DO YOU ENJOY EATING BREAKFAST?
When was the last time you had a proper breakfast before you went to work or
school in the morning? Probably it was a long time ago. Most people do not have
time to eat breakfast. And many people do not want to eat breakfast as soon as
they get up. Perhaps an hour later, they are starving. But by then they are at
school or work and there is no time to stop and eat anything until lunchtime.
However, if you could eat a decent breakfast, you would probably be able to d
your work much better. This is especially true of schoolchildren because thei
brains are still developing. If children do not eat well, their brains will not
function as well as they should. Their school work will be less effective. Childre-
need iron*, for example. Iron is found in bread and in many breakfast cereal
and it helps concentration. Research shows that if children do not eat the righ
kind of food, or if they do not eat breakfast, they can have problems at school.
Research supports the view that school breakfasts help schoolchildre
perform better at school. One study by Michael Murphy, a psychologist at th
Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, USA, studied breakfast programm;
at three schools. Dr Murphy and his colleagues found that the children who ha
the breakfasts provided by the school generally did better at school, particularly
in Maths, than the children who had no breakfast. In one school, scores in Mat
tests rose by 16 %. In another school there was an increase of 10 % in Maths an
Reading tests. Teachers said that the children concentrated on their lessons an
behaved better than before, they were generally happier and more hard-workin
Studies have shown that it is not difficult to organize school breakfasts
The breakfasts help everybody, it seems: parents, teachers and the childre
themselves. The children's favourite breakfasts are toast and jam, and cerea"
such as cornflakes. The most important thing of all is that children are happier
healthier and learn more.
2. The article says that most people are too busy to have breakfast. Read aloud the
extract which says about it.
3. Why is it important for schoolchildren to have breakfast?
4. What are the results of the experiment?
№29
1.Read the article and say in 2—3 sentences what it is about.
HUNDREDS OF ENGLISHES
A friend of mine recently tried to download a new programme from the internet.
But she soon had a problem. She had selected English as the variant of the
programme that she wanted. But then she had to choose from a whole list
of different 'Englishes': International English, Universal English, American
English, European English, South African English... Whatever happened to
ordinary English English? My friend wanted to know.
Languages are like living things. They change and grow. In the case of English,
the process of change is becoming faster and faster. New forms of the language
are being created, partly because more and more people are now speaking
English and partly because of new forms of communication such as email.
About 400 million people in various countries of the world use English as a first
language. About 600 million people use English as a second language. In addition
to these people, there are millions of people who are learning English for use
at work or when they travel. It is not surprising that the language has changed
to suit local needs, as a result there are many types of English with their own
vocabulary and a characteristic sentence structure.
You might think that there are not really big differences between British and
American English. Well, that is not really true. British people always find
American English a little strange and sometimes totally incomprehensible.
Canadians officially use British spelling and usage, but in reality they are very
influenced by American English. Once when I was visiting Vancouver, I asked
a bus driver if he was going to the centre. I meant, of course, the city centre. He
looked at me as though I were mad. "But this is the centre," he said. In reality,
we were about 10 miles from the city centre. However, we were at a bus stop
outside a shopping centre. Fortunately, I remembered just in time that for north
Americans 'downtown' is the word to indicate the city centre, so the problem
was solved.
2.The author's friend had a problem while working on the computer. Read aloud
the extract which says about it.
3.Why is English changing much more than other languages?
4.How much do the variants of English differ?
№30
1.Read an article and say in 2—3 sentences what it is about.
О besity
ожирение
Acne
угревая сыпь
GOOD NEWS FOR CHOCOLATE LOVERS!
It would be difficult to find someone who does not like chocolate. In the Unit
States, chocolate is bought more often than any other kind of sweet. In Britai
each person eats an average of 11 kg of chocolate per year. That is a lot
chocolate! In the US people eat about 200 chocolate bars per second as a mat
of fact. People love chocolate so much that they often think it is a bad hah
But there is good news for all chocoholics: eating chocolate does less harm
you than you might think.
People often believe that chocolate causes a number of health problems includ'
bad teeth, obesity* and skin problems such as acne*. Studies carried out in t
United States, however, give no support to this idea.
Specific tests were carried out. One group of people who suffer from acne
given regular amounts of chocolate, while another group of similar sufferers h
no chocolate at all. At the end of the test period the two groups were compar
No difference in the condition of the acne sufferers was noticed.
Chocolate contains fat and sugar, so if you ate a lot of chocolate you wo
probably put on weight. But reasonable amounts of chocolate in your diet w
not make you fat. People usually get fat because they eat too much food
general, especially if they are not very active.
What about the effect on your teeth? Chocolate can damage your teeth, b
the danger is less than many people believe. It is good to know that eati
a certain amount of chocolate may even be good for you. Chocolate contai
protein, vitamins and minerals. Scientists believe chocolate may reduce the
of heart disease.
Perhaps the most amazing thing of all is that it can help you fight off illness,
important thing is not the chocolate in itself, but the pleasure that it gives y
Even the smell of chocolate can have a positive effect on your immune syste
It is nice to smell chocolate of course, but it is much better to eat it. And t
great thing is that you can eat it without fear.
2.People eat a lot of chocolate. Read aloud the extract which says about it.
3.What health problems do people traditionally connect with eating chocolate?
4.What facts prove that chocolate can be good for our health?
№31
1.Read the article and say in 2—3 sentences what it is about.
Interaction
взаимодействие
To ingur
ранить
DOLPHIN DOCTORS?
Dolphins have helped a 10-year-old boy to talk for the first time in his life. The
boy, from Bristol in England, took part in a dolphin interaction* programme at a
research centre in Florida, USA. Now he has begun to use words to communicate
instead of signs and gestures. He is one of many children who have been helped
by dolphins to overcome disabilities.
How does it work? When the children have close contact with the dolphins,
they become very stimulated. They concentrate and are very attentive. This
helps the children learn. Dr Nathanson says that there is nothing magical about
the therapy. He uses the things that children love to stimulate them: water,
animals and music.
Scientists confirm that dolphin therapy can help children learn. Research at the
centre showed that children who had only classroom therapy did not respond
as well as the children who received the dolphin interactive therapy.
David Cole is a scientist. He has studied what happens in children's brains when
they swim with dolphins. He has found that the children become very relaxed.
This state of relaxation may protect them from illness as well as help them learn.
Cole also believes that some dolphins can influence positively unhealthy parts
of body.
Not everyone agrees with dolphin therapy, however. Animal rights groups
remind us that dolphins are wild animals with wild instincts. It is wrong to
think that they are harmless. Sometimes dolphins seriously injure* the humans
that swim with them. In the USA, there were 18 reported injuries to people by
dolphins between 1989 and 1994.
There are some people who say that the therapy is not good for the dolphins.
The dolphins become used to life in aquariums. They cannot return to the wild
because they are no longer able to look after themselves and often die. Dolphin
therapy can be of great value to a lot of sick children. At the same time, it is
necessary to protect the dolphins as well as the children who swim with them.
2.Did dolphin therapy help an English boy? Read aloud the extract which says
ibout it.
3.How does the therapy work? Use facts from the article.
4.Why do some people speak against dolphin therapy?
№32
1. Read the article and say in 2—3 sentences what it is about.
Gifted
талантливый
