Now use these words, which relate to the later years of life.

old age

retirement

marriage

middle age

5. My first …. unfortunately only lasted a couple of years.

6. Now that I am over 40, I can feel … approaching.

7. I want to stop work when I am 60 and have a long and happy ….

8. In his … my father wrote a book about his wartime experience.

When I get old.

Match the beginnings of these sentences with the endings below:

1. I don’t want to go to university

2. I’m going to spend more time with my grandchildren

3. Will you still love me

4. We won’t be able to go out as much

5. At least we’ll have some peace and quiet

 

a. when the kids grow up and leave home.

b. when I am old and grey?

c. when I leave school.

d. when I retire.

e. when we have children.

Important events in people’s life.

Match the verbs with the words on the right:

1. leave	a. your wife / your father
1. get	b. schools/ jobs / your career
2. change	c. a baby/children
3. have	d. engaged / married/ divorced
4. move	e. school / home
5. lose	f. house

4. Quickly read through the story to guess the identity of the speaker. Then answer the questions to check your guess.

 

 

I lived a long time ago, but I had a very exciting life, you know. I was the James Bond of the eighteenth century. In fact, his character must have been based on me. Let me tell you something about myself.

I was born in Venice in 1725. My father, Gaetano, and my mother, Zanetta, were actors, which is probably why I am so theatrical. They spent their lives travelling around Europe and left me in the care of my grandmother. When I was nine, I was sent to study under Dr. Gozzi, in Padua. I was an excellent student and received my doctorate at just seventeen years old. Naturally, I thought I would have a career in the Church, but destiny had other plans for me. My three weaknesses: wine, women and gambling, were a constant source of trouble for me. A scandal forced me to leave Rome, where I was working as a secretary for Cardinal Acquaviva.

I travelled around Italy, finally settling back in Venice in 1764. I worked for a while as a violinist in the San Samuele Theatre and during that time I made friends with some very powerful people.

In 1749, I was busy enjoying the good life when I met the love of my life. She was a Frenchwoman called Henriette. The months we spent together were the happiest days of my life, and when she left me to return to France she took my heart with her.

I had to make a fresh start so I went to Lyons, where I became a Freemason. I met and made friends with some more powerful people. I was under suspicion from the Inquisition for my conduct and so had to travel very frequently and I needed places to stay. I moved to Paris, then Dresden, Prague, Vienna, and once again back to Venice. I did some writing and some translation but in 1755 my luck ran out. I was arrested and denounced as a magician. It sounds rather comical now but it wasn’t at the time; I was sentenced to five years in prison, although I managed to escape after one year and fled to Paris. Once there, I introduced the Lottery, a move that made me a millionaire. However, I was a gambler and when I had spent all of my money, I borrowed some from other people. When they wanted it back, I ran away to England, Germany and then Spain.

In 1787 I met Mozart in Prague and attended the first performance of the opera Don Giovanni, which was marvellous. Of course, by this time I was an old man working as a librarian in the Bohemian castle of Dux (now in the Czech Republic), with just my memories to keep me company until my death in 1798.

You probably aren’t interested to know that I translated Homer’s Iliad into Italian verse, or that I wrote a number of other literary works. No, you’re no doubt more interested in my love life; everyone else is. Well, I wrote all about that in my autobiography, which is called The Story of My Life. Do you have any idea who I am yet?

2. Answer the questions. Write the answers in the crossword to reveal my name.

 

1. My father’s name (6)

2. Where I came from (6)

3. My mother’s name (7)

4. I was convinced that I would have a career in the ______ (6)

5. The profession of my parents (6)

6. Who did I meet in Prague? (6)

7. I should have spent five years here but I only stayed for one (6)

8. This forced me to leave Rome (7)

9. I translated this famous story from Greek into Italian (5)

10. I became one of these in Lyons (9)

11. The love of my life was from this country (6)

12. What was the name of my true love? (9)

13. What did I start up in Paris? (7)

14. Which musical instrument did I play? (6)

15. What was my last job? (9)

 

Lesson 2.

 

Basic Vocabulary

Your immediate family: your mother, father, brothers and sisters, or, if you are married, your husband, wife and your sons and daughters.

Your relatives or your relations: all your immediate family plus your grandparents, great-grandparents, uncles, aunts and cousins.

Use these words below:

aunt	grandfather	grandson
uncle	grandmother	nephew
niece	granddaughters	cousins

1. Your parents’ parents are your …. and your ….

2. Your father’s brother and sister are your … and ….

3. Your aunt’s and uncle’s children are your …..

4. Your brother’s son and daughter are your … and your …..

5. Your children’s children are your … and your ….

Relations and relatives are two words for the same people.

In laws.

Your in-laws are your husband’s or wife’s family or your children’s husbands and wives. Look at this family tree and put names to the relations:

 

1. Nigel’s mother-in-law ____________

2. His father-in-law ____________

3. His brother-in-law ____________

4. His sister-in-law ____________

5. His son-in-law _____________

6. His daughter-in-law _____________

Different types of family

Look at the following short texts and find an example of:

a. a nuclear family

b. an extended family

c. a single-parent family

d. a couple who adopted a child

e. a couple with no children

1. We’re married with three kids. Our eldest son, Simon, has just started secondary school, our daughter, Lisa, is eight and our youngest son, Luke, is only five.

2. We’ve only been married for a year. We’re not planning to start a family just yet.

3. I’m single mum. I bring up my son Josh on my own. Josh doesn’t mind being an only child but I think he’d like a brother or sister one day.

4. We share the house with my mother and father and my wife’s sister and her kids. Everyone helps to look after all the children.

5. We couldn’t have children of our own so we decided that adoption was the only answer. Lily came to live with us two years ago. She seems very happy at the moment but we realise that she might want to find her real mother one day.

You can say single mother, single father, single mum, single dad or a single-parent family.

Match the beginnings and endings of the sentences below:

1. We’re not planning to start

2. They help us take care of

3. We adopted

4. We share

5. She might want to find

 

a. the house with my wife’s family.

b. a baby from China.

c. her real mother one day.

d. the children.

e. a family just yet.

4. Expressions with “family”

Complete the following sentences with the words and phrases below:

the whole family

a very close family

a big family

family tree

a big family reunion

1. I come from ……... I’ve got four brothers and two sisters.

2. We’re ……………….. We see each other almost every day and if ever I’m in trouble, I know I can turn to one of them for help.

3. It’s my son’s eighteenth birthday next week. We’re hoping to get ……….. together.

4. My wife and I are celebrating our 40^th wedding anniversary soon. We’re planning to have …...

5. When I was researching my ………, I found out that my great-great-grandfather came over to England from Ireland 120 years ago.

It runs in the family

Complete the following expressions with the verbs below:

tell

looks

runs

got

takes

a. She …. Just like her mother.

b. She’s … her father’s nose.

c. He … after his father.

d. It …. In the family.

e. You can’t … them apart.

Now use the expressions to complete the following sentences:

1. John’s got a terrible temper. He ……………...

2. You can see that Jane is Mary’s daughter. She ……………..

3. All my brothers and sisters are good at sport. It …….

4. You can see that little Rebecca is a Smith. ……………….

5. We’ve got identical twins in my class at school. ………….

 

7. Read the text below. For questions (1-5) choose the correct answer (A,B, C or D).

British Family Today

The model of a traditional British family – with a working father and a housewife raising two children – has changed greatly over the past 20 years.

The biggest change has been caused by the growing divorce rate. As many as two out of three marriages now end in separation, which brings about the situation where many children live with one parent and only see the other at weekends or holidays.

The number of working mothers has also increased. The large rise in divorces has meant many women need to work to support themselves and their children. But even when there is no divorce, many families need both parents to work in order to survive. This has caused an increase in childcare facilities, though they are very expensive and can be difficult to find in many areas. Besides, women are no longer happy to stay at home bringing up children, and many make careers earning as much as or even more than men. However, these changes have not had a totally negative effect. For women, it is now much easier to have a job and good salary. Although It is difficult to be a working mother, it has become normal and it’s no longer seen as a bad thing for children. As for children themselves, some people argue that modern children grow up to be more independent and mature than in the past. From an early age they have to go to nurseries, and so they are used to social behaviour and dealing with new people.

So, in spite of the fact that the traditional picture of a family may no longer be true in modern Britain, the contemporary family continues to raise happy, successful children.

1. According to the author, the traditional British family ……..

A. means a working father and a housewife mother.

B. means a working father and mother.

C. has never existed

D. has changed over the past 20 years.

2. Nowadays ________ marriages end in divorce.

A. two out of three

B. one out of three

C. three out of three

D. two out of four

3. What are modern children like?

A. They are more outgoing and bright than children were in the past.

B. They are more polite and childish than children were in the past.

C. They are more dependant from adults than children were in the past.

D. They are more independent and mature than children were in the past.

4. At nurseries children used to ________

A. behave in a community.

B. behave well.

C. behave independently.

D. be nice to strangers.

5. The result of the increasing number of divorces is that _________

A. many children help their mothers to earn money.

B. many men need to change work to support themselves and their children.

C. many women have to work to support themselves and their children.

D. many women have to change occupation to support themselves and their children.

 

Lesson 3.

 

Basic Vocabulary.

Translate the following words into your language:

1. engaged ….

2. wedding …

3. married …

4. marriage …

5. wife …

6. husband …

7. divorce …

8. divorced ….

 

Getting engaged.

Use the correct form of these words and expressions:

get engaged

arrange

propose to

ask

set a date

1. I’ve got some news. I’m really excited. Mark … me to marry him last night. I said yes!

2. I remember the day my husband … me. We were on holiday in Greece. It was very romantic.

3. - Have you heard? Martin and Lisa have just …. They’re planning to get married next year. - Really? That’s fantastic. Have they …?

4. In some countries parents … their children’s marriages. They look for a suitable partner for their son or daughter to marry.

Do you know that …

The man you are engaged to is your fiancé. The woman you are engaged to is your fiancée. Nowadays these words are less common.

Before wedding