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Date: Dec 18, 2005
Level: Easier (Try the harder lesson.) Downloads: Word Doc | PDF Doc | Listening Audio: (1:37 - 191 KB - 16kbps)
THE ARTICLEPresident George W. Bush has confirmed reports that he allowed spying in the USA. In his weekly speech to the American people on Saturday, he said he signed a top-secret order after the September 11 attack on the World Trade Center. He authorized agents to listen to and read phone calls and e-mails from people linked to al-Qaeda. He said he strongly believes that spying is a “vital tool” that keeps America free from terrorist attack. He also said his order was “critical to saving American lives.” He added: “The American people expect me…to protect them…and that is exactly what I will continue to do.” His radio confession has sparked anger among many people. Republicans and Democrats say Mr. Bush is not respecting civil liberties. Senator Russell Feingold scolded the President for abusing his power. “I tell you, he’s President Bush, not King Bush,” he said. Another senator said the “shocking revelation… [should] send a chill down the spine of every American”. Mr. Bush said the spying program was “consistent with US law.” The President criticized the leaking of the information to the media. He stated: “This is a highly classified program that is crucial to our national security.” WARM-UPS1. 007: You are now a spy. You are working on a top-secret mission for your government. Talk to the other “spies” in your class about your job and your life. Is your job dangerous? What do you think of James Bond? What’s your favorite gadget? Introduce yourselves James Bond-style - “Hi. I’m Bond. James Bond”. 2. CIVIL LIBERTIES: What civil liberties and everyday freedoms are important to you? How would you feel if they were taken away? Talk about this with your partner(s). Use the points below:
3. CHAT: In pairs / groups, decide which of these topics or words are most interesting and which are most boring.
Have a chat about the topics you liked. For more conversation, change topics and partners frequently. 4. SECRET AGENTS: In pairs / groups, discuss the good and bad points of the following types of secret agent. Which ones do you think would be exciting or boring? Which ones would you like to do?
5. SPYING OPINIONS: Discuss these opinions with your partner(s).
6. SPY: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word “spy”. Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories. BEFORE READING / LISTENING1. TRUE / FALSE: Look at the article’s headline and guess whether these sentences are true (T) or false (F):
2. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article:
3. PHRASE MATCH: Match the following phrases from the article (sometimes more than one combination is possible):
WHILE READING / LISTENINGGAP FILL: Put the words in the column on the right into the gaps in the text. President Bush OK'd spying in America
LISTENINGListen and fill in the spaces. President Bush OK'd spying in AmericaPresident George W. Bush has __________ reports that he allowed spying in the USA. In his ________ speech to the American people on Saturday, he said he signed a top-secret order after the September 11 attack on the World Trade Center. He authorized _______ to listen to and read phone calls and e-mails from people linked to al-Qaeda. He said he strongly believes that spying is a “_______ tool” that keeps America free from terrorist attack. He also said his order was “_______ to saving American lives.” He added: “The American people expect me…to protect them…and that is _______ what I will continue to do.” His radio confession has _______ anger among many people. Republicans and Democrats say Mr. Bush is not respecting _______ liberties. Senator Russell Feingold scolded the President for _______ his power. “I tell you, he’s President Bush, not King Bush,” he said. Another senator said the “shocking revelation… [should] send a _______ down the spine of every American”. Mr. Bush said the spying program was “consistent with US law.” The President criticized the _______ of the information to the media. He stated: “This is a highly classified program that is crucial to our national _______.” AFTER READING / LISTENING1. WORD SEARCH: Look in your dictionaries / computer to find collocates, other meanings, information, synonyms … for the words ‘secret’ and ‘order’.
2. ARTICLE QUESTIONS: Look back at the article and write down some questions you would like to ask the class about the text.
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. STUDENT “SPYING” SURVEY: In pairs / groups, write down questions about spying, national security and civil liberties.
6. TEST EACH OTHER: Look at the words below. With your partner, try to recall exactly how these were used in the text:
DISCUSSIONSTUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)
STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)
AFTER DISCUSSION: Join another partner / group and tell them what you talked about.
SPEAKINGSPYING ROLE PLAY: Should George W. Bush stop spying in the US?
Change roles and repeat the role play. Comment in groups about the differences between the two role plays. Discuss whether or not the spying should stop immediately. HOMEWORK1. VOCABULARY EXTENSION: Choose several of the words from the text. Use a dictionary or Google’s search field (or another search engine) to build up more associations / collocations of each word. 2. INTERNET: Search the Internet and find more information on the spying scandal. Share your findings with your class in the next lesson. Did you all find out similar things? 3. CIVIL LIBERTIES: Make a poster outlining the civil liberties that are an important part of your country’s way of life. Include a section about what other civil liberties you feel your country should have. Show your poster to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all write about similar things? 4. LETTER: Write a letter to US President George W. Bush. Tell him what you think of the spying issue. Give him advice on what to do about it from now. Show what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Did everyone write about similar things? Did you all have the same advice? ANSWERSTRUE / FALSE:
SYNONYM MATCH:
PHRASE MATCH:
GAP FILL: President Bush OK'd spying in AmericaPresident George W. Bush has confirmed reports that he allowed spying in the USA. In his weekly speech to the American people on Saturday, he said he signed a top-secret order after the September 11 attack on the World Trade Center. He authorized agents to listen to and read phone calls and e-mails from people linked to al-Qaeda. He said he strongly believes that spying is a “vital tool” that keeps America free from terrorist attack. He also said his order was “critical to saving American lives.” He added: “The American people expect me…to protect them…and that is exactly what I will continue to do.” His radio confession has sparked anger among many people. Republicans and Democrats say Mr. Bush is not respecting civil liberties. Senator Russell Feingold scolded the President for abusing his power. “I tell you, he’s President Bush, not King Bush,” he said. Another senator said the “shocking revelation… [should] send a chill down the spine of every American”. Mr. Bush said the spying program was “consistent with US law.” The President criticized the leaking of the information to the media. He stated: “This is a highly classified program that is crucial to our national security.”
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