TEXT 13. Read and translate the text. Be ready to discuss

The Independence Day or Happy Birthday, America!

July 4^th, or Independence Day, is the most important American holiday. It’s the birthday of the United States of America. On this day, in 1776, America signed the Declaration of Independence and started the fight for freedom from British rule.

Before 1776, the King of England, George III, ruled the thirteen colonies in America. The colonists were tired of the taxes that George III imposed on them. «We have no representation in the British Parliament», they said, «so what right does he have to tax us?», «No taxation without representation» became their battle cry.

In 1767, the British government placed new taxes on tea and paper that colonists imported from abroad. The colonists got angry and refused to pay. George III sent soldiers to keep order.

In 1773, a group of colonists dressed up as Indians threw 342 chests of tea belonging to the East India Company into the waters of Boston harbour. King George didn’t think it was funny. His reply to this «Boston tea party» was a set of laws to punish the colonists. Boston harbour was closed until the tea was paid for. More soldiers were sent there to keep order.

But the «Intolerable Acts», as the colonists called King George’s laws, served only to unite the colonies against the British rule. The War of Independence began.

On July 4^th, 1776, the colonists declared their independence from Britain. Led by Thomas Jefferson, the representatives of all thirteen colonies met in Philadelphia to sign the Declaration of Independence. A large part of it was written by Jefferson himself. The document stated that the colonies were now «free and independent states» and officially named them the United States of America. It also said that all men had a natural right to «life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness».

The following day, copies of the Declaration of Independence were distributed and, on July 6^th, The Pennsylvania Evening Post became the first newspaper to print the extraordinary document. People celebrated the birth of a new nation.

But the War of Independence dragged on until 1783 when the colonists finally won. The head of the Revolutionary army was George Washington, who later became the first President of the United States of America. In 1783, Independence Day was made an official holiday.

Today, the country’s birthday is widely celebrated with parades, public meetings, patriotic music and speech-making. There are picnics and barbecues, and in the evening there are big fireworks shows. Wherever Americans are around the globe, they will get together for a traditional 4^th of July celebration!

TEXT 14. Read and translate the text. Make reports on other American holidays and festivals.

Thanksgiving Day

Thanksgiving Day in the United States is a holiday on the fourth Thursday of November. It precedes Black Friday. Thanksgiving Day is traditionally a holiday to give thanks for the food collected at the end of the harvest season.

Thanksgiving Day is traditionally a day for families and friends to get together for a special meal. The meal often includes a turkey, stuffing, potatoes, cranberry sauce, gravy, pumpkin pie, and vegetables. Thanksgiving Day is a time for many people to give thanks for what they have.

Thanksgiving Day parades are held in some cities and towns on or around Thanksgiving Day. Some parades or festivities also mark the opening of the Christmas shopping season. Some people have a four-day weekend so it is a popular time for trips and to visit family and friends.

Most government offices, businesses, schools and other organizations are closed on Thanksgiving Day. Many offices and businesses allow staff to have a four-day weekend so these offices and businesses also closed on the Friday after Thanksgiving Day. Public transit systems do not usually operate on their regular timetables.

Thanksgiving Day is one of the busiest periods for travel in the USA. This can cause congestion and overcrowding. Seasonal parades and busy football games can cause disruption to local traffic.

The American Thanksgiving began as a feast of thanksgiving almost four hundred years ago. In 1620, a religious Puritan community sailed across the Atlantic Ocean to settle in the New World. They settled in what is now known as the state of Massachusetts.

Their first winter in America was difficult. They arrived too late to grow a rich harvest. Moreover, half the colony died from disease. The following spring the Iroquois Indians taught them how to grow corn. Indians showed them also how to grow other crops and how to hunt and fish.

In the autumn of 1621 they got a beautiful harvest of corn, barley, beans and pumpkins. The colonists had much to be thankful for, so they planned a feast. Local Indian chief and ninety Indians were present. The colonists learned from Indians how to cook cranberries and dishes of corn and pumpkins.

In following years many of the colonists celebrated the harvest with a feast of thanks. After the United States gained independence, Congress recommended one yearly day of thanksgiving for the whole country.

Later, George Washington suggested the date November 26 as Thanksgiving Day. Then, after the Civil war, Abraham Lincoln suggested the last Thursday in November to be the day of thanksgiving.

Charitable organizations offer traditional meal to the homeless.

It is a time to remember all the good things in life and to be thankful.