A video showing guinea pigs living in a very nice shed has become very popular on TikTok, getting over 140 million views. This special shed, called “the Ritz,” has air conditioning and room service for the more than 140 guinea pigs living there. The videos are made by Sophie and Mark Mason and show the guinea pigs eating big plates of vegetables and lying in beds made just for them. The Masons say each guinea pig is special and has its own name.

Lots of people like watching these videos because they enjoy seeing animals living in fancy ways. The guinea pigs’ fancy home has gotten the attention of many people who find the cute, well-cared-for animals fun to watch. These popular videos show how powerful social media like TikTok can be in sharing things that many people will like and talk about.

Sophie and Mark Mason have made a very nice and safe place for their guinea pigs, showing how important it is to take good care of pets. These videos not only show cute animals but also remind people to give their pets a good place to live. The guinea pigs’ fancy home has made many people happy and shows how much love and care people can give to their animal friends.

Original news source: Guinea pigs in luxury shed become TikTok hit (BBC)

🎧 Listen:

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📖 Vocabulary:

Group or Classroom Activities

Warm-up Activities:

– Charades
Instructions: Divide the class into small groups. Give each group a slip of paper with a word related to the article (e.g. guinea pig, shed, TikTok, pets). One student from each group will act out the word without speaking, while the rest of the group tries to guess what it is.

– Word Association
Instructions: Have the class brainstorm words or phrases related to the article. Start with a word from the article (e.g. guinea pig) and have each student take turns saying a word or phrase that comes to mind (e.g. cute, furry, pet). Encourage students to explain why they chose each word or phrase.

– Vocabulary Pictionary
Instructions: Divide the class into pairs. Give each pair a set of vocabulary words from the article (e.g. shed, TikTok, pets). One student will choose a word and draw a picture representing it, while the other student tries to guess the word. Then they switch roles.

– Speed Summarizing
Instructions: Give each student a piece of paper and ask them to write a one-sentence summary of the article. Then, have them pair up and take turns sharing their summaries with each other. Encourage them to use their own words and focus on the main points.

– Opinion Spectrum
Instructions: Write two statements on the board related to the article (e.g. “It is important to take good care of pets” and “Fancy homes for animals are unnecessary”). Ask students to stand up and move to different parts of the classroom to indicate their level of agreement/disagreement with each statement. After everyone has chosen a spot, allow a few students to share their opinions and reasons why they agree or disagree.

🤔 Comprehension Questions:

1. What is the name of the shed where the guinea pigs live?
2. How many views has the video of the guinea pigs gotten on TikTok?
3. What do the guinea pigs eat in the videos?
4. Why do lots of people like watching these videos?
5. What do the videos show about taking care of pets?
6. How do the videos make people feel?
7. What do the videos show about the love and care people can give to their pets?
Go to answers ⇩

🎧✍️ Listen and Fill in the Gaps:

A video showing guinea pigs living in a very nice shed has (1)______ very popular on TikTok, getting over 140 million (2)______. This special shed, called “the Ritz,” has air (3)______ and room service for the more than 140 guinea pigs living there. The videos are made by Sophie and Mark Mason and show the guinea pigs eating big plates of vegetables and lying in beds made just for them. The Masons say each guinea pig is (4)______ and has its own name.

Lots of people like watching these videos because they enjoy (5)______ animals (6)______ in fancy ways. The guinea pigs’ fancy home has gotten the (7)______ of many (8)______ who find the cute, well-cared-for animals fun to watch. These popular videos show how powerful social media like (9)______ can be in sharing things that many people will like and talk about.

Sophie and Mark Mason have made a very nice and safe place for their guinea (10)______, showing how important it is to take (11)______ care of pets. These videos not only show cute animals but also remind people to give their pets a good place to live. The guinea pigs’ fancy home has made many people happy and (12)______ how much love and care people can give to their animal friends.
Go to answers ⇩

💬 Discussion Questions:

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

1. What is TikTok?
2. How do you think the guinea pigs feel living in “the Ritz” shed?
3. Do you like watching videos of animals living in fancy ways? Why or why not?
4. How would you feel if you had a special shed with air conditioning and room service like the guinea pigs?
5. Do you think it’s important to take good care of pets? Why or why not?
6. What do you think the guinea pigs’ favorite part of living in “the Ritz” shed is?
7. Have you ever had a pet? If so, did you give them a good place to live? Why or why not?
8. How do you think the guinea pigs’ fancy home makes people happy?
9. Why do you think these videos are so popular on TikTok?
10. What other animals do you think would enjoy living in a fancy shed like the guinea pigs?
11. How do you think the guinea pigs’ lives are different from wild guinea pigs?
12. Do you think it’s important to show love and care to our animal friends? Why or why not?

Individual Activities

📖💭 Vocabulary Meanings:

Match each word to its meaning.

Words:
1. popular
2. air conditioning
3. room service
4. vegetables
5. beds
6. attention
7. powerful
8. social media
9. pets
10. remind
11. happy
12. care

Meanings:
(A) A system that keeps the air cool inside a building
(B) Looking after someone or something and making sure they are okay
(C) When people notice and think about something
(D) Feeling joy or pleasure
(E) Plants that people eat, like carrots and lettuce
(F) Animals that live with people in their homes
(G) Furniture you sleep on
(H) When you can order food and it is brought to your room
(I) Having a lot of strength or influence
(J) Liked by many people
(K) To make someone remember something
(L) Websites and apps where people share things and talk to each other
Go to answers ⇩

🔡 Multiple Choice Questions:

1. What is the name of the shed where the guinea pigs live?
(a) The Palace
(b) The Ritz
(c) The Mansion
(d) The Castle

2. How many guinea pigs live in “the Ritz”?
(a) More than 140
(b) Less than 50
(c) Exactly 100
(d) Exactly 200

3. What do the guinea pigs eat in the videos?
(a) Pizza and burgers
(b) Big plates of vegetables
(c) Ice cream and cake
(d) Fish and chips

4. Why do people enjoy watching these videos?
(a) They like seeing animals in cages
(b) They like seeing animals being sad
(c) They like seeing animals living in fancy ways
(d) They like seeing animals being ignored

5. What does the article say about social media like TikTok?
(a) It is not popular anymore
(b) It is only for old people
(c) It is only for young people
(d) It can share things that many people will like and talk about

6. What do the videos remind people to do?
(a) Ignore their pets
(b) Keep their pets outside all the time
(c) Give their pets a good place to live
(d) Give their pets unhealthy food

7. What have Sophie and Mark Mason created for their guinea pigs?
(a) A very nice and safe place
(b) A dangerous place
(c) A small cage
(d) A dirty place

8. What do the videos show about people and their pets?
(a) People don’t care about their pets
(b) People only care about themselves
(c) People only care about their phones
(d) People can give a lot of love and care to their animal friends

Go to answers ⇩

🕵️ True or False Questions:

1. The videos also remind people to neglect their pets and not provide them with a safe and comfortable place to live.
2. The guinea pigs in the video are shown eating small plates of vegetables and lying in regular beds made just for them.
3. These popular videos show how powerful social media like TikTok can be in sharing things that many people will like and talk about.
4. The guinea pigs each have their own name and are considered ordinary by the people who take care of them.
5. A video of guinea pigs living in a fancy shed has become very popular on TikTok.
6. Many people dislike watching these videos because they dislike seeing animals living in fancy ways.
7. The shed is called “the Ritz” and has air conditioning and room service for the guinea pigs.
8. The guinea pigs’ fancy home has caught the attention of many people who find the cute and well-cared-for animals fun to watch.
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 is the special shed called where the guinea pigs live?
2. How many views has the video of the guinea pigs gotten on TikTok?
3. What do the guinea pigs eat in the videos?
4. Why do lots of people like watching the videos of the guinea pigs?
5. What do the videos remind people to do for their pets?

✅ Answers

🤔✅ Comprehension Question Answers:

1. What is the name of the shed where the guinea pigs live?
The shed is called “the Ritz.”

2. How many views has the video of the guinea pigs gotten on TikTok?
The video has gotten over 140 million views.

3. What do the guinea pigs eat in the videos?
The guinea pigs eat big plates of vegetables.

4. Why do lots of people like watching these videos?
Lots of people like watching these videos because they enjoy seeing animals living in fancy ways.

5. What do the videos show about taking care of pets?
The videos show that it is important to give pets a good place to live and take good care of them.

6. How do the videos make people feel?
The videos make people feel happy and entertained.

7. What do the videos show about the love and care people can give to their pets?
The videos show that people can give a lot of love and care to their pets by providing them with a fancy and safe home.
Go back to questions ⇧

🎧✍️✅ Listen and Fill in the Gaps Answers:

(1) become
(2) views
(3) conditioning
(4) special
(5) seeing
(6) living
(7) attention
(8) people
(9) TikTok
(10) pigs
(11) good
(12) shows
Go back to questions ⇧

📖💭✅ Vocabulary Meanings Answers:

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

2. air conditioning
Answer: (A) A system that keeps the air cool inside a building

3. room service
Answer: (H) When you can order food and it is brought to your room

4. vegetables
Answer: (E) Plants that people eat, like carrots and lettuce

5. beds
Answer: (G) Furniture you sleep on

6. attention
Answer: (C) When people notice and think about something

7. powerful
Answer: (I) Having a lot of strength or influence

8. social media
Answer: (L) Websites and apps where people share things and talk to each other

9. pets
Answer: (F) Animals that live with people in their homes

10. remind
Answer: (K) To make someone remember something

11. happy
Answer: (D) Feeling joy or pleasure

12. care
Answer: (B) Looking after someone or something and making sure they are okay
Go back to questions ⇧

🔡✅ Multiple Choice Answers:

1. What is the name of the shed where the guinea pigs live?
Answer: (b) The Ritz

2. How many guinea pigs live in “the Ritz”?
Answer: (a) More than 140

3. What do the guinea pigs eat in the videos?
Answer: (b) Big plates of vegetables

4. Why do people enjoy watching these videos?
Answer: (c) They like seeing animals living in fancy ways

5. What does the article say about social media like TikTok?
Answer: (d) It can share things that many people will like and talk about

6. What do the videos remind people to do?
Answer: (c) Give their pets a good place to live

7. What have Sophie and Mark Mason created for their guinea pigs?
Answer: (a) A very nice and safe place

8. What do the videos show about people and their pets?
Answer: (d) People can give a lot of love and care to their animal friends
Go back to questions ⇧

🕵️✅ True or False Answers:

1. The videos also remind people to neglect their pets and not provide them with a safe and comfortable place to live. (Answer: False)
2. The guinea pigs in the video are shown eating small plates of vegetables and lying in regular beds made just for them. (Answer: False)
3. These popular videos show how powerful social media like TikTok can be in sharing things that many people will like and talk about. (Answer: True)
4. The guinea pigs each have their own name and are considered ordinary by the people who take care of them. (Answer: False)
5. A video of guinea pigs living in a fancy shed has become very popular on TikTok. (Answer: True)
6. Many people dislike watching these videos because they dislike seeing animals living in fancy ways. (Answer: False)
7. The shed is called “the Ritz” and has air conditioning and room service for the guinea pigs. (Answer: True)
8. The guinea pigs’ fancy home has caught the attention of many people who find the cute and well-cared-for animals fun to watch. (Answer: True)
Go back to questions ⇧