A company called eBay has to pay a lot of money because some of its workers were very mean to two people who wrote things eBay didn't like. These workers sent scary bugs to the writers' house and put a tracker on their car. They also made bad ads on the internet with the writers' address. Some of these workers lost their jobs because of what they did.

The two writers, named Ina and David, felt very scared and hurt because of what happened. A man named Jim, who worked for eBay, said his boss, Devin, made him do it. Devin was the big boss of eBay, but he left the job and says he didn't know about the mean things. A very important lawyer said eBay was very wrong to try and stop Ina and David from writing.

Last year, one worker named Philip went to jail for a little while because he helped with the mean things. Jim, the man who said his boss made him do it, also went to jail for a longer time. eBay is sorry and says it won't let this happen again. They are teaching their workers to be nice and respectful now.

Original news source: eBay pays $3m fine in blogger harassment case (BBC)

– Charades
Instructions: Divide the class into two teams. Choose keywords from the article, such as "eBay," "mean," "scary bugs," "tracker," "bad ads," "boss," "lawyer," "jail," "respectful." One student from each team will come to the front of the class and act out the keyword without speaking. The team members must guess the keyword within a certain time limit. The team with the most correct guesses wins.
– News Summary
Instructions: In pairs, students will take turns summarizing the article in their own words. One student will have 1 minute to summarize as much as they can, while the other student listens and takes notes. Then, they will switch roles. After both students have had a chance to summarize, they will compare their notes and discuss any differences or missing information.
– Opinion Poll
Instructions: Divide the class into small groups. Each group will discuss their opinions on the actions of eBay and its workers, as described in the article. They will then create a poll with questions such as "Do you think eBay was wrong to try and stop Ina and David from writing?" or "Should eBay be responsible for teaching their workers to be nice and respectful?" Each group will present their poll questions to the class and conduct a mini survey by asking their classmates for their opinions. They will then analyze and discuss the results as a class.
– Vocabulary Pictionary
Instructions: Write down vocabulary words from the article on small pieces of paper and put them in a bag or hat. Divide the class into pairs. One student from each pair will pick a word from the bag and have one minute to draw a picture representing that word, while their partner tries to guess the word. They can use gestures, but no speaking or writing. After one minute, they switch roles. The pair with the most correct guesses wins.
– Speed Summarizing
Instructions: Divide the class into groups of 3 or 4. Each group will choose a recorder. Give each group a large piece of paper and a marker. Set a timer for 5 minutes. The groups must work together to write a summary of the article on the paper within the time limit. The recorder will write down the main points and keywords from the article. After the time is up, each group will present their summary to the class, and the class will discuss any differences or missing information.

A company ? eBay has to pay a lot of money because some of its workers were very ? to two people who wrote ? eBay didn't like. These workers sent scary bugs to the writers' house and put a tracker on their car. They also made bad ads on the internet with the writers' address. Some of these ? lost their jobs because of what they did. The two writers, named Ina and David, felt very scared and ? because of what happened. A man named Jim, who worked for eBay, said his boss, Devin, ? him do it. Devin was the big ? of eBay, but he left the job and says he didn't know about the mean things. A very ? lawyer ? eBay was very wrong to try and stop Ina and David from writing. Last year, one worker named Philip went to jail for a little while because he ? with the mean things. Jim, the man who said his boss made him do it, also went to jail for a longer time. eBay is sorry and says it won't let this ? again. They are teaching their workers to be ? and respectful now.

1. What is eBay?
2. How would you feel if someone sent scary bugs to your house?
3. Do you think it's okay to put a tracker on someone's car? Why or why not?
4. Have you ever seen bad ads on the internet? How did they make you feel?
5. Do you think it's fair that some workers lost their jobs because of what they did? Why or why not?
6. How do you think Ina and David felt when they found out about the mean things?
7. Do you think it's right for a boss to make their employees do mean things? Why or why not?
8. What do you think about the worker named Philip going to jail? Was it fair? Why or why not?
9. How do you think Jim felt when he went to jail for a longer time?
10. Do you think eBay's apology is enough? Why or why not?
11. How would you feel if someone tried to stop you from writing something?
12. Do you think teaching workers to be nice and respectful is important? Why or why not?

Click a dot next to a word, then click the dot next to its meaning to draw a line connecting them.

Write a summary of this news article in two sentences.
Check your writing now with the best free AI for English writing!