Pre-Reading Activities

1. Study the active topical vocabulary and learn it by heart:

1. Language – язык, foreign language – иностранный язык, to learn a foreign language – учить иностранный язык, to speak English – говорить на английском языке, to improve language skills – улучшить языковые навыки.

2. Grammar rules – правила грамматики, to understand grammar – понимать грамматику.

3. Parts of speech – части речи, noun – имя существительное, adjective – имя прилагательное, verb – глагол, article – артикль, preposition – предлог, pronoun – местоимение, adverb – наречие, conjunction – союз, interjection – междометие.

4. Word – слово, to memorize a word – запомнить слово, to write down a word – записать слово, to look up a word in a dictionary – посмотреть слово в словаре, to pronounce a word – произнести слово, to guess the meaning of a word from the context – догадаться о значении слова из контекста, word-order – порядок слов, synonym – синоним, antonym – антоним, root – корень (слова), prefix – приставка (префикс), suffix – суффикc.

5. Sentence – предложение, to construct a sentence – составить предложение, to translate the sentence – перевести предложение.

6. To translate orally (in writing, at sight) – переводить устно (письменно, с листа) [2].

Match the word phrases and the translation:

3. а )Translate the following phrases into Russian b) Work in pairs. Say if you agree or disagree with the statement:

1. Language is a part of our lives. 2. Nothing can be done without speech. 3. Our speech is our personality. 4. Words are tools of thought. 5. One can't think without words. 6. One knowing two languages is worth two. 7. By learning a foreign language thoroughly we discover a new world. 8. Language is a means of communication. 9. The most important thing in learning a language is to have patience. 10. We study languages through practice.

4. Work in pairs. Ask your partner following questions and use phrases form ex. 1 and ex. 2.:

1. Do you like to study English language?

2. What is the most difficult for you in the process of studying foreign language?

3. Why do we need to study foreign language?

4. What is the best way for you to study English?

Reading

Read and translate the text. You'll find the following recommendations useful: Stop, Look and List them.

When you come across new and unfamiliar words STOP! Then LOOK around and see whether you can guess their meaning from the context. If the context doesn't give you the first aid, LIST them. LOOK them up in a dictionary. The LIST you make of words is worth a great deal more than any LIST made for you. It is connected with your reading; it is associated with your ideas; it is yours. Each new word you acquire will enrich your language and mind. The more words you learn, the more easily you'll be able to recognize and remember other words and so add them to your growing vocabulary.

6. Discuss the question: “How many new words can be learned in one lesson?” What is your experience?

7. Read and translate the text A and the text B:

Text A.

HOW TO MEMORIZE THE WORDS

There are no long words in English. They only seem to be long. When you look at a long word, you find that it is only a lot of little units put together. The words you consider long are combinations of short words or parts of words written together. The trick is to be able to divide the long word into recognizable short units.

If you can divide a word properly you can generally conquer it. So you will find it excellent practice to pay attention to these small words in your reading. There are so many of them, that it becomes a fascinating hobby to try to trace them.

Here is one more recommendation for you to follow:

The prefix is small but mighty. We guarantee that your knowledge of words and your ability to remember them will be greatly increased if you master prefixes. If you learn the influence of a prefix upon a word, your vocabulary will grow.

Text B.

HOW TO LEARN A LANGUAGE

You can learn a foreign language. This is a true statement. It is true because you know your mother tongue. And if you have been able to learn it, you can learn any language, provided you really want to.

If you want to speak a language, you must hear it spoken and speak it yourself. A record or a tape-recording can be of great help.

If you are mainly interested in reading a language, you must read as much as possible.

Actually there is no magic formula to follow. But there are some general guides that you will find helpful if you want to speak and to read a foreign language.

Listen to records. Turn on your radio. Concentrate on the words that are more frequently used. Then try to learn whole phrases and sentences. Learn them as one piece not as separate words put together.

Study. Each language has its own grammar rules. Don't fight the rules. Study them carefully and learn to use them.

Read. Practice reading English newspapers and magazines. The more you read, the sooner you will get to feel the language.

Repeat, Repeat, Repeat. Say words and phrases and sentences over and over again. You are learning a new skill and you have to practice. You have to keep practicing, or you lose your skill. But here is a bit of encouragement. If you forget a language through lack of practice, you can learn it again quickly.

The more you learn, the easier it is for you to learn still more. Your knowledge of a language is like a snowball rolling downhill [2].