Темы для экзамена по английскому языку 11 класс беларусь

Let
s talk about accommodation.

There are different types of houses. People can live in a detached
house, which is a house that is not joined to any other. It can be a mansion
which is a very large expensive house, a bungalow (a house which has only one
floor), a cottage (a house in the country usually with a garden). Some people
live in a semi-detached house, which is two houses joined together; others live
in a flat in a block of flats.

Each type of housing has its own advantages and disadvantages. Living in
a detached house gives you privacy but all repairs in the house should be made
by the owner, you need more time to clean the house. To my mind those people,
who prefer to live in a cottage adore nature: they want to wake up to songs of
birds, to enjoy beautiful landscapes, to breathe fresh air or in other words
they want to have a calm and measured rhythm of life. Usually such people keep
the poultry and the cattle. One of the advantages of living in such a house is
that you have your own land where you can grow fruit and vegetables, make
flowerbeds and plant beautiful flowers, lay out an orchard, etc. You can also
build some outhouses like a green-house, a garage, a tool shed or an arbor. But
the greatest disadvantage of living in a farmhouse or in a cottage, in my
opinion, is that it takes much time to get to the nearest town, but if you have
a car it isn’t a problem for you. That’s why I think living in a cottage is the
best option for farmers and retired people.

The
largest part of population in this country lives in blocks of flats. Li­ving in
a block of flats is the cheapest type of dwelling in a town. A flat can be a
studio unit, a one-bedroom, and two-bedroom or three-bedroom unit. It is easy
to clean and maintain but your neighbors can make a lot of noise when they, for
example, hammer or drill the wall, or when they organize a party.

Well, I would like to have a big
house in the suburbs of the city with lots of fresh air, with a big play ground
for my kids and with some place to prac­tice my gardening skills. If I had a
chance to choose I would choose quieter green suburbs rather than crowded multi
blocks of flats. Though each way of living has advantages, to my mind, a
private house has more pluses for get­ting a pleasure.

With a bit of
careful planning, list writing, budgeting, and not rushing into things, you can
make your new house a home, while not spending more than you can afford, and
hopefully with a few less headaches and sleepless nights.

First of all,
start with choosing the colors you’d like to have, if you hesitate, choose neutral colors. Neutral tones will always work, and can al­ways
be easily dressed up with a dash of color in elements such as floor rugs or
cushions in the future.

Invest in a quality bed and
bedding. We
spend a third of our lives in bed, so it seems logical to own a quality bed and
bedding.

Don’t buy everything at once. As a general rule, it is better to
shop around to see what is available, and to live in your home for a period of
time before deciding what you actually need, and what will work best.

Painting is often the easiest, most
affordable, and most impactful way to bring a room to life. This brand new
kitchen immediately stands out from the crowd with its bold choice of colors.

One room at a time. Just not to make you go crazy about
loads of work at once.

And last but not least, relax.

I fully agree that the room you live in reflects your character and
person­ality. When you look around someone’s room and pay attention to the way
they decorated it you can gain an insight into their lives. First and foremost
you can tell from someone’s home what their hobbies and interests are, as well
as their general tastes. In other words, if someone has a lot of films you can
say that they enjoy movies, while if they have a set of weights this tells you
that they like working out and staying in shape. If you see shelves full of
books you can say that they are intelligent, well-read as they are fond of
reading. If you see any posters you can understand what actors or singers
someone is crazy about. If the room is messy you can see that the person is not
organized, untidy or laid-back. He could be too busy to tidy up or he could
suffer from an addiction or depression. If, on the contrary, the room is
extremely clean then this could suggest a person who is obsessed with clean­ness,
with so much attention to detail that it annoys other people.

Let’s
talk about the education.

It’s one of the best educational establishments in Minsk that is famous
for its high-quality teaching and good equipment. I want to say that our school
is one of the modem schools in Belarus. It provides eleven years of education
which offers a general course of academic and non-academic sub­jects. Besides
it offers a number of courses giving a profound knowledge in a variety of
fields: humanities, natural sciences, mathematics, etc.

The building itself is of typical design with the same layout and the
distribu­tion of classrooms, administrative offices, canteens, gyms and
libraries as you can see in most other schools. But when you come in through
the front door you find yourself in a spacious hall with comfortable sofas and
large windows.

School
has become an integral part of my life. Our social and cultural life is well
organized; both teachers and classmates are so friendly and easy to get along
with. I am on good terms with my classmates, as all of them are interesting and
enigmatic persons. We often spend our free time together and I think I will
never forget these years and I will regret that everything has finished.

It is very important to have some school traditions, because it unites
pupils and gives a sense of belonging and pleasant memories. Our school has a
busy and eventful life.

In February we celebrate the «School Reunion Day.» Ex-pupils
and for­mer teachers of different years come to the school, remember their
school years and share their life experience with us.

On Valentine’s Day a special «love post» works, and by the end
of the day Cupids deliver love letters to pupils and teachers.

There are different events connected with volunteering to help disabled
children.

I will never forget a «Self-government Day,» when pupils
performed the functions of school administration and teachers. It was very
useful and a great fun.

And,
finally, I can’t wait for the «Graduation Ceremony,» when 11-for­mers
say goodbye to the school family, thank their teachers and parents. They say it
is a glamorous event, full of style, warmth and gratitude.

I must
say that when you leave school you understand that the time to choose your
future profession has come. It’s not an easy task to make the right choice of a
job. People choose profession according to their own inter­ests and abilities.
And the most important thing is to understand what ex­actly you want to do and
enter the university according to the sphere of your choice: whether it is
medicine, economy, machinery or humanities. But what I fully support is the
idea of having a good education.

Certainly
I do. Our today’s modem world needs qualified people in all the spheres of
life. Those people, who think that having a good education is not very
important, have their own plans. Some girls want to be good moth­ers and have
big families. Other people think that manual professions do not need a good
education. In this case they are mistaken. To my mind all profes­sions need
special education. Nowadays only highly qualified workers can deal with rather
sophisticated equipment and computers. Sure, there are ta­lented people, but to
my mind, all the gifts should be developed and sup­ported by education and by
more experienced people.

Let’s
talk about the environment.

Environment is the nature around us: air, water, trees, flowers,
animals, birds and insects. Nature has served people for many years, but
people’s in­terference in nature has increased and the results are dramatic.
Nowadays mankind faces numerous problems which threaten our environment.

Among the most urgent problems are the ozone layer destruction, acid
rains, global warming, air pollution, soil pollution, contamination of under­ground
waters by chemical elements, disappearance of forests, animal extinc­tion, etc.

The poisoning of the world’s land, air, and water is the
fastest-spreading disease of civilization. It probably produces fewer headlines
than wars, earth­quakes and floods, but it is potentially one of history’s
greatest dangers to human life on earth. If present trends continue for the next several
decades, our planet will become uninhabitable.

Every ten minutes one kind of animal, plant or insect dies out for ever.
If nothing is done about it, one million species that are alive today will have
become extinct twenty years from now.

Industrial
enterprises emit tons of harmful substances. These emissions have disastrous
consequences for our planet. They are the main reason for the greenhouse effect
and acid rains. An even greater environmental threat comes from nuclear power
stations. We all know how tragic the consequen­ces of the Chernobyl disaster
are.

People should understand that the planet needs their immediate help if
they want to survive and they should take measures to protect nature.

First of all, they should understand that natural resources are limited
and we can’t use them uncontrollably. Nothing can last forever. When you are
aware of that you ought to start to do something. You should recycle things and
use gas, electricity and water more economically. People should use pub­lic
transport instead of private cars to reduce air pollution. They should re­cycle
paper and cardboard to save trees.

They
should join and support various international organizations and green parties.
If governments also wake up to what is happening, perhaps we’ll be able to
avoid the disaster that threatens the natural world and all of us with it.

If I were you I
would carry out a research on the use of private cars and their bad influence
on the atmosphere and then, with the results, I would draw people’s attention
to the problem.

I think shooting
a 2-minute video about animals in danger and people’s help to them would be a
good idea too.

People aren’t
going to change their habits just to save the environment. They need to see the
benefits for themselves. Here are some ideas to make your house ecological:

—     
if
renovating or building, insist that your builder reduces waste and re­cycles
rather than sending material to landfill;

Let
s talk about Belarus.

Belarus is my Homeland. It is a country with unique history and rich
cultural heritage. Officially it is called the Republic of Belarus, a sovereign
independent state with its own government, constitution, state emblem, flag and
anthem. Belarus is situated nearly in the centre of Europe and borders on
Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Russia and the Ukraine. The territory of Be­larus is
207.6 thousand square kilometres. Its population is about 10 million people.
The largest cities are Minsk, the capital, Gomel, Vitebsk, Mogilev, Grodno and
Brest. Belarus is a country of rivers, lakes and forests. The long­est river is
the Dnieper. The largest lake is Lake Naroch. The largest forest is
Belovezhskaya Pushcha. The climate of Belarus is temperate and mild. My country
is a developed industrial state. Its enterprises produce tractors and
automobiles, motor-cycles, TV-sets and many other goods. Beautiful Belaru­sian
scenery and unique history attract a lot of tourists. There are a lot of famous
people among Belarusians: writers and poets, politicians and cosmo­nauts,
artists and sportsmen. They are historic figures and our contemporaries whom we
are proud of.

I have visited a few towns in
Belarus such as Minsk, Mogilev, Grodno but most of all I was impressed by my
visit to Belovezhskaya Pushcha. As you know there is the Residence of Ded Moroz
(Slavic Santa Clause) in Belovezhskaya Pushcha and we saw European Bisons
there.

If I were you I
would visit the National Library of Belarus, Mir and Nes- vizh castles and Lake
Naroch. Mir castle is a UNESCO World Heritage site in Belarus. Brest fortress
is a must for those who are interested in our history.

To my mind you should visit
Belovezhskaya Pushcha, a beautiful national park, where you can see a lot of
rare species of animals and birds, for example the European bison the oldest trees
in Europe, the forest features the residence of Grandfather Frost, known as Ded
Moroz, the Eastern Slavic Santa Claus.

Traditions are a part of our
culture, so we should carefully observe them. We must respect our ancestors to
feel that we are one nation. Such holidays as Kupalle, Dziady, Kaliady are
wonderful examples of our rich Belarusian culture. We are responsible for this
heritage and shouldn’t forget our history.

Let’s
speak about Great Britain.

The United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is situated on the British Isles.
The country consists of four parts: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The capital of the UK is London. The
population of the country is over 64 million people. Britain is a small,
beautiful and densely populated country, separated from the continent by the
English Chan­nel and the Straight of Dover.

The UK is inhabited by the English, the Scots, the Welsh and the Irish
who constitute the British nation. English is the official language, but it is
not the only language spoken in the UK, Gaelic and Welsh are also used in some
parts of the country.

The UK is a parliamentary monarchy and the Queen is the head of the
state. But in practice it is ruled by the elected government with the Prime
Minister at the head.

The national anthem is «God Save the Queen.» The national
currency is pound. The flag of the UK is known as the Union Jack. It has its
history. It all began in 1603 when Scotland was joined to England and Wales.
The flag is made up of 3 crosses.

Every
part of the country has its own national emblem. The red rose is the national
emblem of England, the thistle is the national emblem of Scot­land, the
daffodils and the leek are the emblems of Wales and the shamrock (a kind of
clover) is the emblem of Ireland.

Though I am not a keen traveler I would like to visit Britain one day.
English is spoken everywhere, but as you know it is different in various parts
of the world. To taste British English is my main reason for going there. Books
can tell us what English was 10—15 years ago, but I want to know what to­day’s
English is. The place where I want to head for is London to see all the sights
I have read about, to look at Buckingham Palace, at Big Ben, to stay at
Nelson’s monument at Trafalgar Square and to go on a double-decker bus.

I’d
like to have a word with real people in real life situations.

There are a lot
of interesting places in England. In London I would ad­vise you to see Big Ben,
the most famous clock in the world. Buckingham Palace,
Trafalgar square and the Tower are also exceptionally interesting. There are
also a lot of museums in London where you can see a number of wonderful things.
Madam Tussaud’s Museum is an exhibition of hundreds of life-size wax models of
famous people of yesterday and today. I would also advise you to visit the
Sherlock Holmes Museum devoted to the world-fa­mous private detective. Outside
London you should certainly see Stonehenge, an ancient religious site. In
Liverpool you can visit the Beatles museum where you will learn a lot of new
facts about the greatest band in the world.

«So many
countries so many customs» an English proverb says.

By comparing customs and cultures of
people from other countries, we can leam how others view the world and why they
think the way they do. By understanding others, we can not only form deeper
relationship with oth­ers but can also leam more about ourselves and our own
culture.

Let’s
talk about science and modem technologies.

We live in the
age of science and technology. The life of every one of us highly depends on
the scientific inventions and modem technologies. Science has changed the lives
of people to a great extent. It has made life easy, simple and fast. In the new
era, the science development has become a necessity to finish the era of
bullock cart and bring the trend of motorized vehicles. Sci­ence and
technologies have been implemented to every aspect of moderniza­tion in every
nation. Modem gadgets have been introduced to every walk of life and have
solved many problems in such sectors as medicine, education, infrastructure,
electricity, aviation, information technology and other fields.

Some examples of
the advancement in the technologies are establishment of railway system, metro
system, railway reservation system, super computers, mobiles, smart phones,
online access of people in almost every area, etc.

The technological
revolutions of the 21st century are emerging from en­tirely new sectors, based
on micro-processors, tele-communications, bio­technology and nano-technology.
Products are transforming business prac­tices across the economy, as well as
the lives of all who have access to their effects. The most remarkable
breakthroughs will come from the interaction of insights and applications
arising when these technologies converge.

But
science and technology also have a negative side which affects hu­man lives. If
we look around the environment, most places are crowded and polluted due to the
development of large buildings, factories and plants, which are all hazardous
to our health.

Yes, I
do. In frequent use is a modem TV, a microwave, an oven, a lap­top, an I-pad
and a mobile. In my opinion new gadgets make our life easier. For example,
everybody owns at least a basic mobile phone today. What makes it easy to use
is its user-friendly nature, small size and its numerous attractive features.
However, people are always eager to replace their mobile phones with the latest
models having more advanced features. As the technol­ogy is scaling new
heights, mobile phones are becoming cheaper and cheap­er and the customer is
getting more for less. A great way of amusing yourself is by playing games on
your mobile phone. If you want to store your precious moments, you can use its
video recording feature. Mobile phones can be­come expressions of who we are by
getting mobile ringtones, wallpapers, which turn your phone into a unique
device.

—     
download
a tool that will help you keep the track of your books not to buy one and the same book again;

—     
learn
all the information about the rules of downloading and using later your books
from different sites.

Sure in reasonable limits and with
definite targets it is good. We can’t imagine our life today without the
Internet. With the help of modem devices I have got an opportunity to access
news, documents, images, sounds, video and games, to make friends, to book
tickets and to purchase different things online. There are a lot of different
sites for students, gardeners, businessmen, engineers, for people who are fond
of music, cinema, theatre, sports and even for disabled people. What is more,
the Internet has revolutionized the way people communicate. Sending electronic
text messages is much faster and easier than writing letters. People use e-mail
to stay in touch with friends worldwide. The only thing is not to go crazy
about constant buying new brand devices though the high-tech world is
developing so fast.

Let s talk about art.

It is human to admire beauty around us, we are often stmck when we see a
painting or read a beautiful poem, or listen to soothing music. Art is every­where
around us in many forms and holds a significant value in our lives. It is
difficult to describe «art» in literal terms, but broadly it is
understood as a form to express one’s feelings through any object or medium
like paper, music, colours, technology, magic, photography, etc. It can be
abstract, real­istic, naturalistic, conceptual and inspirational.

We are surrounded by art and also rely on it in our daily routine. When
we enter someone’s home, it is difficult to stop ourselves to appreciate the
way the living-room is decorated. It’s also art. One doesn’t have to be a
painter, every individual expresses himself/herself, uses imagination and cre­ative
energy to embellish and decorate the surrounding.

Art has many forms. Visual and performing arts are the ones that can be
related easily. Visual arts broadly comprise of paintings, drawing, clay mod­eling,
architecture, photography, etc. Performing arts include dance, music, opera,
theatre, magic, spoken words, circus art and musical theatre. It is inter­related
with entertainment.

Music has a great impact on our mood. It makes us joyful and relaxes us
and keeps the energy on. Not only music but also movies, plays and theatre also
make us active.

It can be concluded that the importance of arts in our lives is very
simi­lar to entertainment. Nowadays art and craft education are encouraged at
schools for children. It can be inspirational as well.

Art can be defined as communication
between an artist and the audience. When an author writes, he takes words to
create a story to communicate to us. Through this story, we are able to create
a picture of the characters, visit new places, and find new meaning in simple
events. An author’s writing style is his platform for sharing art.

Undoubtedly, the role of books in our life is really great. Books help
to understand people surrounding us better. Devoting much time to reading we
become better informed and more educated. Reading plays a great role in my
life, too. It develops my literary taste, it makes me think over the important
questions, that have to worry everybody. Reading develops my speech and helps
me express my views, thoughts, ideas in clear, simple words. It also develops
my outlook and my attitude to the life.

Reading plays a veiy important role in the life of people. It educates a
person, enriches his intellect. Books help to mould a person’s character, form
his moral values. Besides, books bring pleasure and delight. It’s a wonderful
way to spend spare time. Sometimes we read the same book again and again.
Thanks to books we learn to express our thoughts and feelings more exactly. The
book is a faithful and understanding friend. There are books which have been
our favorites since childhood. People are fond of reading different kinds of
books. Some people enjoy reading detective stories, adventure stories, novels,
biographies, other prefer classics. Fairy tales are enjoyed and read by
children, books about adventures and journeys are enjoyed by those who are fond
of travelling. Legends and myths are read by those who are fond of history.
Some people devote much time to reading books and reading be­comes their free
time occupation, their passion.

My reading preferences are various. For me, it is not the genre of the
book that matters, but the talent and emotions the author has put into it. The
choice of a book to read depends on my mood and the amount of free time I have.

But
when I am not pressed for time, I prefer classical literature of the 19th and
20th centuries. To my mind, it was the «golden age» in the history of
literature when masterpieces were created.

I’m so enthusiastic about listening
to music, which has now become an extremely widespread hobby. You can hardly
see any teenager without ear­phones in his ears on the streets today. The world
of music is varied and color­ful. There is a great range of musical styles.
Personally I mostly prefer metal music. It promotes power and might, sense of
purpose, true friendship and heroism. Besides I really enjoy glam metal, which
is a reflection of 80th, when people were free and emotional. This music moves
me through time and plung­es me into the atmosphere of freedom. Moreover I am
fancy about some Russian and Belarusian rock bands, as well as classic organ
music and ethnic motifs.

To some extent,
yes, it is. Films will always stay as one of the entertain­ments for people.
But I should admit that cinemas attract many people while some new blockbusters
are running there. Film producers realize that they have to make up something
new to attract people. And with nowadays new technologies it is so fascinating
to watch films wearing 3D glasses, for ex­ample. You get the full picture of
the movie and can experience all the special effects personally as if you were
a hero of that movie yourself. You can feel the water splashing right into your
face, the blowing sand wind making you close your eyes, some frightening
monsters that are ready to attack you!

Some people
prefer watching movies at the cinema. They believe that cin­ema has a better
atmosphere to enjoy the movie. However, from my point of view, people who watch
movies at home are happier and freer than people who choose the cinema. People
who watch movies at home feel more comfortable. Contrary to the fact that you
have to book the ticket in advance in order to have a better position, there is
no need for people at home to worry about the ticket.

Most experts
consider that cinema provides the best conditions for watch­ing movies.
However, with good equipment at home, we still have a chance to appreciate the
movie.

As far as I am concerned, watching
movies is relaxing. Cinema may just provide the best conditions to watch movie
not the best way to enjoy the movie. To my mind, watching movie at home is
better. But anyway there should be cinemas, it’s a good chance to hang out with
your mates.

Let’s talk about your future career.

I must say that when you leave school you understand that the time to
choose your future profession has come. It’s not an easy task to make the right choice of a job. People choose profession according to their own
inter­ests and abilities. And the most important thing is to understand what ex­actly
you want to do and enter the university according to the sphere of your choice:
whether it is medicine, economy, machinery or humanities.

When choosing a future career, we should consider different factors. In
my opinion, money is one of the most important factors when you make a choice.
There are highly paid jobs and low-paid jobs. I think everybody wants to earn
as much money as possible. Training, promotional prospects and conditions
should be also taken into account.

On the other hand, it’s good when you get satisfaction from your job. It
is very important to choose a profession that suits your interests. In my opi­nion,
a job should be interesting and socially important. Some jobs are con­sidered
to be more suitable for men and others for women. For example, the professions
of a secretary or a nurse are more suitable for women. A lifeguard or a pilot
are more likely the jobs for men. You should also decide whether you want to
work indoors or outdoors.

To make the right choice, you should take into account your traits of
character. It goes without saying that to become a good doctor you must be
patient, caring and kind. Teacher’s work requires love for children, profound
knowledge of subjects, and the ability to explain. A secretary has to be ef­ficient
and careful in order to do the work quickly and accurately. Salespeople need to
be friendly and persuasive, to get people buy their products.

I have always been interested in economics and I am good at mathemat­ics.
I have an aptitude for working with people, and I think I’m rather com­municative
and have good social skills. I have good analytical abilities and I am good at
problem-solving. Besides, I am good at English.

So
after finishing school I want to enter the university and to study mar­keting
or management.

Frankly speaking, I don’t know because there are many downsides to
having a part-time job when you are a student, as well as some advantages.
People often think that part-time jobs are responsible for a student’s bad
grades because a student pays less attention to the studies.

In my opinion, having a part-time job will actually help a student learn
many skills that they might not have the opportunity to learn at university. I
believe having a part-time job teaches a student the importance of time man­agement:
combining work and studies at the same time. Having a part-time job also
teaches a person how to communicate and interact with others.

So having a part-time job teaches students sharp skills which they will
need all throughout their careers and lives.

One thing which
all successful people have is the ability to make a good impression.

DRESS DECENTLY

The type of dress or clothes you put on says so much about you. The
first judgment that interviewers make is basically based on your dress code. Do
not dress in casual or dirty clothes. Instead, look for official clothes and
make sure that you are groomed properly.

ARRIVE ON TIME

One of the most important factors to take into consideration, whenever
you are invited for an interview, is time. It’s very advisable for you to
arrive for the interview at least 20 minutes earlier before the scheduled time.
This will give you enough time to organize and recollect yourself well. Being
punctual for the interview will also show the interviewers how serious and
reliable you are for the job.

BE CONFIDENT

Self-confidence
is also one of the most determining factors in an inter­view. During the
interviewing process, just be yourself and provide relevant answers to the
questions being asked. However, you should be very careful not to be
overconfident. Do not go inside with chewing gum in your mouth or with your
hands inside your pockets.

Nowadays it’s almost impossible to imagine any profession without global
communication, making presentations and doing many sorts of things on the
computer. And sure you must be skillful enough to work with it. Your employer
will prefer to have a person who is potentially able to manage all these
things.

So, if
a person has got a strong motivation, it’ll be easy for him/her to make
progress in the computer world. First of all it’s necessary to join some
computer courses in case you are unable to manage some things yourselves. But
to my mind, the Internet can offer you a great variety of possibilities
connected with advancing your computer knowledge.

Let s talk about your family.

Family is very important for every
person, because it gives you a sense of stability and tradition, a feeling of
having support and understanding. You feel secure when there’s a family behind
you. They are people whom you can trust and rely on, people who won’t let you
down and who share your joys and sor­rows. In happy families parents are honest
with their children, they treat their children with respect without bossing
them, and children in their turn learn how to treat other people and how to
form relationship with their peers.

Yes, I am. I
enjoy honest and open relationship in my family. I like it when parents trust
their children, give them enough freedom and respect them. I think these things
make family relations warm and pleasant. There is no so-called «generation
gap» in our family, though we may argue and dis­agree on certain issues.
For example, my parents don’t always approve of my tastes, views and clothes.

In fact I have a
closer relationship with my mother. We understand each other better, which I
think is quite natural. We can spend hours and hours talking about our family
problems, fashion, views on education, people’s relations and ambitions.

I guess when
people spend more time together they become closer to each other. It’s a pity,
but my parents and I are usually very busy during the week­days and we seldom
have a chance to spend time together. Sunday is the day when we can sit at the
table and talk over everything what happened during the week. Eating together
makes us feel close and we often have our most frank conversations at this
time. Also once a week my mum gives the flat a big clean. Of course I help her
with it. By the way it’s not so boring. I turn on music and we even have tun.
Then we may go shopping together. During our shopping rounds we discuss a lot
of things and make plans for the next weekend. I try to keep in touch with my
grandparents. They are always inter­ested in my daily routine, my plans, my
school studies and always show sup­port and understanding when I have some
problems. I also do my best to be helpful for them with household duties and
summer work at our dacha.

If you
want to have a good relationship with your parents and grandpa­rents you should
always remember that they love you and mean the best to you. You should
appreciate what they do for you, show respect, and try to understand them. Be
polite, don’t use harsh words. Remember their birthdays and other special
events. Show your gratitude with a little gift, a flower or a hug. Make them
realise that you care for them. If you go out in the evening remember that they
worry about you, don’t forget to call them and tell where you are. Moreover,
help about the house because your parents get tired at work. If you tidy up
your room, do the washing up, do the shopping or cook­ing, you will let your
parents rest and make them happy.

Generation gap is some
misunderstanding between parents and children, grown-ups and teenagers. Adults
and teenagers don’t see eye to eye on many things. Teenagers fight for their
freedom; they want to be independent, to make their own decisions. Moreover,
they don’t respect their parents, don’t want to obey them, and want to do
whatever they want. Teens’ protesting shocks people around them. Sometimes they
take to drugs, smoking and al­cohol. Some of them can be rude, heartless,
ill-behaved. It is my firm belief that we must do our best to understand each
other, to be polite, and respect each other’s opinion. In my family I don’t
have this problem, my parents love me, understand me, support me and in my turn
I do the same.

Let’s
talk about youth and society.

Each age group in
society has its own role and this is important in many different ways. Youth as
a description of a sector of society has many definitions depending on the perspective being used. For the purposes of this
dis­cussion youth will be considered to be the stage of life involving
transition into adulthood: approximately age 15 to 25.

Young people are often considered to represent the future as they bring
new ideas and energy to add to the pool of knowledge that currently exists.
They can bring enthusiasm and vitality which can lead to new discoveries and
developments that can benefit society or even the world at large. Al­though not
the only drivers of social change, young people are seen to be one the key
drivers engendering change. Whether this is inherent in the beliefs of young
people or the hope for the future is placed upon them by older gene­rations is
not clear. However, there are many new opportunities becoming available that
can provide very different futures for today’s youth that were not available to
previous generations.

The
young generation occupies a special place in social environment. The future of
any society depends on the practical and spiritual molding of the youth.

Youth constitute major portion of the world’s population. About 25
percent of the world population is youth. Thus, such a major portion of
population can’t be ignored. Add to it the energy and determination, youth can
be consid­ered to be almost the whole population because a young person can do
the works of several old people. Moreover, they are the leaders of future. So,
the youth play, probably the most crucial of roles in national development.

There are a lot
of youth organizations in Belarus. The most authoritative of them are the
Belarusian Republican Pioneer Organization (BRPO), the Belarusian Republican
Union of Youth (BRSM), the Association of Belarusian Guides, the
Belarusian Republican Scout Association. These activities are managed and
directed by the State Committee on the Affaires of Youth.

The most numerous
youth organizations are the Belarusian Republican Pioneer Organization and the
Belarusian Republican Union of Youth.

The Belarusian
Republican Union of Youth was formed on the 2nd of September 2002. This
organization works in accordance with the Constitu­tion of the Republic of
Belarus. Every young person at the age of 14 can join the BRSM.

The main aim of
the BRSM is to create conditions for all-round develop­ment of young people and
to contribute to creation of a civil society in Be­larus.

The Belarusian
Republican Union of Youth and its members accomplish their goals and objectives
in the following activities: they elaborate and ac­complish different
educational, social and other youth programmes; they ren­der assistance in
finding employment; they organize conferences, meetings, lectures, exhibitions,
concerts and competitions, charity and volunteering; camping, sporting events and
visiting memorials; outdoor activities and sports, including football, running,
swimming and hockey for young people.

Membership has more than 500,000
young people between 14 and 31 years old. Members of the BRSM have certain
rights and duties and they can leave the organization at their own free will.

Get vocal about your organization

In order to draw youngsters to your organization, you need to keep your
message simple, fresh and entertaining. Organize events for young people during
which you can distribute leaflets, bookmarks and other attractive ma­terials to
help spread your message among young people.

Highlight the cause

Millennial are mostly motivated by passion for a cause, so when spread­ing
the word about your organisation, concentrate on your mission. With that in
mind, motivate young people to get involved by showing them that they are able
to make a difference.

Don’t underestimate the power of social media

Social media
channels are currently the most successful communication tools popular among
the younger generation. Effectively use Facebook and Twitter to share lectures,
publish articles and ask engaging questions.

Make sure to know
which social networks are used by your target audi­ence and meet them where
they tend to hang out online.

Young people turn to youth organizations
to gain precious work and life experience, so offer opportunities that will
help with future university admis­sions, guarantee extra credit or help young
individuals launch their careers.

Let s talk about the mass media.

The means of communicating news
and information is termed as mass media. Mass media is classified in two
categories: one is
print media and the other is electronic media. Print media
include newspapers, magazines, jour­nals and other printed materials, while
electronic media include radio, televi­sion, satellite channels, internet,
cinema etc.

It goes without saying that mass media has become an integral part of
modem people’s life. The Internet, newspapers, magazines, journals, TV and
radio keep us always informed about all the spheres of our life. Mass media
offer us a great range of opportunities for education and entertainment. How­ever,
I’d like to point out the fact that we can benefit from mass-media sourc­es only
possessing critical thinking. The information attacks us all the time and we
undoubtedly need to filter it in order to save our sharp mind, creative
thinking and bright personality.

Media
is called the public form or people’s parliament. Media play the role of a
bridge between the government and ordinary people. Media do not simply provide
people with information, news and ideas but also raise vari­ous issues on
social, economic and political matters. They also form con­sciousness and
public opinions in different problems and issues. People ex­press their
opinions through media. Various formats of programmes like talk show, street
show, documentary, live reporting, video articles, editorials on different
local and global issues are broadcast and published. Media keeps us dated about
what is happening around the world. Media focus on various social evils,
political or economic crisis and guide people through them. To­day right to
information is recognized as one of the fundamental rights of people and media ensure
this right.

The Internet has changed communication as we know it. From education to
advertisement, this new technological advance has affected practically ev­ery
aspect of our lives. Magazines, newspapers and even books are
«online» and can be read on the computer. You can find information on
any topic — the possibilities are endless. The Internet can instantly connect
you to other computers, allowing you to
«chat» with people all over the world. It’s actu­ally very easy to
learn how to use the system, and once you’re online, you’ll never want to turn
the computer off! The development of such technology has come a long way. These
amazing electronic devices have changed many people’s life forever.

Try to be
reasonable when asking your parents for an iPad. Explain the advantages of owning
it and let them make a list of disadvantages to com­pare. If they still say no,
don’t push it — wait until they’re in a good mood, and talk to them then.

See customer
reviews on the iPad at certain selling sites. If you don’t want to pay full
price, check out eBay or Amazon for a used iPad. Try to find a good deal, or
trade. You could offer to pay half of the price if your parents seem a little
unconvinced.

Ask for it on
birthdays, special occasions, Christmas.

Try not to keep on about it, as your
parents will likely become stressed and annoyed.

Sure in reasonable limits and with definite targets it is good. We can’t
imagine our life today without the Internet. With the help of modem devices we
have got an opportunity to access news, documents, images, sounds, video and
games, to make friends, to book tickets and to purchase different things
online. There are a lot of different sites for students, gardeners, busi­nessmen,
engineers, for people who are fond of music, cinema, theatre, sports and even
for disabled people. What is more, the Internet has revolutionized the way
people communicate. Sending electronic text messages is much faster and easier
than writing letters. People use e-mail to stay in touch with friends
worldwide. The only thing is not to go crazy about constant buying new brand
devices though the high-tech world is developing so fast.

Let’s talk about the mass media.

Nowadays
information communication is an important part of our life. It goes without
saying that mass media has become an integral part of modem people’s life.
People live with a constant necessity of getting new informa­tion. How can they
satisfy their need? They may communicate with one another or just use the huge
space of means of communication. People need information in order to keep up
with the whole world around them — with vogue, new trends of life, discoveries
and inventions. We live to leam news; we breathe and live with this.

Mass media play
an important role in the life of society. Mass media include various types of
media such as television, radio, newspapers and magazines. Reading newspapers
and magazines, watching TV, listening to the news on the radio are our main
means of getting information.

TV is rather
popular kind of mass media. We have many different chan­nels through which
viewers are fond of watching films, sports, plays, educa­tional and cultural
programs.

Newspapers report
different kinds of news. They carry articles which co­ver the latest
international and national events. Some people still buy newspa­pers for the
radio and TV programs which they publish. There are newspapers and magazines
for young people. They give a wide coverage of news, events and reports on
education, sports, cultural life, entertainment, fashion.

Mass media brings to millions of
homes not only entertainment and news but also cultural and educational
programs. If you watch TV and listen to the radio you can improve your
knowledge of history, biology, literature or even leam a foreign language by
radio.

I agree to some extent with this idea. Radio is less popular than newspa­pers
and television. But people listen to the radio in cars and at work. I usu­ally
listen to the radio when I do my homework because it helps me think. There is a
lot of music on modem radio and very few conversations. Every hour radio
stations tell us news in brief. There are different types of radio stations.
They are divided according to the style of music they play. There are radio
stations where you can hear only classical music, rock or pop mu­sic. Older
people like listening to the radio. So it can be seen that even being less
popular than TV or the Internet, radio still possesses great power of in­fluencing
the public’s minds and tastes and definitely has its fans.

Printed press is available mainly in the Belarusian and Russian
languages, though there are some newspapers in English, Polish, Ukrainian and
German.

The most influential newspapers include «Belarus Segodnya» and
«Re- spublika.» Local editions of major Russian newspapers
«Komsomolskaya Pravda» and «Argumenty i Fakty» are very
popular in Belarus, too. Nine national news agencies, including seven private
ones, operate in Belarus.

The BelTA News Agency is the country’s biggest news agency, having the
correspondent network in all the regions of the country.

It is true that the world today is full of dramatic events and most news
seems to be bad news. But people aren’t interested in ordinary events. That is
why there are so many articles about natural disasters, plane crashes, wars,
murders and robberies. Good news doesn’t usually make headlines. Bad news does.

Nevertheless,
newspapers are worth buying! My father thinks they are a daily source of news,
education and fun that no home should be without. He is sure that every home
should have at least 3 different newspapers a day to get a balanced opinion of
world events. So my father buys newspapers to do our bit for the local economy.

Let’s concentrate on one more of mass media branches — television. As we
know, it appeared much later than such kinds of mass media as radio, newspapers
and magazines. Nowadays almost everybody has got at least one TV-set at home.
Television now plays an important role in our life. It takes a steady place in
our daily timetable. However, watching television has two sides: not only
advantages, but also disadvantages.

On the one hand, TV keeps people informed of current events; TV gives us
wonderful possibilities for education. We can choose any programme ac­cording
to our interests, mood and needs. There is a great amount of channels which are
specialized in various spheres. It can be the sphere of politics, news, sports,
animals, feature films, soap operas, art, talk-shows, cartoons, educational programmes, music, fashion and many others. Such channels as
«History,» «Discovery,» Animal Planet» enrich our
knowledge in different fields. There are also channels which offer to our
attention some educational programmes for children and adults, for example
«Happy English» — a pro­gramme focused on teaching the English
language.

The second advantage of watching television is that it gives families an
opportunity to spend some time together. Nowadays adults are often too busy to
give enough attention to their children. When they come home from work in the
evening, so tired and exhausted, the only possible way to relax for many is
just lay on the sofa in front of TV. In such situations it’s high time to
choose a family comedy and watch it together with thechildren. So, watching TV
helps us to relax and forget about it worries and problems that are on our
mind.

Moreover, television is a great source of entertaining. Every day there
is a wide choice of films and serials on TV — detectives, dramas, comedies,
action films, thrillers, horrors, cartoons and others. Nowadays you are not
limited in your choice. Besides, sometimes television is the only opportunity
to watch concerts of world-famous celebrities.

However, watching television has its negative side. It is well-known
that television may turn to be harmful for our health. Spending too much time
in front of a TV screen may affect our eyesight badly. There are many cases
when children become TV-addicted. Every spare minute they try to switch the TV
on. Their progress in studies suffers due to the fact that children try to do
their homework as fast as they can in order to have more time for watching TV.

Moreover, nowadays some TV programmes and films include a lot of violent
scenes that can have a negative influence on a child’s psychic deve­lopment.

Another disadvantage of television is an enormous amount of advertis­ing,
as it makes people buy some useless or unnecessary things.

Finally, many children nowadays would rather spend a day glued to a
TV-set than go outdoors to play with their peers.

Undoubtedly,
we need TV, for it is one of the main and most convenient means of mass media.
However, taking into account all its drawbacks, we must try to organize our
time in the right way so as not to become a TV slave.

Let
s talk about international cooperation.

International
relations are an exceptionally important aspect of citizenship in a global
society. As our world becomes smaller and smaller through communication
technology, rapid air transportation and a complex international economy, the
value of peaceful and cooperative relationships between nations is increasingly
important.

Historically, one
of the oldest expressions of international relations was the establishment of
treaties and agreements between nations. Maintenance of these treaties ensured
that ordinary people could go about their everyday tasks of earning a living
and raising their families rather than dedicating themselves to armed conflict
with neighbors. This function of international relations remains just as
relevant today.

Positive
international relations also promote effective trade policies bet­ween nations
in terms of importing natural resources and finished products not available in
the country.

Besides the
transport of goods over international borders, people also frequently migrate
between countries, looking for opportunities to enhance their lives. This
travel may be temporary or permanent, but in either case it must be regulated
to ensure the rule of law as criminals must be kept out of the country while
legitimate business, tourist and immigrant travel is pre­served.

Nations often
face global issues that are larger than any specific country or even continent,
such as concerns over the environment, pandemics and terrorism. Sound
international relations are required for nations to cooperate effectively to
meet these challenges, allowing nations to share relevant infor­mation quickly
and pool resources.

International relations are not only
about regulating and controlling the flow of goods and information, they are
also advantageous for promoting the advancement of human culture in a general
way. The diversity of world cul­tures can be promoted and shared through
enlightened international relations policies, allowing programs such as student
exchanges and cultural exhibitions to enhance our understanding of the variety
of human expression worldwide.

At present Belarus actively participates in an effective international
part­nership with the governments of different states and international
organiza­tions. As a co-founder of the United Nations, Belarus cooperates with
various institutions and organizations of the United Nations, World Bank, World
Health Organization, International Labor Organization, UNESCO, the Euro­pean
Union, etc. Belarus has a friendly working relationship with such coun­tries as
Germany, Denmark, France, Canada, Italy, Netherlands, Sweden, Great Britain,
The USA and many others.

As a sovereign country, Belarus enjoys full rights and is active on the
foreign arena. From the moment of setting up the United Nations Organization (UNO) Belarus as one of its constituent member states takes an active
part in the work of this association, its organs and institutions. Belarus
regularly sends its delegations to the sessions of the UNO General Assembly,
has its permanent delegation and its own staff in it. Belarus is a member of
some international specialized organizations, commissions, bureaus, funds and
other organs.

On the
initiative of Belarus the international organizations have adopted a number of
important decisions, particularly on the punishment of war crim­inals, on
education of youth in the spirit of ideas of peace and friendship among
nations. Belarus has signed many treaties, agreements, protocols and
conventions on co-operation with other countries in various fields. Together
with representatives of other peace-loving countries the envoys of Belarus are
struggling for implementing a policy that answers the basic interests of all
nations of the world, for their peace and security, co-operation and
friendship.

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNES­CO)
contributes to promotion of knowledge, builds collaborative networks of
scientists, conducts researches in the field of social, human and natural sci­ences,
develops the standards for intellectual cooperation.

Participation
of Belarusian scientists in UNESCO programmes and ac­tivities provides the
possibility to obtain expert assistance in the implementa­tion of research
projects. It is a means of bringing intellectual, material and technical
capacity of other countries, of gaining access to the results and methods of
the up-to-date scientific research.

Naturally, global ecological problems cannot be solved by the efforts of
individual States alone. National measures to protect the environment must be
combined with wide international cooperation at the global level.

In order to decide who has to contribute what, we all have to cooperate
and work closely together to create laws and regulations that will supersede
conflicting interests.

At the present time, there are a number of international treaties of
differ­ent kind governing various aspects of the protection of the environment
and the rational utilization of natural resources. These agreements primarily
con­cern the prevention of the pollution of maritime waters and the Earth’s
atmo­sphere, the protection and rational utilization of the animal and plant
world on land; the protection of unique natural objects and complexes and the
pro­tection of the Earth’s environment from radioactive contamination.

An
important role in the development of the international protection of the environment
is played by resolutions adopted by international organizations, and above all
by the United Nations and its specialized agencies.

Let’s talk about national character and
stereotypes.

Almost every nation has a reputation of some kind. The English are
reputed to be cold, reserved, rather haughty people who do not yell in the
street, make love in public or change their governments as often as they change
their underclothes. They are steady, easy-going, and fond of sport.

The foreigner’s view of the English is often based on the type of
Englishman he has met travelling abroad. Since these are largely members of the
upper and middle classes, it is obvious that their behaviour cannot be taken as
general for the whole people. There are, however, certain kinds of behaviour,
manners and customs which are peculiar to England.

The English are a nation of stay-at-homes. There is no place like home,
they say. And when the man is not working he withdraws from the world to the
company of his wife and children and busies himself with the affairs of the
home. «The Englishman’s home is his castle» is a saying known all
over the world; and it is true that English people prefer small houses, built
to house one family, perhaps with a small garden. But nowadays the shortage of
building land and inflated land values mean that more and more blocks of flats
are being built.

The fire is the focus of the English home. What do other nations sit
round? The answer is they don’t. They go out to cafes or sit round the cocktail
bar. For the English it is the open fire, the toasting fork and the ceremony of
English tea. Even when central heating is installed it is kept so low in the
English home that Americans and Russians get chilblains, as the English get
nervous headaches from stuffiness in theirs.

Foreigners often picture the Englishman dressed in tweeds, smoking a
pipe, striding across the open countryside with his dog at his heels. This is a
picture of the aristocratic Englishman during his holidays on his country estate. Since
most of the open countryside is privately owned there isn’t much left for the
others to stride across. The average Englishman often lives and dies without
ever having possessed a tweed suit.

Most English people have been slow
to adopt rational reforms such as the metric system, which came into general
use in 1975. They have suffered inconvenience from adhering to old ways,
because they did not want the trouble of adapting themselves to new.

The two nations
of the United Kingdom have each derived from mixed sources, racially and
historically. Each has developed strong national characteristics which separate
them in custom, habit, religion, law and even in language.

The English are amongst the most
amiable people in the world; they can also be very ruthless. They are generous
in small matters but more cautious in big ones. The Scots at first glance are
not so amiable. They abhor compromise, lean much upon logic and run much to
extremes. They are penny-wise but can be prodigally pound-foolish. They can be
dour and gray, or highly coloured and extravagant in gesture and manner.

In France you shouldn’t sit down in a cafe until you’ve shaken hands
with everyone you know.

In Pakistan you mustn’t wink. It’s offensive.

In the Middle East you must never use the left hand for eating, drinking
or smoking. Also, you should take care not to admire anything in your host’s
home. They will feel that they have to give it to you.

In Russia, you must match your host’s drink for drink or they will think
you are unfriendly.

In
America you should eat your hamburger with both hands and as quickly as
possible. You should try to have a conversation until it’s eaten.

Foreigners have ideas about what is «British». But some of
these things are not part of most ordinary people’s everyday life. The great
British breakfast and afternoon tea, for example, are mostly found in hotels and
«bed and breakfast» places for tourists. Though coffee is also
popular, the British drink as much tea these days as before.

The British population (over the age of ten) drinks about 200,000,000
cups of tea a day. That is an average of nearly 1,040 cups of tea a year for each
person. Tea came to Britain in the late 1500s, but it was only for the very
rich. It became cheaper about three hundred years later, when it was planted in
India and later in Ceylon (Sri Lanka). People from all classes started drinking
it. But some people thought that too much tea was bad for your health. So they
started putting milk in it, to make it healthier!

It takes time to know a British person well. British people are
generally quite shy, and they do not make friends easily with strangers. Perhaps
this is because they live on an island! And they are not good at learning
foreign languages.

British people spend less money on clothes than the people of other
European countries. Most of them are not very interested in clothes. Many
British people wear suits to the office during the week, but at weekends they
prefer to wear jeans.

Dr
Johnson, a famous English writer, said over 200 years ago, «When two
Englishmen meet, their first talk is of the weather.» This is still true!
Conversations between British people today often begin with the subject of the
weather.

Let’s
talk about outstanding people.

Once in our life we start to consider what actually to be an outstanding
person means.

In my opinion to be an outstanding person means to possess personality,
not to be like anyone else and it is someone who is not trying to emphasize it.
An outstanding person is the one who wants to do something good in his or her
life and who likes to help other people and leaves some kind of trace in the
life of others, I believe, an outstanding person is not a person who is famous
all over the world. A great number of remarkable people surround us and we may
not even know about it.

All famous people we can speak about are outstanding, because to make
yourselves known and be spoken about you have to be different in some way and
not only people bom to famous and rich families can be called outstanding.

Vice versa, people who have to find their own way in life, people who
have to do everything by themselves, they have a chance to become famous,
strong, confident.

Americans are very proud of Bill Gates and they consider him an
outstanding person. Why? He was able to create something from nothing. He is
not like everyone else, he is one of a kind and that makes him an outstanding
person. A young man who used to work in his garage became famous all over the
world and when you exchange a word with him you’ll never get a message, that he
is better than you are. This is an example of becoming an outstanding person, a
respectable and strong person.

We
have to live our lives to be respected, we shouldn’t do harm to anyone, we have
to help people, that will make an outstanding person from each of us.

Belarusian national art has deep roots in the past. During the First
Russian Revolution the voices of the young poets Yanka Kupala, Yakub Kolas, the
revolutionary poet Tyotka-Elaisa Pashkevich and other talented writers could be
heard throughout the country. Elaisa Pashkevich was a teacher, the author of
poems written in defence of ordinary people. Kupala represented one of the
peaks of Belarusian poetry. He fully expressed the spirit, the character and
hopes of his people, hatred for the oppressors of the people. Kolas also
created many remarkable poems about the destiny of Belarus and later two larger
epics — «The New Land» and «Simon the Musician.»

One of the wonderful Belarusian lyrists was Maxim Bogdanovich. He lived
only 25 years but raised Belarusian literature to the world level. His poems
preserve national spirit and express real pain for the people. His poems and
songs are known everywhere in the world.

It’s difficult to
speak about Kupala, Scorina, Tadeush Kostyushko. Little message about their
biography is not enough to understand what kind of people they were. For me
it’s easier to talk about my friends or someone I know, and it’s my
grandfather. What I know, the person I’m becoming is all thanks to him. He is the person who helps everyone and never asks
anything in return, he taught me to love books, never to stop and to go on.
That was the main idea he taught me and he gave me the message: you have to do
everything in life just to respect yourself and no one will give you more in
the world to be desired. These few rules my grandpa passed on to me and I’m a
lucky person because I have this kind of man in my life and thanks to him I’m
accepting the world as it is.

There
is place for heroic deeds, each of us is able to do it, to respect others and
to be respected.

It is widely believed that famous people have a wonderful life with no
worries or problems. But is being famous so easy?

The greatest advantage of being famous is that celebrities are usually
very rich so they have easier life than other people. They live in beautiful
houses maintained by housekeepers, gardeners, cooks and other servants. They do
not have to worry about paying bills, can afford the best clothes and drive the
latest models of fast cars. What is more, they spend their holidays in
expensive resorts, get the best hotel rooms and the most efficient service.

Secondly, when you are famous, your name is known by everyone. Then, you
are invited to the best parties and meet other celebrities. Your fans send you
letters to tell you how much they admire you.

However, being recognized by everyone in the street can be annoying.
Famous people have no privacy, paparazzi try to photograph them all the time, people
stop them in the street, asking for an autograph.

Fame also carries worry about your own safety and the safety of your
family. There is always a danger that a crazy fan may try to kidnap or kill you
or your children, so it is necessary to employ bodyguards.

All in
all, fame may be nice but not an easy thing to live with. You have money but
you do not feel safe, you have friends and fans but you can never be sure if
they like you for who you are or for your money.

Let’s
talk about tourism.

I must admit that nowadays tourism has become very popular and turned
into a prosperous business. More and more people travel every year though the
motivation for this is different. If you want to experience a whole new
environment, to see new places and meet new people, travelling is the right
way. Travelling on business allows people to get more information about
achievements of other companies and helps them make their own business more successful. Some people travel for educational purposes, or they
visit their distant relatives and Mends.

Today more and more people would prefer to spend their holidays
travelling. Rich or poor, old or young they strive to leave the place where
they live or work and move to another spot of our planet at least for a week.

As far
as reasons for travelling are concerned, people travel to see other counMes and
continents, modem cities and the mins of ancient towns, to enjoy picturesque
places. It is always interesting to discover new thing and other ways of life,
to meet different people, taste different food, examine various architectural
styles, visit museums and art galleries. Travelling is a remarkable key to
understanding other cultures, a wonderful opportunity to leam more about the
world we live in.

Nowadays people
can travel in different ways. People usually travel by air, by rail, by sea or
by road. All means of travel have their advantages and disadvantages. And
people choose one according to their likes and financial possibilities. Of
course, travelling by air is the fastest and the most convenient way, but it is
the most expensive too. Travelling by train is much slower, but it has its
advantages. Not only have modem trains very comfortable seats, but also you can
see much more interesting places of the country you are travelling through.
Speed, comfort and safety are the main advantages of trains and planes. That is
why many people prefer them to all other means. Travelling by sea is popular
mostly for pleasure Mps.

As for me I prefer travelling by
car. I think it’s very convenient. You don’t need to reserve your tickets. You
don’t need to carry heavy suitcases. You don’t depend on the timetable. You are
free to stop and change the direction whenever you want. You can admire the
landscapes you are passing by and you can take a break for a picnic if you feel
hungry.

If I were you, I would travel around my own country first and then
travel abroad. There are a lot of places to visit in Belams such as Mir castle,
a UNESCO
World Heritage site in Belarus, Brest fortress, which is a must for those who
are interested in our history, Belovezhskaya pushcha, a beautiful national park
with rare species of animals and birds, and others.

Visiting a foreign country, people usually come in touch with culture,
traditions and ways different from their own. To avoid possible difficulties
one should get acquainted with this or that country beforehand and then follow
the proverb «When in Rome, do as the Romans do.»

It
means that visitors should show respect for the other culture and its
traditions. In this way it will be possible to avoid difficulties.

Let
s talk about accommodation.

I live in Minsk, the capital of the Republic of Belarus and it’s my
native city. I’m proud to be its citizen. It’s an ancient city with a rich
history. Minsk is 950 years old. It’s the country’s major industrial and cultural
centre and one of its most beautiful places. The city has acquired its peculiar
look and coloring thanks to the well-planned avenues and squares, to the green
parks and gardens stretching along the Svisloch river, to the historical
monuments and newly built underground stations.

The Upper Town, a vast area of the old Minsk with the centre in
Cathedral Square, which was the most important part of the city, was built in
the 16th century, the City Hall, the men’s and women’s St Bernard and St Basil
monasteries, the 17th—18th centuries Catholic Church are also situated there.

The recently restored mansion in Intemationalnaya Street that once
belonged to the artist V.Vankovich now is a part of the National Fine Arts
Museum.

The city’s second largest avenue Prospect Masherova with its numerous
public buildings and dwelling blocks rising along the water-and-park Svisloch
river artery appeared in the 70s—80s. In 1985, the Minsk-Hero City monument was
erected in the Victory Park.

The pride of the city is its parks: the Gorki Park, the Cheluskintsy
Park, the Central Botanical Garden and the water-and-park Svisloch reserve.

There are 6 professional theatres and many museums in Minsk.

Also I can’t help mentioning our National Library with its modem design
and nice architectural structure. The Library lights up at night thus making
this whole structure look amazing. There is also a nice scenic caf6 where you
can dine enjoying the picturesque parts of the city and getting the panoramic view
from above.

Minsk
today is growing and prospering. Embassies, banks, business centers, offices
and other public and private institutions have been springing up in the city.
Minsk is so romantic and magic and so attractive in every season of the year.

Well,
I would like to have a big house in the suburbs of the city with lots of fresh
air, with a big play ground for my kids and with some place to practice my
gardening skills. If I had a chance to choose I would choose quieter green
suburbs rather than crowded multi blocks of flats. Though each way of living
has advantages, to my mind, a private house has more pluses for getting a
pleasure.

•    What does our new neighbourhood look
like?

•    What is there to do in the area
after school or at weekends?

•     Are there good places we can visit
as a family in our first few weeks?

•     What s my new school like? What
clubs does it run? What s the uniform like?

The cost of living will be higher in a big city, so keep your finances in check if you want to survive.

City
life can be extremely hectic, leaving you working, sleeping or traveling
throughout most of the week. This type of lifestyle can leave you feeling
drained, isolated and, in some extreme cases, can lead to depression, so it’s
especially important to make friends to spend time with on your weekends or
downtime.

I like the saying: «The grass is always greener on the other
side.» It means we tend to believe life in places different from our
residence is for some reason better. Considering this I must say that I’m
content with living here, in a big city, where most of my family members live.

Among advantages we can
find employment
opportunities, education establishments, healthcare facilities, food options with
a great variety of shops and mall centers, public transport options and a great
choice of leisure activities and places to have fun.

Dreaming
of having a small flat on the sea coast is natural for people but we realize
that it doesn’t matter where we live; the thing that matters is our feeling
happy with everything around us. For me it is much easier to cope with life
having my family nearby.

Let’s talk about your family.

Every
summer we go to the seaside together, where we relax, and have fun. But to put
our entire family together is hard enough just because one of my grannies lives
far away and we can’t meet as often as we want. As for the rest of my family,
my uncles and aunts, they are also involved into their own family life routine
but we try to arrange our big meetings at least once or twice a year, mostly in
summer, at my grandparents’ dacha to have barbeque and to enjoy the time all
together.

In my opinion if you want to have a tight-knit family you should respect
and support your partner, you should be understanding, friendly, tolerant,
polite, sympathetic. Both parents should be involved in childcare. The members
of the family should always communicate with each other. If they don’t see eye
to eye on some things they should talk it over. Moreover, the members of the
family should share joys and sorrows as well as domestic chores. It goes
without saying they should help each other in a difficult situation and try to spend a lot of
time together. If you form and keep your family traditions it will do your
family a lot of good. The members of the family should appreciate what they do
for each other and be grateful to each other.

Well, I can’t say I’m an expert, moreover, to my mind, it is a very
stressful process for the organizer but I guess there are some survival tips to
manage everything

—    
think
about the event itself to arrange a place for it;

Well, I can’t be an expert because I don’t have any brothers or sisters
but anyway I’ll try to make up my mind. Teasing is just one of those things
that happens between siblings. And it is completely normal. Annoying, sometimes
heartbreaking, but normal. May be in such a specific way they try to show their
feelings. So if you don’t like that, you can tell your elder brother that his
teasing hurts your feelings. To my mind teasing will never end. It is just the
case of your attitude to it. The more you pay attention to it, the more you’ll
be teased. At least it will be good to learn to protect yourself. Something should
be ignored, something should be revenged. As soon as you both get older the way
of your communication will change for the better, I hope.

Let’s talk about your future career.

A person who
performs the unique work of management is called a manager. That is, a manager
plans, organizes, directs, and controls a company’s business. An important
characteristic of managers is that they do their jobs by working with and through
other people.

There is a
statement: «Management is getting work done through people.» Most of
achievements in any society take place because groups of people get involved in
joint effort. Almost everyone is, was, or someday will be a manager, i.e. the
person who coordinates human, information, physical, and financial resources of
an organization. In order to perform their functions adequately, managers need
interpersonal, organizational, and technical skills.

Regardless of the
specific job, most managers perform five basic functions.

The first one is
planning, which involves determining overall company goals and deciding how
these goals can best be achieved. Planning is listed the first management
function because the others depend on it.

Organizing, the
second management function, is putting the plan into action. Staffing, i.e. choosing the right person for the right
job, is also a part of the organizing function.

Directing is the day-to-day direction and
supervision of employees. In direc­ting, managers guide, teach, and motivate
people so that they reach their potential abilities, and at the same time
achieve the goals set in the planning stage.

Controlling involves evaluating how well
overall company objectives are being met.

Effective managers achieve the goals
of the company through a successful combination of planning, organizing,
staffing, directing, and controlling.

• What are the aims of your business?

Mentally strong
people don’t let others determine their career paths. Instead, they take charge
of their own lives and go wherever they want to go. But if you are not that
strong you should listen to your own feelings and talk to your parents. Because
what is the point of just making money if you feel miserable doing something?

You know it will sound great if our
parents’ expectations are similar to our own dreams.

I
believe that English is the language of the modem world. All people around the
world know the importance of the English language in our life, because we need
it in our work and sometimes when we meet other people from other cultures, the
only way to communicate with them is to use English. We need it for traveling
to other countries on business trips as well. That does not mean our language
is not important. I believe all people love their languages, but the first
language now in the world is English.

Let
s talk about Belarus.

The life of each of us is full of «high days:» exciting days
which we look forward to like school trips, visits to the circus or theatre and
«holidays» which are printed red in the calendar.

I’d like to tell you about my most favourite holidays. First comes New
Year. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that New Year is the greatest
holiday in Belams and no other holiday is celebrated as wholeheartedly as New
Year.

Throughout our country the preparations for greeting New Year start long
before the 31 st of December. People send and get thousands of New Year cards,
prepare presents for their families and friends and decorate their houses and a
New Year tree with shining bells, colorful balls and bright lights. The
tradition of decorating a New Year tree is by the way most popular with any Belarusian family. On New Year’s Eve the homes are full
of great atmosphere of expectation. Air is filled with fresh smell of New Year
tree and delicious smells of great variety of dishes prepared for the holiday
meal. People carry on the celebration with their friends dancing, singing and
making fireworks.

Then comes Christmas. Somehow it is the continuation of New Year’s mood.
I enjoy Christmas holiday mood all around with its Christmas tree, decorated
homes and trees, illuminations, organizing a special meal and a lot of festive
foods. We exchange gifts with our relatives and friends.

Then
Easter comes with its colorful eggs and very beautiful pies. There is a great
ceremony at church with lit candles and songs. Churches are filled with flowers
on Easter Day. Everything represents new life.

Belarusian cuisine is known for a bid choice of potato dishes and rich
soups, often dressed with sour cream, as well as cold soups refreshing for the
hot summer periods. Geographical position and weather conditions in Belarus
resulted in a wide use of such products as forest mushrooms and berries, herbs,
apples, pears, river fish and crab, milk products. It is still traditional for
Belarusian families to make marinated mushrooms and vegetables based on home
recipes. Cooking methods characteristic for the old traditional Belarusian
cuisine are stewing and boiling.

The first meal of the day in the morning is breakfast. Some Belarusian
people eat toast with butter and jam or marmalade and nothing else. Others eat
a bowl of cereals or muesli with milk or porridge. Belarusian breakfast may
also contain sausages, bacon, scrambled or fried egg, beans, etc. Melon,
grapefruit or fruit cocktails are popular, but the most common drinks at this
time of the day are orange juice or a cup of tea or coffee.

The second meal of the day in Belarus is lunch. We usually eat a bowl of
soup with some slices of bread, and also a cup of tea.

Dinner is the last meal Belarusian people have. It’s a cooked meal of
meat or fish and some veg. It’s common to eat desert after the main dish.

Many
people in Belarus like eating draniki or pancakes with machanka, Belarusian
traditional souse. It may be different in different regions. Most often it is
made with pork, sausage, sliced onion, sour cream and flour.

I would recommend
to see «Kupalle» because it is the most romantic and mysterious
holiday. I think my British friend would be excited to jump over the fire and
look for a magic fern-flower.

Kupala is the old pagan Belarusian
god of the sun whose feast is at Midsummer, after the Soltice day. It is one of
the most mysterious holidays in Belarus. There are a lot of legends and customs
connected with this magic holiday. According to one of them there is a constant
struggle between good and evil in our soul. People try to help the forces of
light to defeat the evil witches. They light bonfires, dance and sing folk
songs around them and young girls and boys jump over the fire, holding their
hands together. Fire is believed to have a purifying effect, cleaning off sins.
Another attribute of the Kupala feast is girls making wreaths of wild flowers
and wear them on heads and then, at dawn, throwing them into the river or lake
and letting them float. And one of the main moments of celebration is the
search for a magic fern-flower which blossoms only one night a year and is
believed to bring happiness.

Yes, I am proud of our national
traditions; they are unique and make us feel a little bit different from other
nationalities. For example, the celebration of «Kupalle» is romantic
and mysterious. When we celebrate Victory Day I feel proud of our people who
went through great difficulties and showed courage and heroism.

Let’s talk about any Enlglish-speaking country.

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the United
States of America, Canada, Australia and New Zealand are English speaking
countries. They are situated in different parts of the world and differ in many
ways. The nature of these countries, their weather and climate and way of life
of their people differ. Each country has its own history, customs, traditions,
its own national holidays. But they all share a common language. English is the
language of the people who left England to make their names in new countries.
But I would like to tell you about The United Kingdom of Great Britain and
Northern Ireland.

To understand fully any country’s political system, one needs to
understand something of its history. This is especially true of the United
Kingdom because its history has
been very different from most other nations and, as a result, its political
system is very different from most other nations too.

We probably need
to start with the year of 1066, when William the Conqueror from Normandy
invaded what we now call England, defeated the Anglo-Saxon King Harold and
established a Norman dynasty. The Normans were not satisfied with conquering
England and, over the next few centuries, tried to conquer Ireland, Wales and
Scotland. They succeeded with the first two and failed with the last despite
several wars over the centuries.

The UK is a
parliamentary monarchy and the Queen is the head of the state. But in practice
it is ruled by the elected government with the Prime Minister at the head. The
UK Parliament in London is at the heart of the political system in Britain and
is the legislative body for the UK and British overseas territories. Parliament
has two legislative parliamentary bodies, the House of Lords and the House of Commons.
The Prime Minister now is Theresa May, the leader of the Conservative
Party. The Prime Minister’s Office is at Downing Street, 10.

The House of
Commons is the lower chamber but the one with the most authority. The Commons
is chaired by the Speaker. Each of the 650 members in the House of Commons
represents a geographical constituency.

The House of
Lords is the upper chamber but the one with less authority. Its members are not
elected and appointed by the Queen on the advice of the Prime Minster. The
House of Commons consists of democratically elected Members of Parliament from
various different political parties. Elections are held every five years. There
is no fixed number of members in the House of Lords, but currently there are
826 members.

Today there are
four major political parties in the British parliamentary system, the
Conservative Party, the Labour Party, the Scottish National Party and the
Liberal Democrat Party.

Great Britain is
a highly developed industrial country. It is known as one of the world’s
largest producers and exporters of iron and steel products, machinery and
electronics, chemicals and textile. One of the industries is shipbuilding.

Great Britain is
a country with old cultural traditions and customs. The most famous educational
centres are Oxford and Cambridge universities. They are considered to be the
intellectual centres of Europe. The education is not free, it is very
expensive.

London is the
capital of the UK, the greatest town and port on the British Isles. It’s a
political, economic and commercial centre. London is one of the largest cities
in the world. Its population is more than 8 million people. It’s more than 2
thousand years old. London is worth sightseeing. The West End is famous for its
beautiful monuments and palaces, fine parks, fashionable shops and big hotels.
The East End is quite different from the West End. It’s the district of
factories, plants and docks. The narrow streets and poor houses present
contrast to the homes of the rich people in the West End.

Sightseeing tours in London usually
start in Trafalgar Square. There is the Nelson’s Column in the centre of the
square. From Trafalgar Square you can go along down Whitehall and see the
Houses of Parliament with Big Ben. Behind there is the Thames and Westminster
Bridge. Buckingham Palace attracts attention, as well. It’s the royal
residence. Westminster Abbey is famous for the memorials of many great people
of Britain. The Tower of London was a fortress, a royal residence, a prison and
now it is a museum. London is famous for its green parks. The greatest is Hyde
Park (with the famous Poet’s Comer there). London is the centre of the
country’s cultural life. There are many picture galleries and museums there.
The National Gallery houses a priceless collection of paintings. The British
Museum is the most famous in the world. In London we can meet the past and the
present, the old and the modem. It’s a city of contrasts and no doubts it’s
amazing to see and enjoy every masterpiece in architecture and art.

To begin with I’d like to point out that British customs and traditions
are famous all over the world. When people think of Britain, they often think
of people drinking tea, eating fish and chips, colorful royal ceremonies,
soldiers in strange uniforms. In Britain customs and traditions play a more
important part in the life of people than in other countries. The British are proud
of their traditions and carefully keep them up.

The British celebrate such public holidays as Christmas, Easter Monday,
May Day, the Spring Bank Holiday, and The Summer Bank Holiday.

Foreigners often say that food in Britain is uninteresting and plain,
noting fancy, it lacks originality and excellence. But British food is not as
bad as some people think. There are many enjoyable dishes which can please even
a demanding eater. Fish and chips is a popular and relatively inexpensive British dish. Roast Beef and Yorkshire Pudding is a traditional English
family lunch on Sunday. Apple pie is a favourite sweet in England.

A
special place in the life of the British is occupied by tea. They are the
world’s greatest tea drinkers. They drink a quarter of all the tea grown in the
world each year.

I
guess it will be exciting to visit any of the British holidays to see the
culture with your own eyes. But, to my mind, it will be interesting to see
Halloween. It is a holiday annually celebrated on 31 October. People often
dress up as skeletons, ghosts or other scary figures. Common symbols of
Halloween include pumpkins, bats and spiders. Some children go trick-or-
treating. This means that they dress up and go to other peoples’ houses,
knocking on the door for treat of sweets or a snack. Those who do not give out
a treat may be tricked with a joke instead.

Let
s talk about national character and stereotypes.

Belarusian traditions and features of the national character were formed
in the course of complex history. The country was engulfed by many military
conflicts, World Wars, national liberation revolts, revolutions and
repressions. So our extraordinary history cultivated special character traits
of our people, the main of them are tolerance and diligence.

Different from anyone else, Belarusians are able to adapt to any
circumstances — not to change the circumstances but to change themselves, to
accept these circumstances, to live them naturally, in harmony and even with
pleasure.

The second aspect of the Belarusian character is that a Belarusian holds
tight to what he has gained. He regards the external world with little trust.

At the same time, in the view of Belarusians themselves, they are loved
and respected by everyone. People turn to Belarusians for help and support,
because they know that a Belarusian will always be responsive and helpful.
Belarusian people always enjoy receiving guests and are perfect at this. This
tradition is alive today.

To sum up, Belarusian features of character are tolerance and a lack of
temper. Belarusians are kind, soft, soulful, hard-working and hospitable. But
at the same time they are they are reserved, not very jolly and rather
pessimistic.

New Belarusians are rather inclined
to intellectual jobs. They earn their living by using brains rather than by
digging the soil. The young generation has more Belarusian identity than the
Soviet generation. New Belarusians express more interest in their roots and
history. Many Belarusians, both young and old, are fond of gardening very much.

The United States
has often been called a melting pot. This term refers to the idea that the
country is a place where people from many lands have come together and formed a
unified culture. Americans have many things in common. For example, the vast
majority of them speak English, and people throughout the country dress
similarly and eat many of the same kinds of foods.

At the center of
all that Americans value is freedom. Americans commonly regard their society as
the freest and best in the world. Americans’ understanding of freedom is shaped
by the Founding Fathers’ belief that all people are equal and that the role of
government is to protect each person’s basic rights.

Americans’ notion
of freedom focuses on the individual. Individualism, understood not only as
self-reliance but also as economic self-sufficiency, has been a central theme
in American history.

Volunteerism is
the soul of American community and political life. Volunteerism means people
helping people through privately-initiated, rather than government-sponsored,
agencies. Volunteers, usually unpaid, are highly motivated workers who organize
themselves and others to solve a particular community problem or meet an
immediate social need, rather than waiting for someone else to do it. The
willingness to participate in such groups is so widespread that six out of ten
Americans are members of a volunteer organization. Volunteerism reflects
Americans’ optimistic pride in their ability to work out practical solutions
themselves.

As a nation of
immigrants, Americans have from the beginning shared the assumption that the
practical solution to a problem is to move elsewhere and make a fresh start.
Mobility in America is not a sign of aimlessness but optimism. Americans move
from place to place with the sense of optimism, hoping to secure a better job
or enjoy climate.

Moving about from
place to place is such a common and accepted practice that most Americans take
it for granted that they may live in four or five cities during their lifetime,
perhaps buying a house and then reselling it each time they move. The American
habit of mobility has been important in contributing a degree of homogeneity to
a society of such extreme cultural diversity and spaciousness. Cultural
differences still exist from region to region, but they are becoming
increasingly less distinct as mutual exchange occurs.

First of all, learn sport jargon

Americans love
using idioms, especially sport phrases like «home run» or «slam
dunk» when something goes really well. Another popular phrase is
«taking a rain check,» which comes from baseball when it rains and
the game has to be postponed. These phrases are used a lot in business and in
casual conversations.

Get comfortable with informality

Things are much
less formal in America. Americans like being comfortable and relaxed, but that
does not mean they are being disrespectful.

It is very common
to call people you work for or your colleagues by their first name. One of the
exceptions is teachers in school usually use Mr. or Mrs. Avoid confrontation

Americans do not like confrontation. They do not want to hurt anybody’s
feelings, so they are very careful about how they say things. Americans avoid
directly criticizing or opposing anyone. It would be considered very rude if
someone just said, «you’re wrong» to someone else.

If you want someone to do something, you would always be very polite
about it and avoid commands.

Get comfortable with interruptions

Although
Americans believe being polite is very important, it is very normal for
Americans to interrupt each other when they have something to contribute. It’s
usually not that rude in American conversation especially with a good friend.

Give lots of compliments

Americans
give a lot of compliments — all the time. It’s a popular way of building
relationships with other people or just being nice. Even with strangers or
people you don’t know very well, it is common to give a compliment.

The term
«American Dream,» used in widely different contexts from political
speeches to Broadway musicals, eludes precise definition.

However,
throughout America’s history, reality has also taught her citizens,
particularly minorities, that the «American Dream» is not open to
all. Segregation and discrimination are effective tools which have barred
minorities from equal opportunities in all spheres.

Let’s
talk about youth and society.

It’s about time
somebody exploded that old myth about childhood being the happiest period of
your life. Childhood may certainly be fairly happy, but even the greatest
moments can’t be compared with the sheer joy of being an adult. Mostly adults
choose the clothes their children wear, the books to read, the friends to have.
Mother and father are kindly but dictators. This is an adult world and though
children may be deeply loved, they have to be manipulated so as not to
interfere too seriously with the lives of their elders. The essential
difference between manhood and childhood is the same as the difference between
independence and subjection.

Think of the
years at school: the years spent living in constant fear of exams and school
reports. Every movement you make, every thought you think is observed by some
critical adult who may draw unflattering conclusions about your character.
Think of the times you have to go to bed early, do as you are told, eat the
stuff that is supposed to be good for you. Remember how «gentle»
pressure is applied with remarks like «if you don’t do as I say, I’ll
…» and a dire warning will follow.

No matter how
kind and loving adults may be, children often suffer from terrible, illogical
fears which are the result of ignorance and an inability to understand the
world around them. Teenagers may rebel violently against parental authority,
but this causes them great unhappiness. There is a complete lack of self-confidence
during this time. Adolescents are over-conscious of their appearance and the
impression they make on others. They feel shy, awkward and clumsy. They look at
the world with fresh eyes; everything is new and unspoilt for them. Feelings
are intense and hearts are easily broken. Teenagers experience moments of
tremendous elation or black despair. And through this turmoil, adults seem to
be more hostile than ever.

What a
relief is to grow up! Suddenly you regain your balance; the world opens up before
you. You are free to choose; you have your own place to live in and your own
money to spend. You don’t have to seek constant approval for everything you do.
You are no longer teased, punished or ridiculed by heartless adults because you
failed to come up to some theoretical standard. And if on occasion you are
teased, you know how to deal with it.

Youth is a very
important period in the life of man. This is the time when a person discovers
the world and tries to determine the place in the universe. Young people face
lots of problems which are very important for them and do not differ much from
those that once their parents had to deal with. At the same time every
generation is unique. It differs from the one that preceded it in its
experience, ideals and a system of values.

The adults always
complain that the young are not what they were. These words are repeated from
generation to generation. To some extent they are true, because every new
generation grows up quicker, enjoys more freedom. It is better educated and
benefits from the results of the technological progress of the time.

Moreover, the
young look forward and the old people look backward. The adult always teach the
young how to live. They apply old standards to the new way of life. The past is
hanging over them preventing them from appreciating the things around them
anew. The young think that the adults have lost touch with everything that is
important in life.

Young people of today do not
directly accept the standards of their parents who believe that they are right
because they are older. The adults don’t want their values to be questioned.
The young on the other hand cannot accept the values of their
«fathers.» All these differences generate a generation gap when the
young and adult do not understand one another. Generation gap means difference
in attitude, or lack of understanding between younger and older generation.

The life of the
young is frequently determined by the adults. It seems that parents will never
understand their children. And children, in their turn, shock
their parents with their dress, language, behaviour. The existence of
subculture which is specific for every generation is a form of protest of the
young people against the values of the adults. Belonging to a subculture is
often about exploring who you are and what you stand for. All young people need
to feel validated and valued. Though it can be challenging for parents, but it
isn’t unusual and can be a passing phase.

As a parent, you need to encourage
healthy habits —
including exercise — in your youngsters. Physical activity should become as a
routine, a part of their lives, as eating and sleeping.

Educate
others. Be a
health advocate for people. Help them start doing sports.

Stop
saying, start doing. Get involved and stay involved in the process. Do sports yourself.

Lead
by an example.
Participate in any sports events. Sports such as cycling, swimming, basketball,
jogging, walking briskly, cross country skiing, dancing, aerobics, and soccer,
played regularly, are not only fun but can promote health.

Support
scientific medical research to find out different diseases and treatment for them.

Having
a healthy lifestyle is important because it helps a person to control weight,
boost energy, improve his mood, combat disease and live long, staying healthy
means thinking positively and focusing on gratitude. Having happy people around
is the basis of any community.

Let’s
talk about education.

Education is the main people’s wealth and lots of them consider it the
sense of living. They get education from early childhood and leam until their
hair is grey. To my mind, education plays an important role in people’s lives,
that’s why a great attention is paid to it.

Education in Belarus is free and compulsory from age 6 to 15 and the system
is well administered. The academic year begins on the 1st of September and
lasts till the end of May. It is divided into 4 terms and has 4 vocation periods: autumn, winter, spring and summer ones. There
are two official languages within the education system in
Belarus: Russian and Belarusian.

From age 6 to 10 children attend primary school where they receive a
basic grounding in literacy and numeracy.

When students
enter senior secondary school level they may remain in the academic stream for
2 years at schools or gymnasiums or they may attend vocational
classes at lyceums for 2 years. Also they may train at
a strictly practical level at colleges and obtain a trade.

Belarusian higher
education is ranked among the best ones, and the Belarusian specialists are
much in demand in the world. Therefore, both our citizens and foreign students
wish to study in the higher educational establishments (Universities) of the
Republic. University graduates can obtain Bachelor’s degree of Science.

After university graduation young
specialists have an opportunity to continue postgraduate education with
different Master’s programs. Also training of the scientific personnel with
highest qualifications is conducted with granting scientific degrees of
Candidate and Doctor of Science.

Computers have
changed the way we work, it occurs in any profession you can obtain.

Computers aid
industrial processes; they find applications in medicine; they are the heart of
the software industry; they play a vital role in education. The computer
facilitates education, making it much easier for the student to learn, for the
teacher to teach, and to organize the administrative part of the education
process. Computer education forms a part of the school and college curriculum,
as it is important for every individual today, to have the basic knowledge of
computers. The advantages of computers in education include an efficient
storage and performance of information, quick information processing and the
saving of paper usage.

Online education has revolutionized
the education industry. The computer technology has made the dream of distant
learning a reality. So, as you can see, I’m more pro computer usage. To my
mind, it has more advantages and moreover it is absolutely necessary nowadays.

It is easier to
advise than to follow when you feel nervous, but anyway try not to panic, try to stay calm so that you could concentrate on learning.

Find a suitable place to work. Your desk, the kitchen table, the
library, a cafe, but wherever works for you and be prepared to stay there. Stay
away from your bed, however as it will increase the likelihood of accidental
napping.

Get rid of fun distractions. Do what you have to make yourself
concentrate. Put your phone in another room. Turn off the Wi-Fi. Work on paper.
If you need to fact check something online, start a list to look up later.

Harder than it
seems, this. Really MAKE yourself work.

If you get stuck,
don’t stress. Make a note and you can come back to it later.

Snacks and food: your brain needs food to LIVE and
LEARN! If you’re staying up all night have something substantial and quick.

Have a little study break listening to some music or stroking
your cat. Don’t start feeling like the walls are closing in around you.

Sleep is for the weak, right? WRONG. You
will perform much the next day if you brain has a chance to rest.

Look over your notes on the bus and
staying calm as much as you can, walk to the exam hall.

I don’t think that it is true. We
experience some problems at school, but our parents had the same problems as
well. The problems are the same: low marks, bad behaviour, much homework. There
is nothing new. We shouldn’t complain to everyone about them. We had better
learn how to cope with them on our own.

Let’s talk about tourism.

On the positive
side, tourism provides employment for local inhabitants. What is more, the
extra income means that local councils have more money to spend on expanding
and improving their facilities, thus making them better for both visitors and
residents. On the other hand, tourism can do a great deal of harm. For example,
pollution is caused both by the increase in traffic and the litter that
visitors leave behind.

Fortunately, there is one form of
tourism which is completely environmentally friendly. It’s called ecotourism.
Ecotourism is a form of tourism involving visiting fragile, pristine and
relatively undisturbed natural areas intended as a low-impact alternative to
standard commercial mass tourism. In other words, it is organized holidays that
are designed so that the tourists damage the environment as little as possible,
especially when some of the money they pay is used to protect local natural
wealth.

Being a traveller is more than just being a holidaymaker. A holiday is
just a short time away, and it normally involves relaxation. Tourists stay in holiday
resorts, not travellers. Travellers go for the experience and their journeys
are usually much longer and more challenging. Travellers tend to avoid tourist
traps and like to go off the beaten track to discover new places. Travel is an
age-old phenomenon, but tourism is a relatively recent invention.

Find
a Group or Club to Hike With (The fastest way to become a good hiker is to hike with other people
because it’s fun and motivating.)

Find Comfortable Hiking Footwear

Buy a Local Guidebook and a
Waterproof Map

Hike a Short Distance

Camp at an Established Campsite

Camp Near Other People

Plan Simple Meals

Practice Pitching Your
Tent at Home before Your Trip Postpone your Trip if it’s Going to Rain (additional troubles: pitching a
tent in the rain and packing it up wet, cooking food in the rain, and drying your
wet gear).

Minimize
the Amount of Gear You Bring (bring some comfort items and a first aid kit along on your first
trips).

Look
up Backcountry Regulations Before You Go (Do you need to filter your water? Do you have
to pay a fee for using a tent site? Is there a privy at the tent site or will
you need to dig a cat hole? Are campfires or open flames permitted? Are there
restrictions on where you can camp?)

Take
good mood with you on a hike!

The most interesting way of spending holidays is travelling. First of
all it is necessary to choose your destination. Then you may plan your route
and a type of transport. Nowadays there are a lot of travel agencies which will
help you to arrange everything in no time. Package holidays are very popular
among holidaymakers because it’s very convenient. You don’t have to worry about
such things as where to sleep, what to eat and what sights to see.

Следующие учебники и книги:

• Занимательный английский, том 2, Левенталь В., 2002 — ПРЕДИСЛОВИЕ. Прошло полтора года со времени выхода первого тома этой книги; второй том продолжает начатую работу. Попробуем еще раз сформулировать … Книги по английскому языку
• Занимательный английский, Левенталь В., 2000 — ПРЕДИСЛОВИЕ. Уважаемый читатель, перед Вами необычная книга и я хочу пояснить ее замысел. Название книги не случайно перекликается со знаменитыми … Книги по английскому языку
• Учимся читать по-английски, Журавлева Р.И., Черникова Н.В., 2013 — Учебное пособие предназначено для желающих изучать английский язык. Подходит как детям с 10-12 лет, так и взрослым. Цель данного пособия … Книги по английскому языку
• Дни недели, запоминалки английских слов, Диборский С., Мнемо К., 2016 — Аннотация. В словаре представлены запоминалки английских слов, обозначающих дни недели, а также нескольких сопутствующих слов (день, ночь, утро, вечер и … Книги по английскому языку

Предыдущие статьи:

• Подготовка к олимпиадам по иностранному языку (английский), Кагукина Т.В., 2017 — Предлагаемые материалы содержат тестовые задания и тренировочные упражнения, обеспечивающие повторение и систематизацию материала, предусмотренного учебной программой для общеобразовательных учреждений. Особое … Книги по английскому языку
• Читаем англо-американскую прессу, английский язык в СМИ (Mass Media English), Танеев Б.Т., 2002 — Учебное пособие ставит целью подготовить изучающих английский язык к восприятию и переводу англоязычных текстов в печатных и электронных средствах массовой … Книги по английскому языку
• Вся грамматика английского языка, Ларрейа П., Ривьер К., Асселино Р., Греми А., Кутуминой О.А., 2010 — Цель пособия Вся грамматика английского языка — ответить на три основных вопроса: как построить, как выразить и как перевести ту … Книги по английскому языку
• Времена английского глагола, Сивергина О.В., 2005 — Пособие содержит подробное описание всех видо-временных форм английского глагола, а также их сопоставительные характеристики. Отличительной особенностью пособия является включение изучаемого … Книги по английскому языку

итоговые занятия перед ЦТ? Такие занятия мы проводим уже четвёртый год, и преподаватели нашего учебного центра
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