Hi to you all, guess what, I haven’t finished eating all the candies I got
for Hallowe’en yet, but I am really looking forward to celebrating
Thanksgiving. It’s my favourite holiday with Christmas, because I can
see all my family and it’s great fun, believe me !!. Oh but let’s start from
the beginning. My name is Josh Bradford , I am ten years old and I live in a big house in
the center of Philadelphia with my parents, Mathew and Jenny and my small sister
Molly. I really love my family and for us Thanksgiving is very important, my uncles and
aunts from Los Angeles and Dallas, my grandparents (Dad’s parents) from New York and
my other grandparents (Mum’ s parents ) from Miami and us all meet every year. This
year it happens at home, and all the people working in the family have taken their Friday
off, so that they can stay over for the whole weekend. Because of this celebration on
the fourth Thursday of November and the wish for everybody to be together, the
airports and stations are really busy on these days ! For us
Thanksgiving is very important because my great great
great…- grandfather William Bradford was aboard
the Mayflower with his wife Dorothy in 1620. I
swear, and every year we remember the story
that passed from generation to generation telling
how he survived the trip and that first horrible
winter, and how the Indians, sorry the Native
Americans agreed to help them giving them
food , shelter, and taught them all the things that enabled them to keep on living
hereafter. We’ve also heard of the first Thanksgiving dinner, how they all celebrated
that first year together, white people (settlers or pilgrims ) that’s for you to choose ,
and native people who first accepted these new comers. The discussions are animated
when it comes to all the massacres that happened afterwards, when we white people
stole all the land from them to become the nation we’ve become !! My grandfathers want
us to remember all the past sacrifices and they ask us to be really thankful for all the
things we have, and indeed we are happy as can be, everybody in good health, with good
jobs, nice houses and plenty of friends ! Believe me , that is very important and it’s
great fun preparing the dinner together , with that huge turkey (sometimes it’s
difficult to put it in the oven !! ) and we all give a hand peeling vegetables , making the
pies and all, the kitchen is like airports or stations, very, very busy. After we
watch football on TV !!.But that’s so cool, for sure, I wish you all a very happy
Thanksgiving !!
I.ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS ON YOUR COPYBOOKS.
1. What is the name of the person speaking ? Give three different details.
2. What are the three festivities he talks about ?
3. What
INwere
BOTHtheCASES
names of his relatives who were on the Mayflower ?
4. Does he like Thanksgiving ? Justify giving details from the text.
5. Do the members of his family all live in the same state ? Justify.
6. What do they usually do on that day ?
II .SAY IF THE STATEMENTS ARE RIGHT AND III. MATCH THE WORDS TO THE PICTURES
WRONG AND JUSTIFY ;
1. Cabin
1 . This festivity is celebrated in
2. Cornucopia
Britain.--------------------------------------------------
-----------------2. They always celebrate it on fixed 3. Native American
day.------------------------------------------------------
4. Pilgrims
-------------3. It has to do with the first settlers
and native 5. Mayflower
Americans .---------------------------------------------
6. Settlers
------------------------------------------------------4.
The ship they used to cross the Atlantic was called 7. Harvest
the
8. Teepee
Rosemary.-----------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------5. Josh had a 9. Carving the turkey
member of his family on that
10. Exchange
ship------------------------------------------------------
-----6.The first settlers were called Pilgrim 11. Agreement
Fathers.-------------------------------------------------
---------7.They helped the Native Americans when
they
arrived--------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------
8.This happened in 1652.-----------------------------
9.It is a very quiet weekend in terms of transport
II .SAY IF THE STATEMENTS ARE RIGHT AND III. MATCH THE WORDS TO THE PICTURES
WRONG AND JUSTIFY ;
12. Cabin
1 . This festivity is celebrated in
13. Cornucopia
Britain.--------------------------------------------------
-----------------2. They always celebrate it on fixed 14. Native American
day.------------------------------------------------------
15. Pilgrims
-------------3. It has to do with the first settlers
and native 16. Mayflower
Americans .---------------------------------------------
17. Settlers
------------------------------------------------------4.
The ship they used to cross the Atlantic was called 18. Harvest
the
19. Teepee
Rosemary.-----------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------5. Josh had a 20. Carving the turkey
member of his family on that
21. Exchange
ship------------------------------------------------------
-----6.The first settlers were called Pilgrim 22. Agreement
Fathers.-------------------------------------------------
---------7.They helped the Native Americans when
they
arrived--------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------
8.This happened in 1652.-----------------------------
9.It is a very quiet weekend in terms of transport
