Two people from Italy, Silvia and Simone, made a website called Ecobnb because they wanted to find places to stay that are good for the Earth. Their website shows more than 3,000 places to stay that do things like use energy from the sun or wind, serve food that is grown nearby, and clean without using harmful chemicals. A lot of people are using their website to find places to stay when they travel. The two people who made the website think that more and more people, especially young ones, want to take care of the Earth when they go on vacation.

There is a group of hotels in the Netherlands called Conscious Hotels that also care about the Earth. They use energy that doesn’t hurt the Earth, have furniture that is good for the Earth, and only serve food that doesn’t have meat. The boss of these hotels says it’s important to think about how hotels can hurt plants, animals, and the land. He also says more people are picking hotels that are good for the Earth because they want to help keep the Earth safe. Another company that helps people travel without flying is getting more popular because it helps stop too many tourists from going to the same place and helps the people who live there.

Even though there are more places to stay that are good for the Earth, a teacher named Marina says we need to be careful. Some places might say they are good for the Earth, but they’re not really, so we need to ask questions. Silvia from Ecobnb knows that flying in airplanes is bad for the Earth, so she says it’s better to have vacations close to home. She is happy because she sees more people wanting to live in ways that are good for the Earth, even when they go on vacation.

Original news source: Tourists are rethinking their relationship with Earth’ (BBC)

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Group or Classroom Activities

Warm-up Activities:

– Opinion Poll
Instructions: Create a list of statements related to environmental practices in tourism, such as “It’s important to stay in eco-friendly accommodations when traveling.” Ask students to move to different areas of the room based on whether they strongly agree, agree, are neutral, disagree, or strongly disagree with each statement. After each statement, have a brief class discussion on the reasons behind their choices.

– Vocabulary Pictionary
Instructions: Write down key vocabulary from the article on individual slips of paper (e.g., “sustainable,” “eco-friendly,” “solar energy,” “local produce,” “chemical-free”). Divide students into two teams. A student from one team draws a slip and sketches the word on the board without speaking or writing letters or numbers. Their team has to guess the word within a time limit. Rotate between teams for each word.

– News Reporter Role-play
Instructions: Students pair up and take on the roles of a news reporter and an eco-hotel owner. The reporter interviews the hotel owner about their eco-friendly practices, using questions derived from the article’s content. The owner must respond with information that aligns with the practices mentioned in the article. Afterward, students can switch roles.

– Future Predictions
Instructions: Based on the article, ask students to imagine the future of travel and write down their predictions. They can consider questions such as “Will eco-friendly travel become more popular?” and “What new eco-friendly practices might we see in the future?” After writing, they share their predictions with a partner and discuss which ones they think are most likely to happen.

– Sketch It
Instructions: Select key phrases or sentences from the article that describe an action or scene (e.g., “use energy from the sun or wind,” “serve food that is grown nearby”). Students have to draw a quick sketch representing that phrase or sentence. Then, they show their sketches to the class or a partner, who tries to guess the phrase or sentence from the article that inspired the drawing.

Comprehension Questions:

1. What did Silvia and Simone create and what is it called?
2. What are some of the things the places on Ecobnb’s website do to be good for the Earth?
3. How many places to stay are listed on Ecobnb’s website?
4. What special things does Conscious Hotels in the Netherlands do to help the Earth?
5. Why is the hotel boss in the Netherlands worried about hotels?
6. What does the company that helps people travel without flying do to protect places from too many tourists?
7. What does Silvia suggest people should do instead of flying to help the Earth?
Go to answers ⇩

Listen and Fill in the Gaps:

Two people from Italy, Silvia and Simone, made a (1)______ (2)______ Ecobnb because they wanted to find places to stay that are good for the Earth. Their website shows more than 3,000 places to stay that do things like use energy from the sun or wind, serve food that is grown nearby, and (3)______ without using harmful chemicals. A lot of people are using their website to find places to stay when they travel. The two people who made the website think that more and more people, especially (4)______ ones, want to take care of the Earth when they go on vacation.

There is a group of hotels in the Netherlands called Conscious Hotels that also care about the Earth. They use (5)______ that doesn’t hurt the Earth, have furniture that is good for the Earth, and only serve food that doesn’t have meat. The (6)______ of these hotels says it’s important to think about how hotels can (7)______ plants, animals, and the land. He also says (8)______ people are picking hotels that are good for the Earth because they want to help keep the Earth safe. Another company that helps people (9)______ without flying is getting more popular because it helps stop too many tourists from going to the same place and helps the people who live there.

Even though there are more places to stay that are good for the Earth, a teacher named Marina says we need to be careful. Some places might say they are good for the Earth, but they’re not really, so we need to ask questions. Silvia from Ecobnb (10)______ that flying in (11)______ is bad for the Earth, so she says it’s better to have vacations close to home. She is happy because she sees more people (12)______ to live in ways that are good for the Earth, even when they go on vacation.
Go to answers ⇩

Discussion Questions:

Students can ask a partner these questions, or discuss them as a group.

1. What is an “eco-friendly” hotel?
2. Do you like the idea of staying in a place that is good for the Earth? Why or why not?
3. How would you feel if you stayed at a hotel that uses energy from the sun?
4. Have you ever eaten food that is grown nearby where you live? Did it taste different from other food?
5. What do you think about hotels that don’t serve meat? Would you like to eat there?
6. Why do you think it is important for hotels to be careful about plants, animals, and the land?
7. Do you think more young people care about the Earth when they travel? Why do you think that?
8. Have you ever seen too many tourists in one place? What problems can that cause?
9. What is a vacation that is close to home? Would you like to have a vacation like that?
10. Can you think of a question you would ask a hotel to find out if they are really good for the Earth?
11. Do you think it’s a good idea to travel without flying in airplanes? Why or why not?
12. Do you try to live in ways that are good for the Earth? Can you share one thing you do to help the Earth?

Individual Activities

Vocabulary Meanings:

Match each word to its meaning.

Words:
1. website
2. Earth
3. stay
4. energy
5. food
6. hotels
7. popular
8. vacation

Meanings:
(a) Places where people can sleep when they are away from home
(b) Power that makes things work
(c) Liked by many people
(d) A time when you are not at school or work
(e) The planet we live on
(f) To spend time in a place away from home
(g) A place on the internet where you can find information
(h) What we eat to give us energy
Go to answers ⇩

Multiple Choice Questions:

1. Why did Silvia and Simone create the website Ecobnb?
(a) They wanted to find places to stay that are good for the Earth.
(b) They wanted to make money.
(c) They wanted to travel the world.
(d) They wanted to learn about different cultures.

2. What does Ecobnb show on their website?
(a) More than 3,000 places to stay that are expensive.
(b) More than 3,000 places to stay that are good for the Earth.
(c) More than 3,000 places to stay that have swimming pools.
(d) More than 3,000 places to stay that have big TVs.

3. What are some things that the hotels in the Netherlands called Conscious Hotels do to help the Earth?
(a) Use energy that doesn’t hurt the Earth, have furniture that is good for the Earth, and only serve food that doesn’t have meat.
(b) Use energy that hurts the Earth, have furniture that is bad for the Earth, and only serve food that has meat.
(c) Use energy that doesn’t hurt the Earth, have furniture that is bad for the Earth, and only serve food that has meat.
(d) Use energy that hurts the Earth, have furniture that is good for the Earth, and only serve food that doesn’t have meat.

4. Why do more people choose hotels that are good for the Earth?
(a) They want to save money.
(b) They want to eat good food.
(c) They want to help keep the Earth safe.
(d) They want to meet new people.

5. What does the company mentioned in the article do to help people travel without flying?
(a) It helps people find cheap flights.
(b) It helps people find the best hotels.
(c) It helps stop too many tourists from going to the same place and helps the people who live there.
(d) It helps people learn about different cultures.

6. What does Marina, the teacher, say we need to be careful about?
(a) Some places that say they are good for the Earth are always good for the Earth.
(b) Some places that say they are good for the Earth might not be.
(c) All places that say they are good for the Earth are good for the Earth.
(d) No places that say they are good for the Earth are good for the Earth.

7. Why does Silvia from Ecobnb think it’s better to have vacations close to home?
(a) Flying in airplanes is good for the Earth.
(b) Having vacations close to home is more expensive.
(c) Having vacations close to home is more boring.
(d) Flying in airplanes is bad for the Earth.

8. What makes Silvia happy?
(a) More people wanting to live in ways that are bad for the Earth, even when they go on vacation.
(b) More people wanting to travel far away.
(c) More people wanting to stay in expensive hotels.
(d) More people wanting to live in ways that are good for the Earth, even when they go on vacation.

Go to answers ⇩

True or False Questions:

1. Marina, a teacher, warns that some places may claim to be eco-friendly but may actually be, so it’s not important to ask questions or be cautious.
2. The boss of Conscious Hotels believes that fewer people are choosing eco-friendly hotels to help protect the environment.
3. Ecobnb features over 3,000 accommodations that use renewable energy, serve locally grown food, and use eco-friendly cleaning products.
4. Conscious Hotels in the Netherlands are committed to sustainability by using renewable energy, eco-friendly furniture, and serving vegetarian food.
5. Silvia and Simone created a website called Ecobnb to help people find environmentally-friendly places to stay.
6. The creators of Ecobnb believe that more and more people, especially young ones, are interested in taking care of the Earth during their vacations.
7. Many people are not using Ecobnb to find sustainable places to stay while traveling.
8. A company that promotes flying travel is gaining popularity as it helps increase overcrowding in tourist destinations and does not support local communities.
Go to answers ⇩

Write a Summary:

Write a summary of this news article in two sentences.

Writing Questions:

Answer the following questions. Write as much as you can for each answer.

1. What did Silvia and Simone create and why?
2. What are some things the places on Ecobnb’s website do to be good for the Earth?
3. What does the boss of Conscious Hotels say about picking hotels?
4. Why is the company that helps people travel without flying becoming more popular?
5. What does Silvia from Ecobnb suggest about vacations and flying?

Answers

Comprehension Question Answers:

1. What did Silvia and Simone create and what is it called?
Silvia and Simone created a website called Ecobnb that helps people find places to stay that are good for the Earth.

2. What are some of the things the places on Ecobnb’s website do to be good for the Earth?
The places on Ecobnb’s website use energy from the sun or wind, serve food that is grown close by, and clean without using bad chemicals.

3. How many places to stay are listed on Ecobnb’s website?
There are more than 3,000 places to stay listed on Ecobnb’s website.

4. What special things does Conscious Hotels in the Netherlands do to help the Earth?
Conscious Hotels uses energy that doesn’t hurt the Earth, has furniture that is good for the Earth, and they only serve food that doesn’t have meat.

5. Why is the hotel boss in the Netherlands worried about hotels?
The hotel boss is worried because hotels can hurt plants, animals, and the land.

6. What does the company that helps people travel without flying do to protect places from too many tourists?
The company that helps people travel without flying keeps too many tourists from going to the same place and helps the people who live there.

7. What does Silvia suggest people should do instead of flying to help the Earth?
Silvia suggests that people should have vacations close to home instead of flying to help the Earth.
Go back to questions ⇧

Listen and Fill in the Gaps Answers:

(1) website
(2) called
(3) clean
(4) young
(5) energy
(6) boss
(7) hurt
(8) more
(9) travel
(10) knows
(11) airplanes
(12) wanting
Go back to questions ⇧

Vocabulary Meanings Answers:

1. website
Answer: (g) A place on the internet where you can find information

2. Earth
Answer: (e) The planet we live on

3. stay
Answer: (f) To spend time in a place away from home

4. energy
Answer: (b) Power that makes things work

5. food
Answer: (h) What we eat to give us energy

6. hotels
Answer: (a) Places where people can sleep when they are away from home

7. popular
Answer: (c) Liked by many people

8. vacation
Answer: (d) A time when you are not at school or work
Go back to questions ⇧

Multiple Choice Answers:

1. Why did Silvia and Simone create the website Ecobnb?
Answer: (a) They wanted to find places to stay that are good for the Earth.

2. What does Ecobnb show on their website?
Answer: (b) More than 3,000 places to stay that are good for the Earth.

3. What are some things that the hotels in the Netherlands called Conscious Hotels do to help the Earth?
Answer: (a) Use energy that doesn’t hurt the Earth, have furniture that is good for the Earth, and only serve food that doesn’t have meat.

4. Why do more people choose hotels that are good for the Earth?
Answer: (c) They want to help keep the Earth safe.

5. What does the company mentioned in the article do to help people travel without flying?
Answer: (c) It helps stop too many tourists from going to the same place and helps the people who live there.

6. What does Marina, the teacher, say we need to be careful about?
Answer: (b) Some places that say they are good for the Earth might not be.

7. Why does Silvia from Ecobnb think it’s better to have vacations close to home?
Answer: (d) Flying in airplanes is bad for the Earth.

8. What makes Silvia happy?
Answer: (d) More people wanting to live in ways that are good for the Earth, even when they go on vacation.
Go back to questions ⇧

True or False Answers:

1. Marina, a teacher, warns that some places may claim to be eco-friendly but may actually be, so it’s not important to ask questions or be cautious. (Answer: False)
2. The boss of Conscious Hotels believes that fewer people are choosing eco-friendly hotels to help protect the environment. (Answer: False)
3. Ecobnb features over 3,000 accommodations that use renewable energy, serve locally grown food, and use eco-friendly cleaning products. (Answer: True)
4. Conscious Hotels in the Netherlands are committed to sustainability by using renewable energy, eco-friendly furniture, and serving vegetarian food. (Answer: True)
5. Silvia and Simone created a website called Ecobnb to help people find environmentally-friendly places to stay. (Answer: True)
6. The creators of Ecobnb believe that more and more people, especially young ones, are interested in taking care of the Earth during their vacations. (Answer: True)
7. Many people are not using Ecobnb to find sustainable places to stay while traveling. (Answer: False)
8. A company that promotes flying travel is gaining popularity as it helps increase overcrowding in tourist destinations and does not support local communities. (Answer: False)
Go back to questions ⇧