THE RANSOM OF RED CHIEF BY O. HENRY ABOUT THE AUTHOR Choose the correct answer: 1. Where was Porter born? a. London b. Greensboro c. Madrid d. New York 2. Who encouraged Porter to read? a. His mother b. His father c. His sister d. His aunt 3. Why did Porter leave Greensboro? a. To travel round the country b. To go to university c. To work as a doctor d. To live with his uncle 4. In Texas, which job didn t Porter do? a. Cowboy b. Sailor c. Clerk d. Cook 5. How many children did he have? a. Four b. Three c. Two d. One 6. Porter went to prison because they said he a. Murdered someone b. Robbed money c. Sold drugs d. Stole money
7. Why did Porter return from Honduras? a. His wife was ill b. His wife died c. His wife was pregnant d. He divorced his wife 8. Where did he begin writing short stories? a. At school b. In Honduras c. In Greensboro d. In prison 9. Why was Porter often in debt? a. He was a ludopath b. He liked going out and spending money c. He had no job d. His wife took all his money 10. What was the surprise ending at Porter s funeral? a. The priest died b. He resuscitated c. Nobody went d. There was a wedding at the same time 11. Say if the following statements are true or false: a. Porter was born before the civil war b. Porter s father was a ludopath c. Porter s aunt was a university teacher d. Porter was very creative when he was young e. Porter was accused of stealing money from the First International Bank of Texas f. Porter not only wrote about poor people g. Porter wrote about 600 stories h. Porter s stories for The New York Sunday World were very successful i. Porter used to give money away j. Porter didn t drink alcohol THE GIFT OF THE MAGI BEFORE YOU READ 1. Match the pictures with the descriptions: a. Jack has short, gray hair b. Sally has straight, blonde hair
c. Bob has short, black hair d. Jenny has long, brown hair e. Susan has curly, red hair f. Joe has curly, blonde hair 2. Listen to the first part of the story and say if the sentences are true or false: a. The rent for the flat was $32 a month b. Della wanted to buy Jim a beautiful birthday present c. Della looked at her hair in the mirror d. Jim and Della only had two important things e. Della wore a black hat when she went out AFTER YOU READ 1. Say if the statements are true or false: a. Della had money to buy Jim a present b. The events in the story happen on Christmas Eve c. They lived in a small house in New York d. Della had long, black hair that went down to her knees e. Madame Sofronie bought Della s hair for $20 f. Della dyed her hair as a present for Jim g. Jim was sad when he saw Della s hair h. Della liked the combs i. Jim robbed the combs for Della j. At the end of the story the couple was happy a.hadn t/c.flat/f.had her hair cut/bought 2. Put he events in the story in the right order: a. Madame Sofronie bought Della s hair b. Jim gave Della a pair of combs c. Della bought a gold watch chain d. Della cried and counted her money e. Della arrived home and looked at her heir in the mirror 3. Continue the sentences so that they mean the same as the given ones: a. Della wanted to buy Jim a present but she only had $1.87 Della couldn t.. b. She waited for Jim near the door She waited for Jim..to the door c. I sold it because I like you too much The reason why I sold it is d. I sold my hair because I wanted to give you a present I wanted to give you a present. e. Their love was so great that they sacrificed their treasures for each other They sacrificed their treasures for each other..
4. Think about the last object you bought and describe it. Answer the following sentences to help you. What is the object? Where and when did you buy it? When /How often do you use it? Do you have any plants to buy any similar things? 5. Choose the right explanation for the following notices: A. APARTMENT FOR RENT STARTING JUNE 1 a. Someone is selling an apartment b. You can move into the apartment on June 1 c. Someone is selling an apartment B. STORE OPENING HOURS 9.00-5.00 MONDAY-FRIDAY CLOSED WEEKENDS AND HOLIDAYS a. On holidays the store is open b. The store closes for lunch c. The store isn t open at weekends C. MADAME SOFRONIE HAIR GODOS WE ALSO BUY HAIR a. You can buy hair products here b. You can cut your hair here c. You can buy hair here
D. WATCHES BOUGHT AND SOLD a. You can fix your watch here b. You can buy watches here c. You can t sell watches here E. CHRISTMAS SALE: ALL ITEMS ARE HALF PRICE a. Only half the items remain b. All the items are cheaper than usual c. All the ítems are more expensive than usual THE LAST LEAF BEFORE YOU READ 1. Listen to the first part of the story and decide if the sentences are true or false: a. The story took place in New York b. Musicians came to live to Greenwich Village c. Sue and Johnsy had a studio on the basement of a building d. Joanna was from Illinois e. In November they received a new flatmate f. Johnsy caught the flue g. The doctor said thats he had a bad chance of survival h. Johnsy wanted to paint the Bay of Venice 2. Look at the picture on page 27 and answer the following questions: a. Who do you think the man in the picture is? b. What can you see from the window in the room? c. What does the girl have on her head? Why? AFTER YOU READ 1. Choose the correct answer: 1. Where did Johnsy and Sue live? a. Naples b. Greenwich Village c. Maine d. California 2. Who was the invisible stranger? a. The doctor
b. The janitor c. Behrman d. Pneumonia 3. Young artists often a. Sold shoes to make money in N. York b. Wrote stories to make money in N. York c. Drove taxis to make money in N. York d. Drew illustrations for magazines to make money in N. York 4. Who counted the ivy leaves? a. Johnsy b. Behrman c. The janitor d. Sue 5. When the last leaf falls, Johnsy a. Wants to die b. Wants to visit Naples c. Wants Behrman to visit d. Wants Sue to paint a picture 6. Why did Behrman help Sue? a. He needed some extra money b. Sue was ill c. Johnsy was ill d. Sue needed a model for her drawing 7. What was Johnsy s dream? a. To live in N. York b. To paint the Bay of Naples c. To paint an ivy leaf d. To travel the world 8. At the end of the story a. Sue died of pneumonia b. Johnsy became ill c. Johnsy painted the Bay of Naples d. Behrman died of pneumonia 9. When the last leaf fell a. Sue drew an illustration of a cowboy b. Sue got pneumonia c. Johnsy died d. Behrman painted another one on the brick wall 10. What was Behrman s materpiece a. A painting of the last ivy leaf b. A painting of the Mona Lisa c. A painting of his house d. A painting of the Bay of Naples
2. Have a look at page 32 and remember how to form adverbs from adjectives by adding the suffix ly: ADJECTIVE WONDERFUL HORRIBLE REGRETTABLE SLOW USELESS NEAR GOOD NICE ADVERB 3. Imagine you are Johnsy, write a note of about 50 words to Sue inviting her to come to visit you in the Bay of Naples. Tell her: -when you arrived -what you like about Naples -suggest when she could come to visit you Have a look at page 36 for some useful expressions 4. For each word write the correct definition: 1. attic 2. Invisible 3. Pneumonia 4. Ill 5. stranger 6. Thermometer 7. Nickname 8. Canvas 9. masterpiece a. A sickness b. A short or friendly version of someone s name c. Another word for sick d. The top room in a house e. A great work of art f. Not visible g. You use this to take someone s temperatura h. An unkown person i. Something that artists use to paint on 5. Now choose the correct word for each sentence: a. The sky is full of many....stars. They are there but you can t see them. b. A..came up to meand asked or the time. c. I finished my.. last week- it s great. d. The painter put some blue paint on the empty. e. John took his temperatura with the f. Everyone calls Robert Rolly. It s his.. g. Joe was sick with last week. h. Bill is living upstairs in the i. Sarah was last week, so she could not come to work.
6. Write the questions for the following answers: a...? Johnsy wanted to paint the Bay of Naples b.? Johnsy counted ivy leaves? c.? Sue and Johnsy opened a studio in May d. WHAT.? Behrman was 60 years old? e....? Behrman lived downstairs 7. Describe something artistic that you have made or that you like using these questions: -What is it? -How long did it take to finish it? -What difficulties can you find when making it?