Matura Companion Reading - The Land of Opportunity

Land of opportunity

The United States of America was officially created in 1776 and so is one of the youngest countries in the world. However, the history of the land on which it was founded goes back a long way. In fact, America has been inhabited since prehistoric times, when people crossed what is now the Bering Strait from Asia to Alaska on foot and then moved south. They gradually split up into a number of tribes that settled across the land while developing into a culture known to us today as Native Americans. They were a people who enjoyed a simple life. They farmed the land, fished and hunted wild animals. Native American civilisations flourished from the icy north of North America to the furthest reaches of South America for centuries until the first Europeans conquered their land.

In 1492, Christopher Columbus and his men landed in the Americas and became the first Europeans to arrive in what became known as the New World, although the actual American mainland would not be reached until decades later. During the 16th century, the Spanish, Dutch, French and Scottish tried to set up colonies in North America and often fought over territory. The first successful English settlement was established at Jamestown in Virginia in the north-east of the country in 1607 and is widely considered to be the beginning of American history. Over the following decades, lots more English people arrived and along with them a large number of slaves from Africa who worked on plantations. Gradually, the English managed to colonise America and drive out the Spanish, French and Dutch. The colonists quickly prospered due to the natural

wealth of the land and their hard work, and eventually decided to break away from England. On 4th July, 1776, thirteen American colonies declared their independence from Britain and the United States of America was born.

Today, the United States of America is one of the largest, wealthiest and most powerful countries in the world. From its beginning, it has been considered a land of opportunity, where anyone can succeed. It has attracted immigrants from all over the world and is called a ‘melting pot’ because of all the different people mixing together. The population consists of almost 63% people of non-Hispanic European origin, 15% Hispanic/Latino origin, 13% African origin and 4.5% Asian. English is the national language and the official language in 28 states. American English is very similar to British English, but it has a few differences. There are lots of different American accents and a number of words are spelt differently or have a different meaning. For example, ‘soccer’ in American English means ‘football’ in British English and ‘fall’ means ‘autumn’. The USA is a huge country with a big variety of types of landscape. It has got several ranges of mountains and vast plains as well as deserts and marshes. Every year, millions of tourists go to see natural wonders such as the Grand Canyon and Niagara Falls. The USA is home to a variety of animal species. Some of its most famous animals are the bald eagle, which happens to be the national symbol, the grizzly bear and the buffalo. The country is also known for its cinema and hundreds of films are made in Hollywood every year.

Question:

1 Who were the first known inhabitants of the land that is the USA today?

A) people from Asia

B) people from Alaska

C) the people before the Native Americans

D) the Europeans

• A

• B

• C

• D

Land of opportunity

The United States of America was officially created in 1776 and so is one of the youngest countries in the world. However, the history of the land on which it was founded goes back a long way. In fact, America has been inhabited since prehistoric times, when people crossed what is now the Bering Strait from Asia to Alaska on foot and then moved south. They gradually split up into a number of tribes that settled across the land while developing into a culture known to us today as Native Americans. They were a people who enjoyed a simple life. They farmed the land, fished and hunted wild animals. Native American civilisations flourished from the icy north of North America to the furthest reaches of South America for centuries until the first Europeans conquered their land.

In 1492, Christopher Columbus and his men landed in the Americas and became the first Europeans to arrive in what became known as the New World, although the actual American mainland would not be reached until decades later. During the 16th century, the Spanish, Dutch, French and Scottish tried to set up colonies in North America and often fought over territory. The first successful English settlement was established at Jamestown in Virginia in the north-east of the country in 1607 and is widely considered to be the beginning of American history. Over the following decades, lots more English people arrived and along with them a large number of slaves from Africa who worked on plantations. Gradually, the English managed to colonise America and drive out the Spanish, French and Dutch. The colonists quickly prospered due to the natural

wealth of the land and their hard work, and eventually decided to break away from England. On 4th July, 1776, thirteen American colonies declared their independence from Britain and the United States of America was born.

Today, the United States of America is one of the largest, wealthiest and most powerful countries in the world. From its beginning, it has been considered a land of opportunity, where anyone can succeed. It has attracted immigrants from all over the world and is called a ‘melting pot’ because of all the different people mixing together. The population consists of almost 63% people of non-Hispanic European origin, 15% Hispanic/Latino origin, 13% African origin and 4.5% Asian. English is the national language and the official language in 28 states. American English is very similar to British English, but it has a few differences. There are lots of different American accents and a number of words are spelt differently or have a different meaning. For example, ‘soccer’ in American English means ‘football’ in British English and ‘fall’ means ‘autumn’. The USA is a huge country with a big variety of types of landscape. It has got several ranges of mountains and vast plains as well as deserts and marshes. Every year, millions of tourists go to see natural wonders such as the Grand Canyon and Niagara Falls. The USA is home to a variety of animal species. Some of its most famous animals are the bald eagle, which happens to be the national symbol, the grizzly bear and the buffalo. The country is also known for its cinema and hundreds of films are made in Hollywood every year.

Question:

We learn that Christopher Colombus

A) was the first to discover America.

B) named America ‘the New World’.

C) landed on an island off the coast of America.

D) fought to keep the Americas Spanish.

• A

• B

• C

• D

Land of opportunity

The United States of America was officially created in 1776 and so is one of the youngest countries in the world. However, the history of the land on which it was founded goes back a long way. In fact, America has been inhabited since prehistoric times, when people crossed what is now the Bering Strait from Asia to Alaska on foot and then moved south. They gradually split up into a number of tribes that settled across the land while developing into a culture known to us today as Native Americans. They were a people who enjoyed a simple life. They farmed the land, fished and hunted wild animals. Native American civilisations flourished from the icy north of North America to the furthest reaches of South America for centuries until the first Europeans conquered their land.

In 1492, Christopher Columbus and his men landed in the Americas and became the first Europeans to arrive in what became known as the New World, although the actual American mainland would not be reached until decades later. During the 16th century, the Spanish, Dutch, French and Scottish tried to set up colonies in North America and often fought over territory. The first successful English settlement was established at Jamestown in Virginia in the north-east of the country in 1607 and is widely considered to be the beginning of American history. Over the following decades, lots more English people arrived and along with them a large number of slaves from Africa who worked on plantations. Gradually, the English managed to colonise America and drive out the Spanish, French and Dutch. The colonists quickly prospered due to the natural

wealth of the land and their hard work, and eventually decided to break away from England. On 4th July, 1776, thirteen American colonies declared their independence from Britain and the United States of America was born.

Today, the United States of America is one of the largest, wealthiest and most powerful countries in the world. From its beginning, it has been considered a land of opportunity, where anyone can succeed. It has attracted immigrants from all over the world and is called a ‘melting pot’ because of all the different people mixing together. The population consists of almost 63% people of non-Hispanic European origin, 15% Hispanic/Latino origin, 13% African origin and 4.5% Asian. English is the national language and the official language in 28 states. American English is very similar to British English, but it has a few differences. There are lots of different American accents and a number of words are spelt differently or have a different meaning. For example, ‘soccer’ in American English means ‘football’ in British English and ‘fall’ means ‘autumn’. The USA is a huge country with a big variety of types of landscape. It has got several ranges of mountains and vast plains as well as deserts and marshes. Every year, millions of tourists go to see natural wonders such as the Grand Canyon and Niagara Falls. The USA is home to a variety of animal species. Some of its most famous animals are the bald eagle, which happens to be the national symbol, the grizzly bear and the buffalo. The country is also known for its cinema and hundreds of films are made in Hollywood every year.

Question:

The first English settlement in America

A was established in the north.

B had slaves to help them.

C had disappeared by 1607.

D encouraged a lot of other English to come.

• A

• B

• C

• D

Land of opportunity

The United States of America was officially created in 1776 and so is one of the youngest countries in the world. However, the history of the land on which it was founded goes back a long way. In fact, America has been inhabited since prehistoric times, when people crossed what is now the Bering Strait from Asia to Alaska on foot and then moved south. They gradually split up into a number of tribes that settled across the land while developing into a culture known to us today as Native Americans. They were a people who enjoyed a simple life. They farmed the land, fished and hunted wild animals. Native American civilisations flourished from the icy north of North America to the furthest reaches of South America for centuries until the first Europeans conquered their land.

In 1492, Christopher Columbus and his men landed in the Americas and became the first Europeans to arrive in what became known as the New World, although the actual American mainland would not be reached until decades later. During the 16th century, the Spanish, Dutch, French and Scottish tried to set up colonies in North America and often fought over territory. The first successful English settlement was established at Jamestown in Virginia in the north-east of the country in 1607 and is widely considered to be the beginning of American history. Over the following decades, lots more English people arrived and along with them a large number of slaves from Africa who worked on plantations. Gradually, the English managed to colonise America and drive out the Spanish, French and Dutch. The colonists quickly prospered due to the natural

wealth of the land and their hard work, and eventually decided to break away from England. On 4th July, 1776, thirteen American colonies declared their independence from Britain and the United States of America was born.

Today, the United States of America is one of the largest, wealthiest and most powerful countries in the world. From its beginning, it has been considered a land of opportunity, where anyone can succeed. It has attracted immigrants from all over the world and is called a ‘melting pot’ because of all the different people mixing together. The population consists of almost 63% people of non-Hispanic European origin, 15% Hispanic/Latino origin, 13% African origin and 4.5% Asian. English is the national language and the official language in 28 states. American English is very similar to British English, but it has a few differences. There are lots of different American accents and a number of words are spelt differently or have a different meaning. For example, ‘soccer’ in American English means ‘football’ in British English and ‘fall’ means ‘autumn’. The USA is a huge country with a big variety of types of landscape. It has got several ranges of mountains and vast plains as well as deserts and marshes. Every year, millions of tourists go to see natural wonders such as the Grand Canyon and Niagara Falls. The USA is home to a variety of animal species. Some of its most famous animals are the bald eagle, which happens to be the national symbol, the grizzly bear and the buffalo. The country is also known for its cinema and hundreds of films are made in Hollywood every year.

Question:

At first, the colonies in America belonged to Spain.

A True

B False

• True

• False

There were originally 28 colonies in the USA.

A True

B False

• False

• True

What bird is the national symbol of the USA?   

• The bald eagle

• The Lion

• The cow

• The tiger

Today, the United States of America is one of the largest, wealthiest and most powerful countries in the world. From its beginning, it has been considered a land of opportunity, where anyone can succeed. It has attracted immigrants from all over the world and is called a ‘melting pot’ because of all the different people mixing together. The population consists of almost 63% people of non-Hispanic European origin, 15% Hispanic/Latino origin, 13% African origin and 4.5% Asian. English is the national language and the official language in 28 states. American English is very similar to British English, but it has a few differences. There are lots of different American accents and a number of words are spelt differently or have a different meaning. For example, ‘soccer’ in American English means ‘football’ in British English and ‘fall’ means ‘autumn’. The USA is a huge country with a big variety of types of landscape. It has got several ranges of mountains and vast plains as well as deserts and marshes. Every year, millions of tourists go to see natural wonders such as the Grand Canyon and Niagara Falls. The USA is home to a variety of animal species. Some of its most famous animals are the bald eagle, which happens to be the national symbol, the grizzly bear and the buffalo. The country is also known for its cinema and hundreds of films are made in Hollywood every year.

Question:

How is the wide variety of different people in the USA described?   

• as immigrants

• as a melting pot

• as asylum seekers