Reading Comprehension 11 (II term)

Read an article about the giant concrete arrows that have been found in the USA. Match sentences A–G with gaps 1–5. There are two extra sentences.

Follow the arrow

If you have even been inside the cockpit of a plane, you will have noticed the large number of instruments on the walls and ceiling around the pilot’s seat. Many of these buttons, dials and screens are used in navigation. Unlike car drivers, pilots do not have the luxury of signs and arrows telling them where to go. 1___ So how were pilots able to find their way in the days before radio and satellite communication?

In the USA, the problem of navigation first arose when the airmail postal service was introduced in 1911. In the beginning, huge bonfires were lit to show pilots where to land in the dark. Later, a more practical solution was found: the construction of giant concrete arrows on the ground. The arrows were 21 m long and painted bright yellow. 2___ The top light turned around to attract the pilot’s attention, and two others lit up the arrow and flashed a code to identify its location.

The first of these arrows was laid in 1924, and by 1929, there were around 1,500 of them. They formed an illuminated path for airmail pilots stretching from New York to San Francisco. 3___ But by the 1940s, new navigation techniques were being discovered and soon, the arrows and their towers were no longer needed. They were gradually abandoned and some of them were removed completely.

However, not all of the arrows have disappeared. In the state of Montana, they are still used for guiding pilots through the mountains. 4___ Yet either because of their size or due to their bad condition, the arrows are not easy to find. In many cases, if you want to see one, it is a question of knowing where to look.

Which is where retired couple Brian and Charlotte Smith can help. The two are devoted fans of the arrows and spend much of their time hunting them down. So far, they have located more than a hundred of them. 5___ Their aim is to preserve the memory of these historical structures and prevent them from being lost forever.

When the bell rang, the children........ into the classroom and ......their seats.

By the time we......., the party.......

When l ......to the playground my friend....... already......so l .........him that day.

When we........, the sun......

While my friend............, I ...........the birds.

She.......that she......a good sightseeing tour around London.

Yesterday l .......a letter from my friend, from whom l.....not......for a long time.

Many years ago people...... funny clothes.

He ........ he .......up the story himself.

When I opened the door Max __________ a funny story.

Father __________ a new bike for his son yesterday.

I thougt she was the most smart girl I _______ ever ______.

Ann .... to London twice.

Tom ......here since 2012.

Alice.....all morning.

Emily isn't here.She....just....

I have been on holiday ....last Sunday.

Have you...travelled abroad?

Susan......English for three years.

Task: Read the text and choose the best variant (a, b, с or d) to answer the questions.

On July 4, 1776, a group of rebels representing the Thirteen British colonies on the Atlantic ocean coast in North America signed a document. It stated that these colonies had the right to be free and independent. The document is known as the Declaration of Independence. July 4 is celebrated by Americans as a national holiday — Independence Day.

There is a building in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, which is called Independence Hall. Here the Declaration was signed. On the building there is a famous Liberty Bell, which rang to tell the happy people in the streets that a new country had been born. But Britain did not agree with this fact until 1783. That year the American colonists won in the war of Independence with Britain.

June 14 is Flag Day in the USA. On that day in 1777 the Americans adopted their own flag.

The stars in the flag — white on a deep blue background — represent the numbers of states making up the United States.

Americans think about and treat their flag with respect. In American schools the Flag day begins with solemn ceremony of raising the flag.

1.  When was the Declaration of Independence signed?

Task: Read the text and choose the best variant (a, b, с or d) to answer the questions.

On July 4, 1776, a group of rebels representing the Thirteen British colonies on the Atlantic ocean coast in North America signed a document. It stated that these colonies had the right to be free and independent. The document is known as the Declaration of Independence. July 4 is celebrated by Americans as a national holiday — Independence Day.

There is a building in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, which is called Independence Hall. Here the Declaration was signed. On the building there is a famous Liberty Bell, which rang to tell the happy people in the streets that a new country had been born. But Britain did not agree with this fact until 1783. That year the American colonists won in the war of Independence with Britain.

June 14 is Flag Day in the USA. On that day in 1777 the Americans adopted their own flag.

The stars in the flag — white on a deep blue background — represent the numbers of states making up the United States.

Americans think about and treat their flag with respect. In American schools the Flag day begins with solemn ceremony of raising the flag.

 2. How many British colonies signed the document?

Task: Read the text and choose the best variant (a, b, с or d) to answer the questions.

On July 4, 1776, a group of rebels representing the Thirteen British colonies on the Atlantic ocean coast in North America signed a document. It stated that these colonies had the right to be free and independent. The document is known as the Declaration of Independence. July 4 is celebrated by Americans as a national holiday — Independence Day.

There is a building in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, which is called Independence Hall. Here the Declaration was signed. On the building there is a famous Liberty Bell, which rang to tell the happy people in the streets that a new country had been born. But Britain did not agree with this fact until 1783. That year the American colonists won in the war of Independence with Britain.

June 14 is Flag Day in the USA. On that day in 1777 the Americans adopted their own flag.

The stars in the flag — white on a deep blue background — represent the numbers of states making up the United States.

Americans think about and treat their flag with respect. In American schools the Flag day begins with solemn ceremony of raising the flag.

3. What is celebrated in the US A on July 4?

Task: Read the text and choose the best variant (a, b, с or d) to answer the questions.

On July 4, 1776, a group of rebels representing the Thirteen British colonies on the Atlantic ocean coast in North America signed a document. It stated that these colonies had the right to be free and independent. The document is known as the Declaration of Independence. July 4 is celebrated by Americans as a national holiday — Independence Day.

There is a building in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, which is called Independence Hall. Here the Declaration was signed. On the building there is a famous Liberty Bell, which rang to tell the happy people in the streets that a new country had been born. But Britain did not agree with this fact until 1783. That year the American colonists won in the war of Independence with Britain.

June 14 is Flag Day in the USA. On that day in 1777 the Americans adopted their own flag.

The stars in the flag — white on a deep blue background — represent the numbers of states making up the United States.

Americans think about and treat their flag with respect. In American schools the Flag day begins with solemn ceremony of raising the flag.

4. When did the famous Liberty Bell ring?

Task: Read the text and choose the best variant (a, b, с or d) to answer the questions.

On July 4, 1776, a group of rebels representing the Thirteen British colonies on the Atlantic ocean coast in North America signed a document. It stated that these colonies had the right to be free and independent. The document is known as the Declaration of Independence. July 4 is celebrated by Americans as a national holiday — Independence Day.

There is a building in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, which is called Independence Hall. Here the Declaration was signed. On the building there is a famous Liberty Bell, which rang to tell the happy people in the streets that a new country had been born. But Britain did not agree with this fact until 1783. That year the American colonists won in the war of Independence with Britain.

June 14 is Flag Day in the USA. On that day in 1777 the Americans adopted their own flag.

The stars in the flag — white on a deep blue background — represent the numbers of states making up the United States.

Americans think about and treat their flag with respect. In American schools the Flag day begins with solemn ceremony of raising the flag.

5. How does Flag Day begin in the USA?

Task: Read the text and choose the best variant (a, b, с or d) to answer the questions.

On July 4, 1776, a group of rebels representing the Thirteen British colonies on the Atlantic ocean coast in North America signed a document. It stated that these colonies had the right to be free and independent. The document is known as the Declaration of Independence. July 4 is celebrated by Americans as a national holiday — Independence Day.

There is a building in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, which is called Independence Hall. Here the Declaration was signed. On the building there is a famous Liberty Bell, which rang to tell the happy people in the streets that a new country had been born. But Britain did not agree with this fact until 1783. That year the American colonists won in the war of Independence with Britain.

June 14 is Flag Day in the USA. On that day in 1777 the Americans adopted their own flag.

The stars in the flag — white on a deep blue background — represent the numbers of states making up the United States.

Americans think about and treat their flag with respect. In American schools the Flag day begins with solemn ceremony of raising the flag.

6. What did American colonists struggle with in the War of Independence?