Unit 1: Travel and transport
9
Cloze procedure exercise
Before people knew any other way to _1_, they used what nature gave them to move from
one place to another - their feet. Travelling on foot however, was too _2_. It took weeks,
months or even years to travel long _3_.
Large animals such as mules and camels are _4_ enough to carry people on their backs
and they don’t become as tired as quickly as people do. So when men, women and children
started to ride animals, they were able to travel long distances more _5_ than before. They
were also able to travel long distances without becoming _6_.
People have used whatever strong, easy-to-tame animals they found living in their _7_.
They still use these ‘beasts of burden’ for carrying things and pulling carts, _8_ and sleds.
In the desert lands of Egypt and Syria, people use donkeys, oxen and _9_. Camels are
especially good for _10_ travel. Deserts are dry. Camels can go without _11_ for long
periods. Reindeer are fast in snow and can _12_ up to 136 kilograms. Llamas are good _13_
climbers. They carry things for the Indians of Peru in the Andes Mountains. The people
of ancient Iran were the first to tame horses. Horses can move faster for a longer period of
time than all other animals. In India elephants carry loads on their backs and even with their
_14_. Eskimos near the North Pole train _15_ to pull sleds and carry light loads.
Use the correct word from the letterbox to complete the paragraph.
camels
mountain
trunks
10
carry
quickly
wagons
desert
slow
water
distances
strong
dogs
tired
countries
travel
Spelling
tickets
passengers
interrupt
powerful
journey
international
bicycle
invitation
distance
rucksack
arrival
paddles
guide
passport
destination
traveller
voyage
luggage
tourist
courage
Dictation
One of the strangest cars ever built was shaped like a swan. The driver pressed a lever, which
caused the swan’s beak to open and hiss loudly at anyone who got in its way. (30)
Homophones
Words that sound alike, but have different spelling and meaning.
arc
ark
shore
sure
sale
sail
board
bored
fair
fare
road
rode
rowed
He used his compass to construct an arc. (curve)
Noah put a lot of animals into his ark. (boat)
The boats are near the shore. (seashore)
Are you sure you saw a ship? (certain)
He bought the life-jacket on a sale. (goods to be sold)
He sails fast when the sails catch the strong wind. (glide on water)
He used pine boards to make a bunk bed. (flat piece of wood)
Don’t look so bored! (unenthusiastic; nothing to do)
The teacher was fair to the fair girl at the fair. (just, blonde, carnival)
He paid the fare for the journey. (price for journey)
The road was long and hard. (pathway)
He rode on his horse. (did ride)
He rowed his little boat. (used oars)
Idiomatic speech
To know the ropes:
To be above board:
To be in the same boat:
You have missed the boat:
To trim your sails:
To know what to do
To be honest
To be in similar situations
You have missed your chance.
To adapt to circumstances.
Stress and intonation
Stressing a specific word in a sentence gives it a specific meaning.
For example:
This is my boat. - This specific one.
This is my boat. - Not yours, but mine.
This is my boat. - There is no doubt about it. This is my boat. - Not my car but my boat.
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Reading and speaking
Man becomes waterborne
In the beginning people moved from place to place on their
own two feet. Sometimes they found their way blocked by
a stream or river. One day, nobody knows when, someone
saw a fallen tree floating down a river. He must have
thought: “Will that tree take my weight as well?” Lying
on the tree, using his arms and legs as paddles, he found it
could carry him to the other side.
Later men tried other means of water transport. Logs
lashed together made a raft and a hollowed-out tree trunk
a canoe. By spreading the skin of an animal to catch the
wind, the sail was invented.
The first seafarers in history who travelled great distances were the Phoenicians. Later
came the Greeks and then the Romans who built their ships larger and larger and rowed them
with many oars.
Gradually ships were built even larger, sails replaced oars and more masts were added.
Many fine and famous sailing ships were built such as the Mayflower and the Victory.
But a threat to these fine sailing ships was on the way. Steam! The first successful steamboat
was built in 1801. From the small, early steamships came the great liners* of the twentieth
century such as the Mauritania, Queen Mary and the two Queen Elizabeths. And who can
forget the tragic maiden voyage of the Titanic?
Warships too, have grown steadily larger. In time, oil took the place of coal, then diesel
and now, today, nuclear power.
*liner = large passenger ship
Comprehension and reading exercises
1. Scanning, vocabulary and word search.
2. Reading comprehension.
Questions
1. Why was there a need for water transport even in ancient times?
2. According to the passage, how did our ancestors first manage to cross a stream?
3. What is the synonym for ancestor?
4. How did they make a raft?
5. How did they make canoes?
6. How were the first sails made?
7. How were the Romans’ ships different from those of the Phoenicians and Greeks?
8. What happened in 1801?
9. What do you know about the Titanic?
10. How are modern ships and submarines propelled?
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Reading for knowledge
The first boats
Long ago, when people wanted to get across a river, they probably swam. Only the strongest
swimmers would have been able to cross wide rivers. So they invented the raft - a simple
platform that floats on water. In Egypt, for example, they tied bundles of sticks or heavy
reeds together to make a raft.
Early rafts were made by tying two logs together while the rider used his hands for paddling.
Later he used a stick, which enabled him to move faster through the water. This is how the
paddle was invented.
The most famous raft in the world is the Kon-Tiki raft. It was built by Thor Heyerdahl, a
Norwegian scientist, in 1947. It is a copy of rafts used by the people of the South Pacific.
It is made of Balsa, a light wood that floats easily. Thor sailed this tiny raft thousands of
kilometres across the Pacific Ocean. He went from South America to Polynesia, a group of
islands south of Hawaii. Heyerdahl’s voyage proved that people could have made the same
trip by raft many years earlier.
The first boats developed from rafts. To keep dry, the people turned up the sides of their
reed rafts, thus inventing the saucer-shaped boat. Then people made longer, narrower boats.
Long boats are easier to steer than round ones. The narrower shape also allows boats to
move faster through water.
Search reading
Scan the paragraphs to find the answers to these questions:
1. A raft is a simple platform that ... on water.
2. Early rafts were made by tying two ... together.
3. The most famous raft in the world is the ... raft.
4. Thor Heyerdahl built it in ...
5. It was made of ... wood, which is very light and floats easily.
13
Reading and writing
All about canoes
What is a canoe?
A canoe is a long, narrow boat that is pointed at both ends. One, two or three people can sit
in a canoe, facing the front, or bow. A paddle or paddles are used to move the canoe through
the water and to steer it. Canoes were among the very first kinds of small boats.
Who used canoes?
The American Indians used canoes. They had two kinds - dugout and birch bark. The kind
they used depended on where they lived. In the north where the birch trees grew, Indians
made birch bark canoes. In other places they made dugouts.
How canoes are made
Dugout canoe
A dugout canoe is made from a long, thick log. The canoe maker burned the middle of the log
part of the way through. He then scraped or dug out the inside to make it hollow. This type
of canoe is very heavy and can only move slowly through the water. They are very sturdy.
Birch bark canoe
A birch bark canoe is made of the bark, which is stripped from the birch trees. These strips
are sewn together with tree roots as thread. The bark is then attached to a wooden frame.
This type of canoe is much lighter than a dugout canoe. They can be carried easily from
one stream to another.
Are canoes still used today?
Yes, people still use canoes. In certain places, such as Africa and the South Pacific, people
still travel by canoe. In most other parts of the world, however, canoes are used mainly for
fun. People use them on camping holidays or fishing trips. Today, most canoes are made
by machine and not by hand. They are not all made of wood. Now some canoes are made
of canvas, light metal, plastic or fibreglass.
The kayak
A kayak is the canoe Eskimos have been using for the past several thousand years. It is long
and pointed like most canoes. The frame is made of wood or whalebone - the tough plates
whales have instead of teeth. Sealskin is stretched tightly over it. The skin covers most of
the frame. There is only a small opening for the paddler. Kayaks are very light so they are
able to move quickly through the water.
The South Pacific islanders still travel by canoe.
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Search reading
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Today canoes are used mainly for ...
The Eskimo canoe is called a ...
The frame is made of wood or ...
... is stretched tightly over the frame to make a kayak.
Because kayaks are so light they move ... through water.
There is only a small opening for the ...
Comprehension
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
How many people can sit in a canoe?
What is used to move and steer the canoe?
Who used canoes?
Name two kinds of canoes the Indians used.
Why were birch bark canoes used in the north?
From what is a dugout canoe made?
Can the dugout canoe move fast?
What is used as thread when sewing the strips of bark together for making a birch bark
canoe?
9. What kind of frame does a birch bark canoe have?
10. Which canoe is lighter - the birch bark or the dugout?
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Canoe crossword
2
a
7
b
4
1
3
8
5
6
Clues
Across
1. Two
tied together make a raft.
2. Another word for ocean.
3. One, ..., three.
4. Heyerdahl’s Christian name.
5. Opposite of went.
6. Thor Heyerdahl’s occupation.
7. The name of the famous raft.
8. Thor sailed from South America to ...
Down
a. The very first boats.
b. What the Egyptains used to make rafts.
c. Opposite of large.
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c