undemanding friend: it can be put aside and taken up at any moment.

I’m fond of reading. In my opinion, reading is very useful, because books enrich our experience. But some people think that modern life is too fast to waste time on reading, I’m sure that a reader lives a richer life than a non-reader. The time spent on a good book is never wasted. Besides, books help me to continue my own education. Books teach us what is right and what is wrong. We can better understand the world and people in it. I can’t imagine my life without reading. I’ve got a lot of books in my home library. There are several books there that I like to read once and again. It depends on my mood which of them I choose. But there is one book I read very often. This book is …………. . These stories have interesting plot, surprise endings and deep insides into human nature.  

Patterns for writing about a book or story you have read.

The book (story) is written by a well-known English /American /Russian writer of the…. century                      …….. (name of the writer).

I’m going to say a few words about the book (story) I’ve recently read. The title of the book (story)           is ………

It’s a historical novel/an adventure story/a science fiction story/ a novel of every day life.

The scene is laid …..(place) in the …. (time). The plot of the book is interesting/thrilling,

The characters are well-drawn.

            The book tells us about a …….who/which……. (here the contents of the book/story must be given very briefly). There are some humorous/funny/sad episodes in the book.

            I couldn’t help smiling/laughing/crying/ I felt sad when I read about / how …….

            To cut a long story short, ………. (here the end of the book/story must be given)

On the whole, the book is good. It's worth reading. If you like historical novels/adventure stories/fantasy etc

I advise you to read it. 

2. MASS MEDIA

Mass media is press, radio, television and the Internet. The main aim of mass media is giving information to people. The press plays an important part in our life. The press is newspapers and magazines. It is almost impossible to imagine our life without them. Millions of copies appear every day. Some people subscribe to the press and others buy newspapers and magazines at the newsagent’s. There are always some national and local newspapers. We can read quality or tabloid newspapers. The most popular newspapers are the tabloids. They usually have a lot of big pictures and the articles are not very long. Tabloid papers do not have many serious articles, but have lots of stories about scandals, gossips about celebrities. They also have big sport section and a lot of information about TV programmes. They say that the popular press aims to entertain its readers. In Britain the two best-selling tabloid newspapers are The Mirror and The Sun. Quality newspapers have longer, more serious news articles and fewer pictures. They report major national and international news stories, with the world of politics and business and with the arts and sport. In Britain the oldest and most famous quality newspaper is The Times. The best-selling broadsheets are The Telegraph and The Guardian. Magazines are more popular than newspapers. You can choose magazines about cars, computers, current affairs, fashion, films, music, sport or travel.

Television is one of the most popular entertainments in our life. There are numerous TV programmes, such as news, chat shows, game shows, quiz shows, soap operas, children's programmes, different programmes of entertainment. In Great Britain people have four main TV channels BBC1, BBC2, ITV (Independent Television), Channel 4.

Other channels are cable or satellite. There are some adverts on TV, but there is no advertising on any BBC programme.

Radio is a branch of mass media. You can listen to the radio while doing some work about the house, reading a book or driving a car. On the radio you can hear music, plays, news, different commentaries and discussions called forums. At a forum several authorities exchange views on social, economic and political problems. Radio brings into millions of homes not only entertainment and news but also cultural and educational programmes.

The Internet is the newest branch of mass media. The Internet is very popular among all people. You can find lots of interesting things in the Net. You can read books in the Internet. Nowadays you can move information electronically from one computer to another. It is the quickest way to exchange information.

The modern life is impossible without press, television, radio and the Internet.

Add your opinion about our press, TV, radio and the Internet. Write down advantages and disadvantages of Mass Media. Your preferences in mass media (comment on each)

3. The United Kingdom. 

The official name of Great Britain is the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland or the UK. It is situated on the north-west coast of Europe between the Atlantic Ocean in the north and north-west and the North Sea in the east. It occupies the territory of the British Isles. It consists of two large islands, Great Britain and Ireland, and about 5 thousand small islands. The two islands are separated by the Irish Sea. Great Britain is separated from the continent by the English Channel and the North Sea. The English Channel is better known by its French name- La Manche.The UK is washed by the Atlantic Ocean in the north and the North Sea in the west.

 The UK is made up of 4 countries. They are England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Their capitals are London, Cardiff, Edinburgh and Belfast. The capital of the UK is London

The surface of the British Isles varies very much. When you travel about the country you can see how scenery changes right in front of your eyes. Highlands turn into lowlands, forests and hills turn into meadows and plains very quickly. The surface of England and Ireland is flat, but Scotland and Wales are mountainous. Wales has picturesque mountains in the North. Scotland is a land of mountains and famous lakes. The Highlands of Scotland are among the oldest mountains in the world. Ben Nevis in Scotland is the highest mountain (1343m), The south of Scotland has beautiful valleys and plains. It is called the Lowlands. The north and east of England are mountainous. The mountains aren’t very high. The east, centre and south-east of England are a vast plain. Northern Ireland is a small territory with lakes, rivers and a sea coast. Each part is different, but very picturesque.

There are a lot of rivers in Great Britain, but they aren’t very long. The largest of them are Severn (350km) and the Thames (346 km). The Thames is the deepest river, London stands on it.  

 Scotland is a land of famous lakes. They are called “Lochs” there. One of the most favourite lakes is The Lock Ness. It attracts millions of tourists by its legendary monster. There are also many lakes in the North of England; this region is called the Lake District. Here you can find many beautiful lakes with green, wooded shores all around, deep valleys, waterfalls and rivers.

             The climate of Great Britain is temperate and mild. The warm waters of Golf Stream influence the climate of the British Isles. The summers are usually cool and rainy. There is much rain and fog in autumn and in winter. Great Britain is a very damp country. 

The UK is a highly developed industrial country. It is the largest producer and importer of machinery, electronics, textile, shipbuilding and aircraft. The largest cities of Great Britain are London, Birmingham, Glasgow, Manchester, Bristol and Edinburgh. 

 The population of the UK is over 57 million people. The British are the English, the Scotts, the Welsh and the Irish. The official language is English. Welsh is spoken in Wales, Gaelic is spoken in Scotland and Irish is spoken in Northern Ireland.

The UK is a parliamentary democracy with a constitutional monarch. The Queen is the Head of the State, but she has no power. The Queen is a symbol of the county’s history and its traditions. The real power in the country belongs to the British Parliament and to the British Government.

The British Parliament has two “houses”. They are the House of Lords and the House of Commons. The House of Lords can offer and change laws. The House of Commons makes laws about the policy of the country, taxes and many other things.

The members of the House of Lords aren’t elected. These members are permanent. The members of the House of Commons are elected. The British people elect 650 members of the House of Commons every five years.

There are 3 main political parties in Great Britain. They are the Labour, the Conservative and the Liberal parties.

The flag of the UK is known as the Union Jack. It is made up of three crosses: the cross of St. George (the saint of England), the cross of St. Andrew (the saint of Scotland) and the cross of St. Patrick (the saint of Ireland).

          The country has also got its national symbols. The national symbol of England is a red rose. The national symbol of Wales is a daffodil. The national symbol of Scotland is a thistle. The national symbol of Ireland is a shamrock.    

          There are many places to visit in the countries.

          Britain is famous for its universities and colleges, such as Cambridge University, Oxford University and Glasgow University.

           One of the remarkable historic places in the UK is famous Stonehenge, which is situated in the Southwest of England. Many tourists come to look at the ruins of Hadrian’s Wall, a stone wall built across the North of England to defend it from the Scottish tribes. Sratford-upon-Avon is connected with English culture: it’s the birthplace of great William Shakespeare

          Scotland is famous for its castles. One of them is situated in Edinburgh. It’s situated on the huge rock that stands high above Edinburgh. Also you can look at Holyrood House, a big royal palace which is the residence of the Queen when she is in Edinburgh.