Find some advice for teachers about the Russia chapter on this page, organized by page of the lesson. Click the plus signs to open them.

You can also find some materials for use in the classroom in our Diverse Russian – Russia Google folder. We also hope that if you have materials related to the book’s content that you are willing to share, that you will upload them to the “Sharing materials from users” folder as well.

General guidance and resources

Depending on your students’ level, you might want to spend 4-6 class periods on the chapter about Russia, though the material could also be used a little at a time if it is supplementing another intermediate textbook. However, if you only have a short time to spend, you could either focus on more general information about Russia (the first 7 pages of the lesson), or focus on the part of the lesson about traditions. Or you could skip certain pages to shorten the lesson for your own needs. Pages that can easily be skipped: Языковая политика, Где можно потанцевать?, Мода в России сейчас: этнобренды, Другие традиции.

Resources

Quizlet sets – main vocabulary list

Quizlet sets – complete vocabulary list

Vocabulary list in Google Docs – main vocabulary list

Vocabulary list in Google Sheets – complete vocabulary list

Vocabulary list in Google Docs – complete vocabulary list

Speaking activities collected in one Google Doc

Texts collected in one Google Doc

Diverse Russian – Russia Google folder (materials that can be used in class)

Страница: Демография России

Note that the activity is given in both English and Russian. Depending on the level of your students, you could instruct them to complete one or the other. Or they could do the English first, which would help them better understand the Russian text.

The text of the listening can be found on the Russia Texts page or in the Russia Texts Google Doc.

Страница: Где находятся?

We have labeled the maps with some countries, regions, and bodies of water that students can use to talk about where the places in the slide show are located. If you need to be able to see a larger version of the maps, we recommend using the slide show full screen (click the arrows on the bottom right of the slide show).

Страница: Основные факты

We suggest that you break your class into groups of 3. Then in each group one person will read about each of the regions under consideration – Tatarstan, Kabardino-Balkaria, and Buryatia. Then they will teach each other about the place that they learned about. You can have them turn in the documents that they create with the documentation tool that is on the page by email or through a course management system. You could also print out this Google doc for your students to fill out as they talk to each other. Or if your students are on a higher level, you could have them read all three and fill out the information independently.

Страница: Интересные факты

Note that the task for students is to choose the picture that goes with the written text, so one of the pictures is incorrect. The text of the activity can be found on the Russia Texts page or in the Russia Texts Google Doc.

Страница: Терминология

The well-known people in the Давайте поговорим! activity include:

Инна Иналовна Кашежева; поэт и переводчица; отец родился в кабардинском селе
Кайсын Шуваевич Кулиев; балкарский поэт
Александр Валентинович Вампилов; писатель; родители буряты
Энгельсина Сергеевна Чешкова (Маркизова); историк и востоковед; родилась в Бурятии
Чулпан Наилевна Хаматова; актриса; родилась в Казани
Юрий Хатуевич Темирканов; дирижёр; родился в Нальчике, родители кабардинцы
Дашинима Бальжимаевич Намдаков; скульптор; родился в бурятском селе
Танзиля Мустафаевна Зумакулова; поэт; родилась в балкарском селении
Марат Мубинович Сафин; теннисист; родители из Татарстана
Сатаней (Сати) Сетгалиевна Казанова; певица и актриса; родители кабардинцы
Анатолий Валерьевич Михаханов (Орора Сатоси); профессиональный борец сумо; из Бурятии
Ирина Шейк; супермодель и актриса; её отец татарин
Жамбал-Дорджи Гомбоев; бурятский религиозный деятель

Страница: Языковая политика

The text of the listening can be found on the Russia Texts page or in the Russia Texts Google Doc.

You can have your students take notes in the “Documentation Tool” activity on the page – it allows them to export a Word document that can then be printed or turned in. Or if you prefer, you can have them complete the same activity within a Google doc, or print it out for them to write on.

Языковая политика notetaking Google Doc

Страница: История

The reading texts can be found on the Russia Texts page or in the Russia Texts Google Doc. We also created separate Google docs for each one that could be printed if desired:

Дальневосточная республика
Депортация балкарцев
Референдум о суверенитете Татарстана

Depending on your students’ level, you may want them to read only one of the texts, or you may want them to read two or all three of them.

Страница: Традиции: Слова, которые вы наверное уже знаете

Vocabulary lists can be found on the Лексика page or in the Google Sheets vocabulary list or Google Docs vocabulary list.

If you are confident that these vocabulary items are well-known to your students, you could skip this page.

Страница: Познакомьтесь с новыми словами

Vocabulary lists can be found on the Лексика page or in the Google Sheets vocabulary list or Google Docs vocabulary list.

Страница: Традиции: грамматика

If you think your students could use assistance with the speaking activity, you could provide them with some pictures first and ask them if the people pictured dress like a typical student, a typical businessman, etc. If you can, it would also be helpful to personalize this activity to your campus by including pictures of people that the students know, like perhaps their former professors or well-known campus personalities.

Страница: Традиции Сибири: Ёхор

The reading text and the transcript of the audio clips can be found on the Russia Texts page or in the Russia Texts Google Doc. We have also created a separate Google doc with the reading text so that it can easily be printed if desired: Традиции Сибири: Ёхор Google Doc

Страница: Как танцуют ёхор

The videos at the bottom of the page are more for reference and do not necessarily need to all be watched.

The reading text and the transcript of the audio clips can be found on the Russia Texts page or in the Russia Texts Google Doc. We have also created a separate Google doc with the reading text so that it can easily be printed if desired: Как танцуют ёхор Google Doc

Страница: Ночь ёхора

The text of the video can be found on the Russia Texts page or in the Russia Texts Google Doc. You can also find the files for the two images on the page in the Google folder for the Russia chapter.

Страница: Давайте поговорим о танце

You can find all of the questions in a printable format in the Google Doc with all of the chapter’s speaking activities.

Страница: Где можно потанцевать?

This page asks students to imagine that they are visiting Kazan and are looking for a place to go dancing. We have created Google docs that boil down the information about 3 places in a more digestible manner. If you have students who are on the lower level of Intermediate, you may want to have them use these, while more advanced students could use the links to look at the authentic entries of the clubs on Яндекс Карты.

Ravez – Google doc | Ravez – Яндекс Карты

Гадкий койот – Google doc | Гадкий койот – Яндекс Карты

Метро Пушкинская Club – Google doc | Метро Пушкинская Club – Яндекс Карты

If you are short on time, this is a page that can easily be skipped.

Страница: Татарские традиции: Никах

The reading text and the transcript of the audio clips can be found on the Russia Texts page or in the Russia Texts Google Doc. We have also created a separate Google doc with the reading text so that it can easily be printed if desired: Татарские традиции: Никах Google Doc

Note that there is a small speaking task at the bottom of the page.

Страница: Национальный костюм

The transcript of the audio clips can be found on the Russia Texts page or in the Russia Texts Google Doc, but students can also access them on the page itself. Some of these clips use somewhat specialized vocabulary, so you may want to reassure your students that they are not expected to understand everything in the clips.

The Национальность ru YouTube channel has many interesting videos about different ethnic groups in Russia, so this could be a jumping off point if you would like to have your students learn more about other groups in Russia.

Страница: Мода в России сейчас: этнобренды

The transcript of the audio clip and the reading text can be found on the Russia Texts page or in the Russia Texts Google Doc. We have also created a printable Google Doc version of the Этнобренды в Татарстане reading text if you prefer.

Note that there is a short speaking task at the bottom of the page. The follow-up activity also suggests creating a fashion show, and this idea could be expanded in the classroom in a variety of ways.

Страница: Одежда в республиках: что принято

The reading text and the transcript of the audio clip can be found on the Russia Texts page or in the Russia Texts Google Doc. We have also created a printable Google Doc version of the Что принято? texts.

You can also find an image file of the infographic in the Google folder for the Russia chapter.

The follow-up activity brings up an interesting topic that you may want to broach with your students – the controversy over the wearing of hijab in Russia and Kazakhstan.

Страница: Давайте поговорим об одежде

You can find all of the questions in a printable format in the Google Doc with all of the chapter’s speaking activities.

You can also find image versions of the infographics in the Google folder for the Russia chapter.

Страница: Тест: Какой у вас стиль?

This page has a “personality quiz” that mimics personality tests that you can find online. The styles that students can receive are: Бохо, Спортивный, Классический, Готический, Гранж, and Кэжуал. You could also have students try to guess what each other got, or try to categorize photographs of people by these different style categories.

Страница: Другие традиции

The reading text and the transcript of the audio clip can be found on the Russia Texts page or in the Russia Texts Google Doc. We have also created a printable Google Doc version of the Другие традиции text.

The assignment asks students to just read about one tradition and report back to their classmates, but you could also have them read them all if you have the time in the your course. This page can easily be skipped.

Страница: Поиграем: что вы помните о народах России?

This game is for fun, and gives students 5 “lives” to go through the different questions, but it is not meant to be stressful for them. You could have them work together on it in class or work in teams.

Страница: Моя любимая одежда

We encourage you to have your students post on the Padlet if possible, so that students feel the development of a community with other students learning Russian. But keep in mind that these postings are visible, so if there are any privacy concerns, you can have your students complete this assignment in another way or post anonymously.