THE PROJECT “VIRTUAL TRIP TO LONDON”

THE AIM: to help children to learn more about London and its’ places of interest such as the London Eye, the Stonehenge, Big Ben, the Museum of Madame Tussauds; to enrich lexical vocabulary, to develop speaking and listening skills by means of short dialogical and monological expressions; to activate logical and abstract thinking, imagination, attention and memory; to educate a well-developed person, interested in self-education, learning English, traditions and life of British people.

THE METODS: planning, researching, collecting data, analyzing the data, testing, interactive performance.
THE PLAN:

Date of Realization	Things for Realization	Responsible Person
	Planning, testing, collecting data
	Analyzing the data
	Preparing for the interactive performance
	The interactive performance “Virtual trip to London”

THE APPROXIMATE AGE OF CHILDREN: 13-16 years.
INTERSUBJECT CONECTIONS: geography, history, country study.

THE APPROXIMATE SCENARIO OF THE INTERACTIVE PERFORMANCE “VIRTUAL TRIP TO LONDON”
The class is decorated with Union Jack, the map of London, pictures of different places of interest including pictures of the London Eye, the Stonehenge, Big Ben and the Museum of Madame Tussauds.The “guide” is in the middle of the class. He has several helpers.THE GUIDE: Good morning dear children! Today we are here to organize a special trip for you. It is really special because we won’t travel by car or by train, we won’t use a plain or a ship. It will be a virtual trip! My colleges from the tourist agency are going to help me.
AGENT 1:   Hallo kids! My name is Samantha and I have a few questions to you. What language do you study at school?
CHILDREN: English!
AGENT 1:   Where do people speak English?
CHILDREN: In the USA, in Great Britain, in Australia, in New Zealand.
AGENT 1:   Ok! So what is the capital of Great Britain/
CHILDREN: London!
AGENT 1:   You are absolutely right! And do you want to visit London?
CHILDREN: Yes!
AGENT 1:   So let’s start our trip. My friend John will start.
AGENT 2:   Hi everyone! Who knows what is the main clock in London? Of course, it is Big Ben. (The story is accompanied with presentation). Perhaps even small children know what a Big Ben is. Firstly, it’s the symbol of Great Britain and one of the most beautiful sights of London. Secondly, it’s the largest and the most famous clock in the world. Originally, Big Ben is a tower. It’s one of the highest towers of Westminster Palace. Officially, the clock has started its work on 31 May 1859. According to one of the theories the clock has been named Big Ben after Sir Benjamin Hall, who directed work on the casting of the bell. Another theory claims that it has been named after Benjamin Caunt, who was one of the well-known heavyweight boxers of the 19th century. Surprisingly, the tower of Big Ben used to be a prison where over riotous parliamentarians were kept. Big Ben has become a popular souvenir for tourists. Almost all visitors of London buy a small souvenir in the shape of the world-famous clock. Also Big Ben can be often seen in famous films and ads. Official name of the tower is the “Westminster Palace Clock Tower” or “St. Stephen's Tower”. Big Ben is only the name of the clock itself along with the bell. The history of Big Ben dates back to 1288, when it was built for the first time on Ralph De Hengham’s money. He was the chairman of the Supreme Court of Queen's Bench. However, the contemporary tower of Big Ben was built according to Charles Barry’s project in the 19th century, as the old building was destroyed due to the fire of 1834. Although Big Ben is very popular with spectators, no one is allowed inside of the tower. All the Londoners who live close to Big Ben can hear how the bell strikes thirteen at New Year’s Night.
AGENT 1:   And now our trip continues. It is time to see the ancient monumental building which is called the Stonehenge. (The story is accompanied with presentation). The Stonehenge stone circles are in England. People transported the first stones to this place about 5000 years ago. We don't know a lot about Stonehenge. Who built it? How did they build it? Why did they build it? It's a mystery. People built Stonehenge with bluestones and sarsen stones. There were about 80 bluestones. They came from mountains 250 kilometers away. They are very heavy – some weigh about 4 metric tons. The sarsen stones are even bigger and heavier. About 4000 years ago, people transported them from 30 kilometers away. How did people use Stonehenge? Maybe they used it as a cemetery or a place for studying the sun and the stars. Maybe it was also a temple. It's still a special place for some people today. Every year, on June 21st, lots of people go to Stonehenge to celebrate the longest day of the year.

THE GUIDE: So, dear children, is it interesting for you to know more?

CHILDREN: Yes!

THE GUIDE: Ok then I’ll tell you about the Museum of Madame Tussauds! Have you ever heard about it?

CHILDREN: Yes/no.

THE GUIDE: (The story is accompanied with presentation) Every visitor of London knows who Madame Tussaud is – or was. And almost every visitor has seen her, an old lady of 81, standing at the entrance of her own exhibition. She is made of wax, like all the models of people in this museum. There are a lot of halls in the museum. The first room is the “Garden Party”. Beneath a star-spangled sky, under an oak-tree, figures from the worlds of sports and the media enjoy a friendly drink and chat. There are statues of A. Schwarzenegger, E. Taylor and others there. “200 Years” room covers the history of Madame Tussaud’s over the last two centuries, and shows the developing of new technology during that time. There are also other rooms, such as: “Legends and Superstars”, rooms with popular music singers, the members of royal families and military leaders. There is the “Chamber of Horrors” which amuses visitors very much. “The Spirit of London” is a magnificent journey through London’s history. The cabs travel past the figure of W. Shakespeare, Sir Christopher Wren, who directs the building of St Paul’s Cathedral. It’s not easy to tell about all interesting things one can see in the museum. This is the place that is worth visiting. Would you like to visit this museum?

CHILDREN: Yes!!!

AGENT 2:   Today we have one more place to visit. Here we can observe the whole panorama of London. I present you the London Eye! (The story is accompanied with presentation). The London Eye is a large metal structure. It is also known as the Millennium Wheel and is one of the largest observation wheels (a type of Ferris wheel) in the world. It was opened in 2000. It is 135 meters high. The London Eye is a popular tourist destination. More than three million people visited it last year. At the time it was built, in 1999, it was the tallest giant wheel in the world. But then the London Eye was overtaken in May 2006, by the Star of Nanchang, which is 160 meters high and stands in the eastern Chinese city Nanchang. But on the 11th February 2008 the Singapore flyer overtook the Star of Nanchang, with 165 meters. The London Eye stands at the western end of Jubilee Garden, on the South Bank of the river Thames, between Westminster Bridge and Hungerford Bridge.

THE GUIDE: It is time for our trip to come to end, but to make it really unforgettable we prepared little presents for you! This is the picture of yours during our virtual trip! (The Guide presents children with the picture made before). And now our journey is over. Did you like it?

CHILDREN: Yes/no.

THE GUIDE: We hope you spent good time with as. See you soon!

CHILDREN: Thank you! Good bye!