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Unemployed young people very stressed (16th January, 2015)

The Reading / Listening - Level 3

A new survey from Britain shows that a third of young, unemployed people regularly "fall apart" emotionally. They are so stressed or unhappy that they cannot control their emotions, so they have problems living a "normal" life. The survey is from a youth charity called the Prince's Trust. Its researchers asked questions to 2,200 people who did not have a job. Almost half of them said they often felt anxious about everyday situations, and that they tried not to meet new people. One in eight of those surveyed said they were too stressed to leave the house. The charity said: "Thousands of young people feel like prisoners in their own homes. Without the right support, these young people become socially isolated."

Many of these young people struggle with day-to-day life, which means they find it more and more difficult to find a job. Britain's Employment Minister Esther McVey said: "Our young people are some of the best and most talented in the world." She said it was important to try and match these people with the right jobs. Researcher David Fass added: "Young people are our future and it is important that we invest in them and provide them with the tools they need to reach their full potential." Jack, 25, explained how hard it was for him to be unemployed. He said: "I would wake up and wouldn't want to leave the house. I stopped speaking to my friends and I had absolutely no confidence speaking to people."

Try the same news story at these easier levels:

Level 0, Level 1 or Level 2

Sources

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/local-national/uk/jobless-young-people-fall-apart-30906462.html
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/unemployed-young-people-falling-apart-emotionally-charity-finds-9976833.html
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-30803492

Make sure you try all of the online activities for this reading and listening - There are dictations, multiple choice, drag and drop activities, crosswords, hangman, flash cards, matching activities and a whole lot more. Please enjoy :-)

The 40 Lesson Activities on the PDF Handout

WARM-UPS

1. BEING UNEMPLOYED: Students walk around the class and talk to other students about being unemployed. Change partners often and share your findings.

2. CHAT: In pairs / groups, talk about these topics or words from the article. What will the article say about them? What can you say about these words and your life?

survey / unemployed / fall apart / stressed / emotions / charity / prisoners / isolated / struggle / day-to-day life / talented / our future / full potential / speaking / confidence

Have a chat about the topics you liked. Change topics and partners frequently.

3. STRESS: How can we help unemployed people with these stressful things? Complete this table with your partner(s). Change partners often and share what you wrote.

	The problems	How we can help
Bills
Boredom
School fees
Job interviews
No confidence
Social isolation

4. NORMAL LIFE: Students A strongly believe no one lives a "normal" life; Students B strongly believe most people lead a normal life. Change partners again and talk about your conversations.

MY e-BOOK

ESL resource book with copiable worksheets and handouts - 1,000 Ideas and Activities for Language Teachers / English teachers

See a sample

5. EVERYDAY SITUATIONS: Rank these with your partner. Put the most stressful at the top. Change partners often and share your rankings.

• shopping

• walking in the street

• TV news

• thinking about money

• working

• studying English

• being with family

• using public transport

6. JOB: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word "job". Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories.

BEFORE READING / LISTENING

1. TRUE / FALSE: Read the headline. Guess if a-h below are true (T) or false (F).

a.	Around 33% of young jobless people in the UK feel very stressed.	T / F
b.	Nearly all young, unemployed people find it easy to live normal lives.	T / F
c.	Interviewers questioned 22,000 unemployed people.	T / F
d.	Many young people said they feel like their home is a prison.	T / F
e.	Britain's Employment Minister said young people had little talent.	T / F
f.	The Employment Minister said there were no jobs for the unemployed.	T / F
g.	A man in his twenties explained the difficulties of being unemployed.	T / F
h.	The man has lost the confidence to speak to people.	T / F

2. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article.

1.	regularly	a.	worried
2.	emotions	b.	skillful
3.	normal	c.	promise
4.	anxious	d.	feelings
5.	support	e.	fit
6.	talented	f.	frequently
7.	match	g.	help
8.	provide	h.	totally
9.	potential	i.	regular
10.	absolutely	j.	supply

3. PHRASE MATCH: (Sometimes more than one choice is possible.)

1.	a third of young, unemployed people	a.	with day-to-day life
2.	they cannot control	b.	isolated
3.	they often felt anxious about everyday	c.	in their own homes
4.	young people feel like prisoners	d.	their full potential
5.	these young people become socially	e.	regularly "fall apart"
6.	young people struggle	f.	and most talented
7.	some of the best	g.	speaking to people
8.	it is important that we	h.	their emotions
9.	the tools they need to reach	i.	invest in them
10.	I had absolutely no confidence	j.	situations

GAP FILL

A new survey from Britain shows that a (1) ___________ of young, unemployed people regularly "fall (2) ___________" emotionally. They are so stressed or unhappy that they cannot control their (3) ___________, so they have problems living a "normal" life. The survey is from a youth (4) ___________ called the Prince's Trust. Its researchers asked questions to 2,200 people who did not have a job. Almost half of them said they often felt (5) ___________ about everyday situations, and that they tried not to meet new people. One in (6) ___________ of those surveyed said they were too stressed to leave the house. The charity said: "Thousands of young people feel like (7) ___________ in their own homes. Without the right support, these young people become (8) ___________ isolated."

charity
third
prisoners
emotions
anxious
socially
apart
eight

Many of these young people (9) ___________ with day-to-day life, which means it becomes more and more (10) ___________ to find a job. Britain's Employment Minister Esther McVey said: "Our young people are some of the best and most (11) ___________ in the world." She said it was important to try and (12) ___________ these people with the right jobs. Researcher David Fass added: "Young people are our future and it is important that we (13) ___________ in them and provide them with the tools they need to (14) ___________ their full potential." Jack, 25, explained how hard it was for him to be unemployed. He said: "I would wake up and wouldn't (15) ___________ to leave the house. I stopped speaking to my friends and I had (16) ___________ no confidence speaking to people."

talented
reach
struggle
difficult
absolutely
invest
want
match

LISTENING - Guess the answers. Listen to check.

1)	a third of young, unemployed people regularly "fall ______"
	a. a part" emotionally b. upper" emotionally c. part it" emotionally d. apart" emotionally
2)	They are so stressed or unhappy that they cannot control ______
	a. their emotions b. them emotions c. these emotions d. there emotions
3)	Almost half of them said they often felt anxious about ______
	a. every daily situations b. every date situations c. everyday situations d. every day situation
4)	One in eight of those surveyed said they were too stressed to ______
	a. leave the house b. live the house c. leaf the house d. leaves the house
5)	Without the right support, these young people become ______
	a. socially isolates b. socially isolate c. socially isolated d. socially isolation
6)	Many of these young people struggle with day-______
	a. today life b. two-day life c. to-day life d. too-day life
7)	Our young people are some of the best and most ______ world
	a. talented on the b. talented in the c. talented is the d. talented and the
8)	She said it was important to try and match these people ______
	a. without the right jobs b. with the right jobs c. within the right jobs d. wither the right jobs
9)	we invest in them and provide them with the tools they need to reach ______
	a. their fully potential b. their fool potential c. their fill potential d. their full potential
10)	I stopped speaking to my friends and I had absolutely no confidence ______
	a. speak in to people b. speaking two people c. speaking to people d. speak in two people

LISTENING – Listen and fill in the gaps

A new survey from Britain (1) ___________________ of young, unemployed people regularly "fall apart" emotionally. They are so stressed or unhappy that they cannot (2) ___________________, so they have problems living a "normal" life. The (3) ___________________ youth charity called the Prince's Trust. Its researchers asked questions to 2,200 people who did not have a job. Almost half of them said they (4) ___________________ about everyday situations, and that they tried not to meet new people. One in eight of those surveyed said they were (5) ___________________ leave the house. The charity said: "Thousands of young people feel like prisoners in their own homes. Without (6) ___________________, these young people become socially isolated."

Many of these young people struggle with (7) ___________________, which means it becomes more and more difficult to find a job. Britain's Employment Minister Esther McVey said: "Our young (8) ___________________ of the best and most talented in the world." She said it was important (9) ___________________ these people with the right jobs. Researcher David Fass added: "Young people (10) ___________________ and it is important that we invest in them and provide them with the tools they need to reach (11) ___________________." Jack, 25, explained how hard it was for him to be unemployed. He said: "I would wake up and wouldn't want to leave the house. I stopped speaking to my friends and (12) ___________________ no confidence speaking to people."

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS

1.	Where is the survey mentioned in this article from?
2.	What does the article say young, jobless people cannot control?
3.	How many people did the researchers interview?
4.	How many people said they were too stressed to leave their home?
5.	What do many of the young people feel like when they are at home?
6.	What do many of the young people struggle with?
7.	What is Esther McVey's position in the British government?
8.	What did David Fass say the government should give young people?
9.	How old is Jack?
10.	What is it that Jack said he didn't have?

MULTIPLE CHOICE - QUIZ

1.	Where is the survey mentioned in this article from?	6.	What do many of the young people struggle with?
	a) Brazil b) China c) the USA d) Britain		a) money b) day-to-day life c) relationships d) getting up in the morning
2.	What does the article say young, jobless people cannot control?	7.	What is Esther McVey's position in the British government?
	a) a car b) their emotions c) other people d) themselves		a) Working Minister b) Unemployment Minister c) Jobs Minister d) Employment Minister
3.	How many people did the researchers interview?	8.	What did David Fass say the government should give young people?
	a) 220 b) 22 c) 2,200 d) 22,000		a) tools b) money c) hope d) nothing
4.	How many people said they were too stressed to leave their home?	9.	How old is Jack?
	a) one in eight b) 18 c) eight in one d) eighty-one		a) 23 b) 24 c) 25 d) 26
5.	What do many of the young people feel like when they are at home?	10.	What is it that Jack said he didn't have?
	a) screaming b) sleeping c) prisoners d) eating chocolate		a) skills b) confidence c) qualifications d) know-how

ROLE PLAY

Role A – Shopping

You think shopping is the most stressful thing. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why their things aren't so stressful. Also, tell the others which is the least stressful of these (and why): studying English, public transport or money.

Role B – Studying English

You think studying English is the most stressful thing. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why their things aren't so stressful. Also, tell the others which is the least stressful of these (and why): shopping, public transport or money.

Role C – Public transport

You think public transport is the most stressful thing. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why their things aren't so stressful. Also, tell the others which is the least stressful of these (and why): studying English, shopping or money.

Role D – Money

You think money is the most stressful thing. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why their things aren't so stressful. Also, tell the others which is the least stressful of these (and why): studying English, public transport or shopping.

AFTER READING / LISTENING

1. WORD SEARCH: Look in your dictionary / computer to find collocates, other meanings, information, synonyms … for the words 'fall' and 'apart'.

fall

apart

Share your findings with your partners.

Make questions using the words you found.
Ask your partner / group your questions.

2. ARTICLE QUESTIONS: Look back at the article and write down some questions you would like to ask the class about the text.

Share your questions with other classmates / groups.
Ask your partner / group your questions.

3. GAP FILL: In pairs / groups, compare your answers to this exercise. Check your answers. Talk about the words from the activity. Were they new, interesting, worth learning…?

4. VOCABULARY: Circle any words you do not understand. In groups, pool unknown words and use dictionaries to find their meanings.

5. TEST EACH OTHER: Look at the words below. With your partner, try to recall how they were used in the text:

third
control
youth
half
eight
support

more
best
future
tools
25
absolutely

BEING UNEMPLOYED SURVEY

Write five GOOD questions about being unemployed in the table. Do this in pairs. Each student must write the questions on his / her own paper.

When you have finished, interview other students. Write down their answers.

	STUDENT 1 _____________	STUDENT 2 _____________	STUDENT 3 _____________
Q.1.
Q.2.
Q.3.
Q.4.
Q.5.

Now return to your original partner and share and talk about what you found out. Change partners often.

Make mini-presentations to other groups on your findings.

BEING UNEMPLOYED DISCUSSION

STUDENT A's QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

1)	What did you think when you read the headline?
2)	What springs to mind when you hear the word 'unemployed'?
3)	What is unemployment like in your country?
4)	Why do you think people "fall apart"?
5)	Why does being unemployed affect people so badly?
6)	What would you do if you were unemployed?
7)	Do you ever feel anxious about everyday situations?
8)	Do you ever try not to meet new people?
9)	Have you ever felt like a prisoner?
10)	How can we help people who feel socially isolated?

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

STUDENT B's QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

11)	Did you like reading this article? Why/not?
12)	What day-to-day struggles do you have?
13)	How difficult is it to find a job in your country?
14)	If you had no job, would you do anything?
15)	How talented are the workers in your country?
16)	What is your perfect job?
17)	What tools do you need to reach your full potential?
18)	How hard would it be for you to be unemployed?
19)	What advice do you have for Jack ?
20)	What questions would you like to ask Esther McVey?

DISCUSSION (Write your own questions)

STUDENT A's QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)
1.	________________________________________________________
2.	________________________________________________________
3.	________________________________________________________
4.	________________________________________________________
5.	________________________________________________________
6.	________________________________________________________

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

STUDENT B's QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)
1.	________________________________________________________
2.	________________________________________________________
3.	________________________________________________________
4.	________________________________________________________
5.	________________________________________________________
6.	________________________________________________________

LANGUAGE - CLOZE

A (1) ____ survey from Britain shows that a third of young, unemployed people regularly "fall (2) ____" emotionally. They are so stressed or unhappy that they cannot control their (3) ____, so they have problems living a "normal" life. The survey is from a youth charity called the Prince's Trust. Its researchers asked questions to 2,200 people who did not have a job. (4) ____ half of them said they often felt anxious about everyday situations, and that they tried not to meet new people. One (5) ____ eight of those surveyed said they were too stressed to leave the house. The charity said: "Thousands of young people feel like prisoners in their own homes. Without the (6) ____ support, these young people become socially isolated."

Many of these young people struggle with day-to-(7) ____ life, which means it becomes more and more difficult to find a job. Britain's Employment Minister Esther McVey said: "Our young people are some (8) ____ the best and most talented in the world." She said it was important to try and match these people with the right jobs. Researcher David Fass added: "Young people are our (9) ____ and it is important that we invest (10) ____ them and provide them with the tools they need to reach their full potential." Jack, 25, explained how hard it was for him to be unemployed. He said: "I (11) ____ wake up and wouldn't want to leave the house. I stopped speaking to my friends and I had absolutely (12) ____ confidence speaking to people."

Put the correct words from the table below in the above article.

1.	(a)	newish	(b)	new	(c)	news	(d)	newly
2.	(a)	depart	(b)	apart	(c)	separate	(d)	rebate
3.	(a)	emotion	(b)	emotional	(c)	emotive	(d)	emotions
4.	(a)	Most	(b)	Almost	(c)	Many	(d)	Much
5.	(a)	down	(b)	up	(c)	out	(d)	in
6.	(a)	really	(b)	so	(c)	right	(d)	such
7.	(a)	day	(b)	days	(c)	daily	(d)	daytime
8.	(a)	from	(b)	for	(c)	of	(d)	by
9.	(a)	soon	(b)	next year	(c)	ahead	(d)	future
10.	(a)	in	(b)	of	(c)	as	(d)	to
11.	(a)	would	(b)	used	(c)	should	(d)	wanted
12.	(a)	no	(b)	none	(c)	not	(d)	never

SPELLING

Paragraph 1
1.	A new sveury from Britain shows…
2.	"fall apart" litaoylmnoe
3.	living a "aonlrm" life
4.	felt uionsxa about everyday situations
5.	feel like rssonerip in their own homes
6.	these young people become aoillycs isolated
Paragraph 2
7.	lutggser with day-to-day life
8.	best and most tntaleed
9.	it is important that we tiesnv in them
10.	ordipev them with the tools
11.	reach their full tnteoapli
12.	absolutely no fdneieoncc

PUT THE TEXT BACK TOGETHER

Number these lines in the correct order.

( )	was for him to be unemployed. He said: "I would wake up and wouldn't want to leave
( )	Prince's Trust. Its researchers asked questions to 2,200 people who did not have a job. Almost half
( )	"Thousands of young people feel like prisoners in their own homes. Without the right support, these young people become socially isolated."
( )	Many of these young people struggle with day-to-day life, which means it becomes more
( )	in them and provide them with the tools they need to reach their full potential." Jack, 25, explained how hard it
( 1 )	A new survey from Britain shows that a third of young, unemployed people regularly "fall
( )	people. One in eight of those surveyed said they were too stressed to leave the house. The charity said:
( )	and more difficult to find a job. Britain's Employment Minister Esther McVey said: "Our young people are some of the
( )	jobs. Researcher David Fass added: "Young people are our future and it is important that we invest
( )	best and most talented in the world." She said it was important to try and match these people with the right
( )	apart" emotionally. They are so stressed or unhappy that they cannot control their
( )	the house. I stopped speaking to my friends and I had absolutely no confidence speaking to people."
( )	emotions, so they have problems living a "normal" life. The survey is from a youth charity called the
( )	of them said they often felt anxious about everyday situations, and that they tried not to meet new

PUT THE WORDS IN THE RIGHT ORDER

1.	a living problems have They life 'normal' .
2.	them often of they anxious half said felt Almost .
3.	One stressed too were they said surveyed those of eight in .
4.	their feel in homes people prisoners own Young like .
5.	people socially young become isolated These .
6.	- day with struggle people young These life day - to .
7.	job It becomes more and more difficult to find a .
8.	right Try these the match with jobs and people .
9.	potential tools to full The need their they reach .
10.	had to absolutely people no confidence I speaking .

CIRCLE THE CORRECT WORD (20 PAIRS)

A new / newly survey from Britain shows that a third of young, unemployed people regularly "fall apart / depart" emotionally. They are so stresses / stressed or unhappy that they cannot control them / their emotions, so they have problems living a "normal" live / life. The survey is from a youth charity called the Prince's Trust. Its researchers asked questions to / by 2,200 people who did not have a job. Almost half of them said they often felt / feeling anxious about everyday situations, and that they tried not / no to meet new people. One in eight of those survey / surveyed said they were too stressed to leave the house. The charity said: "Thousands of young people feel like prisoners in their own homes. Without the right support, these young people become socially isolated / isolate."

Many of these young people struggle / struggling with day-to-day life, which means it becomes more and more difficulty / difficult to find a job. Britain's Employment Minister Esther McVey said: "Our young / youngish people are some of the best and most talent / talented in the world." She said it was important to try and match / much these people with the right jobs. Researcher David Fass added: "Young people are our soon / future and it is important that we invest in / on them and provide them with the tools they need to reach their full / fully potential." Jack, 25, explained how hard it was for him to be unemployed. He said: "I would wake / woken up and wouldn't want to leave the house. I stopped speaking to my friends and I had absolutely none / no confidence speaking to people."

Talk about the connection between each pair of words in italics, and why the correct word is correct.

INSERT THE VOWELS (a, e, i, o, u)

_ n_w s_rv_y fr_m Br_t__n sh_ws th_t _ th_rd _f y__ng, _n_mpl_y_d p__pl_ r_g_l_rly "f_ll _p_rt" _m_t__n_lly. Th_y _r_ s_ str_ss_d _r _nh_ppy th_t th_y c_nn_t c_ntr_l th__r _m_t__ns, s_ th_y h_v_ pr_bl_ms l_v_ng _ "n_rm_l" l_f_. Th_ s_rv_y _s fr_m _ y__th ch_r_ty c_ll_d th_ Pr_nc_'s Tr_st. _ts r_s__rch_rs _sk_d q__st__ns t_ 2,200 p__pl_ wh_ d_d n_t h_v_ _ j_b. _lm_st h_lf _f th_m s__d th_y _ft_n f_lt _nx___s _b__t _v_ryd_y s_t__t__ns, _nd th_t th_y tr__d n_t t_ m__t n_w p__pl_. _n_ _n __ght _f th_s_ s_rv_y_d s__d th_y w_r_ t__ str_ss_d t_ l__v_ th_ h__s_. Th_ ch_r_ty s__d: "Th__s_nds _f y__ng p__pl_ f__l l_k_ pr_s_n_rs _n th__r _wn h_m_s. W_th__t th_ r_ght s_pp_rt, th_s_ y__ng p__pl_ b_c_m_ s_c__lly _s_l_t_d."

M_ny _f th_s_ y__ng p__pl_ str_ggl_ w_th d_y-t_-d_y l_f_, wh_ch m__ns _t b_c_m_s m_r_ _nd m_r_ d_ff_c_lt t_ f_nd _ j_b. Br_t__n's _mpl_ym_nt M_n_st_r _sth_r McV_y s__d: "__r y__ng p__pl_ _r_ s_m_ _f th_ b_st _nd m_st t_l_nt_d _n th_ w_rld." Sh_ s__d _t w_s _mp_rt_nt t_ try _nd m_tch th_s_ p__pl_ w_th th_ r_ght j_bs. R_s__rch_r D_v_d F_ss _dd_d: "Y__ng p__pl_ _r_ __r f_t_r_ _nd _t _s _mp_rt_nt th_t w_ _nv_st _n th_m _nd pr_v_d_ th_m w_th th_ t__ls th_y n__d t_ r__ch th__r f_ll p_t_nt__l." J_ck, 25, _xpl__n_d h_w h_rd _t w_s f_r h_m t_ b_ _n_mpl_y_d. H_ s__d: "_ w__ld w_k_ _p _nd w__ldn't w_nt t_ l__v_ th_ h__s_. _ st_pp_d sp__k_ng t_ my fr__nds _nd _ h_d _bs_l_t_ly n_ c_nf_d_nc_ sp__k_ng t_ p__pl_."

PUNCTUATE THE TEXT AND ADD CAPITALS

a new survey from britain shows that a third of young unemployed people regularly "fall apart" emotionally they are so stressed or unhappy that they cannot control their emotions so they have problems living a "normal" life the survey is from a youth charity called the prince's trust its researchers asked questions to 2200 people who did not have a job almost half of them said they often felt anxious about everyday situations and that they tried not to meet new people one in eight of those surveyed said they were too stressed to leave the house the charity said "thousands of young people feel like prisoners in their own homes without the right support these young people become socially isolated"

many of these young people struggle with day-to-day life which means it becomes more and more difficult to find a job britain's employment minister esther mcvey said "our young people are some of the best and most talented in the world" she said it was important to try and match these people with the right jobs researcher david fass added "young people are our future and it is important that we invest in them and provide them with the tools they need to reach their full potential" jack 25 explained how hard it was for him to be unemployed he said "i would wake up and wouldn't want to leave the house i stopped speaking to my friends and i had absolutely no confidence speaking to people"

PUT A SLASH ( / ) WHERE THE SPACES ARE

AnewsurveyfromBritainshowsthatathirdofyoung,unemployedpeopl
eregularly"fallapart"emotionally.Theyaresostressedorunhappythat
theycannotcontroltheiremotions,sotheyhaveproblemslivinga"norm
al"life.ThesurveyisfromayouthcharitycalledthePrince'sTrust.Itsrese
archersaskedquestionsto2,200peoplewhodidnothaveajob.Almosth
alfofthemsaidtheyoftenfeltanxiousabouteverydaysituations,andtha
ttheytriednottomeetnewpeople.Oneineightofthosesurveyedsaidthe
yweretoostressedtoleavethehouse.Thecharitysaid:"Thousandsofyo
ungpeoplefeellikeprisonersintheirownhomes.Withouttherightsuppo
rt,theseyoungpeoplebecomesociallyisolated."Manyoftheseyoungpe
oplestrugglewithday-to-daylife,whichmeansitbecomesmorea
ndmoredifficulttofindajob.Britain'sEmploymentMinisterEstherMcVe
ysaid:"Ouryoungpeoplearesomeofthebestandmosttalentedinthewo
rld."Shesaiditwasimportanttotryandmatchthesepeoplewiththeright
jobs.ResearcherDavidFassadded:"Youngpeopleareourfutureanditis
importantthatweinvestinthemandprovidethemwiththetoolstheynee
dtoreachtheirfullpotential."Jack,25,explainedhowharditwasforhimt
obeunemployed.Hesaid:"Iwouldwakeupandwouldn'twanttoleaveth
ehouse.IstoppedspeakingtomyfriendsandIhadabsolutelynoconfide
ncespeakingtopeople."

FREE WRITING

Write about being unemployed for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner's paper.

_____________________________________________________________________________

ACADEMIC WRITING

The government should give everyone a job. Discuss.

_____________________________________________________________________________

HOMEWORK

1. VOCABULARY EXTENSION: Choose several of the words from the text. Use a dictionary or Google's search field (or another search engine) to build up more associations / collocations of each word.

2. INTERNET: Search the Internet and find out more about being unemployed. Share what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.

3. BEING UNEMPLOYED: Make a poster about being unemployed. Show your work to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all have similar things?

4. HAPPY: Write a magazine article about being unemployed and being happy. Include imaginary interviews with unemployed people who are happy and people who are not.

Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Write down any new words and expressions you hear from your partner(s).

5. WHAT HAPPENED NEXT? Write a newspaper article about the next stage in this news story. Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Give each other feedback on your articles.

6. LETTER: Write a letter to an expert on being unemployed. Ask him/her three questions about being unemployed. Give him/her three of your ideas on how unemployed people can have more confidence. Read your letter to your partner(s) in your next lesson. Your partner(s) will answer your questions.

A Few Additional Activities for Students

Ask your students what they have read, seen or heard about this news in their own language. Students are likely to / may have have encountered this news in their L1 and therefore bring a background knowledge to the classroom.

Get students to role play different characters from this news story.

Ask students to keep track of this news and revisit it to discuss in your next class.

Ask students to male predictions of how this news might develop in the next few days or weeks, and then revisit and discuss in a future class.

Ask students to write a follow-up story to this news.

Students role play a journalist and someone who witnessed or was a part of this news. Perhaps they could make a video of the interview.

Ask students to keep a news journal in English and add this story to their thoughts.

Also...

Buy my 1,000 Ideas and Activities for Language Teachers eBook. It has hundreds of ideas, activity templates, reproducible activities for:

News
Warm ups
Pre-reading / Post-reading
Using headlines
Working with words
While-reading / While-listening
Moving from text to speech
Post-reading / Post-listening
Discussions
Using opinions
Plans
Language
Using lists
Using quotes
Task-based activities
Role plays
Using the central characters in the article
Using themes from the news
Homework

Buy my book

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ANSWERS

TRUE / FALSE (p.4)

a

T

b

F

c

F

d

T

e

F

f

F

g

T

h

T

SYNONYM MATCH (p.4)

1.	regularly	a.	frequently
2	emotions	b.	feelings
3.	normal	c.	regular
4.	anxious	d.	worried
5.	support	e.	help
6.	talented	f.	skillful
7.	match	g.	fit
8.	provide	h.	supply
9.	potential	i.	promise
10.	absolutely	j.	totally

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS (p.8)

1.	Britain
2.	Their emotions
3.	2,200
4.	One in eight
5.	Prisoners
6.	Day-to-day life
7.	Employment Minister
8.	Tools (to reach their full potential)
9.	25
10.	Confidence (to speak to people)

MULTIPLE CHOICE - QUIZ (p.9)

1.

d

2.

b

3.

c

4.

a

5.

c

6.

b

7.

d

8.

a

9.

c

10.

b

ALL OTHER EXERCISES

Please check for yourself by looking at the Article on page 2.
(It's good for your English ;-)

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Unemployed young people very stressed (16th January, 2015)

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