Is today special ?

Every day has something particular or special about it, whether it be the death or birth of a famous person,  an awareness raising initiative or the commemoration of an important event in history. And today is no different. By googling today’s date I found links to Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/October_28) , the BBC (http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/october/28) and the New York Times (http://learning.blogs.nytimes.com/on-this-day/October-28/) and discovered that on this day in 1886, the Statue of Liberty, a gift from the people of France, was dedicated in New York Harbor by President Grover Cleveland. Reading the article got me thinking that this could be a great opportunity to explore new words and phrases associated with New York and in a wider sense, cities and city life.

First test your understanding of the definite article ‘the’ with this New York Quiz, then check out the links below.

NEW YORK QUIZ

Be careful – do you have to put the definite article before your answer or not?

1.      What is another name for New York City?

2.      What are the five boroughs of New York?

3.      Manhattan has 2 rivers on either side of it. What are the names of these rivers?

4.      One of the great bridges into Manhattan was designed by John Roebling with Gothic arches, and opened in 1883, it is ________________?

5.      What landmark was a gift from the French in 1886?

6.      What New York City (NYC) Art Deco building has six levels of stainless steel arches topped by a lit lancet spire on its top?

7.      The largest art museum in the Western Hemisphere is located in NYC, what is its name?

8.      An ice skating rink is erected each winter under the statue of Prometheus at _____________?

9.      Which shop, opened in 1861 by two brothers, originally sold only hoop skirts?

10.  What NYC area is home to Washington Square, the MacDougal-Sullivan Gardens Historic District and New York University?

11.  What building was called the "eighth world wonder" when it was built in 1931?

12.  Where were immigrants entering the United States through the port of New York medically

and legally inspected?

13.What area in NYC contains bridle paths, a children's zoo, and a world famous art museum

      within its boundaries?

Listening  – New York Travel - http://esl-lab.com/newyorktravel/newyork-travelrd1.htm

Vocabulary – Vocabulary charts – This one is about the city but it works for any subject - http://esl.about.com/library/lessons/nblvocabtrees.htm

See here for more ideas - http://bogglesworldesl.com/city_worksheets.htm

Song – Sting / Police – An Englishman in New York  - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d27gTrPPAyk&ob=av2e

http://www.qualitytime-esl.com/spip.php?article173 – Scroll down about half way down the page to find 2 pdfs

Pronunciation – New York accents - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1hrA9-6o4tI

Quiz answers: 1. The Big Apple 2. The Bronz, Queens, Manhattan, Broooklyn, Staten Island 3. the Hudson River, the Harlem River 4. Brooklyn Bridge 5. The Statue of Liberty 6. The Chrysler Building 7. The Metropolitan Museum of Art 8. Rockerfeller Center  9. Bloomingdale’s 10. Greenwich Village 11. The Empire State Building 12. Ellis Island 13. Central Park

For more information on articles see here - http://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/en/english-grammar/determiners-and-quantifiers/definite-article

I wonder what tomorrow is special for?! Find out and write and tell me what you learn!