The United States of America

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FCGf3ayaqew

American symbols / national icons

The Statue of Liberty – The Statue of Liberty is standing in New York Harbour and it is the gift from France.
The White House – The White House is the seat of the President, situated in Washington D.C.
Route 66 – US Highway 66, popularly known as ‘Route 66’ is significant as the nation’s first all-weather highway linking Chicago to Los Angeles.
The American Flag – The American flag has 50 stars for the 50 states and 13 stripes for the first American colonies.
The Bald Eagle – The Bald Eagle is a beautiful majestic bird that represents power, freedom and boldness.
Coca-Cola – Coca-cola is one of the greatest American symbols, it represents American lifestyle.
McDonald’s – McDonald‘s represents American fast food. The Golden Arches or „M“ symbol is the famous logo of McDonald’s

History of the USA

Christopher Columbus discovered America on 12th October 1492, thinking he had landed in India. He named the Native Americans – Indians. (= a term that is now considered pejorative)
George Washington was elected the 1st President of the United States.
The next important moment was on 4th July 1776 when Declaration of Independence was adopted in Philadelphia.
The United States became a free and independent country from England.
The principal author of the Declaration was Thomas Jefferson who was the principal
leader in The American Revolution and the 3rd President of the United States.
The 4th July has become a national holiday.

QUESTION TIME
part 1

What comes to your mind in connection with the American symbols?
When was the American continent discovered by Europeans?
Who was the 1st American president?
When and where was the Declaration of Independence signed?
Who was the author of the Declaration?

BONUS TASK: Sum up the history and the national symbols of the USA.

Geography

The USA is situated in southern part of the North America continent and its neighbors are Canada to the north and Mexico to the south. It lies between the Atlantic Ocean in the east and the Pacific Ocean in the west.

America is a federation of 50 states:

a block of 48 continental states
Alaska – this is separated from the continental states by Canada and has become the 49th state of America in 1959. Alaska is the biggest state of the USA.
Hawaii/ the Hawaiian Islands became the 50th (the last) state of the USA.

Mountains

The Appalachian Mountains form the eastern part of the USA.
The Cordilleras form the western part of the USA. Cordilleras are divided into several ranges: The Rocky Mountains, The Cascade Range, Sierra Nevada, etc.
Mount McKinley (6.194m) – The highest peak of the USA is in Alaska.

Lakes and Rivers

There are 5 Great Lakes that lie on the US and Canadian border: Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie and Ontario.
The USA has many rivers such as the Mississippi – Missouri River, the Colorado, the Columbia, the Rio Grande and the Sacramento.
The Great Salt Lake is the largest lake in the Cordillera Mountains.
People can admire the world-known Niagara Falls (51m high). They are on the Canadian side and on the US side too.
The Yukon – the biggest river in Alaska.

Climate

North America is huge therefore the climate is varied:

The arctic climate in Alaska.
The temperate climate in the block of 48 states.
The tropical climate in Hawaii and Florida.

QUESTION TIME
part 2

What is the geographic location of the USA?
How many states does the USA consist of?
Can you name any mountains and the highest peak of North America?
Can you name any rivers and lakes?
Describe the climate in North America.

BONUS TASK: Sum up the geography of North America.

Population

The population of the USA is more than 320 million.

Economy

The US economy is the biggest in the world. The United States are practically self- sufficient. Economy is formed by:

Industry – paper industry, chemical industry, car industry, the production of computers, shipbuilding, etc.
Agriculture – the growing of soya, corn, wheat, cotton, tobacco. Cattle, poultry and pig farming.
Tourism

Currency

The currency used in the USA is the American Dollar.

THE US GOVERNMENT, THE US PRESIDENT, THE FLAG

Flag of the USA

The US national flag is known as the „Stars and Stripes“.

It has 13 white and red stripes in memory of the 13 original states that formed the USA in 1776. In that year they got their independence from Britain.

There are also 50 white stars in a blue field in the upper left hand corner. They represent the 50 states of the union.

Some American Presidents

George Washington – the 1st president of the USA
Thomas Jefferson – the author of the Declaration of Independence (the 3rd president of the USA)
John Fitzgerald Kennedy – assassinated in 1963 in Dallas
Bill Clinton
George Bush
Barack Obama – the 1st African – American president (the 44th president in
numerical order)
Donald Trump – the 45th American President
John Biden – the 46th president of the USA

The American Dream

It is the belief that anyone has a chance to succeed. It is a dream to be:

FREE
SUCCESSFUL
HAPPY

QUESTION TIME
part 3

What is the population of the US?
Can you provide any information about the US economy?
What is the currency used in America?
What is the capital of the US?
Who is the current American president?
What is the nickname of the US flag?
Can you name at least four former American Presidents?
What do you know about the American dream?

Famous personalities

Elon Musk – Famous as a founder of the electronic payment firm PayPal, a founder of the spacecraft company named SpaceX. He is also the CEO of Tesla Motors.
Bill Gates – An American business magnate, software developer and investor.
Steve Jobs – The co-founder of Apple Company.
Jeff Bezos – The founder and CEO of the company Amazon. He is the wealthiest man in the world.
Lady Gaga – One of the best-selling artists and songwriters.
Serena Williams – The greatest female tennis player in history.
Madonna – The first female artist to exploit fully the potential of the music video.
Neil Armstrong – An American astronaut, the 1st person to walk on the Moon who said these famous words: “That’s one small step for man. One giant leap for mankind.”

The American way of life, also called “The American way”

The basic characteristic is that every human being has the right to life, the right to be free
and happy. Americans respect these important values:

freedom – the right to say, to do and to think whatever you want without being limited or controlled,
equality – everyone has the same rights and treatment,
multiculturalism – respecting other religions and different cultures,
diligence – hard work and the notion that bring success and happiness,
independence

The Top 5 most popular sports in America

American football
Baseball
Basketball
Ice hockey
Tennis

Popular American Holidays

Thanksgiving (the last Thursday in November)

It is the oldest American holiday.
It was first celebrated in the 17th century after the first successful harvest which helped people survive the winter. The settlers celebrated their harvest and thanked God for his bounty.
Now it is the day when families gather and enjoy themselves and good food. There is a stuffed turkey on every table.

Independence Day (the) 4th (of) July, celebrated in the USA.

On this day, all Americans commemorate the signing of the Declaration of Independence by Thirteen American Colonies from Britain.
It is a day of fireworks, parties, people are dressed in national colors, decorated with national flags.

Halloween (the ) 31st (of) October

People decorate their houses in the scariest ways with: spider webs, coffins, bats, witches, ghosts, candles, goblins, skeletons and of course carved pumpkins.
Its origin goes back to the Celts who believed that on that day, the spirits of the dead would come to their houses and take over their bodies. Therefore, they disguised themselves with animal heads and skins to cheat or confuse them.
Nowadays, children go from house to house knocking on doors saying „Trick-or-treat“. It means that if you don´t give them a treat, they will play a trick on you.
People are dressed up in fancy dress costumes and go to parties to have fun.

QUESTION TIME
part 4

Can you name any significant American personalities?
What are the top sports in the US?
What do you know about the American way of life?
Name the most popular American holidays and give their short characteristic.

PLACES TO GO

NEW YORK

NY is the biggest city in the USA. Its population is more than 14 million people.

Its nicknames are:

The Big Apple
The City That Never Sleeps
The Melting Pot – people from all over the world have mixed together to create modern American society.

NY state flower: a rose
NY state bird: a bluebird
NY state song: I love New York
NY motto: Excelsior /Ever Upward
NY famous streets: Wall Street and the Fifth Avenue

Manhattan

Manhattan is the heart of New York City.
It is famous for its skyline – a large number of skyscrapers on a small area.
Probably the best-known feature in Manhattan was the World Trade Centre – the Twin Towers. The Twin Towers were destroyed by terrorists on the 11th of September 2001.

The Statue of Liberty

It is situated on Liberty Island and it is a symbol of freedom and democracy.
The statue also commemorates French-American friendship.
The statue is 91.5m high from its pedestal to the torch.
The Lady holds a book with the inscription „4th July 1776„ The beginning of the day of the independence.

TIME FOR QUESTIONS V.

What is the biggest city of the USA and how many people live there?
What are its nicknames?
What is New York’s state flower, state bird and state song?
Name some famous streets in NYC.
What is New York’s motto?
The typical landmark of this city is….
Can you give more details about this monument?

WASHINGTON D.C.

– Washington D.C. is the capital of the USA.
– There are no skyscrapers, factories and industry.
– Here we can find the most important buildings in the USA:

The White House – the seat of the President
The Capitol – the seat of Congress (the federal government of the US)
The Pentagon – the centre of military forces

LOS ANGELES

– Los Angeles is known for Hollywood, the centre of film industry.
– Here we can admire Disneyland, which opened in 1955, the park opened by Walt Disney.

MOUT RUSHMORE

– Mount Rushmore is the mountain with 4 enormously big portraits of former US presidents (Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln and Roosevelt) carved in stone.