3.1 Renting a house

Estate agent:

So, Mr and Mrs Smith, you are interested in the house in Elm Street.

Mr Smith:

Yes, we're very interested. It's exactly what we need. We are in England for a year - and we want a furnished house because we don't want to buy any furniture here in England. We've got so much furniture at home. What's the house like?

Estate agent:

It's a very big house. In fact, it's the biggest house in Elm Street. It's on three floors. There's an upstairs, a downstairs and a basement. It's got three bedrooms, a modern kitchen, a very spacious lounge and in the basement there's a sauna.

Mr Smith:

Wonderful. What are the bathrooms like?

Estate agent:

There's a nice bathroom upstairs. It's got a bath, a shower unit and a wash-basin. The bath and wash-basin are dark blue and the floor tiles are light blue. The walls are white. There's a mirror cabinet above the wash-basin. There are three toilets, one upstairs, one downstairs and one in the basement.

Mr Smith:

Lovely, tell me about the bedrooms.

Estate agent:

There are two small bedrooms and one large bedroom, or "master bedroom" as we call it. There's a double bed in the master bedroom.

Mr Smith:

Is it a water bed?

Estate agent:

No, it's not a water bed, it's an ordinary double bed. There's a wash basin and there's a fitted wardrobe.

Mr Smith:

Oh, is that a walk-in closet?

Estate agent:

No, we don't have those in England. But it's a very nice wardrobe. It's got sliding doors and it's very spacious. The other two bedrooms are smaller, they don't have washbasins but they've both got fitted wardrobes. There's a beautiful view from the upstairs windows. You can see the river.

Mr Smith:

What kind of flooring is it upstairs ?

Estate agent:

It's lino. Very easy to keep clean. There are some rugs in the bedrooms and on the landing. Downstairs there's parquet flooring. And the basement has got a wooden floor.

Mr Smith:

What's the kitchen like?

Estate agent:

It's quite modern. It's got all the usual appliances - dishwasher, washing machine, micro-wave oven, food processor, cooker, fridge and freezer.

Mr Smith:

What kind of cooker is it? Gas or electric?

Estate agent:

It's an electric cooker. There's a pine table with two benches in the kitchen. The kitchen's got plenty of cupboards.

Mr Smith:

What's the sauna like?

Estate agent:

It's not very big, but it's big enough for 4 people. There's a very nice shower room and also a dressing room. There's also a lounge with a fireplace in the basement.

Mr Smith:

Is there a garage?

Estate agent:

Yes, there is. It's big enough for two cars.

Mr Smith:

It sounds excellent. When can we go and see it?

3.2 Comprehension questions

3.3 KEY GRAMMAR POINT - What kind of? What like?

3.4 Translation exercise

3.5 Exercise - Anagrams

3.6 Exercise - Choose the right appliance

3.7 Exercise - Choose the right appliance

3.8 Listening comprehension exercies - Describing a house

3.9 Exercise - revision

3.10 Exercise - revision

3.11 KEY GRAMMAR POINT - IMPERFECT TENSE - Be

3.12 Exercise - Translate these sentences

3.13 KEY FUNCTION - DAYS DATES MONTHS SEASONS

3.14 Exercise - Dates

3.15 Exercise - Dates

3.16 KEY GRAMMAR POINT - There was / There were

3.17 In the office

Mark: Hello Mary, how are you? Mary: Fine thanks, Mark, and you? Mark: Oh very well. By the way, where were you last week? You weren't in the office. Mary: No I wasn't. I was on holiday. Mark: Really? But you were on holiday two months ago, in January, wasn't it? Mary: Yes, that's right. I was in Lapland in January with my sister. We were skiing. Mark: Where were you last week? You've got a nice sun tan. Mary: I was in Sri Lanka. Mark: Sri Lanka! What was it like? Mary: It was super. The weather was marwellous... the sea was really warm.

Mark: What were the people like? Mary: They were very friendly. Mark: What was your hotel like? Mary: First class! There was a wonderful open air restaurant and a comfortable bar. There were two swimming pools and four tennis courts. There was a golf course next to the hotel. Mark: Was your sister with you? Mary: No, she wasn't. She never goes to hot countries. Mark: Oh, were you alone? Mary: No, I wasn't. I was with my husband. Mark: With your husband? I didn't know you were married. Mary: I got married two weeks ago - we were on our honeymoon!

3.18 Questions on the text

3.19 Exercise - choose the correct answer

3.20 KEY FUNCTION - ASKING AND GIVING DIRECTIONS

Two tourists are standing outside the tourist information office. They are asking directions.

Tourist: Excuse me, could you tell me the way to the police station? Woman: Yes certainly. Go along this street, Queen Street, turn right into St Aldates. The police station is about 300 yards on the left. Tourist: Excuse me, could you tell me the way to Lincoln College, please? Man Yes certainly. Continue along this road, take the second left into Turl Street, Lincoln College is on the right. Tourist: Excuse me, could you tell me the way to Balliol College, please?

Woman: Yes certainly. Go down Queen Street. Turn left into Cornmarket Street. Take the third turning on the left and Balliol college is on the right. Tourist: Excuse me, could you tell me the way to Ship Street, please? Man Yes of course, go along Queen Street, take the first left and then the second on the right. Tourist: Excuse me, could you tell me the way to the Clarendon Shopping Center, please? Woman: I'm sorry, I'm a stranger here myself.

The Language of Giving Directions

3.21.A Exercise - Listening comprehension

3.21.B Exercise - Translation

3.22 Exercise - Opposites

3.23 Reading for pleasure - Wales

In 1969, nearly 30 years ago, Prince Charles, the oldest son of Queen Elizabeth, became Prince of Wales. He was 20 years old. The Principality of Wales is part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain. It's a small country, only 21 000 square kilometres which is a quarter the size of Scotland. Its population is just under 3 million. Wales is a country of hills and mountains. The highest mountains are in Snowdonia in the north-west, the highest peak is Mount Snowdon which is 1085 metres above sea level. Two thirds of the population live in the southern lowlands, in the valleys and in the coastal areas. The main towns are Cardiff, the capital, Newport and Wrexham. Wales has its own language, Welsh, a musical language which is very different from English. Many people say that it is a very difficult language to learn. When Prince Charles became Prince of Wales he had a private teacher to teach him Welsh. 19% of the population speak Welsh and most Welsh speakers live in the north and the west. In Wales, Welsh is an official language, it has equal validity with English in law courts, and there is bilingual education in Welsh schools. There is also a Welsh television channel and Welsh language radio programmes. Wales does not have its own Parliament, but there are 38 Members of Parliament in Wales and they sit in the Houses of Parliament in London. There is also a Cabinet Minister who is the Minister for Wales. At the beginning of the 20th Century Wales was a very important producer of coal, iron and steel but in the last 30 years these industries have become less important although nowadays Wales still produces one third of Britain's steel. Today Wales is an important centre for electronics and for high-tech industries. Agriculture is also important and over 80% of the land is used for farming, mainly for sheep and cattle. Welsh lamb is famous all over the world. Wales is also well-known for literature, music and drama. Welsh literature is one of the oldest in Europe. Above all the Welsh people love music, particularly choral singing - nearly every village has its own choir and the standard is very high.

3.24 Exercise - Find the different word

3.25 Exercise - Quiz

3.26 Exercises for sending to your instructor

Takaisin etusivulle