Text 7 The Condemned Room
I. 1. Read the article and say in 2-3 sentences what it is about.
Dear Mom,
I am working very hard on cleaning my room. But I want to go to Katy’s this afternoon to work on our Halloween costumes. Can I finish tomorrow? I would get up early and do it before breakfast and I’ll do a good job. Please, write back.
Love, The Prisoner in Tower # 3
Dear Prisoner, No.
Love, Mom.
For days Sam’s mother never came up to her room. And then one day Sam came home from school and found the Condemned sign on her door. Her mother had made the sign. It said: “The room is condemned. Its owner may not go anywhere or do anything until the area is restored”. In other words, Sam was to stay in until she cleaned her room.
It wasn’t fair. She was always getting the Condemned sign. Her brother hardly ever did. And his room was really disgusting, with posters of rock stars and basketball stars and movie stars wearing tiny bikinis covering every inch of his walls. But, her mother pointed out, his floor was clean and his desk as well. That was all she cared about.
Sam had been in her room for three hours now. She sat on the floor, looking at everything she was supposed to be putting away. It was possible she might be there all day. There were her clothes, lying high on her chair and overflowing onto the floor. Dirty shoes. An umbrella from when it rained on Tuesday. Library books. Magazines with pictures of cool teenmovie stars that Rebecca had given her. Her piano music from yesterday’s lesson. And different little things: nail polish remover, cotton balls, a tennisball, a note pad from Katy, rocks from rock collection they were making for science, pencils, chewing gum. And about twelve dirty handkerchiefs.
The thing to do, Sam decided, was sort everything into piles. A pile of dirty laundry, a pile of her dresser drawers, a pile to throw away. That was how her father, the organization man, would do it. She sighed. It was impossible to imagine she couldn’t leave her room all weekend. She decided to paint her finger nails instead.
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1. *condemned room [kənˈdemd ˈruːm] комната, признанная небезопасной для проживания
2. The author tells us about her brother’s room. Find this extract and read it aloud.
3. What made Sam’s Mum write a message?
4. Is Sam going to clean the room? Why do you think so?
Dear Mom,
I am working very hard on cleaning my room. But I want to go to Katy’s this afternoon to work on our Halloween costumes. Can I finish tomorrow? I would get up early and do it before breakfast and I’ll do a good job. Please, write back.
Love, The Prisoner in Tower # 3
Dear Prisoner, No.
Love, Mom.
For days Sam’s mother never came up to her room. And then one day Sam came home from school and found the Condemned sign on her door. Her mother had made the sign. It said: “The room is condemned. Its owner may not go anywhere or do anything until the area is restored”. In other words, Sam was to stay in until she cleaned her room.
It wasn’t fair. She was always getting the Condemned sign. Her brother hardly ever did. And his room was really disgusting, with posters of rock stars and basketball stars and movie stars wearing tiny bikinis covering every inch of his walls. But, her mother pointed out, his floor was clean and his desk as well. That was all she cared about.
Sam had been in her room for three hours now. She sat on the floor, looking at everything she was supposed to be putting away. It was possible she might be there all day. There were her clothes, lying high on her chair and overflowing onto the floor. Dirty shoes. An umbrella from when it rained on Tuesday. Library books. Magazines with pictures of cool teenmovie stars that Rebecca had given her. Her piano music from yesterday’s lesson. And different little things: nail polish remover, cotton balls, a tennisball, a note pad from Katy, rocks from rock collection they were making for science, pencils, chewing gum. And about twelve dirty handkerchiefs.
The thing to do, Sam decided, was sort everything into piles. A pile of dirty laundry, a pile of her dresser drawers, a pile to throw away. That was how her father, the organization man, would do it. She sighed. It was impossible to imagine she couldn’t leave her room all weekend. She decided to paint her finger nails instead.
___________________________________________________________
1. *condemned room [kənˈdemd ˈruːm] комната, признанная небезопасной для проживания
2. The author tells us about her brother’s room. Find this extract and read it aloud.
3. What made Sam’s Mum write a message?
4. Is Sam going to clean the room? Why do you think so?
POSSIBLE RESPONSE
II. Listen to the conversation and answer the questions below.(1)
1. Where was Tina going to?
2. What happened at the airport?
3. Why was Tina scared during the flight?
1. Where was Tina going to?
2. What happened at the airport?
3. Why was Tina scared during the flight?
Script
Man: And what about you, Tina? Have you got a story about a journey you remember?
Tina: Yes, I have actually. There’s one journey I’ll never forget. I was going to Hong Kong, from London. The flight was early in the morning, so I made up my mind to spend the night before the flight in a hotel near the airport. When I woke up it was after five o’clock. You know you have to get there early to check in, right? So I panicked, took my bags and rushed outside, looking for a taxi. Luckily, after a few minutes an airport bus came along. When I got there, it was actually nearly six so I thought, you know, I’ve missed my plane. The whole terminal was empty except for a huge crowd of people at one end and luckily, that was the queue for my flight. It was delayed! Yeah. I was really pleased... but the delay went from one hour to nine hours! Finally, at around three o’clock, the plane took off. But the worst part was yet to come! After a few hours there was a huge storm and the plane started bouncing around all over the place. I was really scared. And then! The worst thing of all — the oxygen masks dropped down. I put my mask on and just sat there in absolute terror. Anyway, the plane didn’t crash, thank God, and we got to Hong Kong OK in the end, but what a journey! I’ll never forget it.
Tina: Yes, I have actually. There’s one journey I’ll never forget. I was going to Hong Kong, from London. The flight was early in the morning, so I made up my mind to spend the night before the flight in a hotel near the airport. When I woke up it was after five o’clock. You know you have to get there early to check in, right? So I panicked, took my bags and rushed outside, looking for a taxi. Luckily, after a few minutes an airport bus came along. When I got there, it was actually nearly six so I thought, you know, I’ve missed my plane. The whole terminal was empty except for a huge crowd of people at one end and luckily, that was the queue for my flight. It was delayed! Yeah. I was really pleased... but the delay went from one hour to nine hours! Finally, at around three o’clock, the plane took off. But the worst part was yet to come! After a few hours there was a huge storm and the plane started bouncing around all over the place. I was really scared. And then! The worst thing of all — the oxygen masks dropped down. I put my mask on and just sat there in absolute terror. Anyway, the plane didn’t crash, thank God, and we got to Hong Kong OK in the end, but what a journey! I’ll never forget it.
III. Let’s talk about art
1. How important is art in our lives?
2. Are you good at painting, dancing, singing, taking photos, etc?
3. I like photography. Ask me some questions about the exhibition I have recently visited.
4. Give me a piece of advice on what architectural monuments are worth visiting in Belarus.
5. Are you interested in videoblogs? Why or why not?
2. Are you good at painting, dancing, singing, taking photos, etc?
3. I like photography. Ask me some questions about the exhibition I have recently visited.
4. Give me a piece of advice on what architectural monuments are worth visiting in Belarus.
5. Are you interested in videoblogs? Why or why not?
possible response
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