What Is the Story About?
Look at the titles below. Which story would you be most interested to read and why?
Listen and read.
Hey, what’s up? What are you so excited about?
You’ll never guess! I’m in the newspaper this morning!
Really? That’s great! What is the story about? What did you do?
My football team won the Tyrvää Cup!
Congratulations! What is the Tyrvää Cup?
It’s one of the biggest youth[explanation: youth [juːθ] – siin: noorte, noorte-] football tournaments[explanation: tournament [ˈtʊənəmənt], [ˈtɔːnəmənt] – turniir] in Finland.
Wow! Where was it?
In Sastamala – it’s in southwestern Finland.
Oh, great! But why did the paper only want to talk to you?
I scored four goals in the final match, that’s why!
Well done! But, guess what? I saw something interesting on TV last night.
Did you? What was it? What happened?
It’s about our teacher. He was on the news.
No way! What did he do? What did he say? You have to tell me everything!
Exercise 1
Mark the statements as true or false. Correct the false ones orally.
Pairwork 1
Read the dialogue with your partner. Replace the underlined words, phrases and sentences with your own ideas. Switch roles.
Pairwork 2
A. Come up with questions and interview your partner about the Tyrvää Cup. Your partner pretends to be Jane. Switch roles.
B. Why was Jane and Jackson’s teacher on the news? Make up a story with your partner and tell it to the class.
C. Have you or someone you know ever been featured in a news story? Discuss it with your partner in English.
Mention the following:
- what the news story was about
- where and when the news story appeared
- what people commented on it
- what you or someone else thought about the news story
Pairwork 3
If your name appeared in the newspapers, what would the story be about? Tell your partner in English. Switch roles.
Reacting to News
- The news you hear is something you’ve been waiting for. –
- You’re very surprised or don’t believe something is true. –
- You’re saddened by the news. –
- You’re pleasantly surprised by what you hear. –
- You want to know if the speaker means what they have said. –
- You expected the news, so you aren’t surprised by it. –
Pairwork 4
Tell your partner a piece of news. Then your partner reacts using an expression from Exercise 2. Keep the conversation going and then switch roles.
My brother is moving to Stockholm next month.
No way! Tell me all about it.
Go Ahead!
Tell your partner in English about some news you have read or heard recently. Then your partner asks you additional questions, which you will try to answer. Switch roles.
I have read in the paper that they will build a new sports arena in our town.
Really? When are they going to start? Do you know when it’s going to be ready? How much is it going to cost?
Language Matters
What is wrong with these headlines? Discuss with your partner in English.
Help
incident [ˈɪnsɪd(ə)nt] – vahejuhtum
one-armed [ˈwʌnɑːmd] – ühekäeline
kindness [ˈkaɪndnəs] – lahkus, headus
stranger [ˈstreɪndʒə(r)] – võõras, tundmatu
federal agent [ˌfed(ə)r(ə)l ˈeɪdʒ(ə)nt] – föderaalagent
raid [reɪd] – reidi tegema
weapon [ˈwepən] – relv
literacy [ˈlɪt(ə)rəsi] – kirjaoskus
improvement [ɪmˈpruːvmənt] – paranemine, edusamm
Pairwork 5
Discuss with your partner what the news stories from the previous activity could be about, and come up with better headlines.
Summary
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What About You?
Discuss with your partner(s).
- When was the last time you read international news?
- Would you rather be a host or a reporter? Why?
- Which is better – listening to the radio or your own playlist? Why?
- What is the funniest commercial you remember?
