News-based English language activities from the global newspaper

May 2010
Level ≥ Lower intermediate
Style ≥ Lesson plan
Welcome to the Guardian Weekly’s special news-based materials to support learners and teachers of English.
Each month, the Guardian Weekly newspaper selects topical news articles that can be used to practise English
language skills. The materials are graded for two levels: advanced and lower intermediate. These worksheets
can be downloaded free from guardianweekly.co.uk/learningenglish/. You can also find more advice for
teachers and learners from the Guardian Weekly’s Learning English section on the site.

DIY spectacles for Mexico’s schools

Materials prepared by Janet Hardy-Gould

Instructions
Lesson focus: reading, discussion
Materials sheet: copies of the article, objects, bilingual dictionaries
Time: 60 minutes

1 Tell students the lesson is about an everyday object.
Bring into class these objects (or pictures): spectacles
(glasses), sunglasses, scissors, headphones, binoculars,
goggles, shorts, jeans, trousers. Hold up the scissors and
elicit: a pair of scissors. Ask: Why do we say a pair of when
it’s one object? – Because it’s made of two joined parts.
In pairs students write down the names of other objects
with the help of a dictionary, eg : a pair of sunglasses.
Feedback. 12 mins
5 Read out the questions below one-by-one. Students
2 Explain that we usually use a plural verb after a pair of: “I
like this pair of trousers. They’re very nice.” We can also
miss out a pair of and just say: glasses, jeans but remember
these are plural words: “Look at those jeans.” 4 mins
3 Give out copies of the article. Focus students on the
headline/photo. Ask: What has Yves Béhar designed?
Some spectacles. Who are they for? Children in Mexico’s
schools. Ask: What do you think about the spectacles?
3 mins
d In some _______ places a lot of children needed
spectacles.
e The biggest problem for Béhar was the _______ of the
glasses.
f When you pick up the spectacles, they are very _______.
g The _______ choose the colour and shape of the glasses.
Answers: a laptop b school c blackboards; books d
poorer e cost f light g children
answer as quickly as possible. 6 mins
How many …?
a laptops went to children in developing countries?
b children needed glasses in poorer areas?
c free glasses will the Mexican government give to
students?
d parts does each pair of glasses have?
e weeks does it take for the new glasses to arrive?
Answers a 1m b 11% of children c 400,000 every year d
two e a couple

4 Write up the sentences below. Students read the article 6 Ask students: Which everyday object would you like
and choose a word from the text to complete the to redesign? eg classroom chair. Why? How would you
sentences. Feedback. 15 mins change it? Students work in groups, make notes, then
a Two years ago, Yves Béhar designed a new _______. present ideas to the class. 20 mins
b Some Mexican children had problems with work at
_______.
c The children couldn’t easily read _______ or _______.
News-based English language activities from the global newspaper
Materials sheet
Fun frames ... Yves Béhar’s design
Student tasks
1 Choose a word from the article to complete each of
these sentences.
a Two years ago, Yves Béhar ­designed a new
.
b Some Mexican children had ­problems with work at
.
c The children couldn’t easily read
or
. to compromise on quality or style. “I want to design
d In some
places a lot of ­children needed spectacles.
e The biggest problem for Béhar was the
of the glasses.
f When you pick up the spectacles, they are very
. wearing the glasses fun and personal”.
g The
the colour and shape of the glasses.
2 How many ...?
a laptops went to children in developing countries?
b children needed glasses in poorer areas?
c free glasses will the Mexican ­government give to
students?
d parts does each pair of glasses have?
e weeks does it take for the new glasses to arrive?
May 2010
Article: DIY spectacles for
Mexico’s schools
1 Two years ago, designer Yves Béhar showed that a
complicated object like a laptop could be reduced to its
basics and sold for just $100. Since then, more than 1m
computers with his design have been given to children in
developing countries.
2 Now the California-based designer has started to work on
another ­everyday object: spectacles.
3 Béhar began to look at spectacles after a Mexican
company, Augen, contacted him. The company
discovered that students’ poor eyesight was having a
negative effect on their school work.
4 Research showed that 11% of children in Mexico were
not learning because they could not read blackboards or
books. The company found that in some poorer areas up
to 70% of pupils needed glasses.
5 Augen have begun to work with the Mexican government
to launch a new programme. The plan is to provide
400,000 free pairs of glasses to students every year.
6 The main problem was the cost, but Béhar did not want
products that are suited to the children’s specific needs,
life and environment,” he said.
7 Béhar made the glasses fashionable by giving them “key
customisation elements like shape and colour that make
choose
8 The incredibly light and almost unbreakable glasses are
made from plastic and have a two-part design.
9 The frame is in two halves – top and bottom – giving
children the option to mix colours and shapes when they
choose their frames. This allows for individual expression
and easy assembly.
10 The glasses will be distributed by optometrists, who will
travel to the schools, test the children and then place
the order with the factory. A couple of weeks later, the
children will receive glasses that are truly personal to
them.
Original article by Henrietta Thompson, ­rewritten
by Janet Hardy-Gould