UNIT 4, The 4th of July in Colorado

UNIT 4

The 4^th of July in Colorado

            Many American cities have rodeos but Greeley, Colorado, has the "Worlds' Largest Fourth of July Rodeo." The city was named after Horace Greeley, a well-known newspaperman for the New York Tribune. One of his famous sayings was "Go west, Young Man, go west." In 1869, he sent one of his reporters west to Colorado to write a story about farming.

The reporter, Nathan C. Meeker, liked the area so much he stayed and started a town named after his boss. It was Meeker's vision that helped establish a successful community based on, among other qualities, cooperation, agriculture, irrigation, and education.

Every year the people of Greeley celebrate Independence Day with a rodeo. In the early days, the rodeo was a small local event, but it grew more and more popular. In 1922, more than 10,000 people came to the rodeo, and the town officially named the event the "Greeley Fourth of July Celebration and the Spud Rodeo and Horseshow."

 They called it the spud rodeo because spuds (another name for potatoes) are an important crop grown around Greeley. A few years later, even more people came to the rodeo, when famous cowboys started competing with the local ranch hands. Today, the rodeo lasts for two weeks and is called the Greeley Independence Stampede. 

COMPREHENSION

1.     Answer the questions briefly!

1)     When and where did the story take place?

2)     What’s the text tell about?

3)     Who was Horace Greeley?

4)     What is the major crop in the Greeley area?

5)     What do the following words refer to?

a.      “he” paragraph 1 line 4 refer to...

b.      “it” paragraph 2 line 2 refer to...

c.      “it” paragraph 3 line 2 refer to...

d.     “they” paragraph 4 line 1 refer to...

2.     True or false! Write T for each true statement and F for each false statement.

a.      Greeley, Colorado was named after its founder.

b.     In 1922, the Greeley rodeo was an event for only local residents.

c.      Greeley, Colorado, has the "Worlds' Largest Fourth of July Rodeo.

d.     spuds are an important crop grown around Greeley

e.      the people of Greeley celebrate Independence Day with a rodeo

3.     Fill the blank

a.      Every year the people of Greeley  ... Independence Day with a rodeo

b.     The Meeker's vision ... establish a successful community

c.      The rodeo was a ... local event before 1922.

d.     Spuds are an ... crop grown around Greeley.

e.      Today, ... is called the Greeley Independence Stampede. 

the rodeo, important, small, helped , celebrate.

4.     Find the word in the text above and find the meaning!

Agriculture
compete
cooperation
crop
irrigation
officially
quality
ranch
rodeo
stampede 

5.     Retell the story above!