Tag: audio

Spill the Tea

B2 – Upper Intermediate

People love to chat especially when it is something juicy about another person. It may seem fun and entertaining but it can also be damaging to the person who is the subject of the conversation.

Let’s listen to the podcast and learn a similar expression.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/english/features/the-english-we-speak/ep-200608

Discussion Questions:

  1. What did Feifei say about Roy? How did she know about it?
  2. What happened in the end? Was Feifei correct?
  3. Explain the phrase ‘”lost a dare”.
  4. What does “spill the tea” mean?
  5. Do you like spilling the tea or listening to someone spilling the tea?

New Type of Swimwear

B1 – Intermediate

If you are a beach lover, one of the things you probably enjoy doing are sunbathing and getting some tan. However, some people are not that keen on getting darker skin in some countries. They do everything so they can maintain their pale skin.

A swimwear shop owner was surprised when a customer demanded for her to design a ‘facekini’. Facekini is a new type of swimwear that can help prevent women from having darker skin while on the beach. It can also protect them from jellyfish stings. 

Listen to the audio and read the transcript to find out more about facekinis. 

https://www.newsinlevels.com/products/new-type-of-swimwear-level-3/

Discussion Questions:

  1. What is your reaction to this story?
  2. What are your thoughts on getting a tan? Do you enjoy being under the sun? Why or why not?
  3. What do you think of facekinis? 
  4. Do you think it could be a trend in your country too? Why or why not?
  5. How do you take care of your skin especially during summer?

Herd Immunity

B1 – Intermediate

There are many infectious diseases that has been affecting all of us. Because it is not simple to fight infectious diseases, in some cases, reaching herd immunity is the only way to manage the said diseases.

Listen to the audio and read the transcript to learn more about herd immunity.

https://www.newsinlevels.com/products/herd-immunity-level-1/

Discussion Questions:

  1. What is herd immunity?
  2. What are the advantages and disadvantages of reaching herd immunity?
  3. What is your opinion about giving the disease to all people to make everyone immune to it? Do you agree to this way in order to deal with a health problem like coronavirus?
  4. What are some illnesses that affected people in your country previously and how were they managed?

Asthma from Traffic Pollution

B1 – Intermediate

Asthma is a serious lifelong, incurable condition. When a person has it, they suffer from difficulties in breathing. According to some studies, traffic pollution causes this medical condition and it has affected millions of people.

Listen to the audio and read the transcript to find out more about diseases that are caused by pollution from traffic.

https://www.newsinlevels.com/products/asthma-from-traffic-level-3

Discussion Questions:

  1. What is your reaction to this fact “pollution from traffic connects to 4 million new asthma sufferers”?
  2. Do you know anyone who has asthma or other pulmonary conditions that were caused by pollution? How did it begin and how are they doing now?
  3. What do you do to keep your lungs healthy?
  4. Is air pollution a problem in your city? What are its bad effects on people and the environment?
  5. How can air pollution problems be solved?

Dangerous Crossing

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Ignoring warning signs might not be the best thing to do when you’re out somewhere. These things are actually there for a very important reason. 

Listen to this audio and hear about the story of a man who in a matter of split seconds would have ended up in a fatal disaster.

https://www.newsinlevels.com/products/dangerous-crossing-level-3/

Discussion Questions:

What was your reaction to this incident?

Talk about a situation when you did not pay attention to warning signs. What happened then and what were the consequences of your actions?

How can people be encouraged to heed warning signs at all times?

Describe some perilous areas in your city or country.

Share situations where you saw people behaving recklessly.

Multiculturalism

B1 – Intermediate

Every culture has something interesting about it. When people from different cultures live in one place, the city becomes a melting pot or multicultural. The world has become smaller because of multiculturalism. It is now very common to see cities that are melting pots of different cultures.

Listen to the audio and read the transcript about multiculturalism.

https://listenaminute.com/m/multiculturalism.html

Discussion Questions:

  1. What is your opinion about multiculturalism?
  2. What are the good and bad things about a multicultural city?
  3. Do you live in a multicultural city? Have you ever been to a multicultural city? Talk about your experience.
  4. Which culture do you find most interesting? Why?
  5. What is most interesting about your culture?

Leader’s Health

B1 – Intermediate

Depending on the type of government, countries use different titles to address their leader. They go by different titles such as president, prime minister, chief executive, chancellor, and many more. These leaders play very vital roles in all aspects of nation building. Hence, any issue on their health is a topic their people could not just shrug off.

Read the transcript and listen to the audio from the link below.

https://www.newsinlevels.com/products/leaders-health-level-1/

Discussion Questions:

  1. What are the speculations about North Korea’s leader’s health?
  2. Why is it difficult to verify these speculations?
  3. Do you agree that leaders should make frequent public appearances?
  4. Do you think that country leaders should release their medical records regularly? Why or why not?
  5. Should good state of health be an important qualification for aspiring politicians too?

Hotel Guests Information Hacked

B1 – Intermediate

Hotels are your home away from home. You book hotels when you are on holiday or business trip. To do that, you need to give them your personal information including your credit card information. But what if those information were stolen from them?

Read the transcript and listen to the audio about a hotel chain’s hacking incident.

https://www.newsinlevels.com/products/hotel-guests-information-level-2/

Discussion Questions:

  1. What is your reaction to this news?
  2. What can businesses do to protect themselves from hacking?
  3. Talk about other people or companies whose accounts/systems have been hacked.
  4. When is hacking good and bad?
  5. If you were to hack a person or company’s account or system, who or which would it be and why? What information would you like to see?

Fathers Are Too Old

B1 – Intermediate

Some men would say that becoming a father is the best thing that ever happened to them. They claim that the best thing about it is the fulfillment you get in raising someone and seeing them grow up to be great people. But is there a perfect age to become a dad?

Click the link below to read the transcript and listen to the audio about being a father when you are older.

https://www.newsinlevels.com/products/fathers-are-too-old-level-2/

Discussion Questions:

  1. Why do men delay having children?
  2. What is your opinion on sperm freezing? Is it popularly done by men in your country?
  3. Do you agree or disagree that earlier fatherhood should be promoted among young men?
  4. What are the good and bad things about having children when you are older?
  5. Do you think men in your country are having children when they are younger or older? Why do you think this is the case?
  6. Talk about your father or being a father yourself.

Housewives

B1 – Intermediate

Many decades ago, women were expected to stay at home after they got married. They had to take care of the children and maintain their homes. Nowadays, more women are working. There are still a few who are housewives.

Listen to the audio about being a housewife.

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

Discussion Questions:

  1. Do you agree that a housewife’s job is very demanding? Share your thoughts.
  2. How does the speaker describe a day in the life of a housewife? What do you think about a housewife’s typical day?
  3. In your country, are there more stay-at-home wives or working mothers? Why do you think that is the case?
  4. What is your ideal family set-up?
  5. How can working mothers do both their domestic and professional duties efficiently?