A woman named Isabella Day owns a small jewelry shop. She has lost a lot of jewelry to thieves in the last two years. Isabella doesn’t want to lock her shop door because she likes to be friendly. So, she bought alarms and cameras to keep her shop safe, and they helped catch a thief.

Many shops in the UK are having more things stolen now. Stealing from shops costs a lot of money in the UK and even more in the US. Small shops have a hard time paying for good security things. A group called FSB wants the police to do more to stop people from stealing in small shops.

A big shop in the UK called the Co-op spent a lot of money to stop thieves. They have cameras, buttons for help, and people who watch the shop. They are trying to use smart computers to stop stealing. But the Co-op’s big boss says having people watch the shop is still the best way. He wants the police to work harder to keep the shops, workers, and customers safe.

Original news source: Shop owners hope that tech can deter thieves (BBC)

Listen

Slow

Normal

Fast

Group or Classroom Activities

Warm-up Activities:

– Sketch It
Instructions: Students are divided into small groups. They are given a set of keywords from the article (e.g., “jewelry shop,” “thieves,” “alarms,” “cameras,” “police,” “security,” “Co-op”). Each student picks a word and has one minute to draw it on the board while their group guesses the word. They cannot speak or write any words or numbers. This activity helps with word recognition and vocabulary reinforcement.

– News Reporter Role-play
Instructions: Students work in pairs to role-play a news reporter and a shop owner. One student is the reporter asking questions about the increase in thefts and the measures taken to prevent them, while the other is the shop owner (like Isabella Day or the Co-op’s big boss) explaining the situation and the security measures implemented. Afterward, they switch roles. This activity encourages speaking practice and use of specific vocabulary from the article.

– Opinion Poll
Instructions: Create a list of statements about shop security and theft prevention (e.g., “Small shops should always lock their doors,” “High-tech security is better than human surveillance”). Students walk around the class and ask their classmates whether they agree or disagree with each statement, tallying the results. At the end, discuss the class’s opinions as a group. This encourages speaking and listening practice while engaging with the content of the article.

– Keyword Hangman
Instructions: Play a game of hangman using keywords from the article (e.g., “alarms,” “thieves,” “security”). Divide the class into two teams. One team thinks of a word related to the article and the other team has to guess the word by suggesting letters. If the guessing team cannot guess the word within a certain number of incorrect guesses, the other team wins a point. This helps with spelling and vocabulary recall.

– Future Predictions
Instructions: Students work in pairs to discuss and make predictions about the future of shop security based on information from the article. They could answer questions like “What new security measures might shops implement in the future?” or “How will the role of the police in preventing shop theft change?” Each pair then shares their predictions with the class. This activity encourages the use of future tense and critical thinking about the topic.

Comprehension Questions:

1. What does Isabella Day own?
2. Why has Isabella lost a lot of jewelry?
3. Why doesn’t Isabella want to lock her shop door?
4. What did Isabella buy to protect her shop?
5. What problem do many shops in the UK have right now?
6. What does the group called FSB want the police to do?
7. What does the big shop called the Co-op use to try to stop thieves?
Go to answers ⇩

Listen and Fill in the Gaps:

A woman (1)______ Isabella Day owns a small jewelry shop. She has lost a lot of jewelry to thieves in the last two years. Isabella doesn’t want to lock her shop (2)______ because she likes to be (3)______. So, she bought alarms and cameras to keep her shop safe, and they helped (4)______ a thief.

Many (5)______ in the UK are having more things stolen now. Stealing from shops costs a lot of money in the UK and even more in the US. Small shops have a hard (6)______ paying for good security things. A (7)______ called FSB wants the police to do more to (8)______ people from stealing in small shops.

A big shop in the UK called the Co-op spent a lot of money to stop thieves. They (9)______ cameras, buttons for help, and people who watch the (10)______. They are trying to use smart (11)______ to stop stealing. But the Co-op’s big boss says (12)______ people watch the shop is still the best way. He wants the police to work harder to keep the shops, workers, and customers safe.
Go to answers ⇩

Discussion Questions:

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

1. What is a thief?
2. How would you feel if someone took something from your store?
3. Do you like shopping in small stores? Why or why not?
4. Do you think it’s important for shops to have alarms and cameras? Why?
5. Have you ever seen a camera in a store? What do you think it’s for?
6. What are some ways to keep a shop safe without locking the door?
7. Do you think the police should help more with stopping thieves? Why or why not?
8. What does “security” mean in a shop?
9. Have you or someone you know ever had something stolen? How did it make you feel?
10. What is a “smart computer” and how do you think it can stop stealing?
11. Do you think big stores or small stores have more problems with thieves? Why?
12. Why do you think having people watch the shop might be better than cameras?

Individual Activities

Vocabulary Meanings:

Match each word to its meaning.

Words:
1. jewelry
2. thieves
3. alarms
4. cameras
5. stolen
6. security
7. computers
8. police

Meanings:
(a) Machines that make loud noises to warn of danger
(b) Devices that take pictures or videos to catch bad people
(c) Machines that can think and solve problems
(d) Pretty things like necklaces and rings
(e) Things that have been taken without permission
(f) Measures taken to protect something from danger or theft
(g) Bad people who take things that don’t belong to them
(h) People who enforce the law and keep us safe
Go to answers ⇩

Multiple Choice Questions:

1. Why did Isabella Day buy alarms and cameras for her jewelry shop?
(a) To keep her shop safe
(b) To make her shop look fancy
(c) To scare away customers
(d) To lock her shop door

2. Why doesn’t Isabella want to lock her shop door?
(a) She doesn’t have a key
(b) She likes to be friendly
(c) She wants to invite thieves in
(d) She doesn’t care about her jewelry

3. What is the FSB?
(a) A group of thieves
(b) A group that wants the police to do more to stop stealing in small shops
(c) A group that wants to steal from small shops
(d) A group that wants to lock all small shops

4. What did the Co-op spend a lot of money on?
(a) Fancy decorations for the shop
(b) New clothes for the workers
(c) Food for the customers
(d) Cameras, buttons for help, and people who watch the shop

5. What does the big boss of the Co-op think is the best way to keep the shop safe?
(a) Locking the shop door
(b) Having alarms and cameras
(c) Having people watch the shop
(d) Having a big dog in the shop

6. What does the big boss want the police to do?
(a) Steal from the shops themselves
(b) Ignore the small shops
(c) Lock up all the thieves
(d) Work harder to keep the shops, workers, and customers safe

7. What is the main problem for small shops in the UK?
(a) They have too many customers
(b) They don’t have enough jewelry
(c) They have a hard time paying for good security things
(d) They don’t like the police

8. What did the alarms and cameras help do for Isabella Day?
(a) Catch a thief
(b) Scare away customers
(c) Lock her shop door
(d) Make her shop look fancy

Go to answers ⇩

True or False Questions:

1. Isabella Day owns a large jewelry shop and has gained a lot of jewelry from thieves in the last two years.
2. Isabella bought alarms and cameras to keep her shop safe, and they helped catch a thief.
3. The Co-op, a big shop in the UK, has invested a lot of money in security measures like cameras, buttons for help, and people who watch the shop.
4. Many shops in the UK are experiencing fewer thefts now.
5. Isabella doesn’t want to lock her shop door because she likes to be friendly.
6. A group called FSB wants the police to do more to prevent thefts in small shops.
7. Small shops have an easy time affording good security measures.
8. Stealing from shops saves a lot of money in the UK and even more in the US.
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 does Isabella Day do for work?
2. Why has Isabella lost a lot of jewelry?
3. What did Isabella buy to protect her shop?
4. What problem do many shops in the UK have right now?
5. What does the big boss of the Co-op think is the best way to keep the shop safe?

Answers

Comprehension Question Answers:

1. What does Isabella Day own?
Isabella Day owns a small jewelry shop.

2. Why has Isabella lost a lot of jewelry?
She has lost a lot of jewelry because thieves have stolen it.

3. Why doesn’t Isabella want to lock her shop door?
She doesn’t want to lock her shop door because she likes to be friendly.

4. What did Isabella buy to protect her shop?
Isabella bought alarms and cameras to protect her shop.

5. What problem do many shops in the UK have right now?
Many shops in the UK are having more things stolen now.

6. What does the group called FSB want the police to do?
The group called FSB wants the police to do more to stop people from stealing in small shops.

7. What does the big shop called the Co-op use to try to stop thieves?
The Co-op uses cameras, buttons for help, and people who watch the shop to try to stop thieves. They are also trying to use smart computers to stop stealing.
Go back to questions ⇧

Listen and Fill in the Gaps Answers:

(1) named
(2) door
(3) friendly
(4) catch
(5) shops
(6) time
(7) group
(8) stop
(9) have
(10) shop
(11) computers
(12) having
Go back to questions ⇧

Vocabulary Meanings Answers:

1. jewelry
Answer: (d) Pretty things like necklaces and rings

2. thieves
Answer: (g) Bad people who take things that don’t belong to them

3. alarms
Answer: (a) Machines that make loud noises to warn of danger

4. cameras
Answer: (b) Devices that take pictures or videos to catch bad people

5. stolen
Answer: (e) Things that have been taken without permission

6. security
Answer: (f) Measures taken to protect something from danger or theft

7. computers
Answer: (c) Machines that can think and solve problems

8. police
Answer: (h) People who enforce the law and keep us safe
Go back to questions ⇧

Multiple Choice Answers:

1. Why did Isabella Day buy alarms and cameras for her jewelry shop?
Answer: (a) To keep her shop safe

2. Why doesn’t Isabella want to lock her shop door?
Answer: (b) She likes to be friendly

3. What is the FSB?
Answer: (b) A group that wants the police to do more to stop stealing in small shops

4. What did the Co-op spend a lot of money on?
Answer: (d) Cameras, buttons for help, and people who watch the shop

5. What does the big boss of the Co-op think is the best way to keep the shop safe?
Answer: (c) Having people watch the shop

6. What does the big boss want the police to do?
Answer: (d) Work harder to keep the shops, workers, and customers safe

7. What is the main problem for small shops in the UK?
Answer: (c) They have a hard time paying for good security things

8. What did the alarms and cameras help do for Isabella Day?
Answer: (a) Catch a thief
Go back to questions ⇧

True or False Answers:

1. Isabella Day owns a large jewelry shop and has gained a lot of jewelry from thieves in the last two years. (Answer: False)
2. Isabella bought alarms and cameras to keep her shop safe, and they helped catch a thief. (Answer: True)
3. The Co-op, a big shop in the UK, has invested a lot of money in security measures like cameras, buttons for help, and people who watch the shop. (Answer: True)
4. Many shops in the UK are experiencing fewer thefts now. (Answer: False)
5. Isabella doesn’t want to lock her shop door because she likes to be friendly. (Answer: True)
6. A group called FSB wants the police to do more to prevent thefts in small shops. (Answer: True)
7. Small shops have an easy time affording good security measures. (Answer: False)
8. Stealing from shops saves a lot of money in the UK and even more in the US. (Answer: False)
Go back to questions ⇧