Unt I Ner∠ ealand Reading e NEW ZEALAND: LAND OF THE LONG WHITE CLOUD Geography Lying in the south-west Pacific, New Zealand consists of two main islands- the North Island and the South Island-and many smaller islands, of which Stewart Island in the far south is the largest. About 20% of the North Island and 65% of the South Island are mountains. New Zealand sits on two tectonic plates which are constantly moving and hitting into each other, causing a lot of geological activity, including earthquakes and volcanoes The North Island has a range of mountains running through the middle of the island, with gently sloping farmland on either side. In the centre of the island is an area called the Central Plateau, where most of New Zealand 's volcanic activity Boiling mud pools occurs. The Plateau is the site of hot springs, boiling mud pools and steam for power and heating A huge range of mountains, called the Southern Alps, form the backbone of the South Island. To the east of the mountains are plains and gentle hills used for farming and grazing sheep. To the west is a narrow, coastal strip. It rains very heavily in this area, which has an annual rainfall of over 7, 500 mm, an ideal environment for spectacular forests and farming. Despite this, the west coast has as many sunny days as Christchurch on the east coast, where annual rainfall is only about 330 mm. Thousands of years of geological activity has caused parts of the land to sink below the sea, and in some parts of the west Mitre Peak coast only the tallest of the mountain peaks can be seen above the ea. A number of spectacular glaciers have formed in the Southern Alps, carved out of the mountains by moving ice over thousands of years History New Zealand was first settled in about 1000 AD by people from other Pacific islands, who paddled their great canoes south in search of a better place to live. They called their new home Aotearoa, which means "Land of the Long White Cloud". More and more people arrived in their canoes over the next 200 years and these settlers became the Maori people. Although there were no land animals, except bats, to be hunted, there was plenty of food in the sea and birds on the land including a huge flightless bird, the moa, which stood over 3 metres tall. The arrival of the first humans into the uninhabited land changed it forever. Some animals and plants became extinct, fire destroyed large areas of forest, and rats and dogs brought over on the canoes killed most of the ground-living birds. As the coastal waters were heavily fished. the seals remained only on the southern-most islands and the giant moa was eventually hunted to extinction
Unt i Ne∠ ealand The Maori people changed their way of life to suit the changing conditions. Most moved to the North Island where the climate was better for growing sweet potatoes and fern roots for food. As the population grew and land and food became scarce, the people became more war- like. Some tribes were wiped out as stronger tribes fought to take over the land. To protect themselves, the people began to live in"pas; that is, villages on the top of hills Maon fortified village surrounded by several rows of tall fences The first Europeans to come to New Zealand were whale and seal hunters in about 1790 They brought with them European diseases that the Maori had no immunity to and, worse still, they traded guns with the local tribes. By the beginning of the nineteenth century, diseases and gun fights had greatly reduced the Maori population Sealers and whalers were followed by European missionaries who came to teach the Maori about Christianity, and then by more Europeans, mainly British, seeking a better life. In 1840. Britain signed a treaty with the representatives of various Maori tribes. This treaty recognised Maori ownership of their land and the coastal waters around New Zealand. In return, the Maori agreed that the country would belong to Britain and be governed by the Queen of England. Unfortunately, when the Maori people did not want to sell their land to the new settlers, especially at the extremely low prices they were offered, unrest between the Maori and Europeans(Pakeha)grew, which led to serious fighting in many parts of the North Island The worst fighting was between 1860 and 1872, after which the Maori were finally defeated by larger numbers of British and Australian soldiers and civilians. The British government then punished the Maori by taking much of their land away and giving it to the British settlers After the New Zealand Land Wars, English settlers began arriving in large numbers. They built cities and towns and farmed the land, changing the environment even more than the Maori people had done. These settlements were based on the structure of British society, including government administration, religion, education and the law. In the South Island, the discovery of gold in the 1860s brought even more immigrants, including English, Scots, Irish and Chinese Christchurch Comprehending 1 Complete the topic list below to show what each paragraph is about. GEOGRAPHY HISTORY Paragraph 1: Location of New Zealand The first Maori arrivals Paragraph 2: The North Island Paragraph 3 Paragraph 4 Paragraph 5
Unt I Ner∠ ealand 2 Answer the following questions about the text. I Which New Zealand island has the most mountains? 2 In which island is there more geological activity? 3 On which part of the South Island are you most likely to find sheep farms? Give reasons 4 What part of the South Island has the most rainfall? 5 Where and when was gold discovered in New Zealand? 3 Put the following historical events in order. ( A Many Maori died from disease or war. ( B Maori tribes began moving to the North Island and started to grow crops )C After the Land Wars, more and more European settlers began arriving ( D The British government and the Maori signed a treaty, which made New Zealand the property of Great Britain, but gave the land to the Maori people )E The first humans settled in New Zealand. )F Sealers and whalers from Europe came to New Zealand ) G Forests began disappearing and some animals and plants became extinct ( H War between the Maori and Pakeha ended with the loss of much Maori land ()I Wars began between tribe 4 Discuss the following questions with a partner and then give your report to the class I On which island would you expect there to be more people? Give at least two reasons 2 What changes happened that caused the Maori people to become more warlike? 3 In what ways was the arrival of the first Europeans a disaster for the Maori people? 4 What kind of changes to the land do you think happened after Europeans started arriving? Studying and Exploring Language Vocabular 1Complete the sentences with words from the reading passage I Tom has left the army and is now an ordinary 2 The artist a statue of the president out of wood 3 Each country sent a to the seminar on global warming 4 Do you have a certificate to prove your of this car 5 We couldnt take the canoe out onto the lake because we had lost one of the 6 Bad conditions in the factory caused among the workers 2 Match the following Maori words used in the passage with their definitions I Aotearoa /a txte k a large, flightless bird Pakeha/'pUkhU a village that is built to protect the people inside 3 moa/'me a European, or white person 4 pa/pa the name the Maori people gave to their new country
Unt i Ne∠ ealand 3 Work out the meaning of the italised words using the context. Use your dictionary only to check your answers. 1 If you enjoy adventure, you should try bungee jumping. There is a good place just outside the town. You fasten a long, elastic rope to your ankles and jump from one of the towers on the suspension bridge over the river. 2 Afer your jump, you will have a good appetite, so stop for a delicious buffet at the hotel. You will be able to choose from fresh seafood, fine meat, many different salads as well as pasta dishes. It is quite expensive to stay at the hotel, but if you are the kind of tourist who appreciates a porter to carry your bags and want to stay in a suite that has a lounge, bedroom, bathroom and kitchen, then this is the place for you. For those on a budget, the campsite is excellent value. There are showers, a kitchen and even a laundry where you can wash your clothes 3 Early in the moming, before we had even had breakfast, we took a helicopter ride onto one of the mountains and spent an hour skiing on the beautiful untouched snow. We then flew back to the town and had brunch at a cafe in town at about 11: 30 4 In 1931, a huge earthquake destroyed most of the town of Napier, on the east coast of the North Island. Over the next two years, they rebuilt the town and now it has become famous for its architecture because all the buildings are in the style of the 1930s 4 Look at the following list of phrases, and review their meanings and usage. Then choose five of them to make sentences or a short paragraph t take out break out carve out check out come out die out dig out fade out igure out grve out go out help out leave out mark out pIck out run out rush out set out squeeze out stick out talk out test out try out wear out(worn out Grammar 1 The definite article the is used before some place names and not before others Can you remember the rule? Work with a partner and write it down 2 Fill in the blanks with the where necessary capital of People's Republic of China is south. china shares borders with Burma. Laos and vietnam Japan lies between East China Sea and Pacific ocean 3456 Stewart Island is in far south of New Zealand New Zealand's main islands are separated by a body of water called Cook Strait largest lake in New Zealand is Lake Taupo highest mountain in New Zealand is Mount Cook. which is in Southern 789 Alps river with greatest water flow is Amazon, which is in South america Gobi Desert is in Mongolia Asia and Africa are two largest continents
Unt I Ner∠ ealand 3 How good is your general knowledge? In pairs, ask and answer the questions below, putting in the definite article where necessary. What is the name of the smallest continent in the world? What is the longest river in the world? 3 What is the largest desert in the world? 4 What is the longest mountain range in the world? 5 what is the most active volcano in the world? 6 What is the name of the largest lake in the world? 7 what is the name of the largest continent in the world? 8 What is the highest mountain in the world? 9 What is the name of the highest waterfall in the world 4 Now write 10 more questions and ask someone else in the class to answer them. Use the vocabulary below in your questions ocean delta village mountain basin lake cave glacier city cliff EXAMPLE Question: What is the largest ocean in the world? Answer: The Pacific Ocean Using Language task Kim, a New Zealand teacher, is giving a talk about her country. In the first part of her talk she gives some general information about New Zealand's people and its industries 1 Listen to her talk and answer True(T)or False(F)to the questions below. If the statement is wrong, correct it. ()I While New Zealand is only slightly smaller in area than the UK, it has a much smaller population )2 Most of New Zealand's population live in towns and cities because most of the land is farmland. mountains or forest )3 Because New Zealand sells so much meat, dairy products and wool to other countries there are many people working on the land )4 New Zealand is a country that has a unique ethnic mix. Some people are from more than one racial background ()5 In the next part of Kims talk, she is going to talk about when and where the peopl of New Zealand originally came from 2 Listen to the part of Kims talk where she gives statistics about the population and animal numbers. Draw a bar chart onto the graph on the next page