READING FOR FUN
26 September
European Day of Languages
You can find a lot of useful materials here:
http://edl.ecml.at/Teachers/Teachingmaterials/tabid/3097/language/en-GB/Default.aspx
Interesting Facts about English
in no particular order...
- The most common letter in English is
"e".
- The most common vowel in English is
"e", followed by "a".
- The most common consonant in English is
"r", followed by "t".
- Every syllable in English must have a vowel
(sound). Not all syllables have consonants.
- Only two English words in current use end in
"-gry". They are "angry" and "hungry".
- The word "bookkeeper" (along with its
associate "bookkeeping") is the only unhyphenated English word
with three consecutive double letters. Other such words, like
"sweet-toothed", require a hyphen to be readily readable.
- The word "triskaidekaphobia" means
"extreme fear of the number 13". This superstition is related to
"paraskevidekatriaphobia", which means "fear of Friday the
13th".
- More English words begin with the letter
"s" than with any other letter.
- A preposition is
always followed by a noun (ie
noun, proper noun, pronoun, noun group, gerund).
- The word "uncopyrightable" is the
longest English word in normal use that contains no letter more than once.
- A sentence that contains all 26 letters of the
alphabet is called a "pangram".
- The following sentence contains all 26 letters of
the alphabet: "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog."
This sentence is often used to test typewriters or keyboards.
- The only word in English that ends with the
letters "-mt" is "dreamt" (which is a variant spelling
of "dreamed") - as well of course as "undreamt" :)
- A word formed by joining together parts of
existing words is called a "blend" (or, less commonly, a
"portmanteau word"). Many new words enter the English language
in this way. Examples are "brunch" (breakfast + lunch);
"motel" (motorcar + hotel); and "guesstimate" (guess +
estimate). Note
that blends are
- not the same as compounds or compound nouns, which form when two whole words join together,
for example: website, blackboard, darkroom.
- The word "alphabet" comes from the
first two letters of the Greek alphabet: alpha, bēta.
- The dot over the letter "i" and the
letter "j" is called a "superscript dot".
- In normal usage, the # symbol has several names,
for example: hash, pound sign, number sign.
- In English, the @ symbol is usually called
"the at sign" or "the at symbol".
Some words exist only in plural form, for example: glasses (spectacles), binoculars, scissors, shears, tongs, gallows, trousers, jeans, pants, pyjamas (but note that clothing words often become singular when we use them as modifiers, as in "trouser pocket").- The shortest complete sentence in English is the
following. "I
am."
- The word "Checkmate" in chess comes
from the Persian phrase "Shah Mat" meaning "the king is
helpless".
- We pronounce the combination "ough" in
9 different ways, as in the following sentence which contains them all:
"A rough-coated, dough-faced, thoughtful ploughman strode through the
streets of Scarborough; after falling into a slough, he coughed and
hiccoughed."
- The longest English word without a true vowel (a,
e, i, o or u) is "rhythm".
- The only planet not named after a god is our own,
Earth. The others are, in order from the Sun, Mercury, Venus, [Earth,]
Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune.
- There are only 4 English words in common use
ending in "-dous": hazardous, horrendous, stupendous, and
tremendous.
- We can find 10 words in the 7-letter word
"therein" without rearranging any of its letters: the, there,
he, in, rein, her, here, ere, therein, herein.
- The "QWERTY keyboard" gains its name
from the fact that its first 6 letter keys are Q, W, E, R, T and Y. On
early typewriters the keys were arranged in such a way as to minimize the
clashing of the mechanical rods that carried the letters.
- The following sentence contains seven identical
words in a row and still makes sense. "It is true for all that that that that that that that refers to is not the same that that that
that refers to." (= It is true
for all that, that that "that" which that "that" refers
to is not the same "that" which that "that" refers
to.)
Pancake Day or Shrove Tuesday
Mmm ... did someone say pancakes?! Read about Pancake Day and learn how to make thisdelicious treat for yourself.
Pancake Day or Shrove Tuesday is a special day celebrated in many countries around the world. It is celebrated in English-speaking countries like the UK, Ireland, Australia and Canada. In some countries, like France and the USA, it is called 'Mardi Gras' or 'Fat Tuesday'. In other countries, like Spain, Italy or Brazil, Shrove Tuesday is at the end of Carnival. On this day many people eat pancakes, a thin, flat cake made in a pan.Pancake Day is always on a Tuesday in February or March. It is the day before Ash Wednesday, the start of Lent. Lent is a period of 40 days before Easter when people often give up or stop eating things that are bad for them like chocolate or fast food. At the end of Lent is Easter. Easter takes place on a different date each year because it depends on the moon. Easter Sunday is the first Sunday after the first full moon of spring. Traditionally, during Lent, people didn’t eat rich foods like butter and eggs, so they made pancakes from these ingredients on Shrove Tuesday.
Another tradition on Pancake Day in the UK is pancake racing.People run in a race with a pancake in a pan. As they run, they have to toss the pancake (throw the pancake in the air and catch it in the pan) several times. In some pancake races people dress up in fancy dress costumes.The most famous pancake race takes place in a town called Olney, in the middle of England. People say that Olney has been celebrating pancake races since 1445!
Pancakes are very easy to make. Try our recipe.
Ingredients:
One cup of flour
One cup of milk
One large egg
Some salt
Some butter or oil
Lemon juice
Some sugar
Instructions:
Fill one cup with flour and put into a bowl. Fill another cup with milk and pour into the bowl. Crack the egg into the bowl and whisk the flour, milk and egg until the mixture is smooth. Put a very small amount of butter or oil in a pan, and when it is hot, put some mixture in the pan and move the pan to make a thin pancake. After one minute hold the pan ccarefully and throw or toss the pancake in the air to turn it over. Now cook the pancake on the other side.
When the pancake is ready, squeeze some lemon juice and put some sugar on it and eat it immediately. If you don’t like lemon juice, eat them with jam, chocolate sauce or ice cream. Mmm, delicious!
Read the article about Pancake Day and then do the exercises.
1. Check your understanding: multiple choice
Circle the best answer to these questions.
1. Pancake Day is celebrated in ...
a. the UK and Ireland only.
b. many countries around the world.
c. English-speaking countries only.
2. Another name for Pancake Day is ...
a. Mardi Gras.
b. Lent.
c. Easter Sunday.
3. Traditionally, Lent is a period of 40 days when people ...
a. eat a lot of pancakes.
b. eat rich foods like butter and eggs.
c. don’t eat rich food or food that is bad for you.
4. Easter Sunday is always ...
a. on the same day every year.
b. in spring.
c. on a day with a full moon.
5. In a pancake race everyone ...
a. throws and catches a pancake in a pan.
b. wears a fancy dress costume.
c. eats pancakes before the race.
6. Before you cook the pancake, mix ...
a. milk, butter and sugar.
b. milk, flour and an egg.
c. milk, butter and an egg.
7. Cook the pancake for ...
a. 10-15 minutes.
b. 3-4 minutes.
c. 1-2 minutes.
8. The 'classic' pancake topping is ...
a. sugar and lemon juice.
b. sugar and chocolate.
c. lemon juice and salt.
2. Check your vocabulary: gap fill
Complete the sentences with a word from the box.
Crack pour Fill Whisk
Eat throw move squeeze
1. _______________ one cup with flour and put it into a bowl.
2. Fill another cup with milk and _______________ it into the bowl.
3. _______________ the egg into the bowl.
4. _______________the flour, milk and egg until the mixture is smooth.
5. Put some mixture in the pan and _______________ the pan to make a thin pancake.
6.
After one minute, hold the pan carefully and _______________ the pancake in the air to turn it
over.
7. When the pancake is ready, _______________ some lemon juice and put some sugar on it.
8. _______________ it immediately.
3. Check your grammar: gap fill
Write the words to fill the gaps.
1.Pancake day or Shrove Tuesday is a special day celebrated __________ many countries around the world.
2.In countries like Spain, Italy or Brazil, Shrove Tuesday is __________ the end of Carnival.
3. Pancake Day is always __________ a Tuesday __________ February or March.
4.Lent is a period of 40 days before Easter when people often give __________ things that are bad for them.
5. In some pancake races people dress __________ in fancy costumes.
6. At the end __________ Lent is Easter.
7. Easter takes place on a different date each year because it depends __________ the moon.
8. Pancakes are very easy __________ make.
Chinese New Year
Help your secondary students explore Chinese New Year in a little detail with a series of reading, vocabulary development, listening and speaking activities.
Segment: secondary
Level: intermediate
Materials: handout
Procedure:
1. To introduce the topic, ask students if they know what Chinese New Year (CNY) is and where it is celebrated.
2. Explain that CNY is celebrated around the world, not only in Chinese communities.
3. Put students into pairs. Give each pair the handout and ask them to work in pairs to complete the Chinese New Year Quiz. Set a time limit – 2-3 minutes.
4. Ask each pair to compare their answers with another pair.
5. READING: Ask students to read the text on the handout as quickly as they can – without stopping at unknown words - to check their answers to the quiz.
6. Check the quiz answers at class level.
7. VOCABULARY AND DICTIONARY WORK: Put students into small groups. Ask them to use their dictionary or go to http://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/ to find the meaning of the words in #4.
8. Check the answers, clarifying as necessary, at class level.
9. Ask students to read the text again in pairs and answer the questions in part 5.answers: a. FALSE b. FALSE c. TRUE d. TRUE
10. LISTENING AND SPEAKING: Ask students in groups of three to prepare a brief oral presentation of what they know about Chinese New Year. BUT, they should add two things that are wrong, for example, Chinese New Year is always in May or there is a Year of the Cat. Each group should then make their presentation to at least one other group and see if they can spot the deliberate errors. If you have time, some groups can present to the whole class. This activity encourages students to listen carefully to each other to spot the deliberate errors.
11. Wrap the class up by wishing everyone a happy new year in Mandarin - Xīnnián kuàilè pronounced “sshin-nyen kwhy-ler”.
Note: For higher level classes, the vocabulary stage may be quicker but the presentations more detailed. With lower level classes, the reading and vocabulary stages may take longer – more new words - but the presentations will be shorter.
Chinese New Year
Student Handout
Quiz Time!
1. Answer the following questions in pairs:
a. When is Chinese New Year?b. Is it always on the same date?
c. How is it celebrated?
d. What animals are connected with it?
Bonus question:
e. What sequence are the zodiac animals in?3. Read the text below and check your answers.
An introduction to Chinese New Year
Chinese New Year does not follow the Western calendar. It starts with the new moon between the 21st January and 20th February, so the date is different each year. In 2017 it will be on the 28th January. The celebrations continue for 15 days, but in modern China seven days of holiday from work is normal. Each year is connected to a Chinese zodiac sign. There are twelve of them and here they are in sequence: rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog and pig. 2017 is the year of the rooster. On the first day of Chinese New Year, the gods of heaven and earth are welcomed and evil spirits are scared away with fireworks, burning bamboo sticks, and lots of noise. The dragon dance is also used to scare away these bad spirits. On this first day, some people do not eat meat hoping this will extend their lives. Finally, the other important part of the first day of Chinese New Year is to honour older family members and friends. On New Year’s Eve (the night before the first day of the new year), there is a big meal with family members with a variety of special meat and fish dishes. Numbers are important, too; for good luck, eight individual dishes are served or seven if a family member died that year. Eight is a lucky number in Chinese culture.
Christmas Is Coming
Jigsaw reading: pre-intermediate and above
This activity teaches students about different Christmas customs. Students complete a jigsaw reading, write questions, share information about the custom in their text, and then interview each other about their own traditions. You can point out that, although there is a general custom in each country, not every family in that
country celebrates in the same way.
Instructions for the teacher
1. One way to lead into the topic and get students interested in it is to put up a picture of Father Christmas on the board. Ask students who it is and if they know of any other names for him. Write these on the board (e.g. Santa Claus, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, Sinterklass etc.) Ask students why he has so any different names to initiate a discussion about how different cultures have adopted the idea of Father Christmas, but have different names and customs.
2. Divide the class into three groups, A, B and C. Give text A to each student in group A, text B to each student in group B, and text C to each student in group C. Ask students to read the texts and try to remember the information. They can take some notes to help them remember.
3. Take away the texts. Write on the board: How to they celebrate Christmas in…(Holland, the UK, Poland)? Regroup the students so that each new group has a student from groups A, B and C in it. Ask them to share the information they learned from the text.
4. Keep the students in the groups, and stage a little competition quiz to see what they remember from the text:
What is the name of Father Christmas in Holland?
When does Father Christmas give presents to children in the UK?
When can Polish people start to eat their Christmas meal?
Why do people in Poland have an extra plate?
In What country do people cook food at the table?
Where does the British Father Christmas come from?
What does the Dutch Sinterklass ride?
What do Polish children have to do to get a present?
5. Tell students they are going to interview 3 people about their Christmas traditions. Don’t worry if you have students who all come from the same culture. Each family has different traditions! Ask students to write five
questions about Christmas.
6. Re-group students so they have a new partner. Ask them to interview their partner. Repeat so that each student interviews 3 students.
7. EXTENSION: Students can use the same questions to find out about other cultures using the internet. Give each student or pair of students a country and ask them to research Christmas traditions there. Other questions they might research include: What is Father Christmas called in different countries? How do they celebrate? What do they eat? Here is a suitable site:
http://www.whychristmas.com/cultures
Christmas in the United Kingdom
We put up a Christmas tree with lights and decorations at the beginning of December.We put an angel at the top of the tree and we also have a nativity scene. We put a wreath on the door. We also hang up stockings for Father Christmas to fill. During the month of December, we go to a lot of Christmas parties and invite friends to our house. Music is an important part of Christmas. The radio plays Christmas songs all through December and we go carolling in the village. Christmas day is usually for family, but sometimes we invite
friends, too. We eat our Christmas dinner on Christmas day at around1:00. We usually have a turkey, roast potatoes, vegetables and bread rolls. For dessert we have Christmas pudding, cheese, biscuits and coffee. After dinner we go for a walk around the village.Father Christmas delivers presents for the children on Christmas Eve when everyone is asleep. He comes from Lapland in a sleigh pulled by reindeer. He climbs down the chimney and puts presents in the stockings and under the tree. Children leave milk and a plate of biscuits for Father Christmas to eat. They also leave a carrot for the reindeer. We open our presents on Christmas morning. Presents are an important part of Christmas, so we give lots of presents to our family and friends.
Christmas in Poland
We put up the Christmas tree on Saint Nicholas’s Day on the 6th of December. We put on lights, decorations and at the top we put a star. On this day, Saint Nicholas puts sweets and small gifts into the children’s shoes. We have to take all the decorations down before Kings Day on the 6th of January. Kings Day is also called the 12th Night. It is the day that the three kings found the baby Jesus. Christmas Eve is when we have our big celebration. On Christmas Eve we have a big, traditional meal. It starts as soon as we see the first star in the sky. We always have 12 traditional dishes. We don’t eat meat, but we eat fish. The traditional fish is carp. One of the dishes is a red soup called ‘barszcz z uszkami’ made from beet root with ‘little ears’. The ears are made from flour and eggs and are filled with mushrooms. Everyone has to eat a little bit of every dish. We always prepare an extra plate for an unexpected guest. We start the meal by sharing bread and good wishes with everyone. We go to midnight mass after dinner. Father Christmas usually brings presents while the family is eating dinner, but no one can open the presents until dinner is finished. Sometimes Father Christmas comes after dinner so that he can talk to the children. (Father Christmas is usually a neighbour who has dressed up as Father Christmas for the children). He asks them if they have been good during the year. Sometimes he asks them to sing him a song. Then he gives them a present.
Christmas in Holland
We put up the Christmas decorations two to three weeks before Christmas. We put a star with white or red lights in the front window. When you walk down the street you can see the stars shining in everyone’s windows. It looks very pretty. This is the star of Bethlehem that the kings followed to find the baby Jesus. We also have a Christmas tree and decorations outside the house. On Christmas Eve, many people go to church for midnight mass. After church we eat breakfast at midnight! Christmas day is for the family. In the past, people prepared a big pot of cooking oil. They placed the pot over a fire on the table. Around the pot
were dishes of small pieces of meat, vegetables, and bread. To cook the food, people use a long stick called a skewer. They put the food on the skewer and held it in the hot oil to cook. Now we usually have an electric fire. We cook meat, vegetables and cheese at the table over the electric fire. We call this dish and type of cooking gourmet. We eat for about three hours. Sinterklass comes in a boat from Spain, but he rides a white horse in Holland. On the night of the 5th of December, children put out their shoes near the chimney.
They put some hay and a carrot in their shoe for the horse. Sinterklass puts toys or sweets down the chimney. He has a big book which tells him if the children have been good or bad. Sometimes Sinterklass visits children at school. On Christmas day we give each other a small present and a poem. The poem is a funny story that we write about the person.
Word search puzzles for the reading
texts: pre-intermediate +
Find 10 words about Christmas from “Christmas in the United Kingdom”
Words can go across or down.
r e i n d e e r q n
p r e s e n t s w a
e s l e i g h r t t
a u i w r e a t h i
n p a s d l f g h v
g t u r k e y k l i
e b i s c u i t s t
l c v c h i m n e y
s t o c k i n g s b
e r f t d w m g k d
Write the words here:
__________________
__________________
__________________
__________________
__________________
__________________
__________________
__________________
__________________
__________________
__________________
__________________
Puzzle solved by (name):_________________________________
**************************************************
How many words can you make from the letters in:
Merry Christmas
What is your longest word?
Write the words here.
Complete the sentences about “Christmas in Poland”
1. We put on _______________, decorations and at the top we put a star.
2. Saint Nicholas puts _______________ and small gifts into the children’s shoes.
3. Kings Day is also called the 12th _______________.
4. On Christmas Eve we have a big, traditional _______________.
5. We don’t eat meat, but we eat _______________.
6. We always prepare an extra plate for an unexpected _______________.
7. We go to _______________ mass after dinner.
8. No one can open the _______________ until dinner is finished.
9. _______________ Christmas comes after dinner so that he can talk to the children.
10. Sometimes Father Christmas asks the children to sing him a _______________.
Complete the text about “Christmas in Holland"
On Christmas Eve, many people go to _______________ for midnight mass. After church we eat _______________ at midnight! Christmas day is for the ___________. In the past, people _______________ a big pot of cooking oil. They placed the pot over a _______________ on the table. Around the pot were dishes of small pieces of meat, vegetables, and _______________. To cook the food, people use a long stick called a skewer. They put the food on the skewer and held it in the hot _______________ to cook. Now we usually have an electric fire. We cook meat, vegetables and _______________ at the table over the electric fire. We call this dish and type of cooking _______________. We eat for about _______________ hours.
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