Thanksgiving Day

Text: Thanksgiving Day

«The ship is sailing»

The ship is sailing
The flag is waving
Hello! New Land!

Hello! New Land!

The sun is shining,
And we are smiling.

1. Read and translate the text.

Thanksgiving Day

There is one day a year when all Americans stay home with their families and eat a big dinner. This is Thanksgiving Day. The pilgrims celebrated the first Thanksgiving Day in the fall of 1621.

The pilgrims sailed to America from Plymouth, England, in September, 1620.They came to America for religious freedom. They were among the first European settlers in America. The name of their ship was the "Mayflower». They landed at Plymouth Rock, in what is now the state of Massachusetts in December, 1620.

There were people living in America before the pilgrims arrived. These people were the Native American Indians. The Indians began settling in America about 25,000 years ago. They hunted, fished, and farmed to survive. There were many groups, or tribes, and each had its own customs and beliefs.

The pilgrims’ first winter in the New World was very difficult. They had arrived too late to grow many crops. Without fresh food, half of the pilgrims died. The following spring the Indians taught the pilgrims how to hunt, fish, plant and survive in America. The crops did well and in the fall of 1621 the pilgrims had a great harvest. They were thankful and decided to celebrate with a Thanksgiving feast. They prepared a dinner of turkey, corn, beans and pumpkins. They invited their Indian friends to share this feast. The Indians brought food for the feast too (they even brought popcorn!) Americans still celebrate Thanksgiving Day in the fall. It is celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November. Turkey is still the main dish and pumpkin pie is the most popular dessert.

Vocabulary

Thanksgiving Day – День Благодарения

fall - осень

settlers - поселенцы

to land - высаживаться

to settle - поселиться

to hunt – охотиться

to fish – ловить рыбу

to farm - обрабатывать землю

to survive - выживать

tribe - племя

custom - обычай

belief - вера

crops - урожай

harvest - урожай

feast – праздник, пир

pumpkin - тыква

dish - блюдо

dessert - десерт

1. Read and translate the text.

Thanksgiving symbols

Thanksgiving Day has different symbols. 

Cornucopia is the most common symbol of a harvest festival.

Cranberry is a symbol of thanksgiving. Pilgrims found out a way to sweeten the bitten cranberries with maple sugar. Since that time cranberry sauce is a permanent companion of turkey during thanksgiving feast.

Native Americans taught the pilgrims to grow corns, potatoes, beans. That's why they became symbols of Thanksgiving, too.

On Thanksgiving Day people decorate their homes with wreaths, fresh and dried flowers.

They also send pretty Thank You cards or beautiful Thanksgiving Day Gifts to people who had done something good for them.

Vocabulary

Cornucopia – рог изобилия

Cranberry – клюква

Thank You card- благодарственная открытка

1. Choose the right variant.

1) Thanksgiving Day is

a) a British holiday

b) a Russian holiday

c) an American holiday

  2) People celebrate Thanksgiving Day

a) in offices

b) in their houses

c) outdoors

3) When do Americans celebrate Thanksgiving Day?

a) on the fourth Thursday in November

b) on the fourth Tuesday in November

c) on the fourteenth of November

4)What is a symbol of Thanksgiving Day?

 a) eggs

 b) turkey

 c) hamburgers

5) People decorate their houses with

 a) the lights and balls

 b) the toys and sweets

 c) the fruit and flowers

6) What vegetables did Indians teach the Pilgrims to grow?

 a) tomatoes and cucumbers

 b) beans and potatoes

 c) peas and carrots

7) What berry is the symbol of Thanksgiving Day?

 a) strawberry

 b) cherry

 c) cranberry

8) When did the Pilgrims come to the new land?

 a) in 1621

 b) in 1620

 c) in 1720

9) What was the name of the Pilgrims' ship?

a) Santa Maria

b) Mayflower

c) Victoria

10) Will people go on Thanksgiving parade, if it is raining?

a) Of course, they will.

b) No, they won't.

c) They will go on the parade on another day.

1. Match words or phrases of similar meanings.

5. Circle the word that does not belong.

1. Circle the word that best completes each sentence.

1. On Thanksgiving some organizations prepare food for the needy and the (stores, faiths, elderly).

2. It is traditional to make turkey with (wreaths, feasts, stuffing) on Thanksgiving.

3. People of all (survive, faiths, harvests) celebrate this holiday.

4. The Pilgrims organized a (feast, wreath, faith) to celebrate that they were alive.

5. Thanksgiving is an (annual, observance, elderly) holiday celebrated by people of all faiths.

6. After the Indians taught the Pilgrims how to plant, they had a good (survival, harvest, wreath).

7. Congress decided to have a day of (annual, survival, observance) for Thanksgiving in 1941.

8. Thanks to the Indians, the Pilgrims learned to (feast, annual, survive).

9. It is traditional to decorate stores and homes with turkeys, Pilgrims, and (wreaths, stuffing, elderly) of dried flowers and plants.

7. Translate the following sentences into English.

1) День Благодарения - национальный американский праздник, который проводится в форме праздника урожая.

2) В надежде найти лучшую жизнь, они решили отправиться в Америку.

3) Пилигримы отправились на новый континент на корабле "Майский цветок".

4) Им пришлось пережить ужасную зиму.

5) Многие умерли от голода.

6) Но урожай следующего года был очень хорошим. 

7) На праздничный обед они пригласили также индейцев, которые помогли пилигримам пережить первую зиму.

8) Индейка и кукуруза были частью праздничного обеда.  

9) Сейчас день Благодарения является национальным праздником в Америке.

10) Рог изобилия, наполненный овощами и фруктами - обычный символ праздника урожая.

 11) Клюква также является символом Дня Благодарения.

12) Пилигримы научились делать клюквенное пюре, добавляя в ягоды кленовый сахар. 

13) Индейцы научили пилигримов выращивать картофель, кукурузу и бобы, которые также стали символом.

 14) В День Благодарения американцы украшают свои дома венками, свежими и засушенными цветами.

15) Они также посылают красивые благодарственные открытки или подарки людям, которые сделали что-либо хорошее для них.

1. Answer the questions.

1. When do Americans celebrate Thanksgiving Day?

2. Who helped the Pilgrims to survive?

3. What did the Indians teach the Pilgrims?

4. What was the name of the ship the Pilgrims arrived in America on?

5. Why did the Pilgrims come to America?

6. How long was the first Thanksgiving feast?

7. What do Americans have for Thanksgiving dinner?

8. What are the symbols of this holiday?

9. Do people in America work on Thanksgiving holiday?

10. When Thanksgiving Day was proclaimed a national day of observance?