States_of_America_1_-_sem_2

States of America 1

Which states are the following paragraphs describing? Write the name of the state in the space provided.

1. ______________________. This is the 3rd largest state and covers an area of 163,707 square miles. It's famous for its film industry, based in Hollywood, its vineyards, which produce North America's most highly rated wines, its long coastline and white sand beaches, the best known of which, Venice Beach, was used for the filming of the popular T.V. series 'Baywatch'. The largest city in this state is Los Angeles with a population of 3,912,200. Famous natural wonders include the infamous 'Death Valley', so called after a group of pioneers who nearly lost their lives there in 1849, where the 2nd highest temperature in the world was recorded in 1913 when the valley reached a sizzling 57 degrees Celsius. It is now a popular national park.

2. ______________________. Known as 'The Lone Star State', this is the 2nd largest state in the U.S.A. with an area of 268,601 square miles. It's famous for its huge cattle ranches, run by cowboys, petroleum drilling and production and for its major cities, which include Houston, the largest city in this state, Dallas, home to the successful football team - 'The Dallas Cowboys' - and Austin, the state capital. This state is also the site of one of the most celebrated battles in American history, known as 'The Alamo' after the old Spanish mission where it was fought. In 1836 a band of 189 local volunteers defied a Mexican army of thousands for 13 days of siege. The Alamo defenders died to the last man, among them such well known names as Davy Crockett and Jim Bowie. The cost to the Mexican forces was dreadful and the battle was soon followed by their defeat in the war.

3. ______________________. This is the most recently acquired state and only became part of the U.S. in 1959, although it had been used by the U.S. as an air force and navy base for several years prior to its inclusion. It is a series of islands which covers a total area of 10,932 square miles, making it the 43rd largest state. Its capital city is Honolulu with a population of 371,657. Tourism is the most important industry in this state and it also exports pineapples and sugarcane. It was also the site of one of the darkest days in U.S. history, the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. At 8.00am on the morning of December 7th, 1941 a Japanese strike force of 353 aircraft, led by Admiral Isoruku Yamamoto, attacked the American fleet. 18 warships were sunk, 188 American aircraft were destroyed and 2403 U.S. military lost their lives. There had been no official declaration of war and the attack was a complete surprise. The next day President Roosevelt declared war on Japan and 3 days later Italy and Germany declared war on the U.S.

4. _____________________. This state is the 4th largest with a total land area of 147,046 square miles. It is famous for its beautiful countryside, the magnificent Rocky Mountains form the western third of the state and it takes its name from the Spanish word for "mountainous". One of the most popular attractions in this state is Yellowstone national park. An act of Congress which was signed by President Grant on March 1, 1872 made Yellowstone Park the first national park in the U.S. Yellowstone contains 2,142,720 acres of land and an impressive variety of wildlife. Bald Eagles, Grizzly Bears, Wolves, Elk, Moose, Bobcats, Coyotes and Bison can all be seen in the park. The early history of the state was a story of gold rushes and conflict with the local Indian tribes. The discovery of gold brought many prospectors into the area in the 1860's, and Montana became a territory in 1864. The increasing number of settlers led to wars with the Indians and in 1876 the Sioux and Cheyenne tribes, led by chief Sitting Bull, defeated General George Custer and his men at the Battle of the Little Bighorn.

Vocabulary and Comprehension

1. Find a word or phrase from the texts to match the translations and definitions below. The number of the paragraph you should look in is given in brackets.

a. viña (1) _____________________ g. terrible (2) ________________________

b. amazing things (1) ____________ h. gained, got (3) _____________________

c. very hot (1) _________________ i. attack, hit (3) _______________________

d. cows (2) ____________________ j. hundidos (4) _______________________

e. large farm (2) ________________ k. vida salvaje (4) _____________________

f. resisted (2) ___________________ l. osos / lobos (4) _________/____________

2. Who or what are these people and places? All the names can be found in the texts.