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Lecturer: HA NHAT LINH

Lesson 1. Country and people Activity 1| SUMMARY Put the following clauses and phrases into the correct order to complete a paragraph summarizing parts of chapter 1 of Britain. The first and last sentences are provided. In the group of islands lying off the north-west European coast … 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13.

Historically, it has also been the richest and most powerful. Many of these people feel British. is never short of supporters which are often referred to as ‘the four nations’. For both these reasons, whose roots lie in the Caribbean or in southern Asia. That is why the Pakistani or Indian cricket team, there are four recognized countries There are also millions of other people in England or the Irish football team England is by far the largest of these countries. many Scottish, Irish, and Welsh people live in England. but they do not feel especially English.

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… when they are playing in England.

Activity 2| BRITISH WORDS AND PHRASES Find the word or phrase in chapter 1 of Britain which is used to mean or describe: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.

a platform used for public speaking and presenting prizes the flag of England a citizen of the UK Britain or England, with the white cliffs of the south coast in mind the umbrella organization for employees in the UK the organization which controls the supply of money in the UK the Caribbean, especially the English-speaking parts of it

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Lecturer: HA NHAT LINH

Lesson 2. History Activity 1| QUIZ ON BRITISH MONARCHS Answer the questions, using the letters from the box. You will need to use some letters more than once.

A Alfred B Arthur C Charles I D Elizabeth I E

Henry II

F

Henry VIII

G John H Victoria

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

Who is famous for having six wives? Who was executed after a formal trial? Who is famous for burning some cakes? Who is the longest-reigning monarch in British history so far? Whose soldiers murdered the Archbishop of Canterbury? Who was forced to sign the Magna Carta? Who is famous for never having married? Who is famous because of Camelot and the knights of the round table? Who is often known as ‘the Great’? Who was the first head of the Church of England?

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Activity 2| BRITISH WORDS AND PHRASES Find the word or phrase in chapter 2 of Britain which is used to mean or describe: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.

the record of all the people and things in his country compiled by William I (‘the Conqueror’) the famous stories written by Geoffrey Chaucer leave behind for your successors after you go or die (verb) when a group of people refuse to work a festival of Welsh music and poetry being able to make or grow everything you need to live yourself the phrase used by the poet Rudyard Kipling to describe the sense of moral obligation among British empire builders 8. women who campaigned for the right to vote in the early twentieth century 9. an area of land which used to be available for use by everybody in a village 10. the set of laws passed in the sixteenth century which took away the power of the Roman Catholic Church in England

Activity 3| EXTENSION Put the following sentences into the correct order to complete the paragraph. BRITAIN’S DNA MAP Page 2 of 11

Lecturer: HA NHAT LINH

Modern genetic science throws up some worrying questions. But it is at least producing one very valuable finding. It is showing that national and ethnic differences have very little to do with race and much more to do with culture instead. 1. 2.

Then, the Romans conquered it and stayed for nearly four centuries. This is why in modern times we talk about England on the one hand and the ‘Celtic nations’ of Scotland, Wales, and Ireland on the other. 3. And yet all these successive invasions appear to have made little difference to the modern gene pool. 4. In 1066, England was invaded again, this time by the Normans from France. 5. Moreover, it turns our that the vast majority of people in Britain and Ireland have material genes dating back at least 10,000 years. 6. In the next five centuries, first the Anglo-Saxons and then the Vikings arrived. 7. Research has found, for example, that around 60% of all men in southern England are directly descended from Celts. 8. Around 700 BC, we are told, Britain was invaded by the Celts, who displaced the indigenous people. 9. The story goes that, during this time of Germanic invasions, the native Celts were all either killed or driven north and west. 10. Take the story of Britain, for instance, which can seem like one of repeated mass killings and mass migrations. The conclusion we must draw from these findings is that history is often less bloody than we assume it BRITISH-AMERICAN CULTURE COURSE to be and that earlier people in Britain were not all killed or displaced, most of them were assimilated into the newly dominant culture.

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Lesson 3. Geography Activity 1| LONDON Match A-H with 1-8.

A. B. C. D. E. F. G. H.

The Home Counties The East End The Tower of London The Thames Estuary The Thames Barrier The West End The City Westminster

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.

a popular London tourist attraction the structure used to protect London from flooding the area where the Houses of Parliament are located the financial centre of London the main area for entertainment and shopping the traditional home of Cockneys the area into which modern London is expanding the south-east of England

Activity 2| BRITISH WORDS AND PHRASES BRITISH-AMERICAN CULTURE COURSE

Find the word or phrase in chapter 3 of Britain which is used to mean or describe: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

the edges of hills facing out to sea on the south coast of England areas of land where there no towns or cities (the opposite of ‘urban’) a combination of smoke and fog the fact that temperatures around the world are rising the flat, watery area in East Anglia an area of Glasgow famous in the past for its terrible housing conditions

Activity 3| NORTH TO SOUTH Put the following in order from north to south. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

Hadrian’s Wall Land’s End The Pennines The Athens of the north The Black Country The highlands

Activity 4| EXTENSION Page 4 of 11

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Lecturer: HA NHAT LINH

Fill in the gaps in this text with words and phrases in the box.

briefcases

heavy industry

the city

poorest

honest

sweat

plain speaking

move around

sandwiches

factory

houses

police

It is part of English folklore that the north and south of the country are irredeemably different from each other. The north is full of poor but 1 ________________ workers; the south is full of rich softies who live off the 2 ________________ of the northerners. In the south of England, all the men wear bowler hats and suits and carry 3 ________________on the train to work in 4 ________________ every day. In the north, they all wear workman’s overalls and cycle to work in the local 5 ________________ carrying 6 ________________. In the south, they are 7 ________________, but a bit soft and hypocritical. In the north they are 8 ________________ and hard, suspicious of strangers but actually very friendly. These two stereotypes are well-known in England. But they cannot be completely true. After all, most of the 9 ________________ in the north has closed down. In any case, people in Britain 10 ________________ a lot in their lifetimes, so that lots of the people in the south of England must be northerners and vice-versa. Nevertheless, it is true that 11 ________________ cost much more in the south than they do in the north. But even here the picture is complicated. Ten of the 12 ________________ areas in the country are actually in … London. BRITISH-AMERICAN CULTURE COURSE

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Lesson 4. The monarchy Activity 1| BRITISH WORDS AND PHRASES Find the word or phrase in chapter 7 of Britain which is used to mean or describe: 1. the seat on which a monarch sits (it is used to symbolize the position of monarch) 2. the person who will become monarch after the present monarch dies 3. resign from the position as monarch 4. the crime of plotting to overthrow the state 5. the swearing of loyalty (to a monarch, a flag, a country, etc.)

Activity 2| ROYAL BIRTHDAYS Put the following sentences into the correct order to complete the paragraph. On 21 April 2006, Elizabeth Windsor celebrated her eightieth birthday. As this person is the reigning British monarch, this fact did not do unnoticed by the media. BRITISH-AMERICAN CULTURE COURSE 1. The first reason is constitutional.

2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.

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The second reason is less happy. Forty years ago, the vast majority of British people were positive about it. During Elizabeth’s reign, respect for the monarchy has fallen dramatically. But for two reasons, there were few public celebrations to mark the occasion. These days, only half of the population thinks Britain would be worse off without it. Some find this anomaly absurd, but in fact it is a nice indication of the distinction between the individual and the institution.

8. Elizabeth was born on 21 April, but the ‘official’ birthday of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is always celebrated on a Saturday in June.

Activity 3| SUMMARY Fill in the gaps in the text with choices below to make a paragraph summarizing the ‘role’ and ‘value’ sections of chapter 7 of Britain.

A. B. C. D.

a president tourist industry ceremonial duties social psychological

F. G. H. I.

personal embodiment stability of the country who want celebrity gossip most other European monarchies

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E.

but perhaps not least

J.

expressions of national pride

Constitutionally, it is said that the British monarch has three roles. First, he or she is the 1 __________ of the country, so that people can be as nasty as they like about the government and try to change it without threatening the 2 __________. Second, it is argued that the monarch is a possible final check on a dictational government. Third, the monarch has a practical role. As head of state, he or she performs the 3 __________, leaving the real government more time for governing. However, 4 __________ could probably fulfil all these roles just as well. The most important function of the British monarchy, therefore, is probably not constitutional at all. It is 5 __________. The monarchy gives British people a symbol of continuity and a harmless outlet for 6 __________. In addition, the glamorous lives of the royal family provide a focus of reverence for those people who want heroes and the ideal source of entertainment for those 7 __________. Last, 8 __________, there is the economic function. The monarchy in Britain is a great advantage to the country’s 9 __________. In this respect, its grand style (grander than 10 __________) more than pays for itself.

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Lesson 5. Parliament Activity 1| SUMMARY Match A-G with 1-7 to summarize the reform of the House of Lords in the last century.

1. A.

1910 The House of Lords …

B.

1911 The first Parliament Act …

C.

1949 The second Parliament Act …

D.

1958 The Life Peerage Act …

BRITISH-AMERICAN CULTURE COURSE E. 1963 The Peerage Act …

2. 3. 4.

5.

F.

1999 The House of Lords Act …

6.

G.

2000 Establishment of …

7.

… removes the automatic right of aristocrats to sit in the House of Lords. … the House of Lords Appointment Commission. … allows for the appointment of (non-hereditary) life peers. … gives people the right to disclaim their hereditary peerage (so that they can be elected to the House of Commons). … reduces the Lord’s legislation-blocking power to one year. … twice rejects a budget passed by the House of Commons. … removes the Lords’ ability to stop a bill passed by the Commons becoming law. It can now merely delay the bill for two years.

Activity 2| BRITISH WORDS AND PHRASES Find the word or phrase in chapter 9 of Britain which is used to mean or describe: 1. 2. 3. 4.

a change which is made to a written document (such as a bill)

5. 6. 7. 8.

a raised platform at the front of a hall, used by a speaker to address everybody there

‘yes’ (used in the north of England, Scotland, the royal navy – and Parliament) MPs who are the most important people in the most important parties walk towards or away from a place in a casual way, without obvious purpose (like a piece of wood floating on the sea) a large gathering of people in a public in support of a political party or other cause the use of rhetorical and/or eloquent language when giving a public speech the area that an MP represents in Parliament

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Lesson 6. Education Activity 1| SUMMARY Put the following clauses and phrases into the correct order to complete a paragraph summarizing the ‘education debates’ and ‘style’ sections of chapter 14 of Britain. Many people in Britain feel worried about the country’s school system. For one thing, they say that children do not learn the basic skills well enough. If this is true, perhaps it is because there is a shortage of teachers… 1 and becoming a good citizen 2 about which school their child attends. 3 from a rich and/or educated background. 4 On the other hand, it may not be true at all. 5 which places more emphasis on understanding 6 than it does on the learning of specific skills and facts. BRITISH-AMERICAN CULTUREstudents COURSE are nearly always the ones 7 the most successful 8 Finally, parents complain that they do not have enough choice 9 Another worry is that opportunities do not seem to be equal in that 10 It may also have something to do with the traditional style of British education, 11 or because the kids don’t have as much homework as they do in other countries. 12 After all, this a subjective matter; people disagree about which skills are most important Activity 2| BRITISH WORDS AND PHRASES Find the word or phrase in chapter 14 of Britain which is used to mean or describe: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

the three basic skills which should be taught in primary school the meeting of everybody in a school at the start of the day a place where very young children go (like kindergarten or a crèche) the practice of grouping students of the same ability together subjects which students have to study a school whose students live there money given to poorer university students to help them with living expenses a badly-behaved child who has not learnt any discipline or cooperation a period of the school year (there are usually three of them) the exams which older teenagers take when they are trying to go to university universities, typically in cities, which started in the nineteenth century Page 9 of 11

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12 the two universities of Oxford and Cambridge Activity 3| EXTENSION Fill in the gaps in this passage with words and phrases from the list below. rejected

the best possible chance

absurd parental strategy

applications

academic performance

a minority

potential

private tuition

accessible to all

more money

not as good as

you do not have enough potential

Naturally, parents want their children to go to a good school so that they get a good start in life. If they are rich enough, they can send them to an independent school, with fewer pupils per class and excellent exam results, so that they have 1 __________ of getting into a good university. However, if you were a rich parent in Britain today, this might be a mistake. Instead, you should send your child to a state school in a poor area with poor exam results. Meanwhile, use your money to hire private tutors. Why is this? In Britain, it is agreed that the opportunity of a university education should be equally 2 __________. But there are only enough university places for 3 __________ of school leavers. And most of these go to kids from middle-class backgrounds, many from independent schools. For some time, universities have been encouraging 4 __________ from disadvantaged sections of society. But now they have an extra BRITISH-AMERICAN CULTURE COURSEenough students from state schools in poor areas, the government reason for doing this. If they accept gives them 5 __________. So now many universities accept these applicants even their exam results are 6 __________ other applicants they reject.

Lesson 7. Sport and competition Activity 1| SPORTING ASSOCIATIONS Match each of the items 1-20 with one the sports in the box.

boxing

cricket

1. the Ashes 2. the FA 3. the Grand National 4. Hampden Park 5. Lords 6. on the ropes 7. oval ball 8. the Oval 9. Pacific Islands

football

horse racing

11.

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rugby

tennis

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Lecturer: HA NHAT LINH 10.

racquet

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