Travel along the Thames in English. Regional study material "Journey along the Thames River". English original texts translated above



1 What do you know about the River Thames? What else would you like to know about her? Consider three questions. Read and see if you can answer them.

2a Read the text and complete the missing words derived from these words.
London wouldn't be London without the River Thames. It flows 215 miles through the English countryside and then through the heart
great city before it reaches the sea. The Thames played 1) an extremely important role in creating England as it is today.
England had very few roads in the past, so the Thames provided the main highway between London and many parts of the country. People could also send supplies of food and other goods to and from London by boat. During the war, London was protected from naval attacks because they built castles and fortresses at the mouth of the river. People from London were given permission to 2) drink water from the Thames, and 3) thirsty cows and sheep were a common sight on its banks.
With 4) the Industrial Revolution in the 18th century, the Thames became one of the busiest waterways in the world. Factories made and exported goods of all kinds. So people became rich and many of them built 5) beautiful houses along the banks of the river. 6) The famous writer Charles Dickens spent part of his 7) childhood there and later wrote about the Thames in his books. Today the Thames has become a symbol of London, just like Big Ben or Buckingham Palace. If you take a walk along its banks, you will have a day full of 8) pleasant surprises. You can admire bridges built in many 9) different architectural styles. The most famous is probably Tower Bridge, which actually rises 1,000 times a year to allow ships to pass through. Or you might 10) be lucky enough to see the London Rowing, the Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race, which takes place on the river every spring. Whether you're a Londoner or a visitor, the Thames always has something to offer you.

b Listen and read the text again. Explain the highlighted words. Then ask and answer questions based on the text.

3 Find the main idea of ​​each paragraph. In pairs, think about the appropriate sections for each point. Compare with another pair.

English original texts translated above:

The Thames
London would not be London without the River Thames. It flows 215 miles across the English countryside and then through the heart of the great city before it reaches the sea. The Thames has played an 1) extremely important part in making England what it is today.
England had very few roads in the past, so the Thames provided a major highway between London and many parts of the country. People could also send supplies of food and other goods to and from London by boat. In times of war, London was protected from sea attacks because they built castles and forts at the mouth of the river. People from the London area got their 2) drinking water from the Thames, and 3) thirsty cows and sheep were a common sight along its banks.
With the 4)industrial Revolution in the 18th century, the Thames became one of the busiest waterways in the world. Factories made and exported goods of all kinds. So people became rich and many of them built 5) beautiful houses along the banks of the river. The 6) famous writer Charles Dickens spent part of his 7) childhood there and later wrote about the Thames in his books. Today the Thames has become a symbol of London, just as much as Big Ben or Buckingham Palace. If you take a stroll along its banks, you"ll have a day full of 8) pleasant surprises. You can admire bridges built in many 9) different architectural styles. The most famous one is probably Tower Bridge which actually opens up 1,000 times a year to let through ships. Or you might be 10)lucky enough to see London's rowing event, the Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race, which takes place on the river every spring. Whether you"re a Londoner or a visitor, the Thames will always have something to offer you.

It is impossible to imagine the capital of Great Britain without the legendary River Thames, which flows through the whole of London and is recognized as one of its main attractions. IN English language The name of the river is masculine, which is why Londoners often call it “Father Thames,” in honor of the fact that it was on its banks that the first settlements of British tribes appeared.

The Thames proved to be an impossible obstacle for the Romans, who planned to reach the settlements, but were never able to cross the river. The Romans began to build a bridge for a safer crossing, which marked the beginning of the history of the modern capital. By the time the bridge was completed, the young city had already grown enough to become one of the main river ports.

The most popular river V Great Britain

The Thames flows through all central regions England, on whose lands the most important historical events took place, therefore the British gave the river another name - “fluid history”. In addition, its shores are full of picturesque corners, which have become an ideal place not only for royal residences, but also for all kinds of holiday homes. Fifty ancient castles, fortresses and picturesque English villages lined up along the Thames throughout England. In order to see interesting historical and modern monuments of the country, it is enough for a tourist to drive along the river and look around - this is the best excursion route.

Origin titles

British linguists explain the origin of the name with the Celtic word “tamesas”, which means “dark”. Perhaps this definition was given to it because of its previous dimensions, which were tens of times larger than the current ones, and the water of the river seemed incredibly dark due to its great depth. Archaeologists believe that the area along the banks of the Thames was inhabited already in the Bronze Age, and the river itself was actively used to transport goods from one village to another.

Peculiarities Thames

The Thames has one characteristic feature, a rare event in nature, which is called a "tidal river". Twice a day the depth of the river changes, and the difference from maximum to minimum levels is about eight to 8 meters. At the same time, Londoners are quite accustomed to the mischief of the Thames, and in order to avoid serious flooding during high tides, they installed barriers that allow them to control the water level.

Walks By Thames

Ferries, river trams and boats run along the banks of the Thames, which are often used as public transport Londoners themselves. It is from the river that the most unusual view of the capital of the United Kingdom opens. From the cruise boat you have the most luxurious views of most of London's attractions: Big Ben, the famous Tower Bridge, the capital's huge attraction, the London Eye, the Belfast Museum Ship, Shakespeare's Globe Theater and St. Paul's Cathedral, as well as many other interesting places.

English lesson plan for 10th grade

on the topic “Cultural corner. Journey along the Thames"

“Take a Trip along the Thames”

The purpose of the lesson : expanding students’ horizons about the country of the language being studied

a) formation and development of students’ research skills;

b) improving the skills and abilities of practical knowledge of the English language.

Educational objectives:

  • Form and improve lexical skills;
  • Improve reading and listening skills;
  • Improve monologue speech skills.

Educational tasks:

  • Foster respect for different states;
  • Foster interest and respect for the history of states;
  • Develop pride in your own country.

Linguistic tasks:

  • To generate students’ interest in the country of the language they are learning;
  • Introduce various historical and cultural data.

Lesson equipment:tape recorder with disk, interactive whiteboard, multimedia projector, presentations, handouts.

Technologies: collaborative learning, project technology.

DURING THE CLASSES:

  • Organizing time.

Good morning, boys and girls! I am glad to see you here. Today I invite you to mare a journey. Do you like to travel? Looking at these photos can you guess where we are going to travel today? Right, we are going to travel around the Thames and to know some facts about London’s sights. I want you to understand how beautiful and wonderful the capital of the United Kingdom is. Besides, I’d like you to remember the best Russian sights.

  • Phonetic warm-up.

But first of all I"d like you to pronounce some words from the page “Culture corner”. Look at the words on the blackboard. Be very attentive and try to remember them, because they are of a great importance. First of all repeat them after me.

(l) - L o nd o n, m o ney, d u ngeon, th o roughly

(i) - w i ts, i ncredible, m i llennium, R i pper, exh i b i t

(e) - Th a mes, leafl e t, m e dieval, fortr e ss, e xperience

(ou) - d o me, Gl o be, b oa t, m o le, st o ne

(ee) - R a mbler, c a nnon, p a lace, c a thedral, a ttr a ction

(au) - T ow er, C row n, p ow er, T ow er Bridge, fl ow er

  • Practicing new expressions in exercise No. 1 page 95.

And now students, look at the leaflet which is given in Ex. 1 p 93. How do you think what this leaflet is about? Yes, right you are. They are about different tourists attractions along the river Thames. Call me please the names of these attractions. Didn’t you forget about the London Aquarium and St Paul’s Cathedral? I think you have noticed some new words here. Looking at the sheets of paper, try to find out Russian equivalents to the unknown words.

Bird's eye view - look from a bird's eye view

Experience of a lifetime - experience something unforgettable

Millennium - millennium

Served many purposes – good enough

Medieval - Middle Ages

A fortress - fortress

Scared out of your wits - to be scared until you lose consciousness

Faint-hearted - cowardly

Jack the Ripper – Jack the Ripper

Great Plague - great plague

Thoroughly – completely, completely

  • Reading text with understanding of content

And now read the texts of the exercise and find out what you can do, see and learn at the different tourists attractions along the Thames.

Example:

I think you can have a ride on the… (London Eye)

I think you can learn about history at the… (the Tower, the London Dungeon)

I think you can...

  • Selection of synonyms

Thank you and now you will work in pairs. I"ll give you the cards and you should match the word combinations and the explanations. You should also make up your own sentences.

Get on and off easily, usually without having to buy a new ticket(hop on and off)

Worth more than the money it costs(great value for money)

A period of a thousand years, the celebration at the end of a thousand year period(millennium)

The view of something when you are looking down on it from a height(bird's eye view)

To be extremely frightened or terrified(scared out of your wits)

A building like a castle (a fortress)

Something you do that is unforgettable(the experience of a lifetime)

Someone is not very confident and is afraid to do things that might be dangerous(faint-hearted)

The historical period which lasted from the end of the Roman Empire to the Renaissance(medieval)

Has been used for many different things(served for many purposes)

A prison (Dungeon)

A great disaster, an illness of the 17 th century, when thousands of people died(Great Plague)

A 19th –century London murderer (Jack the Ripper)

  • Word formation.

The next task is to complete the gaps in the texts with the correct words derived from the words in brackets and translate these words into Russian.

  • to thrill - thrilling
  • To amaze - amazing
  • Fame - famous
  • Usual - unusual
  • Thorough - thoroughly
  • Perform-performance
  • Education - educational
  • Exhibit - exhibition
  • Listening to texts ex. 1 page 95

Now I"d like you to watch a short film. You should watch, listen and say what information is missing in the text. What music is used in this text? What do you know about this band and their songs?

  • Improving monologue speech skills. (Students as tour guides).

We’ll watch this film once again but without the sound.

Imagine you are guides on a River Thames. Look at the texts once again, close the book and speak about the sightseeings.

Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to the River Thames boat trip, which I hope you will enjoy. We are now just passing the London Eye on the left…

  • Fizminutka

Now we"ll play the game “Read the word correctly”. I suggest you a list of words. You must read them word by word by chain. If you are mistaken, you must sit down and your turn comes to your neighbor. He pronounces the same word. If he is right, the turn will come to his neighbor. The winner is a student who pronounces all the words without mistakes. And today he won't get “5”, but he'll get a funny and interesting present.

  • Control.

The next task is to divide into three groups and put the questions to the information about the sightseengs of London. I'll give you some cards which help you. Then you should ask and answer each other and get points.

What are the most famous sights of London do you know?

When was London Eye built? (2000)

Where can you learn about the Great Plague? (The London Dungeon)

When was the recent Globe completed? (1997)

What can you see in the Tower of London? (the incredible Crown Jewels)

What is beefeaters’ business? (to feed crows)

How many beefeaters are there in the Tower? (38)

Where is a scary labyrinth of mirrors situated? (The London Dungeon)

Which sight of London has its incredible dome? (St Paul's Cathedral)

What is the main river of the UK? (The Thames)

  • Homework explanation. (Ex. 4 p. 95)

At home you should make a project. You can divide into groups of 2-3 students.

Design an information leaflet for tourists coming to your town.

Decide on three or four places to visit.

Write what someone can do/see there.

Use pictures.

  • Reflection. Grading.

They are offered by several different companies. They differ from each other not only in the level of service, but also in the number of services provided. Some of them may only offer a trip to water bus, during which you can explore the surrounding area and learn various facts about the attractions you meet along the way.

There are tours that include lunch, dinner or even tea. You can view them.

Majority excursion routes can be taken daily from March 31 to November 2. Time: from 10.00 to 18.00. Departure frequency river transport from the pier - every 15-30 minutes. So if you suddenly decide to make such a trip, it will not cause any difficulties. But it is worth paying attention to the fact that a number of companies offering long excursions along this route stop selling tickets the day before departure. Some companies offer trips to winter period, however, they do not occur so often.

Tickets

A full excursion, including a trip along the Thames, a visit to Greenwich, sightseeing and a return trip costs £55-150.

The most economical option is City Cruise. Cost of a trip by water bus from the pier to Greenwich/round trip route:

·Adult (16+): £12.25/£16;

· Child (5-16 years): £6.13/£8;

· Preferential (pensioners, preferential categories of persons): £8.58/£11.2;

· Children under 4 years old accompanied by parents are free.

These prices are valid when purchasing tickets at the ticket office at the pier. You can save approximately £1 by pre-ordering online. If you are the owner of a London Pass tourist card, then you do not have to pay for this trip at all, it is already included in the price. You just need to get it at the cashier paper tickets. For Oyster Card holders there is a 1/3 discount on the price.

The tour itself is conducted in English; translation services are not provided. During the trip you can see the most famous sights of London, such as the Palace of Westminster, the London Eye, and the Tower. There is a bar inside the ship with drinks and snacks.

The cost of travel

·Adult (18+): £24;

· Child (under 17 years): 16 pounds;

· Preferential (pensioners, students): 20 pounds.

River Thames - very interesting tourist site for the curious traveler. Its channel runs in the south of Great Britain, the total length of the river is 334 km (for comparison: the length of the Moscow River channel is 502 km, the Danube is 2860 km).

The Thames is memorable primarily for the fact that it flows through the capital of Great Britain - London; within the city limits it is decorated with breathtaking bridges that are several hundred years old. Outside of London, the river can be observed in several more English cities- Oxford and Reading. The Thames Estuary overflows into the North Sea; despite this fact, the river almost never freezes due to the proximity of the warm Atlantic Gulf Stream.

River Thames on the map

Thames Bridges

The first of the conquerors to visit British lands was Julius Caesar (55 BC), but the Thames did not allow him to conquer the Britons. Only 90 years later, the Roman military legions that came here, led by Emperor Claudius, declared their power and built the first wooden bridge on the Thames. This opened up new trade opportunities for the inhabitants of the British Isles, and with them the need to develop the riverbed and build bridges.

The first stone bridge was built in 1209, it had movable parts in order to sea ​​vessels could go to the piers. Subsequently, the Thames piers received up to 600 ships at a time, but more than one and a half thousand more were waiting for their turn in the port.

At the beginning of the 18th century, several commercial harbors began to function on the banks of the Thames - the Surrey Commercial Port, the Port of London, etc. late XIX century, new construction was needed - this is how Port Royal Victoria and Port Royal Albert appeared.

The modern arched Westminster Bridge was erected on the river in 1862, on the site of an old bridge that had stood for more than 120 years. A new engineering masterpiece has connected two interesting historical districts of London - Westminster (in which you will find the Palace of Westminster, where Parliament sits and Big Ben keeps time, and Westminster Abbey, where future kings of Britain are crowned) and Lambeth (here, on the banks of the Thames, a favorite among tourists is located "London Eye", Ferris wheel).

In 1843, an underground tunnel was built under the Thames, which later became part of the London Underground.

Tower Bridge, business card London, Thames received as a gift in 1894. For those who are interested in such iconic structures, we will give you a hint - the bridge has movable parts that open up to a width of as much as 76 meters to allow the passage of ships.

Modern London uses 33 major bridges across the river, the most impressive of which are:

1. Westminster Bridge, construction date - 1862

2. Tower Bridge, 1894

3. Blackfriars Bridge, 1869

4. Vauxhall Bridge, 1906

5. Albert Bridge, 1873

6. Hammersmith Bridge, 1877

7. Richmond Bridge, 1777

Thames travel and entertainment

The Boat Race

A famous rowing competition organized between Oxford and Cambridge Universities. It is usually held in the spring to keep it warm - after all, numerous spectators gather on the banks of the Thames, between Putney and Mortlake, and put on a real fan show!

The total distance covered by each rowing team is approximately 7 kilometers. The race is the oldest and most prestigious event in rowing; the competition was first held in 1829. The last score in the entire history of the competition recorded in 2016 was 79:82 in favor of Cambridge.

In 2017, the next boat race on the Thames will take place on Sunday, April 2, starting at 16.35 - write it down in your travel diary!

Henley Royal Regatta

 

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