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Date: May 23, 2007
Downloads: Word Doc | PDF Doc | Listening
Audio: 1:46 - 208.6 KB - 16kbps
Online Test: Recreate the text in this online test.

1,000 IDEAS FOR ESL CLASSES: Breaking News English.com's e-Book

THE ARTICLE

Queen Elizabeth voted greatest living Briton

The British public has voted for Queen Elizabeth II as the Greatest Living Briton for 2007. She beat former Beatle Sir Paul McCartney, ex-prime minister Baroness Thatcher and pop superstar Robbie Williams to the top spot. The Queen was not present at the star-studded ceremony to collect her award in person. However, her youngest son Prince Edward made a special tribute to his mother via a video link. The Queen has enjoyed great popularity among her people in recent years. She has been on the throne since 1953 and is one of the few British royals to escape scandals. Her popularity dipped after Diana, Princess of Wales died in Paris in 1997, but she remains a much loved figure today.

The award for Greatest Living Briton is a new one. It is given by ITV, one of Britain’s most popular television companies. Guy Freeman of ITV said: “The Great Britons 2007 was a fantastic ceremony [showing] all that is so great about the United Kingdom.” He added that the awards ceremony is set to become an annual event. The first winner, in 2005, was Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the World Wide Web. Another award given at the ceremony was for soccer star David Beckham, who picked up the Award for Global Achievement. This is for his performance on the soccer field, his charity work and his efforts around the world to promote Britain and British culture.

WARM-UPS

1. QUEENS: Walk around the class and talk to other students about queens. Change partners often. After you finish, sit with your original partner(s) and share what you found out.

2. CHAT: In pairs / groups, decide which of these topics or words from the article are most interesting and which are most boring.

Britain / Queen Elizabeth / pop superstars / ceremonies / awards / scandals / television companies / inventors / soccer stars / achievements / charity work

Have a chat about the topics you liked. For more conversation, change topics and partners frequently.

3. GREATEST PEOPLE: Who are the greatest living people in your country? With your partner(s), talk about who might win these awards:

  • overall
  • sport
  • entertainment
  • politics
  • education
  • humanitarian issues
  • science
  • other _________________

4. WORLD AWARDS: Who are the greatest living people in the world? With your partner(s), talk about who might win these awards:

  • overall
  • sport
  • entertainment
  • politics
  • peace
  • humanitarian issues
  • science
  • other _________________

5. NOT THE GREATEST: With your partner(s), decide who might win these “Not the Greatest Person” awards:

  • overall
  • sport
  • entertainment
  • politics
  • peace
  • humanitarian issues
  • science
  • other _________________

6. QUICK DEBATE: Have this quick debate with your partner(s). Students A think having an award for the greatest living person is a silly idea; students B think having an award for the greatest living person is a great idea. Change partners and topics every two minutes.


 
 

BEFORE READING / LISTENING

1. TRUE / FALSE: Look at the article’s headline and guess whether these sentences are true (T) or false (F):

a.

Britain’s Queen Elizabeth has voted for her Greatest Living Briton.

T / F

b.

Music superstars Paul McCartney and Robbie Williams won awards.

T / F

c.

Prince Edward gave a special speech about his mother, the Queen.

T / F

d.

Queen Elizabeth is quite popular in Britain these days.

T / F

e.

The Greatest Living Briton award has a long and traditional history.

T / F

f.

The first winner of the award also invented the World Wide Web.

T / F

g.

David Beckham won last year’s Greatest Living Briton award.

T / F

h.

David Beckham won an award for spreading British culture.

T / F

2. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article:

a.

public

fell

b.

former

publicize

c.

via

continues to be

d.

dipped

one-time

e.

remains

creator

f.

showing

citizens

g.

inventor

won

h.

picked up

displaying

i.

efforts

through

j.

promote

work

3. PHRASE MATCH: Match the following phrases from the article (sometimes more than one combination is possible):

a.

star-studded

Award for Global Achievement

b.

collect her award

escape scandals

c.

made a special tribute to his mother

the World Wide Web

d.

one of the few British royals to

in person

e.

she remains a much

around the world

f.

a fantastic ceremony showing

via a video link

g.

the awards ceremony is set

all that is so great about the UK

h.

the inventor of

loved figure today

i.

picked up the

ceremony

j.

his efforts

to become an annual event

WHILE READING / LISTENING

GAP FILL: Put the words into the gaps in the text.

Queen Elizabeth voted greatest living Briton
 

The British __________ has voted for Queen Elizabeth II as the Greatest Living Briton for 2007. She __________ former Beatle Sir Paul McCartney, ex-prime minister Baroness Thatcher and pop superstar Robbie Williams to the __________ spot. The Queen was not present at the __________ -studded ceremony to collect her award in person. However, her youngest son Prince Edward made a special __________ to his mother via a video link. The Queen has enjoyed great popularity among her people in recent years. She has been on the __________ since 1953 and is one of the few British royals to escape scandals. Her popularity __________ after Diana, Princess of Wales died in Paris in 1997, but she remains a much loved __________ today.

 

 

tribute
top
figure
throne
star
public
dipped
beat

The award for Greatest Living Briton is a __________ one. It is given by ITV, one of Britain’s most __________ television companies. Guy Freeman of ITV said: “The Great Britons 2007 was a fantastic ceremony [__________] all that is so great about the United Kingdom.” He added that the awards ceremony is __________ to become an annual event. The first winner, in 2005, was Tim Berners-Lee, the __________ of the World Wide Web. Another award given at the ceremony was for soccer star David Beckham, who __________ up the Award for Global Achievement. This is for his __________ on the soccer field, his charity work and his __________ around the world to promote Britain and British culture.

 

 

showing
performance
popular
inventor
set
new
efforts
picked

LISTENING

Listen and fill in the spaces.

Queen Elizabeth voted greatest living Briton

The British _____________________ Queen Elizabeth II as the Greatest Living Briton for 2007. She beat former Beatle Sir Paul McCartney, ex-prime minister Baroness Thatcher and pop superstar Robbie _____________________. The Queen was not present at the star-studded ceremony to collect _____________________. However, her youngest son Prince Edward made a special tribute to his mother via a video link. The Queen has enjoyed great popularity among her _____________________. She has been on the throne since 1953 and is one of the few British royals to escape scandals. Her _____________________ Diana, Princess of Wales died in Paris in 1997, but she remains _____________________.

The award for Greatest Living Briton _____________________. It is given by ITV, one of Britain’s most popular television companies. Guy Freeman of ITV said: “The Great Britons 2007 was a fantastic ceremony [showing] all _____________________ the United Kingdom.” He added that the awards ceremony is _____________________ event. The first winner, in 2005, was Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the World Wide Web. Another award given at the ceremony was for soccer star David Beckham, ___________________ Award for Global Achievement. This is for his performance on the soccer field, his charity work and _____________________ world to promote Britain and British culture.


 
 

AFTER READING / LISTENING

1. WORD SEARCH: Look in your dictionaries / computer to find collocates, other meanings, information, synonyms … for the words ‘former’ and ‘ex’.

former

ex

 

 

 

 
  • 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 exactly how these were used in the text:

  • voted
  • former
  • person
  • via
  • throne
  • remains
  • popular
  • showing
  • set
  • inventor
  • picked
  • promote

STUDENT SURVEY

Write five GOOD questions about AWARDS in the table. Do this in pairs. Each student must write the questions on his / her own paper.

When you have finished, interview other students. Write down their answers.

 

STUDENT 1

_____________

STUDENT 2

_____________

STUDENT 3

_____________

Q.1.

 

 

 

Q.2.

 

 

 

Q.3.

 

 

 

Q.4.

 

 

 

Q.5.

 

 

 
  • Now return to your original partner and share and talk about what you found out. Change partners often.
  • Make mini-presentations to other groups on your findings.

DISCUSSION

STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

  1. What did you think when you read the headline?
  2. Do you think Queen Elizabeth is Britain’s greatest living Briton?
  3. What do you think of Britain’s monarchy?
  4. What do you think about awards ceremonies?
  5. Do you think the Queen is happy with her award?
  6. Where do you think the Queen will put this award?
  7. Do you think the Queen should have attended the ceremony to collect the award in person?
  8. Who enjoys great popularity in your country or in the world?
  9. What do you think it would be like to be the British Queen?
  10. Do you have a favourite or least liked Briton?

-------------------------------------------------------------------

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

  1. Did you like reading this article?
  2. Do you like awards and awards shows?
  3. What kind of award do you think you should win?
  4. What do you think is great about Britain?
  5. What do you think is great about your own country?
  6. Who do you think should win the Greatest Living Human Award?
  7. Who most actively promotes the culture of your country?
  8. Who do you think has changed the world most, Queen Elizabeth or Tim Berners-Lee?
  9. What new award would you like to see created and who would be the first winner?
  10. Did you like this discussion?

AFTER DISCUSSION: Join another partner / group and tell them what you talked about.

  1. What was the most interesting thing you heard?
  2. Was there a question you didn’t like?
  3. Was there something you totally disagreed with?
  4. What did you like talking about?
  5. Which was the most difficult question?

SPEAKING

HUMAN OF THE YEAR:

Who will win the first Human of the Year Award? In pairs/groups, think of six people and write their names in the table. With your partner(s), decide why each of these people should win:

People

Winning reasons

_________________

 

_________________

 

_________________

 

_________________

 

_________________

 

_________________

 
  • Change partners and share your ideas.
  • Decide on an overall winner.

LANGUAGE

CORRECT WORD: Put the correct words from a–d below in the article.

Queen Elizabeth voted greatest living Briton

The British (1) ____ has voted for Queen Elizabeth II as the Greatest Living Briton for 2007. She (2) ____ former Beatle Sir Paul McCartney, ex-prime minister Baroness Thatcher and pop superstar Robbie Williams to the top
(3) ____. The Queen was not present at the star-studded ceremony to collect her award in person. However, her youngest son Prince Edward made a special (4) ____ to his mother via a video link. The Queen has enjoyed great popularity among her people in recent years. She has been on the throne since 1953 and is one of the few British royals to (5) ____ scandals. Her popularity dipped after Diana, Princess of Wales died in Paris in 1997, but she remains a much loved (6) ____ today.

The award for Greatest Living Briton is a new one. It is given by ITV, one of Britain’s most (7) ____ television companies. Guy Freeman of ITV said: “The Great Britons 2007 was a fantastic ceremony [showing] all that is so great about the United Kingdom.” He (8) ____ that the awards ceremony is
(9) ____ to become an annual event. The first winner, in 2005, was Tim Berners-Lee, the (10) ____ of the World Wide Web. Another award given at the ceremony was for soccer star David Beckham, who picked up the Award for Global Achievement. This is for his performance on the soccer field, his charity work and his (11) ____ around the world to (12) ____ Britain and British culture.

1.

(a)

publicly

(b)

public

(c)

publicity

(d)

pubs

2.

(a)

victory

(b)

defeat

(c)

beat

(d)

won

3.

(a)

stop

(b)

tops

(c)

pots

(d)

spot

4.

(a)

tribute

(b)

tribe

(c)

tributary

(d)

tribal

5.

(a)

escape

(b)

flee

(c)

get away

(d)

getaway

6.

(a)

numeral

(b)

number

(c)

figure

(d)

digit

7.

(a)

popularity

(b)

popular

(c)

polar

(d)

poplar

8.

(a)

adding

(b)

in addition

(c)

additional

(d)

added

9.

(a)

seat

(b)

sat

(c)

sit

(d)

set

10.

(a)

inventor

(b)

invention

(c)

invent

(d)

inventory

11.

(a)

effective

(b)

effortless

(c)

efforts

(d)

effluent

12.

(a)

promotion

(b)

prom

(c)

promote

(d)

prompt

WRITING: 

Write about Queen Elizabeth for 10 minutes. Correct your partner’s paper.

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

HOMEWORK

1. 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 about Queen Elizabeth. Talk about what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.

3. ROYALTY POSTER: Make a poster about different kings and queens around the world. Show your poster to your class in the next lesson. Vote on the best one(s).

4. MAGAZINE ARTICLE: Write a magazine article about what it is like to be Queen Elizabeth. What does she do every day? What decisions does she have to make?

Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Which article was best and why?

5. LETTER: Write a letter to Queen Elizabeth. Ask her three questions about being Britain’s ruler. Give her three pieces of advice about how to be a better queen. Read your letter to your partner(s) in your next lesson. Your partner(s) will answer your questions.

ANSWERS

TRUE / FALSE:

a. F

b. F

c. T

d. T

e. F

f. T

g. F

h. T

SYNONYM MATCH:

a.

public

citizens

b.

former

one-time

c.

via

through

d.

dipped

fell

e.

remains

continues to be

f.

showing

displaying

g.

inventor

creator

h.

picked up

won

i.

efforts

work

j.

promote

publicize

PHRASE MATCH:

a.

star-studded

ceremony

b.

collect her award

in person

c.

made a special tribute to his mother

via a video link

d.

one of the few British royals to

escape scandals

e.

she remains a much

loved figure today

f.

a fantastic ceremony showing

all that is so great about the UK

g.

the awards ceremony is set

to become an annual event

h.

the inventor of

the World Wide Web

i.

picked up the

Award for Global Achievement

j.

his efforts

around the world

GAP FILL:

Queen Elizabeth voted greatest living Briton

The British public has voted for Queen Elizabeth II as the Greatest Living Briton for 2007. She beat former Beatle Sir Paul McCartney, ex-prime minister Baroness Thatcher and pop superstar Robbie Williams to the top spot. The Queen was not present at the star-studded ceremony to collect her award in person. However, her youngest son Prince Edward made a special tribute to his mother via a video link. The Queen has enjoyed great popularity among her people in recent years. She has been on the throne since 1953 and is one of the few British royals to escape scandals. Her popularity dipped after Diana, Princess of Wales died in Paris in 1997, but she remains a much loved figure today.

The award for Greatest Living Briton is a new one. It is given by ITV, one of Britain’s most popular television companies. Guy Freeman of ITV said: “The Great Britons 2007 was a fantastic ceremony [showing] all that is so great about the United Kingdom.” He added that the awards ceremony is set to become an annual event. The first winner, in 2005, was Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the World Wide Web. Another award given at the ceremony was for soccer star David Beckham, who picked up the Award for Global Achievement. This is for his performance on the soccer field, his charity work and his efforts around the world to promote Britain and British culture.

LANGUAGE WORK

1 - b

2 - c

3 - d

4 -a

5 - a

6 -c

7 - b

8 -d

9 -d

10 - a

11 -c

12 - c

 

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