Text 1.

Families Have a Great-Great Future

Twenty years ago, the typical extended family was “wide”. It usually
consisted of two or three generations, with many children in each “nuclear family”.
People had lots of aunts and uncles but often didn’t know their grandparents.
However, according to a new study by the British research group Mintel, the family is
changing shape. The family groups of the future will be ”long and thin”, with three or
four small generations.
Here are some of their predictions:

1. Most children will know their great-grandparents (and even great-great-parents)

because people are living longer

2. Very few children will have brothers and sisters, and it will be common to be an
only child. As a result, future generations will not have many cousins either.

3. Many children will grow up isolated from other children and young adults. This
will make them more selfish and introverted.

4. More couples will divorce and re-marry, some more than once. They may have
children with their new partners, so many children will have a stepmother or
stepfather and half-brothers or sisters.

5. There will be many “boomerang children”. These are the children who leave home
to get married, but then divorce and return to live with their parents.

6. There will be more single-parent families.

7. Because houses are now so expensive, different generations may decide to live
together, so parents, grandparents, and adult children may co-own their houses, and
many couples will have to live with their in-laws.

Text 2. Modern British Family

Father leaves for work in the morning after breakfast. The two children take the
bus to school, and mother stays at home cooking and cleaning until father and kids
return home in the evening. This is the traditional picture of a happy family living in
Britain. But is it true today? The answer is – no! The past twenty years have seen
enormous changes in the lives and structures of families in Britain, and the traditional
model is no longer true in many cases.

The biggest change has been caused by divorce. As many as two out of three
marriages now end in divorce, leading to a situation where many children live with
one parent and only see the other at weekend or holidays. There has also been a huge
rise in the number of mothers who work. The large rise in divorces has meant many
women need to work to support themselves and their children. Even when there is no
divorce, many families need both parents to work in order to survive. This caused an
increase in children facilities, though they are very expensive and can be difficult to
find in many areas. In addition women are no longer happy to stay at home raising
children and many have careers earning as much as or even more than men, the
traditional breadwinners.

There has also been a sharp increase in the number of single mothers,
particularly among teenagers.

In the past, people got married and stayed married. Divorce was very difficult,
expensive and took a long time. Today, people's views on marriage are changing.
Many couples, mostly in their twenties or thirties, live together (cohabit) without
getting married. Only about 60% of these couples will eventually get married.

In the past, people married before they had children, but now about 40% of
children in Britain are born to unmarried (cohabiting) parents. In 2000, around a
quarter of unmarried people between the ages of 16 and 59 were cohabiting in Great
Britain.

People are generally getting married at a later age now and many women do not
want to have children immediately. They prefer to concentrate on their jobs and put
off having a baby until late thirties.

By the year 2020, it is estimated that there will be more single people than
married people. Fifty years ago this would have been socially unacceptable in Britain.

However, these changes have not had a totally negative effect. For women it is
now much easier to have a career and good salary. Although it is difficult to be a
working mother, it has become normal and it’s no longer seen as a bad thing for the
children. As for children themselves, some argue that modern children grow up to be
more independent and mature than in the past. From an early age they have to go to
childminders or nurseries and so they are used to dealing with strangers and mixing
with other children. So while the traditional model of a family may no longer be true
in modern Britain, the modern family continues to raise happy successful children.

Extra vocabulary
To look like
To look like means to resemble someone physically or to be similar in appearance to
someone.
If you’re tall with big eyes like your older sister, you’d say, “I look like my older
sister.”
To take after
To take after means to look or behave (act) like someone older than you in your
family.
Some of your family may walk, talk or even smile just like another family member.
So if your father and sister both like to gesture with (move) their hands when talking,
you’d say, “My sister takes after my father in the way she waves her hands around
when she talks.”
To run in the family
To run in the family refers to a quality, ability or skill that’s shared by all or many of
your family members.
Some families may have lots of members who are good at sports, music, cooking, etc.
It could also be that many of your family members have thick curly hair, so then
you’d say “Thick curly hair runs in my family.”
Like father, like son
In many cases, a son’s character or behavior closely resembles (is similar to) that of
his father. For example, if both your father and brother like to spend their money
wisely, you’d say, “He spends money like his dad—like father, like son.”
Another expression that’s similar in meaning is a chip off the old block. In this
expression, the chip refers to a small piece of wood (the son) that’s part of a bigger
piece or the block (the father). So then you’d say “My brother is a chip off the old
block.”
Both of the above expressions are generally used when referring to male members of
the family.
To have something in common
The expression to have something in common refers to two or more people in a
family sharing similar interests, likes and dislikes.
If you’re asked, “What do you and your family like to do?” you could talk about your
shared interests. “My siblings, cousins and I have many things in common. We enjoy
camping, cycling and playing board games.”
The opposite of this would be “I don’t have much in common with my brothers.
They’re much older than me and we have different interests.”
To be named after
To be named after someone is to give someone the same name (usually the same first
name) as an older family member. This is commonly done in honor and respect for the
older person.
For example, if you say, “I was named after my grandmother,” it would mean you
have the same name as your grandmother. So if your grandmother’s name is Esther,
your name would also be Esther.
To get along with
To get along with means to have a good relationship with someone.
If you say, “I get along very well with my younger sister,” it means you agree on
many things and have a good relationship. The opposite would be “I don’t get along
with my cousin,” which means the relationship between you and your cousin isn’t
very good.
To be on good terms
To be on good terms also means to have a good relationship with someone.
If you and your sister get along very well, then you’d say, “I’m on good terms with
my sister.” The opposite would be “I’m not on good terms with my cousin.” If you
and your cousin are not even talking to each other, you’d say, “I’m not on speaking
terms with my cousin.”
To be close to
To be close to means that you have a close relationship that cannot easily be broken.
If you say, “I’m very close to my mother and sister,” you’re saying that the three of
you enjoy being together, get along very well and have a strong relationship.
To look up to
To look up to
means to respect and admire someone else.
If you say, “I’ve always looked up to my older brother,” it means you respect and
admire the things he says and does.
To get together
To get together means to meet up and do things together.
If someone asks you, “How often do you see your family?” you might say, “We get
together every weekend to play soccer, watch a movie or eat pizza.”
To start a family
To start a family means to start having children. You might hear your parents ask
you, “When are you and your husband/wife going to start a family? I want
grandchildren!”
Or maybe your brother just sent a text and so you call your best friend saying, “I just
heard that my brother and sister-in-law are planning to start a family. That means I’m
going to become an aunt (or uncle) soon!”