It looks as if I would never be 10 страница

2.7. Carrollean English in focus.

Here is an excerpt from Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carroll. Alice meets Humpty Dumpty and what she learns from him is very curious. '"You seem to be very clever at explaining words, Sir,' said Alice. 'Would you kindly tell me the meaning of the poem "Jabberwocky"?'

"Let's hear it,' said Humpty Dumpty. 'I can explain all the poems that ever were invented - and a good many that haven't been invented just yet.'

This sounded very hopeful, so Alice repeated the first verse:

"'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves

Dis gyre and gimble in the wabe:

All mimsy were the borogoves,

And the mome raths outgrabe."

'That's enough to begin with,' Humpty Dumpty interrupted: 'there are plenty of hard words there. "Brillig" means four o'clock in the afternoon — the time when you begin broiling things for dinner.'

'That'll do very well,' said Alice: 'and "slithy"?' 'Well, "slithy" means "lithe and slimy." "Lithe" is the same as "active." You see it's like a portmanteau — there are two meanings packed up into one word.'"

2.8. Portmanteau word-building.

Now that you've remembered what portmanteau words are like, it is about time (yes, you guessed it right) to practise weird word-building. Make strange words related to school environment.

For instance, your teacher's first question after vacation time, when you are gloomy at the prospect of a new semester to start, can be the following:

"Well, then, did you have holidays or melancholidays?"

1. Melancholidays = melancholy + holidays

2.

3.

4.

5.

III. POST-READING

3.1. Feelings.

How do the characters feel about their athletic performance? Share some of the deep dark secrets the persons involved might not like to disclose.

Meg (about her baseball career)

Meg's Mother (about her team, etc.)

Meg's Father (about his early days as a fencer)

Coach Russell (about his team, and Meg in particular)

Jamie Ferguson (about himself, the team, Meg., and about the rest of the non-playing population of the USA, as well as about a number of unrelated things)

3.2. ROLEPLAY.

Dramatize the story in the group. (Remember that the most difficult role to play is that of 13-month-old Charles. Not many words, but how profound a message!)

3.3. Debating club.

In a group, hold a debate on the topic of female participation in baseball leagues. Should girls make baseball stars, or rather stay at home and watch baseball on TV (preferably in the kitchen)?

3.4. Activities: sing-along.

"Yankee Doodle" was originally sung by the British soldiers to poke fun at the poorly dressed and awkward colonial soldiers during the French and Indian War (1754— 1763). Later, during the War of Independence (1775— 1783), the song became popular with the colonists and they adopted it as their own.

YANKEE DOODLE

Yankee Doodle went to town a-riding on a pony Stuck a feather in his cap and called it macaroni. Yankee Doodle, keep it up, Yankee Doodle dandy, Mind the music and the step, and with the girl be handy.

Father and I went down to camp along with Captain Gooding,

And there we saw the men and boys as thick as hasty pudding.

Chorus

There was Captain Washington upon a slapping stallion,

A-giving orders to his men, I guess there was a million.

Chorus

THE MYSTERIOUS GIRL AT THE POOL

by Juanita Havill

I. PRE-READING

1.1. SHARE your experience of meeting with the mysterious face to face (or, if that matters, nose to nose).

1.2. DISCUSS the latest thriller movie you watched. Specify what exactly was the most mysterious about it.

1.3 CONTEMPLATE the mysterious together. Discuss the thrill of the teacher's profession (if you see any in it).

II. READING

2.1. Understanding the title.

The story deals with the supernatural phenomena. Can such a thing happen in a swimming pool?

2.2. Reading for pleasure and enrichment.

Read the story and try to explain the final phrase of the story' spoken by the non-mysterious girl. The following words will be helpful to understand the events better.

Goofy – silly, stupid

Hassle – ask someone to do something in an annoying way

Ledge — a narrow flat surface fixed to a wall

Sight — see something from a long distance away

Oomph— energy

Scrunch — twist Sting — a sharp pain

Strain — try really hard

Goosebumps — a condition when your skin is raised up in small points

Summer days are all alike. They melt into one another, and all you remember is going to the pool, doing chores, or sitting around reading. But one day last summer stands out crystal clear. I even remember the date: August 11.

I rode my bike to the pool. When I got there, I didn't see anyone I knew except some goofy boys from school. 1 wasn't about to play with them.

I plopped my towel down on the cement and went right to the deep water. I'm short for my age but swim better than most eleven-year-olds, so the lifeguards never hassle me about being in the deep.

I dived in. The cold water felt great. I swam laps to warm up, then found a popsicle stick by the ledge and decided to play chop-chop. It's a game I usually play with my friends. One of us dives in with the stick, takes it to the bottom, lets it go, and hurries back to the ledge to climb out. Whoever spots the stick screams "chop-chop" and goes for it. I'm pretty good. I can even find it when I'm the one who took it down. Then I get another turn. When I play alone, I take the stick down and see how fast I can find it.

I was staring at the water waiting for the stick to surface when I saw a girl I didn't recognize. She swam across the pool, then climbed out and sat on the ledge beside me. She wore a strange-looking orange bathing suit. It wasn't cut high on the leg like my suit. Instead, it hung dowrn like shorts.

She held up my stick and said, "Can I play chop-chop with you?" "Sure," I said. She dived in with the stick. I strained to see where she went. She must have been able to hold her breath for a long time because she swam back to the ledge underwater. She climbed out and shouted, "Chop-chop," and had the stick before I even saw it. Again and again she took the stick down and I sighted it. She moved through the water like a dolphin. She was tiny and thin and had long brown hair and blue eyes. Her hair was so long I wondered why the guards didn't make her wear a cap. They didn't seem to notice.

Finally I won, but I couldn't help feeling that she I had let me win

"I'm hungry," I said, instead of taking the stick down, "Want to get a snack with me?"

"I'll come," she said, "but I'm not hungry." Siting on a bench outside the pool, I peeled the paper from my ice cream and offered her the first bite. She shook her head. "That's why you're so skinny," I said. I was curious to know who she was. "I'm Jackie Peterson. What's your name?"

"Roxanne Mainz," she said. "My folks have the flower shop downtown."

Maybe that's why I didn't know her. In our town we have two schools, kindergarten through eighth grade. Downtown goes to Edison School. I go to Jefferson.

"I haven't seen you here before. Don't you swim much?" I asked.

"I love to swim," she said, but her blue eyes darkened.the way the sky does when clouds blow in front of the sun.

I shivered despite the hot afternoon. "Who's your teacher this year?"

"Mrs. Johns," she said. "I had Mrs. Wade last year."

I knew some of the teachers at Edison, but not either of them.

I finished my ice cream and threw the sticky wrapper in the garbage.

"Do you like to dive off the board, Roxanne?"

Roxanne looked a little uneasy. She didn't answer.

"Let's go." I jumped up and ran toward the dressing room. I could feel Roxanne following me without actually hearing her bare feet spank the cement walk. I was thinking about our chop-chop game. I'm pretty good at diving. This would be a chance to make up for my lousy chop-chop score.

I stood in line at the diving board in front of Roxanne. I could feel her watching me as I did a simple dive.

Roxanne didn't take her turn. "Go ahead," she said in a tone that kept me from coaxing her. Next, I did a jackknife and almost touched my ankles.

"You're good" was all she said. When I climbed out, she motioned for me to go ahead again.

I decided to try a forward flip and go in feet first. I have to concentrate on flips because I have trouble getting enough oomph. I approached the end of the board and rose lightly into the air. I dived with my eyes closed tight.

Then I heard a loud noise. At the same time something clobbered me on the back of the head. It hurt so much I scrunched my shoulders. I knew I was sinking in the water, but I couldn't get my arms to move, and my legs felt heavy. I stared through the blue-green water, not even minding the sting of chlorine. I opened my mouth to cry out and choked on the rush of water. I was scared, more scared than I've ever been in my life.

Then Roxanne's face was right in front of mine. She grabbed my wrists and pulled me upward. I think I must have closed my eyes because I didn't see her after that.

When I opened my eyes again, I saw the lifeguard. Two of those goofy boys were standing beside him. The lifeguard wouldn't let me talk or move. "Stay still," he told me. "Your mom is on her way. She's going to take you to the doctor."

I listened to his blurred words, trying to put together what had happened. I began to feel better and sat up. "Roxanne." I looked around. "Where's Roxanne?"

"Who?" The lifeguard was staring at me.

"Roxanne. The girl in the orange suit. We were swimming together."

One of the boys pointed to his head and made little circles with his index finger.

"She's been swimming alone," he said. "And talking to herself the whole time."

"I thought you were playing some kind of game," the lifeguard said.

"Roxanne and I were playing." I was going to tell him where she went to school, but he put his hand onmy shoulder.

"Calm down. You hit your head pretty hard on the board."

Mom took me to Dr. Shepard's. I was all right, but Mom said I couldn't go swimming for two days. She told me no more flips off the board for a while. I told her about Roxanne. "The Mainzes?" she said. "I don't think they have a girl your age. They're a bit old. Maybe a granddaughter is visiting."

"Roxanne told me she went to Edison School. She had Mrs. Wade last year."

"Betsy Wade?" Mom shook her head. "She retired years ago."

The next day Mom took me downtown with her to run an errand. While she went to the drugstore, I walked up the street to Mainz Flower Shop. I wanted to thank Roxanne for saving me.

"Excuse me," I said to the woman behind the counter. "Are you Mrs. Mainz?"

"No, I'm her sister. I work here in August when Helen goes on vacation with her husband." The woman had curly white hair and a thin, wrinkled face. She looked old to be Roxanne's aunt.

Roxanne must have gone with them, I decided. That's why she left so quickly. She had to get ready for vacation. "Did they leave yesterday afternoon?"

"They left last week. They always leave well before the eleventh."

Something in the woman's voice made me uncomfortable, but 1 had to ask about Roxanne. "Didn't Roxanne go with them?"

"Roxanne?" The woman looked annoyed, as if she had to explain something all over again for the umpteenth time.

"Roxanne Mainz," I said. "I met her at the pool yesterday. She told me she lived here."

The woman stared at the bouquet of daisies on the counter. "Roxanne Mainz drowned thirty years ago," she said.

That didn't make sense. Why was she telling me about a Roxanne who had drowned thirty years ago? Roxanne had saved my life at the pool yesterday.

"She was an excellent swimmer" the woman said. "It was an accident. She slipped and hit her head on the diving board." The woman picked up the flowers and turned to go into the back room. She looked over her shoulder at me as if she'd just remembered I was there. "It's not the first time she's come back."

Suddenly I felt cold as if I had dived into icy water. My whole body was one big goose bump. I bolted outside and ran down the street

to the drugstore. The sight of my mom stepping onto the sidewalk made me feel safe and warm.

"Did you see Roxanne?" Mom asked.

"No, she doesn't live there," I said. Then I added, "Anymore."

2.3. True or false?

1. That summer day, August 11, was special from the very beginning.

2. There was nothing strange in the friendly girl's appearance.

3. Roxanne was a natural swimmer.

4. Jacky was both ambitious and perceptive.

5. The accident took place while the two girls were playing chop-chop.

6. Jacky was the only one who saw Roxanne in the pool.

7. The woman in the flower shop was unwilling to talk about Roxanne.

8. Roxanne was never there in the pool, it was all but a bad dream.

2.4. Understanding points of view.

Scan the story and try to explain what the characters meant.

1. The boys: "She's been swimming alone."

2. The lifeguard: "I thought you were playing some kind of game."

3. Roxanne's aunt: "They always leave well before the eleventh."

4. Roxanne's aunt: "It's not the first time she's come back."

5. Jacky: "No, she doesn't live here. Anymore."

2.5. Studying definitions.

Match the story words with their definitions.

Do chores Downtown Lousy become Coax Choke Blur Errand Bolt Make sense Umpteenth time

no one knows how many times, but a lot escape from somewhere difficult to see because the edges are not clear gently persuade someone into doing something towards or in the center of the city have a clear meaning, easy to understand do housework very bad or unpleasant prevent from breathing because your throat is blocked a short journey in order to do something

2.6. Storing vocabulary.

Paraphrase the following sentences using the expressions taken from the above exercise.

1. He was asked to do that god knows how many times.

2. I feel really bad, I'd better lie down.

3. We tried to talk him into going to see the dentist, but to no avail.

4. He only knew the company's headquarters were somewhere in the center.

5. The cat dashed through the open door and was gone.

6. There always seems to be an endless list of things to do about the house.

7. My new shirt's collar nearly stvangled me.

8. I'd want you to go somewhere for me because it's urgent.

9. All the shapes merged and danced before my eyes.

10. Something's wrong with the figures, they are meaningless.

2.7. Grammar.

All the characters in the story felt somewhat strange about everything but they did not always voice their feelings. Let us voice some for them.

e. g. Jacky couldn't help feeling something was unusual about Roxanne.

The lifeguard couldn't help feeling...

The boys couldn't...

Jacky's mother...

2.8. Swimmers` vocabulary in focus

Dive into the story again and fish for the words swimmers would se a lot. Get these words to the surface as quickly as you can. Use hem in situations of your own.

III. POST-READING

3.1. Feelings.

While reading the story, you must have felt some strange sensation. When did you begin to feel it first? Share you feelings with the group. If you didn't feel it, it is strange, mysterious even...

3.2. Family archives.

The authors of this book received the following letter in 1992. Study the letter and say if it changed your attitude towards the story.

Cave Creek, Arizona 14 January 1992

Dear Maslovs,

Cricket Magazine publishers kindly forwarded to me your letter in which you mention the August issue of Cricket. You write that you particularly liked The Mysterious Girl at the Pool among other stories. I am very pleased that my story gave you "the creeps". It is wonderful and all too rare for an author to hear from appreciative readers and to hear from readers from so far away was especially thrilling for me.

I must tell you that something happened to me when I was eleven that was very much like what happened to the girl in the ghost story. I met a girl named Roxanne at the swimming pool. We spent the day together and made plans to meet again, but I never saw her again. I found out from distant relatives that the only Roxanne they knew had died long before.

I do enjoy ghost stories, both reading and writing them. I am working on another one at the moment called The Face in the Mirror. I also like to travel. When I was younger, I lived in France for several years and traveled to many countries in Europe. I would like to go back someday with my two children and my husband Pierre, who was born in the north of France.

In the US we read and hear about the most incredible happenings in your country. I think that your people must be very courageous and I hope that this courage will be rewarded with freedom, freedom from want and from chaos, as well as the freedom to say what you want.

A professor at the University of Minnesota (I used to live in Minnesota) told me a few years ago that American books are not always easy to find in the Soviet Union (How should I say now: the CIS?). I have published several books for children, and I have also written two novels. I am sending some books and hope that nothing prevents them from arriving. I hope you enjoy them as much as I enjoyed your kind words for my story.

Juanita Havill

OVERALL DISCUSSION

STORY CONTEST.

Recall the stories read in the present book (Part 1), and discuss their relative merits in a comprehensive fashion. All the twenty "contestants" might be nominated for:

THE BEST OF THE BEST

THE MOST INTRIGUING PLOT

THE MOST COLORFUL STYLE

THE MOST PROFOUND MESSAGE

THE MOST UNBELIEVABLE STORY

Make your individual choices, and then compare them with those of your group mates. Find out which are the champion stories.

CHARACTER TEST.

Name the three characters from the stories who seem to be the most appealing to you. Give your reasons and explain in greater detail.

RECALL-LEVEL TEST.

On the spot, prepare a list of twenty newly-learnt words that come from the stories you have read. Say which stories they come from, and why you remembered them better than others.

PERSONALITY PROFILE TEST.

Find one particular character in the twenty stories whose thinking or behavior is similar to your teenage ones. Please, explain. Is there anyone you'd like to imitate in any way?

STORYTELLING CONTEST.

Choose one story to practice storytelling skills. Prepare a brief but artistic retelling of the story. Perform it in front of your group.

TRANSLATION CONTEST.

Prepare a literary translation of the Champion Story (see Story Contest). Polish it, and then publish it locally.

CASTLES

I. PRE-READING

1.1. SPEAK about the most wondrous gift you've ever received. Did it cost a fortune in terms of money or — love?

1.2. DISCUSS some well-established winter time traditions not connected with Christmas or New Year.

1.3. SHARE your ideas of what a real castle might look like. Pay special attention to the notions of comfort and romance.

II. READING

2.1. Understanding the title.

Here is the title of the story written by Ann M. Quellette. On bal­ance, one castle is more than enough. Share your ideas on what one might do with several ones. Don't be afraid to fantasize a bit, ok?

2.2. Reading for pleasure and enrichment.

The protagonist of the story was lucky to have a speaking name. Read the story and say whether she lived up to her name or not. The following words will be useful for better understanding of the events.

Bodyguard - someone whose job is to protect an important person

Herald - someone who carried messages from a ruler

Joust - a contest where knights demonstrate their skills

Drought - a long period of dry weather

Suitor - a man who wants to marry a particular woman

Droop - to become sad or weak

Mason - someone whose building job is cutting stones to be used for

Turret – a small tower

Princess Felicity was so beautiful that young men came from far and wide to ask for her hand in marriage.

"Marry me!" they would beg, but Felicity would only shake her head, and laugh, and invite them to dance the night away.

When she finished school, Princess Felicity traveled about the kingdom, visiting farms and mills, schools and cottages and shops, until she had met everyone in the land. Her father, sure that she would soon settle down, asked only that she take a bodyguard along. The princess chose Nathaniel, son of the head gardener, and month after month, she rode into the countryside with Nathaniel by her side.

"This cannot go on forever, my dear," the king said at last. "Your mother and I wish to retire soon, and the country needs a royal couple to set a good example. You must choose a husband, and you must choose wisely. The happiness of our land depends on your happiness."

"But I am happy now, Father," said the princess. "I love our beautiful country and its people. By day I learn more and more about them, and my evenings are filled with parties and good friends. What more could I wish for?"

The king was silent. He loved his daughter and wanted her always to be as full of joy as she was at this moment. He also had faith in her good sense. He waited for her to speak, and at last she did.

"I know I am fortunate to be a princess and to have such loving parents. I will take on the burden of royalty, but give me a little more time, dear Father. Wait until my twenty-first birthday. Then I will declare the way in which I will choose my husband-to-be."

The king was satisfied and told the heralds to announce that the princess would reveal her marriage plans on her twenty-first birth­day, which was two years and forty days away. Soon the kingdom

uzzed with excitement. Everyone thought they knew what the rincess would ask of her suitors.

"She will hold a joust arid marry the winner," said some.

"No, no, she will give them a puzzle to solve, and the smartest one will become king," said others.

The princess did not think about it at all. She went on dancing, exploring the country, and enjoying life. But hard times came to the kingdom. Wars to the north and drought to the south made food scarce and money scarcer. People forgot about the princess and the royal suitors and struggled to feed their families. The king and queen worked day and night to bring prosperity back to the land.

On the princess's twenty-first birthday, there was no money for a royal ball. Instead, the queen invited everyone in the kingdom for punch and cookies on the palace lawn. When they all had sipped and munched and enjoyed a good chat, the king stepped up on a stool.

"Today," he said, "we will learn what qualities will win the hand of our lovely princess Felicity. Tell us, my child, what must a suitor do to win your heart?"

The princess looked at the people who had made her life so happy. How worn and shabby they were! She saw the wealthy princes and lords from other kingdoms, and the young men of her own kingdom with whom she had played, and ridden, and danced... And especially she looked at her friend Nathaniel.

Then, straightening her shoulders and holding her head high, she said, "I will marry the man who builds me the most beautiful castle in this kingdom. I will make my decision eight months from today, on the twenty-ninth day of February." Then she turned and walked back into the palace, where she wept silently in her room.

"Oh!" gasped the people. "How selfish! How unlike our dear princess!"

The king and queen looked at one another in puzzlement.

"She is our daughter," said the queen softly. "She must know what she is doing."

For a while the people gossiped about the princess's thought­lessness. But life in the kingdom became very busy.. Hopeful suitors bought land and hired woodcutters to clear it. Soon the mills were humming, and carpenters and masons were hiring assistants. Everyone was too busy to notice the princess, her pale face pressed against her window, or Nathaniel, drooping by the palace gate.

All summer the hills buzzed with the sound of saws. By autumn, turrets and towers rose from the woods in every direction. Every Sunday the princess and her parents had tea at another new castle. Everyone was invited, and bakeries turned out acres of cakes and pastries. Prosperity had returned to the kingdom.

But the princess grew paler and thinner and sadder as each Sunday came and went. Then, in December, Nathaniel disappeared, and the princess smiled no more.

Winter came. The people built cozy fires in their cottages and chatted about the royal wedding-to-come. They argued about their favorites among the suitors. Only the king and queen worried about the princess, who was not at all herself.

"Even I can see what is wrong," the king said. "You love Na­thaniel, and he is too poor to enter the contest. You must break your word."

"If I break my word, I will lose his respect, and my own," said the princess. "I must keep the bargain and I must never let the people know my heart is broken."

With only one day to go in the contest, the whole castle seemed to hold its breath. Young men dashed about in anticipation. Then, on the night before the last day, Nathaniel appeared at the palace gate.

"I have come to offer my castle to the princess," he said. "But it is miles away in the hills, and we must leave right now if she is to see it in time."

"Yes!" said the king, and immediately summoned sleighs and horses for everyone in the palace. Through the wooded hills they wound, a line of torches against the white snow, and as they passed farms and villages, the people joined the procession. Just before dawn they came to a clearing in the woods and there beheld a most wonderful sight. Towered and turreted, a great castle rose up from the snow. A cold and glittering blue, it began to turn a rosy pink as the sun's first light appeared over the towers. It was a castle made entirely of ice!

"Come inside," said Nathaniel, and led the princess into a great hall made of blocks and sheets of ice, all set at angles. The people and all the royal suitors crowded in behind them, whispering and shivering. Then the sun rose. One sunbeam streamed across the room. Then another, and another. Rainbows raced from side to side and up the great walls. The whole room danced with light and color.

"For you, my princess," said Nathaniel.

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