номер 1, страница 20 - гдз по английскому языку 5-11 класс учебник Latham-Koenig, Oxenden

1 READING & SPEAKING

a 2.10 A recent Oxford Dictionaries survey identified some of the most commonly misspelt English words. Listen and write the missing words. How many did you spell correctly? Why do you think the words are often misspelt?

1 The hotel can ____________ 250 guests.

2 ____________ do you prefer, coffee or tea?

3 We ____________ a very warm welcome.

4 I won't leave ____________ she gets here.

5 Something unexpected ____________ on their journey.

6 I saw her on three ____________ occasions.

7 The ____________ is planning to raise taxes.

8 We'll ____________ be there by 7.00.

b

How much do you know about the English language? Answer the questions with a partner.

1 What two other languages have had the strongest influence on English?

2 How many letters are there in the English alphabet?

3 How many different sounds are there in English?

4 Which has changed more over the years, English pronunciation or English spelling?

5 Do children in English-speaking countries learn to read more quickly or more slowly than children elsewhere?

c

Read the information from the website of the English Spelling Society. Check your answers to b. Then answer the questions.

1 What is the Society trying to do?

2 What's the knock-on effect on children's education if it takes them a long time to learn to read and write?

3 What does the website say is the best way to teach children to read and write in English?

4 What effect does low literacy have on adult offenders?

d

Look at a quote from Masha Bell, of the English Spelling Society. Underline all the examples of simplified spelling. Do you find it easy to read?

If u hav a por memory, yor chances of becumming a good speller ar lo. But wors stil, yor chances of lerning to read ar not good either, because of nonsens like 'cow-crow, dream-dreamt, friend-fiend' and hundreds mor like them.

e

Do you agree that English spelling should be simplified? Do you think the English Spelling Society could ever succeed in its aim? Why (not)?

Improving English Spelling

English spelling is broken. Let's fix it!

English spelling is broken. There are countless examples, such as comb, bomb, and tomb, or height and weight. The English Spelling Society exists to repair our broken spelling. The Society is working on a way to simplify current English spelling in order to improve access to literacy.

Why English spelling is exceptionally irregular

English as a language is relatively simple to learn. But its spelling system is possibly the most irregular of those based on an alphabet. Not only is it hard to predict the spelling from the pronunciation, but it is not always possible to predict the pronunciation from the spelling, for example, thorough.

English words derive mainly from old German and Norman French, and its alphabet of 26 letters makes it impossible to represent each of its 46 speech sounds with just one symbol. But that is not the only reason why many English spellings are irregular. In other languages, as pronunciation changed, the spelling changed too. However, in spite of the many ways in which English pronunciation has evolved over the centuries, words have often maintained their original spelling, which reflects the original pronunciation, but not how many words are pronounced today. For example, blood /blʌd/ used to be pronounced to rhyme with good /gʊd/.

The economic and social costs of English spelling

• Children in English-speaking countries take almost twice as long to learn to read and write compared to children in other countries. A longer time needed for learning to read and write means less time for other subjects.

• There has been much expensive research into how to teach reading and writing in Anglophone countries, but there is no standard method, and much disagreement, about how best to teach English literacy.

• Education is the proven best way to prevent criminals from reoffending. In countries where the literacy rates of prisoners are generally higher, improving their education while behind bars is also much easier. The poor literacy skills of many English-speaking offenders make this more difficult, and repeated returns to jail more likely.

a Прослушайте и напишите пропущенные слова. Сколько слов вы написали правильно? Как вы думаете, почему в этих словах часто делают ошибки?

Ответ:

Для ответа на вопрос недостаточно данных.

b Как много вы знаете об английском языке? Ответьте на вопросы с партнером.

Ответ:

1 What two other languages have had the strongest influence on English?

Old German and Norman French.

Какие два других языка оказали сильнейшее влияние на английский?

Древнегерманский и нормандский французский.

2 How many letters are there in the English alphabet?

There are 26 letters.

Сколько букв в английском алфавите?

26 букв.

3 How many different sounds are there in English?

There are 46 different sounds.

Сколько различных звуков в английском языке?

46 различных звуков.

4 Which has changed more over the years, English pronunciation or English spelling?

English pronunciation has changed more.

Что изменилось больше за эти годы, английское произношение или английская орфография?

Английское произношение изменилось больше.

5 Do children in English-speaking countries learn to read more quickly or more slowly than children elsewhere?

They learn to read more slowly.

Дети в англоязычных странах учатся читать быстрее или медленнее, чем дети в других странах?

Они учатся читать медленнее.

c Прочитайте информацию с сайта Общества английской орфографии. Проверьте свои ответы на задание b. Затем ответьте на вопросы.

Ответ:

1 What is the Society trying to do?

The Society is trying to simplify current English spelling to improve access to literacy.

Что пытается сделать Общество?

Общество пытается упростить современную английскую орфографию, чтобы улучшить доступ к грамотности.

2 What's the knock-on effect on children's education if it takes them a long time to learn to read and write?

It means they have less time for other subjects.

Каков побочный эффект для образования детей, если им требуется много времени, чтобы научиться читать и писать?

Это означает, что у них остается меньше времени на другие предметы.

3 What does the website say is the best way to teach children to read and write in English?

The website says that there is no standard method and much disagreement about the best way to teach it.

Что, по мнению сайта, является лучшим способом научить детей читать и писать по-английски?

На сайте говорится, что не существует стандартного метода и есть много разногласий относительно лучшего способа обучения.

4 What effect does low literacy have on adult offenders?

It makes repeated returns to jail more likely.

Какой эффект низкий уровень грамотности оказывает на взрослых правонарушителей?

Это делает более вероятными их повторные возвращения в тюрьму.

d Посмотрите на цитату Маши Белл из Общества английской орфографии. Подчеркните все примеры упрощенного правописания. Вам легко это читать?

Ответ:

The simplified spellings are: u, hav, por, yor, becumming, speller, ar, lo, wors, stil, lerning.

Yes, I find it quite easy to read. It looks like text messages.

Примеры упрощенного правописания: u, hav, por, yor, becumming, speller, ar, lo, wors, stil, lerning.

Да, мне довольно легко это читать. Похоже на текстовые сообщения.

e Согласны ли вы с тем, что английскую орфографию следует упростить? Как вы думаете, сможет ли Общество английской орфографии когда-нибудь добиться своей цели? Почему (нет)?

Ответ:

Yes, I agree that English spelling should be simplified. It would make learning much easier for everyone. I don't think the Society will succeed soon because people are used to the current spelling and changing it would be very difficult and require changing millions of books and signs.

Да, я согласен, что английскую орфографию следует упростить. Это бы значительно облегчило обучение для всех. Я не думаю, что Общество скоро добьется успеха, потому что люди привыкли к текущей орфографии, и изменить ее было бы очень сложно и потребовало бы изменения миллионов книг и вывесок.