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Voices in the Mist

The time draws near the birth of Christ:
The moon is hid; the night is still;
The Christmas bells from hill to hill
Answer each other in the mist.
Four voices of four hamlets round,
From far and near, on mead and moor,
Swell out and fail, as if a door
Were shut between me and the sound:
Each voice four changes on the wind,
That now dilate, and now decrease,
Peace and goodwill, goodwill and peace,
Peace and goodwill, to all mankind.
Alfred Lord Tennyson

MERRY CHRISTMAS!
декабрь
1september.ru
2013
АНГЛИЙСКИЙ ЯЗЫК Подписка по каталогу “Почта России”. Индексы: 79002 (бумажная версия), 12630 (электронная)
 INSIDE
TEACHERS FORUM выходит
Spirit of Christmas ..................................3 1 раз в месяц Издание основано в 1992 г.

Are Children Given Too Many Toys? ......3 Главный редактор: Алёна Громушкина
Консультанты: Stephen Lapeyrouse, Erin Bouma
METHODS OF TEACHING Научный редактор: Г.Гумовская
The Mystery of One ...............................5 Корректура: М.Гардер
Набор, верстка: Г.Струкова
Фонетическая битва
ИЗДАТЕЛЬСКИЙ ДОМ “ПЕРВОЕ СЕНТЯБРЯ”
на уроке английского языка .................. 7 Главный редактор
Debates: The Internet – А.Соловейчик (генеральный директор)
Коммерческая деятельность
Are We Really All United? ................... 8 К.Шмарковский (финансовый директор)
Развитие, IT и координация проектов
CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES С.Островский (исполнительный директор)
Реклама, конференции и техническое обеспечение
Рождество и Новый год ...................... 12 П.Кузнецов
Производство
Activities for a Christmas Party.............. 15 С.Савельев
Административно-хозяйственное обеспечение
Любимые праздники детей..................16 А.Ушков
Педагогический университет
Christmas Worksheet ............................19 В.Арсланьян (ректор)

Christmas Quiz ....................................19 ГАЗЕТА ИЗДАТЕЛЬСКОГО ДОМА:

Первое сентября – Е.Бирюкова
Christmas Acrostic Poem ..................... 20
ЖУРНАЛЫ ИЗДАТЕЛЬСКОГО ДОМА:
New Year Role Play ............................ 20 Английский язык – А.Громушкина,
Библиотека в школе – О.Громова,
LESSON PLANS Биология – Н.Иванова,
География – О.Коротова,
Christmas Traditions ............................. 21 Дошкольное образование – Д.Тюттерин,
Здоровье детей – Н.Сёмина,
CREATIVE WRITING Информатика – С.Островский,
Искусство – О.Волкова,
Christmas Journal Writing Topics...........23 История – А.Савельев,
Классное руководство
GOOD NEWS и воспитание школьников – М.Битянова,
Литература – С.Волков,
Every Day Is Christmas ....................... 24 Математика – Л.Рослова,
Начальная школа – М.Соловейчик,
TOPICAL JOURNEY Немецкий язык – М.Бузоева,
ОБЖ – А.Митрофанов,
Christmas ............................................ 27 Русский язык – Л.Гончар,
Спорт в школе – О.Леонтьева,
SCHOOL THEATRE Технология – А.Митрофанов,
Управление школой – Е.Рачевский,
Cinderella ........................................... 39 Физика – Н.Козлова,
Французский язык – Г.Чесновицкая,
Веселое Рождество ............................ 42 Химия – О.Блохина,
Школа для родителей – Д.Тюттерин,
Christmas in Ozland .............................45 Школьный психолог – И.Вачков
TESTS
Подписные индексы
Christmas Test..................................... 49 По каталогу Почта России:
бумажная версия 79002; электронная версия 12630
Five-Minute Tests ............................... 49
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Отпечатано в ОАО “Первая Образцовая типография”
Christmas Memories .............................53 Филиал “Чеховский Печатный Двор”
ул. Полиграфистов, д. 1, Московская область, г. Чехов, 142300
A Christmas Tale ..................................54 Сайт: www.chpd.ru. E-mail: sales@chpk.ru
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 TEACHERS FORUM English

ARE CHILDREN GIVEN 3

December 2013

Spirit of Christmas TOO MANY TOYS?

Retailers are starting to gear up to sell the latest
generation of Christmas toys, but some campaign-
ers are advocating a change in attitude. Do some
Western children have too many toys, asks Joanne
Furniss.
I stood in the playroom holding an empty suitcase.
“Bah, humbug,” said Scrooge and shut the door on
We were emigrating and could only pack a few toys
Christmas. Like the misanthrope in A Christmas Carol by
to keep us going until the rest arrived by ship months
Charles Dickens, I find myself wanting to avoid Christ-
later.
mas, with its sentimentality and tinsel.
In went the Story Cubes – ingenious picture dice that
In England, my brother Michael is the exact opposite.
inspire stories, drawings or full-scale theatrical produc-
He’s dreaming of snow and counting the days to Christ-
tions. Both kids are “crafty”, so in go pom-poms, pipe
mas. In the narrow streets of York, he’s doing his Christmas
cleaners and paper punches. Next, a kingdom of animal
shopping, searching for exotic little stocking fillers (small
figurines marches two-by-two into the case.
presents to go in the Christmas stocking) – hand cream
I subject the rest to an eligibility test before I transport
with hibiscus and honey; soap with citrus and saffron.
them half way round the world from Switzerland to Sin-
I wish he wouldn’t; I wish he’d stop it. I keep suggesting
gapore – has either child shown the slightest interest in
we mark Christmas by giving our money to charity instead.
the toy in the past month?
Our motivation is the same but our approaches differ.
We both remember the intensely happy Christmases
of childhood, when we put up the Christmas tree to the
sound of carols on the radio, woke early to open pres-
ents from Santa Claus and feasted on Mum’s delicious,
fruit-stuffed Christmas cake. Now adults, we still want to
honour Christmas, but how?
Michael believes in tradition. Annually, he tries to rec-
reate the magic. I know there’s a fine line between tradi-
tion and habit; that magic cannot be manufactured and
repeated. I would rather keep the memory of past joys
than deaden Christmas, the holy time of wonder, good-
will and redemption.
And so this year I’ll be alone in Moscow on Christmas
Day, 25 December. I’ll be at work, on duty, giving my col-
league the chance of a Christmas holiday with his young
An ancient game of Pass the Pigs passes muster.
daughters. They say Christmas is for children and it’s true.
A bucket of unisex Duplo and then, after a tantrum, a
Celebration will come for me but it’s not a date in my
second bucket of pink Duplo. At the last minute, I spot
diary. I go with the flow. I am open to fresh delight.
a “snakes and ladders” game that my son enjoys (pro-
I learnt
lear
learnt
ntt tthi
h s wi
hi
this ith
withhm myy Ru
R ssia
Russian iaan husband Vitaly, when his
vided he gets to take all the turns).
ch
chil
hiilldr
dren
children ren
nw weree e sm
er maalll.
small.l. H
Hee wa
w
was as ddivorced and we could not
But the rest has not been touched in a month – and
aalways
allw
waays y have access to his kids on
the shelves are still packed with dolls and jigsaws and
theeiir birthdays or New Year.
th
their
trains and kazoos and knitted muffins and the emer-
O
Ou
Our happiness was sponta-
gency vehicles of several nations and enough wooden
n
neous. It happened when it
blocks to build a bridge to Singapore.
happened.
So why do we have so many toys?
This is not to belit-
Psychologist Oliver James, author of the parenting
tle the yearning of my
book Love Bombing, believes children don’t “need” a
brother, offering the
vast panoply of toys.
gifts of his heart – an
“Most children need a transition object,” said James,
e
echo down the ages of
“their first teddy bear that they take everywhere. But ev-
th
he gold, frankincense and
the
erything else is a socially generated want.”
m r that the kings brought
my
myrrh
It seems we are keen to generate our children’s
t the
to t crib.
wants – the Toy Retailers Association reports that the
A of us are children,
All
British alone spend £3bn each year on toys.
eve the old miser Scrooge,
ev
even
At London’s V&A Museum of Childhood, Catherine
whh had really only lost the
w
who
Howell oversees a collection that includes a 400-year-
ccoon
connection to his boyhood.
old rocking horse and Buzz Lightyear. She agrees that
In our
In o different ways, we try
children typically have far more toys than any previous
too carry
car
ar the light and keep alive
generation.
tth
he Christ-child
the Ch
Ch within.
continued on p. 4
Helen Womack
 English TEACHERS FORUM

4
December 2013
But while spin-off mer-
chandising has been a
huge hit ever since Star
Wars figures appeared in
the 1970s, Howell says
The Toy-Tree Nursery
traditional toys like dolls
• In 1990s two German
and building blocks have
researchers, Elke Schu-
retained a consistent popu-
bert and Rainer Strick
larity. “A child always comes
conducted experiment
back to a set of bricks be-
where toys were taken
cause it allows them to use
away from Munich nurs-
their imagination.”
ery for three months
According to James,
• After short period, re-
toys that pre-determine
searchers say children
play – and this is especially
re-adjusted and their
true of merchandising – offer limited possibili- elties – more toys could actually make them
play became more social
ties for fun. So while Buzz Lightyear can only more selfish.
and creative
ever be a space ranger, a doll might become Joshua Becker, a father of two who writes
• Schubert and Strick
a hungry baby, a tea party guest – or a space about how to simplify both home and lifestyle,
wrote up their findings in
ranger – depending on the child’s desires. says: “People co-operate better and share
book, Der Spielzeugfreie
These prescriptive toys could even be damag- when resources are limited, and the same is
Kindergarten (The Toy-
ing, says James. “Young children discover their true for children.”
Free Nursery)
identity through fantasy play. If their toys offer a This minimalism extends to the whole Beck-
limited repertoire, this process is eroded.” er family, with the kids given a confined space
It is the “play value” that is most important, to store their toys, forcing them to adopt a “one
says Liat Hughes Joshi, author of Raising Chil- in, one out” policy.
dren: the Primary Years. “There are enormous He sees his kids “filling their time with cre-
benefits to toys – they bring joy, creativity and ativity” – taking their scooters to the park, prac-
learning.” tising baseball and football, inviting friends
She sees three factors that make a brilliant over to play with dolls, and devising art proj-
toy: “Social value – a dolls’ house allows chil- ects. In addition, he says, they develop longer
dren to play together, versatility – Lego bricks attention spans, take better care of their pos-
can be made into anything, and durability – sessions and grow more resourceful.
such as a wooden train track that the child will Crucially, Becker hopes these habits will
use for years.” last a lifetime. “The children realise they don’t
have to conform and be consumed by consum-
But how many toys is too many? erism.”
Those who advocate fewer toys say it is In his book Affluenza, James outlines how
not just the nature but also the sheer number the populations of the UK and the US suffer a
that threaten to overwhelm our children. And high degree of emotional distress related to the
for parents who think that sibling rivals will kind of materialism that Becker rejects. Mean-
bicker less if they have a wide choice of nov- while, residents of continental Europe are only
half as likely to be plunged into misery by their
frustrated desire for more stuff.
Is it a coincidence that the educational cul-
tures of mainland Europe promote real-life
learning experiences? The forest playgroup
– or Waldspielgruppe – is a rite of passage in
Switzerland, where I lived for seven years.
Starting at age three, my kids toddled off
to nail their lumberjack skills with normal-
sized hammers and saws. They built fires,
cooked food and collected soggy pine cones.
There was not a toy in sight. Just contented
children – and a wealth of pine cone-themed
ornaments.
Now that Swiss cold-snaps have been re-
placed by Singaporean monsoons, I’m grateful
I didn’t leave all the toys behind. Maybe the
kids don’t need them – but their busy parents
do. The move forced us (willingly) to minima-
lise, and with all those empty packing boxes
waiting to be colonised, we’re not short of ways
to play more with less.

A selection of toys in Joanne Furniss’s home Source: BBC News


THE MYSTERY
OF ONE
Depending on the structure of our own na-
tive language, we EL teachers can usually
pinpoint some grammar aspects of the English
language which may prove to be difficult for our
students. Articles will probably head the list for
some countries. For example, both in Russian
and in Japanese, there are no articles at all.
Consequently, students may either leave them
out altogether, or use them on a fifty-fifty basis,
or make some mistakes in their usage.
What makes this theme even more difficult
is the fact that there are almost no noun cat-
egories without exceptions to the rule. “Do not
use any articles before a city or town name”, we
may instruct. What about the Hague? We may
find the explanation for the place name, but we
cannot explain why this particular town’s name
is to be preceded by the definite article, if all
the others are not.
The Passive Voice, the Modals, the Con-
ditionals… Can we really name at least one
tense form, or one mood which does not cause
problems? And let us not forget about phonet-
ics. Teaching one’s students how to pronounce
“th” or any long vowel may be a continuous
nightmare.
There are also a few little things which
sometimes escape notice, yet which are very
important. One of them is the little word “ONE”.
It can be a noun, an adjective or an indefinite
pronoun.
• As a numeral, ONE is probably among the
very first words a child learns in any language.
We teach our class how to count, and give
them simple exercises to memorize the words.
And so they all remember that “one” means 1,
single.
• Another meaning of ONE is “only”; it is
usually preceded by the definite article: the
one man (= the only man) who can do it.
• ONE may mean a single element in a
group of people or objects: I only need one of
those.
These examples demonstrate the usage of
ONE in the meaning, one, single, 1. Students
recognize it and if necessary, translate it as
ONE.
• ONE also often means a person, used
when the speaker wants to generalize, or does
not want to use a name or personal pronoun:
One should not talk at a written exam.
In Russian, such phrases are translated im-
personally, that is, there is no pronoun, no sub-
ject proper; the construction is totally different.
We cannot translate it back into English be-
cause there are no analogues. When students
METHODS OF TEACHING English
5
December 2013
try to translate any such sentence beginning
with ONE, using the familiar meaning single,
1, they get lost.
• ONE may mean an item; it is often used
instead of a noun:
1) I’m going to buy some rolls for breakfast.
– Can you buy me one?
2) Which dress do you like best? – The red
one.
3) This item (use any noun here) is broken!
– Get a new one!
It is such a familiar, such a simple phrase in
English, yet it creates a host of difficulties for
a Russian learner of English. While it is possi-
ble to understand the first example even if one
does a direct translation and says single, 1 (one
roll), the second example becomes practically
senseless if a student tries to incorporate both
“red” and “one” into a translation. And example
3 may leave them completely perplexed.
No, we teachers do not mentally translate
every single phrase from English into Russian,
but students often do. It takes a long time for
them to achieve the level of English, and the
level of understanding, before they realize that
it is not necessary to translate every word from
the target language into their native language,
in order to understand it well.
What do we do with ONE in such cases? I
usually teach my students that it is best not to
translate it at all, just omit it, which is grammati-
cally correct in their native language.
• ONE is often used when we mean a specif-
ic person or thing: he/she/it is the one I mean/
not the one I mean.
An illustration of any sort, be it a story, a video
clip, a picture, will help your students to under-
stand and remember any difficult topic. When
I was eight, my elementary school EL teacher
told us a story about the Queen of Great Britain,
which I often use with my own students. The
Queen, she said, uses “We” when she makes a
statement, as in, “We the ruler of this realm”. Be-
ing a very polite and modest person, she uses
“One” when speaking of herself, as in, “One had
to memorize a lot of people’s names as a prin-
cess”. We were charmed. We understood the
concept: a princess needs to learn things, too.
We realized that one should not always shout
“I!” where an impersonal construction could be
used. Most importantly, we learned that this fa-
miliar little word, ONE, may have several mean-
ings, and carried the knowledge with us through
life. Many teachers know how difficult, and even
next to impossible it is to make a student accept
and remember a new concept after they had al-
 English METHODS OF TEACHING
6
December 2013
ready memorized a certain meaning or form. If
they recognize the word ONE only as meaning
single (1), the phrase, “One should continue de-
veloping one’s language skills even when one
has reached an advanced level” will remain a
mystery.
One More Little Thing
THING is one of the fundamentals, one of
the mainstays of any vocabulary. When we are
at a loss for a word or do not know the name of
an object, this is what we say, as in, “Can you
give me that thing please?” It is also one of the
first words a learner memorizes, usually in its
primary meaning, “object”. Once it is assimi-
lated, it is very hard to change the perception,
and to explain the difference in its usage. When
students begin to read and to understand the
gist of a book or a film, they bring in examples
which they find baffling, partly because they
have not reached the professional level yet,
and still tend to mentally translate everything
from English into their native language. Thus,
every single lexical unit needs an equivalent,
yet very often, there aren’t any.
For a Russian learner of English, THING
presents two major problems. One is purely
phonetical: since in Russian, there is neither
/th/ nor /ing/, they would often mispronounce
it and say “sin”. As a consequence, though
they always recognize it in writing, they may
not identify it in oral speech. This problem is
solved by training, and by listing numerous ex-
amples which show the importance of the cor-
rect pronunciation.
The other problem is connected to the
meanings of this versatile polysemous word.
While in English, it is necessary to use “thing”
in various contexts, in Russian, either a differ-
ent word is used, one that does not mean “ob-
ject”; or one requires no words in many cases.
And so students may get stuck when faced
with some common phrases:
• Things have changed
• Things aren’t what they used to be
• The first (good, bad, main etc.) thing is
• It comes to the same thing
• One little thing
• The right (wrong) thing to do
• A thing or two
We can continue the list practically ad infini-
tum.
And then, of course, we come across multiple
examples where THING means a person.
• The bright young thing
• The poor thing
• You horrible thing
• The old thing is still quite sharp
The latter sentence actually presents a host of
difficulties, since it can be used both for objects
and for people. It is a good instance of helping
students realize that the context is important for
understanding. If a passage they are reading is
a description of, say, knives, then “thing” means
an object. If it is a characteristic of an old man or
woman, then “thing” is used instead of “person”.
Is it at all possible to simply evade the word
when speaking, and substitute the ones that
are meant, like the names of objects and/or
people? Yes and no. I’ve had a few students
who were adept at omitting all the problem
sounds wherever possible, thus eliminating
the need to use “thing” in most cases. Their
speech lacked spontaneity, and sounded a
bit too formal occasionally. “I am sorry it hap-
pened to you” instead of “You poor thing!” is
perfectly understandable and grammatically
correct. It does not hinder communication.
But in order to understand the person one
is listening and speaking to, one should really
be able to use the basics correctly. “That thing
you are saying? One usually doesn’t”, said an
American lecturer to a group of Russian EL
teachers. Their faces were a study in perplex-
ity. I would suggest that my readers decipher
his meaning, and offer this neat little phrase to
their students at a lesson.
By Nina M. Koptyug, Ph.D.,
Novosibirsk

ФОНЕТИЧЕСКАЯ БИТВА
на уроке английского языка
Занятия по фонетике часто сводятся к по-
вторению тех или иных звуков или их комбина-
ций вслед за учителем. Это, безусловно, необ-
ходимая часть фонетического практикума, но
не исчерпывает всех возможностей учителя.
Мы предлагаем учебную карточную игру “Фо-
нетическая битва”, разработанную для закре-
пления материала по теме “Чтение гласных.
Открытый и закрытый слоги”. Для успешного
участия в игре учащимся необходимо уметь
распознавать виды слогов, каждый раз читая
слова на своих карточках, а также следить за
действиями других участников, что обеспечи-
вает внимательное отношение к материалу.
Для игры необходим набор из 54 карточек.
Мы рекомендуем взять следующие слова:
all, bad, bag, ball, bed, big, bike, bite, cake, call,
chalk, computer, cucumber, dislike, dog, duck,
duty, free, get, go, grandchildren, hall, he, hi, hot,
hotel, hug, I, lake, lampshade, like, location, mall,
mat, mix, napkin, no, parrot, pencil, pilot, pupil,
rename, reset, rewrite, robot, rose, same, she,
sit, stone, sunset, take, tall, top.
Выбор слов обусловлен необходимостью
равномерно распределить количество при-
меров с открытыми и закрытыми слогами, а
также особенностями правил игры. В табли-
це те же слова распределены в соответствии
с фонетическими принципами. Обратите
внимание, что одно и то же слово в таблице
повторяется несколько раз, если в нем есть
несколько гласных звуков. В этой связи для
изготовления набора лучше пользоваться
словами по алфавиту, приведенными выше.
Правила игры: Каждый игрок вначале
игры получает из набора 5 карточек в произ-
вольном порядке. Первый игрок кладет кар-
точку с любым словом или несколько карто-
чек с одним и тем же звуком (например, top
и log). Второй игрок должен покрыть эти кар-
точки словами с той же буквой, но противопо-
ложным – открытым или закрытым – слогом
(например, go на top). Он также имеет право
перевести ход на третьего игрока, используя
Таблица. Состав учебного набора
Буква Открытый слог
Aa lampshade, cake, lake, location, same, take,
[ei] [æ] rename
Ii dislike, hi, bite, bike, I, like, rewrite, pilot
[ai] [i]
Ee reset, rename, he, rewrite, free, she
[i:] [e]
Oo robot, location, hotel, stone, rose, no, go
[əu] [o]
Uu cucumber, duty, pupil, computer
[ju:] [A]
Особое чтение гласных: tall, mall, hall, call, ball, chalk, all
METHODS OF TEACHING English
7
December 2013
слово с тем же звуком (например, not). Если
ход переведен, то третьему игроку необходи-
мо покрыть все предыдущие карточки или, в
свою очередь, перевести ход.
Помимо этого, игроки могут подкидывать
односложные слова со всеми звуками, кото-
рые участвуют в данном раунде, при этом ко-
личество передаваемых карточек не должно
превышать того количества, которое есть у
отбивающегося. Важное ограничение заклю-
чается в том, что подкидывать карточку или
переводить ход можно только с односложны-
ми словами.
В игре предусмотрена особая группа слов,
где “a” читается перед “l” как “o”. Это рассма-
тривается как особый случай, и такие карточ-
ки могут покрыть любые другие (по аналогии
с традиционной карточной игрой их можно
назвать козырями). Сами эти карточки можно
Фото автора.
покрыть либо аналогичными, либо любыми
многосложными словами.
После каждого раунда игроки добирают
снова до 5 карт.
В игре есть ряд многосложных слов, кото-
рые можно применять в разных игровых си-
туациях, используя любой из слогов. В одном
слове может быть одна и та же буква в откры-
том и закрытом слоге (например, dislike) или
разные буквы (например, grandchildren). Такие
карточки целесообразно беречь для обороны,
но если начинать с них ход, то защищающий-
ся вправе выбрать, какой из звуков он хочет
покрыть. Все эти ограничения обеспечивают
динамичную игру, не давая карточкам нако-
питься в руках одного участника. Выигрывает
тот, у кого к концу игры не остается карт.
Практика показывает, что ребята с интере-
сом включаются в игру, быстро вникают в пра-
вила и начинают поправлять друг друга, все
время произнося при этом слова. Активная
позиция игроков дает возможность закрепить
правила чтения гласных в открытом и закры-
том слогах за три-четыре игры.
Пётр Степичев,
к.п.н, доцент ИИЯ МГПУ
Закрытый слог
lampshade, bag, bad, mat, napkin,
grandchildren, parrot
dislike, pupil, mix, big, sit, pencil, napkin,
grandchildren
reset, sunset, bed, get, pencil,
grandchildren
robot, parrot, pilot, hot, top, dog, computer
cucumber, sunset, hug, duck
 English METHODS OF TEACHING
8
December 2013
THE INTERNET – ARE WE REALLY ALL UNITED?
INTRODUCTION.
DO DEBATES HELP TO IMPROVE SPEECH?
Nowadays the ability to speak English and to express
one’s thoughts in a correct way has become one of the most
important goals of teaching English. It’s obvious that to be
successful a person needs to (and has to) communicate with
people from other countries. We’re lucky enough to have
English as an international language. It’s easy to learn, some-
times it’s even fun to study English at school and courses.
But as a teacher of English, I see a problem in this sphere:
in Russia we don’t have a real opportunity to practice Eng-
lish outside school or courses, i.e. there are few native speak-
ers in our country. Students can’t just go out to the streets and
speak English with whoever they like. The situation is dif-
ferent in Europe, where it’s much easier to practice language
outside a classroom.
Unfortunately, short foreign trips cannot help Russian stu-
dents much, either for many reasons. To my mind, the only
way out of this dilemma is to give them the chance to speak
English at school as much as possible.
So I suggest we should use debating during or after our
lessons. In short, debating is a great opportunity to speak out
in English, to listen to other teens and to share opinions.
Debate is an academic argument held following certain
rules which are: 1) respect your opponent; 2) first listen,
then speak; 3) be prepared with arguments and counter-argu-
ments; 4) be ready to ask and answer questions; 5) always be
polite. The main aim is to persuade the jury (which, in class,
is the teacher) that their opinion is the only right one.
The process of argumentation is quite attractive to teen-
agers. They always show a high level of motivation during
debates even if they don’t have enough lexis or grammar
structures in their active use.
I have tried conducting debates with the students of the
8th, the 9th and the 10th grades, and all of them show interest
in such tasks. So let me provide a lesson plan with 10th grade
students. The topic was chosen through discussion and vot-
ing. The process and the preparation will be shown below.
1. Aims of the series of lessons on debating:
• to practice oral speech in English;
• to use the words and grammar structures on topic;
• to learn how to cooperate with and to oppose group-
mates;
• to learn how to express an opinion and give arguments
supporting it;
• to learn how to ask tricky questions and to give answers to
them;
• to research the debate topic on the Internet.
2. Process
1st stage – to research the topic.
At this stage, students with the help of the teacher re-
search as much information on the topic as possible. In “the
Internet” topic we include diagrams and charts, tables and
quotes about the Worldwide Web. For example, students
may find research data on the number of Internet users by
countries, the number of teenagers using the Internet in
Russia or other countries, and the main purposes of surfing
the Internet, etc.
The next step is to divide the class into two teams who
are pro and con on the issue. In other words, students should
answer the question of the topic “Are we really all united via
the Internet?” Those who support the idea and whose answer
is ‘yes’ go the “Government” team. Those who answer ‘no’
go to the “Opposition” team. Both teams choose their leader
(or main speaker).
The trickiest moment at this stage is to involve all the stu-
dents, not only the speakers. So the teacher should distribute
tasks to other members of the teams, such as to collect the
research data, to provide arguments for the speaker and to
prepare questions to challenge the opposing team (see Ap-
pendix 1).
It’s obvious that the “Government” team should find ar-
guments to prove that the Internet is really useful for all
people and that it helps all of us to unite. And the “Op-
position” team should develop arguments to prove that the
Internet, on the contrary, destroys real communication and
separates people.
My students have developed their arguments as fol-
lows.
“Government”:
• The Internet really makes our life easier. We can search
for necessary information; we can read books, watch TV
and movies. Our possibilities are unlimited!
• When you are depressed, you just need to take some sim-
ple steps and talk to anyone who is able to understand
you. And it really helps!
• One can find people who are on the same wave-length or
have the same hobby.
• We share news every day, and the Internet is the perfect
place to do it.
• Shopping via Internet also unites people. And it’s hard
to disagree with the fact that when you buy some-
thing from another person, e.g. on E-bay, you get to
know each other and it’s a possibility not only to save
money, but also it’s a chance that you’ll make another
friend.
• The Internet helps you to be a person of the world, by
which we mean find international relationships in every-
day life. You may live in Russia, but have a lot of friends
from other countries. You can learn many foreign lan-
guages or just improve your English.
• Nowadays the Internet is the primary and fastest way to
get in touch with people. It’ll take only a second to deliver
your mail or your call via Skype to a person no matter
where they live!

“Opposition”
• Nobody would deny that one can easily find necessary
information on the Internet. But what sort of information
is it? Does anyone check it? Is it verifiable? We doubt that,
as online information has usually not gone through the
same checks as newspaper articles or books.
• We have all got accounts in various social networks. But
are you sure that your personal information won’t be ac-
cessible to just anyone? No one wants their personal pho-
tos to become public.
• Your money can be easily stolen via the Internet, as you
have to type your passwords into different sites. Nowa-
days it’s not a problem to find out your passwords and
bank account numbers to steal all your money.
• People choose false names, create false personal profiles
and are free to say whatever they like with the anonymity
of the Internet. They often speak very bad and immoral
things, partly because they are hidden behind a false iden-
tity. Besides, few people would ever say such unaccept-
able things in reality under their true names.
• It’s harmful for your mental and physical to spend so
much time chained to the computer. You would do better
to go outside and breathe fresh air or listen to birds sing-
ing instead of spoiling your eyesight and bones.
• The Internet has its own language which is different from
the language all of us speak in real life. Besides that, “cy-
berspace” is another life and another time, and very often
a person may lose themselves there.
• If people spend a lot of time on the Internet, they lose the
desire and ability to help other people, to support them in
difficult situations. As a result, they lose emotional touch
with their friends and become social outcasts because
helping others is an essential part of every person’s life.
• After spending a lot of time surfing the Internet and chat-
ting there, some people get angry and rude and may start
to bully others, as it is considered a normal way of in-
teracting there. Also people, especially teenagers, become
very nervous, as the Internet can seriously hurt people’s
feelings.
• It’s no longer necessary to go out of one’s flat or house
even to get food, as one can easily order food on the Inter-
net and it’ll be delivered directly to your door. As a result,
instead of growing closer, people become isolated, lose
friends and have serious problems with their physical and
mental health.
At the 1st stage, the teams also have to write speeches us-
ing linking words and the logical structure of an essay. In
their speeches, they have to introduce their opinion, enumer-
ate their arguments to support it and to draw conclusions to
prove their opinion is correct one. If students wish, they may
also make a slide-show with the pictures or diagrams they
METHODS OF TEACHING English
9December 2013
have found, proving their argument. When all the speeches
are prepared and checked by the teacher, the slide-show is
made and the questions for the opponents written, we may
move to the 2nd stage – debating.
2nd stage – Debating.
On the day of the debate, students decorate the classroom
or school hall with the pictures of famous politicians debat-
ing, diagrams, quotes about the Internet and quotes about
debates. The topic of the debates should be written on a big
poster. Students from other grades and other English teachers
may be invited to attend. The desks in the classrooms should
be moved aside, and only two tables for the two teams should
be placed in the center of the room. Papers with the names
of the teams (“Government” and “Opposition”) should be
placed on these tables. If slide-shows are used, a projector
and computer will also be needed.
A Timekeeper should be chosen from among the students.
His/her task is to tell the teams when their time is up.
When everything is ready, the teacher (who is also the
main judge) gives an opening speech explaining in English
the aims and procedure of the debates (see Appendix 2). Then
the debates begin.
The first team to speak and to provide arguments for their
opinion is the “Government” team, the “Pro” position. They
have seven minutes for their speech. The “Opposition” lis-
tens carefully and takes notes, then asks tricky questions try-
ing to refute the arguments provided. Then the “Opposition”
team is to speak for seven minutes, presenting their “Con”
arguments. Then the “Government” has their turn to cross-
examine the opposing team for five minutes.
In the end, the result of the debates is announced. The win-
ning team may have a closing word on debates. The members of
the winning team may get Certificates of Achievement signed
by the teacher and/or by the head-teacher of the school.
There are certain criteria for assessing the teams’ work,
such as:
• Speech (persuasive, emotional or not)
• Slide-show (colourful, well-designed, supportive or not)
• Questions for the opponents (on topic, problematic or
not)
• Ability to answer the questions, to cooperate with the op-
ponents
The full evaluation template is in Appendix 3.
3. Conclusions and Reflections
It goes without saying that debates won’t be a piece of
cake for all 10th graders, as they all have different levels of
active and passive vocabulary, as well as different social and
communicative abilities. Not all of them are able to be lead-
ers. Not all of them can easily express their opinion even
in their native language. That is why the teacher is the first
person to help students to overcome these difficulties.
 English METHODS OF TEACHING
10
December 2013
Firstly, the topic should (and even must) be urgent and
attractive for the students, it should be something involving
their real life, as their judgments should be based on their
life experience.
Secondly, the procedure of the debates should be clearly
explained or even demonstrated to the students.
Thirdly, students should be motivated to take part in de-
bates. It is not a usual task for them, so most certainly they
will be interested in debates right away. The members of
the winning teams may also take part in Moscow Debat-
ing contests organized by a number of schools of different
districts.
The teacher should explain to the students that taking part
in debates not only helps to improve their English speech or
to make them more fluent, but also gives them opportunities
Appendix 1
Suggested Structure of an Effective Team
1) Leader – the main speaker. The functions in the team are:
to be ready to speak spontaneously to support the team’s
point of view, to generate ideas and arguments, to control
other members of the team. It goes without saying that the
leader should be an A student in English.
2) Speechwriter – a person who is responsible for making a
speech for the leader (with their help), for making a list of
tricky questions for the opposing team.
3) Creative manager – a person who is responsible for de-
signing a colourful and illustrative slide-show to support
the point of the team, for decorating the room before the
debates.
4) Researchers – a person or a group of people responsible
for providing factual material for the speech, such as dia-
grams, charts, quotes, examples, data and figures.
* One timekeeper is needed to tell the teams when their time
is up.
Appendix 3. Table of Evaluation Template
Speech Slide-show
(persuasive, (colourful,
emotional or not) well-designed,
Team
supportive or not)
Max 10 points Max 10 points
Government
(students’ names)
Opposition
(students’ names)
to meet other teenagers who do the same thing, and to make
friends with new people. Besides, the ability to reason one’s
opinion on a certain problem, the ability to see the problem
from different angles is certainly useful in everyday life and
might be useful in their future career (such as politics, law
or journalism).
My personal and professional experience in the use of de-
bates in my lessons proves that debates help:
1) the teacher to motivate students to study English;
2) the students to discover their hidden abilities and to
practice English, which is an essential part of modern
language education. A person should know a language to
such an extent so that he/she is able to speak freely and
effectively this language no matter what the communica-
tive situation is.
Appendix 2
Suggested Debating Procedure with Timing
1) 10 minutes – Opening word given by the teacher. The
aims, the procedure, the timing and the expected results
are commented. It would be great if the teacher has a
slideshow to support the speech. A good amount of hu-
mour is always welcome to dispel tension.
2) 7 minutes – Government presentation. The Leader gives
the speech (i.e. he/she actually speaks, not reads his
speech) to support the teams’ point of view.
3) 5 minutes – cross-examination by the Opposition. The
Opposition asks tricky questions on the topic trying to re-
fute the Government’s arguments.
4) 7 minutes – Opposition presentation. The Leader gives the
speech (i.e. he/she actually speaks, not reads his speech)
to support the teams’ point of view.
5) 5 minutes – cross-examination by the Government. The
Government asks tricky questions on the topic trying to
refute the Opposition’s arguments.
6) 6 minutes – announcing the results of the debates and the
winning team; Victory ceremony; closing word.
Questions Ability to Answer the
for the Opponents Questions, to Cooper-
(on topic, problematic or ate with the Opponents
TOTAL
not) (respect, politeness)
Max 10 points Max 10 points
By Maria Titova, Lyceum No. 1158, Moscow
РЕКЛАМА English

11
 English CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES

12 РОЖДЕСТВО И НОВЫЙ ГОД

December 2013

Внеклассное мероприятие для 4-го класса

Цели: создание условий для формирования у обучаю-
щихся интереса к культуре и традициям изучаемого
языка; развитие языковых способностей и творческой
активности учащихся; формирование положительной
мотивации для обучения, развитие внимания, воображе-
ния, догадки; воспитание у учащихся чувства уважения
к национальным традициям и праздникам.
Материалы и оборудование: магнитофон, рождествен-
ские открытки, рисунки, ёлка с разноцветными игрушка-
ми, рождественский венок, цветные карандаши, альбом-
ные листы, раздаточный материал.
За правильный ответ дети получают конфетку.
Под музыку “We wish you a merry Christmas” выходит
ученик, на груди которого надпись “December”.
Narrator: December is the first winter month. The weather
is cold and frosty.
December: Hello, boys and girls. I am December.
“Декабрь” рассказывает стих.
This is the season when mornings are dark,
And the birds do not sing in the woods and parks.

ХОД МЕРОПРИЯТИЯ
I. Организационный момент
Narrator: Good afternoon, girls and boys! I am glad to see
you! I hope you are fine today. Are you ready to begin
our party? Today we’ll have an English party and speak
about winter, Christmas and New Year’s.
На доске подписаны картинки зимы, Рождества и Но-
вого года.
Narrator: А вы знаете, как мы в России встречаем эти
праздники?
Дети отвечают.
Narrator: А в Британии? Какая у нас красивая ёлочка, но
она без игрушек.
December: Boys and girls, let’s all sing the song “We Wish
You a Merry Christmas” together.
Под музыку “We wish you a merry Christmas” выходит
ученик, на груди которого надпись “January”.
Narrator: January is the second winter month.
January: Hello, boys and girls. I am January.
“Январь” рассказывает стих.
This is the season when children ski,
And Father Frost brings the New Year tree.
Narrator: Let’s listen to the poem and find out what children
like to do on a cold and frosty morning. (Послушайте
стихотворение и ответьте, чем дети занимаются
зимой.)
January: Listen to my poem.

II. Фонетическая зарядка. “Январь” рассказывает наизусть.

a) [u:] – blue; [i:] – green; [i] – pink; [e] – red; [qu] – yel- This is the way we ski and skate
low; [ai] – white (повторение звуков и слов по теме Ski and skate, ski and skate
“Цвета”). This is the way we ski and skate
b) Учащиеся украшают ёлку разноцветными новогодни- On a cold and frosty morning.
ми игрушками (под музыку), называя их цвета. Затем
появляется зима.
Winter: I am winter. It is very cold. The ground is covered
with snow. There is ice on the river. When I come, all
rivers and lakes are frozen. The sun rises later and sets
earlier than in the summer.
Let’s play a little game guessing animals. (А сейчас
отгадайте мои загадки.)

Riddles:
• It lives in the house. It likes fish and meat. (A cat)
• It lives in the forest. It likes bananas. (A monkey)
• It is very big and grey and has ivory “teeth”. (An ele-
phant)
• It lives at home or in the street. It’s man’s “best friend”. (A
dog)
• It is green and long. It likes meat. It lives in the river. (A
crocodile)

This is the way we dance on the ice
Dance on the ice, dance on the ice
This is the way we dance on the ice
On a cold and frosty morning.
Narrator: Now, please, answer the question (за правильный
ответ ведущий дает конфеты).
Под музыку “We wish you a merry Christmas” выходит
ученик, на груди которого надпись “February”.
Narrator: February is the third winter month.
February: Hello, boys and girls. I am February.
“Февраль” рассказывает стих.
In winter time we go
Walking in the fields of snow,
Where there is no grass at all
Where the top of every wall,
Every fence and every tree,
Is as white as white can be.
III. Основное содержание
Teacher: What winter holidays do you know?
What is the most popular holiday in Britain?
Do you know anything about Christmas?
CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES English
13
December 2013
Winter: On the 25th of December, English children cele-
brate Christmas. It is a Christian holiday that celebrates
the Birth of Jesus Christ. Christmas is their favourite
holiday. This holiday is celebrated at home.
Blizzard: Santa Claus, in a red suit, comes down the chim-
ney into the house at night and leaves gifts for chil-
dren. The songs, “Jingle Bells”, “We Wish You a
Merry Christmas”, and “Silent Night” are very popular
in England. A turkey is usually served at the family
Christmas dinner.
Teacher: What kind of holiday is Christmas?
Where do English people celebrate it?
When is Christmas celebrated?
How do English families prepare for Christmas?
What does Christmas dinner consist of?
Do you know about Christmas symbols?
Ученики называют слова: Santa Claus, Sleigh, Christmas
Tree, Star, Christmas cards, Bell, Turkey, Candle.
IV. Физкультминутка
Игра “Будь внимательным”.
Когда учитель поднимает правую руку, ученики должны
крикнуть – Merry Christmas, когда учитель поднимает
левую руку – Happy New Year, обе руки – Father Frost,
топает – Santa Claus.
V. Закрепление лексики по теме
Teacher: Choose the best answer.
1) The 25th of December is...
a) Christmas Day
b) New Year
c) Boxing Day
2) On Christmas Eve people put their presents under the...
a) bed
b) table
c) Christmas Tree
Конкурс
Класс делится на 2 команды и каждая команда получает
задания.
1) Составление слов из букв слова “Christmas”.
2) Цепочка слов (Chainword): Englishpeoplecelebrate-
christmasonthetwentyfifthofdecember.
3) Конкурс на лучшую рождественскую открытку, под-
готовленную заранее.
Сценка “Tom Doesn’t Want to Go to School” (Based on
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain)
CHARACTERS:
Tom
Sid, his younger brother
Aunt Polly
Mary, a servant
 English CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
14December 2013
Setting: A small room. Two boys are sitting at the table. Tom
is reading a book. Sid is drawing something.
Tom: Sid, what are you doing?
Sid: Don’t you see? I’m drawing.
Tom: Oh? (the expression on his face changes as if he had
an awful toothache.) Sid, oh, Sid!
Sid (getting up and coming up to Tom): Tom, I say, Tom!
Tom: Oh! Oh! (Looks at the public and winks.)
Sid: What’s the matter, Tom? Can I help you? Tom!
Tom: Oh, don’t shake me, Sid.
Sid: I’ll call Aunt Polly. Wait a minute!
Tom: Oh, Sid! I forgive you everything. When I die...
Sid: You are not dying, Tom!!!
Tom: I forgive you, Sid! I forgive everybody. Tell them.
Sid: Oh, Aunt Polly, come here! Tom is dying!
Aunt Polly (entering the room): Dying?
Sid (crying): Yes.
Aunt Polly: Nonsense! I don’t believe it! Tom, what’s the
matter with you, child?
Tom: Oh, oh! Auntie, my tooth aches awfully.
Aunt Polly: Your tooth?
Tom: Yes. It’s loose and aches terribly.
Aunt Polly: Now don’t you begin groaning again. Sit down.
Open your mouth. Well, you are right. Your tooth is
really loose. Mary!
Mary (entering the room): Yes, Ma’am!
Aunt Polly: Please, bring a piece of thread and a candle.
Mary: A candle?
Aunt Polly: Yes, Mary. Be quick!
Mary: All right, Ma’am. (She leaves the room for a mo-
ment).
Tom (getting up): Oh, please, Auntie, don’t pull it out. It
doesn’t hurt me now. It’s all right. I... I’ll go to school.
(He is putting his books into his school bag.)
Aunt Polly: Oh, Tom, so all this was because you didn’t
want to go to school?
Mary: (holding a candle and a peace of thread) Here they
are, Ma’am.
Aunt Polly: Thank you, Mary. (To Tom) Sit down, Tom.
Tom: Oh, please...
Aunt Polly: Sit down, Tom.
Tom obeys. Mary ties the thread to Tom’s “tooth” and then
ties the other end to the table. Aunt Polly lights the candle
and suddenly thrusts it into Tom’s face. He cries... The public
can see his “tooth”.
Teacher: Our lesson is coming to an end. Let’s finish it with
a well-known English song “Jingle Bells”.
Приходит Санта Клаус, приносит подарки и ребята
рассказывают стихи на Новогоднюю тематику.
Подведение итогов конкурса, вручение подарков, чаепи-
тие.
VI. Подведение итогов
Teacher: Что нового вы узнали на сегодняшнем меро-
приятии? Что вам понравилось больше всего?
Pupils: We have learned a lot about Christmas traditions and
symbols in Britain.
Teacher: Today you were very active, polite and clever! The
lesson is over. Goodbye!
Список используемой литературы:
1. Биболетова М.З. и др. Английский язык с удоволь-
ствием: учебник для 4 класса общеобразовательных
учреждений. Обнинск: Титул, 2012.
2. Кэррол К., Новикова М.Л. Праздники. Химера, 1998.
3. Песни для детей на английском языке (Christmas Car-
ols, Games), Songbirds 576. М, ООО “Издательство
Айрис-пресс”, 2008.
4. Интернет-сайты: Bloodties.clan.su; Omyworld.ru; www.
diary.ru; www. liveinternet.ru
5. Журнал “Speak out”. № 2, 1998.
Тамара Валентиновна Любомирова,
МАОУ СОШ, г. Холма, Новгородская обл.
Фотографии предоставлены автором.
See more on CD.
 CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES English

ACTIVITIES 15
December 2013

FOR A CHRISTMAS PARTY

Цели урока: воспитательная, развивающая. 4. Where did you go last year?
Оснащение: доска, cracker parade, biscuits, recipes, cards. 5. Did you go to the central square to celebrate New Year?
Christmas Party programme: 6. Do you play games near the New Year’s tree at night and
1. Awards for the winners – cracker salute (подготовить и in the daytime?
упаковать подарки) 7. Are any of the old Russian traditions practised today?
2. Card parade (открытки, чья лучше и интереснее) 8. Which traditions would you like to take part in?
3. Christmas poems – стихи о Рождестве и Новом годе 9. Would you like to go swimming in an ice hole?
4. Tasting biscuits – принести печение и всех угостить 10. Do you want to wear a mask?
5. Guessing game – разгадать загадку 11. Would you like to sing kolyadki?
6. Christmas quiz – что ты помнишь про Рождество 12. When do British people celebrate Christmas?
13. Name five British Christmas traditions.
Ex.1. Charades 14. What is the traditional Christmas food in Britain?
Find the completion for the words and phrases below: 15. How does Father Christmas enter houses?
Christ Christmas (Frost) 16. Where are the presents for all the family placed?
New in an ice hole 17. When do Russian people celebrate Christmas?
Decorate pancakes 18. What do you find inside Christmas crackers?
Colorful near the fireplace 19. What are kolyadki?
Hang stockings
Fill Year Ex. 4. Interview each other and find the most popular New
Put shoes the tree Year’s dishes in your class.
Father -mas Example:
Christmas kolyadki Pupil A: What do you eat on New Year’s Eve?
Swim with presents Pupil B: Russian salad “Olivier”, crab salad and turkey.
Dance near the bonfire And you?
Eat games, stories
Sing costumes and masks Report to the class.
Play lights Example:
Tell fortunes The most popular New Year’s dishes in our group are….
Wear in a circle
Ex.5. Fill in the gaps with mine, his, hers, ours, theirs.
Ex.2. Make a question: Example: Is this poster yours? – Yes, it is mine.
Example:
celebrate/New Year/with/family? 1. This is Mary’s cracker. It is…
Do you celebrate the New Year with your family? 2. This is our camera. It is…
3. These are her children’s toys. They are…
1. Who/invite/to celebrate/New Year? 4. This is my bike. It is...
_____________________________________________ 5. These are John’s cassettes. They are...
2. How/decorate/your/New Year tree?
_____________________________________________ Ex.6. Read about Jack and write Jack’s five New Year’s
3. Where/put/presents? resolutions.
_____________________________________________ Example: I will be organized.
4. When/get/presents?
_____________________________________________ School Report
5. What/do/on New Year’s Day? Jack Wilson is not organized. He is often late for school.
_____________________________________________ He doesn’t like reading books. He doesn’t do his homework
6. Where/go/on New Year’s Day? every day. Jack is good at sports but he spends too much
_____________________________________________ time on the football field. So he doesn’t spend time on his
homework.
Ex.3. Christmas Quiz
Christmas quiz: Crackers and biscuits – presents in crackers and biscuits
1. Do you believe Father Christmas puts presents under the that were prepared beforehand.
tree?
2. Do you like New Year’s? Why or why not? Гульнара Ибрагимова,
3. Do you celebrate New Year’s at home, with your friends Преображенский кадетский корпус, г.Москва
or traveling? Иллюстрация с сайта www.dulemba.com
 English CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES

16
December 2013
Любимые праздники детей
Интеллектуальная игра (7–11 классы)
Цель: познакомить учащихся с традициями праздно- – Что устраивают французы рядом с рождественской
вания Рождества и Нового года в странах изучаемых ёлкой, чтобы отметить рождение Иисуса Христа? Как
языков: Великобритании, США, Франции, Германии; долго это сохраняется в доме? (Ясли. До 2 февраля
сформировать интерес к изучению иностранных языков времени пребывания Иисуса в Тампле)
как средства для знакомства с традициями зарубежных
стран. Музыкальная пауза. Подведение итогов 1 тура.

Подготовка:
• Оформление сцены.
• Музыкальное оформление.
• Подбор слайдов.
• Разучивание с детьми стихов и песен о Рождестве на
иностранных языках.
• Формирование двух команд из учащихся 7-11 классов,
изучающих различные иностранные языки.
ХОД ИГРЫ
1 ТУР
Задания для 1 команды (1 балл за верный ответ)
– В какой части Великобритании канун Нового года на-
зывается Хогманей? (Шотландия)
– За сколько недель начинается предрождественское
время “Адвент” в Германии? (За 4 недели)
– Существует интересный обычай во французских се-
мьях. К встрече Рождества готовят полено “La Buche
de Noel”. Для чего оно? Каким поленом было раньше
и что оно представляет собой сейчас?
– Где Санта Клаус оставляет рождественские подарки
для детей? (В носках или чулках, подвешенных у ками-
на или кровати)
– Как в Германии называют венок, который украшает
дверь дома или комнаты? (Адвентский венок)
– 8 оленей тянут сани, в которых едет французский
Pere Noel. Благодаря чему Pere Noel находит дорогу
в любую погоду? (У 8-го, самого младшего оленя,
которого зовут Rodolphe, светящийся красный нос
как автофара, благодаря которому Pere Noel хорошо
ориентируется в темноте)
2 ТУР
Победившая в 1 туре команда имеет право первой вы-
брать 3 карточки с вопросами. За каждый правильный
ответ 2 балла.
Вопросы на карточках:
– Растение, изображение которо-
го вы видите, это омела, вечно
зелёное паразитическое расте-
ние, которым украшают дома
перед Новым годом; букет оме-
лы подвешивают под потолок дома. Что это за тради-
ция? (Считается, что омела дарит жизнь и исцеляет
от болезней, а поцелуй под омелой является залогом
всепобеждающей любви.)
– В этом месте каждый год уста-
навливается большая рожде-
ственская ель. Как называется
это место? (Трафальгарская
площадь)
– Что изображено на данной иллюстрации? (Рожде-
ственская деревянная пирамида – рождественский
символ, распространившийся по Германии)

Задания для 2 команды (1 балл за верный ответ)

– Каким английским словом называется рождествен-
ский гимн, славящий Иисуса Христа? (Кэрол)
– Когда приходит с подарками Святой Николаус: 1 или 6
декабря? (6 декабря)
– Когда во французских семьях начинается празднич-
ный рождественский ужин, и из чего он состоит? (24
декабря, около полуночи, после мессы. Печень, устри-
цы, копчёный лосось, индейка, фаршированная каш-
танами. На десерт – une buche de Noel)
– Бой каких часов слушают жители Великобритании в
полночь 31 декабря? (Биг Бен)
– Какое самое распространенное рождественское блю-
до в Германии: жареный гусь или поросёнок? (Жаре-
ный гусь)
 CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES English

17
December 2013

– День этого Святого Игра для команд на сообразительность

празднуют в Гер- Узнать с помощью подсказок, о ком идёт речь.
мании 31 декабря. 1 подсказка (4 балла): Этот человек жил в 4 веке до н.э. в
(День Святого г. Миры Ликийские в Малой Азии на месте современной
Сильвестра) Турции.
– Традиция украшать 2 подсказка (3 балла): Он был известен тем, что помогал
рождественское де- людям, всегда оставаясь незамеченным. Никто и никогда
рево появилась во не догадывался, кто делал все эти добрые дела.
Франции в 16 веке в 3 подсказка (2 балла): Этот человек был епископом, его
северных районах. звали Святой Николай.
Его устанавливали 4 подсказка (1 балл): В наши дни этого человека хорошо
на главных площадях города. Рождественское дерево знают и любят все, особенно дети, с нетерпением ждут
символизировало Райское дерево. Знаете ли вы, какие его в рождественские новогодние праздники.
были первые украшения и почему появились другие?
(Классические правила украшения “рождественско- Выход Санта Клауса. Поздравление.
го” дерева не изменились и по сей день. “Вифлеемская Выход русского Деда Мороза.
звезда” на макушке, “яблоки” – сегодня это шары – Проведение игры с залом:
олицетворяли библейский “запретный плод”, горящие Мы с ребятами сыграем
свечи (сегодня это всевозможные электрогирлянды). В интересную игру
А также в средние века на ветки новогоднего дерева То, чем ёлку наряжаем,
обязательно вешались фигурки из вафель – как про- Вам сейчас я назову.
образ пресных хлебцев, которые употреблялись при Вы послушайте внимательно
обряде причастия. И ответьте обязательно.
Надо сказать, что Если я скажу вам верно,
до середины XVIII Говорите “да” в ответ,
века украшения Ну а если вдруг неверно,
были исключитель- Говорите смело “нет”.
но съедобными. К – Разноцветные хлопушки?
в ы ш е о п и са н н ы м – Одеяла и подушки?
предметам добави- – Раскладушки и кроватки?
лись орехи, сладо- – Мармеладки, шоколадки?
сти и фрукты. Со – Шарики стеклянные?
второй половины – Стулья деревянные?
XVIII века елочные украшения становятся более на- – Плюшевые мишки?
рядными: бумажные цветы, позолоченные еловые – Буквари и книжки?
шишки и пустые яичные скорлупки, а еще – фигурки – Бусы разноцветные?
из чеканной латуни – феи, ангелы и т.п.) – А гирлянды светлые?
– Что символизируют свечи на адвентском венке в Гер- – Снег из ваты белой?
мании? (Четыре свечи, по одной на каждое воскресе- – Ранцы и портфели?
нье Адвента) – Туфли и сапожки?
– Чашки, вилки, ложки?
– Конфеты блестящие?
– Тигры настоящие?
– Шишки золотистые?
– Звёздочки лучистые?

Подведение итогов 2 тура.

3 ТУР
Вопросы от Деда Мороза
За правильный ответ по 1 баллу.

Вопрос 1 команде: В Англии в каждой семье на Рож-

дество пекут рождественский пудинг. В его приготов-
лении участвуют все члены семьи – каждый должен
 English CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
18
December 2013
помешать тесто 1 раз с востока на запад. В пудинг за-
пекают разные предметы, по которым можно узнать
свою судьбу. Что должно попасть в вашем кусочке
пудинга, если вы хотите стать королём или короле-
вой? (Выносится поднос со множеством мелких пред-
метов. Необходимо взять с подноса нужную вещь –
кольцо)
Вопрос 2 команде: В Шотландии верят, что первый че-
ловек, который войдёт в дом в первый день нового года
может принести удачу или невезение. Какие 3 вещи он
должен принести, чтобы в доме были удача и счастье?
(С подноса необходимо выбрать кусок угля, кусок хлеба,
серебряную монету)
Музыкальная пауза. Подведение итогов 3 тура.
4 ТУР
Команды задают друг другу вопросы. За интересные во-
просы и полные ответы по 1 баллу.
Музыкальная пауза. Подведение итогов 4 тура.
5 ТУР
Подсчитываются баллы за правильные ответы на во-
просы, заданные в течение 2 минут. Тема “Странове-
дение”.
Вопросы для 1 команды:
– Какой праздник отмечают в Великобритании и США
26 декабря? (День подарков)
– В какой праздник дети наряжаются привидениями и
ведьмами? (Хеллоуин)
– Сколько миллионов людей живёт в Германии? (80
млн.)
– Какой французский собор прославился на весь мир 3
раза? (В XIII, XIX, XX веке. Собор Парижской Богома-
тери)
– Какую птицу готовят к рождественскому столу в Ве-
ликобритании? (Индейка)
– Какое женское имя олицетворяет французскую респу-
блику? (Марианна)
– Страна, в которой Рождество отмечают 7 января. (Рос-
сия)
– Сколько федеральных земель в Германии? (16)
– Что отмечают французы каждый год 14 июля с 1789
года? (Взятие Бастилии)
– Где находится штаб- квартира Санта Клауса? (Лаплан-
дия)
– Назовите цвета флага ФРГ. (Чёрный, красный, золо-
той)
– Как называется французский гимн, автором которого
является Роже де Лиль? (Марсельеза)
– Как Санта Клаус проникает в дом? (Через дымоход)
– Как называется федеральная земля, столица которой
Мюнхен? (Бавария)
– Назовите имена трёх известных французских мушке-
тёров. (Арамис, Портос, Атос)
– В каком веке в Англии начали ставить и украшать
рождественскую ель? (19 век)
– Какой город называют летней столицей Европы, Ба-
денвайлер или Баден-Баден? (Баден-Баден)
– Какое отношение имеет Франция к американской ста-
туе Свободы? (Подарок Франции)
– Какой праздник Франция отмечает в четвёртый чет-
верг ноября? (День Благодарения)
Вопросы для 2 команды:
– Назовите цвета флага Великобритании. (Красный, си-
ний, белый)
– На гербе какого города изображён медведь: Берлина
или Бремена? (Берлин)
– Какую роль в развитии олимпийского движения сы-
грал французский барон Пьер де Кубертен? (Возродил
Олимпийские игры)
– Святой, имя которого отмечается 14 февраля. (Святой
Валентин)
– Кто был знаменитым математиком: Гаусс или Либих?
(Гаусс)
– В чём заслуга братьев Люмьер? (Изобрели кинемато-
граф)
– Знаменитая Лондонская крепость, сейчас музей. (Тау-
эр)
– Какой наукой занимался Кеплер: астрономией или хи-
мией? (Астрономией)
– Роль какого французского героя сыграл Михаил Бояр-
ский? (Д’Артаньян)
– Глава государства в США. (Президент)
– Как долго работал Гёте над трагедией “Фауст”: 60 или
70 лет? (60)
– Главное здание Латинского квартала. (Сорбонна)
– Достопримечательность, которую можно видеть в
Нью-Йоркской гавани. (Статуя Свободы)
– Когда празднуют Новый год в Австралии: зимой или
летом? (Летом)
– Кто живёт в Букингемском дворце? (Королева)
– В какой праздник происходит действие фильма “Один
дома”? (Рождество)
– Как называется Кёльнская вода в России? (Одеколон)
– Какой французский император дал название вкусному
торту? (Наполеон)
– Как зовут королеву Великобритании? (Елизавета II)
– Национальная героиня, которая спасла своё войско во
время столетней войны. (Жанна Д’Арк)
Подведение итогов.
Награждение.
Галина Марова,
КОГОКУ СОШ,
пгт Оричи, Кировская обл.
 CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES English

19December 2013

CHRISTMAS QUIZ
CHRISTMAS WORKSHEET 1. Christmas Day is on ______________.
a) December 24th
Name: _______________________ b) December 25th
Class __________________ Grade __________________ c) December 26th
2. Christmas is a(n) __________________
holiday.
I. Write and Read a) international
A Letter to Santa! b) public
Dear Santa, c) religious
My name is ____________ and I am ___________ years old. I live 3. The day after Christmas is __________
in the great city of ____________ and I go to ___________ school. a) Christmas Eve
This year I was very _________. b) Boxing Day
c) New Year
I would like you to bring me _________, _________ and 4. Why is the 26th of December also called
_________. Boxing Day? Because on Boxing Day
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! _____________
___________ a) there are boxing fights on TV
II. Write True or False b) all Christmas gifts in boxes are opened
c) in the past the church alms box (poor
1. Christmas is on December 31. _________
box) was opened
2. Jesus’ birthday is celebrated on Christmas Day. _________ 5. The flower of Christmastime is ______
3. Christmas is in autumn. _________ a) poinsettia
4. I have vacations at Christmastime. _________ b) hawthorn
5. Santa Claus has reindeers. _________ c) rose
6. Santa Claus lives at the North Pole. _________ 6. What do British people traditionally eat for
Christmas dinner?
7. Santa Claus brings presents to parents. _________ a) roast beef
8. Children write letters to Santa. _________ b) turkey
c) fish
III. Draw and Write 7. The fat jolly man who brings presents on
What does Santa Claus have? Christmas is called __________ in Great
1. He has a _________ Britain and __________ in America.
a) Santa Claus
2. __________________ b) St. Nicolas
3. __________________ c) Father Christmas
4. __________________ 8. In England and America, Santa Claus
comes ______________
IV. Learn the Song a) through the window
b) through the back door
O Christmas tree,
c) down the chimney
O Christmas tree! 9. How many reindeer pull Santa’s sleigh?
Your leaves are so unchanging! a) six
Not only green when summer’s here, b) nine
But also when it’s cold and drear, c) eight
O Christmas tree, 10. Who helps Santa to get ready for Christ-
mas?
O Christmas tree! a) elves
Your leaves are so unchanging! b) dwarfs
c) reindeer
V. Learn the Poem 11. Santa Claus puts the presents into the chil-
I’m a little Snowman! dren’s ______________
I’m a little snowman, short and fat, a) shoes
b) pockets
Here is my scarf, here is my hat, c) stockings
When the sun is out, I cannot play, 12. What is Rudolph the reindeer famous for?
I just slowly melt away! a) his long tail
b) his big red nose
VI. Choose and Write c) pleasant smile
Scarf, hat, sun, melt, snowman
Key: 1. b; 2. c; 3. b; 4. c; 5. a; 6. b; 7. c, b; 8. c;
9. b; 10. a; 11. c; 12. b
Нэдда Гейвандян,
ГБОУ лицей No. 507, г. Москва Нэдда Гейвандян,
ГБОУ лицей No. 507, г. Москва
 English CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
20
December 2013
CHRISTMAS ACROSTIC POEM
• Model the format of acrostic poems with your
students. Work together to write a collective
acrostic poem on the whiteboard.
• Give your students a Christmas-related word
so that they can write their own acrostic poem.
Consider: December, cheer, Rudolph, pres-
ents, family, snowmen, or Santa Claus. Dis-
cuss the meaning of these words and the im-
portance of family and giving during the Christ-
mas season.
• Give your students time to write their acrostic
poems. Circulate and offer guidance as need-
ed.
• If you have time, allow the students to illustrate
their poems. This project makes a great bulletin
board display for December, especially if you do
it early in the month!
Suggest that your students give their acrostic
poems to family members on Christmas morn-
ing.
Samples
S – Sliding down the chimney
A – Always spreading cheer
N – Needing cookies and milk
T – Trains his reindeer
A – At my house on Christmas Eve!
C – Children can’t sleep because of excitement!
L – Listening for hooves on the rooftop
A – Act good all year
U – Usually my favorite day of the year
S – Seasons Greetings, Santa!
С – Candles are lit on Christmas night.
H – Have a holly jolly Christmas.
R – Relatives get together on Christmas.
I – Icicles are put on the Christmas tree.
S – Santa comes on Christmas night.
T – Trees are decorated on Christmas.
M – Merry Christmas to all and to all goodnight.
A – Angels sing on Christmas Day.
S – Snow falls on Christmas.
New Year Role Play
1st student: Hello, dear guests!
2nd student: Hello, dear teachers!
3rd student: Hello, dear pupils!
4th student: We are learning English.
5th student: Today we want to show you what we can do.
6th student: And to wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
A poem: “Christmas is Coming” (2 students).
A song: “We Wish You a Merry Christmas”.
7th student: December.
This is the season
When children ski,
And old Father Frost
Brings the New Year’s tree.
8th student: January.
The windows are blue at night,
But in the morning they are white,
And snowflakes are falling.
“Come out,” they are calling.
9th student: February.
Get out of bed and take your sled
This cold and frosty day;
The sun is bright, the snow is right
For outdoor winter play.
10th student: Where is my cap?
My warm little cap?
My boots and my mittens, too?
I want to go and play in the snow
And have a lot fun. Do you?
11th student: “Frosty Windows” by Vivian Gualed.
When windows are frosty
And icy in places,
I like to make scribbles,
And draw funny faces,
Or flowers or houses
Or maybe a cat –
I really wish windows
Were ALWAYS like that.
12th student: New Year’s day, happy day,
We are all glad and very gay!
We all dance and sing and say:
“Welcome! Welcome, New Year’s Day!”
13th student: It’s winter, it’s Christmas!
Look at your Christmas Tree!
There are big balls, there are nice dolls,
And many candies you can see.
14th student: There are flags, there are ribbons,
Little bells and bright stars, too.
Red and orange, green and yellow,
Pink and purple, violet and blue.
15th student: We have a fir-tree in the hall.
It is so beautiful and tall.
Around it we dance and play
Because it is New Year‘s Day!
A song: “Jingle Bells”.
By Anna Zavarzina,
School No. 1520, Moscow

CHRISTMAS TRADITIONS
Урок в 7-м классе
Тип занятия: обобщающее повторение.
Вид занятия: комбинированный урок.
Цель: коммуникативно-речевое развитие учащихся че-
рез обобщение знаний о традициях празднования Рож-
дества в мире.
Задачи:
Образовательные: обобщить лексико-грамматический
материал по теме “Me and My World” и “Christmas”; со-
вершенствовать речевые навыки и умения монологиче-
ской и диалогической речи; практиковать использование
методики прогнозирования при чтении.
Воспитательные: воспитывать уважение к культуре и
традициям других народов; воспитывать любовь к род-
ным и близким людям, своей культуре и традициям;
прививать любовь и интерес к иностранному языку; вос-
питывать умение работать в парах, группах, самостоя-
тельно.
Развивающие: Систематизировать страноведческий ма-
териал о Великобритании; расширить лингвистический
кругозор учащихся; способствовать развитию творче-
ской деятельности учащихся; развивать умение сравни-
вать и обобщать.
Оснащение урока (технические средства обучения):
компьютер, проектор, слайды, магнитофон, раздаточный
материал.
ХОД УРОКА
1. Организационный этап
Teacher: Good morning boys and girls! Delighted to see
you! Sit down please.
2. Сообщение темы и цели занятия (вводное слово)
Teacher: The subject of our lesson is “Christmas Tradi-
tions”. Today we’ll speak about Christmas – a beautiful
holiday which is loved by children and adults. All the
tasks will be connected with Christmas. We’ll also re-
peat grammar constructions, articles and phrasal verbs.
Don’t forget to use the expressions and words we have
learned. I hope you’ll enjoy our English lesson. Please,
be active, sociable and friendly to each other. Let’s
start!
Dear collegues! I am glad to see you at our lesson.
This lesson uses the format of a quiz to give the pupils
a motivation to make predictions. They then have the
opportunity to confirm their own answers. There is also
a grammar quiz that aims to get pupils to recognize the
grammatical items by looking at the context in which
they are used.
3. Фонетическая разминка
Teacher: I think we will start with a game. Your task is to
say the Christmas tongue-twisters as quickly and as
well as you can.
LESSON PLANS English
21
December 2013
Tongue-twisters:
Santa’s sleigh slides on slick snow.
Tiny Timmy trims the tall tree with tinsel.
Bobby brings bright bells.
Chilly chipper children cheerfully chant.
4. Речевая разминка (монолог и диалог на основе ра-
нее изученного материала)
Teacher: And now we’ll try to sum up what we know about
Christmas. There are some questions.
Questions:
1. What do you know about Christmas?
2. What traditional Christmas meals do you know?
3. Who decorated the first Christmas tree?
4. Why do people celebrate Christmas?
Teacher: Great! But we all know that Christmas means dif-
ferent things to different people. What things do you
associate with Christmas? Look at the board, there are
some tips for you.
The slide with Christmas diagram (Презентация, слайд 8).
Teacher: Great! I like your answers.
Could you tell me what Christmas means to you?
P1: ...
P2: ...
Teacher: Thank you very much.
And now please make your dialogues about things that
you like/don’t like to do at Christmastime. You are
welcome to use your own facts to express your view-
points. Look at the wall. The following questions will
help you. There are also some phrases you can use:
1. How do you celebrate Christmas in your family?
2. How do you like to spend winter holidays with your family?
3. What gifts do you usually prepare for your friends and
relatives?
4. Do you make resolutions? Do you think you will keep
your resolutions?
5. Do you enjoy making greetings cards for your friends and
family?
In my opinion... From my point of view...
It seems to me... There is no doubt...
First of all... Because I’m fond of...
It’s important for me... Then...
5. Аудирование. Песня “Jingle Вells” (Приложение 1)
Teacher: By the way, do you know what song people sing
on this holiday? This song brings us the cheerful spirit
of holiday. Right you are, “Jingle bells”! Let’s sing the
song.
 English LESSON PLANS
22
December 2013
Words are on the board. The song is played. Pupils are sing-
ing the song.
6. Чтение. Ответы на вопросы, предваряющие чтение.
Чтение текста и ответы на вопросы
Teacher: Well, now you are going to take a quiz about
Christmas traditions. You should read the text and try
to find the answers to the questions. I’ll give one copy
of Task A to each pair. Read the questions and write
your answers. Look at the board where are some words
which can help you.
Task A
Work in pairs and try to answer these questions.
1. What is the typical image of Father Christmas?
2. Where can you find gift-wrapped shops?
3. Why are the shopping centers decorated?
4. What is the name of the small plant with white berries
that is put above doors in the UK at Christmas?
5. What can happen if you stand under it?
6. What are the initials of the three wise men?
7. What gifts did they bring to the baby Jesus?
8. What special thing do the people of Spain do at Christ-
mas?
9. Why do they do it?
10. What is the name of the Holy Book with the Christmas
story?
11. When do some people eat little for a period of time (es-
pecially for religious reason)?
Teacher: Please raise your hand if you are ready. (Text
“Christmas Around the World”, Приложение 2)
Well done! Thank you.
Now read the text please and check your answers.
CHRISTMAS AROUND THE WORLD
(Paragraph 1)
The typical image of Father Christmas in his black boots,
red suit and white beard is recognized in almost every coun-
try in the world nowadays. Christmas is still celebrated in
different ways in different countries and many still retain
their own individual customs both new and old.
(Paragraph 2)
In Singapore (and Manhattan, N.Y.) you might be
surprised to see some shops wrapped up as Christmas
presents. They are decorated from top to bottom like big
cakes or Christmas trees. This is because every year the
government gives a prize for the best decorated building
in the country.
(Paragraph 3)
In the UK you may find yourself standing beneath a small
green plant with white berries on. Be careful because some-
one may try to kiss you. Kissing under the mistletoe is a Brit-
ish tradition that goes back much further than when this day
was celebrated as a religious holiday.
(Paragraph 4)
In the Austrian countryside there are the letters C, M and
B written on the doors of the farmer’s stables. These are the
initials of the three wise men, Caspar, Melchoir, and Balt-
hazar, who came to worship the new born Jesus. They gave
the Child presents - gold, frankincense and myrrh. This is
because the farmers believe that putting these letters on the
door will protect their animals from sickness in the year to
come.
(Paragraph 5)
In Spain the people jump across a bonfire at Christmas.
There some people still believe that if they jump over the
flames of the fire they will be protected from illness for the
year to come.
(Paragraph 6)
The Russian Christmas is celebrated on the 7th of January,
when the Orthodox churches, following the Orthodox calen-
dar, have their own celebrations. The holiday is connected
with the wonderful birth of Jesus Christ as it is described in
the Bible. Most Russians are in church on Christmas Eve. It
is customary to fast until “the first star”. The Christmas Eve
dinner is meatless, but festive. The most important ingredi-
ent is a special porridge called kutya. It is made of wheat or
other grains, which symbolize hope. Нoney and poppy seeds
ensure happiness, success, and an untroubled rest.
(Paragraph 7)
People in many countries of the world still follow the
ancient traditions that make Christmas such a wonderful
event.
7. Грамматика. Грамматические задания к тексту
Teacher: Let’s revise grammar. I’ll give you the questions
and ask you to look through the text and find the an-
swers. 5 minutes for this. Please exchange papers and
mark the correct points, while I tell you the correct an-
swers.
Task B
Grammar Quiz (См. Key on CD)
1. Find and underline the examples of definite articles.
2. Find and underline one example of zero article.
3. Find and underline 2 different modal verbs that mean that
something is uncertain / possible.
4. Find and underline 8 passive verb constructions.
5. Give synonyms to the words HUGE and SICKNESS.
6. Find and underline 2 examples of gerund.
8. Подведение итогов занятия. Выставление оценок
Teacher: Well I’d like to say that you were perfect. I like
your active work at the lesson. You are really attentive
and very curious. We achieved all our aims: we have
got to know Christmas traditions all over the world.
9. Домашнее задание
Teacher: Now your homework. Please write a text about
how you celebrate Christmas. The topic is: “Christmas
traditions in my family”. Good-bye!
By Angela Yemelyanenko,
School No. 687, Moscow
См. Презентацию и Приложения на CD.

Christmas Journal Writing Topics
• Does falling snow have a sound?
• My magical snowman
• The snowman that never melted
• Design a new sleigh for Santa that includes modern tech-
nology such as a GPS and computerized devices. Draw
this high tech sleigh and write a paragraph describing it.
• Taking a ride in Santa's sleigh
• Baking cookies with Mrs. Claus
• Write a S.N.O.W. acrostic poem
• If I owned a toy store
• The great caroling catastrophe
• Off in the distance, I heard the sound of sleigh bells. ...
• We should have the Christmas spirit all year round.
• Rudolph's nose was green!
• My vacation at the North Pole
• “The best gifts are gifts from the heart.” What does this
phrase mean to you?
• If I could give a Christmas gift to the world, it would be...
• How to wrap a Christmas present.
• The best present that I ever gave to someone...
• Presents should not be important on Christmas Day.
• It is better to give than to receive. (Describe a time when
you did something thoughtful for someone or gave a per-
son a thoughtful gift.)
• This holiday season I plan to do something helpful to oth-
ers. My plan is...
• The gingerbread man jumped out of the oven and...
WRITING IDEAS
1. Some people have the tradition of sending a letter to all
of their family members reporting on some of the major
events of the year. Write a letter recounting the major
good and bad things that have happened to you that your
family might be interested in hearing.
2. How would you best explain Christmas to someone who
has never experienced the holiday in the United States?
Create a dialogue between you and the Christmas strang-
er in which you answer all of his or her questions.
3. There are those who believe in Santa Claus and those
who absolutely don’t. Imagine and construct a debate
between two children who think differently on the issue.
Who wins the debate and why?
4. Christmas is typically associated with cold weather and
occasionally even snow. How would Christmas be dif-
ferent for you and your family if you were instead on
a tropical island during the occasion? Write a detailed
story about the situation.
5. Hallmark and other greeting card companies save some
of their best poetry and sayings for their Christmas cards.
Create several poems that would work well in greeting
cards for the holiday season. They can be serious, funny,
silly or any other tone you’d like.
6. The Abominable Snowman is an ape-like creature said
to inhabit the Himalayan regions of Nepal and Tibet.
Write a story about seeing the Abominable Snowman.
CREATIVE WRITING English
23
December 2013
7. Write a story treatment for a sequel to one of your fa-
vorite Christmas movies. Include which characters will
be returning, the new ones that will be introduced and
where the story will be set.
8. As you open a mystery gift from underneath your tree on
Christmas morning, you find a clue inside with a riddle.
The riddle insinuates that it will lead you to the greatest
gift of all. Write a story in which you and your family
attempt to solve the riddles and find the present. Make
sure to include some clever Christmas riddles.
9. On Christmas Eve, you hear a loud thump and you look
outside your window. It seems that one of the Santa’s
reindeer has become separated from the pack and its up
to you to help. Create a tale in which you steer the rein-
deer back in the right direction.
10. There are many people who are unable to see their fami-
lies on Christmas because they are serving their coun-
try overseas or because they have jobs that keep them
in separate cities. Imagine that you were one of these
people and how you might feel. Create a letter you might
write to your family if you were in such a situation.
11. Write a letter to Santa describing someone that you know
who has been very good and kind this year.
12. Pretend that you have just given Santa a mobile phone,
laptop, or iPad. Explain to Santa how this new technol-
ogy will help him and save him a lot of time.
13. If you were a Christmas tree, how would you want to be
decorated?
14. You go to the mailbox and find that Santa has written
you a letter. Write a letter from Santa to yourself.
15. Draw a map from the North Pole to your house. Then,
write the directions in a paragraph.
16. Describe your new job as an elf at the North Pole.
17. Write a paragraph describing what this holiday phrase
means to you: “Peace on Earth, Goodwill to Men.”
18. What are your wishes for the world this holiday season?
19. Write an unselfish letter to Santa, asking him to bring a
needed item to a friend or family member.
20. Pretend that you are a penguin who loves to “tweet.”
Write 5 tweets describing what it is like to live in Ant-
arctica.
 English GOOD NEWS
24 EVERY DAY IS CHRISTMAS
December 2013
While most people anxiously count down the days to the
holidays, Christmas lasts year-round at Russia’s only muse-
um of Christmas tree decorations, Klinskoye Podvorye. The
museum features more than 2,000 ornaments that are a testa-
ment to the history of holiday celebrations in Russia.
The tradition of decorating Christmas trees came to Rus-
sia from Germany in the early 18th century, thanks to Tsar
Peter I (the Great). In his time, candies and fruit were hung
on Christmas trees. Later, these goodies were wrapped in pa-
per or packed in little boxes. Later on, trees were decked out
with cardboard and glass decorations brought from abroad.
The first factories making Christmas tree decoration didn’t
open in Russia until the mid-19th century, and early Russian
decorations were not balls, but beads.
“Initially they just used women’s beaded necklaces. It
was only some years later that they started making strings of
beads just for Christmas trees,” said Lyudmila Dedikova, the
museum’s senior guide.
Later, decorations made of cardboard, wire and cotton ap-
peared. The simplest kind was made like this: two identical
cardboard cutouts were made, pressed and glued together,
and then painted.
“There were also surprise toys that might contain beads or
a letter and a thread between the cardboard halves. The re-
cipient of such a toy would pull the thread so the two halves
opened up and the surprise dropped into your hand,” Dedi-
kova said.
Today the factory in Klin produces only glass orna-
ments. Every craftsman sits over a gas burner heated to
a temperature of 500-900 degrees Celsius. The craftsman
holds a glass tube, and within seconds, thanks to the pow-
erful flame, the craftsman can cut the glass, leaving only a
part consisting of two “antennae.” The working antenna is
in the craftsman’s right hand and the extra one is in the left
hand. In the middle of the tube is the “pellet.” The extra an-
tenna is soldered off and thrown away. The pellet is heated
even more until the glass becomes soft and the worker can
use the main antenna to blow out a ball. The result is a free-
blown decoration.
To make some decorations, workers use special metal
molds consisting of two halves between which a hot glass
tube is placed and squeezed.
“At first glance, blowing out a ball seems easy; but in
fact, it’s a very difficult job. We don’t hire random people; if
somebody wants to become a glass blower, he first has to be
an apprentice for nine months. And even then, not everyone
can do it on the first try,” said Dedikova.
After the decoration is blown, it is sent to a workshop
where it is covered with a special type of foil before it is
dyed. The item is held by the antenna and dipped into a bowl
of dye. It is then kept in a special dryer for 20-40 minutes.
The final and most interesting stage is the decorative
painting. Every worker has an example on the table made
by the factory’s chief artist and technologist. The items are
painted in stages. If the item is, for example, a mushroom,
first the grass is put on several glass blanks and then the top
is painted. During the day, one item passes through an art-
ist’s hands seven to ten times, depending on the complexity
 GOOD NEWS English

25
December 2013

of the pattern. When the item is fully painted, the antenna is

cut off with a special knife, a metal cap is put on it, and then
the item is packaged.
This year the factory is trying to diversify, creating sou-
venir decorations that can be given not just once a year, but
on any holiday.
“We have swans symbolizing love and fidelity, which are
given at weddings. You can give little angels on somebody’s
saint’s day. A bell keeps evil away, and if you ring it from
time to time you will get to travel frequently,” said Dedi-
kova.
But it is impossible to appreciate the beauty and original-
ity of these decorations until they are hung on a tree. The
museum has a whole parade of decorated trees representing
various themes: “Miss Russia” is decorated with Vologda-
patterned balls. An Oriental spruce tree, “Miss Japan,” has
decorations in two colors, black and white, symbolizing the
yin and yang.
Next to them is a glittering “Miss Morocco,” or “Miss
Mandarin” in honor of the season’s most popular fruit.
One tree resembles a woman’s body, with a crown on its
head and a brocade belt around its waist. The two prevailing
colors, gold and red, symbolize power. “This is a queen,”
said Dedikova. “We fantasize about whether it’s the British
queen or our Empress Catherine the Great.”
The most unusual Christmas tree is the gingerbread one,
decorated in the Russian style with gingerbreads, boyar figu-
rines, nesting dolls, and cockerels.
But the museum’s main fir tree stands in the festive hall
where Grandfather Frost and the Snow Maiden greet visi-
tors.

By Kristina Zuykina
Photo from http://rbth.ru
 журнал

Английский язык – Первое сентября

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 TOPICAL JOURNEY English

Christmas 27December 2013

“
Candle, Candle, Burning Bright
1 Christmas is a necessity.
Candle, candle, burning bright, There has to be at least one “
On the mantelpiece this night,
To my relatives’ delight; day of the year to remind us
Catch the flame in thoughts and dreams, that we’re here for something
Hold it with the countless gleams
Sending out a trillion beams.
else besides ourselves.
2 Eric Sevareid
Candle, candle, all aglow,
On the windowsill to show
Hope to passers in the snow;
Catch the flame in thoughts and dreams,
Hold it with the countless gleams
Sending out a trillion beams.
3
Candle, candle, here in me,
Shining everywhere to be
Comfort, warmth and charity;
Catch the flame in thoughts and dreams,
Hold it with the countless gleams
Sending out a trillion beams.

Robert Duncan Martin

Printed with permission
TOPICAL JOURNEY
Copyright: R.D.Martin (robertduncanmartin@live.com)
History of Christmas ..............................28
Christmas Alphabet ...............................28
The Christmas Truce of 1914..................29
Christmas Quiz .....................................29
Santa Claus ...........................................30
Santa Questions ....................................30
A Christmas Carol ................................. 31
Santa Jokes ........................................... 31
Christmas Pudding ................................32
Christmas Conversational Questions .......32
Christmas Facts ..................................... 33
Did You Know? .................................... 33
Christmas Animals ................................34
Christmas Tongue Twisters .....................34
Christmas Plants ................................... 35
Christmas in Literature ...........................36
Christmas Movies ..................................37
Christmas Math Word Problems ............37
X-mas Activities ...................................38
 English TOPICAL JOURNEY
28 History of Christmas
December 2013
CHRISTMAS ALPHABET
A for the animals, out in the stable,
B for the Babe in the manger cradle,
C for the carolers, happy and gay,
D for December, the 25th day,
E for the Eve when we’re all so excited,
F for the fun when the Christmas tree’s lighted,
G for the goose, so round and so fat,
H for the holly and Santa’s red hat,
I for the ice on snow-covered hills, where sled-
ding is fun, in spite of the spills,
J is for Jesus, the Christ child so dear, We honor
His birth on Christmas each year,
K for the kitchen where Mom cooks the feast,
L for the light shining way in the East,
M for the mistletoe. Watch where it hangs!
N is the noel the angels first sang,
O for the ornaments trimming the tree,
P for the presents, for you and for me,
Q for the quaking of shepherds in fear, when the
bright angels brought them the words of good
cheer,
R for the reindeer, leaping the roofs,
S for the stockings that Santa Claus stuffs,
T for the toys, the tinsel, the tree,
U is for us – the whole family,
V is for visitors, friends far and near,
W is for welcoming wreaths on the wall,
X is for Xmas, with pleasures for all,
Y is for Yule logs whose bright sparks fly high, to
give a warm welcome to friends passing by,
Z is for zeal we show at this time in giving to oth-
ers and loving mankind.
Sources: http://didyouknow.org/christmas/
In ancient pagan times, the last day of winter in the Northern Hemisphere was cel-
ebrated as the night that the Great Mother Goddess gives birth to the baby Sun God. It is
also called Yule, the day a huge log is added to a bonfire, around which everyone would
dance and sing to awaken the sun from its long winter sleep.
In Roman times, it became the celebrations honoring Saturnus (the harvest god) and
Mithras (the ancient god of light), a form of sun worship that had come to Rome from
Syria a century before with the cult of Sol Invictus. It announced that winter is not for-
ever, that life continues, and an invitation to stay in good spirit. The Roman celebrated
Saturnalia between 17 and 24 December.
THE EARLY CHRISTIANS
To avoid persecution during the Roman pagan festival, early Christians decked
their homes with Saturnalia holly. As Christian numbers increased and their customs
prevailed, the celebrations took on a Christian observance. But the early church actu-
ally did not celebrate the birth of Christ in December until Telesphorus, who was the
second Bishop of Rome from 125 to 136 AD, declared that Church services should be
held during this time to celebrate “The Nativity of our Lord and Saviour.” However,
since no-one was quite sure in which month Christ was born, Nativity was often held
in September, which was during the Jewish Feast of Trumpets (modern-day Rosh
Hashanah). In fact, for more than 300 years, people observed the birth of Jesus on
various dates.
In the year 274 AD, solstice fell on 25th December. Roman Emperor Aurelian pro-
claimed the date as “Natalis Solis Invicti,” the festival of the birth of the invincible sun.
In 320 AD, Pope Julius I specified the 25th of December as the official date of the birth
of Jesus Christ. In 325 AD, Constantine the Great, the first Christian Roman emper-
or, introduced Christmas as an immovable feast on 25 December. In 354 AD, Bishop
Liberius of Rome officially ordered his members to celebrate the birth of Jesus on 25
December.
However, even though Constantine declared 25 December as the birthday of Christ,
Christians, recognizing the date as a pagan festival, did not share in the emperor’s good
intentions. Christmas failed to gain universal recognition among Christians until quite
recently.
In England, for instance, Oliver Cromwell banned Christmas festivities between
1649 and 1660 through the so-called Blue Laws, believing that Christmas should be a
solemn day.
When many Protestants escaped persecution by fleeing to the colonies all over the
world, interest in joyous Christmas celebrations was rekindled there. Still, Christmas
was not even a legal holiday until the 1800s.
CHRISTMAS BECOMES POPULAR
The popularity of Christmas was spurred on in 1820 by Washington Irving’s book
The Keeping of Christmas at Bracebridge Hall.
In 1834, Britain’s Queen Victoria brought her German husband, Prince Albert, into
Windsor Castle, introducing the tradition of the Christmas tree and carols that were held
in Europe to the British Empire.
A week before Christmas in 1834, Charles Dickens published A Christmas Carol (in
which he wrote that Scrooge required Cratchit to work, and that the US Congress met
on Christmas Day). It was so popular that neither the churches nor the governments
could not ignore the importance of Christmas celebrations. In 1837, T.H. Hervey’s The
Book of Christmas also became a best seller.
In 1860, American illustrator Thomas Nast borrowed from the European stories
about Saint Nicholas, the patron saint of children, to create Father Christmas (Santa
Claus).
Year by year, countries all over the world started to recognize Christmas as the day
for celebrating the birth of Jesus.
Today, many of the pagan uses are reflected in Christmas. The Christmas celebra-
tions end the 12th day of Christmas (January 6), the same amount of days that the return
of the sun was celebrated by ancient and Roman pagans.
 English

The Christmas TOPICAL JOURNEY

29
Truce of 1914 December 2013

One of the first public statements Pope Benedict XV made when he was elected to
the papacy was to plea for a truce on Christmas Day. Although the Germans entertained
the idea of a Christmas truce, the Allied forces rejected it. Benedict’s request fell to the
wayside; World War I had begun in earnest.
On the Western front, in the Flanders area of Belgium, the Christmas season arrived
amid heavy fighting. Both sides were dug in, and miserable soldiers learned what it
meant to live in discomfort and mortal fear. In some cases enemy soldiers fought from
trenches just 30 yards (27.4 meters) from one another. The area between each side’s
trenches – No Man’s Land – was littered with corpses. Dead eyes stared back at the
soldiers in the trenches from the frozen mud.
All along the front that Christmas, British and German troops received packages.
Inside they found notes of appreciation, chocolates, pudding, tobacco and other tokens.
In their packages, the German troops received Christmas trees.
The small trees – Tannenbaums, in German – were sent to the front, replete with
small candles to light. On Christmas Eve 1914, German soldiers lit the candles and
set some trees upon the ledges of their trenches. When they began singing, the British
troops joined in. Wary, hopeful soldiers began to peer over the trenches. CHRISTMAS QUIZ
As Christmas broke over Flanders, a truce was carved from the spirit of the season. Instruction:
Germans held up signs: “You no fight, we no fight.” British troops responded with signs 1. Divide the class into two groups. One lines up
proclaiming “Merry Christmas.” This Christmas turned out to be a merry one. on the left side, the other on the right side.
2. You ask the front kid in each line a question.
Only the two kids are allowed to answer.
CHRISTMAS IN NO MAN’S LAND 3. The first one to answer correctly gets to sit
No Man’s Land became a meeting ground, as muddy, cold soldiers emerged from down. The other goes to the back of his or
their trenches. The very same pudding and chocolate sent to soldiers from home in her team.
Berlin and London served as impromptu Christmas gifts between men who had just 4. Make sure the questions come fast.
hours before shot at one another. Soldiers exchanged jokes and tobacco. One German, a 5. The winning team is the first team where eve-
ryone is sitting down.
juggler, put on a show in the middle of No Man’s Land. The English produced a soccer
ball and a pick up game broke out. The Germans won 3–2.
The extent of the Christmas Truce is amazing. In some places fighting continued, Beginner Level
1. Has Santa Claus got a white beard? (Yes)
but this was unusual. In some areas, officers established truces. In others, rank-and-file 2. How many reindeer has Santa got in front of
soldiers established trust. Some soldiers defied direct orders from their commanding the sleigh? (Nine)
officers and met up with enemies who were, for the moment, no longer their foes. In 3. Who are Santa’s helpers? (Elves)
other cases, officers encouraged the truces, or at least didn’t intervene. 4. Where does Santa live? (North Pole)
But as both sides’ high commands ordered soldiers to get back to war, the shooting 5. What does Santa say? (Ho-Ho-Ho)
began again. In some places, though, the peace lasted until after the New Year. 6. What kind of animal is Rudolph? (Reindeer)
Eventually, the hope of a lasting peace provoked by the men in the trenches who 7. How does Santa get into most houses to de-
liver presents? (Through the chimney)
were asked to fight the war, faded into the sky over Flanders with the gun smoke. The
8. What is the colour of Santa’s boots? (Black)
Christmas Truce ended, and the war continued for four more years. While the sponta- 9. What is the name of Santa’s wife? (Mary)
neous peace which took place on Christmas 1914 must have seemed like a dream, it’s 10. What do you bring into the house and deco-
even more surreal that the soldiers took up arms against one another again afterward. rate? (Tree)
11. What do American people eat for Christmas?
(Turkey)
12. What do the reindeer pull for Santa? (Sleigh)
13. What do kids hang up on the mantel of the
fireplace? (Stockings)
14. When is Christmas in England? (December
25)
15. What do you put at the top of the Christmas
tree? (Angel /Star)
16. What does Santa carry the toys in? (Sack)
17. What do you write to people at Christmas?
(Cards)
18. What songs are sung at Christmas? (Carols)
19. How many wise men were there? (Three)
20. What is Frosty? (Snowman)
21. What is Santa’s lead reindeer called? (Rudolf)
22. How many doors has an English Christmas
Calendar (Advent Calendar)? (25)
23. Spell out SANTA? (S-A-N-T-A)
9th January 1915: ‘Christmas Truce in the 24. When is Boxing Day? (26 December))
Trenches : Friend and Foe Join in a Hare Hunt’. 25. What does Santa bring kids? (Presents)
British and German troops stand together Original Artwork: Drawing by Gilbert Holliday,
during the Christmas Truce of 1914-15. from a description by an eye witness rifleman. Compiled by Tatyana Makhrina

http://history.howstuffworks.com See full list on CD.

 English TOPICAL JOURNEY

30 Santa Claus
December 2013

SANTA QUESTIONS
1. Does Santa Claus really exist?
2. What does Christmas mean to Santa?
3. Was Santa a good student at school?
4. What kind of child was Santa?
5. How does he remember who wants what for
Xmas?
6. How does he write so many Xmas cards?
7. Where does Santa go shopping?
8. Is Santa an optimist or a pessimist?
9. Does Santa like Christmas turkey and
Christmas pudding?
10. What kind of house does Santa live in? A BRIEF HISTORY OF SANTA CLAUS
11. Does Santa prefer children or adults? The history of Santa Claus begins with a man called Saint Nicholas, who is believed
12. What does Santa do between December 26 to have been born around 280 AD in Patara near Myra (now Turkey). He was the Chris-
and December 23? tian Bishop of Myra and was believed to be a generous and kind-hearted man, devoted
13. Does there need to be snow for Santa Claus particularly to children.
to exist? There are several theories behind how his name transformed from Saint Nicholas
14. How does he get into houses that have no to Santa Claus.
chimneys? Some say that “Santa” comes from the word “Saint” and “Claus” is an abbreviation
for the name Nicholas in Germany, thus – “Santa Claus” came into existence.
Santa Claus, also known as Saint Nicholas, Kris Kringle, or Santa, is a legendary
and mythical figure, who brings gifts to children on Christmas Eve. Santa Claus is the
most popular Christmas icon in the world today.
Santa Claus has been called by several different names throughout the years. Tradi-
tions and legends of Santa Claus for the evolution of the modern-day Santa may have
been based on the early Dutch legend of Sinterklaas, originating in the 1600’s.
Santa Claus really became famous when American author Washington Irving pub-
lished stories about Santa Claus, referring to him as Saint Nicholas who arrived on
Christmas Eve bringing presents for children.
Santa Claus changed and became more famous when writer Clement Clarke Moore
wrote a poem in 1823 about a Christmas Eve visit from Saint Nicholas, better known
as “The Night Before Christmas”. Millions of children now could have a consistent
description of Santa Claus and his eight flying reindeer.
American magazines picked up on the popularity of Santa Claus, and many different
versions of Santa Claus were published over the next 50 years. Santa Claus even began
to appear in advertisements for popular products.
15. Which country does he like visiting best? Generally, Santa is depicted as a fat, jolly, white-bearded man wearing a red coat,
16. What’s Santa’s native language? carrying a bagful of gifts and flying in a sleigh pulled by reindeer.
17. How many languages can he speak? Santa Claus is believed to fly in a sleigh pulled by eight reindeer. They are named
18. Can children from the Muslim, Buddhist, Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner and Blitzen.
Jewish, or other faiths be visited by Santa? Rudolf was not part of the original reindeer but came later from the song “Rudolf the
19. Why does he wear red and white? Red-Nosed Reindeer” and started to appear in the late 1930’s.
20. What’s his favourite sport? Santa Claus, Rudolph, and the other reindeer would get periodic boosts in popular-
21. If Santa could choose a present, what would
ity when songs, stories, movies, or videos were released about them. Some of the more
he choose?
22. Is he married?
significant of them were:
23. Does he have children of his own? “Santa Claus is Coming to Town”
24. Does he have a garden? “Jolly Old St. Nick”
25. What does he do about children who don’t “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer”
believe in Santa? “Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer”
26. What’s Santa’s favourite Xmas song?
27. Where does Santa go on vacation? Around the world Santa Claus is known as:
28. What websites does Santa visit? English – Father Christmas. The Santa Claus name more likely evolved from the name
29. If Santa could change career, what would of Saint Nicholas.
he choose to do? Belgium – De Kerstman (Christmas Man) is celebrated in December.
30. What are Santa’s hobbies? Note: Sinterklass (which is derived from the Dutch name Sint Nicolaas) is celebrated
31. What does Santa wear when he gets out of
on December 6th.
his red and white Santa suit?
32. What happens if a child he has presents for
Italy – Babbo Natale
has been really, really naughty? Germany – Weihnachtsmann or Sankt Nikolaus
33. From what age does Santa stop giving Sweden – Jultomten, or Christmas Brownie
presents to сhildren? Hawaii – Kanakaloka
34. What one thing would Santa like to change Chile – Viejo Pascuerro
about Christmas? France – Pere Noel
35. If Santa had one wish for the world, what Japan – Hoteiosho – a priest who bears gifts, or Santa Kurohsu
would it be? Russia – Ded Moroz – or Grandfather Frost who is accompanied by his granddaughter
36. What’s Santa’s favourite toy? Snegurochka (Miss Snow or Snow Maiden).
37. What’s Santa’s favorite movie?
38. Does Santa watch television? Sources: www.merry-christmas.com/kids-zone
39. What does ‘ho-ho-ho’ mean?
 TOPICAL JOURNEY English

A Christmas Carol 31
December 2013

The words to the carol “Good King Wenceslas” were written by John Mason Neale SANTA JOKES
and published in 1853, the music originated in Finland 300 years earlier. This Christ- • Where does Santa hide his gift to Mrs.
mas carol is unusual as there is no reference in the lyrics to the nativity. Good King Claus?
Wenceslas was the king of Bohemia in the 10th century. He was a Catholic and was The Clauset of course!
martyred following his assassination by his brother Boleslaw and his supporters. His • Why does Santa have three gardens?
Saint’s Day is September 28th, and he is the Patron Saint of the Czech Republic. St. He likes to “Hoe, hoe, hoe!”
Stephen’s feast day was celebrated on 26th December which is why this song is sung • What do you get if Santa goes down the
as a Christmas carol. chimney when a fire is lit?
Crisp Kringle.
Good King Wenceslas looked out, • What do you call people who are afraid of
On the Feast of Stephen, Santa Claus?
When the snow lay round about, Claus-Trophobic.
Deep and crisp and even: • Why does Santa go down the chimney?
Brightly shone the moon that night, Because it soots him!
Though the frost was cruel, • Who delivers Christmas presents at the
When a poor man came in sight, Haunted Opera House?
Gath’ring winter fuel. Phantom Claus!
• How many chimneys does Santa go
down?
“Hither, page, and stand by me,
Stacks and stacks!
If thou know’st it, telling,
• Why does Santa use reindeer to pull his
Yonder peasant, who is he? sleigh and not pigs?
Where and what his dwelling?” Because when Pigs fly everything that wasn’t
“Sire, he lives a good league hence, supposed to happen...does.
Underneath the mountain, • When Santa is on the beach what do the
Right against the forest fence, elves call him?
By Saint Agnes’ fountain.” Sandy Claus
“Bring me flesh and bring me wine, • What do you call Santa’s-father’s-sister?
Bring me pine logs hither; Auntie Claus
Thou and I will see him dine, • What do you call Santa’s annual barn
When we bear him thither.” dance?
Page and monarch, forth they went, A Ho, Ho, Ho Down!
Forth they went together; • What does Santa write on his Christmas
Through the rude wind’s wild lament cards?
And the bitter weather. ABCDEFGHIJK_ MNOPQRSTUVWXYZ (No-
L , No-L)!
“Sire, the night is darker now
• What did Mary Poppins ask from Santa for
And the wind blows stronger; Christmas?
Fails my heart, I know not how; SuperClausiFragilisticExpialliSnowshoes...
I can go no longer.”
• Why does Santa love donuts?
“Mark my footsteps, my good page
Because they have “Hole, Hole, Holes!”
Tread thou in them boldly;
• What kind are Santa’s most favorite cook-
Thou shalt find the winter’s rage
ies?
Freeze thy blood less coldly.”
The round kind.
In his master’s steps he trod,
Where the snow lay dinted; • How many presents can Santa fit in an
Heat was in the very sod empty sack?
Which the Saint had printed. Only one, after that it’s not empty anymore!
Therefore, Christian men, be sure, • Why was Santa’s little helper depressed?
Wealth or rank possessing, He had low Elf esteem.
Ye who now will bless the poor • Santa rides in a sleigh. What do elves ride
Shall yourselves find blessing. in?
Mini vans!
Notes: • What’s another name for Santa’s helpers?
The language used in this carol is rather old- 8. dwelling – a place to live Subordinate clauses!
fashioned, so you might find some of the words 9. league – an old measurement of dis- • Which of Santa’s reindeer has bad man-
a little difficult to understand. tance equivalent to 4.8 kilometres
ners?
1. the Feast of Stephen – 26 December, also 10. hence – from here
known as Boxing Day. St.Stephen was the first 11. flesh – meat “Rude”-olph!
Christian martyr. 12. thither – there • Did you hear that one of Santa’s reindeer
2. fuel – material such as wood or coal that is 13. monarch – king or queen also works as a maid?
used to produce heat or energy. 14. forth – out Comet cleans sinks!
3. hither – here 15. rude – rough or violent • What is Santa’s dog called?
4. page – young boy who acts as an attendant 16. bitter – very cold
or servant 17. fails my heart – I am losing cour- Santa Paws!
5. thou – old form of you, used as more inti- age • What do you call Santa Claus when he
mate way of talking to someone. It is no longer 18. mark – pay attention to doesn’t move?
in use, except in the religious language of 19. thy – old form of your Santa Pause!
hymns and carols. 20. dinted – hollowed out • What does Santa put on his toast?
6. yonder – over there 21. sod – earth “Jingle Jam”
7. peasant – someone who works on the land. 22. rank – high position in society

http://www.carols.org.uk Compiled by Tatyana Makhrina

 English TOPICAL JOURNEY
32 Christmas Pudding
December 2013
CHRISTMAS
CONVERSATIONAL QUESTIONS
• Do you celebrate Christmas where you live?
• What do you do on Christmas Day?
• Do you have a special lunch?
• Do you give presents to the family and your
friends?
• What’s your favourite part of the Christmas
holiday?
• What do you eat at Christmas?
• What’s your favourite Christmas food?
• Is there any Christmas food that you don’t like?
• Do you love opening presents at Christmas?
• Have you ever wondered why people give
gifts on this special day?
• When do you give presents to people?
• Who do you give presents to?
• Do you make presents or do you buy them?
• What’s your ideal present?
• What does Santa look like? Where will he
leave your presents?
• Do children write letters to Santa, or Father
Christmas?
• Can you write a letter to Santa in English?
• Which Christmas words do you know?
• What other name does Santa Claus have?
• What is a ‘white Christmas’?
• Do you know why Christmas is celebrated
around the world?
• Do you know the history of Christmas?
• What is Boxing Day?
• How many cards do you write?
• How many presents have you bought?
• What was your best Christmas present ever?
• What do you eat for Christmas?
• Will your grandparents come for Christmas?
• When do people open their presents?
• Do you open presents before or after Christ-
mas dinner?
• When do you put up your Christmas tree?
• What do people put on their Christmas tree?
• What is the dessert of your Christmas dinner?
• Do you sing Christmas songs?
• What is your favourite Christmas song?
• Who brings the presents to children?
• When does he bring them?
• How does he deliver the presents?
• What do children hang up for their presents?
• Do you hang up stockings?
• Do you believe in Santa Claus?
• What is Santa called in England?
• What is the traditional food/food for tea for din-
ner on Christmas Day?
• What do people do on Boxing Day?
• What are the traditional Christmas hymns called?
• Did it snow last year at Christmas?
• How did you celebrate Christmas last year?
• Did you enjoy last Christmas?
• Did you believe in Santa Claus when you were
a child?
• What will you do on Christmas Day?
• What will you eat on Christmas Day?
• What would you like to get for your Christmas
present?
• Will you have a Christmas party at your home?
• Will you spend Christmas vacation with your
family or your friends?
• Where are you going for Christmas vacation?
Compiled by Tatyana Makhrina
Christmas (or Plum) Pudding is the traditional end to the British Christmas dinner.
But what we think of as Christmas Pudding, is not what it was originally like!
Christmas pudding originated as a 14th century porridge called ‘frumenty’ that was
made of beef and mutton with raisins, currants, prunes, wines and spices. This would
often be more like soup and was eaten as a fasting meal in preparation for the Christmas
festivities.
By 1595, frumenty was slowly changing into a plum pudding, having been thick-
ened with eggs, breadcrumbs, dried fruit and given more flavour with the addition of
beer and spirits. It became the customary Christmas dessert around 1650, but in 1664
the Puritans banned it as a bad custom.
In 1714, King George I re-established it as part of the Christmas meal, having tasted
and enjoyed Plum Pudding. By Victorian times, Christmas Puddings had changed into
something similar to the ones that are eaten today.
Over the years, many superstitions have surrounded Christmas Puddings. One super-
stition says that the pudding should be made with 13 ingredients to represent Jesus and
His Disciples and that every member of the family should take turns to stir the pudding
with a wooden spoon from east to west, in honour of the Wise Men.
The Sunday before Advent Sunday (which is also the last Sunday in the Church
Year), is sometimes know as ‘Stir-up Sunday’. This is because opening words of the
Collect for the day (the main prayer) in the Book of Common Prayer of 1549 (used in
Anglican Churches) says:
“Stir-up, we beseech thee, O Lord, the wills of thy faithful people; that they, plen-
teously bringing forth the fruit of good works, may of thee be plenteously rewarded;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.”
Although Christmas Puddings are eaten at Christmas, some customs associated with
the pudding are about Easter! The decorative sprig of holly on the top of the pudding is
a reminder of Jesus’ Crown of Thorns that he wore when he was killed. Brandy or an-
other alcoholic drink is sometimes poured over the pudding and lit at the table to make
a spectacular display. This is said to represent Jesus’ love and power.
In the Middle Ages, holly was also thought to bring good luck and to have healing
powers. It was often planted near houses in the belief that it protected the inhabitants.
During Victorian times, puddings in big and rich houses were often cooked in fancy
moulds (like jelly ones). These were often in the shapes of towers or castles. Normal
people just had puddings in the shape of balls. If the pudding was a bit heavy, they were
called cannonballs!
Putting a silver coin in the pudding is another age-old custom that is said to bring
luck to the person that finds it. Whoever finds it will have health, wealth and happiness
for the coming year. In the UK the coin traditionally used was silver ‘sixpence’. The
closest coin to that now is a five pence piece!
The tradition seems to date back to the Twelfth Night Cake which was eaten during
the festivities on the ‘Twelfth Night’ of Christmas (the official end of the Christmas
celebrations). Originally a dried pea or bean was baked in the cake and whoever got it,
was ‘king or queen’ for the night. There are records of this practice going back to the
court of Edward II (early 1300s). The bean was also sometimes a silver ring of small
crown. The first coins used were a Silver Farthing or penny. After WW1 it became a
three penny bit and then a sixpence.
You might also get other items (sometimes called ‘tokens’ or ‘favours’) placed in the
Christmas pudding which also meant to have special meanings:
Bachelor’s Button: If a single man found it, they would be a bachelor for the fol-
lowing year.
Spinster’s/Old Maid’s Thimble: If a single woman found it, they would be a bachelor
for the following year.
A Ring: If a single person found this, it meant they would get married in the follow-
ing year! It can also mean you will be rich for the following year.
A Traditional Wish with the Christmas Pudding
It is traditional for everybody in the family to stir the pudding when it’s being made.
As they each take a turn to stir, they make a wish. Of course, they mustn’t do it out loud
or tell anyone what they wished for, otherwise it won’t come true.
Submitted by Tatyana Makhrina
Sources: http://www.whychristmas.com See more on CD.
 TOPICAL JOURNEY English

Christmas Facts 33
December 2013

DID YOU KNOW?

• The 26th of December is traditionally known as St. The 25th of December is
Stephen’s Day, but is more commonly known as Boxing celebrated as the birth date of
Day. It is called Boxing Day because it was the day the Jesus Christ. The Bible does
family opened a gift box for the poor. not mention Christmas, and early
Christians did not observe the birth-
• The definition of a “White Christmas” in the UK is for a
day of Christ. Christmas as we know
single snow flake (perhaps amongst a shower of mixed rain it became widely popular only in the 19th
and snow) to be observed falling in the 24 hours of December century.
25th. Christmas starts on December 25 and ends
• Gold-wrapped chocolate coins commemorate St. Nicholas who gave bags of gold 12 days later on January 6 with the Feast of
coins to the poor. Epiphany also called “The Adoration of the Magi”
• The twelve days of Christmas are the days between Christmas Day and Epiphany or “The Manifestation of God.”
(6th of January) and represent the length of time it took for the wise men from the The concept of “Peace and Joy” over the
Christmas season originates from the pagan
East to visit the manger of Jesus after his birth.
believe in the magical powers of mistletoe. Ene-
• A traditional Christmas dinner in early England included a pig’s head with mustard mies meeting under a mistletoe had to call truce
sauce. It was usually followed by roast peacock. until the following day.
• The tradition of putting tangerines in stockings comes from 12th-century French In Finland and Sweden an old tradition prevails,
nuns who left socks full of fruit, nuts and tangerines at the houses of the poor. where the twelve days of Christmas are declared
• The Christmas tree displayed in Trafalgar Square in London is an annual gift to the to be time of civil peace by law. It used to be that
UK from Norway since 1947. The Norwegian spruce given is a token of appreciation a person committing crimes during this time would
of British friendship during World War II from the Norwegian people. be liable to stiffer sentence than normal.
During the Middle Ages, many churches were
• Christmas trees became popular in the UK from 1841 when Prince Albert erected a
built in honor of Saint Nicholas, the patron saint
tree in Windsor Castle following a German tradition. Fir trees have been decorated at of children. Wearing his red and white bishop’s
Christmas time in Germany since the 8th century. robes, he would ride on a donkey to deliver gifts
• Carols began as an old English custom called wassailing, toasting neighbours to a to children.
long life. The first Christmas card, which went on sale
• The Queen’s Christmas speech was first televised in 1957. in 1843, did not feature an image of Santa.
• The first postage stamp to commemorate Christmas was issued in Austria in 1937. In 1860, illustrator Thomas Nast introduced
• The first Christmas card was designed in 1843 by J.C. Horsley. Santa Claus in the fashion we now know him
today, a happy, burly, white-bearded fellow in a
• Robins on cards were a joke 150 years ago when postmen wore red tunics and were
bright red suit.
named after them.
The Meaning of the Word “Christmas”
• A Christmas wreath hanging on your front door symbolizes a sign of welcome and
The word “Christmas” means “Mass of
long life for all who enter. Christ,” later shortened to “Christ-Mass.” The
• The poinsettia is a traditional Christmas flower. In Mexico (its original birthplace), even shorter form “Xmas” – first used in Europe
the poinsettia is known as the “Flower of the Holy Night”. in the 1500s – is derived from the Greek alpha-
• At Christmas, it is traditional to exchange kisses beneath the hanging mistletoe. In bet, in which X is the first letter of Christ’s name:
ancient Scandinavia, mistletoe was associated with peace and friendship. That may Xristos, therefore “X-Mass.”
account for the custom of kissing beneath the mistletoe. Today we know that Christ was not born on the
• The holly plant has spiked leaves and holly red berries are poisonous. 25th of December. The date was chosen to coincide
with the pagan Roman celebrations honoring Satur-
• Eggnog is a festive drink made with milk, cream, sugar and beaten eggs.
nus (the harvest god) and Mithras (the ancient god
• Santa Claus has many different names around the world including Father Christmas of light), a form of sun worship. These celebrations
in the UK, Pere Noel in France, Kriss Kringle in Germany, La Befana in Italy, Juli- came on or just after the winter solstice, the shortest
nesse in Denmark, Dedushka Moroz (meaning Grandfather Frost) in Russia and Papa day of the year in the northern hemisphere, to an-
Noel in Spain, where the gifts are brought by the Three Kings (Los Reyes Magos). nounce that winter is not forever, that life continues,
• There are 13 Santas in Iceland, each leaving a gift for children. They come down and an invitation to o stay
stay in
in good
good spirit.
sp
spiri
irit.
irit
from the mountain one by one, starting on December 12 and have names like Spoon
Licker, Door Sniffer and Meat Hook.
• The very first Santa pictures often depicted him wearing a variety of different color
coats including green, blue and mauve. The modern day depiction or picture of Santa
Claus wearing a red coat only became standard in the 1920’s.
• Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer was invented for a US firm’s Christmas promotion in
1938.
• One of the most popular Christmas songs, “Jingle Bells” was actually written for
Thanksgiving.
• The Puritans in America tried to make Thanksgiving Day the most important annual
festival instead of Christmas.
• Christmas became a national holiday in America on June, 26, 1870.
• Electric lights for trees were first used in 1895.
• It can take between 4–15 years to grow a Christmas tree of typical height (6–7 feet).
• The world’s biggest Christmas tree (76 m high) was put up in America in 1950.
• In the USA, Christmas trees are now called “Holiday Trees”.
Compiled by Tatyana Makhrina

http://didyouknow.org; http://www.theholidayspot.com
 English TOPICAL JOURNEY
34December 2013
CHRISTMAS TONGUE TWISTERS
Can you say these three times fast?
• Snow slows Santa’s sleigh.
• Santa’s sleigh slides on slick snow.
• Santa’s seven sleighs slid sideways.
• Seven Santas sang silly songs.
• Santa’s sack sags slightly.
• Santa’s short suit shrunk.
• Santa stuffs six striped stockings.
• Santa’s stuffed sack sags and slumps.Silly
Santa sleeps silently on the sleigh safely.
• Running reindeer romp ‘round red wreaths.
• Chilly chipper children cheerfully chant.
• Eight elves elegantly ate everything.
• Eleven elves licked eleven little licorice lolli-
pops.
• Slippery snowmen slide off the snowy skis.
• Patsy picks pretty papered packages.
• Molly merrily mixes mincemeat.
• Clever Carol carries crimson candles care-
fully.
• Crafty Cliff cuts and crayons Christmas
cards.
• Tim trims the treetop, treetop, treetop.
• Sammy saw Santa on the snow slide.
• Kris Kringle clapped crisply.
• Kris Kringle quickly kisses Chrissie.
• Santa Clause’s cloak closes tightly.
• There’s chimney soot on Santa’s suit.
• Tiny Tim trims the tall tree with tinsel.
• Tiny Tim trims the tallest tree with tons of ter-
rific tinsel.
• Greg gets Glenn a great green gift.
• Bobby brings bright bells.
• Hal had happy holiday holly.
• Susie says she’s sure she saw Santa.
• Comet cuddles cute Christmas kittens care-
fully.
• Kris Kringle chose to climb the chimney at
Christmas.
• Crazy kids clamor candy canes and Christ-
mas cookies.
• Short shoppers shop for soft, short shirts.
• Two trains travel together to Toyland.
• Ten tiny toy soldiers tinker with twenty toy
trains.
• Toy trains travel and toot along the track.
• Bakers bake bright, blue bells.
• Silly smelly snowman slips and slides.
• Rudolph runs rings ‘round Rover.
• Blitzer bobbles a billion brilliant bells.
• Prancer presents pumpkin pies and presents.
• Santa’s super sleigh slips so swiftly through
the snow.
• Amidst the frost, chilly Christmas carolers
catch cold.
• How many deer would a reindeer reign if a
reindeer could reign deer?
Compiled by Tatyana Makhrina
Christmas
Animals
“The Journey of the Magi” (1894) James Jacques Joseph Tissot
Animals are an important part of Christmas symbolism. This article covers the ani-
mals featured in Christmas tales – and the historical, mythological and Biblical basis
for this association.
CAMELS AND THE DONKEY
The three Kings/Magi who predicted the birth of Jesus are depicted as arriving on
the backs of camels.
And it is widely believed that Mary arrived in Bethlehem on the back of a donkey,
as well as carrying Jesus into Jerusalem (for which reason the Jerusalem donkey is said
to have a cross-shaped mark on its back).
The Bible does not actually specify how Mary or the wise men arrived at their des-
tinations. So the involvement of these animals represents some embellishment based on
modes of transport that were common at the time.
REINDEER
The accounts of Santa Claus being pulled by reindeer stem from the poetry of Wil-
liam Gilley and Clement Moore. They may be based on earlier accounts of Thor com-
manding a flying chariot pulled by goats.
OX AND ASS (AND SHEEP)
The ox and the ass/donkey are the most frequently mentioned animals of the nativ-
ity, said to be present in the manger at the birth of Christ. These animals are almost
always included in a nativity scene. This may be partly inspired by Isaiah 1:3 which
states: “The ox knows its owner, And the donkey its master’s crib; But Israel does not
know, My people do not consider.” These animals may also have served to symbolize
Jesus’ role as a Messiah for both the Jewish (ox) and gentile (ass) peoples.
Sheep are also often included in a nativity scene because the birth of Jesus is re-
ported to have been revealed to shepherds by angels. However it seems unlikely that
they would have taken their flocks with them to view the baby.
MOUSE
The mouse often makes a small appearance due to the opening lines of the poem
“The Night Before Christmas”.
“Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse.”
DOVE
The dove often appears in Christmas decorations, often with an olive branch in its
beak as a symbol of peace and forgiveness. The turtle dove, specifically is a symbol of
love and sacrificial animal mentioned in the Bible, which may ex-
plain its appearance in the tune “The Twelve Days of Christmas”.
ROBIN
In winter around the Christmas season robin are active fora-
ging for scarce food, their brilliant red plumage bright against the
snow.
In Christian symbolism red breast was considered symbolic of
the blood and sacrifice of Christ.
The connection may also relate to the delivery of Christmas
mail as British mail carriers were sometimes refer to as ‘redbreasts’
during the Victorian period due to their red uniforms.
Sources: http://psycheskinner.hubpages.com; http://xmasfun.com
 English

Christmas
TOPICAL JOURNEY

35
Plants
December 2013

Though lights, ornaments and tinsel are popular Christmas decorations, there is still
room for holiday greenery. As their name suggests, evergreen plants are green all the
time, and because of this, people throughout history have regarded them as special sym-
bols of eternal life or rebirth. Such plants also offered medicinal benefits as well. Dur-
ing the season with the darkest days of the year (at least in the Northern Hemisphere),
evergreens present a vibrant contrast to the natural world outside.
Over time, plants like holly, pine and mistletoe have been incorporated into the tradi-
tions of Christmas, though not without continued controversy. While the use of some
evergreen plants by the ancient Romans and Druids, for example, pre-dates Christian-
ity, some of them have characteristics that have come to represent symbols of Christ or
the season commemorating his birth.
ot

HOLLY (Ilex aquifolium)

One popular Christmas greenery is holly, which is a native tree of central and south-
ern Europe. An old legend says that holly grew under the footsteps of Jesus Christ, and
its thorny leaves and red berries symbolize his physical suffering on the cross. This is
why holly is known as ‘Christ’s Thorn’ in some northern European countries. While
holly leaves were once used to treat illnesses characterized by fever, the plant’s berries
are strongly emetic.

MISTLETOE (Viscum album)

Mistletoe is actually an evergreen, parasitic plant that grows on tree branches. Ac-
cording to Botanical.com, the Druids thought that mistletoe protected people against
evil. They used mistletoe to produce cures. Even today, extract of mistletoe is used to
treat cancer in Europe, though scientific studies regarding its efficacy are not reliable.
Young Druids would present branches of mistletoe to others to signify the New Year,
and this early custom influenced its modern use as a seasonal decoration in the home,
though it has not developed any symbolism concerning the life of Jesus.
According to the U.S. Geological Survey, there are over 1,300 species of mistletoe all
over the world, 20 of which are endangered. Mistletoe provides food, shelter and nesting
areas for a number of insects, birds and butterflies. The etymology of “mistletoe” may be
based on the observation that the evergreen was found in places where bird droppings fell.
In Anglo-Saxon, “mistel” is the word for “dung” and “tan” is the word for “twig.”

POINSETTIA (Euphorbia pulcherrima)

The poinsettia plant became popular in the United States after the U.S.
Minister to Mexico, Dr. Joel Poinsett, who was a botanist, brought some
plants to his home in South Carolina from their native Mexico. According to legend, a
poor, young girl was upset she didn’t have a gift to offer in church on Christmas Eve so
she presented some bright, green weeds she found nearby. During the Christmas Eve
service, the weeds miraculously transformed into beautiful plants with red, star-shaped
flowers. The story underscores the sentiment of offering gifts with humility. In Mexico,
the poinsettia is known as “flor de la noche buena,” which is “Holy Night Flower.”

CHRISTMAS TREE
Probably the most recognized decorative Christmas display all over the world is the
Christmas tree, which today is usually one of several species of pine trees. It is possible
that the origin of the modern day Christmas tree comes from eleventh century religious
plays that featured a “Paradise” tree, which was a prop used to tell the story of Adam
and Eve. According to the University of Illinois Extension, the most popular Christmas
trees include Scotch pine, Virginia pine, white pine, Douglas fir, Noble fir, Fraser fir,
and balsam fir. According to legend, the triangular outline of some pine trees signifies
the trinity of Creator, Son, and Holy Spirit.

CHRISTMAS WREATH
The Christmas Wreath is traditionally made of branches of evergreens, such as pine.
The scent of pine essential oil eases ailments of the respiratory system, like colds and
cougsh, and its application also helps reduce stress-related conditions. Because the
wreath’s circular shape has no beginning or end, it is said to represent God’s never end-
ing love and infinite presence and also the continual cycle of life.
http://www.environmentalgraffiti.com See more on CD.
 English TOPICAL JOURNEY

36 Christmas in Literature
December 2013

CHRISTMAS QUOTES
The best of all gifts around any Christmas tree
is the presence of a happy family all wrapped up
in each other.
Burton Hillis
Christmas is a time when you get homesick –
even when you’re home.
Carol Nelson
He who has not Christmas in his heart will never
find it under a tree.
Roy L. Smith
A Christmas gambol oft could cheer
The poor man’s heart through half the year.
Walter Scott
I will honor Christmas in my heart, and try to
keep it all the year.
Charles Dickens
Christmas is the season for kindling the fire of
hospitality in the hall, the genial flame of charity
in the heart.
Washington Irving
LITERARY WORKS
The following is a list of literary works which
are set at Christmas time, or contain Christmas
amongst the central themes.
Novels
• Howard Bahr, Pelican Road
• Agatha Christie, Hercule Poirot’s Christmas
• Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol
• Charles Dickens, The Haunted Man and The
Ghost’s Bargain
• Jeff Guinn, The Autobiography of Santa
Claus
• Christopher Moore, The Stupidest Angel: A
Heartwarming Tale of Christmas Terror
• Sugar Ray Dodge, Son of Santa: A Christ-
masy Carol
Short Stories
• Hans Christian Andersen, The Fir-Tree
• Truman Capote, A Christmas Memory
• John Cheever, Christmas Is a Sad Season
for the Poor
• Agatha Christie, The Adventure of the Christ-
mas Pudding
• Agatha Christie, A Christmas Tragedy
• Arthur Conan Doyle, The Blue Carbuncle
• Neil Gaiman, Nicholas Was
• Nikolai Gogol, Christmas Eve
• O. Henry, The Gift of the Magi
• Dylan Thomas, A Child’s Christmas in Wales
There are a number of books that have become firm Christmas favourites. Some have
Christmas as the main theme, such as ‘A Christmas Carol’ by Charles Dickens, but
there are also many books that include a chapter or two set over Christmas or during
the Christmas Holidays.
‘EMMA’ by Jane Austen
Anyone who has read this book will never forget Mr Elton’s unfortunate proposal on the
journey home from the Christmas party at Randells. Emma Woodhouse fancies herself
as a wonderful matchmaker and has decided to pair off the single vicar, Mr Elton, with
her friend Harriet Smith. Mr Elton, being an early 19th century version of the social
climber, has set his sights much higher and wishes to pay court to Miss Woodhouse her-
self. As Harriet Smith is an orphan of unknown parentage, Mr Elton is grossly offended
that Miss Woodhouse should imagine that he would stoop so low. Miss Woodhouse, in
turn, is offended that Mr Elton should presume to address her. The whole thing comes
to a head on the journey back home from the Christmas party at Randells where, due
to a mix-up, Emma finds herself alone in the carriage with Mr Elton, who’s had a few
drinks at the party and decides it’s now or never.
‘THE PICKWICK PAPERS’ by Charles Dickens
There is a wonderful description of Christmas at Dingly Dell Farm, where Mr Pickwick
and his friends are guests. From the journey on the coach to the food and after dinner
walk we are transported into a Victorian Christmas. Their host Mr Wardle decides it
would be fun to go ice skating and Mr Pickwick immediately puts forward his friend
Mr Winkle, who fancies himself as the sportsman of the party – a reputation ill deserved
as he is hopeless at just about all sports. Two trainee surgeons, Mr Benjamin Allen und
Mr Bob Sawyer are also of the party. The unfortunate Mr Winkle will have to don the
skates and have a go.
‘DIARY OF SAMUEL PEPYS’
In the late 20th and early 21st Century Christmas has been commercialised to the nth
degree and it’s difficult to imagine how much further we can take it along that road. We
spend more and more money on presents and entertainment, but in return we seem to
have lost some of the magic and the atmosphere. The diary of Samuel Pepys was writ-
ten in the 1660s. Although Christmas Day was marked as a special day, the celebrations
were low key and did centre largely around the Church service and the dinner, which
was often taken at home with the immediate family.
‘CIDER WITH ROSIE’ by Laurie Lee
Laurie Lee’s description of his childhood in Gloucestershire is an absolute delight. Al-
though this was a poor, single parent family, living among other poor people in the
village, the chapter about the children going carol singing in the run-up to Christmas
is one of the most perfect Christmas stories in literature. Stripped of all material things
people are left with the atmosphere of Christmas and a faint echo of what the shepherds
might have experienced over 2000 ago.

Collections
• J. R. R. Tolkien, Letters from Father Christ-
mas
• Charles Dickens, A Christmas Tree

Poetry
• Clement Clarke Moore, Twas the Night Be-
fore Christmas (originally published as A Visit
from St. Nick)
• Dr. Seuss, How the Grinch Stole Christmas
• Anne Sexton, Christmas Eve Sources: http://www.christmasgems.co.uk
 TOPICAL JOURNEY English

Christmas Movies 37December 2013

It’s the most wonderful time of the year, so we’re told, and it wouldn’t be Christmas
without the Christmas movies we all know and love, which have become part of every-
one’s family tradition over the last few decades.
It is said that the tradition of making Christmas movies is as old as making movies
itself. And truly so. Christmas has long been a favorite subject of moviemakers. In fact,
so many movies have been made on the theme of Christmas that we have lost count.
So we suggest you some of the best Christmas movies that have been extremely well-
received by cinegoers and celebrate the spirit of Christmas in a beautiful way.

HOLIDAY INN (1942)

Director: Mark Sandrich
Starring: Bing Crosby, Fred Astaire, Virginia Dale,
Marjorie Reynolds, Walter Abel.
Plot: Jim Hardy (Bing Crosby) and Ted Hanover CHRISTMAS
(Fred Astaire) have been vaudeville partners for many MATH WORD PROBLEMS
years. When Ted breaks away from Jim with the latter’s
girlfriend, dancer Lila Dixon, Jim decides to retire from Addition/Subtraction
the hustle-bustle of big city showbiz. He buys himself • Mrs. Michaelson baked 14 sugar cookies on
a farmhouse in New England and converts it to an inn, Monday, 21 pies on Tuesday, and 8 fruitcakes
on Wednesday. How many goodies did she
which he opens to the public only on major holidays.
bake altogether?
Things go on well for him until his old partner Ted • Jacob and Miriam played “Spin the Dreidel” for
shows up and sets his sights on Jim’s new friend, Linda Mason. A delightful Christmas one hour. Miriam won 43 times and Jacob won
film, “Holiday Inn” is a must-see for every lover of Christmas movies. It introduced the 29 times. How many more times did Miriam
famous song White Christmas. win than Jacob?
• Mr. Tyson went to the store to buy the food
MIRACLE ON 34TH STREET (1947) for Christmas dinner. He spent $27.64 on
Director: George Seaton vegetables, $42.81 on ham, and $21.32 on
Starring: Maureen O’Hara, John Payne, Edmund Gwenn, Na- beverages. How much did Mr. Tyson spend
talie Wood, Harry Antrim, Jerome Cowan, William Forrest, Her- altogether?
• Grandma brought 3 dozen sugar cookies to
bert Heyes, Gene Lockhart.
Christmas Eve dinner. All but 8 were eaten
Plot: When Kris Kringle (Edmund Gwenn), a bearded old gent,
that night. How many cookies were eaten?
is locked up in Bellevue as a lunatics a young lawyer John Payne
• The elves in the North Pole made 1,042 toys
decides to defend him by arguing in court that he is the real Santa
in October, 2,945 toys in November, and 3,314
Claus. Based on the novel by Valentine Davies, this timeless clas- toys in December. How many toys did the
sic captures the spirit of Christmas in a beautiful way. 72-year-old elves make in all three months put together?
Edmund Gwenn won an Oscar for his portrayal of Kringle.
Multiplication/Division
THE BISHOP’S WIFE (1947) • Each fruitcake serves 11 people. There are 4
Director: Henry Koster pies on the table. How many people will this
Starring: Cary Grant, Loretta Young, David Niven, feed?
• Santa Claus brought 4 gifts for each child in
Monty Woolley, Gladys Cooper, James Gleason.
the Jones household. There are 5 children in
Plot: When Episcopalian bishop Henry Brougham the house. How many gifts did Santa bring to
(David Niven) prays for divine guidance in his efforts to the Jones children altogether?
raise the necessary funds for a new cathedral, his prayers • The Christmas tree farm is selling trees for $23
are answered. A handsome angel (Cary Grant) arrives, and each. They have sold 31 so far in the month
the lives of both the bishop and his wife Julia are pleasant- of December. How much money has the farm
ly altered by the presence of the amiable angel. Adapted made so far in tree sales?
from a novel by Robert Nathan, “The Bishop’s Wife” re- • The Christmas tree farm has 51 rows of trees
and 14 trees in each row. How many trees are
mains one of the most beloved of all Christmas films.
there in all?
• Each bag of Hanukkah gelt has 8 pieces in it.
A CHRISTMAS CAROL (1971) Joseph collected 12 bags of Hanukkah gelt.
Director: Richard Williams How many pieces of gelt does he have alto-
Starring: Alastair Sim, Michael Hordern, Melvyn Hayes, Joan Sims, Paul Whitsun- gether?
Jones
Advanced/Other
Plot: Based on a story by Charles Dickens, this
• Lois bought three hams for three different
animated film stays quite faithful to its source and tells prices. The prices were $14.75, $12.16, and
about a bitter old miser named Scrooge whose lust for $21.55. What is the average cost of the hams?
money alienates him from humanity. But he learns Round to the nearest cent.
compassion when three ghosts visit him on Christmas • Santa and his reindeer flew 16,547 miles on
Eve and force him to reassess the direction of his life. A Christmas eve last year. This year, they flew
holiday classic, the film has been remade several times 16,574 miles. Write an inequality to compare
and is a great hit with the audience. A thrilling holiday each year’s mileage. Use the “less than” or
“greater than” sign.
movie with a nice message.
http://www.theholidayspot.com Submitted by Tatyana Makhrina By Beth Lewis
 English TOPICAL JOURNEY
38 X-mas Activities
December 2013
WHITE XMAS: Talk about which is better – a white Xmas or a
golden Xmas (on the beach in a hot country).
BAH HUMBUG: Briefly explain the character of Scrooge. Brain-
storm all the possible reasons why Christmas should be cancelled
this year. Write them on the board. Students then talk in pairs about
whether they agree with any of the reasons.
IT’S MINE: Either write the names of some popular presents on
the board (iPod, Burberry scarf, latest video game…) or bring in
some pictures of the latest offerings from magazines. Students
have to convince one another why they should get the particular
present. Attach the pictures around the classroom so students can
walk around.
CHAT: Talk about the North Pole, Santa Claus, Xmas presents,
Xmas movies, Xmas songs…
SANTA’S KNEE: Students take turns at being Santa and ask their
partner what they would like for Xmas and why?
AN iPOD AND AN MD: Sing the famous Xmas song ‘The Twelve
Days of Christmas’ with the revised lyrics below:
1st day – an iPod and a PlayStation 3
2nd day – two Chanel gloves
3rd day – three soccer balls
4th day – four teddy bears
5th day – five golden rings
6th day – six Barbie dolls
7th day – seven cans of Cola
8th day – eight Burberry bags
9th day – nine mobile phones
10th day – ten boxes of Lego
11th day – eleven electric guitars
12th day – twelve pairs of Levi’s
SPECIAL RELATIONSHIPS: Talk about the special relationship
between Santa and the children of the world, as well as other spe-
cial relationships, like parent and child, teacher and pupil, soccer
club and fans, hometown and yourself… Brainstorm other special
relationships.
OTHER CULTURES: If you have a multi-cultural, multi-faith
class. brainstorm what Xmas means to different students.
THE REAL MEANING: Students retell the real story of Xmas
in groups. Mix religions for better effect. Put the following on the
board as prompts –
Angel Gabriel, star, three wise men, stable, Mary, donkey, carpen-
ter, gold, frankincense and myrrh, Bethlehem, no room at the inn,
King Herod
XMAS ROLE PLAY: Assign each student a different Xmas char-
acter. Tell them to mill around introducing themselves and compar-
ing notes on what it’s like being who they are. Roles might include:
Santa, a snowman, Rudolf the Red-nosed Reindeer, a North Pole
penguin, the Xmas tree fairy, the Christmas turkey, any other char-
acters related to your students’ cultures…
SANTATHON: If you really did want to ask all of the questions,
form the students into teams. Ask quick-fire questions to each team
in turn. They have three seconds to answer a question and get three
points. If they answer the question within three seconds, they stay
center stage for the next question, and the next…until they falter. If
they do not answer within three seconds the same question passes
to the next team.
SANTABATES: Choose questions you think might allow for in-
teresting fun debates. Students brainstorm ideas in pairs/groups in
preparation for a debate.
SANTA SURVEYS: Students choose 5 or 6 questions they like.
These form the basis of their Santa Survey. They ask other class
members, and find as much extra information as they can to supple-
ment the answers. Students then report their findings to their part-
ners, groups, classes.
SANTA PROFILE: The same set of questions are given to students
(individually, pairs, groups…). Each student, pair, group answers
the questions to form their profile of Santa. They change partners/
groups and share the images of Santa they have created. This could
form the basis of an argument over which image is the real Santa,
or a compromise to find some middle ground.
‘BAH HUMBUG’ ROLE PLAY: The Xmas role play to end all
Xmas role plays. An argument between Santa and Scrooge (he who
hates Xmas). Santa students get together and brainstorm ideas as
to why Xmas is so wonderful; Scrooges think of all the possible
reasons why Xmas is a waste of time and a generally bad idea. Role
play in pairs or groups. If in groups, have the group speaker at the
front and tag him/her to change places with other team members
when they are flagging.
THE MAGIC OF XMAS: What makes Xmas magical for you?
Here are some categories. Talk about them with your partner and
rank which in order of importance – food, presents, family, lights,
shopping, alcohol, church, no work, no school, other.
THE NIGHTMARE OF XMAS: What makes Xmas a nightmare
for you? Here are some categories. Talk about them with your part-
ner and rank them in order of ‘nightmare-ness’ – food, bad presents,
family, shopping, alcohol, hangover, small children, Frosty the
Snowman songs, cold weather, other.
Source: Breaking News English.com
 SCHOOL THEATRE English

CINDERELLA 39
December 2013

Театральная постановка в начальной школе

Дети, выступающие на сцене, и тем более на иностранном SCENE I
языке, всегда вызывают радость у родителей и симпатию у Музыка. Золушка подметает пол. Входит ее отец.
окружающих. В данном материале речь пойдет о том, как и
что делает театральные постановки наиболее привлекатель-
ной формой работы при обучении английскому языку именно Cinderella: Good morning, daddy! Нow are you feeling?
в начальной школе. My dear daddy! I love you!
Для начала мы рассмотрим возрастные особенности млад- Father: Good morning dear! Great, thanks! And you? (гла-
ших школьников, развитие которых в перспективе повлечет дит по голове)
за собой повышение качества знаний и улучшит интеграцию Cinderella: Fine, daddy.
личности ученика и школьной среды. А затем мы проанали-
зируем, какие трудности снимает и что оптимизирует драма- Stepmother: (из-за кулис) We’re going to the ball tonight!
тизация в изучении английского языка. Hurry up!
Одной из ключевых особенностей младшего школьного Stepsister 1: Cinderella, clean up this mess, now!
возраста является непосредственность поведения, что за- And I want a party dress! (кидает кучу платьев на
трудняет освоение школьником учебного материала в рамках пол)
урока. Дети этой возрастной категории характеризуются эмо-
циональностью восприятия, что диктует свои правила в пода-
Stepsister 2: And I want a dress! I want to be the most beau-
че материала, если мы говорим об эффективном обучении. tiful at the ball! (смотрится в зеркало)
Кроме того, неотъемлемой частью школьной жизни ребенка Stepsister 1: No, I will be the most beautiful! Look at your
является социализация. Все это нужно учитывать при работе nose! It is the longest nose in the world!
на данной образовательной ступени, ведь указанные выше Stepsister 2: (трогая нос) And look at your neck! It is the
особенности – это трудности, с которыми школьник сталкива-
ется каждый день, и это минусы, которые легко превратить в
longest in the world! (дразнит)
плюсы, помня о них. Stepsister 1: And your ears! They are bigger than the don-
Давайте теперь посмотрим на театральную деятельность key’s! (дразнит)
с точки зрения влияния на эффективность учебного процес- Stepsister 2: And look at the tangled nest on your head!!!
са. В основе ее лежит ролевая игра, которая является уни- Stepsister 1 (плача): My dear mother!!!
версальным инструментом для моделирования различных
Stepmother (из-за кулис): Don’t cry! You’d better help me
жизненных ситуаций с наивысшей степенью отдачи, так как,
проигрывая тот или иной сюжет, дети имеют возможность его and sing a song!
увидеть и прочувствовать. При этом не нужно забывать об
эмоциональной составляющей процесса, напрямую связан- Дочери поют невпопад. Отец выбегает на сцену, закры-
ной с результатом усвоения материала. вая уши руками.
Театрализованное действие дает детям возможность вый-
ти за пределы сложившихся отношений, ролей в классе, что
при чутком руководстве учителя может способствовать улуч- Father: Oh, my God! Stop it, please! That’s enough!
шению психологического климата и сплочению коллектива. Stepmother: Ok! Done! (хлопает в ладоши)
Еще один немаловажный момент – произвольность, которая Stepsister 1: Cinderella, I told you to clean up this mess!
очень хорошо воспитывается посредством данной формы ра- You can’t go to the ball, until you do this all!
боты над языковым материалом через принятие своей роли,
соблюдение последовательности ролей и т.д.
Таким образом, с одной стороны, этот прием учитывает
Мачеха достает список.
основные потребности младших школьников и создает усло-
вия для развития возрастных качеств, а с другой – оптими-
зирует усвоение языковых средств на всех уровнях, начиная
с уровня слова и заканчивая уровнем фразового единства.
Причем процесс овладения иностранной речью идет в обход
правил, отвлеченных диалогов из учебника, так сказать, бо-
лее естественным путем.
Театральная постановка способствует созданию языковой
среды, раскрепощению детей во время общения. Сцениче-
ский образ снимает страх ошибки, что ведет к большей вовле-
ченности в общение на иностранном языке. Необходимо еще
отметить направленность данного вида работы на конечную,
явную цель, что придает осмысленность и оправданность
каждому действию ученика, а как следствие – повышает эф-
фективность процесса изучения английского языка.
В заключение хотелось бы отметить, что для оптимизации
освоения такого сложного умения, как говорение на иностран-
ном языке, учителя английского обладают универсальным
инструментом и возможностями, которые ограничены только
их фантазией и материальной базой. Учитель должен быть
творческим эмоциональным человеком, увлеченным своим
делом и способным передать свою увлеченность ученикам.
 English SCHOOL THEATRE

40December 2013

Stepmother: (другая сестра загибает пальцы)

Sweep the floor,
Clean the rooms,
Cook the food,
Water the flowers,
Feed the animals,
And wash the dishes!
Stepsisters 1, 2 (хихикают): You know you can’t go to the
ball!
Cinderella: Oh, dear! I can’t go to the ball! I have too many
things to do!
Stepsister 2 (уходя): Open the door, Cinderella! The door!

Песня Золушки.

SCENE II
Музыка. Золушка плачет.
Fairy: Why are you crying, dear, why? Please, don’t cry!
Cinderella: I can’t go to the ball.
Fairy: Why not?
Cinderella: Because my dress is very old!
Fairy: I can help you! Look at me!
Close your eyes. One, two, three! (взмахивает палоч-
кой!)
Cinderella: I can’t believe this is my dress! Thank you, fairy,
you are so kind!
Fairy (грозит пальцем): But at 12 o’clock you must be
here, or your dress will disappear!
Cinderella: Oh, yes, it’s very clear!
SCENE III
Музыка (фанфары).
King: The ball is on. Let’s dance and play and have a lot of
fun today.
Появляется Золушка. Все расходятся, она в центре.
Sisters (обращаясь к залу): Look at that pretty girl!
King: She is so nice and slim!
Prince: Hello! Let’s dance! You are my dream!
Танец. Бьют часы.
Cinderella: It’s midnight and I must run. Bye-bye! I had a
lot of fun! (Убегает, теряет туфельку.)

SCENE VI
Утро. Золушка накрывает на стол.

Prince: We know you were at the ball. Try on this shoe!

Stepsister 1: Oh! It’s very small!
Stepsister 2: Give it to me! I will try it on! Oh! It’s very
small!
Prince: But who is that girl? Come here, please! Try on this
shoe, pretty miss!
Stepsisters: But she didn’t go to the ball!
Prince: Give her the shoe! Her foot is small!

Золушка надевает туфельку, достает такую же вто-

рую.

Prince: I’m so happy I have found you!

Cinderella: My prince, I am very glad too!

Все выходят на сцену.

Cinderella: If you believe, your wish will come true!


Участники спектакля все вместе исполняют песню.
“A Dream is a Wish”
A dream is a wish your heart makes
When you are fast asleep.
In dreams you lose your heartaches
Whatever you wish for, you keep!
Have faith in your dreams and someday
Your rainbow will come smiling through,
No matter how your heart is grieving,
If you keep on believing,
SCHOOL THEATRE English
41
December 2013
The dream that you wish will come true.
A dream is a wish your heart makes
When you’re feeling small.
Alone in the night, you whisper
Thinking no one can hear you at all.
You wait for the morning sunlight
To find fortune that is smiling on you.
Don’t let your heart be full of sorrow,
For all you know tomorrow,
The dream that you wish will come true.
When you can dream, then you can start,
A dream is a wish you make with your heart.
When you can dream, then you can start,
A dream is a wish you make with your heart.
A dream is a wish your heart makes
When you are fast asleep.
In dreams you lose your heartaches.
Whatever you wish for, you keep!
By Vitaly Bardakov,
Lomonosov School, Moscow
Photos taken by the author
 English SCHOOL THEATRE

42
December 2013 ВЕСЕЛОЕ РОЖДЕСТВО
Методическая разработка мероприятия “Праздники и традиции”
Спектакль является одной из разработок учителей по
теме “Праздники и традиции”.
Главная идея спектакля – не только использовать и со-
вершенствовать знания, но и показать индивидуальные
способности детей, в интересной занимательной форме
познакомить учащихся с традициями праздника “Рожде-
ство”.
Внеклассные занятия развивают творческие способ-
ности детей, формируют сознание, активизируют внима-
ние и память, развивают у них чувство ответственности
к выполнению порученных заданий, приучают к само-
стоятельности и организованности.
соблюдать этику межличностного общения; прививать
учащимся интерес к изучению иностранного языка; под-
держивать интерес к истории и проведению праздников
в России и Великобритании; формировать эстетический
вкус и личностные качества учащихся.
Оформление мероприятия: рождественские и ново-
годние плакаты и газеты; рождественские открытки; ко-
стюмы к сказке “Федот-стрелец”; плакаты-иллюстрации
к стихам.
ХОД МЕРОПРИЯТИЯ

Этапы подготовки мероприятия: • “I will honor Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all
• Обсуждение идеи и сюжета мероприятия the year.”
• Распределение ролей, их разучивание (Charles Dickens)
• Репетиции
• Обсуждение, изготовление декораций, костюмов • “He who has no Christmas in his heart will never find
• Оформление зала (плакаты, открытки) Christmas under a tree.”
• Музыкальное оформление (Roy L. Smith)

Основные цели и задачи: Вступительное слово учителей: Good afternoon, dear

Практические: обобщить и систематизировать знания friends! We are glad to see you; we are very pleased to
учащихся по теме “Рождественские традиции в англоя- greet you. Welcome to our Christmas Party!
зычных странах”; развить и закрепить орфографические Every country and every nation has its own traditions
навыки; в игровой форме проверить умения учащихся and customs. It’s very important to know the traditions
применять полученные знания английского языка (лек- and customs of different people.
сику по темам “Времена года” и “Английские праздни- It’ll help you to learn more about the history and life of
ки”, разговорные выражения, устойчивые формы, грам- different nations and countries.
матические навыки по теме “Порядок слов в английском There are a lot of holidays in the UK. One of them is
предложении”); укрепить межпредметные связи между Christmas.
английским языком и музыкой, ИЗО, МХК; создать ощу- Pupil 1: Christmas is a religious holiday which commemo-
щение успеха у всех участников мероприятия, что при- rates the birth of Jesus Christ. It’s celebrated annually on
ведет в дальнейшем к более полному раскрытию лич- the 25th of December by Christians all over the world.
ностных способностей учащихся. Pupil 2: The word Christmas is derived from the words
Образовательные: расширить кругозор учащихся по “Christ’s Mass”, a special service held in churches on
теме “Праздники в англоязычных странах”; познакомить Christmas Day.
учащихся с образцами английского фольклора (на мате-
риале английских рождественских песен); познакомить “Silent Night” (Recording).
учащихся с поэтическим наследием английских поэтов;
развить коммуникативные способности учащихся, уме-
ние быстро и адекватно реагировать на предложенную
речевую ситуацию; продолжать формирование комму-
никативных навыков и навыков аудирования; совершен-
ствовать и пополнять лексическую базу учащихся.
Развивающие: развивать положительную внутреннюю
мотивацию к изучению английского языка; выявлять и
развивать творческие способности учащихся, воображе-
ние, фантазию; расширять и развивать общекультурный
кругозор учащихся; развивать творческое мышление, ре-
чевые способности.
Воспитательные: развитие умения учащихся работать
в коллективе, в команде; развитие умения адекватно ве-
сти себя в процессе межличностного общения; учить
 SCHOOL THEATRE English

43December 2013

I wish Mankind united

In one common cause
To root out all evil
To make this world best of all.

I hope we’ll care for our Earth

Quit polluting this place
Before it’s too late
“Christmas Message” For the Human Race.
H.Longfellow
I heard the bells on Christmas Day So Merry Christmas to all
Their old familiar carols play, And to all a good night
And wild and sweet And during this Season
The words repeat Let’s unite to do right.
Of peace on earth, good will to men.
Pupil 2: Christmas is filled with wonderful things to see, hear,
Pupil 1: Christmas! It is not only a holiday. smell and taste. And there is the special warmth that
Pupil 2: Christmas! It is the whole world of magic and hope! Christmas brings – a mixture of joy, love and peace.
Pupil 1: Many people have their own ideas about what it means. Pupil 1: The weeks before Christmas are full of excitement.
Pupil 2: But everyone knows that this is the time of love, People rush about shopping for presents, decorating
happiness, hope and kindness! their houses, sending cards and getting ready for the
Pupil 1: It’s the time when each of us hopes for the best and coming holiday.
wishes others all the best! Pupil 2: Families bake cakes and cookies, wrap presents and
decorate a Christmas tree.
Christmas
Merry Christmas to all Christmas
And Happy New Year, too My goodness, my goodness,
As we all say, farewell It’s Christmas again
To this year almost, through. The bells are all ringing.
I do not know when
I wish you good health I’ve been so excited.
Happiness and cheer The tree is all fixed,
And all the best things The candles are lighted,
In the new, coming year. The pudding is mixed.
The wreath’s on the door
I wish peace for the world And the carols are sung.
And true freedom for all The presents are wrapped
For the Devil and hate And the holly is hung.
A final downfall. The turkey is sitting
All sate in its pan,
I hope those filled with greed And I am behaving
Will find they have enough As calm as I can.
That love and friendship
Will replace all that “stuff”. Pupil 1: Christmas is a very special time for everyone. There
are many traditions connected with it.
I hope the homeless and hungry
Find relief from their plight • To have good health throughout the next year, eat an apple
(And we know they would on Christmas Eve.
if, we’d all do what’s right). • Wearing new shoes on Christmas Day will bring bad luck.
• If you refuse a mince pie at Christmas dinner, you will
I wish a life for the Children have bad luck for the coming year.
That will be worth living • You will have as many happy months in the coming year,
Each with loving parents as the number of houses you eat mince pies in during
Who know the art of giving. Christmastime.
 English SCHOOL THEATRE

44December 2013

• Shout ‘Christmas Gift’ to the first person knocking on Pupil 1: They believe that Santa Claus, who is an imaginary
your door on Christmas Day and expect to receive a gift old man in red clothes with white beard, comes at night
from the visitor. and fills them with toys and sweets.
Pupil 2: Santa Claus visits houses and brings presents in
Pupil 2: The tradition to decorate a Christmas tree came to bright paper and ribbons.
Britain from Germany in the 19th century. Pupil 1: He delivers them on Christmas Eve, the night be-
Pupil 1: It appeared first in the royal family, later many other fore Christmas, when everybody is sleeping.
people followed the tradition. Pupil 2: How does he get into the house?
Pupil 2: At first Christmas trees were decorated with things Pupil 1: He comes down the chimney to leave the presents.
to eat and candles were used to light the tree.
Pupil 1: Nowadays we can see Christmas trees decorated S stands for stockings we hang up so high.
with glass shining balls, tinsel and tiny coloured elec- A is for all we get if we don’t cry.
tric lamps. N is for nobody he will pass by.
T is for to-morrow, the day we eat pie.
Christmas Tree A stands for at last old Santa is nigh.
Lawrence Smith
Star over all, C for the children who love him so well.
Eye of the night L for the little girl, his name she can spell.
Stand on my tree A stands for apples so rosy and red.
Magical sight. U is for us as we wait for his sled.
Appled with baubles S stands for Santa Claus, who comes in the night when we
Silver and gold, are tucked up in bed with our eyes closed so tight.
Spangled with fire
Warm over cold. Pupil 2: And yet he is very curious.
Green under frost Pupil 1: And once he sent his envoy to the tzar in a dis-
Green under snow tant and mysterious Russia to learn how people live
Green under tinsel there.
Glitter and glow.
Инсценировка сказки “Федот-Стрелец” (Приложение 1).
Pupil 2: Оn the 24th of December, Christmas Eve, the Brit-
ish go to church and sing Christmas carols. Pupil 1: Dear teachers and friends, allow us to say...
Pupil 1: There are lots of carols both English and foreign. Pupil 2: that we wish you a very glad Christmas day.
Pupil 2: They may be traditional or by known composers, or Pupil 1: Don’t be pessimistic, don’t be angry, don’t be self-
new arrangements of old tunes. ish!
Pupil 1: Children also go from house to house singing carols Pupil 2: Only happiness, pleasure and hope!
in hope to get sweets and a few pence. Pupil 1: We want to present to you today verses which
we are assured of it will help you to cope with bad
Song “We wish you a Merry Christmas” mood.
We wish you a Merry Christmas,
We wish you a Merry Christmas, Стихи груки (Приложение 2).
We wish you a Merry Christmas
And a Happy New Year! Pupil 2: I’m sorry to say our programme is over. We hope
We’d all like some figgy pudding, you had a good time.
We’d all like some figgy pudding, Pupil 1: We wish you a Merry Christmas!
We’d all like some figgy pudding,
So bring some out here. By Yelena Ivanova, Yulia Ivanova,
School No. 340, St. Petersburg
Pupil 2: On Christmas Eve children hang up bright stock-
ings near the fireplace or on their beds. См. Приложения на CD.

CHRISTMAS IN OZLAND
Внеклассное мероприятие-вечер
1. Christmas is a warm thing, wrinkled or new;
A softness of lights, red green and blue.
A tingle, a tiptoe, a fire aglow
All crispy and nippy – snowflakes and snow.
2. Christmas is tinsel, a present, a tree;
A joy and laughter, a giggle of glee;
Or a quiet candle, a flicker of flame;
A whisper, a touch of soft falling rain.
3. Christmas is family, old, young, the same;
Visitors and carols again and again;
A pudding, a plump, a goose full of fat;
Smelling the stuffing of this and of that.
All: Christmas is everything, poorest or bare;
Richly ornated, embraced with care
A vision for all or one hope, set apart
A true thing, a real thing that lives in my heart.
Звучит рождественская песня.
Narrator: Once upon a time Santa and his elves worked
very hard to make many toys for boys and girls every-
where. He loaded his sleigh, hitched up his reindeer, and
started off on his delivery trip.
Звучит песня “Jingle Bells”.
Narrator: Santa wanted us to be sure that the boys and girls
didn’t open their packages until it was time, so he put a
sign on each that said “Do not open till Christmas.”
Песня “Santa Claus is coming to town”.
Narrator: On his way Santa saw boys and girls dancing
around a Christmas tree.
Песня “Oh Christmas Tree”.
Narrator: Everywhere boys and girls were waiting for Santa
singing holiday songs.
Песня “What Child is This”.
Действующие лица:
Narrator Santa Dorothy
Scarecrow Tinman Elves
Ozman Wicked Witch Scratcher
Rudolf
Вступительное слово о Рождестве.
Narrator: Christmas comes around only once a year. It’s
a time for us to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, fel-
SCHOOL THEATRE English
45
December 2013
lowship with friends and family, and a time of giving
and receiving gifts. A beautiful holiday, which is loved
by children and adults, when everything is decorated
with lights and toys, when we see Christmas trees eve-
rywhere, when people buy presents and cook special
food, send cards and have parties. And we’ll celebrate
this holiday now.
SCENE 1
Narrator: It was Christmas Eve again and Santa was about
to start his journey to all children on Earth who were
waiting for him. Snow was falling, it was foggy, and
a cold wind was blowing from the East. Santa left his
house and went to the big sleigh where the elves were
working hard.
Santa: Hurry up elves! Don’t forget to put all the presents
onto my sleigh. I don’t want children to be sad on Christ-
mas Day because I couldn’t fill their stockings.
Elf: Oh, come on, Santa. You know that we’ve always been
on time and that we’ve never forgotten any presents.
Santa: You are right. But I am a bit nervous tonight. It’s the
weather you know. The fog is so bad that my reindeer
won’t be able to find their way. Even the light from my
lanterns isn’t bright enough.
Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner
and Blitzen! What shall we do?
We can’t wait until the fog has cleared up again.
Elf: Hey, Santa, why don’t you take Rudolf with you?
Santa: Good idea! Rudolf’s nose is not only red, it even
glows. It’s almost as bright as the moon. Rudolf, with
your nose so bright won’t you guide my sleigh tonight?
Rudolf: I will be your leader and the other reindeer won’t
make fun of me anymore.
Narrator: And Rudolf became a guide of the reindeer team.
SCENE 2
Слышен треск, грохот, появляется Санта Клаус с по-
ломанными санями.
Santa: Where am I? I was off on my delivery trip with
presents for all the children.
Dorothy: Look! It’s Santa! What are you doing here?
Santa: Well, it seems my sleigh has crashed. Rudolph’s nose
was on the blink. We lost our way. All of a sudden I find
myself here. I didn’t think we’ve come as far as Kansas.
Dorothy: This isn’t Kansas. It’s Ozland.
Santa: How far is it from Kansas?
Dorothy: Oh, Santa! Oz is a magical land “Somewhere over
the rainbow”.
Scarecrow: Well. I give up. Who is he?
Dorothy: Hi, Scarecrow. This is Santa Claus from Earth.
Scarecrow: Why is he so fat and why is he wearing that
funny-looking red suit?
Santa: I don’t know myself, just a tradition, I guess.
 English SCHOOL THEATRE
46December 2013
Входит Tinman.
Tinman: Who is this man? What is he doing here? Did he
hurt you? If so I can’t help crying.
Dorothy: Oh, Tinman, don’t cry. Your oilcan is at Emerald
city. You’ll surely rust.
Santa: How can that pile of tin cry?
Scarecrow: This is the Tinman. He has no heart.
Tinman: But who is he?
Scarecrow: Beats me! He crashed from some place called
Earth.
Tinman: That’s is where Dorothy comes from. How’d he
get here?
Santa: Well, I was delivering my toys…
Scarecrow: Toys? What toys? Why?
Santa: Don’t you know? It’s Christmas Eve.
Tinman: Christmas what?
Dorothy: Well, it’s a very special day. People celebrate it by
decorating trees and giving gifts to their friends. Santa
delivers toys to children.
Tinman: How sweet!
Scarecrow: Let’s have Christmas tree.
Santa: You’ll have it without me. I have to get back to Earth.
Dorothy: How are you going to get back?
Scarecrow: They say the Wizard of Oz can give me brains,
Tinman a heart, and get Dorothy back to Kansas. Can’t
he help Santa, too?
Dorothy: What a good idea! Let’s all go to the Wizard to-
gether.
Tinman: I need some oil and the rest of us need dressing up
before we see the Wizard. We’ll meet you in a little while.
Уходят.
Santa: Where are my Elves?
Elf: Hi, Santa! How will we get back to Earth?
Santa: The Wizard of Oz will help us. But where are the
reindeer? Aha, here you are Rudolph.
Rudolph: You know I couldn’t help it! It’s not my fault you
couldn’t see. All of you depend on me.
Santa: It wasn’t your fault.
Elf: Your sleigh is beyond repair.
Santa: We’ll have to depend on the Wizard. Meanwhile,
the people of Oz want to have Christmas, so we’ll have
plenty to keep us busy.
SCENE 3
Ozman 1: Hurray, we are going to have Christmas.
Ozman 2: Santa gave us all these nice presents. What could
we give him?
Ozman 1: The only thing he wants is to deliver presents to
the Earth children.
Ozman 2: Yes, and our Wizard is taking care of that, we hope.
Входит Dorothy.
Dorothy: The Wizard says we’ll have to capture the Wick-
ed Witch of the North. So I guess we’ll never get our
wishes.
Tinman: Even if she is wicked I don’t want to hurt any-
body.
Scarecrow: How could we capture her, if we couldn’t find
her?
Tinman: Poor Santa.
Dorothy: I am sorry, Santa, it looks hopeless. But we can go
on with the Christmas right here in Oz.
Scarecrow: Great! What fun!
Santa: I guess you are right, my friends. I’ll tell the elves.
Ozman 1: And our children will also get presents?
Santa: Why not? They’ll get sweets and toys.
Ozman 2: But if the Wicked Witch learns about the celebra-
tion she won’t let us have a holiday.
Santa: Nobody will bother you. Don’t worry.
Picture from http://www.fanpop.com

Photo from http://www.dvdactive.com
SCENE 4
Gertrude: Poor me. It is so boring doing nothing. Every-
thing is quiet in Ozland. I wish I could go somewhere
and spoil something, steal someone’s shoes or turn eve-
rything upside down in a house, for example.
Scratch: Oh, stop complaining, Wicked Witch. I’ve
brought you a piece of good news. Do you know about
Dorothy and her company walking to the Wizard of
Oz?
Gertrude: Yes, firstly I was a little bit afraid of her, as she
killed my sister, especially after she had taken up with
that stupid Scarecrow and Tinman. I expected her to be a
fairy but she turned out to be an ordinary girl. Come on,
Scratch, she doesn’t interest me anymore.
Scratch: Probably, when you hear my news you will change
your mind.
Gertrude: What else can you tell me about that girl?
Scratch: Not about the girl, but Santa Claus.
Gertrude: What? Whom are you talking about? I have never
heard about such a man before.
Scratch: His sleigh crashed in Oz.
Gertrude: Sleigh crashed? What do you mean, foolish cat.
Do you expect me to know about this damned sleigh?
Scratch: I don’t know for sure, but he was delivering
presents for children for Christmas, but his reindeer was
on the blink. Now they are going to celebrate Christmas
here, as they used to on Earth.
Gertrude: That’s fine! We’ll just see if they have a celebra-
tion. Well, I can see I`m not going to get much sleep to-
night. My magic hat will help me.
Double, double toil and trouble!
Spoil that man with all that stubble.
Scratch: We’ll have a lot of fun. All those people bother
me and I hate to see them lucky. The first thing I’ll do is
break all the toys and throw them away.
Gertrude: Come on, Scratch. Where is my magic hat?
SCENE 5
Dorothy: Look, Santa. Someone is flying. Oh, it is the Wick-
ed Witch. I am scared.
Gertrude: Oh, hush, you silly people. Do you think I will al-
low you to celebrate anything here? Nobody will have a
holiday. I am the Wicked Witch of the West. I will change
you into little green frogs, and then you will sing your
Christmas songs in a marsh.
Scarecrow: Do it right now. I’ll enjoy it greatly.
SCHOOL THEATRE English
47
December 2013
Tinman: Dorothy, don’t be afraid. I will protect you. And
you, mean woman (обращается к ведьме) don’t harm
anybody or I will kill you. (Толкает ее и у ведьмы
падает шляпа)
Santa: The hat, the hat! The magic hat! (поднимает ее).
But who knows how to use it?
Dorothy: I do! The Wizard says that whoever has a mag-
ic hat may make three wishes and they will come true.
Oh, magic hat, I wish the Wicked Witch became a good
witch!
Gertrude: No, no, I don’t want to. Oh, what is happening? I
am not the Wicked Witch anymore.
Scratch: Wow! She is out of her mind. I have nothing to
do here and I am going to search for a new master now.
(Уходит)
Ozman: Wish for a new sleigh for Santa.
Dorothy: I wish for a new sleigh for Santa.
Santa: That’s great. Thank you. But Christmas is over. It’s
too late to deliver the toys to the children.
Gertrude: Listen! Time stops when an earth person comes
to Oz. It will still be Christmas Eve when Santa returns.
All: Hooray!
Santa: We still have one wish. Let’s wish that the dreams of
our friends – Tinman and Scarecrow – come true.
Tinman: What about Dorothy? She wants to go to Kansas.
Santa: Dorothy can ride home with me.
Dorothy: Thank you, Santa. Now I will make the third wish.
I wish my friends` dreams would come true.
Scarecrow: I think I can – I know I can! I can think.
Tinman: Dorothy I love you. I can feel my heart telling me so.
Rudolph: Come on, Santa! We can’t wait to start pulling the
new sleigh.
Santa: We are coming.
Narrator: Santa crashed into Ozland one dark night
He brought to all folks, the joy of Christmas light.
Dorothy and her friends now take their dreams
Rudolph’s nose has made history once again it seems.
The Teddy Bears and dancing clowns
Are glad the Witch no longer frowns.
It’s once more Christmas!
The Oz people laugh and dance and sing
Just hear their merry voices ring!
It’s once more Christmas!
Somewhere over the rainbow Santa Claus gave the spirit
of Christmas to all the Land of Oz.
Narrator: Вот и закончилась наша Рождественская сказка,
а праздник только начинается. Вы все готовились к
Рождеству. Кто-то рисовал открытки, кто-то делал
сувениры. Сегодня никто из тех, кто примал участие
в празднике, не уйдет без подарка.
Submitted by Lyudmila Teplyashina,
School No. 16, Chernogorsk
См. Приложение на CD.
English РЕКЛАМА

48
 TESTS English

49
December 2013

CHRISTMAS TEST
1. Put the following verbs into the text. Use the correct form.
Five-Minute Tests
light deliver relax visit
celebrate go put open 1 I
cook have enter burn
Use the word given in brackets to form a
word or a proper tense of a verb that fits the
In Ireland, people 1)______________ Christmas in the same way as peo-
sentence.
ple in the UK, but they also have many of their own Christmas traditions and
Curious Facts
customs.
In 1898, an American author named Mor-
On Christmas Eve, the Irish 2)______________ candles and
gan Robertson, who wrote his novels in a
3)______________ them on windows. The candles may 4)_____________
trancelike state of (1)_________ (conscious),
during the whole night. Families 5)_____________ to the church for a Christ-
published The Wreck of Titan, a book that
mas mass together.
describes the tragic maiden voyage of the
Santa Claus is a popular figure in Ireland. He 6)_____________ the house
(2) _______(large) luxury liner ever built,
through the chimney and 7)____________ gifts. Children 8)__________
the (3)_______(sink) Titan. Seventy-five
these gifts in the morning on the next day.
thousand tons deadweight, a top-speed of
On Christmas Day, the Irish 9)_______________ Christmas dinner which
twenty-five knots, she carried 2,000–3,000
is goose or stuffed turkey followed by a Christmas pudding or Christmas
passengers. But the ship only had twenty four
cake.
lifeboats, far too few to (4)________(accom-
One day after Christmas, Ireland also celebrates St. Stephen´s Day. Fami-
modation) all the passengers, and on a foggy
lies 10)_____________ the local church to celebrate.
night in April she crashed into, and (5)_____
On the 6th of January, the Feast of Epiphany is celebrated. It is Women´s
(sink) by, a massive iceberg.
Christmas, because at this time, the men in the family do the household tasks
The Titanic (6)_______ (build) thirteen
such as 11)_____________ and cleaning and the women take a holiday and
years later, she also displaced 75,000 tons,
visit each other and talk and 12)____________.
had three crews and a maximum speed of
twenty-five knots. On her maiden voyage in
2. Underline the correct word.
1912, the Titanic sank after (7)_______(en-
I think Boxing Day is confused/confusing for people who don’t know
counter) an iceberg on the night of April 14,
much about Christmas. It is a strange name for a holiday. I bet/better
in thick fog.
many people think it is a time when people have a fight and punch each
other. Well, it’s quiet/quite a bit different than that. Boxing Day started Key: 1. consciousness; 2. largest; 3. unsinkable; 4. ac-
hundred/hundreds of years ago as a way of helping poorer people at/on commodate; 5. was sunk; 6. was built; 7. encountering

Christmas. Shopkeepers and craftsmen used/use to put a special Christ-

mas box in their store or workshop. Customers and visitors would place/
2 I
put money into the box. On the day after Christmas Day, when/which is People’s families and friends often use short
December 26th, the shopkeeper emptied the box and shared the money forms of their first names (for example, Liz
with his workers. So that’s how Boxing Day started. This kind of tradi- instead of Elizabeth). Put the right names
tion continues/continuing today. Many companies give their workers a with the short forms: Stephen, Philip, Peter,
Christmas bonus. Michael, Christine, Kenneth, Catherine, Pe-
nelope, Josephine, Christopher, Stanley, Mar-
3. Use the word given in capitals at the end of each line to form a word that garet, Deborah, Gillian, Rosemary, Robert,
fits in the space in the same line. William.
1. Kate ________________
The Christmas pudding _______ from the Middle Ages. ORIGINAL 2. Steve ________________
Then it was _______ from different meats and poultry, MAKE 3. Chris ________________
to which spices were added to help preserve the meat. 4. Chris ________________
In the 16th century, with the ________ of fruits, wine ADD 5. Bill ________________
and breadcrumbs, it became __________ to the modern SIMILARITY 6. Phil ________________
Christmas dish. But it was only in the Victorian Era when 7. Bob ________________
it was _________ as a tradition by Prince Albert. INTRODUCTION 8. Pete ________________
Now puddings are made five weeks before Christmas. 9. Mike ________________
A silver coin is often stirred into the pudding ________ MIX 10. Ken ________________
and whoever finds it will have good luck 11. Penny ________________
in the coming year. ª 12. Jo ________________ ª
 English TESTS

50
December 2013

4. Put the correct words from the table into the text.
Five-Minute Tests Christmas Eve is, of course, the evening before Christmas Day. It’s
(1)__________ a busy day for most people who celebrate Christmas. There
13. Stan ________________ are so many things to do – usually (2)__________-minute things. For exam-
14. Maggie ________________ ple, you have to quickly send a Christmas card to people you (3)__________,
15. Debbie ________________ especially when they sent you one. You also have to do last-minute Christ-
16. Gill ________________ mas shopping. I always (4)__________ Christmas Eve afternoon is a good
17. Ros ________________ time to shop. Many people think this is a busy time, but the Christmas
Key: 1. Catherine; 2. Stephen; 3. Christine; 4. Christo- (5)__________ is over and the shops are quite empty. You just have to hope
pher; 5. William; 6. Philip; 7. Robert; 8. Peter; 9. Michael; they haven’t run out of wrapping paper. Then you have to go home and wrap
10. Kenneth; 11. Penelope; 12. Josephine; 13. Stanley;
14. Margaret; 15. Deborah; 16. Gillian; 17. Rosemary. all of your presents and put them under the Christmas tree in the living room.
It’s such a (6)__________ sight, seeing a decorated tree with lots of wrapped
3 I boxes and parcels under it.
Christmas Eve is not the same in (7)__________ countries. In Denmark,
Put the words in the right order.
for example, Christmas Eve is when people have Christmas dinner and open
0 parents tell I better my ‘d.
(8)__________ presents. I think most people go to midnight mass on Christ-
I’d better tell my parents.
mas Eve. This is a special church service held at midnight to (9)__________
1. not today you better ‘d to bank the go.
the birth of Jesus. I think one of the oldest jokes in the world is: “What time
_________________________________
is Midnight Mass?” It’s an easy joke to (10)__________ out. Of course,
2. better police phone you think ‘d I the.
Christmas Eve is the busiest night of the year for Santa Claus. People in Eng-
_________________________________
land call him Father Christmas. If you look really (11)__________, you’ll
3. we for petrol had soon stop better?
see him flying through the air on his sleigh full of presents. He used to climb
_________________________________
down people’s chimneys to (12)__________ his presents. I’m not sure what
4. not I say ‘d better anything.
he does nowadays because many people don’t have chimneys.
_________________________________
5. better you put a plaster ‘d on bad cut
your. 1. (a) quite (b) quit (c) quiet (d) quits
_________________________________
6. had take we a taxi better? 2. (a) least (b) last (c) lasting (d) lastly
_________________________________
3. (a) forget (b) forgotten (c) forgetful (d) forgot
Key:
1. You’d better not go to the bank today. 4. (a) found (b) finds (c) find (d) findings
2. I think you’d better phone the police.
3. Had we better stop for petrol soon?
4. I’d better not say anything. 5. (a) rushed (b) rush (c) rushing (d) rushes
5. You’d better put a plaster on your bad cut.
6. Had we better take a taxi? 6. (a) lovely (b) lovelier (c) love (d) lover
4 I 7. (a) whole (b) every (c) the (d) all
Put in the correct verb forms: hurt, write,
8. (a) they (b) them (c) their (d) these
build, tell, break, speak.
0 One of the windows was broken by the 9. (a) memory (b) remember (c) memories (d) memorize
wind last night.
1. ‘What happened? Did you have an acci- 10. (a) figures (b) figured (c) figuring (d) figure
dent?’ ‘Yes, but nobody ___________.’
2. Look at these mistakes. It _____________ 11. (a) carefully (b) careful (c) careless (d) care
by an illiterate man.
12. (a) delivery (b) deliver (c) delivering (d) delivered
3. ‘How’s your country house?’
‘It______________still ________. I think
it’ll be finished next month.’ Keys:
4. German and French ____________ here. 1. 1. celebrate, 2. light, 3. put, 4. burn, 5. go, 6. enters, 7. delivers, 8. open,
5. ‘What do you think about the news?’ 9. have, 10. visit, 11. cooking, 12. relax
‘What news? I _____________ yet.’ 2. confusing, bet, quite, hundreds, used, at, put, which, continues.
Key: 1. was hurt; 2. was written; 3. is still being built; 4.
3. originates, made, addition, similar, introduced, mixture.
are spoken; 5. haven’t been told. 4. 1. a, 2. b, 3. d, 4. c, 5. b, 6. a, 7. d, 8. c, 9. b, 10. d, 11. a, 12. b.
By Youdif Boyarskaya,
School No. 814, Moscow Compiled by Tatyana Makhrina
 Педагогический университет
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Лицензия Департамента образования г. Москвы 77 № 000349, рег. № 027477 от 15.09.2010

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 English TEXTS FOR READING

52 THE CHILDREN’S CHRISTMAS

December 2013

It was to have been the best Christmas ever, but it nearly

turned out to be the worst.
Uncle Ken and Aunt Amy were coming for Christmas
lunch, and the children were looking forward to it. They all
loved Aunt Amy, with her infectious laugh and funny jokes,
and Uncle Ken, who always had a treat or two tucked away
in his pocket.
Then, on Christmas morning, disaster struck. Father,
who was a doctor, was suddenly called out to a patient.
Mother was just putting the turkey in the oven when she put
her hand to her head and said to the children: “O dear, I don’t
really feel very well. I think it may be the flu”.
“You should go to bed,” said Rebecca, who was the eld-
est. “I’ll get you a hot-water bottle.”
“I can’t go to bed,” wailed Mother. “Who on earth would “Everything all right?” asked Mother, who was sitting up
cook and serve the lunch?” in bed looking a little better. “Oh, Sophie, one of your special
“We can,” said Sophie firmly, though William looked jellies – I think I may be able to manage a little of that!”
very doubtful. Later Mother heard the sound of carols drifting up from
“But there’s the turkey and the vegetables and the Christ- the sitting-room. She lay back on the pillows and smiled.
mas pudding and the jellies. How on earth can you do all “Not quite the best Christmas ever, but very nearly so!” she
that? You’ll never manage…” said to herself.
“Of course we’ll manage,” said Rebecca. “Sophie can
make lovely jellies, and I’ll light the Christmas pudding. As From “My Christmas Book of Stories and Carols”
for the turkey – why, it’s nearly cooked, so there’s little to do
there. Uncle Ken can carve it for us.” VOCABULARY:
“What about me,” wailed little Mattie. “I want to help infectious laugh – заразительный смех
too.” tuck away – прятать
“Oh, you can arrange all the sweets and nuts and things disaster – несчастье
on little dishes,” said Rebecca. She went to the stove to boil strike (struck) – внезапно случиться
up a kettle for her mother’s hot-water bottle. oven – духовка
“Now, off you go to bed,” she ordered, “Don’t worry, flu – грипп
Mother, we’ll manage all right.” hot-water bottle – грелка
And manage they did. When Uncle Ken and Aunt Amy wail – плакать
arrived all four children were washed, dressed and ready Who on earth would cook? – И кто же будет стряпать?
with the Christmas lunch! Sophie had even made Mother firmly – решительно
some soup which she put in a bowl on a tray, with a sprig doubtful – полный сомнений
of holly in a vase. manage – справиться
Father arrived home just as the procession of children was carve – резать
making its way to the table with the Christmas pudding and arrange – раскладывать
other goodies. stove – плита
“Don’t worry, father,” said William gaily. “Your turkey’s tray – поднос
in the oven piping hot – with all the trimmings, too.” sprig – веточка
goodies – сладости
piping hot – очень горячий
trimmings – приправа, гарнир
drift up – доноситься

Tell us about your favourite dish. The following questions

would help you to answer.
1. How is your favourite dish made?
2. Tell about the process of preparing the dish.
3. What are the ingredients and where do you buy them?
4. Why do you love this dish so much?
5. Does it mean something special to you?

Compiled by Tatyana Makhrina


CHRISTMAS MEMORIES
My first clear memory is first grade when I gave my Christmas
present, a big blonde doll named Nancy, to an Alaskan Orphanage in
January. Our first grade class was asked to donate one of our pres-
ents to an Eskimo orphanage. In their thank you letter, the children all
remarked how much they liked the doll. I got such a boost as a giver
at a young age and it has helped shape my whole life.
Our family had its celebration on Christmas morning. I don’t think
we got up so early, but we didn’t usually dress, just put on bathrobes.
I can remember we read the Bible story of Christmas from Luke and
we often lit a fire in the fireplace. Afterwards, we would often have a
lovely breakfast like waffles and bacon.
Our Christmas tree, in those early years was scavenged from the
elementary school across the street. When school let out for holidays
(around Dec. 22-23), we children would go over and pick out one of the
discarded classroom trees (usually about medium height). So we didn’t
have elaborate decorations; they were often homemade and we might
string popcorn or cranberries, too. We had a few gifts and it was always
the youngest child’s part to hand them out to those assembled.
When I was young (I can’t remember how old I was) my mother
did a very wise thing. She explained to me that Santa Claus was
the spirit of giving, so I never needed to doubt or question “Santa’s”
existence. I don’t remember, though, anyone ever playing Santa for
us at Christmastime and I certainly had no lost faith. Later, when we
were teens and my cousins were young, we would go over to their
house on Christmas Eve, and my uncle would slip out of the room
and return dressed as “Santa” with their gifts.
I can remember my mother making fudge and divinity for Christ-
mas gifts over several years. Being a young girl with a sweet tooth,
I wasn’t very happy that most of the goodies left our home to be
devoured by someone else.
I always loved singing in the church youth choir at Christmastime
because there were so many lovely carols. The church would be deco-
rated with a tree, poinsettias and holly, and, of course, a Nativity scene.
At public school, too, in the 1950s, Christmas was really cele-
brated as a religious holiday. We always had a Christmas Program
and each class would make a presentation. I can remember one of
my primary classes had a dance and song about reindeer, and a
few of us had costumes. While the others had cardboard antlers on
their heads, I chose to wear a set of real antlers from a deer my
grandfather had shot. It was a bit heavy and awkward but I managed
somehow to do my part.
I recall that maybe when she was in the second grade, my young-
er sister was chosen to play Mary and was seated on a “donkey” on
wheels. Although they chose a bigger boy (“Joseph”) to pull it, the
wheels turned and it stuck in the middle of the stage. My sister grace-
fully slipped off the stranded donkey and took her place behind the
manger equipped with a doll. I never made any higher rank grade in
Nativity plays than a bathrobe-garbed shepherd, as I recall.
One year my parents held a family meeting in early December
and announced that we would take a family trip by car to San Fran-
cisco for our holiday. My aunt and older brother had moved to the Bay
Area and we would stay with them. It was agreed that we shouldn’t
expect any presents because the trip itself would be our treat. Of
course, we received a few practical gifts anyway. It was a good trip
and something special.
We never had snow in our city (Vancouver, Washington) at Christ-
mas, although my home was just 2 hours drive to a snow-capped moun-
tain, so I knew snow. In fact, in my childhood, I think we only had about
three real “snows” that weren’t washed away by rain the next day. One
of my best memories, when we had a snow that lasted three days (and
school was closed) was taking an oval dishpan into our small backyard
and packing it tight to make “blocks” to construct a simple, one-person
igloo. I have a cherished photo of that triumph. It was more interesting to
me than throwing snowballs or making a snowman.
When I moved to San Francisco myself, at 21, to continue college,
my family would often gather at my aunt and grandmother’s for Christ-
mas (they had bought an apartment there). One year, one of my brothers
and I set out on Christmas Eve looking for a place to buy a last-minute
Christmas tree. We had to drive around for over an hour until we located
one lot of a few scraggly leftover trees around 3 p.m. We got one and
headed back to decorate it quickly before our evening festivities.
TEXTS FOR READING English
53
December 2013
After I moved to Russia, I also had live trees (I’ve never had an
artificial one) for a couple of years. My biggest headache was get-
ting it to stand upright without a tree stand (like the ones we use in
the U.S.).
After I got two kittens and I tried putting up a Christmas tree, I
realized what a disaster that would be since they wanted to pounce
on it and pull off the decorations. I, somehow, got through the holiday
without it falling over, but I haven’t gotten a tree since then. Instead I
decorate my living room and entrance hall walls with numerous col-
orful decorations. I’ve never been into colored lights very much, so
don’t use them.
My mother died in November 1997 in America, and we held her
memorial service in mid-December. I stayed with a family in Portland,
Oregon who are good friends, when I first arrived in my hometown. I
was there when they brought in a lovely full-sized tree and I helped
their son to set it up and decorate it. It was a great atmosphere and I
enjoyed immensely the experience.
About four years ago, I also flew to the U.S. to get a new visa and
visit friends at the end of November. In New York City, the incredible,
colorful holiday displays in downtown Manhattan and Christmas mu-
sic playing everywhere were very special in bringing the Christmas
spirit to my heart. I took the train south to my sister’s in Florida and
there had a repeat Thanksgiving dinner and an early experience of
Christmas. We went to a church Christmas Concert by a local musi-
cian and then drove around the wealthier neighborhoods admiring
their often elaborate lawn displays and light-draped homes. I was
particularly amused by all the snowmen and reindeers grouped un-
der palm trees.
A real contrast, for me, was a visit to friends in London, England
over Christmas 5 years ago. When I arrived, mid-December I was
expecting to see the holiday spirit in full bloom. But, to my surprise,
there were only a few decorations in shops and museums and a few
lights or candles in private home windows. The family I stayed with
had a decorated tree (which must come down on a certain day in
early January) and hung Christmas cards on the living room walls.
I had a hard time feeling Christmasy in London, until Christmas
Eve when we entered the local supermarket. There, a large crowd
was frantically shopping for ingredients, like Christmas pudding, for
their holiday fixings. We had a lovely family dinner at the grandpar-
ents home which was decorated and atmospheric. Gifts were dis-
tributed from under the modest tree and we enjoyed an evening of
conversation backed with seasonal music.
But most of my Christmases these past two decades have been
low-keyed and quiet. On December 25 I’ve worked in schools, as it
is a normal day here in Russia. I’ve tried to always do some holiday
activities with my students, both in classes and private students (chil-
dren and teens), often crafts, puppets, songs or crosswords. But, I
can honestly say, when the winter weather is particularly bad, I’ve
been grateful I didn’t have to spend time outdoors, rushing around
buying gifts and attending parties. I’ve been so thankful to enjoy
some special treat (ice cream or something sweet) at home.
Erin Bouma, Dec. 24, 2011
Photo taken by the author
 English TEXTS FOR READING
54 A CHRISTMAS TALE
December 2013
Christmas has become a universal festival, free from
religious divides. Tokyo is lit up by Christmas trees and
people all over the world give gifts. So no one can say
the festival belongs to them exclusively.
I have only once been to a meeting of the Society
of Friends. They are known as Quakers because these
Protestants quake before the wonder of God’s creation.
The people welcomed me with smiles as I walked in,
but sat quietly in simple, well-designed wooden chairs.
They were absolutely silent. More still than Zen Bud-
dhists. So very silent.
Then after an hour or so someone softly spoke,
“Please God, make me the man my dog thinks I am.”
There was a chuckle. But they didn’t speak. A few
stood and looked through the window at birds in the
trees. There was no pastor or priest to give a blessing,
but obviously they felt blessed as they later made cups of
hot chocolate and again sat down, but this time to nois-
ily organise protest marches against the New Zealand
Government’s decision to send troops to fight beside the
Americans in Viet Nam. (Quakers have a long tradition
of non-violence. In the First World War, as Pacifists they
chose to be non-combatants but were in the worst battles
serving in field ambulance units, and sustained dispro-
portionate casualties crawling through the mud under
barbed wire in clouds of mustard gas to rescue wounded
soldiers. The Fry and Hudsons were old Quaker fami-
lies and profoundly influenced English law by changing
public opinion and petitioning parliamentarians against
slavery and unjust child labour laws). But what I took
away from their meditative contemplative meeting was
that they have a heightened feeling that humanity and
the entire kingdom of animals are together manifesta-
tions of a wonderful creative God.
We all look at this world in different ways. In the
Western tradition, Saint Francis of Assisi is especially
venerated, even by humanist philosophers, because he
was able to see dignity in all people. “God bless the
rain and the dew on the grass, for the weather wets the
high born and the lowly together.” He would run to-
wards lepers and kiss their lipless rotting faces because
they showed the radiance of Christ’s light. St. Francis
was the first to place in a church a wooden box and
have a sculpted doll in a manger as baby Jesus. This
tableaux was looked on as a sentimental fall from grace
into prosaic materialism as it was no longer an imagi-
native inner picture but a physical depiction.
At one end of the box was a carved ox and at the
other, a donkey. Between them lay the representative
of humanity.
The ox, like the sacred cow in India, was once rec-
ognised for the spiritual atmosphere of its digestion.
It does a kind of yoga when it eats straw and grass,
chews slowly, swallows and then after a period of di-
gesting, the food returns to the mouth. The ox is a
picture of tranquility as it lies in a meadow chewing
its cud, swallowing, digesting, then re-chewing. The
donkey has always been used by men as a beast of
burden, equated with the will, an analogy to our un-
conscious will and limbs. St. Francis called his own
body, “Brother Ass” as it bore him through life. Folk
stories claim the donkey has a cross in its hide at the
end of the back of its neck, to remind us that Christ
was carried by an ass far from Herod into Egypt, and
that that animal was ultimately chosen for His entry
into Jerusalem.
As time turned, Goethe and Schiller noted that fir
trees were being decorated at Christmastime. Northern
winters produced an inwardness, and a generous out-
pouring of gift giving. When southern continents were
colonised by white settlers and Christmas there was a
summer festival, only the weather had changed. Christ-
mas had become a World Festival that no religious
group could claim proprietal rights to.
My little story may now begin to unfold...
In the west there is a strong urge to individualise.
Homelessness is not just a problem of the underclasses.
The teenage children of lawyers, teachers, doctors and
the middle class, run away from home ‘to find them-
selves.’ Often they take drugs when they find accept-
ance among other lost souls and their pain is numbed
for a while.
I knew a very great but humble man, the Rev Ted
Noffs, who had been ordained as he saw Jesus as the
paradigm of a man with a capacity to fully love. At that
time he was uncertain of the miraculous or of divinity,
but he wanted to help those who suffered. Eventually,
Sydney’s homeless turned up at his urban parish among
the brothels of notorious Kings Cross.
Ted was totally original. In summer, he baptised
people in the surf of Bondi Beach, witnessed by sun-
bathers wearing bikinis and budgie-smugglers. He
raised money by organising church weddings for Japa-
nese couples. They would book a hotel suite, the bride
could choose a white gown and they would arrive at
the Wayside Chapel in a vintage Rolls Royce car and
be married by Ted. Without any doubt, the photos will
be treasured for generations.
He didn’t preach against drugs. He bought a massive
truck and commissioned a transparent sculpture of a

human being. This vehicle would be invited to schools.
In its darkened interior, Ted would show how we di-
gest food, as lights lit up the metabolic system. Food-
enriched blood would be shown circulating. The heart
would be seen beating. Blood would be carried to the
lungs and oxygenated, and then supplying the brain.
But when coffee was drunk the pulse increased. Differ-
ent drugs changed the whole dynamic harmony. There
was no need to moralise, as the effects were made vis-
ible in coloured lights in layer upon layer of our inter-
nal systems.
He had a central theatre/forum in his building and
on Sunday nights, speakers were able to address
crowds there. As long as there was not racial hatred,
anything was permitted. But one public speaker ap-
parently hated Ted and Christianity vehemently. Web-
ster ranted against Ted. Ted would sometimes try to
make a rebuttal but to no avail against Webster’s witty
insults and mockery. The crowd laughed as Ted lost
argument after argument. When Webster died, Ted
mourned. They had needed each other. And it had
been only there that Webster could vent his spleen.
Ted put up a brass plaque in his church to commemo-
rate his friend.
Unexpectedly, Ted had a transcendent experience of
Christ.
Ted would sometimes come to the little writers’
group I ran one night a week at the chapel. Prostitutes
would tell stories of customers and police raids, drug-
gies would relate the dangers of cheating dealers and
TEXTS FOR READING English
55December 2013
later being held up at knife point by a more desper-
ate addict. We would all help each other find the right
words to write. The stories, surprisingly, got published
in magazines because they felt real.
The women were remarkable. No one ever wants to
be a street prostitute. So many had fallen in love with
a man who told them that if they really loved him they
would do this just once... Then there were the moth-
ers and wives whose husbands had deserted them for a
comparative younger woman from the office, and the
woman tell themselves that they will only be in “the
game” for a month to pay the mortgage. There is a writ-
er-in-residence at a famous university who would now
rather that her readers didn’t know of one phase of her
life in shadowy doorways.
A vision came to Ted of a Cosmic Christ. A little
later, a blood clot lodged in his brain and he entered
into a long period when he could no longer move or
speak. It looked like he was lying in bed calmly in deep
contemplation. At his death, many of us sensed that he
was now expanding.
His wife and family have maintained his work.
But the Wayside Chapel is most famous for its out-
door Christmas dinner. Any homeless person can come.
Dirty, terminal alcoholics tie their dogs to a lamp post
and the dogs get a meaty treat. Mad people displaced
by ill-implemented deinstitutionalising schemes, drug
addicts, hookers, hustlers, strip club sprukers, ex-jail-
birds on parole, respectable widows, and people with-
out family, those suffering in the immediate wake of
a marriage break up, and the lonely arrive. They are
met with a feast. Chicken, roast lamb, turkey, baked
vegetables, pavlovas, cinnamon biscuits, rhubarb pie,
boiled Christmas puddings, and crackers to be pulled,
and a piece of fruitcake wrapped for later, and a bag of
left-overs for the dogs, or for those people with a home
to go to, a bit of chicken to take for a cat. But most of
all, it is the one day in the year when the unloved feel
loved... The tradition is that having prepared the food,
the servers sit down among the guests to make all feel
welcome.
I brought some home-grown food one year but it
wasn’t really needed. You see, that day the Chapel had
suspended a banner between power poles “A Blessed
Christmas To All”. And under it the tables bent with a
most colourful delicious banquet. Cooked and served
by Jews from the Temple Emmanuel...
Text and picture
by David Wansbrough
 English YOUTH ENGLISH SECTION
56 BETWEEN THE CONTINENTS:
continued from No. 11
December 2013
American Reality with Russian Eyes
EVERY END IS A TOKEN OF A NEW BEGINNING
In a foreign country even very small episodes of kindness
can be priceless and will be remembered for a long time or
forever.
“Everything that has a beginning has an end,” my friend
used to tell me so many times that this stuck in my head.
Moreover, this phrase jumped out every time some experi-
ence came to an end.
Millions of faces swirl in my mind when I try to sum up
my experience between the continents. When I was thinking
how to finish this book, somebody advised me to write about
everything I found in America and to mention all the people
I met. But this would be the same as to count snowflakes in
a snowstorm and describe them. It is absolutely impossible.
But when one snowflake drops out of the struggle and comes
to rest on your eyelashes or lips, you feel it melting– and
smile.
So I felt every snowflake, every drop of warmth that the
wind pulled out of the whirlpool of my new cultural experi-
ence. So I remember those who watched my first steps into
the new world but I cannot describe them.
My “big mama” met a group of tired students in the De-
troit Airport after our delayed flight and drove us to Eastern
Michigan University, including me. It was the first ride in a
car I had in America. Afterwards, I learned by heart the phone
numbers of my friends who had cars – the wisest thing to do
for international students in the U.S. Those friends saved me
a couple times, picking me up from a closed bus station on a
winter night or taking me to the pharmacy when I was sick.
My “foreign father” found my first book in the library cat-
alogue and bought me my first thing online. The four phone
numbers I would blurt out half-asleep were my parents’, my
fiance’s, my high school teacher’s and his. I often called him
for support, no matter if I was lost in downtown New York
City or just wanted to watch a movie.
My new-found Tajik “sister” frightened me for real for the
first time in America when she fell sick all of a sudden and
refused to go to the hospital. Following that episode, she was
with me in every crazy trip I could think of. She listened to
me when I missed my fiance and pulled tiny details of our
love story out of my memory.
My Dutch “brother” opened up the beauty of the Russian
cinematography for me and shared my first impression of
French impressionists’ masterpieces in Chicago Art Muse-
um. He is lazy when it comes to writing emails, but often our
talks would give me energy and inspiration to do my endless
writing during my second semester.
A nice Canadian girl gave me simple instructions for the
first cheesecake I’ve ever made. I couldn’t wait till it froze
to try. A cup of tea and a heart-to-heart talk would bring me
back from melancholy to the joy of life more than once.
A healthy-food-focused American freshman made me try
my first smoothie. I later sacrificed my whole dinner for that
smoothie several times.
A nice family from Canton treated me to my first home-
cooked dinner in the U.S. Well, not everybody eats fast food
here.
The first Russian-speaking American I met…
…my first Frisbee throw…my first Christmas show…my
first racquetball court…my first task from my boss…
…my first driving crawl…my first shopping mall…my
first Northern Lights…my first rollercoaster ride…
It is all a whirlpool; it is not a one-direction vacuum
cleaner’s devouring jaws. This warmth and aid is rotating
like energy or water in a vortex.
It was my pleasure to show another newcomer how to use
a phone card and where the telephone was. Probably, it was
her first call home from the Eastern Michigan campus.
And I delighted to hear the African child learn her first
English words in the preschool for children from low-in-
come families. She could hardly understand English when
she first arrived, but after some time she pointed to the ap-
ple and sun and repeated those words after me, resting on
my arms.
Generous warmth and assistance evolve from one form
to another and give us energy to live. Conservation laws say
that energy cannot be created or destroyed. But I maintain:
Warmth and kindness can be created.
That’s why I won’t repeat my friend’s words any more.
No more “everything that has a beginning has an end.”
I would rather say every end marks the beginning – a new
experience, a new life, new drops of warmth in the snow-
storm of reality.
 YOUTH ENGLISH SECTION English

57
December 2013

AFTERWORD
Feedback is the dream of every writer. When the Direc-
tor of Student Media and Editor-in-Chief said they liked my
columns, I was glad. When my friends told me they felt the
“power of the pen” reading my articles, I was excited. But
when I got an e-mail from an unknown person expressing
gratitude on behalf of all international students, I was espe-
cially happy.
Here are some comments I got in the U.S.
“I read your article from today (“Patriotism differs…”)
and I must say I really enjoyed it.
To me, I love the country not for what it is, but for what
it may one day be…loving one’s country is comparable to
loving nature; you have to love the cold, snowy, harsh days
as well as the warm and breezy summer afternoons. People
here get so caught up in politics and religions that they lose
sight of what this country is.
To love the U.S., one must love the world because some- Sometimes I feel that the United States is less a country
one from every walk of life can be found on any American than it is a (sometimes) convenient partnership between fifty
street.” independent nations. Wherever the truth may lie, I appreciate
American student from Eastern Michigan Univeristy the thoughts of one such as yourself who tells it as she sees it
and gives us something to consider.”
“I read with interest your piece in the Eastern Echo of 8 Allen Curry,
April, 2005 (“Patriotism differs…”), and found it fascinating American freelance writer from Ypsilanti, MI
in its perspective of one from beyond our borders. When you
say that Americans don’t actually “love” the U.S., I would “I think the main point here is that your articles spur such
have to say you’re right. Most of us probably don’t. discussions with different people – it means that they read
America doesn’t really lend itself to thoughts of a “Moth- them, think, and write :) – that’s probably what every jour-
erland,” as does your “Mother Russia.” I suspect we are too nalist or writer hopes for!”
new. I am the 6th generation of my family born here, but I American citizen with Russian roots
don’t think of America as a “Motherland.”
“I just wanted you to know how much I’ve enjoyed
reading your columns this year in the ECHO. You give
a new, fresh perspective to things that we either are too
busy to notice or take for granted. You have genuinely
touched a lot of people here and that we are all better for
having met you.”
Sue Shipley, Grant Accounting

“I just read your article at Eastern Echo and I must say

that it was very well done. As an international student, I am
so happy to read a piece that expressed for all international
students, situations and perspectives which they face every
single day.
By the way, I am from Turkey. Even though I have been
living in the States for almost six years, I still have problems
adjusting myself in making “friends” who are from the U.S.
and the other countries. Anyway, thank you very much for
expressing yourself as an international student in a way that
I felt like I was reading my own thoughts.”
International student from Turkey

By Anastasia Khodakova (Maslova)

Photos by the author
English РЕКЛАМА

58
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 РЕКЛАМА English

59
Линия УМК

Шаг за шагом –
к успеху!
Издательство «ДРОФА» завершает работу над выпуском новой предметной линии по английско-
му языку «Rainbow English» для 2–11 классов. Ее создатели – О. В. Афанасьева, И. В. Михее-
ва, К. М. Баранова, Е. А. Колесникова, профессора и доценты кафедры английской филологии
ГБОУ ВПО «Московский городской педагогический университет»; в разработке рабочих про-
грамм также принимала участие доктор педагогических наук, профессор Н. В. Языкова. Данная
серия учебников составлена на основе требований ФГОС начального, основного и среднего (пол-
ного) общего образования, а также с учетом требований, изложенных в Примерных программах
по иностранному языку.

Интегративной целью обучения английскому язы-
ку по серии «Rainbow English» является формирова-
ние коммуникативной компетенции в совокупно-
сти пяти ее составляющих: речевой, языковой, со-
циокультурной, учебно-познавательной и компен-
саторной. В процессе реализации указанной цели
осуществляется воспитание школьников, их общее
и филологическое образование, а также личностное
развитие.
В серию входят десять УМК. Учебники для
2–4 и 5–9 классов одобрены экспертными органи-
зациями РАО и РАН и рекомендованы к использо-
ванию в школах; подготовлены учебники для 10–
11 классов. Три УМК для началь-
ного этапа обучения прошли
апробацию в образовательных
учреждениях РФ и имеют поло-
жительные отклики педагогов.
Каждый из них состоит из тра-
диционных компонентов: книги
для учащихся (учебника), рабо-
чей тетради, книги для учителя
и звукового пособия. В комп-
лекс для 4 класса включена так-
же книга для чтения, которая
в основной школе становится
неотъемлемой частью УМК.
Нововведением серии «Rain-
bow English» является наличие во всех
УМК лексико-грамматического прак-
тикума с упражнениями на тренировку
и закрепление явлений языка, информа-
ция о которых была получена школьни-
ками на занятиях. Рабочая тетрадь на на-
чальном этапе обучения предназначена
преимущественно для работы дома и содержит пись-
менные задания; в дальнейшем эти задания приоб-
ретают более универсальный характер и могут быть
использованы как в классе, так и дома. Кроме того,
в комплекты входят тетради «Диагностика резуль-
татов образования». В качестве объектов контроля
в них выступают все составляющие иноязычной ком-
муникативной компетенции, а также предлагаются
тестовые задания для контроля метапредметных ре-
зультатов обучения.
Изучение английского языка в начальной школе
рассчитано на 68 часов ежегодно; на среднем и стар-
шем этапах отводится по 105 часов (3 часа в неделю).
В методическом плане каждый УМК совме-
щает инновационные технологии с традици-
онными, проверенными временем, что создает
условия для свободного общения на английском
языке и его применения в той
или иной деятельности, а так-
же дает положительные эмоции
и позитивный настрой на обу-
чение. У школьников на доступ-
ном для них уровне формируют-
ся системные языковые пред-
ставления, расширяется лингви-
стический кругозор, происходит
приобщение к новому для них
миру; развиваются эмоциональ-
но-чувственная сфера, креатив-
ные способности и познаватель-
ные мотивы. При этом новый
социально-коммуникативный
опыт приобретается, в зависимости от
этапа обучения, посредством игры, дра-
матизации, слушания песен, чтения
English РЕКЛАМА
60
текстов разных жанров и стилей, моделирования
адекватных возрасту жизненных ситуаций.
Большое значение при работе по УМК серии
«Rainbow English» имеют:
• обязательное повторение ранее изученного
материала;
• постепенное нарастание сложности изучае-
мого материала;
• взаимосвязь и единство фонетического, ор-
фографического, лексического, грамматиче-
ского, аудитивного аспектов;
• ориентация на современный английский ли-
тературный язык в его британском вариан-
те с привлечением определенных фактов,
типичных для американского варианта анг-
лийского языка;
• многообразие упражнений, развивающих
творческий потенциал учащихся;
• коммуникативно-когнитивная направлен-
ность всех компонентов УМК.
Основой каждого УМК является учебник. Он
имеет единообразную структуру и состоит из опре-
деленного количества блоков, или учебных ситуа-
ций (Units), каждый из которых подразделяется на
уроки (Steps). В свою очередь, любой урок (Step)
имеет две части. Первая («Учимся вместе» / «Do it
Together») предполагает работу учащихся в классе,
вторая («Учимся самостоятельно» / «Do it on Your
Own») в основном ориентирована на закрепление
пройденного материала и самостоятельное выпол-
нение заданий дома. Учебники включают целый ряд
сквозных разделов-рубрик («NOTA BENE», «Social
English», «Word Building», «Idiomatic English»), в ко-
торых в сконцентрированном виде подается значи-
мая информация о языке, культуре, истории, геогра-
фии стран изучаемого языка.
Содержание обучения представлено в УМК за-
нимательно и наглядно, с учетом возрастных осо-
бенностей. В оформлении учебников и пособий
для начальной школы превалируют рисунки, с лю-
бовью выполненные замечательным художником
О. М. Войтенко; на старших этапах знакомиться
с реалиями стран изучаемого языка помогают мно-
гочисленные красочные слайды.
Деятельностный характер УМК способствует
достижению метапредметных результатов. Разделы
«Учимся самостоятельно» приучают ставить учебные
задачи, планировать свою деятельность, осущест-
влять рефлексии при сравнении желаемого и полу-
ченного результатов. Наибольшее внимание уделя-
ется формированию умения выражать свои мысли
в соответствии с ситуацией, овладению монологиче-
ской и диалогической формами речи, инициативно-
му сотрудничеству при отборе и обсуждении инфор-
мации, управлению речевым поведением.
В учебники введены вопросы для оценки соб-
ственных результатов и материалов, по которым
проводилось обучение. Например:
• «Какие из разделов учебника оказались самы-
ми сложными? Почему?»
• «В каких грамматических явлениях вы допу-
стили ошибки?»
• «Что могло бы вам помочь лучше справиться
с заданиями по говорению? Письму?»
• «Приходилось ли вам при выполнении зада-
ний обращаться за помощью к своему учите-
лю? Родителям?»
• «Использовали ли вы при выполнении зада-
ний дополнительные ресурсы – справочни-
ки, Интернет?»
• «Насколько вы довольны своими результа-
тами?»
Основным предметным результатом является
формирование иноязычных коммуникативных уме-
ний в говорении, чтении, письменной речи, ауди-
ровании. Учащиеся приобретают необходимые зна-
ния о фонетике, лексике, грамматике и орфогра-
фии языка, а также навыки оперирования данными
знаниями. Конкретные виды речевой деятельности
подробно изложены в рабочих программах:
• О. В. Афанасьева, И. В. Михеева, Н. В. Язы-
кова, Е. А. Колесникова. «Английский язык.
2–4 классы»;
• О. В. Афанасьева, И. В. Михеева, Н. В. Язы-
кова, Е. А. Колесникова. «Английский язык.
5–9 классы»;
• О. В. Афанасьева, И. В. Михеева. «Английский
язык. 10–11 классы» (выйдет в 2014 году).

Все рабочие программы доступны для скачива-
ния на сайте www.drofa.ru.
Особо следует оговорить формирование лингво-
страноведческой и социокультурной компетенций.
Содержащийся в текстах для чтения и аудирования
страноведческий материал значительно расширяет-
ся в старших классах. Школьники на качественно
новом уровне знакомятся:
• с государственной символикой англоязыч-
ных стран;
• с достопримечательностями Великобрита-
нии, США, Австралии, их географическими
особенностями, флорой, фауной;
• с праздниками, традициями, обычаями ан-
глоязычных стран;
• с известными людьми и историческими лич-
ностями;
• с системой школьного и высшего образования;
• с государственным устройством Великобри-
тании и США;
• с культурной жизнью стран изучаемого языка,
их литературой, музыкой, архитектурой, ки-
нематографом, театром, музеями, картинны-
ми галереями, а также со спортивной жизнью;
• с песнями, стихотворениями на английском
языке.
В 10–11 классах большое количество учебных
материалов включают полемические утверждения
и касаются проблем общепланетарного характера
Издательство «ДРОФА»
127018, Москва, Сущевский Вал, д. 49, стр. 1
Тел.: 8-800-2000-550
(звонки по России бесплатные),
(495) 795-05-50, 795-05-51
Факс: (495) 795-05-52
E-mail: sales@drofa.ru
По вопросам сотрудничества и приобретения
продукции обращайтесь на сайт
www.drofа.ru
РЕКЛАМА English
61
(процесс глобализации, экологические катастрофы,
экспансия американской культуры и т. д.).
Социокультурная компетенция формируется
в процессе использования английского языка как
средства межкультурного диалога, что создает условия
для расширения и углубления знаний о своей культуре,
поскольку обсуждение большей части проблем пред-
полагает сопоставление фактов жизни родной стра-
ны и других государств. Также школьники овладевают
способами сделать свою речь более вежливой, учатся
выражать предпочтение, неприятие, удивление, ведут
дискуссии и аргументированно отстаивают свою точку
зрения. Значительное место отводится комментирова-
нию предлагаемых явлений или идей, высказываемых
в аудиотекстах и текстах для чтения.
В 10–11 классах происходит совершенствова-
ние компенсаторных умений, начатое еще в началь-
ной школе. Учащиеся пользуются языковой догад-
кой (интернациональные слова, словообразователь-
ный анализ, вычленение ключевых единиц текста).
Отметим, что уже с начальной школы ведется пла-
номерная работа над словообразовательными мо-
делями. Учащиеся знакомятся не только с наиболее
продуктивными способами образования новых слов
(аффиксация, конверсия, словосложение, сокраще-
ние), но и с менее распространенными (звукоподра-
жание, удвоение, перенос ударения и т. д.). Особое
внимание уделяется деривационным словообразо-
вательным моделям, по которым образуются едини-
цы различной частотной принадлежности.
Фактически каждый урок (Step) любого учеб-
ника и рабочей тетради для основной школы со-
держит задания, помеченные значком SFA (State
Final Assessment). Их последовательное выполнение
дает возможность учащимся хорошо подготовиться
к ГИА в 9 классе. Через учебники и рабочие тетради
для 10–11 классов красной нитью проходят задания,
помеченные символом NEF (National Examination
Format), нацеленные на подготовку к ЕГЭ.
Ольга Васильевна Афанасьева,
доктор филологических наук, профессор,
декан факультета английской филологии МГПУ,
соавтор линии УМК «Rainbow English»
English РЕКЛАМА

62
РЕКЛАМА English

63
Интернет-сопровождение проекта – Издательский дом «ПЕРВОЕ СЕНТЯБРЯ»

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