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)

🎧 Listen:

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Fast

📖 Vocabulary:

Group or Classroom Activities

Warm-up Activities:

– 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.

🤔 Comprehension Questions:

1. Why did eBay have to pay a lot of money?
2. What did the workers do to the writers?
3. Why did some of the workers lose their jobs?
4. How did Ina and David feel about what happened?
5. Who did Jim say made him do the mean things?
6. Who said eBay was wrong for trying to stop Ina and David from writing?
7. What is eBay doing now to make sure this doesn’t happen again?
Go to answers ⇩

🎧✍️ Listen and Fill in the Gaps:

A company (1)______ eBay has to pay a lot of money because some of its workers were very (2)______ to two people who wrote (3)______ 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 (4)______ lost their jobs because of what they did.

The two writers, named Ina and David, felt very scared and (5)______ because of what happened. A man named Jim, who worked for eBay, said his boss, Devin, (6)______ him do it. Devin was the big (7)______ of eBay, but he left the job and says he didn’t know about the mean things. A very (8)______ lawyer (9)______ 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 (10)______ 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 (11)______ again. They are teaching their workers to be (12)______ and respectful now.
Go to answers ⇩

💬 Discussion Questions:

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

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?

Individual Activities

📖💭 Vocabulary Meanings:

Match each word to its meaning.

Words:
1. eBay
2. workers
3. mean
4. tracker
5. internet
6. address
7. lawyer
8. jail
9. respectful
10. company
11. boss
12. bugs

Meanings:
(A) The place where you can see websites and play games online
(B) Small insects that can sometimes be scary or gross
(C) People who have jobs and work for someone
(D) A place where people are sent when they break the law
(E) A person who knows a lot about the law and helps people in court
(F) The person who is in charge at work
(G) Not nice, can hurt people’s feelings
(H) The place where you live, with the street name and number
(I) Treating others in a way that shows you care about their feelings
(J) A small device that tells you where something is
(K) A place online where you can buy and sell things
(L) A business that sells things or services
Go to answers ⇩

🔡 Multiple Choice Questions:

1. Why did eBay have to pay a lot of money?
(a) eBay made a lot of money.
(b) eBay didn’t like the writers’ address.
(c) Some of its workers were mean to two people who wrote things eBay didn’t like.
(d) eBay lost their jobs.

2. What did the workers do to the writers?
(a) Sent them a gift.
(b) Wrote bad things about them on the internet.
(c) Gave them a job.
(d) Sent scary bugs to their house and put a tracker on their car.

3. Who did Jim say made him do the mean things?
(a) Ina and David.
(b) His boss, Devin.
(c) Philip.
(d) The important lawyer.

4. What happened to Devin?
(a) He went to jail.
(b) He got a promotion.
(c) He apologized to Ina and David.
(d) He left the job.

5. Why did Philip go to jail?
(a) Because he wrote bad ads on the internet.
(b) Because he helped with the mean things.
(c) Because he lost his job.
(d) Because he didn’t like Ina and David.

6. What did eBay say they won’t let happen again?
(a) They won’t let their workers be mean and disrespectful.
(b) They won’t let Ina and David write things they don’t like.
(c) They won’t let their workers lose their jobs.
(d) They won’t let scary bugs be sent to their house.

7. What are eBay teaching their workers now?
(a) To be mean and disrespectful.
(b) To write bad ads on the internet.
(c) To be nice and respectful.
(d) To send scary bugs to people’s houses.

8. How did Ina and David feel because of what happened?
(a) Scared and hurt.
(b) Happy and excited.
(c) Angry and mean.
(d) Bored and tired.

Go to answers ⇩

🕵️ True or False Questions:

1. eBay is unapologetic and makes no promises that it won’t let this happen again. They are teaching their workers to be mean and disrespectful now.
2. eBay had to pay a lot of money because some of its workers were mean to two people who wrote things eBay didn’t like.
3. All of the workers gained job promotions because of what they did.
4. Jim, who worked for eBay, said his boss Devin made him do it.
5. Devin was the big boss of eBay, but he left the job and says he didn’t know about the mean things.
6. The workers also made bad ads on the internet with the writers’ address.
7. The two writers, Ina and David, felt calm and healed because of what happened.
8. The workers sent adorable bugs to the writers’ house and put a gift on their car.
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 some workers at eBay do to two people who wrote things eBay didn’t like?
2. How did these workers try to scare the writers?
3. What happened to some of the workers who did these mean things?
4. Who did the workers say made them do these mean things?
5. What is eBay doing now to make sure this doesn’t happen again?

✅ Answers

🤔✅ Comprehension Question Answers:

1. Why did eBay have to pay a lot of money?
eBay had to pay a lot of money because their workers did mean things to the writers.

2. What did the workers do to the writers?
The workers sent scary bugs to the writers’ house, put a tracker on their car, and made bad ads on the internet with their address.

3. Why did some of the workers lose their jobs?
Some of the workers lost their jobs because they did mean things to the writers.

4. How did Ina and David feel about what happened?
Ina and David felt scared and hurt because of what happened.

5. Who did Jim say made him do the mean things?
Jim said his boss, Devin, made him do the mean things.

6. Who said eBay was wrong for trying to stop Ina and David from writing?
A very important lawyer said eBay was wrong for trying to stop Ina and David from writing.

7. What is eBay doing now to make sure this doesn’t happen again?
eBay is teaching their workers to be nice and respectful now to make sure this doesn’t happen again.
Go back to questions ⇧

🎧✍️✅ Listen and Fill in the Gaps Answers:

(1) called
(2) mean
(3) things
(4) workers
(5) hurt
(6) made
(7) boss
(8) important
(9) said
(10) helped
(11) happen
(12) nice
Go back to questions ⇧

📖💭✅ Vocabulary Meanings Answers:

1. eBay
Answer: (K) A place online where you can buy and sell things

2. workers
Answer: (C) People who have jobs and work for someone

3. mean
Answer: (G) Not nice, can hurt people’s feelings

4. tracker
Answer: (J) A small device that tells you where something is

5. internet
Answer: (A) The place where you can see websites and play games online

6. address
Answer: (H) The place where you live, with the street name and number

7. lawyer
Answer: (E) A person who knows a lot about the law and helps people in court

8. jail
Answer: (D) A place where people are sent when they break the law

9. respectful
Answer: (I) Treating others in a way that shows you care about their feelings

10. company
Answer: (L) A business that sells things or services

11. boss
Answer: (F) The person who is in charge at work

12. bugs
Answer: (B) Small insects that can sometimes be scary or gross
Go back to questions ⇧

🔡✅ Multiple Choice Answers:

1. Why did eBay have to pay a lot of money?
Answer: (c) Some of its workers were mean to two people who wrote things eBay didn’t like.

2. What did the workers do to the writers?
Answer: (d) Sent scary bugs to their house and put a tracker on their car.

3. Who did Jim say made him do the mean things?
Answer: (b) His boss, Devin.

4. What happened to Devin?
Answer: (d) He left the job.

5. Why did Philip go to jail?
Answer: (b) Because he helped with the mean things.

6. What did eBay say they won’t let happen again?
Answer: (a) They won’t let their workers be mean and disrespectful.

7. What are eBay teaching their workers now?
Answer: (c) To be nice and respectful.

8. How did Ina and David feel because of what happened?
Answer: (a) Scared and hurt.
Go back to questions ⇧

🕵️✅ True or False Answers:

1. eBay is unapologetic and makes no promises that it won’t let this happen again. They are teaching their workers to be mean and disrespectful now. (Answer: False)
2. eBay had to pay a lot of money because some of its workers were mean to two people who wrote things eBay didn’t like. (Answer: True)
3. All of the workers gained job promotions because of what they did. (Answer: False)
4. Jim, who worked for eBay, said his boss Devin made him do it. (Answer: True)
5. Devin was the big boss of eBay, but he left the job and says he didn’t know about the mean things. (Answer: True)
6. The workers also made bad ads on the internet with the writers’ address. (Answer: True)
7. The two writers, Ina and David, felt calm and healed because of what happened. (Answer: False)
8. The workers sent adorable bugs to the writers’ house and put a gift on their car. (Answer: False)
Go back to questions ⇧