TINY HOUSES

Read the following article. Pay special attention to the words in bold.

Do you have a dream to own a house? Does the house of your dreams have many rooms? The typical new
American home is about 2,600 square feet. A big house is expensive. Americans spend one-third to one-half
of their salaries on housing costs. Most homeowners have a mortgage. They make a down payment and then
pay the mortgage—plus interest—over a long period of time. Besides the cost of the house plus interest,
there is insurance, property tax, repairs, and improvements. Over 30 years, a $300,000 house can cost over 1
million dollars!
Not everyone wants to own a big house. Some people want to own a small house. In fact, some people want
to own a very tiny house. Who wants to live in a tiny house? More and more people do. Most tiny-house
owners have middle incomes.
Tiny houses come in all shapes and sizes, but they are usually between 100 and 400 square feet. Why do
people want a very small house? The owners of tiny houses want a simple life. Some tiny houses cost only
about $20,000. Many tiny-house owners do not have a mortgage. Without a mortgage, they can save more
of their paycheck.
There are several websites with pictures of tiny houses. Look at the pictures. Is this lifestyle for you?

Based on the reading, write T for true or F for false.

1. Most Americans spend more than half of their salaries on housing.
2. Tiny houses are always 100 square feet or less.
3. The average new American home is about 2,600 square feet.
Discuss the questions with a partner or in a small group.
1. What is your dream house? Where is it? What does it look like?
2. Do you think tiny houses are a good idea? Why or why not?

Exercise 1. Circle the correct answers.

1. In many cultures, knocking on wood is a/an
way to chase away bad spirits.
2. American people often watch a/an ball drop
at midnight in Times Square.
3. There is at least a/an ornamental tree in my
house every Tet holiday.
4. I have to go. I’m in a/an hurry.
5. Mr. Lu goes hunting in the forests twice a/an
month.
6. Do you have a/an milk jug?
7. The Prime Minister will give a/an speech this
afternoon.

Exercise 2. Fill in the blanks with “a / an / the / x”.

1. Vietnamese are known to be polite, hospitable and sensitive.
2. In ______ countryside, parents often arrange their children’s marriages.
3. “Ao dai” is one of most traditional costumes in Viet Nam.
4. My aunt made some spring rolls for longevity party.
5. Ok Om Bok Festival takes place in October.
6. tradition of worshipping whales is popular in Vietnamese coastal villages.
7. It’s tradition for shops to have lion dance performance at their opening
ceremony.
8. Holding party to wish our grandparents longevity is one of customs we
practice at Tet.
9. “Li xi” is essential part of Vietnam’s customs of the Tet Festival.
10. Storytelling is way to keep the local tradition alive.
III. Mark the letter A, B, C, or D to indicate the correct answer to each of the following questions.
1: I have bought ______new shirt which matches ______jacket I bought last week.
A. some/a B. the/a C. a/the D. some/the
2: Could you lend me some more? I’ve spent ______money you gave me yesterday.
A. Ø B. the C. a D. an
3: The principle river in Wales is ______Severn, which flows from the slopes of Plynlimon to
______English border.
A. Ø / Ø B. the/the C. a/the D. the/a
4: Until recently ______economy of ______southern United States was based on ______cotton.
A. an/the/ Ø B. the/ Ø/Ø C. the/the/the D. the/the/ Ø
5: I still keep wondering if I was doing ______right thing when I asked my father for ______ permission to
leave school.
A. a/ Ø B. the/ Ø C. Ø D. Ø/a
6: We needed ______house to live in when we were in London.
A. a B. the C. any D. Ø
7: You are ______only person whose opinion is of any value to me in ______present regrettable circumstances.
A. the/Ø B. the/the C. the/a D. Ø/the
8: The boy told me he hated ______doctors.
A. the B. some C. Ø D. a
9: He had ______laughing eyes and ______most charming mouth.
A. the/the B. a/a C. Ø/a D. Ø/the
10: My brother hopes to travel around the world ______next summer.
A. a B. an C. the D. Ø (no article)
IV. Mark the letter to indicate the underlined part that needs correction in each of the questions.
Question 1: Once tested for viruses, the software can be installed in the school computer system for the use.
Question 2: It was only birthday he had celebrated since he was a child.
Question 3: Nowadays, everybody knows Apples and almost everybody knows that a company was founded
by Steve Jobs, an American inventor and entrepreneur.
Question 4: The teacher entered the room while the students were discussing their plan for an excursion.
Question 5: Of all papers I read this morning, none interested me as much as this one.
Question 6: Steve Jobs died in 2011 after battling with the pancreatic cancer for nearly a decade.
V. Which is right?
1 a Where is university / the university? Is it near here?
b Neil left school and got a job. He didn’t want to go to university / the university.
2 a My brother has always been healthy. He’s never been in hospital / the hospital.
b When my friend was ill, I went to hospital / the hospital to see her.
c When I was visiting my friend, I met Lisa, who is a nurse at hospital / the hospital.
d I saw an accident. A woman was injured and was taken to hospital / the hospital.
3 a Why is she in prison / the prison? What crime did she commit?
b There was a fire at prison / the prison. Firefighters were called to put it out.
c Do you think too many people are sent to prison / the prison?
4 a John’s mother is a regular churchgoer. She goes to church / the church every Sunday.
b John himself doesn’t go to church / the church.
c The village is very nice. You should visit church / the church. It’s interesting.