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More people die from selfies than shark attacks (26th September, 2015)

The Reading / Listening - Level 6

Travellers and phone-camera lovers need to note a new danger that has recently come to light. This new life-threatening hazard has sprung up in the past few years and is now a ubiquitous part of life. It is also proving to be twice as lethal as being killed by a shark. What is this potential new menace? Well, it is the selfie. Yes – love 'em or hate 'em, the desire to take a photo of yourself in front of a world-famous site or to strike a pose and pout with a friend has resulted in more deaths in 2015 than shark attacks. It has been reported that so far this year, 12 people have died as a result of trying to take a selfie. This compares to just six deaths due to unprovoked shark attacks.

Selfie-related accidents can happen in all manner of circumstances. The website Wikipedia.com has detailed the twelve deaths seen this year. They include two Russian men who were killed while taking a selfie with a hand grenade; three Indian students who were killed by an oncoming train while taking selfies on train tracks; and an American woman who fell to her death while taking a selfie with her boyfriend on a cliff in South Africa. The latest death came last month when a Japanese tourist died falling down the stairs while trying to get a shot of himself at the Taj Mahal in India. There may be more. A Russian government spokeswoman told reporters that in July, there were, "dozens of selfie-related deaths" in Russia alone.

Try the same news story at these easier levels:

Level 4 or Level 5

Sources

huffingtonpost.com

nydailynews.com

wikipedia.org

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. SELFIES: Students walk around the class and talk to other students about selfies. 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?

travellers / danger / life threatening / ubiquitous / lethal / shark / world famous / site / accidents / circumstances / hand grenade / train tracks / government / spokeswoman

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

3. DANGER: What dangers could these things pose? Complete this table with your partner(s). Change partners often and share what you wrote.

	Possible dangers	How dangerous
Video games
Driving
Fast food
Hiking
Using a mobile phone
Travelling overseas

4. BANNED: Students A strongly believe selfie sticks should be banned; Students B strongly believe not. 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. PHOTOS: Rank these with your partner. Put the best at the top. Change partners often and share your rankings.

• selfies

• photos of babies

• photos of food

• photos of kittens

• nature photos

• family photos

• wedding photos

• celebrity pics

6. CAMERA: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word "camera". 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.	The article said a new danger is enlightening.	T / F
b.	The article says the new danger is now very common in our lives.	T / F
c.	The new danger has been twice as deadly as shark attacks this year.	T / F
d.	Sharks have killed six people in unprovoked attacks this year.	T / F
e.	Wikipedia outlined the way in which 12 people died because of selfies.	T / F
f.	Three Russians died taking a selfie with a hand grenade.	T / F
g.	An American man died after he fell off a cliff in South Africa.	T / F
h.	A Russian government spokeswoman said 6 people died in Russia.	T / F

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

1.	note	a.	deadly
2.	hazard	b.	consider
3.	ubiquitous	c.	most recent
4.	lethal	d.	very common
5.	resulted in	e.	situations
6.	circumstances	f.	danger
7.	death	g.	journalists
8.	latest	h.	exclusively
9.	reporters	i.	lead to
10.	alone	j.	end

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

1.	note a new	a.	of life
2.	recently come	b.	related deaths
3.	a ubiquitous part	c.	danger
4.	a world-	d.	grenade
5.	six deaths due to unprovoked	e.	of circumstances
6.	happen in all manner	f.	train
7.	hand	g.	shark attacks
8.	killed by an oncoming	h.	of himself
9.	trying to get a shot	i.	to light
10.	selfie-	j.	famous site

GAP FILL

Travellers and phone-camera lovers need to (1) ____________ a new danger that has recently come to (2) ____________. This new life-threatening hazard has sprung up in the past few years and is now a ubiquitous (3) ____________of life. It is also proving to be twice as (4) ____________as being killed by a shark. What is this potential new menace? Well, it is the selfie. Yes – love 'em or hate 'em, the (5) ____________to take a photo of yourself in front of a world-famous site or to strike a pose and (6) ____________with a friend has resulted in more deaths in 2015 than shark attacks. It has been (7) ____________that so far this year, 12 people have died as a result of trying to take a selfie. This (8) ____________to just six deaths due to unprovoked shark attacks.

desire
part
reported
note
light
compares
lethal
pout

Selfie-related accidents can happen in all (9) ____________of circumstances. The website Wikipedia.com has (10) ____________the twelve deaths seen this year. They include two Russian men who were killed while taking a selfie with a (11) ____________grenade; three Indian students who were killed by an (12) ____________train while taking selfies on train tracks; and an American woman who fell to her death while taking a selfie with her boyfriend on a (13) ____________in South Africa. The latest death came last month when a Japanese tourist died falling down the stairs while trying to get a (14) ____________of himself at the Taj Mahal in India. There may be (15) ____________. A Russian government spokeswoman told reporters that in July, there were, "(16) ____________of selfie-related deaths" in Russia alone.

detailed
cliff
hand
more
manner
dozens
oncoming
shot

LISTENING - Guess the answers. Listen to check.

1)	Travellers and phone-camera lovers need to note a new danger that has recently ______
	a. come to lights b. come to right c. come to light d. come to rights
2)	This new life-threatening hazard has sprung up in the ______
	a. passed few years b. past few years c. parsed few years d. paste few years
3)	It is also proving to be twice as lethal as being killed ______
	a. by the shark b. by a shark c. by sharks d. bye a shark
4)	take a photo of yourself in front of a world-famous site or to strike ______
	a. a pose and pout b. a pose and spout c. a pose and put d. a pose and part
5)	It has been reported that so far this year, 12 people have died as a ______
	a. result off trying b. result by trying c. result for trying d. result of trying
6)	Selfie-related accidents can happen in all manner ______
	a. of circumstantial b. of circumstance c. of circumstances d. of sir come stances
7)	They include two Russian men who were killed while taking a selfie with ______
	a. a handy grenade b. a hand grenade c. a hands grenade d. a handed grenade
8)	three Indian students who were killed by an oncoming train while taking selfies ______
	a. on train tracks b. on train track c. on train tacks d. on train tack
9)	The latest death came last month when a Japanese tourist died falling ______
	a. down the stair b. down the spares c. down the snares d. down the stairs
10)	in July, there were, "dozens of selfie-related deaths" ______
	a. in Russia alone b. in Russia a lone c. in Russia lonesome d. in Russia lonely

LISTENING – Listen and fill in the gaps

Travellers and phone-camera lovers (1) ___________________ new danger that has recently come to light. This new life-threatening hazard has sprung (2) ___________________ few years and is now a ubiquitous part of life. It is also proving to be (3) ___________________ being killed by a shark. What is this potential new menace? Well, it is the selfie. Yes – love 'em or hate 'em, the desire to take a photo of yourself (4) ___________________-famous site or to strike (5) ___________________ with a friend has resulted in more deaths in 2015 than shark attacks. It has been reported that so far this year, 12 people have died as a result of trying to take a selfie. This compares to just (6) ___________________ unprovoked shark attacks.

Selfie-related accidents can happen (7) ___________________ circumstances. The website Wikipedia.com has detailed the twelve deaths seen this year. They include two Russian men (8) ___________________ while taking a selfie with a hand grenade; three Indian students who were killed by (9) ___________________ while taking selfies on train tracks; and an American woman who fell to her death while taking a selfie with her boyfriend (10) ___________________ South Africa. The latest death came last month when a Japanese tourist died falling down the stairs while trying to get (11) ___________________ at the Taj Mahal in India. There may be more. A Russian government spokeswoman told reporters that in July, there were, "dozens of (12) ___________________" in Russia alone.

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS

1.	Who, besides travellers, needs to note a new danger?
2.	How common in our life is this new danger?
3.	How many times as lethal as shark attacks are deaths due to selfies?
4.	Who does the article say people strike a pose with?
5.	How many people died in 2015 from unprovoked shark attacks?
6.	What website detailed the selfie deaths?
7.	What were two Russian men taking a selfie with?
8.	Where did three Indian students die?
9.	What did an American woman fall to her death from?
10.	At what world-famous site did a Japanese toursit die?

MULTIPLE CHOICE - QUIZ

1.	Who, besides travellers, needs to note a new danger?	6.	What website detailed the selfie deaths?
	a) shark experts b) tour guides c) scared people d) camera-phone lovers		a) MSN b) BBC.com c) Wikipedia d) Google
2.	How common in our life is this new danger?	7.	What were two Russian men taking a selfie with?
	a) not at all common b) it's ubiquitous c) quite common d) not so common		a) a hand grenade b) a tank c) a rifle d) a missile
3.	How many times as lethal as shark attacks are deaths due to selfies?	8.	Where did three Indian students die?
	a) 5 b) 4 c) 3 d) 2		a) in a shopping mall b) in a university c) on train tracks d) on the beach
4.	Who does the article say people strike a pose with?	9.	What did an American woman fall to her death from?
	a) poseurs b) sharks c) friends d) tourists		a) the roof of her house b) a cliff c) a tower d) a shopping mall
5.	How many people died in 2015 from unprovoked shark attacks?	10.	At what world-famous site did a Japanese toursit die?
	a) 9 b) 8 c) 7 d) 6		a) Taj Mahal b) Eiffel Tower c) Sydney Opera House d) Empire State Building

ROLE PLAY

Role A – Selfies

You think selfies are the best. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why their things aren't so good. Also, tell the others which is the least interesting of these (and why): wedding photos, photos of nature or photos of food.

Role B – Wedding photos

You think wedding photos are the best. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why their things aren't so good. Also, tell the others which is the least interesting of these (and why): selfies, photos of nature or photos of food.

Role C – Photos of nature

You think photos of nature are the best. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why their things aren't so good. Also, tell the others which is the least interesting of these (and why): wedding photos, selfies or photos of food.

Role D – Photos of food

You think photos of food are the best. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why their things aren't so good. Also, tell the others which is the least interesting of these (and why): wedding photos, photos of nature or selfies.

AFTER READING / LISTENING

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

phone

camera

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:

note
past
twice
love
site
12

manner
hand
tracks
cliff
more
alone

SELFIES SURVEY

Write five GOOD questions about selfies 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.

SELFIES 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 'selfie'?
3)	What do you think about what you read?
4)	How important are selfies to you?
5)	What's the favourite photo you have of yourself?
6)	Why is the world selfie-crazy?
7)	What safety instructions should be on selfie sticks ?
8)	Should selfie sticks be banned?
9)	How dangerous are selfies?
10)	Do you like photos of yourself?

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

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

11)	Did you like reading this article? Why/not?
12)	What do you think of the idea of a selfie stick?
13)	What do you think when you see people with selfie sticks?
14)	What do you think of the selfie deaths reported on Wikipedia?
15)	Are there places you should never take selfies?
16)	Who would you like to have a selfie with, and why?
17)	Are selfies better than taking photos of other people?
18)	Where would you like a photo of yourself?
19)	Why have some places banned selfie sticks?
20)	What questions would you like to ask a selfie-stick maker?

DISCUSSION (Write your own questions)

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

DISCUSSION (Write your own questions)

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

LANGUAGE - CLOZE

Travellers and phone-camera lovers need to (1) ____ a new danger that has recently come to light. This new life-threatening hazard has (2) ____ up in the past few years and is now a ubiquitous part of life. It is also proving to be twice (3) ____ lethal as being killed by a shark. What is this potential new menace? Well, it is the selfie. Yes – love 'em or hate 'em, the desire to take a photo of yourself in front of a world-famous site or to strike a (4) ____ and pout with a friend has resulted (5) ____ more deaths in 2015 than shark attacks. It has been reported that so far this year, 12 people have died as a result of trying to take a selfie. This compares to just six deaths (6) ____ to unprovoked shark attacks.

Selfie-related accidents can happen in (7) ____ manner of circumstances. The website Wikipedia.com has detailed the twelve deaths seen this year. They include two Russian men who were killed (8) ____ taking a selfie with a hand grenade; three Indian students who were killed by an (9) ____ train while taking selfies on train tracks; and an American woman who fell to her (10) ____ while taking a selfie with her boyfriend on a cliff in South Africa. The latest death came last month when a Japanese tourist died falling down the stairs while trying to get a (11) ____ of himself at the Taj Mahal in India. There may be more. A Russian government spokeswoman told reporters that in July, there were, "dozens of selfie-related deaths" in Russia (12) ____.

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

1.	(a)	noted	(b)	note	(c)	notation	(d)	notary
2.	(a)	spring	(b)	sprung	(c)	sprang	(d)	springs
3.	(a)	is	(b)	was	(c)	has	(d)	as
4.	(a)	post	(b)	pose	(c)	posh	(d)	posit
5.	(a)	to	(b)	in	(c)	at	(d)	by
6.	(a)	because	(b)	for	(c)	due	(d)	by
7.	(a)	every	(b)	whole	(c)	all	(d)	both
8.	(a)	which	(b)	whichever	(c)	while	(d)	however
9.	(a)	outgoing	(b)	came	(c)	arrival	(d)	oncoming
10.	(a)	dying	(b)	dead	(c)	die	(d)	death
11.	(a)	shot	(b)	shoot	(c)	shout	(d)	spot
12.	(a)	lonely	(b)	loner	(c)	alone	(d)	lone

SPELLING

Paragraph 1
1.	life-threatening dzhraa
2.	a tsubuiiuoq part of life
3.	tcwei as alhlte
4.	potential new mceena
5.	This moarepsc to just six
6.	due to rkdoevoupn shark attacks
Paragraph 2
7.	in all manner of massicncrcute
8.	a hand dneaerg
9.	killed by an mngocino train
10.	a Japanese itotsru
11.	veegrnotmn spokeswoman
12.	noeszd of selfie-related deaths

PUT THE TEXT BACK TOGETHER

Number these lines in the correct order.

( )	grenade; three Indian students who were killed by an oncoming train while taking selfies on train
( )	threatening hazard has sprung up in the past few years and is now a ubiquitous part
( )	Selfie-related accidents can happen in all manner of circumstances. The website Wikipedia.com has detailed
( )	in South Africa. The latest death came last month when a Japanese tourist died falling down the stairs while
( )	the twelve deaths seen this year. They include two Russian men who were killed while taking a selfie with a hand
( )	of life. It is also proving to be twice as lethal as being killed by a shark. What is this potential new
( )	famous site or to strike a pose and pout with a friend has resulted in more deaths in 2015 than shark attacks. It has
( )	to just six deaths due to unprovoked shark attacks.
( )	tracks; and an American woman who fell to her death while taking a selfie with her boyfriend on a cliff
( )	spokeswoman told reporters that in July, there were, "dozens of selfie-related deaths" in Russia alone.
( 1 )	Travellers and phone-camera lovers need to note a new danger that has recently come to light. This new life-
( )	been reported that so far this year, 12 people have died as a result of trying to take a selfie. This compares
( )	trying to get a shot of himself at the Taj Mahal in India. There may be more. A Russian government
( )	menace? Well, it is the selfie. Yes – love 'em or hate 'em, the desire to take a photo of yourself in front of a world-

PUT THE WORDS IN THE RIGHT ORDER

1.	light Note a new danger that has recently come to .
2.	new threatening sprung This - has life hazard up .
3.	as It proving twice also be lethal is to .
4.	in Take world yourself a of site of photo famous front a - .
5.	of as People a trying a have selfie to result died take .
6.	all Accidents manner can of happen circumstances in .
7.	taking with grenade while selfie hand Killed a a .
8.	killed oncoming Indian were an Three who by train students .
9.	A down Japanese the tourist stairs died falling .
10.	alone Russia in deaths related - selfie of dozens were There .

CIRCLE THE CORRECT WORD (20 PAIRS)

Travellers and phone-camera lovers / lovelies need to note a new danger that has recently come to dark / light. This new life-threatening hazard has sprung up / down in the past few years and is now a ubiquitous part / partner of life. It is also proving to be twice as lethally / lethal as being killed by a shark. What is this potential new menace? Well, it is the selfie. Yes – love 'em or hate 'em, the desire to fake / take a photo of yourself in front of a world-famous site or to strike / stake a pose and pout with a friend has resulted on / in more deaths in 2015 than shark attacks. It has been reported that so far this / that year, 12 people have died as a result of trying to take a selfie. This compares to just six deaths due to / for unprovoked shark attacks.

Selfie-related accidents can happening / happen in all manner for / of circumstances. The website Wikipedia.com has detailed the twelve deaths seen this year. They include / including two Russian men who were killed while taking a selfie with a hand / handy grenade; three Indian students who were killed by an oncoming train while taking selfies on train tracks / tacks; and an American woman who fell for / to her death while taking a selfie with her boyfriend on a cleft / cliff in South Africa. The latest death came last month when a Japanese tourist died falling / fallen down the stairs while trying to get a short / shot of himself at the Taj Mahal in India. There may be more. A Russian government spokeswoman told reporters that in July, there were, "dozens of selfie-related deaths" in Russia alone / lonely.

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)

Tr_v_ll_rs _nd ph_n_-c_m_r_ l_v_rs n__d t_ n_t_ _ n_w d_ng_r th_t h_s r_c_ntly c_m_ t_ l_ght. Th_s n_w l_f_-thr__t_n_ng h_z_rd h_s spr_ng _p _n th_ p_st f_w y__rs _nd _s n_w _ _b_q__t__s p_rt _f l_f_. _t _s _ls_ pr_v_ng t_ b_ tw_c_ _s l_th_l _s b__ng k_ll_d by _ sh_rk. Wh_t _s th_s p_t_nt__l n_w m_n_c_? W_ll, _t _s th_ s_lf__. Y_s – l_v_ '_m _r h_t_ '_m, th_ d_s_r_ t_ t_k_ _ ph_t_ _f y__rs_lf _n fr_nt _f _ w_rld-f_m__s s_t_ _r t_ str_k_ _ p_s_ _nd p__t w_th _ fr__nd h_s r_s_lt_d _n m_r_ d__ths _n 2015 th_n sh_rk _tt_cks. _t h_s b__n r_p_rt_d th_t s_ f_r th_s y__r, 12 p__pl_ h_v_ d__d _s _ r_s_lt _f try_ng t_ t_k_ _ s_lf__. Th_s c_mp_r_s t_ j_st s_x d__ths d__ t_ _npr_v_k_d sh_rk _tt_cks.

S_lf__-r_l_t_d _cc_d_nts c_n h_pp_n _n _ll m_nn_r _f c_rc_mst_nc_s. Th_ w_bs_t_ W_k_p_d__.c_m h_s d_t__l_d th_ tw_lv_ d__ths s__n th_s y__r. Th_y _ncl_d_ tw_ R_ss__n m_n wh_ w_r_ k_ll_d wh_l_ t_k_ng _ s_lf__ w_th _ h_nd gr_n_d_; thr__ _nd__n st_d_nts wh_ w_r_ k_ll_d by _n _nc_m_ng tr__n wh_l_ t_k_ng s_lf__s _n tr__n tr_cks; _nd _n _m_r_c_n w_m_n wh_ f_ll t_ h_r d__th wh_l_ t_k_ng _ s_lf__ w_th h_r b_yfr__nd _n _ cl_ff _n S__th _fr_c_. Th_ l_t_st d__th c_m_ l_st m_nth wh_n _ J_p_n_s_ t__r_st d__d f_ll_ng d_wn th_ st__rs wh_l_ try_ng t_ g_t _ sh_t _f h_ms_lf _t th_ T_j M_h_l _n _nd__. Th_r_ m_y b_ m_r_. _ R_ss__n g_v_rnm_nt sp_k_sw_m_n t_ld r_p_rt_rs th_t _n J_ly, th_r_ w_r_, "d_z_ns _f s_lf__-r_l_t_d d__ths" _n R_ss__ _l_n_.

PUNCTUATE THE TEXT AND ADD CAPITALS

travellers and phone-camera lovers need to note a new danger that has recently come to light this new life-threatening hazard has sprung up in the past few years and is now a ubiquitous part of life it is also proving to be twice as lethal as being killed by a shark what is this potential new menace well it is the selfie yes – love 'em or hate 'em the desire to take a photo of yourself in front of a world-famous site or to strike a pose and pout with a friend has resulted in more deaths in 2015 than shark attacks it has been reported that so far this year 12 people have died as a result of trying to take a selfie this compares to just six deaths due to unprovoked shark attacks

selfie-related accidents can happen in all manner of circumstances the website wikipediacom has detailed the twelve deaths seen this year they include two russian men who were killed while taking a selfie with a hand grenade three indian students who were killed by an oncoming train while taking selfies on train tracks and an american woman who fell to her death while taking a selfie with her boyfriend on a cliff in south africa the latest death came last month when a japanese tourist died falling down the stairs while trying to get a shot of himself at the taj mahal in india there may be more a russian government spokeswoman told reporters that in july there were "dozens of selfie-related deaths" in russia alone

PUT A SLASH ( / ) WHERE THE SPACES ARE

Travellersandphone-cameraloversneedtonoteanewdangerthatha
srecentlycometolight.Thisnewlife-threateninghazardhassprungupi
nthepastfewyearsandisnowaubiquitouspartoflife.Itisalsoprovingtob
etwiceaslethalasbeingkilledbyashark.Whatisthispotentialnewmena
ce?Well,itistheselfie.Yes–love'emorhate'em,thedesiretotakeaphot
oofyourselfinfrontofaworld-famoussiteortostrikeaposeandpoutwit
hafriendhasresultedinmoredeathsin2015thansharkattacks.Ithasbe
enreportedthatsofarthisyear,12peoplehavediedasaresultoftryingto
takeaselfie.Thiscomparestojustsixdeathsduetounprovokedsharkatt
acks.Selfie-relatedaccidentscanhappeninallmannerofcircums
tances.ThewebsiteWikipedia.comhasdetailedthetwelvedeathsseent
hisyear.TheyincludetwoRussianmenwhowerekilledwhiletakingaselfi
ewithahandgrenade;threeIndianstudentswhowerekilledbyanoncom
ingtrainwhiletakingselfiesontraintracks;andanAmericanwomanwho
felltoherdeathwhiletakingaselfiewithherboyfriendonacliffinSouthAfr
ica.ThelatestdeathcamelastmonthwhenaJapanesetouristdiedfalling
downthestairswhiletryingtogetashotofhimselfattheTajMahalinIndia
.Theremaybemore.ARussiangovernmentspokeswomantoldreporter
sthatinJuly,therewere,"dozensofselfie-relateddeaths"inRuss
iaalone.

FREE WRITING

Write about selfies for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

_____________________________________________________________________________

ACADEMIC WRITING

Selfie sticks should be banned. 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 selfies. Share what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.

3. SELFIES: Make a poster about selfies. Show your work to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all have similar things?

4. BANNED: Write a magazine article about banning selfie sticks. Include imaginary interviews with people who are for and against this.

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 selfies. Ask him/her three questions about them. Give him/her three ideas on how to make taking selfies safer. 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

F

b

T

c

T

d

T

e

T

f

F

g

F

h

F

SYNONYM MATCH (p.4)

1.	note	a.	consider
2	hazard	b.	danger
3.	ubiquitous	c.	very common
4.	lethal	d.	deadly
5.	resulted in	e.	lead to
6.	circumstances	f.	situations
7.	death	g.	end
8.	latest	h.	most recent
9.	reporters	i.	journalists
10.	alone	j.	exclusively

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS (p.8)

1.	Phone-camera lovers
2.	It’s ubiquitous (very common)
3.	2
4.	Friends
5.	6
6.	Wikipedia
7.	A hand grenade
8.	On train tracks
9.	A cliff
10.	The Taj Mahal

MULTIPLE CHOICE - QUIZ (p.9)

1.

d

2.

b

3.

d

4.

c

5.

d

6.

c

7.

a

8.

c

9.

b

10.

a

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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More people die from selfies than shark attacks (26th September, 2015)

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