British families started going on holiday to the seaside around the middle of the 19th century. The invention of the railways made this possible. The first holidaymakers were quite rich and went for their health and education. The seaside was a place to be (1)__________of illnesses, and doctors recommended bathing in the sea and drinking sea water. Also to increase their knowledge, families attended concerts and read books from libraries. At that time, ordinary working people had very little time (2)__________. However, in 1871, the government introduce four “Bank Holidays” – national holiday days. This allowed people to have a day or two out, which now and then gave them a taste for leisure and the seaside. At first they went on day-trips, taking (3)__________ of special cheap tickets on the railways. By the 1880s, rising incomes meant many ordinary workers and their families could have a week’s holiday at the seaside. Rail fares were reduced and cheap hotels were built to (4)__________ them. Holidaymakers enjoyed being idle, sitting on the beach, bathing in the sea, and eating ice-cream. Cheap entertainment was (5)__________ offer and holidaymakers went to have fun. Today, the English seaside remained popular, with more than 18 million holidays taken there each year.

Any change in one part of an ecosystem can cause changes in other parts. Droughts, storms and fires can change ecosystems. Some changes harm ecosystems. If there is too (1)____ rainfall, plants will not have enough water to live. If a kind of plant dies off, the animals that feed on it may also die or move away. Some changes are good for ecosystems. Some pine forests need fire for the pine trees to reproduce. The seeds are sealed inside pinecones. Heat from a forest fire melts the seal and lets the seeds (2)_____. Polluting the air, soil, and water can harm ecosystems. Building (3)_______ on rivers for electric power and irrigation can harm ecosystems around the rivers. Bulldozing wetlands and cutting down (4)________ destroy ecosystems. Ecologists are working with companies and governments to find better ways of catching fish, cutting down trees, and building dams. They are looking for ways to get food, lumber, and other products for people (5)________ causing harm to ecosystems

Research has shown that over half the children in Britain who take their own lunches to school do not eat (1)______ in the middle of the day. In Britain schools have to (2)_____ meals at lunchtime. Children can choose to bring their own food or have lunch at the school canteen. One shocking finding of this research is that school meals are much healthier than lunches prepared by parents. There are strict (3) ___ for the preparation of school meals, which have to include one (4) ___ of fruit and one of vegetables, as well as meat, a dairy item and starchy food like bread or pasta. Lunchboxes (5) ___ by researchers contained sweet drinks, crisps and chocolate bars. Children consume twice as much sugar as they should at lunchtime.

Another common superstition is that it is unlucky to open an umbrella in the house - it will either bring (4)______ to the person who opened it or to the whole (5) ______. Anyone opening an umbrella in the fine weather is unpopular, as it inevitably brings rain

Such education becomes (4)___ important as people gain more and more leisure time. Education also helps people adjust to change.v

Burning 250 or 500 calories per day can make a big (4)_____ .

The UK Government ensures that all schools in the UK (1)______ certain standards, and this includes independent schools as well as those that are (2)_____ by the Government.

The roots of plants help to (5) ______ the rocks and soil in place. Water that falls on grasslands runs away more slowly than water that falls on bare ground.

I wanted to use my time well, so I had planned a route which would include several small islands and various parts of the countryside. In my (3) ________, a person travelling alone sometimes meets with unexpected hospitality, and this trip was no (4) ________.

Last year, there were millions of international tourist arrivals across the globe. Whether they were students on their (1)______ years looking for overseas adventure, stressed-out workers hoping to get away for a weekend, or retirees (2)_______ to relax in an exotic locationclearly none of them thought they could find the same experience at home. The question is whether foreign travel brings more advantages or disadvantages. An obvious positive point is that going abroad sometimes helps people to expand their knowledge of the world. If they are (4)_____ minded, they can learn about new cultures and hopefully gain a more accurate understanding about their way of life. In addition, there is the economic benefit of tourism to countries which have few other resources. It can provide an income to many people within the industry. Having said that, some people simply go to a
foreign resort (4)______ by high walls and therefore learn little about their holiday (5)_______ . Another issue is that hordes of tourists often spoil the “unspoilt” places they visit. The most recent example of this is Antarctica, where last year cruise ships took thousands of visitors to view the disappearing icebergs and wildlife. Vegetation, nesting penguins and resting walrus are vulnerable when humans intrude.

The most successful animals on earth - human beings - will soon be the only ones (5)________, unless we can solve this problem.