English For Today chapter 17: The Land of Mountains

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1.1 Look at the picture and say what you can see.

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Description: Snow-capped mountains across the top; blue hills in the middle; a lake or water area with a small boat; green trees with flowers in the foreground; a house with a yellow roof and other houses in the valley.

1.2 Read the text.

Nepal is a land of beauty. It is a country of mountains, hills, lakes, forests, and temples. It is famous for its high mountains such as Mount Everest, Mount Annapurna, Mount Manaslu, Mount Daulagiri etc. Mount Everest is the highest mountain in the world. Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay were the first to successfully reach the summit of Everest in 1953. Besides mountains, Nepal has lovely lakes. One of the most famous lakes is Phewa Lake in Pokhara. You can ride on boats on the lake. The reflection of the mountains in the clear water will make you happy.

Nepal also has green forests filled with trees, animals and colorful birds. In Chitwan National Park, you can see elephants, rhinos and even tigers.

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In the capital city, Kathmandu, there are many old buildings, palaces and temples. They are very colourful.

Nepalese like to dance and enjoy music in most of their festivals. They take a variety of foods during festivals. Nepal is truly a wonderful country.

2.1 Read the text again and complete the information table. One is done for you.

2.2 Discuss the following questions in pairs.

a) What animals can be seen in Chitwan National Park? b) Why is Phewa Lake attractive to the tourists? c) Why should one go to visit Nepal?

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3.1 Language Focus: Use of Punctuation Marks

Uses of capital letter and full stop (.) Sentence always starts with a capital letter. Names of person and place also start with a capital letter. We use the full stop (.) to end statements. Examples: My name is Udoy. I am from Jashore.

Use of comma (,) When we write a list of different items in a sentence, we use commas. We join last two things in the list with and/or. Example: Nepal is a country of mountains, hills, lakes and temples.

Use of question mark (?) When we want information, we ask a question. We use a question mark at the end of sentence. Examples: Where do you live? Do you like it?

3.1.1 Use capital letters and punctuation marks (full stop, comma, question mark) in the following sentences correctly.

a) my name is masud b) i want to buy apple orange and banana c) shanta do you like coconuts d) i am from sylhet e) i like green red and blue dresses f) where are you coming from g) yes she is a wonderful teacher

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4.1 Look at the pictures and discuss in groups. Write two sentences for each tourist place. The first one is done for you.

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Labels: Ahsan Manzil Description: Ahsan Manzil, a large pink palace with a central dome and steps leading up to it, with trees in front.

Ahsan Manzil is located in Dhaka. Nawab Sir Salimullah lived in Ahsan Manzil.

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Labels: Cox's Bazar Description: A sea shore under a cloudy sky, with a green boat on the sand.

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Labels: The Sundarbans Description: A forest scene with trees and a river, with a tiger walking on the ground in the foreground.

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Figure

Labels: Bandarbans; Shat Gambuj Mosque Description: A two-row table. The top-left picture shows a green hilly landscape beside a river with a rocky outcrop, captioned "Bandarbans"; the bottom-left picture shows a brick building with domes and arches beside a large tree, captioned "Shat Gambuj Mosque". Each picture has four dotted writing lines on its right.

4.2 Write a short composition on your favourite tourist spot in Bangladesh.