Last month, it rained a lot in the UK, and a big storm called Babet made fewer people go out to shop. Because of the bad weather, people didn’t want to leave their homes, and shops saw 5.7% fewer visitors than last year. Also, things cost more now, so people are careful about spending money, especially on big things.

Shops are now getting ready for a very important time when people buy a lot for Christmas and look for deals on Black Friday. But it’s a hard time because people don’t feel like spending much money. The shops are being told to make their websites better and to make shopping in their stores more fun, so people will want to come and buy things.

In one part of the UK, called Yorkshire and the Humber, shops had the fewest people come by, with 10.2% fewer than last year. The city of Leeds had even fewer people shopping. Even though it’s tough, shops are trying to find new ways to get people to come in and buy things, especially now when many people are looking for Christmas gifts.

Original news source: Rain hits shops ahead of key Christmas season (BBC)

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Group or Classroom Activities

Warm-up Activities:

– News Reporter Role-play
Instructions: Students pair up, with one acting as a news reporter and the other as a shop owner affected by the storm Babet. The reporter interviews the shop owner about the impact of the weather on shopping behavior and preparations for the holiday season.

– Opinion Poll
Instructions: Create a list of statements about consumer behavior and shopping trends from the article (e.g., “Bad weather makes people shop less”, “People are spending less on big purchases”). Students walk around the classroom and poll their classmates to agree or disagree with each statement, tallying up the results to discuss as a class.

– Vocabulary Pictionary
Instructions: Write down key vocabulary from the article on slips of paper (e.g., storm, visitors, spending, deals, Christmas, Black Friday). Students take turns drawing the word on the board without speaking, while the rest of the class tries to guess the word.

– Keyword Hangman
Instructions: Choose keywords from the article (e.g., weather, shops, visitors, spending, Christmas). Play a game of hangman with your students, using these words. Each time a word is guessed, discuss its meaning and use in the context of the article.

– Future Predictions
Instructions: Discuss the article briefly and then ask students to write down their predictions for the shopping trends in the UK for the upcoming Christmas period. They can consider factors such as weather, economic conditions, and new strategies by shops. Share and compare predictions in small groups or as a class discussion.

Comprehension Questions:

1. What happened last month in the UK that made fewer people go shopping?
2. How much did the number of shoppers in the UK drop compared to last year?
3. Why are people being careful about how they spend their money?
4. What special time are shops getting ready for?
5. What are shops being told to do to attract more customers?
6. Which part of the UK had the biggest drop in shoppers?
7. What is the city in the UK where even fewer people went shopping than in other places?
Go to answers ⇩

Listen and Fill in the Gaps:

Last month, it (1)______ a lot in the UK, and a big storm called (2)______ made (3)______ people go out to shop. Because of the bad weather, people didn’t want to leave their homes, and shops saw 5.7% fewer visitors than last year. Also, things cost more now, so people are careful about spending money, especially on big things.

(4)______ are now getting (5)______ for a very important time when people buy a lot for Christmas and look for (6)______ on Black Friday. But it’s a hard time because people don’t feel like spending much money. The shops are being (7)______ to (8)______ their websites better and to make shopping in their stores more fun, so people will want to come and buy things.

In one part of the UK, (9)______ Yorkshire and the Humber, shops had the fewest people come by, with 10.2% fewer than (10)______ year. The city of Leeds had even fewer people shopping. Even though it’s tough, shops are trying to find new ways to get people to (11)______ in and buy things, especially now when many people are looking for (12)______ gifts.
Go to answers ⇩

Discussion Questions:

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

1. What is a storm?
2. How would you feel if a big storm made it hard to go outside?
3. Do you like going shopping when it is raining a lot? Why or why not?
4. What do you think about shopping online instead of going to the store?
5. How do you feel when things in the store cost more money?
6. What is your favorite thing to buy for Christmas?
7. Do you think Black Friday has good deals? Why or why not?
8. What makes shopping fun for you?
9. Have you ever gone to a store and seen it very empty? How did that make you feel?
10. Do you like to look for gifts for other people? Why or why not?
11. What is something special you would go to a shop to buy even if the weather is bad?
12. Do you think it’s important for stores to have good websites? Why or why not?

Individual Activities

Vocabulary Meanings:

Match each word to its meaning.

Words:
1. storm
2. fewer
3. cost
4. deals
5. especially
6. important
7. part
8. tough

Meanings:
(a) A very bad weather with strong winds and rain
(b) Special offers or discounts
(c) Difficult or hard
(d) Particularly
(e) The amount of money needed to buy something
(f) A piece or section of a whole
(g) Not as many
(h) Something that is very significant or necessary
Go to answers ⇩

Multiple Choice Questions:

1. What was the name of the big storm that made fewer people go out to shop in the UK last month?
(a) Babet
(b) Charlotte
(c) Amelia
(d) Diana

2. Why did shops see 5.7% fewer visitors than last year in the UK?
(a) Too many sales
(b) Not enough products
(c) Bad weather
(d) High prices

3. What time of year are shops getting ready for in the UK?
(a) Halloween
(b) Christmas
(c) Easter
(d) Valentine’s Day

4. What are shops being told to do to make people want to come and buy things?
(a) Close their stores
(b) Raise their prices
(c) Make their websites better
(d) Have fewer products

5. Which part of the UK had the fewest people come by the shops, with 10.2% fewer than last year?
(a) London
(b) Yorkshire and the Humber
(c) Wales
(d) Scotland

6. What is the city in Yorkshire and the Humber that had even fewer people shopping?
(a) Leeds
(b) Manchester
(c) Liverpool
(d) Birmingham

7. What are people looking for now when they go shopping in the UK?
(a) Summer clothes
(b) Halloween costumes
(c) Birthday presents
(d) Christmas gifts

8. What are shops trying to find to get people to come in and buy things?
(a) Old ways
(b) Expensive ways
(c) Boring ways
(d) New ways

Go to answers ⇩

True or False Questions:

1. Shops are not trying to find new ways to get people to come in and buy things, especially now when many people are not looking for Christmas gifts.
2. Shops are not getting ready for Christmas and Black Friday, and people feel like spending a lot of money.
3. Shops are being told to make their websites better and to make shopping in their stores more fun, so people will want to come and buy things.
4. Things cost more now, so people are careful about spending money, especially on big things.
5. In Yorkshire and the Humber, shops had the most people come by, with 10.2% more than last year.
6. Because of the good weather, shops saw 5.7% more visitors than last year.
7. The city of Leeds had even fewer people shopping than other places in the UK.
8. Last month, there was a lot of rain in the UK, and a big storm called Babet made fewer people go out to shop.
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 did fewer people go shopping last month in the UK?
2. What are two reasons people are not spending as much money right now?
3. What special time are shops getting ready for?
4. What are shops being told to do to get more people to come in?
5. Which part of the UK had the least number of people going to the shops?

Answers

Comprehension Question Answers:

1. What happened last month in the UK that made fewer people go shopping?
Last month, it rained a lot and there was a big storm named Babet, so people did not want to go outside to the shops.

2. How much did the number of shoppers in the UK drop compared to last year?
The number of people shopping went down by 5.7% from last year.

3. Why are people being careful about how they spend their money?
Things cost more money now, so people are thinking more before they buy, especially expensive things.

4. What special time are shops getting ready for?
Shops are getting ready for Christmas and Black Friday, when lots of people buy things.

5. What are shops being told to do to attract more customers?
Shops are being told to make their websites better and to make shopping more fun so that people will want to come and shop.

6. Which part of the UK had the biggest drop in shoppers?
Yorkshire and the Humber had the biggest drop, with 10.2% fewer shoppers than last year.

7. What is the city in the UK where even fewer people went shopping than in other places?
The city where even fewer people went shopping is Leeds.
Go back to questions ⇧

Listen and Fill in the Gaps Answers:

(1) rained
(2) Babet
(3) fewer
(4) Shops
(5) ready
(6) deals
(7) told
(8) make
(9) called
(10) last
(11) come
(12) Christmas
Go back to questions ⇧

Vocabulary Meanings Answers:

1. storm
Answer: (a) A very bad weather with strong winds and rain

2. fewer
Answer: (g) Not as many

3. cost
Answer: (e) The amount of money needed to buy something

4. deals
Answer: (b) Special offers or discounts

5. especially
Answer: (d) Particularly

6. important
Answer: (h) Something that is very significant or necessary

7. part
Answer: (f) A piece or section of a whole

8. tough
Answer: (c) Difficult or hard
Go back to questions ⇧

Multiple Choice Answers:

1. What was the name of the big storm that made fewer people go out to shop in the UK last month?
Answer: (a) Babet

2. Why did shops see 5.7% fewer visitors than last year in the UK?
Answer: (c) Bad weather

3. What time of year are shops getting ready for in the UK?
Answer: (b) Christmas

4. What are shops being told to do to make people want to come and buy things?
Answer: (c) Make their websites better

5. Which part of the UK had the fewest people come by the shops, with 10.2% fewer than last year?
Answer: (b) Yorkshire and the Humber

6. What is the city in Yorkshire and the Humber that had even fewer people shopping?
Answer: (a) Leeds

7. What are people looking for now when they go shopping in the UK?
Answer: (d) Christmas gifts

8. What are shops trying to find to get people to come in and buy things?
Answer: (d) New ways
Go back to questions ⇧

True or False Answers:

1. Shops are not trying to find new ways to get people to come in and buy things, especially now when many people are not looking for Christmas gifts. (Answer: False)
2. Shops are not getting ready for Christmas and Black Friday, and people feel like spending a lot of money. (Answer: False)
3. Shops are being told to make their websites better and to make shopping in their stores more fun, so people will want to come and buy things. (Answer: True)
4. Things cost more now, so people are careful about spending money, especially on big things. (Answer: True)
5. In Yorkshire and the Humber, shops had the most people come by, with 10.2% more than last year. (Answer: False)
6. Because of the good weather, shops saw 5.7% more visitors than last year. (Answer: False)
7. The city of Leeds had even fewer people shopping than other places in the UK. (Answer: True)
8. Last month, there was a lot of rain in the UK, and a big storm called Babet made fewer people go out to shop. (Answer: True)
Go back to questions ⇧