A big study looked at kids using social media a lot. They found more kids are having problems with it since the pandemic started. They asked almost 280,000 kids from 44 countries about their social media use. In 2022, 11 out of 100 kids had problems with social media, up from 7 out of 100 in 2018. Kids who are 13 years old, especially girls, have the most trouble.

Many kids are online all day talking to friends. Some kids use social media a lot but don’t have problems. But some kids have trouble stopping and it causes fights and lying. They might feel bad if they can’t go online. The study says we need to teach kids how to use social media in a good way.

Original news source: Sharp rise in problematic teenage social media use, study says (BBC)

🎧 Listen:

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Fast

📖 Vocabulary:

Group or Classroom Activities

Warm-up Activities:

– Charades
Instructions: Write down social media-related words on pieces of paper (e.g., like, share, comment, post) and have students pick a word and act it out without speaking while the other students guess what the word is.

– Vocabulary Pictionary
Instructions: Divide the class into teams. Provide each team with a list of social media-related vocabulary words. One student from each team will choose a word and draw it on the board while their team tries to guess the word.

– Opinion Poll
Instructions: Ask students to stand on one side of the room if they agree, and the other side if they disagree with statements related to the article (e.g., “Social media can be harmful to kids”, “Kids should have limits on their social media usage”). Discuss their opinions.

– Headline Creation
Instructions: In pairs or small groups, have students come up with catchy headlines related to the article about kids and social media. Encourage them to include important information or key points from the article in their headlines.

– Think-Pair-Share
Instructions: Have students think about how they use social media or how they have seen others use it. Pair them up to discuss their thoughts, and then share with the class what they discussed. Encourage the use of simple English vocabulary.

🤔 Comprehension Questions:

1. What did a big study look at about kids and social media?
2. How many kids out of 100 had problems with social media in 2022?
3. Who has the most trouble with social media, according to the study?
4. What are some problems that kids might have with social media?
5. What do some kids do all day on social media?
6. Why do some kids have trouble with social media?
7. What does the study say we need to teach kids about social media?
Go to answers ⇩

🎧✍️ Listen and Fill in the Gaps:

A big (1)______ looked at kids using social (2)______ a lot. They found more kids are having problems with it since the pandemic started. They asked almost 280,000 kids from 44 countries about their (3)______ media use. In 2022, 11 out of 100 kids had problems with social media, up from 7 out of 100 in 2018. Kids who are 13 (4)______ old, especially girls, have the most trouble.

(5)______ kids are online all day (6)______ to friends. Some kids use social media a lot but don’t have problems. But some kids have trouble stopping and it (7)______ fights and lying. They might feel bad if they can’t go online. The study (8)______ we need to teach kids how to use social media in a good way.
Go to answers ⇩

💬 Discussion Questions:

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

1. What is social media?
2. Do you like talking to your friends online?
3. How would you feel if you couldn’t go online?
4. Do you think it’s important to use social media in a good way? Why or why not?
5. What kind of problems can happen if you use social media too much?
6. How do you feel when you see something bad on social media?
7. Do you know anyone who uses social media a lot? How do they feel about it?
8. Why is it important to teach kids how to use social media well?
9. What do you do if you see something that makes you feel bad online?
10. How can we make sure social media doesn’t cause fights or lying?
11. Do you think kids should ask for help if they have problems with social media? Why or why not?
12. How do you think we can balance using social media and doing other fun things?

Individual Activities

📖💭 Vocabulary Meanings:

Match each word to its meaning.

Words:
1. pandemic
2. countries
3. especially
4. trouble
5. problems
6. online
7. fights
8. lying
9. teach
10. study

Meanings:
(A) When you look at something carefully to learn about it
(B) Things that are wrong or make you upset
(C) Using the internet or being on a computer
(D) When people are angry and argue or hit each other
(E) Not telling the truth
(F) To show someone how to do something
(G) Places like the USA, France, and Japan
(H) More than usual, very much
(I) When things are hard or not easy
(J) A time when lots of people get sick all over the world
Go to answers ⇩

🔡 Multiple Choice Questions:

1. What did the big study look at?
(a) Kids playing outside
(b) Kids reading books
(c) Kids using social media
(d) Kids eating ice cream

2. How many kids were asked in the study?
(a) Almost 100
(b) Almost 50
(c) Almost 280,000
(d) Almost 500

3. How many kids out of 100 had problems with social media in 2022?
(a) 11
(b) 5
(c) 20
(d) 2

4. Which age group of kids has the most trouble with social media?
(a) 8 years old
(b) 13 years old
(c) 5 years old
(d) 18 years old

5. What might happen if kids have trouble stopping using social media?
(a) Eating ice cream
(b) Fights and lying
(c) Playing outside
(d) Reading books

6. What do some kids feel if they can’t go online?
(a) Happy
(b) Excited
(c) Sleepy
(d) Bad

7. What does the study say we need to teach kids?
(a) How to use social media in a good way
(b) How to eat ice cream
(c) How to play outside
(d) How to read books

8. What are some kids doing all day online?
(a) Eating pizza
(b) Watching TV
(c) Sleeping
(d) Talking to friends

Go to answers ⇩

🕵️ True or False Questions:

1. 13-year-old kids, especially girls, have the most trouble with social media.
2. In 2022, 11 out of 100 kids had problems with social media.
3. Almost 280,000 adults from 44 countries were asked about their social media use.
4. The study says we don’t need to teach kids how to use social media in a good way.
5. Some kids are offline all day talking to friends.
6. This number went down from 7 out of 100 in 2018.
7. A study looked at many kids who use social media a lot.
8. More kids are having problems with social media since the pandemic started.
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 a big study look at about kids and social media?
2. How many kids out of 100 had problems with social media in 2022?

✅ Answers

🤔✅ Comprehension Question Answers:

1. What did a big study look at about kids and social media?
The study looked at how kids use social media.

2. How many kids out of 100 had problems with social media in 2022?
11 out of 100 kids had problems with social media in 2022.

3. Who has the most trouble with social media, according to the study?
Kids who are 13 years old, especially girls, have the most trouble with social media.

4. What are some problems that kids might have with social media?
Some problems kids might have with social media are fights, lying, and feeling bad when they can’t go online.

5. What do some kids do all day on social media?
Some kids spend all day talking to friends on social media.

6. Why do some kids have trouble with social media?
Some kids have trouble with social media because they find it hard to stop using it and it can cause fights and lying.

7. What does the study say we need to teach kids about social media?
The study says we need to teach kids how to use social media in a good way.
Go back to questions ⇧

🎧✍️✅ Listen and Fill in the Gaps Answers:

(1) study
(2) media
(3) social
(4) years
(5) Many
(6) talking
(7) causes
(8) says
Go back to questions ⇧

📖💭✅ Vocabulary Meanings Answers:

1. pandemic
Answer: (J) A time when lots of people get sick all over the world

2. countries
Answer: (G) Places like the USA, France, and Japan

3. especially
Answer: (H) More than usual, very much

4. trouble
Answer: (I) When things are hard or not easy

5. problems
Answer: (B) Things that are wrong or make you upset

6. online
Answer: (C) Using the internet or being on a computer

7. fights
Answer: (D) When people are angry and argue or hit each other

8. lying
Answer: (E) Not telling the truth

9. teach
Answer: (F) To show someone how to do something

10. study
Answer: (A) When you look at something carefully to learn about it
Go back to questions ⇧

🔡✅ Multiple Choice Answers:

1. What did the big study look at?
Answer: (c) Kids using social media

2. How many kids were asked in the study?
Answer: (c) Almost 280,000

3. How many kids out of 100 had problems with social media in 2022?
Answer: (a) 11

4. Which age group of kids has the most trouble with social media?
Answer: (b) 13 years old

5. What might happen if kids have trouble stopping using social media?
Answer: (b) Fights and lying

6. What do some kids feel if they can’t go online?
Answer: (d) Bad

7. What does the study say we need to teach kids?
Answer: (a) How to use social media in a good way

8. What are some kids doing all day online?
Answer: (d) Talking to friends
Go back to questions ⇧

🕵️✅ True or False Answers:

1. 13-year-old kids, especially girls, have the most trouble with social media. (Answer: True)
2. In 2022, 11 out of 100 kids had problems with social media. (Answer: True)
3. Almost 280,000 adults from 44 countries were asked about their social media use. (Answer: False)
4. The study says we don’t need to teach kids how to use social media in a good way. (Answer: False)
5. Some kids are offline all day talking to friends. (Answer: False)
6. This number went down from 7 out of 100 in 2018. (Answer: False)
7. A study looked at many kids who use social media a lot. (Answer: True)
8. More kids are having problems with social media since the pandemic started. (Answer: True)
Go back to questions ⇧