Complete the passage below by filling the gaps with the correct forms of thewords in a box below.

NOTE not all of these words are used; some words are used more than once.

attend attain continue do enhance get go to graduate learn leave offer public state study take go start get

Like most children in England, Christine ____________ school when she was five.

She _______________ to St John’s Junior School in Clapham, London, which was a _________ school i.e. it was run by the government. Later she ____________ to a state secondary school nearby.

A lot of her friends __________ school when they were sixteen and found jobs, but Christine wanted to _________ university so she stayed on in the sixth form. She ____________ good grades in her ‘A’ level exams and was _____________ a place at London University, where she ______________ English.

She _______________ in 1998, when she was 21.

After _____________ university she found a secretarial job with a travel company. However, she decided that she really wanted to be a teacher, so she __________ a Bachelor of Education course part-time while she was working. She ____________ a lot about teaching methodology and child psychology, which she found very interesting.

 

A/An/The, No article

1. Use a/an when you mention somebody/something for the first time or say who/what somebody/something is. Use the when it’s clear who/what somebody/something is (e.g. it has been mentioned before or it’s unique).

2. Don’t use an article to speak in general with plural and uncountable nouns, or in phrases like at home/work, go home/to bed, next/last week etc.

Institutions (church, hospital, school etc.)

 

My father’s in hospital. They are building a new hospital in my town.

· With prison, church, school, hospital and university etc. don’t use an article when you are thinking about the institution and the normal purpose it is used it for. If you are just thinking about building, use a or the.

Geographical names

· We don’t normally use the with:

1. Most countries, continents, regions ending with the name of a country/continent. E.g. North America, South East Asia, islands, states, provinces, towns and cities (exceptions: the USA, the UK/United Kingdom, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic).

2. roads, streets, parks, shops and restaurants (exceptions: motorways and numbered roads, the M6, the A25).

3. individual mountains and lakes.

· We normally use the with:

4. mountain ranges, rivers, seas, canals, deserts, and island groups.

5. theatres, cinemas, hotels, galleries, and museums.

 

EXERCISES

1. Fill in with articles a or the

Student’s Life

It’s great to be ______ student. Many colleges and universities offer great opportunities for studying and for social life. Some students even choose to study abroad. There are several reasons why student life is exciting. First of all, students learn what they need for their future profession. It’s even better if ____ student really enjoys _______direction he or she chose. Secondly, being ____ student doesn’t mean to work and study all _____ time. They get plenty of free time for their hobbies and favourite pastimes. Thirdly, students’ social life is very interesting. When students decide to study in foreign colleges, it’s also rather exciting. They get to meet lots of new people from other countries. They can practice and improve their language skills. To study at_____college students usually have to pay additional fee. College life is amazing in many ways. First of all, there are many interesting lections and training sessions. Secondly, students find all sorts of entertainment there. For example, ____ ones who like sport join the local sports teams. For many people college years are _____best in life. Almost everyone has good memories of student life. It is even more interesting to be ____student if you live in a dormitory. After ____ sessions they can play the guitar and sing songs. ____ones, who like dancing, go to local discos. Others get together simply to chat and discuss _____ topics they’ve learned. Student life is never boring. It is always full of excitement and interesting experiences.

 

1. Write a short story about your student life by using articles and following phrases and collocations:

social life do research do a course get a degree/diploma free time activities academic year 21^st-century to meet new people to join the local sports teams

Pre-listening Activities