WHY WAS HE "THE GREAT"?

Alexander was born in 356 BC in Pella, Macedonia to King Philip II. At 20, after his father's murder, he became king. From the age of 22 until his death at 33 he conquered most of the known world, reaching as far as India.

1. The Persians were his major enemy. They were very strong in sea power. Alexander did not have a strong navy. He was afraid of the Persian navy. In order to stop the Persian navy he did not attack the ships. Instead he destroyed their ports.
2. In the battle of the river Issus, he did not feel strong. So he changed tactics. He himself led a focussed attack on Darius, the Persian king. Darius's personal guard did not hold the attack. Darius withdrew and his troops followed.
3. Alexander wanted to capture Tyre, a city on an island very near to the coast of today's Lebanon. Tyre was very difficult to conquer. After several months of attack by sea Alexander changed tactics. He built a causeway. This way his troops marched up to the walls. They used land attack tactics Tyre was captured soon afterwards.
4. Alexander wanted to control the lands he had conquered. In order to do so, he told his troops to live there. This way the ancient Greek culture and language spread to those lands.

1. Alexander did not have a navy. Nevertheless he stopped the Persian navy.
2. At the battle of the River Issus he defeated the Persians, who had a bigger army.
3. Alexander captured the town of Tyre, which everyone thought impossible.
4. He controlled the lands he conquered well.

1. Do you remember a film about Alexander the Great? Was it a good representation of Alexander the Great and his life? Discuss with your teacher and classmates. How about Robin Hood or King Arthur? Do the films represent the historical truth?
2. Choose a personality from your History book and say what makes them unique.
   1. Use other sources to find out more about them.
   2. Work in groups and present the information on a cardboard using pictures and short texts giving an outline of his/her life and deeds.
   3. You may use the above text for guidance.

SELF - ASSESSMENT TEST

 

Name:.....................................................       Class:..............................

Date:.......................................................       Score:............./ 100

 

 

Henry VIII	Anne Boleyn

 

A. Do the quiz. Write complete sentences.

1. What was the name of a famous Ancient Greek theatre?
2. Where was Alexander the Great born?
3. Who wrote the "Iliad" and "Odessey"?
4. In which country did El Greco live most of his life?
5. What was the name of Shakespeare's theatre?

B. Create the dialogue by putting each section in the correct order.

(Introduction: Anne Boleyn was one of the wives of King Henry VIII, 1491-1547)

C. Look at the pictures and write what Nadine did last Sunday.

Last Sunday was a special day for Nadine. .............................................................................

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D. A horrible weekend.

The Antoniou family went away for the weekend, but they had a terrible time. Match the sentences to find out why.

1. The hotel room was very small
2. Everything was expensive,
3. The food was so bad that
4. They didn't swim in the sea
5. The beach was so dirty that
6. The hotel roomwas noisy
7. Their car had a flat tyre,
8. The nearest supermarket was half an hour away from the hotel

Tick what's true for you:

Learning strategies in English

 

 

READING: Successful techniques

• I get a quick overview of the passage
• I get a good understanding of the detail
• I imagine what is coming next
• I read with a clear aim in mind

 

Now I can:

 

 

• Talk about famous people of the past
• Talk about past / historical actions
• Write about a series of past events
• Put past events in order