English-speaking countries (Grades 7 and 8)

Some additional information on the English-speaking countries

(Great Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand)

Enjoy the video 


Read the text

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the Southwest Pacific Ocean. It lies about 1 600 km southeast of Australia and about 10 500 km southwest of California. New Zealand belongs to a large island group called Polynesia. The country is situated on two main islands — the North Island and the South Island — and several dozen smaller islands. Most of the smaller islands are hundreds of kilometers from the main ones.

Wellington is the capital of New Zealand and Auckland is the largest city. English is the official language of New Zealand and is spoken throughout the country. Many native people speak their own language, Maori, in addition to English.

The country once belonged to the British empire. Today it is in independent member of the Commonwealth of Nations, an issociation of Britain and a number of its former colonies.

New Zealand is a constitutional monarchy. The British Monarch, Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, is the monarch of New Zealand. She appoints a governor general to represent her, but the governor general has little power. The legislation, prime minister, and Cabinet run the national go­vernment.

Britain gave New Zealand a constitution in 1852, when it was a British colony. But through the years the New Zealand legislature has changed almost all its provisions. Today, the nation has no written constitution.

The first people who settled in New Zealand were a brown-skinned people called Maoris. They came from Polynesian islands located northeast of New Zealand. The country was discovered by Europeans in 1642, but they did not start to settle in the islands until the late 1700′s. Today, most New Zealanders are descendants of the early European settlers. Maoris make up about 12% of the country’s population.

New Zealand has one of the highest standard of living in the world. For many years, the economy of the country depended largely on agriculture. Today agriculture, manu- factoring, and service industries are all important to the economy. New Zealands economy depends on trade with many countries — Australia, Britain, Japan and the United States.

Canada

Canada is the second largest country in the world. Only Russia has a greater land area. Canada is situated in North America. Canada is slightly larger than the United States, but has only about a tenth as many people. About 28 million people live in Canada. About 80% of the population live within 320 km of the southern border. Much of the rest of Canada is uninhabited or thinly populated because of severe natural conditions.

Canada is a federation of 10 provinces and 2 territories;. Canada is an independent nation. But according to the Constitution Act of 1982 British Monarch, Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom is recognized as Queen of Canada. This symbolizes the country’s strong* ties to Britain. Canada was ruled by Britain completely until 1867, when Canada gained control of its domestic affairs. Britain governed Canada’s foreign affairs until 1931, when Canada gained full independence.

Canada’s people are varied. About 57% of all Canadians have some English ancestry and about 32% have some French ancestry. Both English and French are official languages of

the country. French Canadians, most of whom live in the provinces of Quebec, have kept the language and customs of their ancestors. Other large ethnic groups are German, Irish and Scottish people. Native people — American Indians and Eskimos — make up about 2% of the country’s population. 77% of Canada’s people live in cities or towns. Toronto and Montreal are the largest urban areas. Ottawa is the capital of the country.

Today, maintaining a sense of community is one of the major problems in Canada because of  the differences among the provinces and territories. Many Canadians in western and eastern parts of the country feel that the federal government does not pay enough attention to their problems. 80% of Quebec’s population are French Canadians. Many of them believe that their province should recieve a special recognition in the Canadian constitution.

 English-speaking countries

Great Britain, the USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand are English speaking countries. They are situated in different parts of the world and differ in many ways. The nature of these countries, their weather and climate and way of life of their people differ. Each coutry has its own history customs, traditions, its own national holidays. But they all have a common language. English, the language of the people who left England to make their names in new countries.

After 350 years of development the United States of America still holds the leading position in the western world. The USA is the most powerful and highly developed country in the world. What makes the USA the leader of the western world is its economical, political and military dominiance over other countries.

Canada is the second largest country in the world. Only Russia has a greater land area. Canada is situated in North America. About 28 million people live in Canada. Canada is an independent nation. But according to the Constitution Act of 1982 British Monarch, Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom is recognized as Queen of Canada. Canada’s people are varied. About 57% of all Canadians have some English ancestry. Both English and French are official languages of the country. Other large ethnic groups are German, Irish and Scottish people.

Australia is the only country in the world that is also a continent. It’s the sixth large country and the smallest continent. The country’s official name is Commonwealth of Australia. The Commonwealth of Australia is a federation of states. Australia has six states and two territories.

Australia is a constitutional monarchy like Great Britain. The Britain monarch, Queen Elizabeth II is also queen of Australia and country’s head of state. But the queen has little power in the Australian government.

New Zealand is an island country in the Southwest Pacific Ocean. New Zealand belongs to a large island group called Polynesia. The country is situated on two main islands — the North Island and the South Island.

Wellington is the capital of New Zealand. English is the official language of New Zealand and is spoken throughout the country.

New Zealand is a constitutional monarchy. The British Monarch, Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, is the monarch of New Zealand. Britain gave New Zealand a constitution in 1852.New Zealand has one of the highest standard of living in the world. New Zealand’s economy depends on trade with many countries — Australia, Britain and the USA.

London

London is the capital of Great Britain, its political, economic and cultural centre. It is one of the largest cities in the world. Its population is more than 11 000 000 people. London is situated on the river Thames.

The city is very old and beautiful. It was founded more than two thousand years ago. Traditionally London is divided into several parts: the City, the Westminster, the West End and the East End.

The City is the oldest part of London, its financial and business centre. The Westminster is the aristocratic official part of London. It includes Buckingham Palace, where the Queen lives, and the Houses of Parliament.

The West End is the most beautiful part of London. The best hotels, restaurants, shops, clubs, parks and houses are situated there.

The East End is an industrial district of London. There are many factories and the Port of London there.

London has many places of interest. One of them is the Houses of Parliament, the seat of the British Government. There one can see the famous Tower Clock Big Ben, the symbol of London. Big Ben is the real bell which strikes every quarter of an hour. Another place of interest is Buckingham Palace. It’s the residence of the Queen. There are many other places of interest in London: Trafalgar Square, Regent’s Park, Westminster Abbey and, of course, the British Museum. It’s impossible to describe all places of interest.

The USA

The United States of America is the fourth largest country in the world (after Russia, Canada, and China). It occupies the southern part of North America and stretches from the Pacific to the Atlantic Ocean. It also includes Alaska in the north and Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean. The total area of the country is about nine and a half million square kilometres. The USA borders on Canada in the north and on Mexico in the south. It also has a seaboarder with Russia.

The USA is made up of 50 states and the District of Columbia where the capital of the country, Washington, is situated. The population of the country is about 250 million.

If we look at the map of the USA, we can see lowlands and mountains. The highest mountains are the Rocky Mountains, the Cordillera, and the Sierra Nevada. The highest peak is Mount McKinley, which is located in Alaska.

America's largest rivers are the Mississippi, the Missouri, the Rio Grande, and the Columbia. The Great Lakes on the border with Canada are the largest and deepest in the USA.

The climate of the country varies greatly. The coldest regions are in the north. The climate of Alaska is arctic. The climate of the central part of the country is continental. The south has subtropical climate. Hot winds blowing from the Gulf of Mexico often bring typhoons. The climate along the Pacific coast is much warmer than that of the Atlantic coast.

The USA is a highly developed industrial country. It is the leading producer of copper and oil and the worlds second producer of iron ore and coal. On the industrial enterprises of the country they produce aircrafts, cars, textiles, radio and television sets, weapon, furniture, and paper.

Though mainly European and African in origin, the Americans are made up from nearly all races and nations, including the Chinese and the native Americans — Indians.

The largest cities are New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, Detroit, San Francisco, and others.

The United States is a federal republic consisting of 50 states, each of which has its own government. The seat of the central (federal) government is Washington, D. C. According to the Constitution of the USA, the powers of the government are divided into 3 branches: the executive, headed by the President, the legislative, exercised by the Congress, and the juridical. The Congress consists of the Senate and the House of Representatives. There are two main political parties in the USA: the Republican and the Democratic.