Category: Class

A Good Time to Improve Your Health

B2 – Upper Intermediate

The Coronavirus, which originated in Wuhan, China, has become a global phenomenon with over 70,000 confirmed cases and more than 2,000 deaths as of this writing.

This health emergency has highlighted the need to improve hygiene standards and practice proper cold and flu etiquette.

Read the article that follows to learn why the current virus threat is a good time to improve your health and discover some practical ways to achieve this.

https://www.thetimesinplainenglish.com/coronavirus-threat-is-a-good-time-to-improve-your-health/

Discussion Questions:

  1. How often do you catch a cold or get the flu? What could be the possible causes for these?
  2. What are some of the things you do to safeaguard your health?
  3. What is the recommended way to wash one’s hands as stated in the article?
  4. What are examples of etiquette to observe during the flu and cold season?

Best Railway Station in Europe

B1 – Intermediate

London St. Pancras is ranked as the best railway station in Europe. Most of the train stations on the top ten are from Germany. 

Read the article and find out more about some of the best train stations in Europe.

https://breakingnewsenglish.com/2002/200225-railway-station-1.html

Discussion Questions:

  1. Have you ever been to any of the top ten best train stations in Europe? Which one? Describe it. Talk about your experience there.
  2. What is the best and worst train station you have ever been at?
  3. What do you think of the train stations in your city/country with respect to their ease of  access/cleanliness/connectivity/friendliness of staff/platforms?
  4. How often do workers at the train stations in your country go on strike?
  5. Do you enjoy the shops, restaurants, and services located near the train stations?

Test 770

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Adjective + Preposition + Gerund

Level: Intermediate-Advanced

Gerunds are commonly used after an adjective-preposition combination.

FORM: adjective + preposition + gerund

Take a look at these examples below:

used to She is very used to working long hours as she works in a hospital.
hooked onThey are hooked on going to the gym.
fearful of Kyle is fearful of getting into an argument with his mother.
nervous aboutThe expectant mother is nervous about finding out that there’s something wrong with her unborn baby.
tired of She is tired of helping her friend who doesn’t seem to have any plans for the future.
capable ofThey are capable of teaching him proper karate techniques.
devoted to Anna’s mother is devoted to finding her a husband.
worried about Arthur was worried about messing up this presentation.
content with My parents are content with living in the same little town for all of their lives.
committed to The police are committed to catching the criminal redhanded.
disappointed with Jennifer was disappointed with coming in last in that race she recently joined.
concerned about The firefighters were concerned about not having enough time to put out the fire in that building.
discouraged by Allan was discouraged by not getting the answer he was hoping for from his girlfriend.
excited about His whole team was excited about launching their new product.
famous for The pharmaceutical company became famous for discovering a vaccine for the deadly virus.
fond of They are not very fond of listening to foreign music.
frightened of Laura is frightened of being stuck in an elevator.
guilty of The syndicate is guilty of counterfeiting branded bags and shoes.
happy about They are happy about receiving this great news.
interested in Are you interested in joining the military?
involved in Many people were involved in coming up with this brilliant idea.
known for This band is known for singing some rock songs.
opposed to She was opposed to going in that direction.
proud of They were proud of having a doctor for a son.
remembered forMeryl Streep will be remembered for starring in some very famous films.
responsible for The design team is responsible for creating the logo for the company.
scared of Andy is scared of jumping off a cliff.
terrified of The president is terrified of being assassinated by his political enemies.
tired from They are tired from traveling all month.
sick of Anthony is sick of saying the same thing.

Ways to Live Longer

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Live healthy and live longer, right? There are many ways to live longer and I think it’s about time we re-asses our life to live better and longer. 

Let’s read the article below and consider the simple steps to live longer. 

https://www.health.com/mind-body/9-ways-to-live-longer

Discussion Questions:

  1. Talk about your lifestyle.
  2. What are the habits you want to change?
  3. What are the habits you want to have?
  4. How do you intend to achieve longevity?
  5. Do you want to live a very long life? Why or why not?

Big Breakfasts Help Burn More Calories

B1 – Intermediate

Some people don’t usually have breakfast so they don’t gain wait. However, a recent study shows that making big breakfasts a daily habit can help you lose weight. It could also help you burn more calories throughout the day.

Read the article to find out why some researchers recommend patients with obesity as well as healthy people to eat a significant amount of food for breakfast.

https://breakingnewsenglish.com/2002/200223-big-breakfast-4.html

Discussion Questions:

  1. How important is breakfast for you?
  2. What’s your breakfast usually like?
  3. Do you always have breakfast in the morning or do you sometimes skip it? Why/Why not?
  4. Do you agree that big breakfasts could result to weight loss? Explain.
  5. What is the most important meal of the day for you?
  6. What are other ways to lose weight that you know of?

Take Someone Under Your Wing

B1 – Intermediate

When someone needs your guidance on something, you help them. In a way, you are like their protector. You guide them to let them learn something that they need to know about.

When you join a new company, you are going to have a training and then have a coach or mentor to help you start with your tasks. Your coach/mentor has to take you under their wing during this time.

Listen to the audio and know about the expression “take someone under your wing”.

youtu.be/qToUpkUXXHQ?si=fIThrP1DpWoKWBu0

Discussion Questions:

  1. What does ‘take someone under your wing’ mean?
  2. Have you taken someone under your wing before? If yes, Why did you do so?
  3. Speak about your experience being taken under someone’s wing.
  4. In your opinion, does taking someone under your wing come with a lot of responsibilities?

Would You Return a Lost Wallet Full of Cash?

B2 – Upper Intermediate

At some point of our life we lost something that is valuable to us. One good example is losing a wallet. Isn’t it puzzling to imagine what will likely to happen if one day someone would find a lost wallet? Well, most of us would predict that it wouldn’t be returned as we assume it is normal to our human nature, but recently there is an intriguing yet very interesting social experiment of losing their wallets filled with cash to be likely returned.

Lost wallets are more likely to be returned if they hold cash

Discussion Questions:

  1. What will you do if you found a lost wallet? Will you return it?
  2. What if it has 10,000 Euros?
  3. Is it stealing if you won’t return it?
  4. What factors would influence your decision whether to return or keep it?
  5. What does this tell us about humanity?

Being Breadcrumbed At Work

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Breadcrumbing refers to leaving small pieces of bread for someone. It’s what happens when you lead someone on. It’s when your company gives you “just enough” to string you along. You can tell when you are being breadcrumbed when your manager gives hints about new projects, pay increase or promotions that may – or may not – ever happen.

Read the article below and learn more about breadcrumbing at work.

https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20190723-how-to-tell-if-youre-being-breadcrumbed-at-work

Discussion Questions:

  1. Have you ever been breadcrumbed at work? Who did it to you and why do you think they did that? How did it affect you?
  2. What can an employee do so that they won’t be lead on/strung along?
  3. What do you think are reasons employers employ such practice?

Adjectives: Mitigators

Level: Intermediate – Advanced

Mitigators are used to make an adjective become less strong. They are the opposite of intensifiers. Some common examples of mitigators are: fairly, rather,  pretty, and quite.

The team was fairly convinced he had nothing to do with them winning.

By the end of the week, everyone was rather exhausted.
The food wasn’t cheap, but it was quite delicious.

He had a pretty good time hanging out with his girlfriend’s friends. (Informal)

QUITE

When the mitigator ‘quite’ is used with neutral adjectives, adding ‘quite’ makes them less strong.

They were quite loud.

( = They were loud but not very loud. )

My job is quite boring.

( = My job is boring but not very boring. )

On the other hand, when ‘quite’ is used with strong adjectives, they then mean ‘absolutely’.

Their behavior was quite awful.

( = Their behavior was absolutely awful. ) 

As a team, they are quite brilliant.

( = As a team, they are absolutely brilliant. )