Pronunciation. Practice the correct pronunciation of the following words: Rubens Amiens Hyppolita masterpiece occur luxury luggage

Practice the correct pronunciation of the following words:

Rubens Amiens Hyppolita

masterpiece occur luxury

luggage girdle bruise

Pre-reading activities:

1. Recall the myth about the Belt of Hyppolita. Find the main idea. What can you see in the picture below?

Eurystheus had a daughter Admete who wanted the belt of Hippolyta, a gift to the queen of the Amazons from the war god Ares. To please his daughter, Eurystheus ordered Hercules to retrieve the belt as his ninth labour.

Taking a band of friends with him, Hercules set sail, stopping at Themiscyra where Hippolyte lived. All would have gone well for Hercules, had it not been for Hera. Hippolyte, impressed with Hercules and his exploits, agreed to give him the belt. She would have done so, if Hera had not disguised herself and walked among the Amazons sowing seeds of distrust. She claimed the strangers were plotting to carry off the queen of the Amazons. Alarmed, the women set off on horseback to confront Hercules. When Hercules saw them, he thought Hippolyte had been plotting such treachery all along and had never meant to hand over the belt, so he killed her and took the belt, returning to Eurystheus.

2. The text is divided into four parts. Skim through the content of each chapter and tell the main idea. How would you head each part?

3. Write down the clue words of the story. Compare your clue words with those of your classmates. Discuss the differences and argue your choice.

Vocabulary:

1. Explain the following expressions: in broad daylight, to be on the alert, to kill two birds with one stone, on the outskirts of, like the conjuring trick, flashy piece of goods. Make up some sentences using these idioms so that their meaning would be clear in the context.

2. Find the synonyms of the following words: gallery, to steal, picture, to vanish, girdle, robbery.

3. Give the definition or an explanation of the following words: masterpiec e, ransom, concussion, to smuggle, dope.

4. Form the derivatives and fill in the blanks.

noun	verb	adjective
		respectable
	discover
beauty
	permit
		definite
theft

6. Make a list of words related to the topic ‘travel’. Make some sentences combining several words in one sentence.

Reading: Read the text. Make a list of 5 questions to each of the parts. In pairs ask each other these questions and check the partner’s answers.

Comprehension activities:

1. Find the parallels between the ancient myth and the story read.

2. Present the main characters of the story. Find their descriptions in the text and complete them with your own words.

3. Answer the following questions:

1) How did the robbery occur?

2) Why did Poirot take the case of the stolen Rubens? Was he enthusiastic about it?

3) Why did the affair of kidnapping interest Poirot? Describe the case.

4) What problem remained unsolved after the girl was found?

5) What information did inspector Hearn communicate to Poirot?

6) What made Ms Pope get angry on arrival in Paris?

7) Why did Poirot find Winnie’s painting unsuitable for the school?

8) How was the famous picture smuggled?

4. Find the description of the train route from England to Paris.

Writing:

1. Translate from Russian into English using the vocabulary of the text:

1) Все одно к другому. 2) Полиция Англии и Франции была начеку. 3) Вас на удивление хорошо информируют в Скотланд Ярде. 4) На окраине Парижа, когда учительница пересчитала девочек по головам, оказалось, что девочек всего 18. 5) Если романтическое сердце заставило ее тайно сбежать из поезда, я начну читать женские романы. 6) Мое дело может подождать. Меня интересует именно это дело. 7) Они хотели удерживать ее, пока не получат выкуп. 8) Именно это делает проблему такой интересной. 9) Очень хорошо воспитанная девочка, с определенным вкусом в искусстве. 10) Эта история похожа на историю Гадкого Утенка, превратившегося в Лебедя. 11) Позже настоящую Вини перевозят через канал – никто не обращает внимания на больного, наполовину одурманенного ребенка, которого везут из Англии во Францию. 12) Эти люди хотели контрабандой провезти кое-что из Англии во Францию, что-то, о чем был предупрежден каждый таможенник – украденную картину.

2. Your pen-friend likes art and asks you to give him of her some information about an Art Gallery or a museum in your town. Write a letter describing what you can see there and what you would like to show to him/her.

Discussion:

Do you think art is a luxury? Why? Do you know Rubens’ paintings? Who is your favorite painter? Speak in class about the life and art of the artist you like and some interesting or much spoken facts about his or her life and paintings.

Role play:

You are supposed to talk to school children about arts. One of you is a guide in the Art Gallery, the others are school children who ask a lot of questions as they are supposed to write an essay about this trip to the Gallery.