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Woman Throws Food, Gets Second Chance at Work

Ohio woman convicted of assault for throwing a burrito bowl at a Chipotle worker sentenced to work at a fast-food job for two months.
   

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A woman did something very bad at a food place. She threw her food at the person who made it. The woman was supposed to pay money and go to a place where people are kept for doing bad things. But the person who decides what happens to people who do bad things said she could work at a food place instead. She said she was sorry for being mean.

The worker who got food thrown at her was very scared. She doesn’t work at the food place anymore. She was trying to help another worker who was being yelled at. People are giving money to help the scared worker. They have given a lot of money to make her feel better.

Original news source: Woman who assaulted Chipotle worker sentenced to fast food job for two months (BBC)

Listen:

Slow

Normal

Fast

Vocabulary:

1badNot good or nice
2personA human being
3moneySomething you use to buy things
4placeA location or area
5workDoing a job or task
6sorryFeeling bad for something you did wrong
7scaredFeeling afraid or frightened
8helpAssisting or aiding someone
9workerSomeone who has a job
10moneyCoins or bills that you can use to buy things

Group or Classroom Activities

Warm-up Activities:

– Charades
Instructions: Divide the class into two teams. Write down key words from the article on separate pieces of paper and put them in a hat. One student from each team will take turns picking a word from the hat and acting it out without speaking. The team members must guess the word within a certain time limit. The team with the most correct guesses wins.

– News Summary
Instructions: Give each student a copy of the article. In pairs or small groups, students take turns summarizing the article to their partner/group. Encourage them to use their own words and focus on the main points. Afterward, ask students to share their summaries with the whole class.

– Opinion Poll
Instructions: Write two statements on the board: “Throwing food at someone is wrong” and “Working at a food place instead of going to jail is a fair punishment.” Have students stand on opposite sides of the classroom to indicate their opinion. Ask each student to explain their reasoning to a partner. Then, have a few students share their opinions with the whole class.

– Vocabulary Pictionary
Instructions: Write down key words from the article on separate pieces of paper. Divide the class into pairs. One student from each pair will pick a word and draw a picture representing it, while their partner tries to guess the word. Students can only use gestures and drawings, no speaking allowed. The pair with the most correct guesses wins.

– Future Predictions
Instructions: Ask students to imagine what might happen next in the story. Have them write down one or two sentences predicting the future outcome. Then, have students share their predictions in pairs or small groups. Encourage them to use the future tense and express their opinions.

Comprehension Questions:

1. What did the woman do at the food place?
2. Where was the woman supposed to go for doing something bad?
3. What did the person who decides what happens to people say the woman could do instead?
4. What did the worker who got food thrown at her feel?
5. Why doesn’t the scared worker work at the food place anymore?
6. What are people giving to help the scared worker?
7. Why are people giving money to the scared worker?
Go to answers ⇩

Listen and Fill in the Gaps:

A woman did something very bad at a (1)______ place. She (2)______ her food at the person who made it. The woman was supposed to pay money and go to a place where people are (3)______ for doing bad things. But the person who decides what happens to people who do bad things (4)______ she could work at a food place instead. She said she was (5)______ for being mean.

The worker who got food thrown at her was very scared. She doesn’t work at the food (6)______ anymore. She was trying to help another worker who was being (7)______ at. (8)______ are giving money to help the scared worker. They have given a lot of money to make her feel better.
Go to answers ⇩

Discussion Questions:

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

1. What did the woman do at the food place?
2. How do you think the worker who got food thrown at her felt?
3. Have you ever seen someone being mean to another person?
4. What do you think the person who decides what happens to people who do bad things should have done to the woman?
5. How would you feel if someone threw food at you?
6. Do you think the scared worker should have quit her job? Why or why not?
7. Have you ever helped someone who was being yelled at?
8. Do you like it when people help each other?
9. What do you think about people giving money to help the scared worker?
10. Have you ever given money to help someone?
11. What would you do if someone was being mean to you?
12. How can we make someone feel better when they are scared or sad?

Individual Activities

Vocabulary Meanings:

Match each word to its meaning.

Words:
1. bad
2. person
3. money
4. place
5. work
6. sorry
7. scared
8. help
9. worker
10. money

Meanings:
(A) Assisting or aiding someone
(B) Someone who has a job
(C) Feeling afraid or frightened
(D) A human being
(E) Not good or nice
(F) Feeling bad for something you did wrong
(G) Something you use to buy things
(H) Coins or bills that you can use to buy things
(I) A location or area
(J) Doing a job or task
Go to answers ⇩

Multiple Choice Questions:

1. What did the woman do at the food place?
(a) Ate her food quietly
(b) Threw her food at someone
(c) Paid for her food and left
(d) Shared her food with others

2. What was the woman supposed to do after doing something bad?
(a) Apologize and leave
(b) Get a job at a food place
(c) Pay money and go to a bad place
(d) Keep doing bad things

3. Why did the person who decides what happens to people let the woman work at a food place instead?
(a) Because she was very mean
(b) Because she had a lot of money
(c) Because she said she was sorry
(d) Because she didn’t do anything bad

4. How did the worker feel when the woman threw food at her?
(a) Scared
(b) Happy
(c) Angry
(d) Excited

5. What happened to the worker who got food thrown at her?
(a) She got a promotion
(b) She moved to a different city
(c) She started her own food place
(d) She doesn’t work at the food place anymore

6. Why are people giving money to the scared worker?
(a) To buy more food
(b) To help her feel better
(c) To punish her
(d) To make her feel scared

7. What did the people give a lot of money for?
(a) To buy more food
(b) To punish the scared worker
(c) To make the scared worker feel scared
(d) To make the scared worker feel better

8. Who was the worker trying to help when she got food thrown at her?
(a) Another worker who was being yelled at
(b) The woman who threw the food
(c) The person who decides what happens to people
(d) A customer who was eating quietly

Go to answers ⇩

True or False Questions:

1. A woman threw her food at someone who made it.
2. The woman was supposed to go to a bad place, but she received the same punishment instead.
3. People are withholding money from the scared worker.
4. The scared worker was trying to help someone else who was being yelled at.
5. The article is about something good that happened at a food place.
6. The woman did not apologize for being mean.
7. The worker who got food thrown at her was scared and doesn’t work there anymore.
8. The scared worker has received a lot of money to make her feel better.
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 the woman do at the food place that was very bad?
2. What was the punishment for the woman who threw her food?
3. Why did the worker who got food thrown at her feel scared?
4. Why doesn’t the scared worker work at the food place anymore?
5. Why are people giving money to the scared worker?

Answers

Comprehension Question Answers:

1. What did the woman do at the food place?
The woman threw her food at the person who made it.

2. Where was the woman supposed to go for doing something bad?
The woman was supposed to go to a place where people are kept for doing bad things.

3. What did the person who decides what happens to people say the woman could do instead?
The person said the woman could work at a food place instead.

4. What did the worker who got food thrown at her feel?
The worker who got food thrown at her felt scared.

5. Why doesn’t the scared worker work at the food place anymore?
The scared worker doesn’t work at the food place anymore because she was scared.

6. What are people giving to help the scared worker?
People are giving money to help the scared worker.

7. Why are people giving money to the scared worker?
People are giving money to the scared worker to make her feel better.
Go back to questions ⇧

Listen and Fill in the Gaps Answers:

(1) food
(2) threw
(3) kept
(4) said
(5) sorry
(6) place
(7) yelled
(8) People
Go back to questions ⇧

Vocabulary Meanings Answers:

1. bad
Answer: (E) Not good or nice

2. person
Answer: (D) A human being

3. money
Answer: (G) Something you use to buy things

4. place
Answer: (I) A location or area

5. work
Answer: (J) Doing a job or task

6. sorry
Answer: (F) Feeling bad for something you did wrong

7. scared
Answer: (C) Feeling afraid or frightened

8. help
Answer: (A) Assisting or aiding someone

9. worker
Answer: (B) Someone who has a job

10. money
Answer: (H) Coins or bills that you can use to buy things
Go back to questions ⇧

Multiple Choice Answers:

1. What did the woman do at the food place?
Answer: (b) Threw her food at someone

2. What was the woman supposed to do after doing something bad?
Answer: (c) Pay money and go to a bad place

3. Why did the person who decides what happens to people let the woman work at a food place instead?
Answer: (c) Because she said she was sorry

4. How did the worker feel when the woman threw food at her?
Answer: (a) Scared

5. What happened to the worker who got food thrown at her?
Answer: (d) She doesn’t work at the food place anymore

6. Why are people giving money to the scared worker?
Answer: (b) To help her feel better

7. What did the people give a lot of money for?
Answer: (d) To make the scared worker feel better

8. Who was the worker trying to help when she got food thrown at her?
Answer: (a) Another worker who was being yelled at
Go back to questions ⇧

True or False Answers:

1. A woman threw her food at someone who made it. (Answer: True)
2. The woman was supposed to go to a bad place, but she received the same punishment instead. (Answer: False)
3. People are withholding money from the scared worker. (Answer: False)
4. The scared worker was trying to help someone else who was being yelled at. (Answer: True)
5. The article is about something good that happened at a food place. (Answer: False)
6. The woman did not apologize for being mean. (Answer: False)
7. The worker who got food thrown at her was scared and doesn’t work there anymore. (Answer: True)
8. The scared worker has received a lot of money to make her feel better. (Answer: True)
Go back to questions ⇧

How about these other Level 1 articles?

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