Many people are using “monk mode” to use less social media and do more work. Monk mode means doing one thing and not letting phones or computers distract you. This idea is getting more popular, and many people are talking about it on TikTok. There are apps like Freedom, ColdTurkey, FocusMe, and Forest that help people stay away from social media or the internet for some time.

Social media can be very distracting and make it hard to focus. Grace Marshall, a writer and coach, says that things like work emails can be a big problem. She thinks that jobs should have rules about when people need to answer emails to help them balance work and life. Fred Stutzman, who made the Freedom app, says that social media is made to be very interesting and hard to stop using. He thinks that as we get more and more technology, monk mode will become even more important.

Original news source: The people going ‘monk mode’ to limit social media use (BBC)

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Group or Classroom Activities

Warm-up Activities:

– Charades
Instructions: Divide the class into two teams. Each team takes turns choosing a word or phrase related to the article and acting it out without speaking. The other team must guess what they are trying to convey. The team with the most correct guesses wins.

– News Summary
Instructions: In pairs, students take turns summarizing the main points of the article to their partner. Encourage them to use their own words and keep their summaries concise. After both students have shared, they can compare their summaries and discuss any differences or similarities.

– Opinion Poll
Instructions: Create a list of statements related to the article, such as “Using social media is always a distraction.” Have students individually indicate whether they agree or disagree with each statement. Then, divide the class into small groups and have them discuss their opinions and reasons for their choices. Finally, have each group share their findings with the class.

– Vocabulary Pictionary
Instructions: Write a list of vocabulary words from the article on separate slips of paper. Have students take turns choosing a word and drawing a picture to represent it on the board. The rest of the class must guess the word based on the drawing. This activity reinforces vocabulary while also practicing listening and speaking skills.

– Pros and Cons
Instructions: Divide the class into small groups and give each group a topic related to the article, such as “Benefits of using monk mode” or “Drawbacks of social media.” Have students discuss and list as many pros or cons as they can think of within a given time limit. Afterward, each group can share their lists with the class and discuss their reasoning behind each point. This activity encourages critical thinking and promotes group discussion.

Comprehension Questions:

1. What does “monk mode” mean?
2. Why do people use apps like Freedom and Forest?
3. Why is social media distracting?
4. What does Grace Marshall think about work emails?
5. Why does Fred Stutzman think monk mode is important?
6. Can you give an example of a distracting thing on social media?
7. How do apps like Freedom help people stay away from social media?
Go to answers ⇩

Listen and Fill in the Gaps:

Many people are using “monk mode” to use less social media and do more work. (1)______ mode means doing one thing and not letting (2)______ or computers distract you. This idea is getting more popular, and many people are talking about it on (3)______. There are (4)______ like Freedom, ColdTurkey, FocusMe, and Forest that help people stay away from social media or the internet for some time.

Social media can be very distracting and make it hard to focus. Grace Marshall, a writer and (5)______, (6)______ that things like work emails can be a big problem. She thinks that jobs should have rules about when people need to answer emails to help them balance work and life. Fred Stutzman, who made the Freedom app, says that social media is made to be very interesting and hard to stop using. He thinks that as we get more and more technology, (7)______ mode will (8)______ even more important.
Go to answers ⇩

Discussion Questions:

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

1. What is “monk mode”?
2. How would you feel if you couldn’t use your phone or computer for a whole day?
3. Do you like using social media? Why or why not?
4. What are some apps that can help you stay away from social media?
5. How does social media make it hard to focus?
6. Do you think jobs should have rules about answering work emails? Why or why not?
7. What do you think about the idea of “monk mode”?
8. How do you feel when you use social media too much?
9. Have you ever tried using an app to help you stay away from social media? How did it work?
10. What do you think will happen as we get more technology?
11. How do you balance work and life?
12. What are some other things that can distract you from doing work?

Individual Activities

Vocabulary Meanings:

Match each word to its meaning.

Words:
1. monk mode
2. social media
3. distract
4. popular
5. TikTok
6. apps
7. focus
8. technology

Meanings:
(a) A way of working without being interrupted
(b) To pay attention to one thing and not get distracted
(c) Programs on your phone or computer that help you do something
(d) Things like phones and computers that use electricity
(e) A popular video-sharing app
(f) To take your attention away from something
(g) Websites and apps like Facebook and Instagram
(h) Liked by many people
Go to answers ⇩

Multiple Choice Questions:

1. What is “monk mode”?
(a) Using social media all the time
(b) Watching TV and playing video games
(c) Doing one thing and not letting phones or computers distract you
(d) Going on vacation

2. What are some apps that help people stay away from social media?
(a) Freedom, ColdTurkey, FocusMe, and Forest
(b) TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter
(c) Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, and YouTube
(d) Google, Microsoft, Apple, and Amazon

3. Why can social media be distracting?
(a) It helps people stay organized
(b) It makes work emails easier to answer
(c) It helps people balance work and life
(d) It makes it hard to focus

4. Who thinks that jobs should have rules about when people need to answer emails?
(a) Fred Stutzman
(b) A writer and coach
(c) Someone who made the Freedom app
(d) Grace Marshall

5. Why does Fred Stutzman think monk mode will become more important?
(a) Because people don’t like using technology
(b) Because social media is made to be very interesting and hard to stop using
(c) Because people want to use social media all the time
(d) Because people want to answer work emails all the time

6. What is the purpose of the apps like Freedom, ColdTurkey, FocusMe, and Forest?
(a) To help people stay away from social media or the internet for some time
(b) To help people use social media more often
(c) To help people answer work emails
(d) To help people balance work and life

7. What is the main idea of the article?
(a) Social media is not distracting at all
(b) Jobs should not have rules about when people need to answer emails
(c) Many people are using “monk mode” to use less social media and do more work
(d) Monk mode is not important

8. How do people use “monk mode”?
(a) By using social media all the time
(b) By doing one thing and not letting phones or computers distract them
(c) By watching TV and playing video games
(d) By going on vacation

Go to answers ⇩

True or False Questions:

1. As technology increases, monk mode will become even more important.
2. Fred Stutzman, who made the Freedom app, says that social media is made to be very interesting and hard to stop using.
3. Many people are using monk mode to use less social media and do more work.
4. Grace Marshall, a writer and coach, thinks that jobs should have no rules about when people need to answer emails.
5. Work emails can be a pleasant experience and enhance people’s work.
6. There are no apps like Freedom, ColdTurkey, FocusMe, and Forest that help people stay away from social media or the internet.
7. Social media can be very distracting and make it hard to focus.
8. Monk mode means doing multiple things and allowing phones or computers to distract you.
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 is monk mode?
2. What are some apps that can help people stay away from social media?
3. Why can social media be distracting?
4. What does Grace Marshall think is a big problem with work emails?
5. Why does Fred Stutzman think monk mode will become more important in the future?

Answers

Comprehension Question Answers:

1. What does “monk mode” mean?
Monk mode means focusing on one thing and not getting distracted by phones or computers.

2. Why do people use apps like Freedom and Forest?
People use apps like Freedom and Forest to help them stay away from social media and the internet, so they can focus on their work.

3. Why is social media distracting?
Social media is distracting because it can be very interesting and make it hard to stop using. It can also make it difficult to focus on other things.

4. What does Grace Marshall think about work emails?
Grace Marshall thinks that work emails can be a big problem because they can distract people from their work and make it hard to balance work and life.

5. Why does Fred Stutzman think monk mode is important?
Fred Stutzman thinks monk mode is important because as we get more and more technology, it becomes even harder to stay focused and avoid distractions. Monk mode helps people stay on track and be more productive.

6. Can you give an example of a distracting thing on social media?
Sure! One example of a distracting thing on social media is when you start looking at cute cat videos and then you end up spending hours watching funny animal videos instead of doing your homework.

7. How do apps like Freedom help people stay away from social media?
Apps like Freedom help people stay away from social media by blocking access to social media websites and apps for a certain period of time. This way, people are not tempted to check their social media accounts and can focus on their work or other tasks.
Go back to questions ⇧

Listen and Fill in the Gaps Answers:

(1) Monk
(2) phones
(3) TikTok
(4) apps
(5) coach
(6) says
(7) monk
(8) become
Go back to questions ⇧

Vocabulary Meanings Answers:

1. monk mode
Answer: (a) A way of working without being interrupted

2. social media
Answer: (g) Websites and apps like Facebook and Instagram

3. distract
Answer: (f) To take your attention away from something

4. popular
Answer: (h) Liked by many people

5. TikTok
Answer: (e) A popular video-sharing app

6. apps
Answer: (c) Programs on your phone or computer that help you do something

7. focus
Answer: (b) To pay attention to one thing and not get distracted

8. technology
Answer: (d) Things like phones and computers that use electricity
Go back to questions ⇧

Multiple Choice Answers:

1. What is “monk mode”?
Answer: (c) Doing one thing and not letting phones or computers distract you

2. What are some apps that help people stay away from social media?
Answer: (a) Freedom, ColdTurkey, FocusMe, and Forest

3. Why can social media be distracting?
Answer: (d) It makes it hard to focus

4. Who thinks that jobs should have rules about when people need to answer emails?
Answer: (d) Grace Marshall

5. Why does Fred Stutzman think monk mode will become more important?
Answer: (b) Because social media is made to be very interesting and hard to stop using

6. What is the purpose of the apps like Freedom, ColdTurkey, FocusMe, and Forest?
Answer: (a) To help people stay away from social media or the internet for some time

7. What is the main idea of the article?
Answer: (c) Many people are using “monk mode” to use less social media and do more work

8. How do people use “monk mode”?
Answer: (b) By doing one thing and not letting phones or computers distract them
Go back to questions ⇧

True or False Answers:

1. As technology increases, monk mode will become even more important. (Answer: True)
2. Fred Stutzman, who made the Freedom app, says that social media is made to be very interesting and hard to stop using. (Answer: True)
3. Many people are using monk mode to use less social media and do more work. (Answer: True)
4. Grace Marshall, a writer and coach, thinks that jobs should have no rules about when people need to answer emails. (Answer: False)
5. Work emails can be a pleasant experience and enhance people’s work. (Answer: False)
6. There are no apps like Freedom, ColdTurkey, FocusMe, and Forest that help people stay away from social media or the internet. (Answer: False)
7. Social media can be very distracting and make it hard to focus. (Answer: True)
8. Monk mode means doing multiple things and allowing phones or computers to distract you. (Answer: False)
Go back to questions ⇧