Match the family words with their meanings.

 

mother and father sons and daughters mother’s or father’s brother mother’s or father’s sister mother’s or father’s mother mother’s or father’s father brother’s or sister’s son brother’s or sister’s daughter

uncle grandmother nephew parents aunt niece children grandfather

3. a) Read the text and answer the questions.

 

I’d like to tell you a bit about my family. My name is Anna. I am from Moscow. I am 26 years old. I am an accountant. I work for a big firm. I live not far from my work. It takes me 20 minutes to drive there. I have a family. We are four: my husband Andrei, my mother Maria, my 6-year-old son Max and me.

My husband is 30, he is a doctor. He is very busy at work. He often comes home late. My mother is 56. She is retired. She keeps the house and looks after Max. I have an elder brother Anton. He has a family of his own. They live in another town so we don’t see much of each other.

Our family is a closely knit unit. We spend our free time together. We like sports. In winter, we go skiing and skating. In summer, we take long walks in the forest and play outdoor games.

1. Where is Anna from? How old is she?

2. What’s her job? Where does she work?

3. How long does it take her to get to work?

4. How many members are there in her family?

5. How old is her husband? What’s his job?

6. What does her mother do?

7. Where does Anna’s brother live?

8. How do Anna and her family spend their free time?

 

b) Make up questions to ask your group mates using the following word combinations from the text.

 

· to work for a firm/ a company

· it takes me/ him/ them 20 minutes to do smth

· look after somebody

· an elder/ younger brother/ sister

· take a walk

 

4. a) Read the text and answer the questions.

Who am I? I’m 22. I was born in London. My parents come from Wales. My full name is Sandra Alison Bates, but people call me Sandy. I’m single. I share a flat with a girl called Val in Wembley not far from my job. I work as a programme assistant for a TV company. Well, I’m called a programme assistant, but I’m really a secretary. I type, file letters and make tea for my boss. My boss is a woman, by the way. As you see, my job is not very interesting. My boyfriend also works there. He is a video technician. I don’t see much of my family now. My mum and dad live in London and I’m in Wembley, so it’s a bit far away.

My younger brother, Dave, still lives with them but he and I don’t get on very well. He is very critical of our family. His main ambition is to leave school, earn some money and buy a new speed bike. He is 16 and is in the sixth form at school. Although he is fairly bright, his teachers think he is lazy and far too interested in out-of-school activities. My elder brother Richard is all right. He lives in Wimbledon with his kid, Kevin. I sometimes go and baby-sit for him. I like Kevin. He’s good fun.

I haven’t got any cousins, but I have got some distant relatives.

1. What is Sandy’s full name?

2. Where does she live?

3. How many people are there in her family?

4. What do you know about Sandy’s close relatives?

5. Where does Sandy work?

6. What is her round of duties?

 

b) Find words in the text which mean the opposite.

married –

argue –

spend money –

boring –

close relatives –

c) Imagine you are Dave, Sandy’s brother. Write a short text about yourself and your family.

 

5. a) Read the text and complete the sentence.

This text is about …………………………………………………………………………

The average English family lives in a semi-detached house with a garden in the south of England. They own their house, which is situated in the suburbs of a large town. The house has three bedrooms. On average they have two children and a pet. Mr. Average works in an office 40 hours a week. He starts at 9.00 in the morning and finishes at 5.30 in the evening. He goes to work by car, which takes him 20 minutes. He doesn’t particularly like his job, but there are chances of promotion.

Mrs. Average works locally in a service industry three days a week and doesn’t earn as much as her husband. She quite likes her job as it gets her out of the house, she meets people, and it is close to the children’s school.

The most popular evening entertainment is watching television or video. After that, the next most popular activity is visiting friends, going to the cinema or a restaurant, or going to the pub. The most popular hobby is gardening and the most popular sports are fishing, football and tennis.

b) Answer the questions.

 

1. Where does the average English family live?

2. How many children are there in the family?

3. When does Mr. Average start and finish his work?

4. How does he get to work?

5. Where does Mrs. Average work?

6. Why does she like her job?

7. What do they like doing in the evening?

8. What are their favourite activities?

 

c) Write a similar text about the average Russian family. Use the underlined words and phrases.

 

6. a) Work in pairs. Think about your childhood and talk about:

 

- your earliest childhood memories

- your first vacation

- your favourite toys

- your first day at school

- your first home

- your first friend

- your favourite games

 

b) Read the interview with Sanna about children and childhood. Write the questions the interviewer asked.

 

Interviewer: (1) …………………………………………?

Sanna: Most families have two children.

Interviewer: (2) …………………………………………? Is it just the parents, or the grandparents as well?

Sanna: I’d say just the parents. Grandparents help out in the holiday times normally, but it’s unusual for them to look after babies.

Interviewer: (3) …………………………………………?

Sanna: I think that happens more often. My family – my dad’s parents – gave my parents a lot of advice and help in bringing us up.

Interviewer: (4) …………………………………………?

Sanna: Personally, I see them once a week, twice a week. Most people work, so it’s not really possible to see them every day, but at least once a week if I live nearby.

Interviewer: (5) …………………………………………?

Sanna: With my family, we would just sit and chat, we could go and do sports, go for walks, but it very much depends on the family.

 

c) Work in pairs and talk about your answers to the questions in the interview.

 

WRITING A LETTER