Category: Class

Laughter

B1 – Intermediate

Laughing is contagious. It brings happiness, lifts spirits, and brings about good judgment.

Laughter has very good benefits to our body. Laughter and jokes help boost the immune system, improve your quality of life, promote healing, and protect you from the negative outcomes of stress. Best of all, this medicine is totally organic, fascinating, unlimited, and not to mention, free.

Listen to the audio and read the transcript about laughter.

https://listenaminute.com/l/laughter.html

Discussion Questions:

  1. What usually makes you laugh?
  2. Do you consider it necessary for people to laugh? Why or why not?
  3. Do you like making other people laugh? Why or why not?
  4. Why do some people seem to laugh more frequently than others?
  5. Is laughing synonymous to happiness, contentment, or joy? Explain. 
  6. What is the funniest moment of your life and why?

Night

B1 – Intermediate

Are you a night owl?

The night should be the most peaceful period of the day. It is a great time to look at the stars because they’re beautiful,  lay out on the beach or any other place, and just talk and hang out with friends.

Let’s listen to the audio and read the transcript about nighttime.

https://listenaminute.com/n/night.html

Discussion Questions:

  1. What do you do at night that is different from during the day?
  2. Do you feel different at night than you do during the day? Explain.
  3. What’s the best night out you’ve ever had?
  4. What would life and the world be like if humans were nocturnal – we slept during the day and were active at night?
  5. Talk about an interesting night in your life. What made it special?

Small Talk

B2 – Upper Intermediate

A psychologist named Susan Pinker says that small talks can help us live longer. It enables people to find common ground and interest. That’s why it is not surprising how small chitchats improve our social interactions.

Watch a short clip below and see how Joseph learns a lesson from a second-grader.

Discussion Questions:

  1. How was Joseph’s first encounter with Adam? How did Adam try to make a small talk with Joseph?
  2. What are your thoughts on this conversation?
  3. Do you like making small talks? Why or why not?
  4. What questions can we ask when attempting to make a small talk? What questions shouldn’t we ask when we make a small talk? Explain your answer.
  5. What are some of the most memorable small talks you’ve ever had with a total stranger?

Safety: Nothing is Routine

B2 – Upper Intermediate

We can be a victim of our own complacency. It happens when the task becomes too familiar, and our brain goes on autopilot. Ideally, we should always be mindful of everything, but because we have done a specific activity so many times, we tend to start getting complacent.

Here’s a video clip that will remind us how dangerous it can be to start being complacent about safety when it comes to our most mundane tasks.

Discussion Questions:

  1. Retell the scenes that you saw in the video.
  2. Do you agree that nothing is routine when it comes to our safety? Express your thoughts.
  3. How can we be more mindful even if we have already done a task multiple times?
  4. Share one experience you had when you didn’t pay no mind to something you were doing which led to an accident or put you in danger.
  5. What safety practices at home and work should we never be complacent about?

The Importance of Intercultural Awareness

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Intercultural differences can be confusing. People from different parts of the world act, talk, and respond in various ways. We are compelled to gain intercultural awareness so we can co-exist with others better.

Watch the clip below and increase your understanding about the importance of intercultural awareness.

Discussion Questions:

  1. How do you define intercultural awareness?
  2. Tell about a time when you experienced intercultural differences.
  3. What are some ways people can adapt to foreign cultures?
  4. According to the video, it is important to respect foreign customs, rituals, and cultures. How do you think we can do this? Give some examples.
  5. What do you like most about your own culture that you want to share with others?

Meet Emma – Your Work Colleague of the Future

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Are you sitting comfortably? The fact is, that might also affect your health! A team of experts from France, Germany, and the UK created Emma. It’s a life-size model of an office worker with different health problems.

Please watch the video about some hidden dangers of office work and learn more about everyday professions that are actually very risky.

Discussion Questions:

  1. What health problems do you think Emma has? What can help office workers avoid these problems? Do you think you could have any of the problems Emma does? If so, which ones?
  2. Do you agree or disagree that “Workplace well-being in our sedentary lifestyles are having a major negative impact.” Explain.
  3. Do you think the way you are sitting right now is good for your health? Why or why not?
  4. What are your thoughts on “walk and talk” meetings?
  5. What are things do you consciously do to prevent the negative impact of a sedentary lifestyle?
  6. What does your employer/company protect its employees’ well-being?

Computers

B1 – Intermediate

A computer is a machine that can store and process data and information. It is one of the best inventions of modern technology nowadays. People from all walks of life use computers to make our jobs easier, and more convenient and effective.

Listen to this audio and read the transcript about computers.

https://listenaminute.com/c/computers.html

Discussion Questions:

  1. How useful are computers for you?
  2. What do you do with a computer? How did you learn these skills? Which software can you work with?
  3. What would happen if all of the world’s computers suddenly stopped forever?
  4. Do you control computers or do they control you? Explain.
  5. What is the worst thing about computers? Why?

Guantanamo Bay Releases Oldest Detainee

B2 – Upper Intermediate

It has been around twenty years since the first prisoner set foot in the infamous Guantanamo Bay. There are nearly 800 detainees in this prison camp who are mostly held without charge or trial. Quite recently, the oldest prisoner has been released and sent back home to Pakistan.

Let’s read the article to know more about Guantanamo Bay and the controversies surrounding it.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-63438878

Discussion Questions:

  1. When and why was the detention camp established?
  2. What is your opinion on Guantanamo Bay’s human rights violations?
  3. What are your thoughts about detainees being cleared for release and do you think it is an “embarrassment to the US”? Share your opinion.
  4. How does your government treat people arrested on suspicions of terrorism?
  5. What is the maximum period of detention for people held without charges in your country? Do you think it is a reasonable period of time?

The 5G Revolution

B2 – Upper Intermediate

With the recent changes brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, internet connectivity has become almost always necessary in both business and our day-to-day lives.

High speed connection is what most people need especially for work and studies. The new 5G technology promises a much more stable connection and ultra-reliable low latency communication.

Listen to the audio and read the transcript about the 5G technology.

Business English News 45 – The 5G Revolution

Discussion Questions:

  1. What is 5G technology? How is it better than the current 4G technology we are using?
  2. What are your thoughts on the controversies surrounding the 5G technology?
  3. Do you think 5G will make wi-fi obsolete? Why or why not?
  4. What are the benefits of 5G in the business setting?
  5. Are you satisfied with your current network connectivity? If not, how do you make it work?
  6. What other improvements do you want to see in internet connectivity?

An Unusual Friendship

B2 – Upper Intermediate

No matter the color, race, or social standing, we all have the capability to reach out to someone if we just keep an open mind.

Please read the article below about an unusual friendship.

For a black man living in the 1960s, life was far from easy. This was the case for Donald Shirley, a musical prodigy and classically trained pianist. His plan was to tour the Deep South, but for a black man living during this era, he knew that his journey would be far from smooth. This was the time when the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) would stop at nothing to voice their extremist views, and they did this through any means thinkable and unthinkable. Violence was often the most popular of means. So, Donald needed protection. He needed some backup. This brought Tony Vallelonga to the scene. He became Donald’s driver.

On the surface, these two men seemed worlds apart. Donald Shirley lived alone, a well-educated man with 3 doctorates under his belt. Tony had followed the school of hard knocks and had grown into a rough-and-ready Italian. Tony’s streetwise nature and his job as a bouncer at the Copacabana, though, led him to cross paths with young Donald Shirley. What followed was a road trip that opened Tony’s eyes to the brutality of racism and a deep, even though at first sight unlikely, friendship developed between the two. It lasted for many decades to come. In the early 70s, Donald Shirley was able to play at the famous Carnegie Hall together with the Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra.

What had happened to Tony? Well, he went back to his old stomping grounds at the Copacabana, only to be spotted and cast in The Godfather. It’s poignant to note that their unlikely friendship lasted well into the 21st century. Tony’s son recollects how they would go out for lunch together when Donald was playing in town. It seemed that if Donald ever was in need, Tony was the man he would turn to for help. “Whenever Dr. Shirley had any problems,” he said, “he’d call my father, and he’d go and help to sort them out.”

It is no wonder that such a story turned into a Hollywood movie. Stories like these warm our hearts and show us that we don’t have to be alone. No matter our colour, race or social standing, we all have the capability to reach out to someone if we just keep an open mind.

Quote retrieved from the article, “What happened to Don Shirley and Tony Lip after ‘Green Book’? Nick Vallelonga talks us through their friendship” by Gregory Wakeman, posted on November 15, 2018 on Metro.

Discussion Questions:

  1. Have you watched the movie Green Book? Why or why not?
  2. What do you think made a bodyguard and a pianist, who seemed to be from two different worlds, true friends?
  3. Do you think this story is common or an exceptional one? Explain.
  4. What’s the most incredible story of friendship do you know of?
  5. How does most friendships begin?
  6. How can friendships last?
  7. Who is your greatest friend and why?