TRANSITIONS UNIT 6

Lesson A
A. Match the stage of life to the description.
1. infancy b a. an adult
2. old age e b. a baby
3. adulthood a c. a teenager
4. adolescence c d. a child
5. childhood d e. a senior citizen

B. When do most people do these things? Write the stage of life.

1. learn to talk infancy
2. get married Adulthood
3. stop working old age
4. have their first boyfriend or girlfriend adolescence
5. learn to read childhood
6. finish their education adulthood

C. Circle the correct form of each verb—simple past tense or present perfect tense.
1. I don’t want to eat at Pizza Palace tonight. I (ate/have eaten) there twice this week.
2. Jessica (knew/has known) her best friend since they (were/have been) six years old.
3. I (worked/have worked) for this company since 1998, and I like it very much.
4. Marina (had/has had) a baby last month.
5. I (finished/have finished) my homework, so I can go out tonight.
6. We (saw/have seen) that video before. It (was/has been) terrible!

D. Have you done these things? If so, when did you do them for the first time? Write sentences
with the present perfect tense and simple past tense.
1. I’ve ridden a horse. I rode one in 2005. OR I’ve never ridden a horse.

2. I´ve danced very terrible. I danced once and it was terrible.

3. I´ve never played tennis

4. I´ve never taught

5. I´ve been sick. I had fever

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 UNIT 3

Lesson B
A. Unscramble the sentences to make a conversation.

(but/16/he’s) (to/that’s/too/young/drive)

(about/oh/I/know/that/don’t) (careful/very/he’s) (teaching/and/his father/is/him)

Beth: oh I don´t know about that . he´s very careful
_and his father is teaching him________________.
(a few years/think/true/that’s/but/I/he/wait/should)
Julia: that´s true , but I think he should wait a few years .
(the best age/well/to drive/what/do you think/is/to learn)
Beth: Well , What do you think is the best age to learn? ?
(graduated high school/I think/people/should/their driver’s license/after/get/
they’ve)
Julia: I think people should get their driver’s license after they´ve graduated
High school .

B. Melissa is 15. She just got a job. Write a new conversation like the one in exercise A.
Your friend: Did you hear the big news? Melisa have just to get a new job
You: What!! But she is too young to get a job
Your friend: Yes, she is working in her aunt´s business
You: Ohh, I didn´t know that her aunt has an own business.
Your friend: Yes she had her own business and Melisa is working with her.
You: That´s so good she can get experience and be able to save money
e
C. Say these words out loud. Circle the unstressed syllables with the sound.
1. important 3. pizza 5. animal 7. listen
2. travel 4. apartment 6. woman 8. transition

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Lesson C
A. Read the meanings and unscramble the expressions.
1. stopped working: (dertrie) retired
2. with the energy of a younger person: (flotuuyh) youthful
3. between 30 and 39: (nirhetthrsiise) inheritress
4. acting like a child: (ilshidhc) childish
5. old enough to make good decisions: (tremau) mature
6. looking and acting old: (yeellrd) elderly
7. between 40 and 60: (eilmdd-dega) Middle-aged

B. Read the sentences. Use how to ask questions about the underlined words.
1. My friend Lana is very tall.
How tall is she?
2. My brother sings really badly.
How bad does he sing?
3. I just found out that Mr. Sloan is very wealthy.
How wealthy do you find mr Sloan?
4. I love to eat at Janie’s house because she cooks so well.
How well does she cook?
5. The test was really difficult, and now I’m worried.
How difficult was the test?

C. Katie has a new boyfriend, and her parents are asking a lot of questions about him. Fill in their questions with how.

He’s 19 years old. He speaks English very well.

He’s spoken it all his life!

2. How does he study? ?

He studies very hard.

3. How mature is he? ?

He’s very mature.

He drives very carefully. He’s

never had an accident.

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Lesson
UNIT 3 D

Celebrating
Transitions
E very country has special celebrations to mark transitions in life. Here are three
examples of important days for young people in different countries.

Do you remember your first day in school? Many children feel scared, but in
Germany, the kids are very excited. Their first day in school, when they are six,
is a big celebration called Schulanfang. All of the kids have new clothes, and
their parents give them a Zuckertuete, a big colorful cone full of candy and small
presents. Parents take pictures of their child holding the Zuckertuete. Then they
meet their new teachers and classmates, and they sing songs and play games to
celebrate. There is also a party for the parents after school with coffee and cake.

Girls in Mexico and other countries in Latin America

are very excited about their fifteenth birthday. For
them, it marks the transition from girl to young
woman, and there is a special celebration called
the Quince Años. The girl gets a beautiful and very
expensive dress that looks a little bit like a wedding dress. On the morning of her birthday,
the girl goes to church with her family and all of her friends. In the evening, there is a huge
party in a restaurant, with a big cake in the same colors as the girl’s dress. People enjoy
music and dancing until very late at night.

For young people in Japan, their twentieth birthday is very important, because that is when
they become adults. There is a national holiday called Coming-of-Age Day to celebrate
this. On the second Sunday in January, each city has a ceremony for people who had
their twentieth birthday in the last year. All the new adults go to the City Hall to listen to
speeches and get a present from the town’s mayor. Everyone wears new clothes, and many
women wear beautiful kimonos. Their families take lots of pictures.

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A. Complete the chart with information from the reading.

Transition Schulanfang Quince Años Coming-of-Age Day
Country Germany Mexico Japan

Age of people Six years old Fifteen years old Twenty years old
celebrating
When First school day In their Fifteenth year In the coming of age day

Where At School Church and Restaurant City hall

What do people do? All of the kids have new On the morning of her All the new adults go to the
clothes, and birthday, the girl goes to City Hall to listen to
their parents give them a church with her family and speeches and get a present
Zuckertuete, a big colorful all of her friends. In the from the town’s mayor.
cone full of candy and evening, there is a huge Everyone wears new
small presents. Parents party in a restaurant, with a clothes, and many women
take pictures of their child big cake in the same colors wear beautiful kimonos.
holding the Zuckertuete. as the girl’s dress. People Their families take lots of
Then they meet their new enjoy music and dancing pictures.
teachers and classmates, until very late at night.
and they sing songs and
play games to celebrate.
There is also a party for the
parents after school with
coffee and cake.

B. Answer the questions.

1. Which of these celebrations sounds like the most fun? Why? I think the quince años is the most fun of these celebrations
beceause it has more thinks to do than the others ones.

2. Which birthdays are the most important in your country? Why? The most important is the quince años because the celebrate
the transition from the girl to a young woman, that’s why is important

C. Write about a celebration of a life transition such as a birthday party or a wedding. Who was the party for?
What was the person celebrating? Why was it important? What did you do at the party?

I was in my cousin's fifteen, we were celebrating her fifteenth birthday, we went to a restaurant to eat
pizza and to the ice cream shop to eat ice cream, it is very important since we celebrate the transition
from being a girl to a young woman, she was dressed with a very elegant dress and we took pictures, I
was eating a lot at the party and sharing with her friends and my family

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