Lesson I

COUNTRIES AND CITIES

Unit II

(traditions, customs and holidays in Russia and English speaking countries)

prepared by

Elena Teleshova

e-mail: [email protected]

The lesson plan

1. Introduction to the theme (3 min)

2. Pre-reading discussion (10 min)

3. Active vocabulary (10-15 min)

4. Reading text (15-20 min)

5. Reading comprehension (13-18 min)

6. Speaking practice (17-22 min)

7. Homework (1 min)

Introduction

As an introduction to the lesson “My country” for students a teacher may say that there are a lot of countries in the world but there is no country like your Motherland. Moreover it is impossible to know the language without knowing the country where it is spread.

Pre-reading discussion

Ask students to comment on the following proverbs:

East or west home is best.

There is no place like home.

ACTIVE VOCABULARY

Ask students to find Russian equivalents to the following words and word combinations and to pronounce them correctly:

transcontinental adj. crossing the continents трансконтинентальный, пересекающий континент

area n. geographical region of indefinite boundary область, район, местность

mineral and energy resources natural resources in the form of minerals: natural resources producing energy (gas, oil etc.) полезные ископаемые и энергетические ресурсы

border n. a line determining the limits of an area граница

population n. the people who inhabit a territory or state население

vary v. become different различаться

steppes n. huge plain without trees степи

plains n. flat open land равнины

forests n. land that is covered with trees леса

tundra n. vast plain without trees in the arctic regions тундра

taiga n. thick forests in the northern regions тайга

mild adj. soft мягкий

heat n. high temperature жаркий период года

unbearable adj. impossible to bear, to stand невыносимы

moderate adj. not extreme умеренный

continental adj. typical to Europe континентальный

READING TEXT

Ask students to read the text I “Russia” paying attention to pronunciation of the discussed words and word combinations.

READING COMPREHENSION

I.Ask students to find in the text English equivalents for the following Russian phrases.

mineral and energy resources (полезные ископаемые и энергетические ресурсы), ninth-largest (девятый по величине), shares land borders (граничить), the breakup of the Soviet Union (развал Советского Союза), successor state (государство-преемник), devoted to (быть посвященным чему-то), churches and cathedrals (церкви и соборы)

II.Ask students to correct the statements if they find them wrong. Use such phrase as: I agree with you. You are right. or I’m afraid I don’t agree with you. That’s not true/right.

1. TRUE

2. FALSE (It is the largest country in the world.)

3. FALSE (The area of Russia is over 17000000 square kilometers.)

4. FALSE (Russia has the world's ninth-largest population.)

5. FALSE (Because of its size, Russia's climate is also varied.)

III.Ask students to answer the following questions using the text.

1. Russia is situated both in Asia and Europe.

2. Yes, it is. Russia is rich in mineral and energy resources.

3. Yes, it is.Russia is the Soviet Union's successor state.

4. Russia share borders with 17 countries.

5. There are steppes in the south, plains and forests in the midlands, tundra and taiga in the north.

6. Because of its size, Russia's climate is also varied.

7. Russian is the official language of the country

8. Moscow is the capital of Russia, it is Russia’s largest city (. And an important economic and business center.

9. The population of Moscow is 8.3 million people.

10. No, Moscow is not only an economic and business center, its cultural tradition is rich, and there are many museums, churches and cathedrals.

IV. Ask students to divide the text into parts and to entitle them; to add necessary sentences to the entitled parts.

Text plan

1. the territory of Russia; (The country is washed by 12 seas of 3 oceans: the Pacific, the Arctic and the Atlantic. There are over two million rivers in Russia. Europe’s biggest river, the Volga, flows into the Caspian Sea. The world’s deepest lake is Lake Baikal);
2. the political structure of Russia; (Russia is a parliamentary republic. The Head of the state is the President. The legislative powers are exercised by the Duma);
3. the climate of Russia;
4. the Russian language;
5. the capital of Russia. (The capital of Russia is Moscow It is one of the oldest Russian cities.)

V. Ask student to do the Knowledge Quiz about Russia, its history, geography, culture and politics.

1. What is the building where the Russian President lives called?
Kreml (Kremlin)
2. Who was the last Tsar of Russia? Nicholas II Tsar Nicholas II (r. 1894-1917) was the last Tsar of Russia. He was forced to abdicate the throne in February 1917
3. Which Tsar rescued Russia from the Mongols? Ivan I Ivan the First had a brilliant idea to break away from the Mongols. He charged the Muscovites with more tax money than the Mongols demanded. He sent the required money to the Mongols, and kept the remaining tax money. Over a period of time, he was able to hire an army, and had enough men to defeat the Mongols.
4. Ivan the Terrible wasn't always terrible. What positive thing did he bring to Russia after his visit to Europe? The printing press. Ivan loved to read. His greatest past-time was reading. When he went to Europe (around 1556) he saw that they had invented the printing press. He brought that back to Russia, along with the new teachings of music to the schools.
5. Boris Gudonov was one of the few rulers of Russia who wasn't of Russian origin. Of what origin was he? Tatar-Mongol According to the legend his ancestors originated from the Tatar knyaz Chet. Ivan the Terrible died in 1584. His weaker son, Fedor ruled for a short while. He died soon after. Gudonov was left in control of Russia. Although the boyars originally disliked him because of his origin, they soon changed their opinions about him. Gudonov had an excellent mind-set for diplomatic relations with foreign countries. Among other non-Russian leaders were Catherine the Great (German), and Alexandra Romanov (Wife of Nicholas II, and she was also German.)
6. In 1887 something tragic thing happened in Vladimir Lenin's life. His brother was charged with Tsaricide (an attempt to assasinate the Tsar.) What was the full name of Lenin's brother? Answer: Alexander Ulyanov & Alexander Ulianov & Alexander Ilich Ulyanov. (Two Words) Alexander Ulyanov was charged with an attempt to assasinate Alexander III. The Tsar was extremely fond of peasants, but he was a known Jew-hater. He ruled by martial law, and made counter reforms, which gave the government control over the subjects taught in college. Since Ulyanov was a college student, these reforms intruded on his school work.
7. Situated on the Lena River in the far east of Siberia and the second coldest city in the world, many dissidents were exiled here during the communist era? Yakutsk Kazan Volgograd Vladivostok
8. Known as Sverdlovsk during most of the 20th century, this city was the infamous site of the execution of Czar Nicholas and his family in 1918? Mumansk Yekaterinburg Nizhni Novgorod St. Petersburg
9. Named from a Sami word meaning 'the edge of the earth' this is the largest city inside the arctic circle and Russia's only major ice-free port in the west? Murmansk Vladivostok St. Petersburg Novosibirsk
10. Known as 'Stalingrad' during much of the communist era, this city was destroyed during World War II and represented the farthest point of the German advance? Volgograd St. Petersburg Moscow Nizhni Novgorod
11. Situated on Russia's Pacific coast, this city has been a major port and naval base and was occupied by Japanese troops after the Russian Revolution until 1922? Yakutsk Vladivostok Novosibirsk Murmansk
12. Founded originally on the Volga River by Mongol invaders and nowadays capital of the Tatarstan Republic, this city was a source of trouble for a succession of Russian administrations until finally subdued in 1774? Noril'sk Nizhni Novgorod Kazan Yakutsk
13. Known as 'Gorky' during the communist era and long a centre of trade and commerce, this city is located at the confluence of the Volga and Oka Rivers and is one of the largest cities in Russia? Novosibirsk Nizhni Novgorod Chelyabinsk Rostov
14. Name the highly revered 19th century writer who is praised in the phrase, “________ is our everything.” Alexander Pushkin In Russia, Pushkin holds a status that is unparalleled by any writer in American culture. Among his numerous works are: “Eugene Onegin,” a novel in verse; “The Queen of Spades,” on which Tchaikovsky based an opera; and the epic poem, “The Bronze Horseman.”
15. Which of the following is not considered one of Nikolai Gogol’s Petersburg Tales? Viy The Petersburg Tales also include “The Portrait” and “Diary of a Madman.”
16. Which of the following biblical characters does not appear in “Master and Margarita” by Mikhail Bulgakov? Peter The novel alternates between contemporary (early Soviet period) Moscow and Jerusalem in the time of Christ. Bulgakov gives his interpretation of the arrest of Jesus, his trial before Pilate, and the death of Judas, but does not mention the apostle Peter.
17. Name the Russian-born author of “The Gift” and “Pale Fire,” who spent much of his life writing in America and Switzerland. Vladimir Nabokov Nabokov was teaching at Cornell when he wrote his most well-known novel, “Lolita,” in 1955.
	18. How many Russian/Soviet writers were awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature during the 20th century? 5 In the 20th century, there were five Russian Nobel laureates: Ivan Bunin (1933), Boris Pasternak (1958-declined), Mikhail Sholokhov (1965), Alexander Solzhenitsyn (1970), and Joseph Brodsky (1987).
19. What countries border on Russia? In the south? In the west? In the east? Answer: It covers the eastern part of Europe and the northern part of Asia. In the south Russia borders on China, Mongolia, Korea, Kazakhstan, Georgia and Azerbaijan. In the west it borders on Norway, Finland the Baltic states, Belorussia, the Ukraine, it has a sea-border with the USA. (17 countries)
20 What is the population of Russia? 142 ml

Speaking practice

Ask students to discuss the topic “Russia” with their partners using newly learnt words and introduce their final work to the class. Ask them to discuss the territory of Russia; the climate of Russia; the capital of Russia and its cities: the political situation of Russia; Russian contribution to the world’s literature, using newly learnt words.

Дата добавления: 2014-12-23