South Korea has a big problem because not many babies are being born. It has the lowest number of babies being born in the whole world. If this keeps happening, there will be half as many people in South Korea by the year 2100. The government tried to give money to families to have more babies, but it didn't work. Many women in South Korea decide not to have babies because it's hard to find a good partner, work is very demanding, and living and going to school is very expensive.
One big reason women don't want to have babies is that it's hard to find a partner who wants to help take care of the kids and the house. People in South Korea work very long hours and always try to be better at their jobs, which makes it hard for women to have time for both work and family. Also, houses and schools cost a lot of money, so it's hard for families to afford to have children.
The government tried to help by giving money to families to encourage them to have more babies, but it didn't work. The President of South Korea, Yoon Suk Yeol, said that the old ways to try to fix this problem didn't work and that it's a big problem that needs new ideas. The government is thinking of new ways to help, but we don't know yet if these new ideas will make women want to have more babies.
Original news source: Why South Korean women aren't having babies (BBC)
π§ Listen:
π Vocabulary:
Group or Classroom Activities
Warm-up Activities:
– News Summary
Instructions:
1. Divide the class into pairs or small groups.
2. Give each group a copy of the article.
3. Ask the groups to read the article and summarize the main points in 3-4 sentences.
4. Have each group share their summary with the class.
– Opinion Poll
Instructions:
1. Divide the class into pairs or small groups.
2. Ask each group to come up with 3-4 questions related to the topic of the article (e.g. "Do you think the government should give money to families to have more babies?").
3. Have each group take turns asking their questions to the rest of the class and recording their classmates' opinions.
4. After all the questions have been asked, have each group share their findings with the class.
– Vocabulary Pictionary
Instructions:
1. Write down key vocabulary words from the article on separate pieces of paper.
2. Divide the class into pairs or small groups.
3. Give each group a set of vocabulary words.
4. Ask the groups to take turns choosing a word and drawing a picture to represent it.
5. The other groups have to guess the word based on the drawing.
6. After each round, have the groups switch the set of vocabulary words and continue playing.
– Pros and Cons
Instructions:
1. Divide the class into pairs or small groups.
2. Ask each group to discuss the pros and cons of having children in South Korea based on the information in the article.
3. Have each group present their findings to the class, highlighting both the advantages and disadvantages of having children in South Korea.
– Future Predictions
Instructions:
1. Ask the class to imagine they are living in South Korea in the year 2100.
2. Divide the class into pairs or small groups.
3. Ask each group to discuss and make predictions about what life will be like in South Korea in the future, considering the declining birth rate.
4. Have each group share their predictions with the class and discuss their reasoning behind their predictions.
π€ Comprehension Questions:
South Korea has a big problem with not many babies being born because people are choosing to have fewer children.
If not many babies are born, the population of South Korea might be half as many people by the year 2100.
The government tried to give money to families to encourage them to have more babies.
Many women in South Korea decide not to have babies because it's hard to find a good partner, work is demanding, and it's expensive to live and go to school.
It's hard for women in South Korea to have time for both work and family because they work long hours and always try to be better at their jobs.
It's hard for families in South Korea to afford to have children because houses and schools cost a lot of money.
The President of South Korea said that the old ways to fix the problem didn't work and that new ideas are needed to solve the problem.
π§βοΈ Listen and Fill in the Gaps:
South Korea has a big problem because not are being born. It has the lowest number of babies being born in the whole world. If this keeps happening, there will be half as many people in South Korea by the year 2100. The government tried to money to families to have more babies, but it didn't work. Many women in South Korea decide not to have babies because it's to find a good partner, work is very demanding, and living and going to is very expensive. One big reason women don't to have babies is that it's hard to find a partner who wants to help take care of the kids and the house. People in South Korea very long and always try to be better at their jobs, which it hard for women to have time for both work and family. Also, houses and schools cost a lot of money, so it's hard for families to afford to have children. The government tried to help by giving money to families to encourage them to have more babies, but it didn't work. The President of South Korea, Suk Yeol, that the old ways to try to fix this problem didn't work and that it's a big problem that needs new ideas. The government is thinking of new ways to help, but we don't yet if these new ideas will make women want to have more babies.
π¬ Discussion Questions:
1. What is the problem in South Korea with babies being born?
2. How would you feel if there were half as many people in your country in the future?
3. Do you think it's important to have a good partner to help take care of children? Why or why not?
4. How do you think long working hours can make it difficult for women to have both a job and a family?
5. Do you think it's fair that houses and schools cost a lot of money? Why or why not?
6. Do you think giving money to families is a good way to encourage them to have more babies? Why or why not?
7. What do you think are some new ideas the government could try to help solve this problem?
8. How do you think these new ideas could make women want to have more babies?
9. Do you think it's important for the government to help families have more babies? Why or why not?
10. How do you think having more babies could benefit a country?
11. Do you think it's important for children to have siblings? Why or why not?
12. What are some ways you think families can afford to have children, even if things are expensive?
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.
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