Шесть студентов и студенток из разных стран мира – что у них общего? Все они приехали в американский университет по обмену на один семестр. Они будут изучать английский язык, культуру США, будут специализироваться в своей области.
Эта серия Ежедневных диалогов посвящена жизни студентов в течение семестра в американском вузе. Диалоги рассчитаны на владеющих английским языком на среднем или более высоком уровне.
Трое студентов (Питер, Акини и Ли) работают волонтерами на осеннем фестивале. Здесь они обсуждают свою работу.
Peter: I thought we were all meeting up here this morning. Where are Lucía, Ajay and Jana?
Akinyi: Ajay and Jana are helping Lucía with a huge midterm project for one of her classes. You’re stuck with us.
Lee: But we’re ready to help!
Peter: Well, thanks for volunteering to help out at the fall festival. It’ll be a lot of fun, and all the money goes to the children’s hospital in town.
Akinyi: Could you explain one thing to me first? What exactly is a fall festival? I volunteered without knowing what I was getting myself into.
Lee: Me too!
Peter: Now I really appreciate that you volunteered! A fall festival is like an outdoor fair with a fall theme. There’s food and music, as well as games for children. This one is an off-campus event near a farm, so there’s even going to be a corn maze.
Lee: A corn maze? Like a maze made of corn?
Peter: Exactly. You have to walk through tall cornstalks trying to find your way out of the maze. Just when you think you’re finding your way, suddenly you come to a dead end, and you have to turn around and try a different path.
Akinyi: And what happens if you can’t find your way out?
Peter: There are people who will help you. You won’t be stuck in the maze forever.
Слова и выражения.
To be stuck with someone or something means that one is forced to take care of or deal with someone or something. In this context, it is said as a joke. [“Придется с этим примириться.” (шутл.)]
To volunteer means to offer to do something without being paid to do it or without being asked to do it. [“Заниматься волонтерской работой.”]
A fall festival is a type of outdoor celebration or fair in the fall. Fall festivals have a fall theme, often with seasonal food and drink, music, games and crafts. [“Осенний фестиваль.”]
The phrase without knowing what (one) was getting (one)self into means that the person did not know the details of a situation in advance. [“Не быть готовым”, “Не знать, что тебя ожидает.”]
An off-campus event is an event that does not take place on the campus of a school. [“За пределами кампуса.”]
A maze is a complicated system of paths or passages that people try to find their way through for fun. A corn maze is a large maze created in a cornfield. Cornstalks are cut down to create the paths. [“Лабиринт.”]
A dead end is a road or path that is closed at one end and does not join another road or path. As a result, one must turn around to exit a dead-end path. [“Тупик.”]
A cornstalk is the thick, tall stem of a corn plant. [“Кукурузный стебель.”]
Хотите совершенствоваться в английском языке? Наши материалы вам помогут.
Вебсайт American English предлагает разнообразные бесплатные ресурсы для учащихся и преподавателей английского языка. Учебные материалы также можно найти на ежедневно обновляемой странице American English Facebook.
Ежедневные диалоги разработаны старшим сотрудником отдела программ английского языка Хейди Холланд (Бюро по делам образования и культуры Государственного департамента США).
