OUR CANADIAN HOUSE SWAP

Put the verbs into the past simple tense

Years ago, my family _____ (go) on a house swap.

There was me, my mum and dad and my sister. It
was an exciting idea! We _____ (live) in York,
England and our ‘swap’ family ______ (live) in
Vancouver, Canada. My mum and dad ________
(clean) the house and ______ (leave) the keys with
our neighbours. We _____ (get) the plane to
Vancouver and then ______ (hire) a taxi to the
house. OMG! When we finally ________ (arrive), we were shocked! Their house ____ (be)
massive; it was a real mansion! There _____ (be) expensive ornaments everywhere and my
sister was only three! We did not dare let her loose at all! The garden was huge, too. But the
family had left us a note: ‘Please do not play on the lawn. We want the grass to grow.’ That
was very disappointing. I ______ (hear) my mum say to my dad: ‘Oh, I feel so embarrassed!
They have gone to our tiny house and we have come to this palace!’ To tell the truth, our house
was quite ordinary, not that small. Even though we _____ (can) not play on the grass and even
though we _____ (have) to watch my little sister, we _____ (have) a great time. When we
_______ (return) home, our neighbour _____ (tell) us that the
Canadian family had taken one look at our little house, ______ (turn)
tail and driven off! We later ______ (find) out that had stayed in a
hotel. My poor mother was so upset. Thankfully, our neighbour had
kindly fed our goldfish for us. One thing I was proud of though: our
goldfish tank was much bigger than theirs!

Answer the questions in full sentences: OMG! Oh, my God!

1) Where did the writer’s family live?

2) Where did they go on their house swap?

3) When did they do it?

4) How did they get from the airport to the house?

5) What really shocked them when they arrived at the house?

6) What did the Canadian family tell them not to do?

7) Why did Mum feel bad?

8) What did the Canadian family do when they arrived at the house in York?

9) Who fed the family’s goldfish?

10)What was the writer proud of?

OVER TO YOU: Thousands of people go on house swaps every year, some within their own
countries and some on international swaps. What do you think about it? Would you like you
and your family to go on one? Write 3 good points (pros) and 3 negative points (cons).

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KEYS

Years ago, my family went on a house swap. There was me, my mum and dad and my
sister. It was an exciting idea! We lived in York, England and our ‘swap’ family lived in
Vancouver, Canada. My mum and dad cleaned the house and left the keys with our
neighbours. We got the plane to Vancouver and then hired a taxi to the house. OMG!
When we finally arrived, we were shocked! Their house was massive; it was a real
mansion! There were expensive ornaments everywhere and my sister was only three! We
dare not let her loose at all! The garden was huge, too. But the family had left us a
note: Please do not play on the garden. We want the grass to grow.’ That was very
disappointing. I heard my mum say to my dad: Oh, I feel so embarrassed! They have
gone to our tiny house and we have come to this palace! To tell the truth, our house
was quite ordinary, not that small. Even though we could not play on the grass and even
though we had to watch my little sister, we had a great time. When we got back, our
neighbour told us that the Canadian family had taken one look at our little house,
turned tail and driven off! We later found out that had stayed in a hotel. My poor
mother was so upset. One thing though: our goldfish tank was much bigger than theirs.

1. They lived in York

2. They went to Vancouver
3. They did it many years ago.
4. They hired a taxi.
5. They were shocked at the size of the house. The house was so big.
6. They told them not to play on the lawn
7. She felt bad because their house was so small
8. They turned tail and left.
9. The neighbour fed the goldfish
10.She was proud that their goldfish tank was much bigger than the Canadian
family’s
PROS

 You don’t have to pay for hotel, so it’s cheap.

You get all the comforts of a home. Usually, families also use each other’s cars,
so that’s an advantage.
 You can experience authentic culture.
 Lots of facilities – toys for kids etc
CONS
 You have to make sure your house is spotless, it is a big cleaning job.
 You sleep in strangers’ beds
 You have to make all your own meals.
 You just don’t feel comfortable in somebody else’s house.

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