The Positive Effects on Children of Owning a Dog

Brendan's best friend is Tip. Tip and Brendan are inseparable. They teach each other things and
they look after each other. Tip has helped Brendan become more responsible, more caring, and a
better friend. Brendan is a nine-year-old boy, and Tip is a ten-year-old dog. Brendan and Tip are
an example of how owning a dog can have a positive effect on a child's development. Having a
dog develops a child's sense of responsibility, broadens his capacity for empathy, and teaches the
nature of friendship.

Having a dog helps a child learn how to act responsibly. As a dog owner, the child must take
care of the animal's daily needs. The dog must be fed and exercised every day. A dog is
completely dependent on its owner for all its needs, including the need for good health and a safe
environment. Therefore, being responsible for a dog also means taking care of the dog so that it
stays healthy. Furthermore, the owner must take responsibility for the safety of the dog and the
safety of the people it comes into contact with. If the child forgets any of these duties and
responsibilities, or ignores any of the dog's needs, the dog will suffer. This teaches the child that
his responsibility to the dog is more important than his desire to play with his toys, talk on the
phone, or watch TV. This is true not only for the care of a dog, but also for the care of oneself,
another person, or one's job. Learning how to take responsibility for the health and welfare of a
dog leads to learning how to take responsibility for oneself.

Another lesson that a child can learn from having a dog is how to be empathetic. Empathy is the
ability to put oneself in another person's, or in this case another creature's, situation and imagine
that person's or creature's feelings or problems. A dog cannot express itself with speech, so its
owner must learn how to interpret its behaviour. The child must learn to understand what the
dog's behaviour means. Is the dog frightened, aggressive, or sick? The child needs to understand
what is going on in the dog's mind. Understanding a situation from the dog's perspective helps
the child understand why the dog is behaving in a certain way and what the dog needs. The result
of learning to read a dog's behaviour is that the child develops empathy. By learning how to
empathize with a dog, the child also learns how to empathize with other people. This leads to the
child becoming a more considerate and caring person.

Being considerate and caring are important characteristics in a good friend. One of the most
significant benefits of owning a dog is the example of true friendship that a dog provides. A dog
gives unconditional love to its owner. A dog will not stop loving its owner because of a little
anger, indifference, or neglect. The dog will wait patiently for its owner to pat its head and say a
few kind words. This acceptance of the negative qualities and appreciation for the positive
qualities of its owner provide a wonderful model of how to be a good friend. A child soon
realizes that his dog will always listen to him, will always be ready to play with him, will always
protect him, and will always forgive him. A child who has learned to be even half as good a
friend to others as his dog is to him will have learned one of the most valuable lessons in life.
These are some of the most important lessons a child will ever learn. The benefits of owning a
dog will last the child's entire lifetime. The understanding and appreciation of responsibility,
empathy, and friendship that a child develops from the experience of having a dog will help him
or her grow into a reliable, caring, and mature adult.

1. The dog's name is _________.

a. Tip
b. Brendan
c. Brennan
d. Kip
2. Which of the following have a positive effect on a child's development?
a. feeling responsible
b. feeling empathy
c. building friendships
d. all of the above
3. A child learns how to be responsible for a dog by _________.
a. taking care of the dog's daily needs
b. taking away a safe environment
c. feeding the dog weekly
d. becoming dependent on the dog
4. Learning how to care for a dog can help children _________.
a. to take of themselves
b. to choose the dog over playing
c. to get welfare
d. to ignore the dog's needs
5. Children can learn how to _________.
a. understand the dog's needs
b. only care about themselves, and not others
c. get rid of the dog they don't want to take care of it
d. be irresponsible
6. The dog's owner must interpret which of the following from their dog's behaviour?
a. fear
b. happiness
c. illness
d. all of the above
7. Which of the following is a positive result of learning how to interpret a dog's behaviour?
a. becoming selfish
b. becoming empathetic
c. becoming arrogant
d. being thoughtless
8. What kind of love does a dog provide?
 a. shallow
b. one-sided
c. conditional
d. unconditional
9. Which of the following is NOT a benefit of a child owning a dog?
a. companionship
b. reliability
c. friendship
d. neglect
10. In what ways is a dog loyal?
a. It is able to tolerate the negative qualities of humans.
b. It will protect people.
c. It neglects its owner.
d. It offers unconditional love.

Romulus and Remus

The early history of the city of Rome involves Romulus and Remus, two orphan boys who,
legend says, were raised by a she-wolf. The boys' mother had been murdered by an evil king and
the two babies tossed into the river Tiber. When the wolf found them they had washed up on the
shore. She perhaps took pity on the crying of the babies and, gently picking them up in her teeth,
she carried them back to her cave and fed them on her milk. The boys grew bigger and stronger
and, eventually, were found by a herdsman who took them home. He and his wife raised the boys
like their own children. When they reached manhood they sought revenge on the king who had
killed their mother and driven them from their home.

They decided to build a city. Unfortunately, they argued over the appropriate site and Romulus
killed his brother Remus. Romulus ruled this city -- called Roma -- for thirty-seven years.

The city of Rome is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the world. If you travel there
you can see a statue of the two baby boys feeding from their mother - the wolf.

Task 1 = Choose the correct answer

1. What is the gist (the main idea) that this piece of writing conveys?
a. Wolves like to take care of human children.
b. The city of Rome had many wolves in the old days.
c. The city of Rome was founded by a wolf.
d. Romulus established the city of Rome.
2. What is a herdsman?
a. someone who builds cities
b. someone who cares for children
c. someone who cares for domestic animals
 d. someone who can hear very well
3. The phrase "they sought revenge on the king who had killed their mother" means what?
a. They attacked the king who had harmed their mother and made them orphans.
b. They went to court to sue the king for his crime against their mother.
c. They hired some gangsters to take care of their problem with the king.
d. They went to talk to the king about his crime against their mother.

Task 2 = Read the story in the first exercise to help you fill in the blanks in this exercise.

The early history of the city of Rome involves ……………………… and Remus, two orphan
boys who, legend says, were raised by a ………………………………. The boys' mother had
been murdered by an evil king and the two babies tossed into the river Tiber. When the wolf
found them they had washed up on the shore. She perhaps took …………………………….. on
the crying of the babies and, gently picking them up in her mouth, she carried them back to her
cave and fed them on her …………………………... The boys grew bigger and stronger and,
eventually, were found by a ………………………………. who took them home. He and his
wife raised the boys like their own children. When they reached manhood they sought
………………………………… on the king who had killed their mother and drove them from
their home. They decided to build a ……………………………………. Unfortunately, they
argued over the appropriate site and Romulus killed his brother Remus. Romulus ruled this city
— called …………………………… — for thirty-seven years. The city of Rome is one of the
most popular tourist …………………………. in the world. If you travel there you can see a
…………………………………… of the two baby boys feeding from their mother — the wolf.

Grammar

Past Simple

Îl folosim pentru a ne referi la acțiuni care s-au petrecut:

1.O singura dată în trecut

We went to Spain for our holyday.

2. În mod reperat în trecut, și stim sau putem aproxima când.

When I was a boy, I walked to school every day.

Nu interesează durata acțiunii ci doar faptul că acțiunea este încheiată.

Structuri

Afirmativ: S+V-ed/IIth form

Negativ: S+did+ not+V

Interogativ: Did+ S+V+?

Adverbe de timp folositoare:

Ago, last month etc.

Exerciții:

A. Fill in the blanks below to complete the sentences.

1. I (eat)___________ dinner at six o’clock yesterday.

2. A: ___________ Helen (drive)___________ to work? B: Yes, she ___________.

3. My neighbor (buy)___________ a new car last week.

4. They (go)___________ to Italy on their last summer holiday.

5. A: ___________ they (swim)___________ at the beach? B: No, they __________.

6. My family and I (see)___________ a comedy movie last night.

7. First, we (do)___________ exercise, and then we (drink)___________ some water.

8. Suddenly, the animal jumped and (bite)___________ my hand.

9. What time (do)___________ you (get up)___________ this morning?

10. The Wright brothers (fly)___________ the first airplane in 1903.

11. I think I (hear)___________ a strange sound outside the door one minute ago.

12. When I was ten years old, I (break)___________ my arm. It really (hurt) __________.

13. The police (catch)___________ all three of the bank robbers last week.

14. How many times (do)___________ you (read)___________ that book?

15. Unfortunately, I (forget)___________ to (bring)___________ my money.

B. Change the verbs in brackets into the past tense. Some are regular and some are irregular.

Yesterday (to be) _______________ a busy day. I (wake) _______________ up at 6am, (have)

_______________ breakfast quickly and then I (go) _______________ to work. I (finish)

_______________ at noon and then (eat) _______________ some lunch. Afterwards I (drive)
_______________ to the shops, (buy) _______________ some paint and then (paint)
_______________

my bedroom. My housemate (come) _______________ home from work so I (help)

_______________

him paint his room, then we (repair) _______________ his chair as it (wobble)
_______________ a lot. I

(wish) _______________ I hadn’t, as I hurt my hand! After that I (clean) _______________ my

house. I

(vacuum) _______________ all the downstairs and then (tidy) _______________ up the living
room

and the kitchen. I was pretty tired by then so I (eat) ate some dinner, (yawn) _______________,
and

(go) _______________ to bed!

C.Change the verbs below into the past tense and put them into the correct place in the sentences

Pay :: Ring :: Think :: Drink :: See :: Eat :: Go :: Take :: Leave :: Say

1. I _________________ that he was fired.

2. My mum _________________ me last night but I wasn’t at home to take her answer.

3. I _________________ to the zoo with my son last weekend.

4. I _________________ four cakes for lunch. I feel sick!

5. He _________________ him to see the doctor because he had been ill for so long.

6. I _________________ that new movie last night. It was great!

7. He _________________ his son alone all day!

8. I _________________ two bottle of grape juice last night. I don’t feel too well today.

9. They _________________ it tasted horrible.

10. It was too expensive and we _________________ too much for it.

Writing: write a letter to a friend in which you tell him/her about the way in which you
celebrated the 8th of March. At least 8 lines!