3.

Vocabulary 2
Answer these questions about the article using the given words:
1.
Does the author come from a close-knit family? (rough, little to no, immediate family)
2.
How did her friends replace family? (without a second thought, miss out on, feel at home)
3.
What conversation put a strain on her relationship with her mother? How did she figure it out? (drift
apart, have a vague memory, have an impact, go to therapy, kind of a big thing)
4.
How have her relationships with mother changed since then? How does she feel about it? (make up
with, a subtle shift, have a hard time wrapping her head around)
5.
How does she bring up her kids? (exclude, boundaries, compassion, validate their feelings)
6.
How can we make sure our children feel secure and important? (a safety net, have their back, carve
out time)
7.
Do you think parents can be friends? Can you relate to the article?
What was your relationship with parents like while growing up? And now?

4.

Vocabulary 3
Substitute the highlighted parts with the given words and comment on the statement.
upfront
have no hard feelings
had a huge impact
maintaining
compassion
make up
drifting apart
have a hard time
insulted
pick my battles
a subtle shift
1.
I find it difficult to keep a conversation going with people I just met.
2.
I think people want their politicians to be honest and straightforward.
3.
I can notice even the slightest change in my family memebers’ behavior.
4.
When learning English, I select a specific issue of importance to focus on.
5.
It isn't always easy for people to end an argument and become friends again.
6.
Losing touch with school friends is inevitable.
7.
My first teacher influenced me a lot.
8.
If a friend said bad things about me in the heat of the moment, I wouldn’t be angry with them.
9.
When choosing a doctor, sympathy is the quality I’m looking for.

5.

Speaking 1
Choose 4 questions to ask your partner about their opinion on either family or friends.
1. Which member of your family has influenced
you the most?
2. What is your happiest childhood memory?
3. Were your parents equally responsible for
raising their children?
4. Who do you get on with the best in your family?
5. What advice would you like to give to your
parents?
6. How much time do you manage to spend with
members of your family?
7. Who in your family do you turn to when you
need advice?
8. Have you ever lied to your parents?
9. Which members of your family are completely
on your wavelength? Which aren’t?
10. Would you like to have a twin? Why (not)?
1.
At which point in a person's life is it easier to
make new friends? Why?
2. Are you a good friend? Why or why not?
3. When and where did you meet your best friend?
4. How do you take care of your friendship?
5. Is there a difference in friendship between your
male friends and female friends?
6. Is it possible for men and women to be friends?
Or do romantic feelings always get in the way?
7. What qualities do you appreciate in your friends?
8. Do you have any friends who are much older or
younger than you? Is age important in a
friendship?
9. Why do people stop being friends?
10. Has the concept of "friendship" changed in the
modern age?

6.

Speaking 1
The key to a close-knit fam: a repertoire of fun traditions. Do you think they’re important? How to keep them
going? What family traditions does your family have/used to have. Would you like to adopt these traditions?
Why (not)?
Bedtime
stories
Birthday
parties
Decorating
the house
Digging
potatoes
Photos in
matching pajamas
Notes on the
fridge
Secret
handshake
Pizza nights
Family bike
ride
Daddy/Mommy
date
Time capsule
Movie nights

7.

Speaking 1
Parental decisions are not always easy. Whether
you have kids or not, speculate on these tough
situations. What kind of parent are you/would you
be: strict or permissive?
Your 12-year-old daughter has started wearing very heavy
make up and short mini skirts to school.
Your 17-year-old son says he is not going to go to the
university. He wants to travel the world and join a Buddhist
monastery in Thailand instead.
You have found out that your 13-year-old son has been
skipping school and forging your signature on the notes for
his teacher.
Your 6-year-old daughter starts asking uncomfortable
questions about where babies come from and what
happens after people die.
Your 11-year-old son is behind at school and his grades are
very low. You see him studying at home but there seem to
be no results.
Your 12-year-old son is being bullied at school - older boys
take away his money and threaten to beat him up if he
stops giving them the money.
Your 17-year-old daughter has a boyfriend who is 35. She
wants to move out of the house to live with him.
Your 15-year-old son keeps getting into fights with other
boys in his class. He has broken one boy’s arm.
Your 9-year-old son is getting more and more obese. He
eats only sweets, refuses to do any sports, and starts crying
when you want him to eat a proper meal.
Your 14-year-old son is very interested in guns and
weapons. He wants to join a shooting club.
Useful phrases:
If it was up to me, I would …
What seems like a good solution is to...
The best option would be to …
I've never given it much thought. But maybe…
There's just a chance that it will work..
I wouldn't be surprised if it …

8.

Speaking 2
Would you rather do these activities with your family or friends? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each?
Celebrating New Year
Travelling
Asking for advice
Shopping
Borrowing/lending money
Doing business

9.

Speaking 2
Agree or disagree with the statements using the functional language. Support your answer with examples.
Your ‘family’ are the people who care about you, not
necessarily your blood relatives.
It is better to be an only child than to have brothers and
sisters.
Parents should support their children financially and buy
a home for them.
Happy families are all alike, every unhappy family is
unhappy in its own way.
You should always defend members of your family against
the police, even if they’ve done sth wrong.
You have to love your family but you don’t have to like
them.
To agree:
I know exactly what you mean.
I’ll go along with that
I’m with you on that.
To disagree:
I’m not so sure about it.
You can’t be serious.
That’s not exactly the way I see it.
To partially agree:
I agree up to a point…
I see your point but…
That’s partly true but…
Others:
On top of that,..
On the flipside,..
To illustrate my point,..

10.

Speaking 2
Here are some proverbs about family and friends. Match the halves together. Then choose one to comment on.
1. When the character of a man is not clear to you
a. make friends with the
crocodile.
2. An old friend is much better than
b. the loser has good friends.
3. The death of a friend
c. woman the neck that turns
the head
4. In a good family the husband is deaf
d. is a friend to none.
5. A friend to all
e. than two new ones.
6. If you live in the river you should
6. take a look at his friends
7. Man is the head of the family,
7. Is the same as the loss of the
limb.
8. If you want a place in the sun,
8. and the wife is blind.
9. The winner has many friends
you must leave the shade of the
family tree.

11.

Speaking 3
Most people would agree that family is important. However, different people have different family values. What are
your family values. Read the statements and give it a number, then count your score.
1 – strongly disagree. 2 – disagree. 3 – not sure. 4 – agree. 5 – strongly agree.
1. If you want to live together, you should tie the knot first.
2. Parents who don’t love each other should stay married.
3. The father should be in charge of discipline.
4. A woman should not work if she has young children.
5. A parent should not have a job that involves a lot of travel.
6. The father should be the breadwinner and provider for the family.
7. The mother is the best person to look after the children.
8. Children should always obey their parents.
9. It’s important to punish children if they do something wrong.
10. Children should look after their parents when they’re old.

12.

Speaking 3
Read the description that matches your score. Do you agree? How have family
values changed in the last 50 years?

13.

Speaking 3
Are these people a couple, siblings or strangers? Make a guess.

English Русский Rules

Can family be friends? at home?