1. TRUE / FALSE: Read the headline. Guess if 1-8 below are true (T) or false (F).
- The U.K. is the world's richest country. T / F
- People on good salaries in the U.K. won't notice the rises in energy bills. T / F
- Some people in the U.K. may have to decide whether to heat or eat. T / F
- The U.K. has hundreds of food banks for people who have no food. T / F
- Britons are measuring drastic and skyrocketing energy bills. T / F
- A woman is keeping some of her food in cold water to save energy. T / F
- The U.K. is not going to tax the huge profits of energy companies. T / F
- It is predicted that over 10,000 Britons will die from the cold this year. T / F
2. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article.
- richest
- makeshift
- communal
- dumbfounded
- afford
- measures
- perishable
- furious
- reluctant
- predict
- shared
- irate
- have the money for
- easily spoilt
- temporary
- hesitant
- wealthiest
- forecast
- amazed
- actions
3. PHRASE MATCH: (Sometimes more than one choice is possible.)
- gas bills could rise
- be faced with a stark
- he is dumbfounded
- a supposedly
- those who struggle to
- Britons are already taking drastic
- One woman has disconnected
- perishable
- fossil
- reluctant to implement a one-
- by the idea
- goods
- afford to eat
- her refrigerator
- choice
- wealthy country
- off "windfall tax"
- fuel companies
- fourfold by the winter
- measures
Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
pinch
communal
finding
struggle
stark
expert
fourfold
makeshift
The U.K. is one of the world's richest countries, but people are (1) _____________________ it increasingly difficult to pay energy bills. Electricity and gas bills could rise (2) _____________________ by the winter. Even people on good salaries are feeling the (3) _____________________. Lower-paid workers and those who have retired may soon be faced with a (4) _____________________ choice of heating or eating. Local governments have devised a (5) _____________________ solution. They are converting (6) _____________________ areas like libraries into spaces where people can go to stay warm for free. These are called "heat banks". Money-saving (7) _____________________ Martin Lewis said he is dumbfounded by the idea of warm banks in a supposedly wealthy country. The U.K. already has hundreds of food banks for those who (8) _____________________ to afford to eat.
Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
pass
disconnected
one-off
drastic
predict
kettle
fossil
perishable
Britons are already taking (9) _____________________ measures to avoid skyrocketing energy costs. One woman has (10) _____________________ her refrigerator and is storing (11) _____________________ goods in cold water. A man has turned off his electric (12) _____________________ and is drinking water instead of hot coffee. Last winter, an older lady used her free bus (13) _____________________ to sit on a warm bus all day instead of sitting at home in the cold. Many people are furious with the government and (14) _____________________ fuel companies. Giant oil companies are making record profits, and the government is reluctant to implement a (15) _____________________ "windfall tax". The U.K.'s National Energy Action group said that each year, around 11,400 deaths are caused by cold weather. They (16) _____________________ this figure will rise further this year.
1) The UK is one of the world's richest countries, but people are finding ______
a. it increasing lid if a cult
b. it increasing lid diff occult
c. it increasing in difficulty
d. it increasingly difficult
2) Electricity and gas bills ______
a. could rise far fooled
b. could rise few fold
c. could rise fourfold
d. could rise for fooled
3) Even people on good salaries are ______
a. feel in the pinch
b. feeling the pinch
c. feeling a pinch
d. fearing a pinch
4) Local governments have devised ______
a. a make shift solution
b. a makeshift resolution
c. a makeshift solution
d. a make shift resolution
5) Money-saving expert Martin Lewis said ______
a. he is dumbfounded
b. he is done founded
c. he is done funded
d. he is dumb funded
6) Britons are already taking drastic measures to avoid ______
a. sky rocket inner G-costs
b. skyrocket in any G-costs
c. skyrocketing energy costs
d. sky rocket thin-energy cost
7) One woman has disconnected her refrigerator and is ______
a. strong perishable goodies
b. storing perishable goods
c. staring perishable goodies
d. steering perishable goods
8) in cold water. A man has turned off ______
a. his electrical kitty
b. his electric kettle
c. his electricity kettle
d. his electric cuttle
9) Many people are furious with the government and ______
a. fossil feel companies
b. fossil fool companies
c. fossil fuel companies
d. fossil fail companies
10) and the government is reluctant to implement a ______
a. one-off windfall tax"
b. one-on windfall tax"
c. once-on windier tax"
d. once-off windmill tax"
1. WORD SEARCH: Look in your dictionary / computer to find collocates, other meanings, information, synonyms … for the words...
'warm'
________________ ________________ ________________ ________________ ________________ ________________ ________________ ________________ and 'bank'.
________________ ________________ ________________ ________________ ________________ ________________ ________________ ________________
• Share your findings with your partners.
• Make questions using the words you found.
• Ask your partner / group your questions.
2. ARTICLE QUESTIONS: Look back at the article and write down some questions you would like to ask the class about the text.
•Share your questions with other classmates / groups.•Ask your partner / group your questions.
3. GAP FILL: In pairs / groups, compare your answers to this exercise. Check your answers. Talk about the words from the activity. Were they new, interesting, worth learning…?
4. VOCABULARY: Circle any words you do not understand. In groups, pool unknown words and use dictionaries to find their meanings.
5. TEST EACH OTHER: Look at the words below. With your partner, try to recall how they were used in the text:
- richest
- fourfold
- faced
- areas
- idea
- afford
- avoid
- goods
- coffee
- furious
- record
- each
(...) choice of heating or eating. Local governments have devised a makeshift solution. They are converting communal
(...) off "windfall tax". The U.K.'s National Energy Action group said that each year,
(...) companies are making record profits, and the government is reluctant to implement a one-
(...) salaries are feeling the pinch. Lower-paid workers and those who have retired may soon be faced with a stark
(...) Britons are already taking drastic measures to avoid skyrocketing energy costs. One woman has disconnected her
(...) areas like libraries into spaces where people can go to stay warm for free. These are called "heat banks". Money-saving
(...) bills. Electricity and gas bills could rise fourfold by the winter. Even people on good
(...) bus all day instead of sitting at home in the cold. Many people are furious with the government and fossil fuel companies. Giant oil
(...) wealthy country. The U.K. already has hundreds of food banks for those who struggle to afford to eat.
(...) refrigerator and is storing perishable goods in cold water. A man has turned off his electric kettle
(...) and is drinking water instead of hot coffee. Last winter, an older lady used her free bus pass to sit on a warm
(...) expert Martin Lewis said he is dumbfounded by the idea of warm banks in a supposedly
(.1..) The U.K. is one of the world's richest countries, but people are finding it increasingly difficult to pay energy
(...) around 11,400 deaths are caused by cold weather. They predict this figure will rise further this year.
The U.K. is one of the world's richest countries, but people are finding it increasingly difficult to pay energy billing / bills. Electricity and gas bills could rise fourfold by / for the winter. Even people on good salaries are feeling the pinch / inch. Lower-paid workers and those who have attired / retired may soon be faced with a stork / stark choice of heating or eating. Local governments have devised a makeshift soluble / solution. They are converting communal areas like libraries into spaces where people can go to stay warm as / for free. These are called "heat banks". Money-saving expert Martin Lewis said he is dumbfounded / founded at the idea of warm banks in a disputed / supposedly wealthy country. The U.K. already has hundreds of food banks for those who struggles / struggle to afford to eat.
Britons are already taking drastic / caustic measures to avoid / evade skyrocketing energy costs. One woman has disconnected her refrigerator and is storing punishable / perishable goods in cold water. A man has turned off his electricity / electric kettle and is drinking water instead of hot coffee. Last winter, an older lady used her free bus pass to sit on a warm bus all day instead of sitting at home in / by the cold. Many people are furious / spurious with the government and fossil fuel / fuelled companies. Giant oil companies are making record profits, and the government is recalcitrant / reluctant to implement a one-off "windfall / windmill tax". The U.K.'s National Energy Action group said that each year, around 11,400 deaths are caused by cold weather. They predict this figuring / figure will rise further this year.
Talk about the connection between each pair of words in italics, and why the correct word is correct.
TheU.K.isoneoftheworld'srichestcountries,butpeoplearefindingitinc
reasinglydifficulttopayenergybills.Electricityandgasbillscouldrisefou
rfoldbythewinter.Evenpeopleongoodsalariesarefeelingthepinch.Lo
wer-paidworkersandthosewhohaveretiredmaysoonbefacedwithast
arkchoiceofheatingoreating.Localgovernmentshavedevisedamakes
hiftsolution.Theyareconvertingcommunalareaslikelibrariesintospac
eswherepeoplecangotostaywarmforfree.Thesearecalled"heatbanks
".Money-savingexpertMartinLewissaidheisdumbfoundedbytheide
aofwarmbanksinasupposedlywealthycountry.TheU.K.alreadyhashu
ndredsoffoodbanksforthosewhostruggletoaffordtoeat.Britonsarealr
eadytakingdrasticmeasurestoavoidskyrocketingenergycosts.Onew
omanhasdisconnectedherrefrigeratorandisstoringperishablegoodsi
ncoldwater.Amanhasturnedoffhiselectrickettleandisdrinkingwateri
nsteadofhotcoffee.Lastwinter,anolderladyusedherfreebuspasstosit
onawarmbusalldayinsteadofsittingathomeinthecold.Manypeoplear
efuriouswiththegovernmentandfossilfuelcompanies.Giantoilcompa
niesaremakingrecordprofits,andthegovernmentisreluctanttoimple
mentaone-off"windfalltax".TheU.K.'sNationalEnergyActiongroups
aidthateachyear,around11,400deathsarecausedbycoldweather.Th
eypredictthisfigurewillrisefurtherthisyear.
Write about warm banks for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.
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The need for 'warm banks' is a disgrace in wealthy countries. Discuss.
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Ask your students what they have read, seen or heard about this news in their own language. Students are likely to / may have have encountered this news in their L1 and therefore bring a background knowledge to the classroom.
Get students to role play different characters from this news story.
Ask students to keep track of this news and revisit it to discuss in your next class.
Ask students to male predictions of how this news might develop in the next few days or weeks, and then revisit and discuss in a future class.
Ask students to write a follow-up story to this news.
Students role play a journalist and someone who witnessed or was a part of this news. Perhaps they could make a video of the interview.
Ask students to keep a news journal in English and add this story to their thoughts.
Also...
Buy my 1,000 Ideas and Activities for Language Teachers eBook. It has hundreds of ideas, activity templates, reproducible activities for:
- News
- Warm ups
- Pre-reading / Post-reading
- Using headlines
- Working with words
- While-reading / While-listening
- Moving from text to speech
- Post-reading / Post-listening
- Discussions
- Using opinions
- Plans
- Language
- Using lists
- Using quotes
- Task-based activities
- Role plays
- Using the central characters in the article
- Using themes from the news
- Homework
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FAQs
What is a warm bank UK? ›
Warm banks - the energy equivalent of food banks - have been suggested as mitigation for surging household bills. Derby City Council said the idea was part of serious discussions with key partners about tackling the cost of living crisis, according the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
What's a warm bank? ›What is a warm bank? Similarly to how community food banks hand out supplies to low-income families, so-called warm banks will give those unable to afford the rising cost of heating their homes somewhere to go once the weather turns.
What is a warm hub? ›Warm Hubs are warm, safe places where residents can expect a friendly and inclusive welcome. People can come along on their own, or with a friend, and talk to others over a hot drink or maybe a hot meal. They can get practical tips and advice on saving energy costs and keeping safe and warm at home as well.