Learning English with CBC Edmonton Weekly newscast March 9th 2012 Lessons prepared by Jennifer Foote & Justine Light Objectives of the weekly newscast lesson to develop listening skills at the CLB 4 level to increase vocabulary among learners to increase knowledge of news stories to provide a self study tool, as well as, an ESL classroom resource www.alberta.ca www.cbc.ca/edmonton/eal/ 1
News story #1 Before you listen to the first news story, complete this vocabulary activity. It will help you to understand the listening more easily. Vocabulary The words below are from the first news story. Choose the group of words in the box below that best matches those words. The first one is done for you. Answers are in the appendix. Answer Word Related words d 1) crashed a) hurt wounded damaged 2) head on b) with part of one of 3) seriously c) accusations crimes offenses 4) injured d) hit collided bumped into 5) surgery e) badly critically dangerously 6) among f) straight into face to face front end 7) charges g) operation under the knife medical procedure Extra definitions to help you understand the reading: Impaired driving causing death: this is the crime of drinking alcohol, then driving and causing a car accident where someone dies. 2
Now listen to the first news story from the audio file. Listening activity: Multiple choice Choose the best answer to complete the sentences. The first one is done for you. Answers are in the appendix. 1. Four people a) were killed. b) were injured. 2. The accident was near a) the Philippines. b) Innisfail 3. The car with the five workers a) was driving the right way. b) was driving the wrong. 4. One of the people in the car a) worked for the Coast Plaza Hotel. b) was not killed in the accident 5. A 29 year old man a) was charged with impaired driving crimes. b) was killed in an accident. 3
News story #2 Before you listen to the second news story, complete this vocabulary activity. It will help you to understand the listening more easily. Vocabulary Match the words with their definitions. The first one is done for you. Answers are in the appendix. Answer Word Definition j 1. water feature a) more and more 2. operated b) effect 3. impact c) when a large amount of water drops a long distance 4. chlorinated d) worries 5. hazard e) the small details of something 6. increasingly f) a pretty sculpture/fountain etc. that uses water. 7. concerns g) filled with a chemical that keeps water clean 8. specifics h) danger 9. waterfall i) was open and running Extra definitions to help you understand the reading: in the balance: If something is in the balance it means that a final decision about it has not yet been made. Now listen to the second news story from the audio file. Listening Activity: True/False Decide whether the statements below are true or false. Write your answer in the blanks. The first one is done for you. Answers are on the last page. 1. True The city has not made a final decision about the waterfall. 2. The water feature runs five or six times per month. 3. The federal government is worried about the environment. 4. Chlorine may be bad for fish. 5. The waterfall was built in 1980. 4
News story #3 Before you listen to the third news story, complete this vocabulary activity. It will help you to understand the listening more easily. Vocabulary Read the definitions below, and then put the sentences in the correct order. Answers are in the appendix. Words and Definitions unveiled: showed something for the first time a bunch: a lot of something officially: legally sharper: clearer processor: an important part of the computer 1. new Our unveiled a month company car last. Our company unveiled a new car last month. 2. A of my bunch came visit friends for a over. 3. changed I my officially name today. 4. sharper I a picture need my T.V on. 5. good My is processor really computer. Now listen to the third news story from the audio file. Listening Activity: Short Answer Read and answer the questions below. The first one is done for you. Answers are on the last page. 1. When is the new ipad going to be ready? this Friday 2. When was it unveiled? 3. What are some improvements in the new ipad? 4. What is its official name? 5. Have the prices changed? 5
Appendix Transcripts of Weekly news stories Introduction Story 1 Story 2 Story 3 MARCH 9TH WEEKLY NEWS STORIES Hi, this is Don Bell. You re listening to Learning English with CBC news for March 9th. Four workers from the Philippines are dead after an SUV going the wrong way hit their car on the QE2 highway. RCMP said the SUV was seen late Sunday driving the wrong way. The SUV crashed head on into the car near Innisfail. Two men, both 35, and two women, 39 and 52, died in the crash. A fifth person in the car, a 29 year old woman, was seriously injured and had surgery Monday. Four of the five people in the car were employed at the Coast Plaza hotel in downtown Edmonton. The fifth was a friend who worked for another company; she was among the dead. A 29 year old man was in a Red Deer court on Tuesday to face 14 charges, including four charges of impaired driving causing death. The future of Edmonton's Great Divide Waterfall is in the balance. The High Level Bridge's popular water feature operated five or six times a summer until 2009, when the city stopped it after getting a letter from the federal government about the environmental impact of the display. The waterfall puts five million litres of chlorinated water into the North Saskatchewan River every two hours. Chlorine is increasingly being identified as a hazard for fish. But, before city council makes its final decision, the city will ask the federal government about these concerns. Council members said they were surprised to hear that no one from the city had ever asked federal officials more specific questions about their concerns. They instructed officials to ask those questions and report back. The waterfall was built in 1980 to mark Alberta's 75th birthday. Apple's new ipad will go on sale in Canada and the U.S. on Friday. The company unveiled it Wednesday. Apple gave the new ipad a bunch of new features, but no new name. It's officially being called "the new ipad" not "ipad 3" or "ipad HD," as some had thought. The new ipad has a sharper screen, better camera and a faster processor. Prices aren't changing from the previous models. TIME 0:00 0:10 1:12 2:23 6
Answer keys News story 1 Vocabulary Answer Word Related words d 1) crashed a) hurt wounded damaged f 2) head on b) with part of one of e 3) seriously c) accusations crimes offenses a 4) injured d) hit collided bumped into g 5) surgery e) badly critically dangerously b 6) among f) straight into face to face front end c 7) charges g) operation under the knife medical procedure Listening 1. Four people a) were killed. b) were injured. 2. The accident was near a) the Philippines. b) Innisfail 3. The car with the five workers a) was driving the right way. b) was driving the wrong. 4. One of the people in the car a) worked for the Coast Plaza Hotel. b) was not killed in the accident 5. A 29 year old man a) was charged with impaired driving crimes. b) was killed in an accident. 7
News story 2 Vocabulary Answer Word Definition f Listening 1) water feature a) more and more i 2) operated b) effect b 3) impact c) when a large amount of water drops a long distance g 4) chlorinated d) worries h 5) hazard e) the small details of something a 6) increasingly f) a pretty sculpture/fountain etc. that uses water. d 7) concerns g) filled with a chemical that keeps water clean e 8) specifics h) danger c 9) waterfall i) was open and running 1. T The city has not made a final decision about the waterfall. 2. F The water feature runs five or six times per month. 3. T The federal government is worried about the environment. 4. T Chlorine may be bad for fish. 5. T The waterfall was built in 1980. News story 3 Vocabulary 1. Our company unveiled a new car last month 2. A bunch of my friends came over for a visit. 3. I officially changed my name today. 4. I need a sharper picture on my T.V. 5. My computer processor is really good. Listening 1. When is the new ipad going to be ready? This Friday. 2. When was it unveiled? Last Wednesday. 3. What are some improvements in the new ipad? A sharper screen, a faster professor, and a better camera. 4. What is its official name? The new ipad. 5. Have the prices changed? No. 8