The bad men would call the old people and scare them about bugs in their area. They acted like they were from the health office and used fake sprays in the houses. Then, they sold a cream that smelled like eucalyptus, saying it would keep bugs away. But it was just a normal cream, and they asked for too much money. The police watched these men and caught them after they visited another person's house.
In Paris, there are more and more bedbugs, and people are worried. The mayor of London is also worried that these bugs might come to his city on buses and trains. He is talking to people in Paris and London to make a plan. In France, because of the bad men, nine people told the police they were tricked. Now, the police and other people are trying to stop more tricks and make sure there are no more mistakes about bugs.
Original news source: Two arrested in France over alleged bedbug scam (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. In their groups, students have to read the article and summarize the main points in their own words.
4. After a set amount of time, have each group share their summary with the rest of the class.
– Opinion Poll
Instructions:
1. Write the following question on the board: "Do you think the men who tricked the old people should go to jail? Why or why not?"
2. Divide the class into pairs or small groups.
3. In their groups, students have to discuss the question and come up with their own opinions.
4. After a set amount of time, have each group share their opinions with the rest of the class.
– Vocabulary Pictionary
Instructions:
1. Write the following vocabulary words on the board: bugs, cream, tricked, mayor, worried.
2. Divide the class into pairs or small groups.
3. In their groups, students have to choose one of the words and draw a picture that represents the word.
4. After a set amount of time, have each group show their drawing to the rest of the class and see if the class can guess the word.
– Speed Summarizing
Instructions:
1. Divide the class into pairs or small groups.
2. Give each group a copy of the article.
3. In their groups, students have to take turns reading one sentence from the article out loud.
4. After each sentence, the rest of the group has to quickly summarize the sentence in their own words.
5. Repeat this process until the entire article has been summarized.
– Think-Pair-Share
Instructions:
1. Write the following question on the board: "What can we do to protect ourselves from scams and trickery?"
2. Give the students a few minutes to think about their answer individually.
3. Pair up the students and have them share their answers with each other.
4. After a set amount of time, have a few pairs share their answers with the rest of the class.
π€ Comprehension Questions:
They pretended to clean the houses and then asked for a lot of money for a special cream.
They called the old people and told them there were bugs in their area.
They sold a cream that smelled like eucalyptus, saying it would keep bugs away.
The police watched these men and caught them after they visited another person's house.
There are more and more bedbugs in Paris, so people are worried.
The mayor of London is worried that bedbugs might come to his city on buses and trains.
Nine people told the police they were tricked by the bad men.
π§βοΈ Listen and Fill in the Gaps:
Two men in France got in for old people. They told them they had bugs in their that needed to go away. The men pretended to clean the houses and then asked for a lot of money for a special cream. But the cream was not special at all, and they took money from 48 people, many of whom were very old ladies. The bad men would call the old people and scare them about bugs in their . They acted like they were from the health office and used fake in the houses. Then, they sold a cream that smelled like eucalyptus, it would keep bugs away. But it was just a cream, and they asked for too money. The police watched these men and caught them after they visited another person's house. In Paris, there are more and more , and people are worried. The mayor of London is also worried that these bugs might come to his city on buses and . He is talking to people in Paris and to make a . In France, because of the bad men, nine people told the police they were tricked. Now, the police and other people are trying to stop more tricks and make sure there are no more mistakes about bugs.
π¬ Discussion Questions:
1. What is a bug?
2. How would you feel if someone tricked you and took your money?
3. Do you think it's good or bad to scare old people? Why or why not?
4. Have you ever been tricked by someone? What happened?
5. Do you like bugs? Why or why not?
6. How do you think the old ladies felt when they found out they were tricked?
7. What would you do if someone tried to trick you into buying something you didn't need?
8. Do you think it's important to trust people? Why or why not?
9. Have you ever seen a bug in your house? How did you get rid of it?
10. How do you think the police can stop more tricks like this from happening?
11. What do you think the special cream smelled like?
12. Do you think it's fair for the men to take money from the old people? Why or why not?
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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