Type of the class: English practice.
Age of students: 18-19 (level B2)
General topic of the Unit: London
Topic of the class: Popular sights of London
Type of the lesson: the lesson with a dominant "practice in communication"
Pre-reading exercises:
Think and answer: Can we say that London is the most visited city in the world? Is it better to live in London or to visit it as a tourist?
London is visited for many things. Tourists come from all over the world to visit its historic buildings, theatres, museums and numerous shops. In London one meets the past and the present, the old and the modern.
The Tower of London
For over 900 years, The Tower of London has been standing guard over the
capital. As a Royal Palace, fortress, prison, place of execution,
arsenal, Royal Mint, Royal Zoo and jewel house, it has witnessed many
great events in British history.
The Tower of London was originally built by William the Conqueror, following his successful invasion of England in 1066.
The Tower of London is perhaps better
known as a prison. The prisoners would be brought, via the river, from
Westminster where they would have been tried and crowds would wait on
the river bank to find out the verdict to see if they would be treated
to the spectacle of a public execution. The executioner, with his long
sharp axe would stand behind the accused on the boat. If the accused
was guilty he would point his axe towards the victim and if not guilty
he would point it away. People knew that if found guilty there would be a
public execution 48 hours later.In the centre of the Tower of London is the famous White Tower. It is
the oldest part of the fortress and was built on the site of the Norman
Keep built by William the Conqueror. Today the Tower of London houses the Crown Jewels and is open to the public as a museum.
Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace has served as the official London residence of Britain's sovereigns since 1837 and today is the administrative headquarters of the Monarch. Although in use for the many official events and receptions held by The Queen, the State Rooms at Buckingham Palace are open to visitors every year. Buckingham Palace has 775 rooms. These include 19 State rooms, 52 Royal and guest bedrooms, 188 staff bedrooms, 92 offices and 78 bathrooms. In measurements, the building is 108 metres long across the front, 120 metres deep (including the central quadrangle) and 24 metres high.
The Palace is also the venue for great Royal ceremonies, State Visits and Investitures, all of which are organised by the Royal Household.
Although Buckingham Palace is furnished and decorated with priceless works of art that form part of the Royal Collection, one of the major art collections in the world today. It is not an art gallery and nor is it a museum.
Its State Rooms form the nucleus of the working Palace and are used regularly by The Queen and members of the Royal Family for official and State entertaining.
More than 50,000 people visit the Palace each year as guests to banquets, lunches, dinners, receptions and the Royal Garden Parties.
The British Museum
The British Museum is a museum in London dedicated to human history and culture. Its permanent collection, numbering some 8 million works, is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence and originates from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its beginnings to the present.
The British Museum was established in 1753, largely based on the collections of the physician and scientist Sir Hans Sloane. The museum first opened to the public on 15 January 1759 in Montagu House in Bloomsbury, on the site of the current museum building. Its expansion over the following two and a half centuries was largely a result of an expanding British colonial footprint and has resulted in the creation of several branch institutions, the first being the British Museum (Natural History) in South Kensington in 1887. Some objects in the collection, most notably the Elgin Marbles from the Parthenon, are the objects of controversy and of calls for restitution to their countries of origin.
Until 1997, when the British Library (previously centred on the Round Reading Room) moved to a new site, the British Museum housed both a national museum of antiquities and a national library in the same building. The museum is a non-departmental public body sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, and as with all other national museums in the United Kingdom it charges no admission fee, except for loan exhibitions. Since 2002 the director of the museum has been Neil MacGregor.
Big Ben
The Elizabeth Tower, commonly called Big Ben, is among London's most iconic landmarks. Technically, Big Ben is the name given to the massive bell inside the clock tower, which weighs more than 13 tons (13,760 kg). The clock tower looks spectacular at night when the four clock faces are illuminated.
The History of Big BenThe Palace of Westminster was destroyed by fire in 1834. In 1844, it was decided the new buildings for the Houses of Parliament should include a tower and a clock.
A massive bell was required and the first attempt (made by John Warner & Sons at Stockton-on-Tees) cracked irreparably. The metal was melted down and the bell recast in Whitechapel in 1858. Big Ben first rang across Westminster on 31 May 1859. A short time later, in September 1859, Big Ben cracked. A lighter hammer was fitted and the bell rotated to present an undamaged section to the hammer. This is the bell as we hear it today.
The origin of the name Big Ben is not known, although two different theories exist. The first is that is was named after Sir Benjamin Hall, the first commissioner of works, a large man who was known affectionately in the house as "Big Ben". The second theory is that it was named after a heavyweight boxing champion at that time, Benjamin Caunt. Also known as "Big Ben", this nickname was commonly bestowed in society to anything that was the heaviest in its class.
The London Eye
Here are some facts about the London Eye, the massive Ferris wheel built on the banks of River Thames in 1999.
From the top of the London Eye you can things about 25 miles away. On a clear day, you can make out Windsor Castle. It is one of the highest viewing platforms in London.It takes 30 minutes to complete a revolution and doesn’t have to stop for passengers to step on and off.
Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace has served as the official London residence of Britain's sovereigns since 1837 and today is the administrative headquarters of the Monarch. Although in use for the many official events and receptions held by The Queen, the State Rooms at Buckingham Palace are open to visitors every year. Buckingham Palace has 775 rooms. These include 19 State rooms, 52 Royal and guest bedrooms, 188 staff bedrooms, 92 offices and 78 bathrooms. In measurements, the building is 108 metres long across the front, 120 metres deep (including the central quadrangle) and 24 metres high.
The Palace is also the venue for great Royal ceremonies, State Visits and Investitures, all of which are organised by the Royal Household.
Although Buckingham Palace is furnished and decorated with priceless works of art that form part of the Royal Collection, one of the major art collections in the world today. It is not an art gallery and nor is it a museum.
Its State Rooms form the nucleus of the working Palace and are used regularly by The Queen and members of the Royal Family for official and State entertaining.
More than 50,000 people visit the Palace each year as guests to banquets, lunches, dinners, receptions and the Royal Garden Parties.
The British Museum
The British Museum is a museum in London dedicated to human history and culture. Its permanent collection, numbering some 8 million works, is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence and originates from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its beginnings to the present.
The British Museum was established in 1753, largely based on the collections of the physician and scientist Sir Hans Sloane. The museum first opened to the public on 15 January 1759 in Montagu House in Bloomsbury, on the site of the current museum building. Its expansion over the following two and a half centuries was largely a result of an expanding British colonial footprint and has resulted in the creation of several branch institutions, the first being the British Museum (Natural History) in South Kensington in 1887. Some objects in the collection, most notably the Elgin Marbles from the Parthenon, are the objects of controversy and of calls for restitution to their countries of origin.
Until 1997, when the British Library (previously centred on the Round Reading Room) moved to a new site, the British Museum housed both a national museum of antiquities and a national library in the same building. The museum is a non-departmental public body sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, and as with all other national museums in the United Kingdom it charges no admission fee, except for loan exhibitions. Since 2002 the director of the museum has been Neil MacGregor.
Big Ben
The Elizabeth Tower, commonly called Big Ben, is among London's most iconic landmarks. Technically, Big Ben is the name given to the massive bell inside the clock tower, which weighs more than 13 tons (13,760 kg). The clock tower looks spectacular at night when the four clock faces are illuminated.
The History of Big BenThe Palace of Westminster was destroyed by fire in 1834. In 1844, it was decided the new buildings for the Houses of Parliament should include a tower and a clock.
A massive bell was required and the first attempt (made by John Warner & Sons at Stockton-on-Tees) cracked irreparably. The metal was melted down and the bell recast in Whitechapel in 1858. Big Ben first rang across Westminster on 31 May 1859. A short time later, in September 1859, Big Ben cracked. A lighter hammer was fitted and the bell rotated to present an undamaged section to the hammer. This is the bell as we hear it today.
The origin of the name Big Ben is not known, although two different theories exist. The first is that is was named after Sir Benjamin Hall, the first commissioner of works, a large man who was known affectionately in the house as "Big Ben". The second theory is that it was named after a heavyweight boxing champion at that time, Benjamin Caunt. Also known as "Big Ben", this nickname was commonly bestowed in society to anything that was the heaviest in its class.
The London Eye
Here are some facts about the London Eye, the massive Ferris wheel built on the banks of River Thames in 1999.
From the top of the London Eye you can things about 25 miles away. On a clear day, you can make out Windsor Castle. It is one of the highest viewing platforms in London.It takes 30 minutes to complete a revolution and doesn’t have to stop for passengers to step on and off.
The London eye took 7 years to construct and was designed by a
number of architects including, Mark Sparrowhawk, David Marks and Julia
Barfield.
More than 3 and a half million people every year go on the London Eye and it can carry 800 people on every revolution.
There are 32 capsules (one for each London burrough). Each one
weighs 10 tonnes and can carry 25 passengers. The capsules are
air-conditioned and seats are provided, although passengers are able to
walk around.
At 135m high, the London Eye is one of the tallest buildings in the city.
The Lond Eye was often called the Millennium Wheel when it was first opened.
It has already become an iconic London building. It provides a focal
point for London’s New Year’s firework display and was light up in the
colours of the Union Jack to celebrate the wedding of Prince William and
Kate Middleton.
The spindle which holds the wheel weighs over 300 tonnes and is 23 metres high.
The London Eye is not the first big wheel to be located in London.
The Great Wheel was constructed in 1895 for the Empire of India
Exhibition. It was demolished in 1907 having being used by over 2
million people.
Home assignment:
Which of the mentioned sights would you like to visit? Explain your choice. Write an essay (200-250 words).
