Education in the USA (Образование в США )

Education in the USA begins at the age of six. This is when a child goes to school for the first time and stays at school till the 12-th grade. But before that children can go to kindergartens and nursery schools to get some good preparation for elementary school. The main purpose of the elementary school is the general development of children's abilities in reading, writing, spelling, maths, history, geography, art, etc.

The school year usually begins in early September or even at the end of August and lasts till June. American students usually have three holidays during the year of studies: winter break, spring break and summer break. After the 6-th form students enter junior high school and stay there till the 9-th form. After that they go to high school. Pupils usually choose subjects in the fields of science, foreign languages, art and vocational training. But courses may be different in different schools. Most young people finish schools with a high school diploma. The grading system is usually from A (excellent) to F (failed). Students also have final exams, or finals, at the end of a year and they can also have mid-term exams on different subjects.

There are some kinds of schools in the USA. There are state-supported schools, or public schools, that are free of charge and private schools which are often religious. Such schools are often expensive.

After students finish high school, they can choose what to do next. They can apply for a university, a four-year college, technical training institutions or a community college. Students go to college for four years and after graduating they get a bachelor's degree. A first-year student is called a freshman, a second-year student is called a sophomore, a third-year student is a junior and a fourth-year student is a senior. After they are accepted to a college, students can think of choosing their majors, or the subjects which will be connected with their future profession. Some colleges allow students to take several majors.

Students' life in college is very interesting. There are f usually a lot of different clubs and societies, theatres, museums, a swimming-pool, a gym, a large library and everything that can make students feel at home far from their families. 93% of students usually live on campus, in dorms. Freshmen and sophomores usually live in double rooms, but they can also choose between a single or a double room while juniors and seniors mostly get single rooms. There are also several dining-halls on campus and they offer big variety of food.

Besides colleges American young people can enter universities. They usually don't have any entrance exams, but students must take state exams. Such exams are taken during the school year in the middle of the 12-th year. All colleges and universities are for fees, but those students who can't afford paying for their education, can apply for Financial Aid. These are sums of money for students who need money to pay for studies.

After graduating from colleges or universities students can enter a graduate school to get a master's degree.

American Sports (Спорт в США)

Sport plays a very important role in American life. Most of them do sport in childhood, in colleges and even older people go in for sport regularly.

The most popular kinds of sport in the USA are swimming, tennis, squash, bowling and others. The four major kinds are hockey, football, baseball and basketball. The choice and the variety of sport can be explained by the size of the country and the variety of its climate. For example in southern states such sports as windsurfing, swimming, racing and baseball are popular, while in northern states skiing and skating are widely spread.

American schools, colleges and universities have sports teams and hold different competitions. They have all conditions and equipment for doing sport professionally. So sportsmen and those students who are fond of sport can get an education in this or that college and combine studies with doing sport. There are no special universities or colleges devoted to sport only. Every year schools and colleges take part in the national kinds of sports competitions. The students, who want to be in good shape, go jogging in the morning and cycle.

Americans win many gold medals in the Olympic Games and are famous for their success in various international competitions.

Canada (Канада)

Canada is the second largest country in the world. It occupies northern part of North American continent and borders on the United Stated in the south and in the north-west. The country is washed by the Atlantic Ocean in the east and by the Pacific Ocean in the west.

The climate of Canada is rather cold: winters are usually long and snowy and summers in Northern Canada are short and cool. Summers in Southern Canada are longer and warmer. Canada is mostly covered by forests which are one of the most important resources оf the country.

Canada is divided into ten provinces. The biggest provinces are Quebec (which is the largest province of Canada), British Columbia and Ontario.

The capital of Canada, Ottawa, is situated in Ontario. It is mainly a government city but it also has a lot of places of interest such as The Chateau Laurier, Notre Dame Cathedral and the Parliament Buildings which are the symbol of Ottawa.

English and French are the two official languages of the country. English is the first language for most Canadians, but in Quebec province French is the main language.

The flag of Canada has two red vertical stripes and a big middle white vertical stripe with a red maple leaf in the centre. Canada is a member of the Commonwealth. It is a confederation with parliamentary democracy. Queen Elizabeth II is not only the Queen of Great Britain, but of Canada as well. Every Canadian province has its own government.

Canada has numerous cities and towns. Montreal which is situated in the province of Quebec is the largest city in Canada. It is divided into two parts: the English part and the French part. The heart of Montreal offers some excellent restaurants, shops and a lot of leisure activities.

Toronto, which is the capital of the province of Ontario, is the second largest city in Canada, ft is an international commercial and business centre and it has always been an artistic and cultural centre as well. The CN Tower, the world's tallest free-standing building, is the symbol of Toronto.

Niagara Falls is the most beautiful city in Canada. Tourists from all over the world come here to enjoy the view of the Canadian Falls or the Horseshoe. The city is a big entertaining centre with a lot of bars, restaurants, small shops, hotels and a big casino.

Canada is a very interesting country to visit!

Australia (Австралия)

Australia is an island continent in the southern hemisphere. It is washed by the Indian Ocean in the west and the Pacific Ocean in the east. The territory is not very big with the population more than eighteen million people.

The climate of the country is very hot. The biggest part of Australia lies in the tropical belt. It rains heavily in summer, but it's very hot, too.

Northeast coast of the country is protected by the Great Barrier Reef, and in the east there is the Great Dividing Range with Mount Kosciusko, the highest mountain of Australia.

The deepest river in Australia is the Murray River and the Darling is the longest one. In desert regions there are salt lakes like Lake Eyre. The inner part of Australia is occupied by deserts. The most famous ones are Desert Victoria and Gibson's Desert. In the west semi-deserts turn into savannahs.

The plant life of Australia varies. There are desert grasses, scrub, eucalyptus, acacias and others. Australia animals are unique, they can not be found in any other place of the Earth. For example, kangaroos, koalas, Tasmanian devils, echidnas, platypuses, dingos and others.

Australia is a member of the Commonwealth. It is a federation of 6 states and 2 territories. A governor heads each state. Australia is a constitutional monarchy with the Queen of Great Britain (Elizabeth II) as the head of the state. The head of government is Prime Minister. The national currency is the Australian dollar.

English is the official language of Australia. There are also a lot of aboriginal languages and dialects in Australia.

The capital of Australia is Canberra which is often called the Garden City because of its streets lined with trees. Other world famous cities are Sydney and Melbourne. Sydney is the largest city-port called the Queen City of the South. It is Australian main commercial and industrial centre. Sydney Opera House in Sydney is considered to be one of the most beautiful buildings in the world. Australia is an industrial country rich in coal, gas, oil, ores, gold, opals. It is an agricultural country, too. Most food products are produced for exporting. Australia is number one in producing lamb meat and sheep wool. Bee-keeping is developed as well.

Australia is a very interesting country with rich culture and strange animals. I would love to go there one day.