5th form
SAMPLE ANSWERS
Topic 1. Continents
and Countries
The planet we live on is the
Earth. On the Earth you can see land, seas, oceans and continents.
There are five oceans (the
Pacific Ocean, the Atlantic Ocean, the Indian Ocean, the Arctic Ocean, the
Southern Ocean) and six continents. The continents are: Eurasia, Africa, Australia, North America, South
America and Antarctic. There are usually many countries on each
continent. For example there are more than 40 countries in Africa, but there is
only one large country in Australia.
I would like to name some countries from each continent: Russia, Great
Britain, Spain
and Germany are in Europe. China
and India are in Asia. Canada
and the United States are in
America.
Egypt
is an African country.
The largest country in the world is Russia.
The smallest country is the Vatican.
All countries have interesting people, places, animals and plants.
People of different
nationalities live in these countries. They speak different languages. Each
country has its national flag, anthem and its own traditions and customs.
Topic
2. English-Speaking Countries
I think English is the most
popular language nowadays. It has become the most important international
language. People all over the world speak English.
In many countries people
learn English as a foreign language. In such countries as Great Britain, the USA,
Canada, Australia and New Zealand English
is a native language. These are English-speaking countries.
But though they all speak English,
yet it is a little different in each of these countries. People speak American
English in the USA and
British English in Great
Britain. Different words often name the same
things. For example, people live in flats in England
but they live in apartment in America.
They eat cookies and candies in the USA,
but biscuits and sweets in Great
Britain. And I think that’s very interesting
indeed.
Topic
3. The Earth is in danger
People have lived on our planet
for many years. They depend on it, on the sun, on animals and plants around
them. But nowadays the Earth, a lot of wild animals and plants are in danger.
People have hunted and killed
many wild animals. The result is very sad. For example, there are few Indian
tigers and African elephants left on the Earth now.
Some people’s activities do a
lot of harm to the forests. Because of that many animals and plants lose their
homes.
Water is very important for
life. But very little water on the Earth is good for drinking. Even fish die in
dirty water of rivers and lakes.
So, the problem now is how to
protect life on the Earth.
There are a lot of simple
things we could do to save our planet for the future. We mustn’t drop litter in
public places. We must recycle glass, paper, plastic and metal. We must save
electricity, gas and water. We must take care of birds and animals. We can
plant trees and clean rivers and lakes. We must try and help nature.
Topic
4. Great Britain
The United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Northern Ireland is the official name of the state which is
situated in the British
Isles. The UK
consists of four countries: England,
Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Their capitals
are London,
Edinburgh,
Cardiff
and Belfast.
The UK is separated from the continent by the English Channel and the Straits of Dover. The UK is also washed by the Atlantic Ocean in the
north and the North Sea
in the east.
More than 56 million people
live in Britain.
Many of them live in big industrial cities like London.
Everyone in Britain speaks English, but in some parts of Scotland and Wales people speak different
languages as well.
The flag of the United Kingdom
is known as the Union Jack. It is made up of three crosses: the cross of St.
George, the cross of St. Andrew and the cross of St. Patrick.
Topic
5. The Queen and the Parliament
In Britain the Queen is the Head of
State, but in fact she doesn’t rule the country. Though the royal family is
still very important for the country. The Queen is the symbol of the country,
its history and its traditions.
The real power in the country
belongs to the British Parliament and to the British Government. The Parliament
has two houses: the House of Commons and the House of Lords. The House of
Commons is more important as it makes laws. The members of the House of Commons
are elected every five years. The members of the House of Lords are not
elected, they are permanent.
At the beginning of the 20th
century many countries all over the world were part of the British
Empire. Now they are independent countries. But in 1949 Britain and the former colonies founded the
Commonwealth, which includes many countries such as Canada,
Australia, New Zealand and
others. The Queen of the UK
is also the Head of the Commonwealth.
Topic
6. The British way of life
Let’s compare the British way
of life with life on the continent. On the continent people seldom speak about
weather. In England
people repeat the phrase “It’s a nice day today, isn’t it?” two hundred times a
day.
On the continent some people
like cats, others don’t but in England
cats are very special animals. Everyone loves them and takes care of them.
You can offend people on the
continent if you laugh at them or make jokes about their life and work. But the
English accept everything with a sense of humour. You can offend them only if
you tell them they have no sense of humour.
On the continent people have
good food. In England
people have good table manners. Some of them are:
1) You should sit up
straight.
2)
You shouldn’t eat with your fingers.
3)
You shouldn’t put your elbows on the table.
4)
You should put your dirty knife, spoon and fork on
your plate.
5)
You shouldn’t talk with your mouth full.
6)
You shouldn’t lick your fingers.
7)
You should say “Thank you” after the meal.
Topic
7. Health is above Wealth
A proverb says, ‘Health is
above wealth’. I agree with it. I think that we
can buy everything we want if we have money. But we can’t buy health.
So if we want to be healthy we
should take care of our health. We should eat healthy food – fruit, vegetables,
lots of salad, meat, fish and dairy products. We should take regular exercises
to keep fit. In summer we can play volleyball, swim or ride a bicycle. In
winter we can ski or skate.
We should take a cool or cold
shower to keep fit. We should get up early and go to bed early if we want to be
healthy. And we should remember not to smoke or drink alcohol.
Topic 8. British Sports and Games
The
British people like sports and games.
Football is one of the most popular
sports nowadays. It is spread all over the country – in England, Wales,
Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Their national teams compete with each other every year. The Cup Final at
Wembley Stadium in London
is one of the most important football matches of the year.
Cricket is another summer sport. It is
known that people played cricket in England as early as 1550. Nowadays
this summer game is played in schools, colleges and universities and in most
towns and villages of Britain.
Cricket is a very long and slow game. International cricket matches can last
for 5 days.
Tennis, or lawn tennis, is another
popular game in Britain.
It was first played in England
in 1872. Nowadays every summer in June, the British hold their famous
International Tennis Championship at Wimbledon, in west London.
Swimming, boating and sailing have always been popular in Britain and are
enjoyed by thousands of people.
