phone english blogB1 – Intermediate
TripAdvisor, a famous travel website, will stop selling tickets to animal attractions.
Read more about the company’s new initiative.
https://breakingnewsenglish.com/1910/191006-trip-advisor-4.html
Discussion Questions:
B1 – Intermediate
Taking or going a walk is a good way to improve our health and also the best way to see the city. It is truly nice to go around our cities on foot. But the question is, is your city suitable for walking?
Read and listen to this story.
https://www.newsinlevels.com/products/city-for-walking-level-2/
Discussion Questions:
1. What is your opinion about Pontevedra?
2. Do you like walking? Why or why not?
3. Why is it important to have cities that are good for walking?
4. What are the benefits of walking?
5. Is your city good for walking?
B1 – Intermediate
One way of enjoying your holiday is going on a cruise. There are many things to love about cruise travel.
The Ultimate World Cruise, a 245-day trip has started, stopping at 111 ports in 51 countries on six continents.
Read about the longest luxury cruise below:
Discussion Questions:
1. What do you think of the longest luxury cruise? Would you like to go on this cruise?
2. Have you ever been on a cruise? If so, talk about your experience. If not, would you like to go one day? Why or why not?
3. What is your ideal/dream holiday?
4. Talk about your most memorable trip.
B1 – Intermediate
Artificial Intelligence (AI) assistants can listen to, answer questions, and follow commands. But should it give health advice too?
Read about AI assistants answering health questions from the link below and be ready to answer the questions that follow.
Discussion Questions:
1. What are the good and bad things about an AI assistant answering questions about health?
2. Why are some people worried about this new feature of Alexa?
3. Would you use this feature to ask about your health questions?
B1 – Intermediate
It is believed that dogs play an important role in children’s development. A new study finds that dogs actually help stressed children.
Read about how having pet dogs help relieve children from stress from the link below and be ready to answer the questions that follow.
Discussion Questions:
1. What are the benefits of having a pet dog for children?
2. Do you believe in the idea that dogs help reduce children’s stress?
3. What might be reasons very young kids get stressed out?
4. What did your parents do when you were being anxious when you were little? / What do you do to help your children relax when they seem stressed out?
5. What would be the best pet for you? Why?
B1 – Intermediate
Every company wants to reduce its costs. Some Western European companies outsource jobs to Eastern Europe because its cheaper and workers there are highly qualified.
Read about outsourcing in Europe from the link below and be ready to answer the questions that follow.
Discussion Questions:
1. What is your opinion on outsourcing?
2. What are the advantages and disadvantages of outsourcing?
3. Do you think outsourcing to other countries is positive or negative for a country’s economy?
4. Does your company outsource some of its functions to other countries?
5. What are ways companies lower their expenses?
B1 – Intermediate
Only a little percentage in underdeveloped countries has access to banks but a lot of people have mobile phones. Nowadays, mobile banking is on the rise in these countries.
Read about the rise of mobile banking in underdeveloped countries from the link below and be ready to answer the questions that follow.
Discussion Questions:
1. Why is mobile banking growing in underdeveloped countries?
2. What are the advantages and disadvantages of mobile banking?
3. Do you do mobile banking? Why or why not?
4. How popular is mobile banking in your country?
5. What do you think are the future trends in banking?
B1 – Intermediate
Mastercard is changing its logo. It plans to just have a logo without the name of the company.
Read about Mastercard’s new company logo from the link below and be ready to answer the questions that follow.
https://breakingnewsenglish.com/1901/190111-company-logo-4.html
Discussion Questions:
1. What are your thoughts on this change in Mastercard’s logo?
2. Why are company logos important to businesses?
3. What do you think makes a good company logo?
4. Which companies do you think have very good logos?
5. Describe your company logo. Do you like it as it is or do you want to improve it a little bit?
B1 – Intermediate
Research has found that people who are overly optimistic may have “faulty” brains. According to a study, the reason a lot of people always see the positive side of things is perhaps due to the fact that they don’t have the ability to sensibly deal with risk.
Read about over-optimism from the link below and be ready to answer the questions that follow.
Discussion Questions:
1. What is your opinion about positive thinkers possibly having “faulty” brains?
2. What are the good and bad things about always being optimistic?
3. Do you believe that we must always be optimistic?
4. Do you agree or disagree that “seeing the glass as half full rather than half empty can be a positive thing”?
5. Talk about some ways that help you stay positive.
B1 – Intermediate
A health group in the U.K. workers must take lunch breaks and exercise to stay active at work. A study says that a lot of people continue to work during their lunch breaks. This is not good for our health.
Read about the importance of taking lunch breaks from the link below and be ready to answer the questions that follow.
https://breakingnewsenglish.com/1406/140608-lunch-breaks-1.html
Vocabulary Questions:
Discussion Questions:
1. What is your opinion on working lunches?
2. Why is taking a break in the middle of the workday important?
3. What do you usually do during your lunch break?
4. Do you agree that we need to find ways to be more active at work?
5. What does your company do or offer to help you stay active?