I grew up in a small town. There were only about two thousand people who lived in the town where I grew up. When a town is very small, it is also called a village. My village was surrounded by many farms and many lakes.
The house where my family lived was near the middle of the town. On the street where we lived, most of the houses were similar in size, but many of them had different shapes and different colors. Each house was surrounded by a yard, where people grew their lawn and their garden.
Often, I would walk from my house to the downtown part of the village. “Downtown” is the area where the stores and shops of a town are located. Because I lived in a small town, it was a short walk to the downtown area. Along the main street, there were several different kinds of stores. Some stores sold food, some stores sold clothing, and some stores sold hardware (or building supplies).
It was also a short walk to the schools in my town. When I went to elementary school, it would take about ten minutes to walk to the school. Some of my friends lived on the same street where I lived. Sometimes, we walked to school together.
During the summer months, many people came from the big city to visit our village. The people liked to get away from the busy streets of the city. They enjoyed the quietness and the slow pace of village life. They also liked to spend their vacations near the lakes that were near the village. People from the city often said that people who live in villages seemed very friendly.
When I grew up, I left my village, and I went to work in a larger town. But sometimes I like to go back and visit the place where I grew up.
downtown:
to or in the centre or main business area of a town or city
ￚsee also uptown I have to go downtown later.
ￚdowntown adjective [only before noun] downtown restaurants She works for a law firm in downtown Miami.
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hardware:
equipment and tools for your home and garden
During the 1980s and 1990s, personal computers became very widespread. The use of the computer has changed people’s lifestyles in several ways.
Before 1980, hardly anyone owned a computer. Only governments and large companies had computers. But throughout the 1980s and 1990s, computers became much cheaper, faster, and smaller, and they held much more memory. More and more people were able to afford to buy a computer. By the year 2000, computers had become very common.
For many people, the personal computer is used mainly for performing calculations and for word processing. For example, people can calculate their finances on the computer. They can also use the computer to type their written documents, such as essays or letters. Many people enjoy playing games on their computers. Some people like to play chess or checkers on their computer. Other people prefer games that require fast reflexes and fine co-ordination. Computer games were very simple during the early days of the 1980s. Today’s computer games show detailed images and sounds.
Another very popular use of computers involves communication. Many people keep in touch with their friends and relatives by using electronic mail, or e-mail. E-mail allows people to send letters instantly to people far away. It is even possible to attach pictures to one’s e-mail messages.
Many people also like to use their computer to gain information on the Internet. The Internet is a vast network of electronic pages where people can find information on many different topics. For example, people can read newspapers and magazines on the Internet.
Personal computers have only existed for a short time. But for many people, those computers have quickly become a very useful part of everyday life!
co-ordination:
the organization of people or things so that they work together well
coordination of
the coordination of our economic policies
coordination between
co-ordination between central and local government
In the modern age, people often travel long distances. Sometimes people travel for reasons related to their work. Sometimes they travel as tourists. And sometimes people travel to visit relatives and friends.
There are many different ways that people can travel. Some forms of transportation move people along the ground. Other methods of transportation move people across the water, or through the air.
Airplanes provide the fastest method of travelling. Modern jet airliners travel at about 1000 kilometres per hour. These airplanes cruise through the skies, almost ten kilometres above the level of the sea. Jet airplanes allow people to travel great distances in a short time. For example, it is possible to fly across a great ocean, such as the Pacific or the Atlantic, in several hours.
Ships were once the only way to travel across the oceans. Before airplanes, it took many weeks or months to travel around the world. Today, many people still travel by ship when crossing smaller bodies of water. Some ships, called ferries, allow people to bring their cars with them onto the ship. Some people also like to travel by ship as part of a holiday. These holiday ships, called cruise ships, stop in several interesting ports along the voyage.
Trains are very popular in many places. In some places, such as Japan and France, trains travel at high speeds of about 300 kilometres per hour. These trains move people throughout the country very quickly and efficiently. Trains are also used to move people over short distances, such as the trip from one’s home to one’s workplace.
Buses and cars are also widely used for transportation. Some people travel by bus or car for only short trips, but sometimes buses and cars are used for very long journeys. In North America, many people have driven across Canada or the United States in their cars. The wide, smooth roads allow cars and buses to travel quickly from one place to another.
There are many different methods of transportation. Which one do you think is the best?
cruise:
to move at a steady speed in a car, aircraft etc
We were cruising along at 50 miles per hour.
We fly at a cruising speed of 500 mph.
ferry:
a boat that carries people or goods across a river or a narrow area of water
cruise:
1
a holiday on a large ship
a Mediterranean cruise
cruise around
a cruise around the world
2
a journey by boat for pleasure
port:
▶WHERE SHIPS STOP◀
[uncountable and countable]a place where ships can be loaded and unloaded
be in port
We’ll have two days ashore while the ship is in port.
come into port/leave port The ferry was about to leave port.
voyage:
a long journey in a ship or spacecraft
The voyage from England to India used to take six months.
the Titanic’s maiden voyage (=first journey)
I don’t want to make the voyage single-handed
These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise.
My friend Lani and I went to Burger King yesterday. We ordered a big order of french fries and a couple of drinks. Lani got a strawberry milk shake.
I picked out a table near the window so we could look at the people passing by. As we were sitting there, we heard our favourite song, “Butterfly” by the band Crazy Town come on the radio. We looked at each other with big grins on our faces and started singing and dancing!
It was great fun. Many people began staring at us, wondering why we were so happy. We didn’t care; we just kept on moving and enjoying ourselves.
The song ended, and we were almost finished our food. We sat and talked about what was happening in our lives. She had just bought four new t-shirts for the summer. The new sandals she had gotten for her birthday had given her really bad blisters on the sides of her feet. When she wore other shoes, she had to wear ban daids on the blisters. I told her that I had bought four new C.D.’s. I love music!
As we finished our conversation, we finished off our drinks. I like going out with Lani and talking. Lani is my best friend and I can talk to her about anything. I am glad I have her to share my life with, even if it is as simple as going to Burger King and eating french fries!
Lani and I are planning to travel together so we are trying to save our money. Our french fries and drink only came to about $6, so we didn’t feel too bad about spending our money!
I wonder though, if McDonald’s would have been cheaper?
milk shake:
1
British English a sweet drink made of milk with fruit or chocolate added
2
American English a sweet drink made of milk, ice cream, and fruit or chocolate
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grin:
a wide smile
He came into the room with a friendly grin on his face .
wide/broad/big etc grin
‘Of course,’he agreed with a wide grin.
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band aid:
trademark especially American English a piece of thin material that is stuck to the skin to cover cuts and other small wounds
British Equivalent: plaster
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blister:
a swelling on your skin containing clear liquid, caused for example by a burn or continuous rubbing
New shoes always give me blisters.
Tasha signed a piece of paper which gave her a chance to win a free air plane ride. She put her name, address and telephone number on that piece of paper. A few days later she got a telephone call. It was the man that was holding the ticket draw. Tasha didn’t think she would win, but the man on the telephone said she did!
She listened as the man told her where she would have to go to get her free air plane ride. She had to go near the town of Grimsby. She was allowed to pick a friend to go with her on the air plane ride. Tasha was so happy! She asked her twin sister Tawnya to go with her. Tawnya was very excited! Neither of them had been on an air plane before.
When they got to the air plane centre, Tasha and Tawnya were nervous. They knew the air plane was small so that meant only the pilot and them were going to be in the plane. Their mom took a picture of them beside the plane before they left.
Tasha and Tawnya hopped into the plane. They put their seatbelts on and got ready for take-off. Tasha got to sit in the very front, right beside the pilot. Tawnya sat behind Tasha. The girls laughed nervously as the plane started rolling down therunway. They went faster and faster, trees passing by quickly. There was a powerful surge making everyone’s head jerk back. The plane started lifting off the ground. Up, up, and away! They were up off the ground and flying high in the sky! It seemed as though they could get anywhere within a matter of seconds. They flew from Grimsby to Beamsville where they saw their high school. Then, on to St. Catharines and then Niagara Falls. They even flew over top of their house! They took pictures of their house. They could see their pond from way up there, too.
The pilot asked Tasha if she wanted to fly the plane. “Sure!” Tasha said. So, Tasha took the steering handle and began to fly the plane. She didn’t really know how to fly it, so when she pulled the handle down, the plane shot upward. Both of the girlssquealed. Tasha levelled the plane and flew smoothly from then on.
Soon it was time to go back to Grimsby. The pilot took over again. We bracedourselves as the landing strip got nearer. The landing went smoothly with Tasha and Tawnya beaming as they looked out at the ground. They hopped off of the plane, thanked the pilot and ran to tell their mom about their wonderful experience.
draw:
an occasion when someone or something is chosen by chance, especially the winning ticket in a lottery, or the teams who will play against each other in a competition
*England has been selected to play Germany in the draw for the first round of the World Cup.
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very:
used to emphasize an adjective, adverb, or phrase
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runway:
a long specially prepared hard surface like a road on which aircraft land and take off
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surge:
increase (probably in speed)
In this sentence, the surge would have been a sudden and great increase in speed, causing people’s heads to suddenly and powerfully jerk backwards.
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jerk:
to move with a quick sudden movement, or to make part of your body move in this way
Wilcox jerked his head to indicate that they should move on. ‘Is that the only way out of here?’ he asked, jerking a thumb at the door.
jerk back/up/forwards etc
Suddenly he jerked back in his chair.
The sound of the phone jerked me awake .
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steering:
the parts of a car, boat etc that allow you to control its direction
power steering
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squeal:
to make a long loud high sound or cry
ￚsee also scream
squeal with/in
The children squealed with delight.
They drove off, tyres squealing. ‘Let me go!’ she squealed.
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from then on:
starting at that time
They met in 1942 and from then on (=starting at that time) they were firm friends.
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brace:
to make your body or part of your body stiff in order to prepare to do something difficult
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landing strip:
a flat piece of ground that has been prepared for aircraft to use
ￚsynonym airstrip
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hop:
moves by making quick short jumps
The clouds were very gray. There was a loud boomthat came from the sky. A bolt oflightning struckdown a tree. All of a sudden buckets of rain came pouring down!
Jane and Bill were walking in a park when the rain started. Jane wanted to take pictures of the flowers, but the rain got her camera wet. She had to put it away so that it wouldn’t get ruined.
Jane was going to hide under a big tree to stay dry, but Bill told her that was not a safe idea. He said that she could get hurt if the lightning hit the tree. The tree could break and fall on her, or the lightning could even hit her!
The air was very chilly. Jane and Bill put on their sweaters and raincoats to keep warm. Jane took her umbrella out and put it up. They both walked under it to stay dry.
The ground was really wet and muddy. Bill and Jane were very glad that they remembered to wear their boots. They ran through the puddles, getting mud and water all over the back of their pants.
As they were running and having fun, they saw some ducks. There were five of them splashing around in a pond. The ducks were not afraid of water; they swim in the water all the time!
Jane and Bill saw some big bull frogs near the pond. The frogs jumped into the pond when they heard Jane and Bill coming.
After a little while Jane and Bill decided to go home. They got into some dryclothes. Jane started to sneeze. She had gotten a little bit too wet!
Bill noticed that the rain had stopped. “Look outside Jane,” he said. Jane wrapped a blanket around her shoulders and looked outside. There was a beautiful, bright rainbow across the sky Violet, blue, green, yellow, orange and red, the rainbow shone high in the sky. “I wonder if there’s a pot of gold on the other side?” Jane asked. She had once been told that Leprechauns lived on the other side handing out money to those that made it to the rainbow’s end.
Bill didn’t believe there was a pot of gold. Jane ignored Bill though and started offacross the field, to claim her big pot of money.
Let’s hope Jane finds her way back home, safe and sound, with a big pot of gold!
boom:
▶SOUND◀
[countable] a deep loud sound that you can hear for several seconds after it begins, especially the sound of an explosion or a large gun
the dull boom of the cannons
bolt of lightning
a bolt from the blue
lightning that appears as a white line in the sky
There’s not much left of his house after it was struck by a bolt of lightning .
struck
the past tense of strike
▶HIT◀
[transitive] written to hit or fall against the surface of something
She fell heavily, striking her head against the side of the boat. A snowball struck him on the back of the head. Several cars were struck by falling trees. The last rays of the setting sun struck the garden windows.
bucket:
also bucketful
the quantity of liquid that a bucket can hold
bucket of
a bucket of water
splashing:
if a liquid splashes, it hits or falls on something and makes a noise
splash against/on/over
The ocean splashed against the pier.
bull؟
pond:
a small area of fresh water that is smaller than a lake, that is either natural or artificially made
clothes
the things that people wear to cover their body or keep warm
I enjoy shopping for clothes and shoes.What sort of clothes was he wearing ? casual clothes put on/take off clothes She had a shower and put on clean clothes. change your clothes/change into clean/dry etc clothes The kids ran upstairs to change into dry clothes. work/school etc clothes men dressed in ordinary street clothesa clothes shop
wrap:
also wrap up
to put paper or cloth over something to cover it
wrap something in something
The present was beautifully wrapped in gold paper.
wrap something around somebody/something
Ella wrapped a thick coat around her shoulders.
He wrapped a bandage around my injured wrist.
I’ve still got a few Christmas presents to wrap up.
Leprechaun
an imaginary creature in the form of a little old man, in old Irish stories
though:?
start off: phrasal verb
to begin something in a particular way, or to begin in a particular way
start something ↔ off with something/by doing something
The theater company started off their new season with a Shakespeare play.
start off with something/by doing something
I started off by drawing the flowers I had collected the day before.
I go to Gainsborough Public Elementary School. I am in Grade 8. I am known as the “King/Queen” of the school this year. I feel very grown up. I love being the oldest kid in the school. My friends and I are told that we are examples to the younger kids in the school. That means we need to be good. I remember looking up to the grade eight kids when I was younger. I remember thinking how big and wise they seemed to be. Now that I’m in grade eight, I hope that the younger kids see me as wise.
I want to be a music teacher or maybe a nurse. My school counsellor helps me plan for high school. I am nervous because I know I will not feel like the “King” anymore. Things will be so different. I am excited because I will be meeting so many new people!
I am looking forward to my graduation. I will wear a pink, silky dress. My shoes are a light pink, too. My date’s name is Chad. He is very nice. He is a good friend. I have known Chad since I was a little girl.
I know that my future will be a bright one. I will miss all of my friends but I know we will see each other again someday.
example:
someone whose behaviour is very good and should be copied by others, or this type of behaviour
example to
Her courage is an example to us all.
Parents should set an example for their children.
I suggest you follow Rosie’s example (=copy her behaviour) and start doing regular exercise.
The team captain leads by example .
She’s a shining example (=a very good example) of what a mother should be.
grade:
▶SCHOOL YEAR◀
one of the 12 years that students are at school in the American school system, or the students in a particular year
second/eleventh etc grade My brother is in the sixth grade.a fifth-grade teacher
counsellor:
British English counselor American English
someone whose job is to help and support people with problems
Have you thought of seeing a counsellor? student/marriage guidance/stress etc counsellor
I am the middle child of the family.
I think it is nice in some ways.
I have an older sister from whom I can borrow clothes from, if she lets me.
I get to meet my older sister’s friends, although sometimes they think that I am too young to be with them.
I have a younger brother.
He is cute, but sometimes I have to baby-sit him.
There are good things and bad things about being the middle child.
My sister is the eldest child.
She was the first child, so she spent time alone with my parents.
She got lots of attention when she was first born.
They took lots and lots of pictures of her.
All her clothes and toys were brand new.
I got her hand-me-downs.
My parents were the strictest with her.
They had lots of rules for her to follow.
She is the first child, so they want her to be perfect.
My younger brother is the baby of the family.
I think that we all spoil him.
We let him get away with some things that he shouldn’t get away with.
His room is always messy, and my mother never gets mad about that.
She gets upset with me if my room is messy.
She tells me that I’m old enough to keep a nice clean room.
It’s no good thinking about which position you would like to hold in the family.
You really don’t have a choice about that.
I think I like being the middle child.
I can relate to my older sister and my younger brother.
Yes, I think the middle is probably a good place to be.
brand:?
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hand-me-down:
a piece of clothing which has been used by someone and then given to another person
She refused to wear hand-me-downs. hand-me-down clothes
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strict:
expecting people to obey rules or to do what you say
ￚopposite lenienta strict teacher
strict about
This company is very strict about punctuality.
strict with
The Stuarts are very strict with their children.
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spoil:
▶TREAT TOO KINDLY◀
[transitive] to give a child everything they want, or let them do whatever they want, often with the result that they behave badly
She’s an only child, but they didn’t really spoil her. His mother and sisters spoil him rotten (=spoil him very much) .
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get away:?
[h=1]Advice to a Student from a Foreign Country[/h]
My advice to a student from a foreign country would be to talk, talk, talk.
Talk as much as you can to the people who live in the place that you are visiting.
Talk to them and practice your new language skills.
Learn all the funny sayings and different words that make up their language.
Talking is the only way to really learn a language.
Listen to people and talk to people.
If you talk to people, you will also learn about their culture.
I have a friend from Japan.
His name is Nori.
He often comes to see me just so that he can practice his English.
He gets confused about words that sound the same, but mean different things.
He was asking me about the words “see” and “sea.”
I explained to him that they do sound the same, but they are spelled differently, and they mean different things.
Nori is learning some of our funny sayings from different people.
One morning I asked him how he was, and he said “alive and kicking.”
Another morning when I asked him how he was, he said “so so.”
He laughs about these strange sayings that we use.
He is learning English quickly because he spends a lot of time with English-speaking people.
He likes to have lunch with my friends and me because we ask him questions about his homeland, and he answers us in English.
If he doesn’t understand our questions, we spend time explaining what we mean to him.
He says that he enjoys being here.
He thinks that the people are very friendly.
We enjoy speaking to him and helping him to learn English.
We also enjoy learning about his country.
It is enjoyable for us to meet new people and learn about new things.
One dark and gloomy night, I was sitting in my bedroom reading ghost stories.
The stories were very scary.
A storm was brewing outside my window.
The wind began to howl, and the trees shook and bent in the wind.
Lightening started to flash across the sky.
I felt uneasy as I heard the low rumble of thunder.
I glanced around my room.
The shadows were deep and dark.
The ghost stories were making my imagination play tricks on me.
I thought that the shadows were moving.
I looked under my bed to make sure that nothing was under there.
I hid under the covers and peeked out.
I was starting to hear things.
A big streak of lightening flashed across the sky, and a loud clap of thunder made me jump.
I was very nervous.
All of a sudden, I heard a noise.
It was coming from my closet.
I thought that it must be a ghost.
I looked out from under my covers and waited for the ghost to appear.
My face was white, and I was very, very scared.
Then, I heard the noise again.
Yes, there was definitely a rustling in my closet.
I stayed very still and did not make a sound.
I watched the closet and hoped that the ghost would not come flying out at me.
Something started to come out of the closet.
I squeezed my eyes shut.
I didn’t dare to look at the ghost.
I heard it come out of the closet.
I felt it jump up on my bed.
I was still too scared to look.
Then the ghost made a noise.
It said, “meow.”
I opened my eyes and saw my kitten standing there.
It was my kitten that had made the rustling noises in the closet.
I laughed and felt very foolish.
I have decided not to read ghost stories on dark stormy nights.
I think my imagination plays tricks on me when I read ghost stories on nights like that.
