Tag: Speaking

Foodini Food Printer

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Lazy old days won’t be the same once you have a 3D printer that will just give you what you are craving for. ‘Foodini’ is an innovative machine that will print real food without taking your time preparing it. It was introduced by Natural Machines.

https://edition.cnn.com/2014/11/06/tech/innovation/foodini-machine-print-food/index.html

Discussion Questions:

1. Would you like to taste food straight from your printer? Why or why not?
2. Do you think food items processed by ‘Foodini’ are healthy? Explain your thoughts.
3. Will this machine be a helpful one? Is it worth buying, especially when it costs top dollar? Explain.
4. If you could invent something related to food, what would it be?
5. What are some of the food inventions that you truly enjoy and/or would like to try?

Beef Production Damages Environment

C1 – Advanced

We are what we eat. But do the food we eat harm our planet?

Read the article to know more about the scientific relationship of the food we eat and the environment.

http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-28409704

Discussion Questions:

1. Do you like meat and dairy products?
2. What meat or dairy product do you like the most?
3. Do you believe that food production has real significant effect on the environment? Explain.
4. How do you think you can reduce the environmental impact of the food you eat?

A Kingdom For Your Birthday

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B2 – Upper intermediate

What was the best birthday present you’ve ever received? Read the article below to learn about a father’s unusual birthday present to her young daughter.

https://metro.co.uk/2014/07/14/american-man-claims-african-kingdom-for-his-daughter-so-she-can-be-an-actual-princess-4797666/

Discussion Questions:

1. What can you say about the father?
2. Would you do the same thing if you were the parent?
3. What was the most extreme thing you’ve done/given for a birthday gift?
4. How do you think the father’s actions will affect the child? Describe your idea of good parenting.

Self-Building Robot

B1 – Intermediate

Scientists have created a robot that can build and fold by itself in just 4 minutes. A researcher suggested that the self-building robot could be applied to a variety of different problems.

http://www.newsinlevels.com/products/self-building-robot-level-3/

Discussion Questions:

1. How do you think this robot can be useful in space explorations?
2. What do you think of robots in general?
3. How else can this robot be useful?

Nigeria Declared Car Horn-Free Day

B2 – Upper intermediate

Nigeria’s largest city  declared  a car “Horn-Free Day”  to raise awareness of noise pollution. Lagos State Governor Babatunde Fashola told reporters that the extent of the noise from car horns was enough to be a danger to people’s hearing. However, it seems not everyone is on board.

Nigeria declared car horn-free day

Discuss:

1. How do you feel about Governor Fashola’s opinion that the drivers in Europe don’t really use their horns that much?
2. Would you say that your city has this kind of noise problem?
3. How would you describe traffic in your city? What would you do to make it better?
4. What do you think are the different types of pollution in your country?

Obama’s Credit Card Issue

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Barack Obama had an embarrassing experience while dining at an expensive restaurant when his credit card was rejected. Obama told his credit card story on Friday while signing a new law to protect consumers from identity theft.

http://www.breakingnewsenglish.com/1410/141020-credit-cards.html

Vocabulary Questions:

  1. What does “upmarket” mean? Use it in a sentence.“He was having dinner at an expensive restaurant in an upmarket area of New York.”
  2. What does “tighten” mean? Use it in a sentence. “In particular, the new law tightens the controls on credit cards.”
  3. What does “hacker” mean? Use it in a sentence. “It is easy for hackers to read them and put the information on other cards.”

Discussion Questions:

1. Have you ever experienced any problem with your credit card in the past? What was the problem and how were you able to solve it?
2. How do you protect yourself when using your credit card or using online or mobile banking?
3. Does your country have very strict rules when it comes to using and sharing credit cards, bank accounts and other personal details?

Retiring at 40

B2 – Upper intermediate

Do you ever dream of not having to go to work and not worry about money? Start planning to retire at the age of 40. Impossible?

Read on for a guide on how to achieve this seemingly impossible dream.

http://www.bbc.com/capital/story/20140404-yes-you-can-retire-at-40

Discussion Questions:

1. Would you be interested in early retirement? Why or why not?
2. How do you picture yourself as a retiree?
3. Does your current company have pension or retirement plans for its employees?
4. Does your government have a comprehensive package for pensioners?
5. Do you think there is a disadvantage to retiring early?

Postal Service Back After 20 Years

B1 – Intermediate

Somalia’s government has restarted its postal system after 20 years. Its return is just one example of Somalia getting back to normal after its long period of political troubles.

Read the lesson on Somalia’s postal service resumption after two decades. Be ready to answer the questions that follow.

https://breakingnewsenglish.com/1410/141016-postal-service-1.html

Discussion Questions:

  1. How important do you think is the postal service to a country?
  2. How long do you think it will take for Somalia to be as “forward” as other countries are right now?
  3. Has your country ever experienced some kind of interruptions in services due to political problems? Talk about it.
  4. What are the most important things to focus on when a country is recovering after a long period of chaos?

Malala Yousafzai Wins Nobel Peace Prize

C1 – Advanced
The girls’ rights activist Malala Yousafzai has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for 2014. She is known mainly for human rights advocacy for education and for women in her native province and has made her countrymen very proud.

Malala Yousafzai wins Nobel Peace Prize

Discuss:

1. Share your ideas about gender equality. Do you think women in your country are being treated fairly?
2. What are the other social issues in your country that you think should be addressed?

*article was published in October 2014

Lego Ends Ties with Shell

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Lego had a partnership with Shell and made toys that had Shell logo on them. There were over a million people who emailed Lego asking it to end its deal with Shell that brought pressure to finally end its contract with the oil company.

Read the article about Lego ending its tie-up with Shell.

http://www.breakingnewsenglish.com/1410/141012-lego.html

Discussion Questions:

  1. Give your opinion about Greenpeace’s move to pressure Lego from ending their contract with Shell.
  2. Do you think that parents have a responsibility in choosing the right toys to educate their children about preserving the environment?
  3. Are there specific projects to tackle environmental issues in your country? Talk about some that you know of.