ESOL Learner Materials - Level 1, Unit 1
ESOL Learner Materials - Level 1, Unit 1
ESOL Learner Materials - Level 1, Unit 1
Life in the UK
s and discuss
Look at the photograph
these questions.
the
When do you think
?
photographs were taken
has changed
How do you think life
first and
in the time between the
s?
the second photograph
Skill
Skill code
Lr/L1.2a, 2d
Skill
Skill code
Rt/L1.1a
Wt/L1.3a; Ws/L1.1a
Rw/L1.2a
Plan a talk
Wt/L1.1a
Project work
At the end of this unit you will choose an area to research relating to life in the UK.
You will then give a talk and write a short report.
L1
ESOL
Unit 1 Page 1
Changes in the UK
Activity A
The article below compares different aspects of life in the UK in 1953 and now.
1 Work in groups. Make a list of changes that have happened during the period.
Discuss these points: life expectancy, spending, family life, lifestyle.
2 Now read the article. How many of the changes you discussed are mentioned?
A half-century of change
A recent report shows just how much
life in the UK has changed since
1953. The findings are staggering.
People are living much longer
than before. In fact, life expectancy
for both men and women has
increased by nine years over the last
50 years.
As a nation, we are considerably
better off. We have more than twice
as much spare cash to spend.
Nowadays, we spend a significantly
lower proportion of our income on
food, and substantially more on a
variety of goods and services such as
foreign holidays, designer clothes,
DVDs, computer games and cars.
3 Work in pairs. Discuss any of the changes mentioned in the report which you
found surprising or interesting.
4 Read the text again. Underline structures used to compare life in 1953 and now.
5 Look at the word in bold in line 4. Find four other words in the text with the
same meaning.
Page 2 Unit 1
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Men
2003
66
Women
80
1/20
26 million
Activity B
Men
90 cm
Women
75 cm
1 Listen to a reporter from local radio asking five members of the public whether
they think life in the UK is getting better or worse. What do they think? What
reasons do they give?
2 Listen again and tick the expressions as you hear them.
almost as easy
a lot easier
twice as much as
nearly as safe as
lots more
so much faster
Activity C
Interview other members of your class. Ask questions about how they think life is
changing and make a note of their answers. Report back your findings to the class.
Is life getting better or worse?
Do you think technology is
making life better or worse?
L1
ESOL
Unit 1 Page 3
Last month Quest, a market research company, was asked to carry out a survey to
find out how people in the UK today spend their time. They interviewed 2,800
people and the report on page 5 is a summary of their findings.
Before you read the report, your teacher will give you a quiz.
1 Read through the quiz and answer each question.
2 Work in pairs and compare your answers.
3 Now read the report of the findings of the survey. Use the information in the
report and the pie chart to check the answers to your quiz.
4 Complete these sentences about the findings of the survey, using words or
phrases from the box. Make sure you keep the same meaning as in the text.
generally
three-quarters
one in ten
b By midnight
e Only
Activity B
twice as much
..................................................
..................................................
..................................................
..................................................
one in two
half as much
TV as older people.
Saying figures
9.306
1/15
50%
1050
Activity C
25/100
Designing a questionnaire
1 You want to find out how people spend their time. Work in small groups to
decide on the topics for your survey. Then design a questionnaire.
2 Interview a number of different people using your survey.
3 Pool your results with the other members of your group. Work out some
statistics and prepare a summary of the result. If possible, include a pie chart.
4 Present your summary to the class using some of the expressions used in the
report and in Activity A task 4.
Page 4 Unit 1
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Sleep
Food preparation
Work
Personal care
Watching TV/Video
Study
Travel
Shopping/services
Eating
Housework
Social Life
Other
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Unit 1 Page 5
How we live
Activity A
separated
Margaret
married
Mavis
widowed
divorced
Rachel
Rob
Living alone
4 Listen to the first two people again. Margaret and Rachel are talking about the
positive and negative aspects of their current situation. Complete the table below.
Situation now
Advantages
Disadvantages
Margaret
Rachel
Page 6 Unit 1
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Activity B
Sharing with people who speak your own language or different languages
Living with your family or leaving home after you leave school
The/a/one/another good
thing about is
The trouble/problem
with is
Activity C
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ESOL
Unit 1 Page 7
Discussing marriage
Activity B
Joel
Connie
Terry
Activity C
These words are useful for talking about changes. Complete the chart below.
decrease
go up
improve
increase
fall
rise
get worse
go down
decrease
Page 8 Unit 1
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ESOL
Activity D
Thousands
1971
1979
1991
1999
2000
2001
1 The graph shows figures for marriages in the UK. Look at it carefully and then
answer the questions.
a Does the graph show the figures for all marriages?
b How many years does the graph cover?
c In which year were there most marriages?
d What was the approximate figure for marriages in 1999?
e Did the number of marriages go up or down between 1999 and 2001?
2 Complete this description using information in the graph.
In 1961 the number of people getting married for the first time was just under
1
......................................
a peak of about
a constant
5
.....................................
.....................................
.....................................
Activity E
.....................................
and reached
of about 2% in 2001.
Remember
Rt/L1.3a
L1
ESOL
Unit 1 Page 9
Childrens health
Activity A
SOLUTIONS
INTRODUCTION
Obesity is the UKs
biggest health problem,
causing 30,000 premature deaths and also
costing the economy over
2.1 billion a year.
However, the problem
doesnt only affect adults.
The number of obese
children in Britain has
doubled in the past two
decades, with one in ten
children now affected. As
a result, medical experts
fear that this will lead to
increased obesity in the
adult population in the
future, in what they
describe as a medical
time-bomb as important
as smoking was twenty
years ago.
CAUSES OF OBESITY
One of the main causes of
childhood obesity is a lack
of exercise. For example,
in the past many children
would cycle or walk to
school, but parents today
are more likely to take
their children to school by
car as they are concerned
for their safety. The
second major cause of
childhood obesity is an
Page 10 Unit 1
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ESOL
EFFECTS OF OBESITY
Although obese children
may suffer only minor
health problems such as a
lack of mobility, they can
suffer depression and
emotional stress as a
result of being bullied at
more
Even
school.
important, however, is the
fact that being overweight
is linked to life-threatening
conditions in later life. It is
estimated that, as adults,
these children will be 27
times more likely to get
their
and
diabetes
chances of getting heart
disease will double.
3 Read the report again. Look at the underlined words. These are used to connect
the ideas in the text. Work in pairs. Decide which words have the following
purposes:
Organise information
Show contrast
Give reasons
Introduce an example
Activity B
secondly, finally
1 Read about some other changes which are having a negative effect on children
today. Which problem is described in each situation?
A
are
Children as young as seven
in
Stra
suffering from Repetitive
ruse
Injury (RSI) because of the ove
es
gam
eld
of computers and hand-h
. RSI
in the home and at school
mb,
thu
shows up as Nintendo
llen
pains in the shoulders and swo
ly
bab
pro
l
joints. These children wil
in
face years of agony and ill health
the future.
B
Technology is becoming an extremely
important tool in homework activities set
by teachers. There are big differences in
access to technology in the home in terms
of class. Forty-six per cent of middle-class
children compared with 19% of workingclass children have access to a computer at
home. Working-class children are at a real
disadvantage.
D
C
Some research suggests that violence in
computer games can have a bad effect on
young peoples behaviour. A recent study
on a group of eight- and nine-year-olds
found that when they reduced time spent
playing computer games to less than seven
hours a week for 20 weeks, their verbal
aggression decreased by half and their
physical aggression decreased by 40%.
advertisements aimed
Research shows that
peak viewing times,
at children, usually at
s
em. Their preference
strongly influence th
d
food are influence
for toys and types of
ts they watch, and
by the advertisemen
to change these
advertisements seek
ts are presented as
preferences. Produc
t have, even though
something they mus
necessary or bad for
they are expensive, un
sers rely on children
their health. Adverti
ts to get the things
nagging their paren
vertisements.
they have seen in ad
2 Work in groups of four. Choose two of the situations above. Discuss each of them in
turn. Make a list of possible causes and effects, then discuss solutions for each situation.
3 Now work in pairs and prepare three paragraphs for a short report for one of the
situations you discussed.
Paragraph 1 causes
Paragraph 2 effects
Paragraph 3 solutions
4 Write your paragraphs. Include connecting words used in the report on page 10.
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ESOL
Unit 1 Page 11
1 Joel and Connie have two children: Luke, 18 months, and Laura, six years.
Who in the family do you think does these things? Joel or Connie?
a goes out to work
b spends most time looking after the children
c takes Luke to playgroup in the afternoons
d studies computer programming at the local college
e takes Laura to school
f does the cleaning
g does the cooking
2 Who else helps out?
3 Listen and check whether your ideas were the same.
4 How typical is this family compared with families you know or families in your
own country?
Activity B
Planning a talk
As part of his course, Joel has to give a three-minute talk on changes in society.
Look at his plan. What is his talk going to be about?
low pay
lack of support
from partners
barriers to
careers for women
with young children
lack of career
opportunities
Page 12 Unit 1
inadequate
childcare provision
L1
ESOL
Activity C
1 Look at the photo of Joel. How do you think he feels? What is he doing wrong?
2 Listen to the talk. In which order does he talk about his four main points?
3 Listen again. What reasons and examples does he give to support each of his
main points?
4 How does he make the organisation of his talk clear for the people who are
listening?
a What does he say to explain what his talk is about?
b How does he introduce each of his four points?
c How does he introduce his conclusion?
d How does he ask for questions at the end of the talk?
Activity D
1 Choose one of the topics below for your talk. Then plan your four main points
and any supporting reasons and examples you want to use. Try using a plan
like the one in Activity B.
Family life
Your choice
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ESOL
Unit 1 Page 13
Project
You are now going to do your own research on one aspect of life in the UK today.
This will involve choosing and researching a topic, presenting your findings to the
whole group and writing a short report.
Activity A
1 Work in groups. Choose one of the topics below that you think will be of
interest to all your class.
Examples
Another topic
2 Research your topic using your local library or the Internet. You will need to:
Activity B
Use the results of your research to prepare a short talk about your findings for
the class. If possible, include a simple graph or pie chart.
Activity C
Write a report
Now write a report on your topic. Include a general introduction to the topic,
a summary of your findings and your personal viewpoint.
Page 14 Unit 1
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Check it
Activity A
In comparison with fifty years ago, children are far less active today.
b Children are much less active than they used to be. They are spending too
much time watching TV. They are spending too much time playing
computer games. (because, and)
c Many children fail to take enough exercise. Many children eat the wrong
things. (not only ... but also ...)
d Parents are aware of the risks. Many still allow their children to eat crisps
and burgers and other fatty foods. (although)
e Healthy eating has become a concern for many parents. It has become a
concern for schools. Many health organisations and doctors are producing
advice leaflets. (both ... and, as a result)
Activity B
After many years of decline, the cinema has become popular again with the
British. Look at the graph and use the information to complete the description.
Millions
1..................................................
2..................................................
4..................................................
3..................................................
5.................................................. ,
..................................................
7
..................................................
steadily.
..................................................
for this
increase has been the building of many new multiplex cinemas large cinemas with
several different screens.
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Unit 1 Page 15
Mini-projects
Activity A
Practise using the Internet to research a topic which interests you. Log onto a
search engine such as Google at http://www.google.com
When the search is completed, print off one of the search results pages. Go into
two or three of the websites. Select and print a page from each. Report back to
the group.
Activity B
Choose one of the organisations below. Research it using your local library, by
contacting the organisation directly, or by using the Internet. Then prepare a
talk for your class to explain the help and support the organisation offers to its
target audience.
Organisation
Target audience
Age Concern
Elderly people
Childline
Children
Gingerbread
Single-parent families
Parentline Plus
Parents
Relate
Couples in crisis
The Samaritans
How am I doing?
Look back at the skills listed on page 1. Then finish the sentences below.
I am confident with
.....................................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................................................................................................
.........................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................................................................................................
Date
........................................................................
Page 16 Unit 1
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Audio scripts
Pages 2 and 3 Changes in the UK
Activity B
Interview 1
Reporter: So do you think life in the UK is getting
better or worse?
Woman: Well ... I must say I do feel much less safe
than I used to. You know I always used to
leave my front door unlocked when I
went out during the day. I certainly
wouldnt do that these days, and I dont
know of anybody who would. But therere
some things better nowadays. I think
youngsters have a far easier time,
particularly young women. Theres no
doubt about it they do have more
choices. I know if I had my time over
again, Id be a policewoman. But I got
married at 17 and had children straight
away. There just werent the same
opportunities for us then. As for better or
worse well, a bit of both, Id say.
Interview 2
Reporter: What about you? Do you feel life in the
UKs getting better or worse?
Man: I came to live here ten years ago. For me,
the biggest change has to be in how we
use technology. I think we all know its
had a real impact on how we live and
thats with our friends and family and not
just work. Mobile phones have become so
popular lots more people have them.
And nearly everybody has a computer
these days. So its a lot easier to get hold
of information using the web, and then
theres communication its so much
faster and this applies not only in the
UK but internationally. Take me, for
example its almost as easy to get in
touch with my folks back home as if they
lived in the next town. That certainly
wasnt the case when I first arrived. Yes, I
really think things like mobiles and the
Internet have changed our lives and
for the better.
Interview 3
Reporter: So do you agree with that?
Woman: Not really. In lots of ways it seems to be
getting worse. You know, I think our
children are getting fatter and lazier. Im
afraid mine watch about five hours of
television a day. Thats at least twice as
much as I did when I was a girl. And they
sit for hours on end playing these
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Unit 1 Page 17
Page 18 Unit 1
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Joel
It seems to me its got a lot more to do with peoples
expectations. I think people today expect a lot more
out of their marriage and their partner than they did,
say, 30 or 40 years ago. I think womens expectations
especially are a lot higher today. And theyre not
prepared to put up with unhappy, you know, what
do they call them empty-shell marriages you
know, a marriage where theres no love or intimacy.
No, the point is, I think people women want
compatibility, you know, emotional and sexual and
equality. And I think today that lots of people, if they
dont find those things in their partner, theyre
prepared to get divorced. And I think theyre
prepared to keep going until they do find the right
person.
Connie
Personally, I think you have to look back into history
a bit to get the answer. I mean, I think its true that
womens expectations have changed, but I think the
thing is that its because their roles have changed. I
mean if you compare now with 50 or 60 years ago,
women today are educated and qualified, and they
can get to the top in their careers. Not all of them,
but its getting better. And in the past, a lot of
women just expected that their role in life was to get
married, and be a good housewife and have kids and
be a good mother. And they had no money or job, so
they depended on their husband. But today, women
dont need men for financial security.
Terry
I think theres some truth in everything everyones
said but, if you ask me, I think the main thing is that
societys changed attitudes have changed. If you
think back only 30 or 40 years, how many people did
you know who were divorced? Not many, I shouldnt
think. I know I didnt. In those days, people were a
lot more religious and there was a lot of shame that
came with being divorced. And having a child
without being married? That was about the worst
thing that could ever happen to a woman and the
child. But today, thats all changed. Today its
perfectly normal to say youre divorced or a single
parent, or if youre pregnant and not married or
living with someone. In the past, they called that
living in sin. I mean, just look at all the pop stars
and film stars who are single but have babies. And
we just accept that now as normal.
Activity C
Joel
More women than ever are trying to combine a
career and a family. Today just over 50% of women
with children under five are now in paid work, and
about 25% of non-working mothers say they would
like to have a job.
However, in Britain today balancing a job and
small children is still very difficult, so in my talk Id
like to talk about some of the barriers that prevent
women from having a satisfying job at the same time
as bringing up a young family.
My first point is low level of pay. As I said before,
there are now more women than ever in
employment, but on average women still earn
between 20% and 40% less than men for the same
work. For every pound that a man in full-time work
earns, a women earns just 80p. The situation is even
worse for the 40% of women who have part-time
jobs. Here women typically earn just 60p for every
pound a man earns.
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Unit 1 Page 19
Page 20 Unit 1
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Answers
Quiz
1
2
3
4
5
b
c
d
e
1
;
4
Number of people
who live alone
Couples who cohabit
before marriage
Number of children born
to unmarried parents
Number of cars and vans
Average waist size Men
Women
1 pm
4%
26 hours
elderly people
adults
1953
66
71
1.5
million
1/20
2003
75
80
7
million
7/10
1/20
2/5
3
million
78 cm
67.5 cm
26
million
90 cm
75 cm
Activity B1
Suggested answers:
Speaker 1 both
more crime/more choices for
women
Speaker 2 better
technology makes life easier
Speaker 3 worse
children are lazier and fatter/
towns are not as safe
Speaker 4 both
better medical advances/less
caring
Speaker 5 better
society is less rigid
Activity B2
Activity B
Activity A6
Men
Women
6
7
8
9
10
Activity A4
Activity A5
Life expectancy
sleeping
eating
watching TV
travelling
up
Activity A3
Living in a residential home
Bringing up a child alone
Living with family
Sharing a flat/house
Living together
Living in a childrens home/being in care
Living with foster parents
Living on your own
Activity A4
Margaret:
Advantages:
Disadvantages:
Rachel:
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ESOL
Unit 1 Page 21
A
Activity C1
Activity E
3 advantages
Constant contact with both parents who can be
positive role models
Best chance of growing up in a loving, stable
environment
Physical and economic support during early years of
dependence
Suggested answer:
At the beginning of the sixties the number of people
getting divorced was about 27,000. For the next
thirty years, the number of divorces rose
continuously, reaching a peak of about 165,000 in
1994. Since then the divorce rate has gone down,
except for a small increase of about 2% in 2000.
3 disadvantages
Nuclear family can be isolated and lacking support
Conflict if one parent does not take responsibility
expected
Lower chance of happy and stable atmosphere if
parent(s) unhappy
Activity C2
Show contrast
Suggested answers:
For example
In addition
Most importantly
On the other hand
Another disadvantage
Added to this
Giving reasons
Introduce an example
Show the result of actions
Activity C
go up, improve, increase, rise
decrease, fall, get worse, go down
Activity D1
a
b
c
d
e
Suggested answers:
A Repetitive Strain Injury from overuse of computers
and games
B Working-class children being at a disadvantage
because fewer of them have access to computers at
home
C Violent computer games leading to aggressive
behaviour
D Children being targeted by advertisers
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
350,000
rise/increase/go up
380,000
decrease/fall
rise/increase
Page 22 Unit 1
Activity B1
Activity D2
1
2
3
4
5
Connie
Joel
Joel
Joel
Connie
Joel
Joel
Activity A2
Connies mum.
L1
secondly, finally
and also, even more
important, in addition
however, but, even
though, although
one of the main
causes, the second
major cause, as a
result of
for example, for
instance, such as
as a result
ESOL
A
Activity C2
1
2
3
4
low pay
lack of career opportunities
lack of affordable childcare
lack of support from partners
Activity C3
1 low pay no reason given
Example: how much less women earn compared
with men
2 lack of career opportunities reasons: business
culture says work should be main focus, decision
makers are men
Example: men being promoted to management
job in nursing (female-dominated job)
3 lack of affordable childcare no reason given
Example: figures which show number of nursery
places is inadequate
4 lack of support from partners no reason given
Example: study showing most working women
still do most of the housework
Activity C4
a ... so in my talk Id like to talk about ...
b My first point is ...
Another important obstacle ... is ...
My next point is ...
So now to my final point ...
c In conclusion ...
d If you have any questions, Ill be happy to try to
answer them.
Page 15 Check it
Activity A
b Children are much less active than they used to be
because they are spending too much time
watching TV and playing computer games.
c Many children not only fail to take enough
exercise, but also eat the wrong things.
d Although parents are aware of the risks, many still
allow their children to eat crisps and burgers and
other fatty foods.
e Healthy eating has become a major concern for
both parents and schools. As a result, many
health organisations and doctors are producing
advice leaflets.
Activity B
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
350 million
decreased/fell/went down/dropped/declined
100 million
1984
firstly
secondly
have risen/have gone up/have increased
The (main) reason/one reason
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Unit 1 Page 23