Category: Homework

Healthcare

B1 – Intermediate

Access to free healthcare is a basic human right. However, even in rich countries, they are not provided. Because people can’t afford it, they have no choice but to not go to a hospital to get treated.

In an ideal world, everyone should get free medical treatments and medicines. The question is, is this ever possible?

Listen to this audio and read the transcript about healthcare.

https://listenaminute.com/h/healthcare.html

Vocabulary Questions:

  1. What does “healthcare” mean? “Every country must provide free healthcare to its citizens.” Use the word in a sentence.
  2. What does “afford” mean here, “He went with lots of Americans who couldn’t afford healthcare in America.” Use ‘afford’ in this context in your own sentence.
  3. What does ”treat” mean here, “Amazingly, the Cuban hospitals treated them all for free and gave them medicine.” Use ‘treat’ in this context in your own sentence. 

Discussion Questions:

  1. Do you agree or disagree with this, “Every country must provide free healthcare to its citizens.”? Explain your point.
  2. Is it possible to provide everyone with free healthcare? Why or why not?
  3. Why do you think rich countries don’t provide free healthcare to everyone?
  4. Talk about the healthcare system in your country.
  5. What are the most important health care issues in your country?

Family Influences Career Choice

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Some say that young people nowadays are not willing to follow in their parents’ footsteps in business or lifestyle. 

Read the article to know why some young people choose to follow their parents’ advice when choosing their career and others don’t.

https://medium.com/elizabethsblog/how-family-influences-your-career-choice-75ff9452cd21

Vocabulary Questions:

  1. What does steer away from someone/something mean? “When children are exposed to their parents’ beliefs, this can result in the individual steering away from certain career choices and following their guardian’s ideals and beliefs.” Use it in a sentence.
  2. What does peer influence mean? “Other factors such as church and peer influences are generally overridden by home and school.” Use it in a sentence.
  3. What does nurturing mean? “Another factor of how a parent can influence a child’s career choice may depend on how nurturing the parents are.” Give a synonym and use ‘nurturing’ in a sentence.

Discussion Questions:

  1. Do you agree or disagree that families have a large impact on what career path their children might choose? Explain your stand.
  2. Why do you think parents want their children to follow a certain career path?
  3. Who influenced the career path that you are in now? What impact did they make on you or your decision to take up a degree/profession in this field?
  4. In your opinion, why are young people reluctant to follow their parents’ career advice?
  5. What career advice would you give your children (children of your friends or relatives)?

Overprotective Parenting Style

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Do you see the difference between how parents controlled their kids in the past and how they do it now?

Read the article and discuss parental control and better parenting options.

https://www.canr.msu.edu/news/overprotective_parenting_style

Vocabulary Questions:

  1. What does overindulge mean? “According to leadership expert Tim Elmore, when we rescue too quickly and overindulge our children with “assistance,” we remove the need for them to navigate hardships and solve problems on their own.” Use it in a sentence.
  2. What does swoop in mean? “Help them develop coping skills by not swooping in to save them every time they are in distress.” Use it in a sentence.
  3. What is a role model? “This is a mom or dad who sets carefully defined limits for children, the one who is a good role model and praises children for their efforts.” Use it in a sentence.

Discussion Questions:

  1. Do you know any family that control their kids too much? What do they do?
  2. What are the parenting styles mentioned in the article?
  3. Do you think you will allow your children to use the Internet without controlling them?
  4. What are the negative effects of overprotective parenting style?

Secrets to a Happy Marriage

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Marriage won’t work if you neglect each other’s desires and needs. Do you know how to maintain a happy married life?

Let’s watch the video where truly experienced ladies share their secrets to happy and successful marriages.

Vocabulary Questions:

  1. What does “sassy” mean? ” I know that she can be sassy, but I try not to take it seriously.” Use it in a sentence.
  2. What does “anticipate” mean? “I know for me, there’s been a lot of care-taking, that my husband has had to do, that you never anticipate.” Use it in a sentence.
  3. What does “stigma“ mean? “It doesn’t really hold a stigma now.” Use it in a sentence.

Discussion Questions:

  1. What is the key to a long, successful marriage? Explain.
  2. Do you agree that the new generation has an absolutely different attitude to marriage? Why (not)?
  3. If people are unhappy in marriage, should they stay together? Why (not)? And what if they have children?
  4. How can people maintain romantic relationship through the years?

Artificial Intelligence to Create Jobs in Gaming

B1 – Intermediate

Artificial intelligence (AI) has helped the gaming sector advance so much. If AI can put an end to many jobs, works in gaming are not one of them.

Read this article about how the gaming sector can benefit from the advancements in AI.

https://breakingnewsenglish.com/2307/230724-ai-gaming-jobs-4.html

Vocabulary Questions:

  1. What does “body” mean in this context, “A UK games body said gaming is always at “the cutting edge of technology”.” Use the word in this context in your own sentence.
  2. What does “safeguard” mean, “Hollywood actors are on strike demanding safeguards against AI.” Use the word in a sentence.
  3. What does ”cutting edge” mean, “A UK games body said gaming is always at “the cutting edge of technology”.”? Give a synonym and use ‘cutting edge’ in a sentence.

Discussion Questions:

  1. Is AI beneficial or not? Explain.
  2. How is AI helpful to the gaming sector?
  3. What do you think of a profession in the gaming sector?

Talking to Yourself

B2 – Upper Intermediate

When someone catches you talking to yourself, it can be rather embarrassing. However, self-talk is absolutely normal. Doing so, the right way, that is, can actually be very beneficial to your well-being.

Watch the video and discover the psychological benefits and drawbacks of self-talks.

Vocabulary Questions:

  1. What does “mutter” mean, As your morning alarm blares, you mutter to yourself, “Why did I set it so early?” Give a synonym of ‘mutter’ and use the word in a sentence.
  2. What does “facet” mean, “Specifically, psychologists define self-talk as verbalized thoughts directed toward yourself or some facet of your life.” Give a synonym of ‘facet’ and use the word in a sentence.
  3. What does “ruminate” mean, “And those who constantly blame themselves for their problems and ruminate on those situations, typically experience more intense feelings of depression.”? Give a synonym and use ‘ruminate’ in a sentence.

Discussion Questions:

  1. What are your thoughts on talking to one’s self?
  2. What are the benefits and drawbacks of making inner speeches?
  3. How does self-talk benefit you?
  4. Does what we say to ourselves matter? Why or why not?
  5. Explain what CBT is and share what you think about it.
  6. Share you thoughts on this, “The way you treat people is what they become.”.

Should We Fear Chatbots

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Chatbots have become more and more popular these days. We encounter a lot of chatbots when we do certain transactions on the internet. However, there is this existing fear that chatbots might surpass the level of information stored in human brains.

Listen to this audio and read the transcript to learn more about chatbots.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/english/features/6-minute-english_2023/ep-230706

Vocabulary Questions:

  1. What does “on guard” mean? “…we need to be on guard against that because what’s coming out of ChatGPT is none of that.” Use this phrase in a sentence.
  2. What is a “sentient entity“? “You can provoke it to say things that sound like what a sentient entity would say.” Make a sentence with this phrase.
  3. Define “primed“. “We are really primed to imagine a mind behind language whenever we encounter language.” Use it in a sentence.

Discussion Questions:

  1. What do you think of chatbots?
  2. In your opinion, are chatbots helpful? Why or why not?
  3. Should we fear chatbots? Why or why not?
  4. What are the potential reasons that people might be afraid of chatbots?
  5. What do you think are the pros and cons of using a chatbot?

Bookstore Gets a Fine

B1 – Intermediate

Because they offer a wide selection of books, bookstores are the place to go to find good reads.

Bookstores need to be mindful about how they manage the books they sell because some of them may have topics that are sensitive in nature. Such books need to be handled with more care. 

Listen to this audio and read the transcript about one of Hungary’s biggest bookstore getting fined. Find out why they got penalized.

https://www.newsinlevels.com/products/a-bookstore-gets-a-fine-level-3/

Vocabulary Questions:

  1. What is “depict”? “The Hungarian government has fined the country’s second-largest bookstore, Lira, nearly 36,000 dollars for violating a law that bans depicting homosexuality to minors.” Give some synonyms of ‘depict’ and use the word in a sentence.
  2. What does “vague” mean, “Lira’s creative director Krisztian Nyary says the law is vague and difficult to implement.” Give some synonyms of ‘vague’ and use the word in a sentence.
  3. What does ”appeal” mean in this sentence, “Despite using legal means, the fine can’t be appealed.”? Use ‘appeal’ in this context.

Discussion Questions:

  1. What is your reaction to Lira Bookstore getting a huge fine?
  2. What do you think of this law: “All books with LGBTQ themes to be wrapped and sold separately, at least 200 meters away from schools or churches.”?
  3. Will bookstores always exist? Why or why not?
  4. What problems do bookstores have nowadays?
  5. What is your favorite bookstore? Talk about it.

Pay People to Have Their Clothes Repaired

B1 – Intermediate

With so many trendy yet very cheap clothings now, people just keep buying them and replacing them with new ones immediately. This causes every country to produce tons of fashion wastes.

Something needs to be done about this. In France, an eco-organisation called Refashion manages a scheme to encourage people not to throw their clothes away so quickly.

Read the article about the new scheme in France that incentivizes people not to keep throwing their clothes away so fast.

https://breakingnewsenglish.com/2307/230717-clothes-repairs-4.html

Vocabulary Questions:

  1. What is a “cobbler”? “It will pay a “repair bonus” for taking clothes and shoes to be repaired at workshops or cobblers.” Use this word in your own sentence.
  2. What does “run” mean in this sentence, “The scheme is run by the eco-organization Refashion.” Give some synonyms of ‘run’ and use this word in this context.
  3. What does ”synthetic” mean, “It uses a lot of synthetic materials which harm the environment.”? Give some synonyms and use ‘synthetic’ in your own sentence.

Discussion Questions:

  1. What are your thoughts on the ‘repair bonus’ in France?
  2. Do you think this should also be implemented in your country? Why or why not?
  3. What is your opinion on the amount of fashion trash we produce?
  5. How does fast fashion impact the environment?
  6. How can the problem with fashion wastes be reduced? 
  7. What do you do with your old or damaged clothes, bags, and shoes?

Women Need to Eat Differently in Their 40s

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Due to aging and hormone changes, women’s bodies undergo significant modifications as they reach their forties. The shifts in metabolic processes, physique, bone composition, and overall wellness are caused by these adjustments. It becomes increasingly important for women to take charge of their eating regimens in order to maintain a healthy state at this stage of life.

Examine the underlying causes prompting women to alter their eating patterns in their 40s and access the recommended guidelines for making dietary changes to support enduring health and vitality through the link provided.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/women-dietary-needs-after-40_l_64b17d85e4b0dcb4cab2da14

Vocabulary Questions:

  1. What does “holy grail” mean in the sentence, “If you’re a woman who’s in her mid-40s, you’ve probably witnessed a number of fad diets and nutritional holy grails over the past few decades.”? Use this expression in your own sentence.
  2. What does “window of opportunity” mean in the sentence, “Health experts call the time of life a window of opportunity, she said.”? Use this expression in your own sentence.
  3. What does “lower the bar” mean in the sentence, “So give yourself permission to lower the bar and make a most-of-the-time ‘good enough’ your standard, instead of striving for perfection every time.”? Use this phrase in your own sentence.

Discussion Questions:

  1. Why do women need to eat differently when they reach their 40s?
  2. How can women adapt their diets to support their metabolism in their 40s?
  3. How does heart health become a priority for women in their 40s, and what dietary adjustments can support it?
  4. What are some other lifestyle factors besides diet that women should consider to maintain well-being in their 40s? Please share.
  5. What can be done to promote awareness of the importance of adapting their diets for better health during this life stage? Talk about it.