The Reading / Listening - Child Labour - Level 6

The Oscar-winning actor and director George Clooney has spoken about allegations of child labour at the Nespresso coffee company, for which he is brand ambassador. Clooney is a member of Nespresso's sustainability advisory board, which aims to ensure coffee is sourced from ethical and sustainable suppliers. He said: "We knew it was a big project when it started seven years ago, and honestly I was surprised and saddened to see this story." An undercover investigation by the UK TV company Channel 4 filmed children on six coffee plantations in Guatemala picking coffee beans and carrying large sacks of coffee on their backs. The farms supply coffee beans to Nespresso.

Mr Clooney has vowed that, "work will be done" by Nespresso to eradicate any forms of child labour within its operations. Clooney spoke about his own upbringing, living on a tobacco farm in the USA and picking tobacco during his school holidays. He said: "Having grown up working on a tobacco farm from the time I was 12, I'm uniquely aware of the complex issues regarding farming and child labour." Nespresso said it has launched a "thorough investigation" and has suspended all purchases from the plantations. It added: "Nespresso has zero tolerance of child labour. It is unacceptable. We will continue to do all we can to stamp out child labour. It has no place in our supply chain."

Try the same news story at these easier levels:

    Child Labour - Level 4  or  Child Labour - Level 5

Sources
  • https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2020/feb/26/george-clooney-saddened-by-alleged-child-labour-on-nespresso-coffee-farms
  • https://news.sky.com/story/george-clooney-saddened-by-child-labour-at-farms-used-by-nespresso-11943415
  • https://www.reuters.com/article/us-britain-slavery-coffee/george-clooney-saddened-over-nespresso-link-to-child-labor-in-guatemala-idUSKCN20K20X


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 :-)

Warm-ups

1. CHILD LABOUR: Students walk around the class and talk to other students about child labour. 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?
       actor / director / allegations / brand / ambassador / child labour / project / plantations
       vowed / upbringing / tobacco / farm / aware / complex / issues / zero / tolerance
Have a chat about the topics you liked. Change topics and partners frequently.
3. EIGTHEEN: Students A strongly believe no one should be allowed to work under the age of 18; Students B strongly believe 13 is OK (part-time only). Change partners again and talk about your conversations.
4. CHILD EXPOITATION: What do you know about child exploitation in these areas? How can we stop it?  What should the punishment be for those forcing the children into these situations? Complete this table with your partner(s). Change partners often and share what you wrote.

 

What You Know

How To Stop It

Punishment

Child labour

 

 

 

Child soldiers

 

 

 

Prostitution

 

 

 

Drug trafficking

 

 

 

Gangs

 

 

 

Other ______

 

 

 
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. LABOUR: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word "labour". Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories.
6. COFFEE: Rank these with your partner. Put the best coffee products at the top. Change partners often and share your rankings.

  • Coffee chocolate
  • Cafe au Lait
  • Coffee milkshake
  • Coffee cookies
  • Coffee brownies
  • Coffee candy
  • Coffee-rubbed steak
  • Coffee ice cream

 

Vocabulary

    Paragraph 1

      1. allegation a. Having the power to make recommendations but not to take action to enforce them.
      2. ambassador b. Involving secret work, especially for the purposes of an investigation.
      3. sustainability c. A claim or assertion that someone has done something illegal or wrong, typically one made without proof.
      4. advisory d. Avoidance of the using up of natural resources in order to maintain an ecological balance.
      5. ethical e. A person who acts as a representative or promoter of a company or activity.
      6. plantation f. Morally good or correct.
      7. undercover g. An area in which trees or bushes have been planted, especially for commercial purposes.

    Paragraph 2

      8. vowed h. Destroy completely; put an end to.
      9. eradicate i. The treatment and instruction received by a child from its parents throughout its childhood.
      10. upbringing j. Temporarily prevented from continuing or being in force or effect.
      11. uniquely k. Promised.
      12. thorough l. The ability or willingness to accept the opinions or behavior of other people, even though you do not agree with them.
      13. suspended m. Complete with regard to every detail.
      14. tolerance n. In a way that belongs or is connected to only one particular person or thing.

 

Before reading / listening

1. TRUE / FALSE: Read the headline. Guess if 1-8 below are true (T) or false (F).

  1. George Clooney is a brand ambassador for the company Nespresso.     T / F
  2. Mr Clooney is a member of Nespresso's board of directors.     T / F
  3. Mr Clooney said he wasn't surprised when he heard the news.     T / F
  4. An undercover investigation filmed 16 coffee plantations.     T / F
  5. Clooney promised Nespresso would end child labour in its operations.     T / F
  6. Mr Clooney picked tobacco on a farm when he was 12 years old.     T / F
  7. Nespresso is still buying coffee from plantations using child labour.     T / F
  8. Nespresso said it has zero tolerance towards child labour.     T / F

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

  1. allegations
  2. ensure
  3. ethical
  4. undercover
  5. supply
  6. vowed
  7. eradicate
  8. complex
  9. thorough
  10. tolerance
  1. see to it
  2. rigorous
  3. promised
  4. complicated
  5. acceptance
  6. provide
  7. claims
  8. moral
  9. end
  10. covert

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

  1. spoken about allegations
  2. a member of Nespresso's sustainability
  3. ensure coffee is sourced from ethical and
  4. An undercover
  5. carrying large sacks of coffee
  6. Mr Clooney has vowed that
  7. Clooney spoke about his own
  8. I'm uniquely aware of the complex
  9. zero
  10. do all we can to stamp
  1. tolerance
  2. on their backs
  3. work will be done
  4. of child labour
  5. issues
  6. upbringing
  7. investigation
  8. advisory board
  9. out child labour
  10. sustainable suppliers

Gap fill

Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
sustainable
ambassador
plantations
honestly
allegations
supply
advisory
undercover

The Oscar-winning actor and director George Clooney has spoken about (1) ____________ of child labour at the Nespresso coffee company, for which he is brand (2) ____________. Clooney is a member of Nespresso's sustainability (3) ____________ board, which aims to ensure coffee is sourced from ethical and (4) ____________ suppliers. He said: "We knew it was a big project when it started seven years ago, and (5) ____________ I was surprised and saddened to see this story." An (6) ____________ investigation by the UK TV company Channel 4 filmed children on six coffee (7) ____________ in Guatemala picking coffee beans and carrying large sacks of coffee on their backs. The farms (8) ____________ coffee beans to Nespresso.

Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
operations
stamp
thorough
upbringing
chain
vowed
tolerance
uniquely

Mr Clooney has (9) ____________ that, "work will be done" by Nespresso to eradicate any forms of child labour within its (10) ____________. Clooney spoke about his own (11) ____________, living on a tobacco farm in the USA and picking tobacco during his school holidays. He said: "Having grown up working on a tobacco farm from the time I was 12, I'm (12) ____________ aware of the complex issues regarding farming and child labour." Nespresso said it has launched a "(13) ____________ investigation" and has suspended all purchases from the plantations. It added: "Nespresso has zero (14) ____________ of child labour. It is unacceptable. We will continue to do all we can to (15) ____________ out child labour. It has no place in our supply (16) ____________."

Listening — Guess the answers. Listen to check.

1)  director George Clooney has spoken about ______ labour
     a.  allegation of child
     b.  allegories of child
     c.  algorithms of child
     d.  allegations of child
2)  at the Nespresso coffee company, for which he is ______
     a.  brand ambassador
     b.  bland ambassador
     c.  blend ambassador
     d.  blind ambassador
3)  which aims to ensure coffee is sourced from ethical and ______
     a.  sustainability suppliers
     b.  sustainable suppliers
     c.  sustain a ball suppliers
     d.  sustain able suppliers
4)  We knew it was a big project when it started seven years ago, and ______ surprised
     a.  honestly I was
     b.  honest it was
     c.  honesty I was
     d.  honestly it was
5)  plantations in Guatemala picking coffee beans and carrying large ______
     a.  sack of coffee
     b.  shacks of coffee
     c.  sacks of coffee
     d.  smacks of coffee

6)  vowed that, "work will be done" by Nespresso to ______
     a.  eradicate any farms
     b.  eradicate any firms
     c.  eradicate any frames
     d.  eradicate any forms
7)  working on a tobacco farm from the time I was 12, I'm ______
     a.  unique aware
     b.  uniquely aware
     c.  you niche aware
     d.  you nick aware
8)  and child labour." Nespresso said it has launched a "_______"
     a.  thoroughly investigation
     b.  through investigation
     c.  trough investigation
     d.  though investigation
9)  all purchases from the plantations. It added: "Nespresso ______
     a.  has zeroed tolerance
     b.  has zeros tolerant
     c.  has zero tolerant
     d.  has zero tolerance
10)  stamp out child labour. It has no place in ______
     a.  our supplies chain
     b.  our surprise chain
     c.  our supply chain
     d.  our supple chain

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

The Oscar-winning (1) ___________________ George Clooney has spoken about allegations of child labour at the Nespresso coffee company, for which he is brand ambassador. Clooney is (2) ___________________ Nespresso's sustainability advisory board, which (3) ___________________ coffee is sourced from (4) ___________________ suppliers. He said: "We knew it was a big project when it started seven years ago, and honestly I was surprised and saddened to see this story." An (5) ___________________ the UK TV company Channel 4 filmed children on six coffee plantations in Guatemala picking coffee beans and (6) ___________________ of coffee on their backs. The farms supply coffee beans to Nespresso.

Mr Clooney (7) ___________________, "work will be done" by Nespresso to eradicate any forms of child labour within its operations. Clooney spoke about (8) ___________________, living on a tobacco farm in the USA and picking tobacco during his school holidays. He said: "Having grown up working on a tobacco farm from the time I was 12, I'm (9) ___________________ the complex issues regarding farming and child labour." Nespresso said it has launched (10) ___________________ and has suspended all purchases from the plantations. It added: "Nespresso has (11) ___________________ child labour. It is unacceptable. We will continue to do all we can to stamp out child labour. It has no place in (12) ___________________."

Comprehension questions

  1. What did the article say George Clooney had won?
  2. What role does George Clooney play in the Nespresso company?
  3. When did Nespresso's big project start?
  4. What is the name of the TV company that conducted an investigation?
  5. In how many plantations did the TV company find child labour?
  6. What did Mr Clooney vow Nespresso would do?
  7. Where did Mr Clooney work when he was 12?
  8. What has Nespresso launched?
  9. What kind of tolerance does Nespresso have for child labour?
  10. What did Nespresso say it would stamp out?

Multiple choice quiz

1)  What did the article say George Clooney had won?
a) fans
b) an Oscar
c) a coffee award
d) hearts and minds
2) What role does George Clooney play in the Nespresso company?
a) coffee taster
b) CEO
c) actor
d) brand ambassador
3) When did Nespresso's big project start?
a) seven years ago
b) six years ago
c) eight years ago
d) last year
4) What is the name of the TV company that conducted an investigation?
a) ITV
b) Sky
c) Channel 4
d) BBC
5) In how many plantations did the TV company find child labour?
a) five
b) six
c) four
d) seven

6) What did Mr Clooney vow Nespresso would do?
a) make better coffee
b) apologise
c) eradicate child labour
d) pay compensation
7) Where did Mr Clooney work when he was 12?
a) McDonald's
b) a movie theatre
c) Hollywood
d) a tobacco farm
8) What has Nespresso launched?
a) a thorough investigation
b) a new brand
c) a new company
d) a rocket
9) What kind of tolerance does Nespresso have for child labour?
a) zero tolerance
b) a normal amount
c) a little
d) quite a bit
10) What did Nespresso say it would stamp out?
a) coffee disease
b) child labour
c) corruption
d) bad bosses

Role play

Role  A – Coffee Chocolate
You think coffee chocolate is the best coffee product. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what is wrong with their products. Also, tell the others which is the worst of these (and why): coffee brownies, coffee candy or coffee ice cream.

Role  B – Coffee Brownies
You think coffee brownies are the best coffee products. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what is wrong with their products. Also, tell the others which is the worst of these (and why): coffee chocolate, coffee candy or coffee ice cream.

Role  C – Coffee Candy
You think coffee candy is the best coffee product. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what is wrong with their products. Also, tell the others which is the worst of these (and why): coffee brownies, coffee chocolate or coffee ice cream.

Role  D – Coffee Ice-Cream
You think coffee ice cream is the best coffee product. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what is wrong with their products. Also, tell the others which is the worst of these (and why): coffee brownies, coffee candy or coffee chocolate.

After reading / listening

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

'child'

  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________

    • and 'labour'.

  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________

    • • 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:

    • spoken
    • brand
    • aims
    • honestly
    • six
    • sacks
    • forms
    • upbringing
    • holidays
    • aware
    • zero
    • chain

    Student survey

    Write five GOOD questions about this topic 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.

    (Please look at page 12 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

    Discussion - Child Labour

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

    1. What did you think when you read the headline?
    2. What images are in your mind when you hear the word 'child'?
    3. Why does child labour exist in this world?
    4. What do you think of child labour?
    5. What is the earliest age at which someone can work?
    6. Is a child helping in their parent's business child labour?
    7. What should happen to companies using child labour?
    8. How much do you care about ethical sourcing?
    9. How important is sustainability?
    10. What can George Clooney do to stop child labour?

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

    1. Did you like reading this article? Why/not?
    2. What do you think of when you hear the word 'labour'?
    3. What do you think about what you read?
    4. What instances of child labour are there in your country?
    5. How old were you when you first started working?
    6. Should we boycott companies that use child labour?
    7. Are profits more important for companies than ethics?
    8. Should celebrities do more to highlight social issues?
    9. What advice do you have for exploited children?
    10. What questions would you like to ask Nespresso officials?

    Discussion — Write your own questions

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

    (a) ________________

    (b) ________________

    (c) ________________

    (d) ________________

    (e) ________________

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

    (f) ________________

    (g) ________________

    (h) ________________

    (i) ________________

    (j) ________________

    Language — Cloze (Gap-fill)

    The Oscar-winning actor and director George Clooney has spoken about (1) ____ of child labour at the Nespresso coffee company, for which he is (2) ____ ambassador. Clooney is a member of Nespresso's sustainability advisory (3) ____, which aims to ensure coffee is sourced from ethical and sustainable suppliers. He said: "We knew it was a big (4) ____ when it started seven years ago, and honestly I was surprised and saddened to see this story." An (5) ____ investigation by the UK TV company Channel 4 filmed children on six coffee plantations in Guatemala picking coffee beans and carrying large (6) ____ of coffee on their backs. The farms supply coffee beans to Nespresso.

    Mr Clooney has (7) ____ that, "work will be done" by Nespresso to eradicate any forms of child labour within its operations. Clooney spoke about his own (8) ____, living on a tobacco farm in the USA and picking tobacco during his school holidays. He said: "Having grown up working on a tobacco farm from the time I was 12, I'm (9) ____ aware of the complex issues regarding farming and child labour." Nespresso said it has launched a "(10) ____ investigation" and has suspended all purchases from the plantations. It added: "Nespresso has zero (11) ____ of child labour. It is unacceptable. We will continue to do all we can to stamp out child labour. It has no place in our supply (12) ____."

    Which of these words go in the above text?

    1. (a)     allegories     (b)     algorithms     (c)     allegations     (d)     alleges    
    2. (a)     brand     (b)     bland     (c)     blend     (d)     blind    
    3. (a)     board     (b)     plank     (c)     timber     (d)     slat    
    4. (a)     project     (b)     forecast     (c)     reckon     (d)     convey    
    5. (a)     covering     (b)     undercover     (c)     coverage     (d)     covered    
    6. (a)     vats     (b)     utilities     (c)     tanks     (d)     sacks    
    7. (a)     wowed     (b)     mowed     (c)     vowed     (d)     sowed    
    8. (a)     upped     (b)     upper     (c)     upping     (d)     upbringing    
    9. (a)     uniquely     (b)     clique     (c)     antique     (d)     piqued    
    10. (a)     thorough     (b)     thought     (c)     through     (d)     though    
    11. (a)     reliance     (b)     tolerance     (c)     convenience     (d)     repentance    
    12. (a)     rope     (b)     lock     (c)     chain     (d)     series

    Spelling

    Paragraph 1

    1. leoglaitsan of child labour
    2. he is brand ambsoadrsa
    3. vdrsiyao board
    4. ethical and lisabsenuta suppliers
    5. An undercover ivtnsgneoiita
    6. coffee tlntaonpasi

    Paragraph 2

    1. eetcaadir any forms of child labour
    2. spoke about his own nrnibgpigu
    3. I'm lnueuyqi aware
    4. the cmpeoxl issues
    5. sdependsu all purchases
    6. zero erteoanlc

    Put the text back together

    (...)  can to stamp out child labour. It has no place in our supply chain."
    (...)  sustainable suppliers. He said: "We knew it was a big project when it started seven years ago, and honestly
    (...)  operations. Clooney spoke about his own upbringing, living on a tobacco farm in the USA and picking
    (...)  by the UK TV company Channel 4 filmed children on six coffee plantations in Guatemala picking coffee beans and carrying
    (...)  tobacco during his school holidays. He said: "Having grown up working on a tobacco farm from the time
    (...)  "Nespresso has zero tolerance of child labour. It is unacceptable. We will continue to do all we
    (...)  Mr Clooney has vowed that, "work will be done" by Nespresso to eradicate any forms of child labour within its
    (...)  I was surprised and saddened to see this story." An undercover investigation
    (...)  a "thorough investigation" and has suspended all purchases from the plantations. It added:
    (...)  I was 12, I'm uniquely aware of the complex issues regarding farming and child labour." Nespresso said it has launched
    (...)  of child labour at the Nespresso coffee company, for which he is brand ambassador. Clooney is a member
    (  1  ) The Oscar-winning actor and director George Clooney has spoken about allegations
    (...)  of Nespresso's sustainability advisory board, which aims to ensure coffee is sourced from ethical and
    (...)  large sacks of coffee on their backs. The farms supply coffee beans to Nespresso.

    Put the words in the right order

    1. labour   .   has   of   about   child   Clooney   spoken   allegations
    2. a   board   .   He's   sustainability   Nespresso's   advisory   member   of
    3. sourced   Coffee   is   ethical   suppliers   .   from   sustainable   and
    4. was   It   started   .   big   a   it   project   when
    5. backs   .   sacks   Carrying   coffee   of   large   their   on
    6. of   within   labour   child   forms   its   operations   .   Eradicate
    7. am   uniquely   complex   issues   .   I   aware   of   the
    8. it   investigation   .   launched   thorough   a   said   Nespresso   has
    9. we   do   continue   will   We   can   .   all   to
    10. no   place   our   in   has   chain   .   supply   It

    Circle the correct word (20 pairs)

    The Oscar-winning actor and director George Clooney has spoken about allegations / allegation of child labour at the Nespresso coffee company, for which he is bland / brand ambassador. Clooney is a member of Nespresso's sustainability advisory bored / board, which aims to ensure coffee is sourced / sauces from ethical and sustainable supplying / suppliers. He said: "We knew it was a big project when it started seven years ago, and honest / honestly I was surprised and saddened to see this story." An undercover / uncover investigation by the UK TV company Channel 4 filmed children on six coffee planting / plantations in Guatemala picking coffee beans and carrying large socks / sacks of coffee on their backs. The farms supply / demand coffee beans to Nespresso.

    Mr Clooney has vowed / wowed that, "work will be done" by Nespresso to eradicate / educate any forms of child labour within / wither its operations. Clooney spoke about his own downgrading / upbringing, living on a tobacco farm in the USA and picking tobacco during his school holidays. He said: "Having / Had grown up working on a tobacco farm from the time I was 12, I'm uniquely / unique aware of the complex issues regarding farming and child labour." Nespresso said it has launch / launched a "thorough investigation" and has suspended / suspense all purchases from the plantations. It added: "Nespresso has zero tolerate / tolerance of child labour. It is unacceptable. We will continue to do all we can to stamp out child labour. It has no / not place in our supply chain."

    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)

    T h_ O s c_r - w_n n_n g _c t_r _n d d_r_c t_r G__ r g_ C l__ n_y h_s s p_k_n _b__ t _l l_g_t__ n s _f c h_l d l_b__ r _t t h_ N_s p r_s s_ c_f f__ c_m p_n y , f_r w h_c h h_ _s b r_n d _m b_s s_d_r . C l__ n_y _s _ m_m b_r _f N_s p r_s s_' s s_s t__ n_b_l_t y _d v_s_r y b__ r d , w h_c h __ m s t_ _n s_r_ c_f f__ _s s__ r c_d f r_m _t h_c_l _n d s_s t__ n_b l_ s_p p l__ r s . H_ s__ d : " W_ k n_w _t w_s _ b_g p r_j_c t w h_n _t s t_r t_d s_v_n y__ r s _g_, _n d h_n_s t l y I w_s s_r p r_s_d _n d s_d d_n_d t_ s__ t h_s s t_r y . " A n _n d_r c_v_r _n v_s t_g_t__ n b y t h_ U K T V c_m p_n y C h_n n_l 4 f_l m_d c h_l d r_n _n s_x c_f f__ p l_n t_t__ n s _n G__ t_m_l_ p_c k_n g c_f f__ b__ n s _n d c_r r y_n g l_r g_ s_c k s _f c_f f__ _n t h__ r b_c k s . T h_ f_r m s s_p p l y c_f f__ b__ n s t_ N_s p r_s s_.

    M r C l__ n_y h_s v_w_d t h_t , " w_r k w_l l b_ d_n_" b y N_s p r_s s_ t_ _r_d_c_t_ _n y f_r m s _f c h_l d l_b__ r w_t h_n _t s _p_r_t__ n s . C l__ n_y s p_k_ _b__ t h_s _w n _p b r_n g_n g , l_v_n g _n _ t_b_c c_ f_r m _n t h_ U S A _n d p_c k_n g t_b_c c_ d_r_n g h_s s c h__ l h_l_d_y s . H_ s__ d : " H_v_n g g r_w n _p w_r k_n g _n _ t_b_c c_ f_r m f r_m t h_ t_m_ I w_s 1 2 , I ' m _n_q__ l y _w_r_ _f t h_ c_m p l_x _s s__ s r_g_r d_n g f_r m_n g _n d c h_l d l_b__ r . " N_s p r_s s_ s__ d _t h_s l__ n c h_d _ " t h_r__ g h _n v_s t_g_t__ n " _n d h_s s_s p_n d_d _l l p_r c h_s_s f r_m t h_ p l_n t_t__ n s . I t _d d_d : " N_s p r_s s_ h_s z_r_ t_l_r_n c_ _f c h_l d l_b__ r . I t _s _n_c c_p t_b l_. W_ w_l l c_n t_n__ t_ d_ _l l w_ c_n t_ s t_m p __ t c h_l d l_b__ r . I t h_s n_ p l_c_ _n __ r s_p p l y c h__ n . "

    Punctuate the text and add capitals

    the oscarwinning actor and director george clooney has spoken about allegations of child labour at the nespresso coffee company for which he is brand ambassador clooney is a member of nespressos sustainability advisory board which aims to ensure coffee is sourced from ethical and sustainable suppliers he said we knew it was a big project when it started seven years ago and honestly i was surprised and saddened to see this story an undercover investigation by the uk tv company channel 4 filmed children on six coffee plantations in guatemala picking coffee beans and carrying large sacks of coffee on their backs the farms supply coffee beans to nespresso

    mr clooney has vowed that work will be done by nespresso to eradicate any forms of child labour within its operations clooney spoke about his own upbringing living on a tobacco farm in the usa and picking tobacco during his school holidays he said having grown up working on a tobacco farm from the time i was 12 im uniquely aware of the complex issues regarding farming and child labour nespresso said it has launched a thorough investigation and has suspended all purchases from the plantations it added nespresso has zero tolerance of child labour it is unacceptable we will continue to do all we can to stamp out child labour it has no place in our supply chain

    Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

    TheOscar-winningactoranddirectorGeorgeClooneyhasspokenabou
    tallegationsofchildlabourattheNespressocoffeecompany,forwhichh
    eisbrandambassador.ClooneyisamemberofNespresso'ssustainabilit
    yadvisoryboard,whichaimstoensurecoffeeissourcedfromethicaland
    sustainablesuppliers.Hesaid:"Weknewitwasabigprojectwhenitstart
    edsevenyearsago,andhonestlyIwassurprisedandsaddenedtoseethis
    story."AnundercoverinvestigationbytheUKTVcompanyChannel4fil
    medchildrenonsixcoffeeplantationsinGuatemalapickingcoffeebeans
    andcarryinglargesacksofcoffeeontheirbacks.Thefarmssupplycoffee
    beanstoNespresso.MrClooneyhasvowedthat,"workwillbedone"byNe
    spressotoeradicateanyformsofchildlabourwithinitsoperations.Cloon
    eyspokeabouthisownupbringing,livingonatobaccofarmintheUSAand
    pickingtobaccoduringhisschoolholidays.Hesaid:"Havinggrownupwo
    rkingonatobaccofarmfromthetimeIwas12,I'muniquelyawareofthec
    omplexissuesregardingfarmingandchildlabour."Nespressosaidithas
    launcheda"thoroughinvestigation"andhassuspendedallpurchasesfr
    omtheplantations.Itadded:"Nespressohaszerotoleranceofchildlabo
    ur.Itisunacceptable.Wewillcontinuetodoallwecantostampoutchildla
    bour.Ithasnoplaceinoursupplychain."

    Free writing

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

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    Academic writing

    An international boycott should be imposed on companies using child labour. Discuss.

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    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 this news story. Share what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.
    3. CHILD LABOUR: Make a poster about child labour. Show your work to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all have similar things?
    4. BOYCOTT: Write a magazine article about international boycotts for any company found to be abusing children or anyone else. 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 child labour. Ask him/her three questions about it. Give him/her three of your ideas on what we should do about companies engaged in child labour. 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

    (Please look at page 26 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

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