- •The russian federation
- •Exercises:
- •I. Read the following words:
- •II. Find the sentences in the text proving that:
- •III. Complete the following sentences:
- •IV. Pronounce the following words in English and make up sentences with them:
- •V. Paraphrase the sentences:
- •VI. Make up questions to the underlined words:
- •VII. Fill in the crossword:
- •VIII. Answer the questions:
- •IX. Read the text about the climate in Russia and answer the questions after it:
- •X. Tell what you learned about the Russian Federation. Moscow
- •Exercises:
- •I. Read the following words:
- •II. Define whether the sentences below are true or false. Begin your answers with the following expressions:
- •III. Complete the sentences:
- •IV. Find English equivalents of the following words and make up sentences with them:
- •V. Use the Passive Voice constructions in the following sentences:
- •VI. Put questions to the underlined words:
- •VII. Answer the questions:
- •VIII. Read the following texts:
- •Notes to the text:
- •Notes to the text
- •IX. Answer the questions. Use exercise VIII.
- •X. Tell everything you learned from the text about the capital of Russia.
- •XI. Read the text about one of the largest and most beautiful Russian cities and answer the questions after the text. St. Petersburg
- •Vocabulary
- •Reviewing the material on the topics: "English-speaking countries” "Cities" (London, Washington, Moscow) "The Russian Federation"
- •I. Answer the following question:
- •II. Fill in the missing words:
The russian federation
T
The Russian National flag of white, blue and red colours has
originated since 1668. These are the most preferable traditional
colours of the Russian nation symbolizing: white – the faith, the
tsar and the motherland; blue – the sky, chastity, loyalty; red –
courage, war, heroism, generosity, blood, fire, self-sacrifice.
There is hardly a country in the world where such a variety of scenery and vegetation can be found. We have steppes in the south, plains and forests in the midland, tundra and taiga in the north, highlands and deserts in the east.
There are two great plains in Russia: the Great Russian Plain and the West Siberian Lowland. There are several mountain chains on the territory of the country: the Urals, the Caucasus, the Altai and others. The largest mountain chain, the Urals, separates Europe from Asia.
There are over two million rivers in Russia. Europe's biggest river, the Volga, flows into the Caspian Sea. The main Siberian rivers (the Ob, the Yenisei and the Lena) flow from the south to the north. The Amur in the Far East flows into the Pacific Ocean.
Russia is rich in beautiful lakes. The world’s deepest lake (1,600 metres) is Lake Baikal. It is much smaller than the Baltic Sea, but there is much more water in it than in the Baltic Sea.
The water in the lake is so clear that if you look down you can count the stones on the bottom.
Russia has one sixth of the world’s forests. They are concentrated in the European north of the country, in Siberia and in the Far East.
On the vast territory of the country there are various types of climate. It varies from arctic in the north to subtropical in the south. In the middle of the country the climate is temperate and continental.
Russia is very rich in oil, coal, iron ore, natural gas, copper, nickel and other mineral resources.
Russia is a parliamentary republic. Under the Constitution, the federal government is divided into three branches, each chosen in a different manner, each able to chock and balance the others.
The Executive Branch is headed by the President who is chosen in nation-wide elections every four years. Besides, the Executive Branch is represented by the Cabinet of Ministers headed by the Prime Minister.
The Legislative Branch is made up of two chambers: the Duma and the Council of Federation. Both chambers must approve a bill for it to become law, but the President may veto it. If so, the bill is reconsidered by the two Chambers and if two-thirds of their members approve it, the bill becomes law even without the President's signature.
The Judicial Branch comprises Federal District Courts, the Constitutional Court and, at the top, the Supreme Court.
The capital of Russia is Moscow. It is its largest political, scientific, cultural and industrial centre. It is one of the oldest Russian cities.
At present, the political and economic situation in the country is rather complicated. There are a lot of problems in the national economy of the Russian Federation. The industrial production is decreasing. The prices are constantly rising, the rate of inflation is very high. People are losing their jobs because many factories and plants are going bankrupt.
But in spite of the problems Russia is facing at present, there are a lot of opportunities for this country to become one of the leading countries in the world. I'm sure that we, the younger generation, can do very much to make Russia as strong and powerful as it used to be.
NAMES
the Russian Federation [fFdq'reISqn] Российская Федерация
Europe ['juqrqp] Европа
Asia ['eISq] Азия
the Pacific Ocean [pq'sIfIk 'quSqn] Тихий океан
the Arctic Ocean ['RktIk 'quSqn] Северный Ледовитый океан
the Atlantic Ocean [qt'lxntIk 'quSqn] Атлантический океан
China ['CaInq] Китай
Mongolia [mON'gqulIq] Монголия
Korea [kq'rIq] Корея
Kazakhstan [kRzqk'stRn] Казахстан
Georgia ['GLGIq] Грузия
Azerbaijan [RzqbaI'GRn] Азербайджан
Norway ['nLweI] Норвегия
Finland ['fInlqnd] Финляндия
the Baltic States ['bLltIk] Прибалтийские государства
Belarus [belq'rus] Беларусь
the Ukraine [jH'kreIn] Украина
the Great Russian Plain Русская (Восточно-Европейская) равнина
the West Siberian lowland [saI'bIqrIqn] Западно-Сибирская низменность
the Urals ['juqrqlz] Уральские горы
the Caucasus ['kLkqsqs] Кавказ
the Altai [Al'taI] Алтай
the Volga ['vOlgq] Волга
the Caspian Sea ['kxspIqn] Каспийское Море
the Ob [Lpj] Обь
the Yenisei [jenI'seI] Енисей
the Amur [R'muq] Амур
Lake Baikal [baI'kRl] озеро Байкал
the Baltic sea ['bLltIk] Балтийское море
Siberia [saI'bI(q)rIq] Сибирь
the Far East ['fRr'Jst] Дальний Восток