A bank in Ethiopia called the Commercial Bank of Ethiopia (CBE) had a problem where people could take out more money than they had. The bank lost $14 million because of this mistake. But they got back $10 million because many people returned the extra money they took. The bank said if people didn't return the money, they would have to face the law.
Most of the people who took extra money were students at universities. They found out about the bank's mistake from messages and calls. The bank is now telling the police about the people who haven't given back the money. They said it's easier to find money that was moved to another account in the same bank than to a different bank.
The CBE is a very old and big bank with lots of people using it. They didn't say exactly how the mistake happened but told everyone that their money in the bank was safe. They are still working to fix the problem and make sure all the money is returned.
Original news source: Customers return $10m taken during bank glitch (BBC)
π§ Listen:
π Vocabulary:
Group or Classroom Activities
Warm-up Activities:
– Headline Creation
Instructions: In pairs or small groups, students will create a catchy headline for the news article. They should aim to capture the main idea of the article in a concise and attention-grabbing way. After brainstorming, each group will share their headline with the class and explain their choice.
– Vocabulary Pictionary
Instructions: Divide the class into two teams. Give each team a set of vocabulary words from the article. One student from each team will come to the front of the class and draw a picture to represent one of the words. The team members must guess the word within a certain time limit. The team that guesses the most words correctly wins.
– Opinion Poll
Instructions: Students will form small groups and discuss their opinions on the bank's actions and the people who took extra money. They can discuss questions such as: Do you think the people who took extra money should be punished? Why or why not? Should the bank have been more careful with their money? Each group will share their opinions with the class and a class-wide discussion can follow.
– Charades
Instructions: Write down different actions related to the article on small pieces of paper and put them in a hat. One student will come to the front of the class and choose a paper from the hat. Without speaking, they must act out the action for the class to guess. The student who guesses correctly will then come up to act out the next action.
– Future Predictions
Instructions: In pairs, students will discuss what they think will happen in the future regarding the bank's situation. They can consider questions such as: Will all the money be returned? Will the bank change its policies to prevent this from happening again? Each pair will share their predictions with the class.
π€ Comprehension Questions:
People could take out more money than they had.
The bank lost $14 million.
The bank got back $10 million.
The bank said people would have to face the law if they didn't return the money.
Most of the people who took extra money were students at universities.
The students found out about the bank's mistake from messages and calls.
It is easier for the bank to find money that was moved to another account in the same bank because they have access to all the information within their own bank.
π§βοΈ Listen and Fill in the Gaps:
A bank in Ethiopia called the Bank of Ethiopia (CBE) had a problem where people could take out more than they had. The bank lost $14 million because of this . But they got back $10 million because many people returned the money they . The said if people didn't return the money, they would have to face the law. Most of the people who took extra money were students at universities. They found out about the bank's mistake from messages and . The bank is now the police about the people who haven't given back the money. They said it's to find money that was moved to another account in the same bank than to a different bank. The CBE is a very old and big bank with lots of using it. They didn't say exactly how the mistake happened but everyone that their money in the bank was safe. They are still working to fix the and make sure all the money is returned.
π¬ Discussion Questions:
1. What is a bank?
2. How would you feel if you took extra money from a bank by mistake?
3. Do you think it's important to return money that doesn't belong to you? Why or why not?
4. Have you ever made a mistake with money? What happened?
5. Do you think it's fair for the bank to involve the police in this situation? Why or why not?
6. How do you think the bank can prevent this kind of mistake from happening again?
7. Do you think the people who returned the extra money should be rewarded? Why or why not?
8. Have you ever received a message or call about something important? What was it about?
9. How do you think the students found out about the bank's mistake?
10. Do you like using banks? Why or why not?
11. What do you think the bank means when they say they are working to fix the problem?
12. How important do you think it is for banks to keep people's money safe? Why?
Individual Activities
ππ Vocabulary Meanings:
Click a dot next to a word, then click the dot next to its meaning to draw a line connecting them.
Words
Meanings
π‘ Multiple Choice Questions:
π΅οΈ True or False Questions:
π Write a Summary:
Write a summary of this news article in two sentences.
Check your writing now with the best free AI for English writing!












