E-bikes are getting more popular because they are a good way to move around. But, some people buy cheaper e-bikes that have bad batteries which can be dangerous. There are too many e-bikes with bad batteries being sold because there aren’t enough rules. When these batteries catch fire, they can explode and spread the fire fast, making it hard for firefighters to stop it.

To make e-bikes safer, some places are starting to make rules about how e-bikes and their batteries should be made. For example, China and New York City have made rules that say e-bikes and their batteries have to meet certain safety standards. Having better batteries that can manage themselves well can make e-bikes less likely to catch fire. But, we still need more rules about how to safely charge e-bikes and how to turn regular bikes into e-bikes.

Even though e-bikes can be dangerous if they catch fire, we shouldn’t be too scared of them. If we have good rules and things like special places to charge the batteries safely, e-bikes can be very useful and not as dangerous. Companies that deliver things, big food stores, and governments can help pay for these safety things. E-bikes can be very helpful for our future, but we have to make sure they are safe to use.

Original news source: Why the e-bike boom is raising fire fears (BBC)

🎧 Listen:

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📖 Vocabulary:

Group or Classroom Activities

Warm-up Activities:

– News Summary
Instructions:
1. Divide the class into pairs.
2. Give each pair a copy of the article.
3. Instruct the pairs to read the article together and summarize the main points.
4. After a few minutes, have each pair share their summary with the class.

– Opinion Poll
Instructions:
1. Write the following question on the board: “Do you think e-bikes should have stricter safety regulations? Why or why not?”
2. Divide the class into small groups.
3. Instruct each group to discuss the question and come up with their own opinions.
4. After a few minutes, have each group share their opinions with the class and facilitate a class discussion.

– Vocabulary Pictionary
Instructions:
1. Write a list of vocabulary words from the article on the board (e-bikes, batteries, rules, safety, etc.).
2. Divide the class into two teams.
3. Choose a student from the first team to come to the front of the class.
4. Whisper one of the vocabulary words to that student.
5. The student must then draw a picture on the board to represent the word, while their team tries to guess what word they are drawing.
6. If the team guesses correctly, they earn a point. If not, the other team has a chance to guess and earn a point.

– Speed Summarizing
Instructions:
1. Divide the class into pairs.
2. Give each pair a copy of the article.
3. Instruct each pair to take turns summarizing the article to their partner in 1 minute or less.
4. After each round, have the pairs switch roles and summarize again.
5. Repeat several times, encouraging the students to summarize more quickly each time.

– Future Predictions
Instructions:
1. Write a list of questions on the board related to the future of e-bikes (e.g. “Will e-bikes become the primary mode of transportation in cities?”).
2. Divide the class into small groups.
3. Instruct each group to discuss the questions and make predictions about the future of e-bikes.
4. After a few minutes, have each group share their predictions with the class and facilitate a class discussion.

🤔 Comprehension Questions:

1. Why are e-bikes becoming more popular?
2. What can happen if you buy a cheap e-bike with a bad battery?
3. Why are there so many e-bikes with bad batteries being sold?
4. What are some places doing to make e-bikes safer?
5. How can having better batteries make e-bikes less likely to catch fire?
6. What are some things we still need rules for regarding e-bikes?
7. How can e-bikes be made safer to use?
Go to answers ⇩

🎧✍️ Listen and Fill in the Gaps:

E-bikes are getting more popular because they are a good way to move around. But, some (1)______ buy cheaper e-bikes that have bad batteries which can be dangerous. There are too many e-bikes with bad batteries being sold because there aren’t enough (2)______. When these batteries catch fire, they can (3)______ and spread the fire fast, making it hard for firefighters to stop it.

To make e-bikes safer, some places are starting to make rules about how e-bikes and their batteries should be made. For example, (4)______ and New York City (5)______ made rules that say e-bikes and their batteries have to meet certain (6)______ standards. Having better batteries that can manage themselves well can make e-bikes less likely to (7)______ fire. But, we still need (8)______ rules about how to safely charge e-bikes and how to turn (9)______ bikes into e-bikes.

Even though e-bikes can be dangerous if they catch fire, we shouldn’t be too scared of them. If we have good rules and (10)______ like special places to charge the batteries safely, e-bikes can be very useful and not as dangerous. Companies that deliver things, big food (11)______, and governments can help pay for these safety things. E-bikes can be very (12)______ for our future, but we have to make sure they are safe to use.
Go to answers ⇩

💬 Discussion Questions:

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

1. What is an e-bike?
2. How would you feel if you had to ride an e-bike with a bad battery?
3. Do you like e-bikes? Why or why not?
4. What do you think can happen if an e-bike battery catches fire?
5. How do you think rules can make e-bikes safer?
6. Why do you think it’s important for e-bike batteries to meet safety standards?
7. What do you think can happen if we don’t have rules for charging e-bikes?
8. How can companies and governments help make e-bikes safer?
9. Do you think e-bikes are useful? Why or why not?
10. What do you think can happen if e-bikes are not safe to use?
11. How do you think e-bikes can be helpful for our future?
12. Why do you think it’s important to make sure e-bikes are safe to use?

Individual Activities

📖💭 Vocabulary Meanings:

Match each word to its meaning.

Words:
1. popular
2. dangerous
3. batteries
4. explode
5. firefighters
6. standards
7. manage
8. charge
9. companies
10. governments
11. useful
12. safety

Meanings:
(A) To control or handle something well
(B) Can cause harm or injury
(C) Rules that things must reach to be considered good enough
(D) Helpful and good for doing things
(E) Groups of people who make decisions for a country or city
(F) Liked by many people
(G) People who put out fires
(H) To burst suddenly with a lot of force
(I) Being protected from danger or harm
(J) Businesses that sell things or services
(K) To put energy into a battery so it can work
(L) Things that store energy to make devices work
Go to answers ⇩

🔡 Multiple Choice Questions:

1. Why are e-bikes becoming more popular?
(a) They are expensive
(b) They are dangerous
(c) They are a good way to move around
(d) They are slow

2. What can happen if an e-bike has a bad battery?
(a) It can catch fire and explode
(b) It can stop working
(c) It can make a loud noise
(d) It can go very fast

3. Why are there too many e-bikes with bad batteries being sold?
(a) There aren’t enough rules
(b) They are too expensive
(c) People don’t like e-bikes
(d) The batteries are too heavy

4. Which countries have made rules about e-bikes and their batteries?
(a) France and Germany
(b) China and New York City
(c) Spain and Japan
(d) Russia and Mongolia

5. How can e-bikes be made safer?
(a) By making them go faster
(b) By making them cheaper
(c) By having better batteries that meet safety standards
(d) By making them smaller

6. What do we still need more rules about?
(a) How to make e-bikes go faster
(b) How to safely charge e-bikes and turn regular bikes into e-bikes
(c) How to make e-bikes cheaper
(d) How to make e-bikes bigger

7. Who can help pay for safety things for e-bikes?
(a) Children
(b) Firefighters
(c) Teachers
(d) Companies that deliver things, big food stores, and governments

8. What do we need to make sure of before using e-bikes?
(a) That they are expensive
(b) That they are heavy
(c) That they are slow
(d) That they are safe to use

Go to answers ⇩

🕵️ True or False Questions:

1. When e-bike batteries catch fire, they can explode and spread the fire quickly.
2. There are enough rules about e-bikes, so many with bad batteries are not being sold.
3. E-bikes are not becoming less popular because they are not a good way to get around.
4. Better batteries that struggle to manage themselves well can increase the risk of e-bikes catching fire.
5. Some people buy cheaper e-bikes with bad batteries, which can be dangerous.
6. With good rules and safe charging places, e-bikes can be useful and less dangerous.
7. We do not need more rules about how to safely charge e-bikes and convert regular bikes into e-bikes.
8. China and New York City have made rules about e-bikes and their batteries to make them safer.
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. Why are e-bikes getting more popular?
2. Why can e-bikes with bad batteries be dangerous?
3. What are some places doing to make e-bikes safer?
4. What can happen if an e-bike battery catches fire?
5. How can companies and governments help make e-bikes safer?

✅ Answers

🤔✅ Comprehension Question Answers:

1. Why are e-bikes becoming more popular?
E-bikes are becoming more popular because they are a good way to move around.

2. What can happen if you buy a cheap e-bike with a bad battery?
If you buy a cheap e-bike with a bad battery, it can catch fire and explode.

3. Why are there so many e-bikes with bad batteries being sold?
There are so many e-bikes with bad batteries being sold because there aren’t enough rules about their safety.

4. What are some places doing to make e-bikes safer?
Some places, like China and New York City, are making rules that say e-bikes and their batteries have to meet certain safety standards.

5. How can having better batteries make e-bikes less likely to catch fire?
Having better batteries that can manage themselves well can make e-bikes less likely to catch fire because they are safer and more reliable.

6. What are some things we still need rules for regarding e-bikes?
We still need rules for how to safely charge e-bikes and how to turn regular bikes into e-bikes.

7. How can e-bikes be made safer to use?
E-bikes can be made safer to use by having good rules and things like special places to charge the batteries safely. Companies, big food stores, and governments can help pay for these safety measures.
Go back to questions ⇧

🎧✍️✅ Listen and Fill in the Gaps Answers:

(1) people
(2) rules
(3) explode
(4) China
(5) have
(6) safety
(7) catch
(8) more
(9) regular
(10) things
(11) stores
(12) helpful
Go back to questions ⇧

📖💭✅ Vocabulary Meanings Answers:

1. popular
Answer: (F) Liked by many people

2. dangerous
Answer: (B) Can cause harm or injury

3. batteries
Answer: (L) Things that store energy to make devices work

4. explode
Answer: (H) To burst suddenly with a lot of force

5. firefighters
Answer: (G) People who put out fires

6. standards
Answer: (C) Rules that things must reach to be considered good enough

7. manage
Answer: (A) To control or handle something well

8. charge
Answer: (K) To put energy into a battery so it can work

9. companies
Answer: (J) Businesses that sell things or services

10. governments
Answer: (E) Groups of people who make decisions for a country or city

11. useful
Answer: (D) Helpful and good for doing things

12. safety
Answer: (I) Being protected from danger or harm
Go back to questions ⇧

🔡✅ Multiple Choice Answers:

1. Why are e-bikes becoming more popular?
Answer: (c) They are a good way to move around

2. What can happen if an e-bike has a bad battery?
Answer: (a) It can catch fire and explode

3. Why are there too many e-bikes with bad batteries being sold?
Answer: (a) There aren’t enough rules

4. Which countries have made rules about e-bikes and their batteries?
Answer: (b) China and New York City

5. How can e-bikes be made safer?
Answer: (c) By having better batteries that meet safety standards

6. What do we still need more rules about?
Answer: (b) How to safely charge e-bikes and turn regular bikes into e-bikes

7. Who can help pay for safety things for e-bikes?
Answer: (d) Companies that deliver things, big food stores, and governments

8. What do we need to make sure of before using e-bikes?
Answer: (d) That they are safe to use
Go back to questions ⇧

🕵️✅ True or False Answers:

1. When e-bike batteries catch fire, they can explode and spread the fire quickly. (Answer: True)
2. There are enough rules about e-bikes, so many with bad batteries are not being sold. (Answer: False)
3. E-bikes are not becoming less popular because they are not a good way to get around. (Answer: False)
4. Better batteries that struggle to manage themselves well can increase the risk of e-bikes catching fire. (Answer: False)
5. Some people buy cheaper e-bikes with bad batteries, which can be dangerous. (Answer: True)
6. With good rules and safe charging places, e-bikes can be useful and less dangerous. (Answer: True)
7. We do not need more rules about how to safely charge e-bikes and convert regular bikes into e-bikes. (Answer: False)
8. China and New York City have made rules about e-bikes and their batteries to make them safer. (Answer: True)
Go back to questions ⇧