Enhancing Fluency: Part 2

МИНИСТЕРСТВО НАУКИ И ВЫСШЕГО ОБРАЗОВАНИЯ  
РОССИЙСКОЙ ФЕДЕРАЦИИ 
Федеральное государственное автономное образовательное  
учреждение высшего образования 
«ЮЖНЫЙ ФЕДЕРАЛЬНЫЙ УНИВЕРСИТЕТ» 
 
Институт филологии, журналистики и межкультурной коммуникации 
 

 

 

 

   
 
   А. А. Андриенко, А. А. Медведева 

 

 

ENHANCING FLUENCY  

Part 2     

 

Учебное пособие 

В двух частях 

 

 

 

 

 

Ростов-на-Дону – Таганрог 
Издательство Южного федерального университета 
2018 

УДК 811.111`36(075.8) 
ББК 81.432.1-2я73 
   А65 
 
Печатается по решению заседания кафедры английской филологии 
Института филологии, журналистики и межкультурной коммуникации 
Южного федерального университета (протокол № 6 от 01.02.2018 г.) 
 

Рецензенты:  
Н. С. Трифонова, канд фил наук, доц. каф. англ. филологии  
ИФЖиМК ЮФУ;                        
А. В. Прохоров, канд. фил. наук, доц. Тамбовского государственного                       
университета им. Г. Р. Державина 
 

 

               Андриенко, А.А. 
А65        Enhancing Fluency. Part 2 : учебное пособие : в 2 ч. / А. А. Андриенко, А. А. Медведева ; Южный федеральный университет. –  Ростовна-Дону ; Таганрог : Издательство Южного федерального университета, 2018.  

ISBN 978-5-9275-2980-3 
Ч. 2. – 152 с. 
ISBN 978-5-9275-2982-7 (Ч. 2) 

 
 

Пособие предназначено для студентов 1 курса языковых отделений филологических факультетов. Пособие состоит из 2-х частей, каждая из которых нацелена на изучение практического курса английского языка в течение 
1-го и 2-го семестров соответственно. Каждая часть пособия включает три 
тематических раздела, состоящих из аутентичных англоязычных текстов, 
комплекса упражнений в рамках тематического раздела, аудио- и видеоматериалами, заданиями на развитие письменных и устных компетенций студентов 1-го курса, тематическим глоссарием. 
 

ISBN 978-5-9275-2982-7 (Ч. 2)                                       УДК 811.111`36(075.8) 
ISBN 978-5-9275-2980-3                                                     ББК 81.432.1-2я73 

 
© Южный федеральный университет, 2018 
 © Андриенко А. А., Медведева А. А., 2018   

Пояснительная записка

Настоящее учебное пособие составлено на модульной основе, 

отвечает основным целям обучения  на 1-м курсе отделения зарубежной 

филологии и направлено на овладение, развитие и совершенствование 

профессиональных умений и навыков устной и письменной речи студентов 

в процессе их работы в аудитории под руководством преподавателя и 

самостоятельной работы. Упражнения по развитию навыков устной речи 

имеют коммуникативную направленность, предусматривают групповую и 

индивидуальную работу и способствуют формированию у учащихся 

навыков в продуктивных и рецептивных видах речевой деятельности. 

Предлагаемые тексты и задания позволяют значительно
обогатить

словарный запас студентов, приобщить их к самостоятельной научно
исследовательской работе над языком и развить у них аналитический 

подход к изучаемым языковым явлениям. 

Учебное пособие «Enhancing Fluency. Part 2» отвечает основным 

дидактическим и методическим принципам обучения. Пособие предлагает

материал
по
3
модулям, содержит вокабуляр по темам, тексты, 

упражнения, диалоги и выборку из оригинальных художественных 

произведений. Тематически организованный список лексических единиц 

состоит из слов и выражений как подлежащих активному усвоению, так и 

не входящих в активный словарь, но нуждающихся 
в пояснении.

Упражнения 
по развитию 
устной 
речи 
имеют 
коммуникативную 

направленность, предусматривают групповую и индивидуальную работу. 

Система 
упражнений 
по 
письменной 
практике 
предусматривает 

самостоятельную отработку норм современного английского языка, 

подготовку студентов к написанию эссе. Ролевые игры и ситуативные 

диалоги способствуют быстрейшему запоминанию материала в ситуациях, 

максимально приближенных к реальной коммуникации. 

CONTENTS

Section 1. ACCOMMODATION AND HOUSING

Module 1. Types of Dwellings ……………………………………………………. p.5

Module 2. Interior and Exterior………………………………………………..……p.29

Module 3. Buying and Renting Accommodation………………………………….. p.53

Vocabulary Section 1. ……………………………………………………………….p.62

Section 2. WEATHER AND CLIMATE 

Module 1. Whether the Weather …………………………………………………….p.68

Module 2. Climate …………………………………………………………………...p.87

Module 3. Extreme Weather Conditions …………………………………………….p.97

Vocabulary Section 2…………………………………………………………………p.108

Section 3. STUDENT’S LIFE

Module 1. Daily Routine……………………………………………………………..p.112

Module 2. College Life……………………………………………………………….p.125

Module 3. Household Chores………………………………………………………...p.141

Vocabulary Section 3…………………………………………………………………p.148

References ……………………………………………………………………………p.151

Section 1 

ACCOMMODATION AND HOUSING

MОDULE 
1

TYPES OF DWELLINGS

Ex. 1. Lead-in. My home is my Castle.
a) Look at the pictures. Which of the houses has: five storeys and a house on top, brick 

walls, a thatched roof, a chimney, 
a rock on the roof, wooden stairs 
up to the front door, stone walls, 
a tiled roof? Is: built 
underground, built on stilts?
b) Use these adjectives to 
describe the houses in the 
pictures. Give reasons:
economical, impractical, cold, 
spacious, cramped, airy, 
comfortable, attractive, eccentric.  
c) Listen and match the houses 
to the countries. 
five-storey 
building 

Suffolk, England

terraced 
house 

Zimbabwe

house on 
stilts

Portugal

rock house
Headington, 
England

Which house would/wouldn’t you like to live in? Give reasons. [5]
Ex. 2. a) Look at the title of the text. What do you think it is about? What comes to 
your mind when you think of a perfect home? Discuss in pairs. Now, listen to the 
text and compare it to your ideas. 
b) Read the article and answer the questions after the text. 

In search of the perfect home?

How would you like to live in a castle, a tree house or even underground? This might 

not be as unusual as you think. It seems that these days more and more people want to live 
somewhere special at out of the ordinary, and if they can’t buy what they want they are quite 
prepared to build it from scratch. 

For John Mew and his wife Josephine their home really is their castle. They have built 

their own English castle in the Sussex countryside. The building is brand new with all the 
luxuries you would expect from a house that cost more than £350,000 pounds to build. 
However, when you first see it from the outside it would be easy to think that you are looking
at an ancient monument. The building has a lot of the features of a traditional castle, including 
a keep, a moat and a drawbridge. “My choice of house somewhat eccentric and building it 
was very hard work, but we’ve got the perfect place to live,” Mew says. Although some would 

say that the building impractical and may be cold in harsh British winter he certainly has got 
a unique and spacious home.

If you don’t look carefully, you might not even see the home that Jonathan Ridley
Jones and Shanon Ridd built at all! That’s because the house is converted underground water 
tank. The only thing that can be seen from the surface is a door leading into the hillside. 
“We’ve never wanted to live in an ordinary house,” Shannon says. “Living below ground
means that our home is quiet and very cozy - none of the usual draughts. It doesn’t damage 
the local surroundings and has very low fuel bills. Some our friends find it dark and feel shut 
in when they first visit us, but they soon get used to it”.

If an underground home doesn’t appeal to you, what about living in the tree tops? Dan 

Garner, a tree surgeon from Gloucestershire, certainly thinks that this is the way to go up in 
the world. “When our family became short of space at home, our solution was to build a 
luxury tree house in the garden. The tree house is built into a spruce tree six meters above the
ground. It has one main room, a bedroom and a balcony running around two sides. Garner is 
so happy with this practical extension to his home that he thinks he can convince more people 
of the benefits of living in the trees. He wants to set up his own enterprise making more of 
the deluxe tree dwellings, saying, “Tree houses are airy, secure and comfortable and the only 
disadvantage is that they might not be suitable for people who suffer from hay fever or a fear 
of heights!”

Even people who live in more ordinary settings sometimes can’t resist doing 

something to make them stand out from the crowd. One extreme example of this is Bill 
Heines’ house in Headington, Oxfordshire. Until one morning in 1986, his house looked much 
like all the others in his street, when suddenly overnight a 7.5 m long fibreglass shark appeared
to have crashed through the roof. The shark was a sculpture by local artist John Buckley. At
first some people complained that it might be dangerous or that it spoilt the look of the 
neighborhood, but engineers checked that the sculpture was safe and the “Headington shark”
has become a well-known and popular landmark. It seems that no matter where you live, you 
can always do something to make sure your house says some about who you are.

1. More and more people build their own home

A so that they can live underground.
B so that they can have exactly the home they want.
C because it is cheaper than buying a new house.
D because they want all the modern luxuries you find in a new home.

2. John and Josephine Mew

A know that their choice of home is unusual.
B found that creating their dream home was easy.
C wanted to live like people would have in traditional castles.
D converted an ancient building into a modern home.

3. What do Jonathan Ridley-Jones and Shanon Ridd say about their home?

A It’s just an ordinary house.
B They always wanted to live underground.
C It doesn’t harm the environment.
D They don't pay anything for heating and lighting.

4. Why did Dan build a tree house in his garden?

A He wants to persuade people to buy one.
B His family wanted to live in a tree house.
C He builds them for a living.
D His family needed more room.

5. The 'Headington shark'

A was created by Bill Heines.
B crashed into the roof of Bill Heines’ house one night.
C was immediately popular with everyone in the town.
D was built without any warning. [5]
c) List the advantages and disadvantages of Mew's, Ridd's and Garner's dwellings, and 
then talk about them.
d) Explain the words in bold, then suggest synonyms and use them in the sentences of 
your own. 

Ex. 3. Listening and Vocabulary Practice. Go through the table and look up the 
words you don't know in your dictionary. Listen and underline the words that best 
describe Ann's house. Circle the ones which best describe John's house [5]. 
Style
traditional, modern, apartment/flat, (semi)detached, terraced house, cottage, 
villa, l/2/3 storey building, castle

Location
village, city, centrally located, residential area, close to the shops, in the 
suburbs, on the outskirts, isolated, in the country

Size
small, tiny, spacious, large, huge, average, family-sized, 1-2 bedroomed

Cost
cheap, low-priced, overpriced, expensive, economical, frugal

General 
Description

cosy, comfortable, secure, luxurious, well-maintained, fully furnished, airy, 
noisy, cold

Use the words to describe Ann’s and John’s houses, then describe your house.

Ex. 4. Jigsaw Reading. Divide into four groups – A, B, C and D. Each group reads the 
description of various types of dwellings. Which of them haven’t you heard of 
before? Now join people from other groups and tell them about the types of 
dwellings you’ve read about. 
“HOME IS WHERE THE HEART IS.”
There are many types of buildings people from all over the world sleep in every night. Some 
live in big, tall modern buildings. Others sleep in a home with wheels under it.
Here are 31 house types from all over the World with explanation and each used in an 
example sentence. What kind of building do you live in? 
Group A
1. Apartment
An apartment is an American term for a home where you live (British English: flat) in a 
separate home within a large building where others also have their own home.
This style of building is often called an apartment block. Or, if it’s very large, a skyscraper.
Apartment blocks are normally owned by a single company or developer and each apartment 
is rented by the person living there.


Young professionals like apartments because they’re cheaper than detached houses.


The apartment looked so small now that she was all grown up.

2. Bungalow
A bungalow is a low-built one storey house. It’s often small in size. Bungalows often have a 
veranda (porch), at the front and or back, which is a covered area to sit.


I love living in my bungalow I never have to walk up or down stairs.


Center Parks is a resort where families stay in bungalows instead of hotel rooms.

3. Caravan

A caravan is a vehicle, which can be pulled behind a car or truck, which is made for living in. A 
caravan is also commonly called a trailer.
Caravans are often used for short term stay, for example when going on holiday.


The circus clown is in his caravan, putting on makeup for tonight’s show.


Many retirees are selling their homes and living in caravans due to rising living costs.

4. Castle
Castles are large and often old buildings. Hundreds of years ago, many kings and queens 
would live in castles.
Castles are made with thick stone walls to protect the people living there. They’re also 
sometimes surrounded by a circle of water, called a moat.


Switzerland is home to some of the world’s most beautiful castles.


The Disney Castle at Disneyland is visited by over 1 million people per year.

5. Condominium/Condo
A condominium is a style of an apartment which is individually owned. Normally by the 
person living there, although you can rent from the condo owner.
Each condo owner is allowed to buy and sell their own condo and own a small percentage 
rights to the land and common areas, like the gym or tennis court. This is different from an 
apartment where the entire building is owned by one person or company.


Condominiums are very popular in Bangkok where houses are too expensive to buy.


Some people love living in condos because they can live close to their work.

6. Cottage
Cottages are small old-fashioned houses often found in the countryside. England style 
cottages are world famous for their signature look. They are often made of stone or brick 
with a straw or thatched roof.


Little Red Riding Hood’s grandmother lived in a little cottage near the forest.


Look! There’s smoke coming out of that cottage’s Someone’s home.

7. Dormitory/dorm
Dormitories are similar to apartments and common on college and university campuses. Here 
they are used by students who want to live close to school.
Dormitories are large buildings with many individual rooms called dorm rooms. People often 
share rooms with other people and share bathroom and kitchens with many other dorm 
rooms.


My brother loved living in the dormitory because of all the parties they had.


Excuse me, Professor, I forgot my calculator in my dorm May I go get it?

Group B
8. Duplex
A duplex is a kind of house where two homes are built under one roof. It is similar to a semidetached house because duplexes are attached to another person’s house on one side but 
not on both sides.
Some duplexes used to be one house but were split into two homes.


Duplexes are often cheaper than single family homes because they cost less to build.


When living in a duplex, you have to be careful not to make too much noise.

9. Farmhouse
A farm house is what it sounds like. A house on a farm. Farm houses are one story low built 
houses.

They are traditionally built far away from the city, on large areas of land used for farming or 
raising animals.


John dreamed of leaving the city to live in a farmhouse in the countryside.


Timmy, run back to the farmhouse and ask mum for a glass of water please.

10. Houseboat
A houseboat is a type of floating building where people live. As the name suggests, they’re 
part house, part boat.
There are different kinds of houseboat. Some look like a boat that has room to sleep.
Whereas others are square shaped and simply look like floating houses.


Have you ever watched the Danish YouTuber who lives on a houseboat?


Wouldn’t you get seasick living on a houseboat?

11. Hut
A hut is a very simple one story house, often built with cheap materials or natural materials 
like mud.
These kinds of homes have been used for thousands of years by our ancestors.
They’re still seen today in poor places and regions which have not changed their ways in 
many generations.


In the old days, the chief’s hut would be at the center or all the others.


There’s a great video online where a guy builds a mud hut from start to finish.

12. Igloo
Igloos are buildings made out of ice and snow. They have a recognizable round dome like 
shape.
Igloos keep the people inside them warm by using the people’s body heat to warm the air 
inside the ice building.


Pete the Penguin lived in an igloo with his parents and brother.


Some igloos can last for over 100 years in the right weather conditions.

13. Lighthouse
A lighthouse is a tall building near the ocean with a huge light on its top to warn boats 
coming too close to the land at night.


Many captains and their crew’s lives have been saved by


The lighthouse is painted white to reflect the most light at night.

14. Lodge
A small building near the gates of a large estate or piece of land, often used as a guard’s 
house. Presently, lodges are also halls where some groups go to meet.


Stephenson met the other Free Masons in secrecy at the local lodge.


The guard was sitting at his station in the lodge when he heard a strange noise.

Group C
15. Log Cabin
These buildings are small structures found in the forests or woods. They’re made almost 
completely out of wood, or large logs.
A “log” is a round piece of wood cut right from a tree. People also use logs to keep their 
home warm in a fireplace.


Granddad used to have a log cabin he would stay in when he would go hunting.


I wonder how many log cabins burn down every year because of their fireplace?

16. Manor

A big country house with a lot of land. They are an old style house, normally owned by 
wealthy families. Manors have very large and beautiful gardens.


Lord of Chester lived in a large manor that had been in his family for generations.


There was a murder in the old Hill State manor last night.

17. Mansion
A large and impressive house. Similar to a manor. However, manors are generally old and in 
the country.
In contrast, mansions can be anywhere. Mansions can be old, or new. Most famous actors 
and singers live in mansions.


Hollywood is famous around the world for its mansions and movie stars.


Robert Di Niro just sold his mansion for a huge sum of $22 million dollars.

18. Motel
A hotel located close to a major road and mostly used by travelers who wish to rest while 
making long road trips.
Motel comes from the words motor and hotel. On average motels are not as nice as most 
hotels and offer only basic services.


The truck driver decided to pull over into a motel to rest for the night.


I hate motels. I once found a rat in the ice machine at one of them.

19. Palace
A palace is the home of a country’s king or queen. Buckingham Palace is the very famous 
home of the Queen of England.
Palaces are generally very large and have many people working there to take care of the 
royal family.


The changing of the guards at Buckingham Palace is a world famous tradition.


The Queen likes to read the newspaper each morning in the Palace’s

20. Semi-detached House
Semi means half or partly. Detached means that it is not touching anything else.
A semi-detached house is a house that is touching another building on one of its sides but 
not on another.


Johnny lived in a semi-detached house on Smith Street before moving to London.


The semi-detached house on 5th avenue sold for $500k last weekend.

21. Shack
A shack is a small building often put together loosely with left-over or cheap materials. A 
shack is similar to a hut or cabin.
What makes a shack different is that it is often made with modern materials like wood and 
metal and generally not well built.


They stepped into the dimly lit shack where a man sat cross-legged, head in hands.


The slums in Rio are mostly shacks made from garbage and sheets of metal.

Group D
22. Single family home (Detached)
A single family home, often called a detached house, is an alone standing medium size house. 
There aren’t any other buildings touching a single family house. Single family homes are most 
common outside of the city in areas called “suburbs”.


The agent told me about a single family home for sale near the local school.


This single family home is perfect for me and my family. We’ll take it!

23. Skyscraper

A skyscraper is a very tall new style building. You will see many skyscrapers in nearly every 
city around the world.
They are made of glass and metal. Skyscrapers are used as office buildings or apartments.


The tallest building in the world is a skyscraper called the Burj Khalifa.


Skyscrapers are made to be flexible and move in the wind.

24. Teepee
Teepees are the old style of house in which Native American Indians used to live. They were 
made with animal skins and sticks.
Whole towns of Indians would live in a small group of Teepees which could be taken apart 
and moved to new locations when the seasons changed.


A whole family of Indians would live in one teepee together for safety and warmth.


The chief and the soldier sat in the teepee, sharing a peace pipe.

25. Tent
A temporary shelter made from fabric. Most people use tents when they go camping and 
need to quickly set up a place to sleep that will protect them from the rain, wind and small 
animals overnight.


A tent is a great way to stop bugs and spiders but it won’t stop a bear.


The old tents used to be so hard to put up. Now all you have to do it push a button.

26. Terraced House
A terraced house is a tall but narrow house which is attached on both sides to another house. 
They are common in many European countries like England, Holland and Germany.
In those countries, whole streets of houses can all be connected to each other in a row.


Sherlock Holmes famously lived in a terraced house at 221B Baker Street, London.


Terraced houses were built closely together to share heat in the harsh winter.

27. Townhouse
A townhouse is similar to a terraced house. Townhouses are houses built for inner-city living.
There are tall and narrow buildings. They don’t have a lot of land around them and often only 
have very small gardens at the back.


Over 100 townhouses fell into the river when London Bridge collapsed in 1703.


You can’t find a townhouse for under a million dollars in Sydney.

28. Trailer
(See Caravan) A trailer is a small cabin with wheels. They can be pulled by trucks or other 
vehicles and often made from metal or fiberglass.
Trailers are commonly used by people who need to move from one place to another for short 
periods of time. For example, circus performers and actors who live on set.


Amanda Lawson sat in her trailer practicing her lines for the next scene.


In America people believe that people living in trailers are low class.

Ex. 5. a) Match the pictures with words describing different types of houses and 
their definitions. 

palace
1.
a boat which people use as their 
home, often kept in one place 
on a river

A