Two men in France got in trouble for tricking old people. They told them they had bugs in their beds 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 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)

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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.

Comprehension Questions:

1. What did the two men in France do to trick old people?
2. How did the men scare the old people about bugs?
3. What did the men sell to the old people?
4. Why did the police catch the bad men?
5. Why are people in Paris worried about bedbugs?
6. Who else is worried about bedbugs coming to their city?
7. How many people told the police they were tricked by the bad men?
Go to answers ⇩

Listen and Fill in the Gaps:

Two men in France got in (1)______ for (2)______ old people. They told them they had bugs in their (3)______ 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 (4)______. They acted like they were from the health office and used fake (5)______ in the houses. Then, they sold a cream that smelled like eucalyptus, (6)______ it would keep bugs away. But it was just a (7)______ cream, and they asked for too (8)______ money. The police watched these men and caught them after they visited another person’s house.

In Paris, there are more and more (9)______, and people are worried. The mayor of London is also worried that these bugs might come to his city on buses and (10)______. He is talking to people in Paris and (11)______ to make a (12)______. 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.
Go to answers ⇩

Discussion Questions:

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

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

Vocabulary Meanings:

Match each word to its meaning.

Words:
1. tricking
2. bugs
3. pretended
4. cream
5. area
6. scare
7. fake
8. sprays
9. caught
10. worried
11. mistakes
12. bugs

Meanings:
(A) Fooling or deceiving someone
(B) Small insects that can cause problems
(C) Small creatures that can be annoying or harmful
(D) Liquid that you spray from a bottle
(E) Acting like something is true when it’s not
(F) Making someone feel afraid or frightened
(G) Being captured or arrested by the police
(H) Errors or incorrect actions
(I) A specific place or region
(J) Not real or genuine
(K) Feeling anxious or concerned about something
(L) A lotion or ointment that you put on your skin
Go to answers ⇩

Multiple Choice Questions:

1. What did the bad men tell the old people?
(a) They had money for them
(b) They had bugs in their beds
(c) They had a special cream
(d) They had a new house

2. How did the bad men trick the old people?
(a) They pretended to be doctors
(b) They pretended to be police officers
(c) They pretended to be the mayor
(d) They pretended to clean the houses

3. What did the bad men ask for?
(a) A lot of money
(b) A special cream
(c) A new bed
(d) A bug spray

4. How many people did the bad men take money from?
(a) 10 people
(b) 5 people
(c) 48 people
(d) 100 people

5. What did the cream smell like?
(a) Eucalyptus
(b) Roses
(c) Lavender
(d) Vanilla

6. What did the mayor of London worry about?
(a) The bad men tricking people
(b) The police catching the bad men
(c) The bugs coming to his city
(d) The cream being too expensive

7. How many people told the police they were tricked?
(a) One person
(b) Nine people
(c) Twenty people
(d) No one

8. What are the police and other people trying to do?
(a) Buy more cream for the old people
(b) Catch more bad men
(c) Clean all the houses in Paris
(d) Stop more tricks and mistakes about bugs

Go to answers ⇩

True or False Questions:

1. The women took money from 48 people, many of whom were young men.
2. The mayor of London is worried that bedbugs might come to his city on buses and trains from Paris.
3. The men sold a cream that smelled like eucalyptus and claimed it would keep bugs away.
4. Two women in France deceived young people by pretending to clean their houses and selling them a regular cream.
5. The police caught the bad men after they visited another person’s house.
6. The cream was actually quite unique, but the women asked for a very reasonable price for it.
7. The women reassured the young people by telling them there were no bugs in their area.
8. Nine people in France reported being tricked by the bad men, and now the police and others are working to stop more tricks and prevent mistakes about bugs.
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 two men in France do to trick old people?
2. How did the men pretend to clean the houses?
3. What did the men ask for after pretending to clean the houses?
4. How did the police catch the bad men?
5. Why are people in Paris and London worried about bedbugs?

Answers

Comprehension Question Answers:

1. What did the two men in France do to trick old people?
They pretended to clean the houses and then asked for a lot of money for a special cream.

2. How did the men scare the old people about bugs?
They called the old people and told them there were bugs in their area.

3. What did the men sell to the old people?
They sold a cream that smelled like eucalyptus, saying it would keep bugs away.

4. Why did the police catch the bad men?
The police watched these men and caught them after they visited another person’s house.

5. Why are people in Paris worried about bedbugs?
There are more and more bedbugs in Paris, so people are worried.

6. Who else is worried about bedbugs coming to their city?
The mayor of London is worried that bedbugs might come to his city on buses and trains.

7. How many people told the police they were tricked by the bad men?
Nine people told the police they were tricked by the bad men.
Go back to questions ⇧

Listen and Fill in the Gaps Answers:

(1) trouble
(2) tricking
(3) beds
(4) area
(5) sprays
(6) saying
(7) normal
(8) much
(9) bedbugs
(10) trains
(11) London
(12) plan
Go back to questions ⇧

Vocabulary Meanings Answers:

1. tricking
Answer: (A) Fooling or deceiving someone

2. bugs
Answer: (B) Small insects that can cause problems

3. pretended
Answer: (E) Acting like something is true when it’s not

4. cream
Answer: (L) A lotion or ointment that you put on your skin

5. area
Answer: (I) A specific place or region

6. scare
Answer: (F) Making someone feel afraid or frightened

7. fake
Answer: (J) Not real or genuine

8. sprays
Answer: (D) Liquid that you spray from a bottle

9. caught
Answer: (G) Being captured or arrested by the police

10. worried
Answer: (K) Feeling anxious or concerned about something

11. mistakes
Answer: (H) Errors or incorrect actions

12. bugs
Answer: (C) Small creatures that can be annoying or harmful
Go back to questions ⇧

Multiple Choice Answers:

1. What did the bad men tell the old people?
Answer: (b) They had bugs in their beds

2. How did the bad men trick the old people?
Answer: (d) They pretended to clean the houses

3. What did the bad men ask for?
Answer: (a) A lot of money

4. How many people did the bad men take money from?
Answer: (c) 48 people

5. What did the cream smell like?
Answer: (a) Eucalyptus

6. What did the mayor of London worry about?
Answer: (c) The bugs coming to his city

7. How many people told the police they were tricked?
Answer: (b) Nine people

8. What are the police and other people trying to do?
Answer: (d) Stop more tricks and mistakes about bugs
Go back to questions ⇧

True or False Answers:

1. The women took money from 48 people, many of whom were young men. (Answer: False)
2. The mayor of London is worried that bedbugs might come to his city on buses and trains from Paris. (Answer: True)
3. The men sold a cream that smelled like eucalyptus and claimed it would keep bugs away. (Answer: True)
4. Two women in France deceived young people by pretending to clean their houses and selling them a regular cream. (Answer: False)
5. The police caught the bad men after they visited another person’s house. (Answer: True)
6. The cream was actually quite unique, but the women asked for a very reasonable price for it. (Answer: False)
7. The women reassured the young people by telling them there were no bugs in their area. (Answer: False)
8. Nine people in France reported being tricked by the bad men, and now the police and others are working to stop more tricks and prevent mistakes about bugs. (Answer: True)
Go back to questions ⇧