Independence Day (USA) · Worksheet 1
Two Days Off, but Right in the End
Read the story. 英文を読もう。
1On July 3, 1776, John Adams wrote a letter to his wife, Abigail. He said that one day would be remembered forever. People would celebrate it with games, guns, bells, and bright lights. But the day he wrote about was July 2, not July 4.
2On July 2, leaders from 13 American colonies voted to break away from Britain. Two days later, on July 4, they accepted a paper that explained why. It was the Declaration of Independence, and Thomas Jefferson wrote most of it. He was only 33 years old. Printed copies carried the date July 4, 1776, so people remembered that day.
3Here is another surprise. Most of the leaders did not sign the Declaration on July 4. They signed a clean copy on August 2, almost a month later. In the end, 56 men signed it. John Hancock wrote his name so big that his name now means signature. It is about 13 centimeters long!
4Adams and Jefferson later became the second and third presidents. Then something strange happened. Both men died on July 4, 1826, exactly 50 years after the Declaration. Jefferson died first, and Adams died a few hours later.
5Today, Americans call the holiday Independence Day or the Fourth of July. Towns have parades in the morning. Some towns also read the Declaration out loud. Families eat hot dogs and hamburgers in their backyards. At night, fireworks fill the sky in red, white, and blue. Adams got the date wrong, but he was right about the party.
- independence 独立
- colony 植民地
- vote 投票する
- declaration 宣言
- accept 受け入れる、採択する
- sign 署名する
- signature 署名
- president 大統領
- exactly ちょうど、正確に
- fireworks 花火
- backyard 裏庭
- parade パレード