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Drivers who took car crash photos in trouble (15th August, 2014)

The Reading / Listening - Level 6

British police are prosecuting four motorists for slowing down on a busy highway to take photos of a crash scene. It will be the first time for drivers in Britain to face prosecution for "rubbernecking" – the act of looking back at a grisly scene, usually while driving a car. The four rubberneckers slowed down to snap shots of a crash on the other side of the road. Drivers behind them were forced to brake to avoid hitting the rubberneckers. Police at the scene said the photo-taking motorists had been "acting irresponsibly" in slowing down to use their mobile phones to take photos. They will be charged with driving without due care and attention and without reasonable consideration for other road users.

Police officer Shelley Holloway spoke to journalists about the incident. She said: "Thankfully nobody was injured in the collision. However the actions of several motorists who drove through the scene showed no regard for their own or of other people’s safety, as they used their mobile phones to record or video the wreckage as they passed. In doing so, they were not in proper control of their vehicle. They slowed down causing motorists behind them to brake or take evasive action and slow the flow of traffic that was already heavily congested." She added that: "One of the causes of serious injury and fatal collisions is the use of mobile telephones." She urged motorists to lock their phones away when driving.

Try the same news story at these easier levels:

Level 4 or Level 5

Sources

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/rubber-necking-motorists-prosecuted-taking-mobile-4042382#ixzz3AEoLXnJQ
http://www.gloucestershireecho.co.uk/Gloucestershire-police-prosecute-M5-motorists/story-22301077-detail/story.html#lEv8iLuDKCG3s5Ti.99
http://www.stroudnewsandjournal.co.uk/news/11400855.Snap_happy_motorists_face_prosecution/

Make sure you try all of the online activities for this reading and listening - There are dictations, multiple choice, drag and drop activities, crosswords, hangman, flash cards, matching activities and a whole lot more. Please enjoy :-)

The 40 Lesson Activities on the PDF Handout

WARM-UPS

1. RUBBERNECKERS: Students walk around the class and talk to other students about rubberneckers. Change partners often and share your findings.

2. CHAT: In pairs / groups, talk about these topics or words from the article. What will the article say about them? What can you say about these words and your life?

prosecuting / motorists / crash scene / grisly scene / irresponsibly / consideration / journalists / injured / safety / wreckage / in proper control / traffic / serious injury

Have a chat about the topics you liked. Change topics and partners frequently.

3. SAFETY: How can we get more people to be safer in their cars? Complete this table with your partner(s). Change partners often and share what you wrote.

Issue	In your car	How to make things safer
Mobile phones
Rubbernecking
Speeding
Seat belts
Road condition
Technology

4. RUBBERNECKING: Students A strongly believe rubbernecking should be made a crime; Students B strongly believe it's just natural human curiosity. Change partners again and talk about your conversations.

MY e-BOOK

ESL resource book with copiable worksheets and handouts - 1,000 Ideas and Activities for Language Teachers / English teachers

See a sample

5. DRIVERS: Rank these with your partner. Put the worst habits at the top. Change partners often and share your rankings.

• rubbernecking

• eating and driving

• speeding

• tailgating

• hooting / honking

• double parking

• idling

• hogging a lane

6. HIGHWAY: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word "highway". Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories.

BEFORE READING / LISTENING

1. TRUE / FALSE: Read the headline. Guess if a-h below are true (T) or false (F).

a.	British police are taking dozens of motorists to court for taking photos.	T / F
b.	This will be the first time British police have prosecuted rubberneckers.	T / F
c.	The rubberneckers caused many cars behind them to crash.	T / F
d.	The police will charge the rubberneckers for driving too slowly.	T / F
e.	No one was hurt in the accident that was photographed.	T / F
f.	A police officer said the rubberneckers weren't in control of their car.	T / F
g.	Police said it was fortunate there was light traffic at the time.	T / F
h.	A police officer suggested drivers lock their phones away while driving.	T / F

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

1.	prosecuting	a.	gruesome
2.	drivers	b.	consideration
3.	grisly	c.	episode
4.	irresponsibly	d.	movement
5.	reasonable	e.	taking to court
6.	incident	f.	deadly
7.	collision	g.	sensible
8.	regard	h.	motorists
9.	flow	i.	accident
10.	fatal	j.	recklessly

3. PHRASE MATCH: (Sometimes more than one choice is possible.)

1.	slowing down on a	a.	were forced to brake
2.	a grisly	b.	of their vehicle
3.	Drivers behind them	c.	care and attention
4.	motorists had been	d.	congested
5.	without due	e.	scene
6.	nobody was injured	f.	collisions
7.	record or video	g.	busy highway
8.	not in proper control	h.	the wreckage
9.	traffic that was already heavily	i.	in the collision
10.	the causes of serious injury and fatal	j.	"acting irresponsibly"

GAP FILL

British police are prosecuting four (1) ____________ for slowing down on a busy highway to take photos of a crash scene. It will be the first time for drivers in Britain to (2) ____________ prosecution for "rubbernecking" – the act of looking back at a (3) ____________ scene, usually while driving a car. The four rubberneckers slowed down to (4) ____________ shots of a crash on the other side of the road. Drivers behind them were forced to brake to (5) ____________ hitting the rubberneckers. Police at the scene said the photo-taking motorists had been "acting (6) ____________ " in slowing down to use their mobile phones to take photos. They will be charged with driving without (7) ____________ care and attention and without reasonable consideration for other road (8) ____________.

irresponsibly
snap
motorists
users
due
face
avoid
grisly

Police officer Shelley Holloway spoke to journalists about the (9) ____________. She said: "Thankfully nobody was injured in the (10) ____________. However the actions of several motorists who drove through the scene showed no (11) ____________ for their own or of other people's safety, as they used their mobile phones to record or video the (12) ____________ as they passed. In doing so, they were not in proper control of their vehicle. They slowed down causing motorists behind them to brake or take (13) ____________ action and slow the flow of traffic that was already heavily (14) ____________." She added that: "One of the causes of serious injury and (15) ____________ collisions is the use of mobile telephones." She (16) ____________ motorists to lock their phones away when driving.

wreckage
fatal
regard
congested
incident
urged
collision
evasive

LISTENING - Guess the answers. Listen to check.

1)	It will be the first time for drivers in Britain to ______
	a. faced prosecution b. faces prosecution c. face prosecution d. facing prosecution
2)	"rubbernecking" – the act of looking back at ______
	a. a grisly scene b. a grossly scene c. a greasy scene d. a grizzly scene
3)	Drivers behind them were forced to brake to ______ rubberneckers
	a. evade hitting the b. avoid hitting the c. avid hitting the d. aphid hitting the
4)	Police at the scene said the photo-taking motorists had been "______"
	a. acting responsibly b. acting irresponsibility c. acting irresponsible ably d. acting irresponsibly
5)	They will be charged with driving without due ______
	a. care and attention b. cares and attentions c. care and attentions d. cares and attention
6)	Police officer Shelley Holloway spoke to journalists ______
	a. about the accident b. about the incident c. about the incidence d. about the incidents
7)	Thankfully nobody was injured ______
	a. in the collusion b. in the collision c. in the collisions d. in the colliding
8)	they used their mobile phones to record or ______
	a. video the wreckage b. video the wrecked age c. video the wreck cage d. video the rack age
9)	brake or take evasive action and slow the flow of traffic that was already ______
	a. heavy congested b. heavily congestion c. heave all congested d. heavily congested
10)	One of the causes of serious injury ______
	a. and fatally collisions b. and fatalistic collisions c. and fatally collisions d. and fatal collisions

LISTENING – Listen and fill in the gaps

British police are prosecuting four motorists for (1) ___________________ busy highway to take photos of a crash scene. It will be the first time for drivers in Britain to face prosecution for "rubbernecking" – the act of looking back (2) ___________________, usually while driving a car. The four rubberneckers slowed down (3) ___________________ crash on the other side of the road. Drivers behind them were forced to (4) ___________________ the rubberneckers. Police at the scene said the photo-taking motorists had been "(5) ___________________" in slowing down to use their mobile phones to take photos. They will be charged with driving without (6) ___________________ and without reasonable consideration for other road users.

Police officer Shelley Holloway spoke to journalists about the incident. She said: "Thankfully nobody was (7) ___________________. However the actions of several motorists who (8) ___________________ showed no regard for their own or of other people's safety, as they used their mobile phones to record or video (9) ___________________ passed. In doing so, they were not (10) ___________________ their vehicle. They slowed down causing motorists behind them to brake or take evasive action and slow the flow of traffic that was already (11) ___________________." She added that: "One of the causes of serious injury and fatal collisions is the use of mobile telephones." She (12) ___________________ their phones away when driving.

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS

1.	On what kind of road did the rubberneckers take the photos?
2.	How many times before have British police prosecuted rubberneckers?
3.	Where was the crash scene in relation to the rubberneckers?
4.	How did the police say the rubberneckers were acting?
5.	Who did the police say the rubberneckers did not consider?
6.	How many people were hurt in the accident?
7.	What did the rubberneckers use to take photos of the crash scene?
8.	What did drivers behind the rubberneckers have to do?
9.	How was the traffic when the rubberneckers took their photos?
10.	What did a police officer say drivers should do with their phones?

MULTIPLE CHOICE - QUIZ

1.	On what kind of road did the rubberneckers take the photos?	6.	How many people were hurt in the accident?
	a) a country lane b) a busy highway c) a city street d) Britain's longest bridge		a) 0 b) 1 c) 5 d) 22
2.	How many times before have British police prosecuted rubberneckers?	7.	What did the rubberneckers use to take photos of the crash scene?
	a) five b) one c) none d) three		a) video cameras b) iPads c) digital cameras d) mobile phones
3.	Where was the crash scene in relation to the rubberneckers?	8.	What did drivers behind the rubberneckers have to do?
	a) on a road below them b) behind them c) just in front of them d) the other side of the road		a) change lane b) stop c) brake d) swerve
4.	How did the police say the rubberneckers were acting?	9.	How was the traffic when the rubberneckers took their photos?
	a) immorally b) irresponsibly c) violently d) crazily		a) light b) moving c) moderate d) heavy
5.	Who did the police say the rubberneckers did not consider?	10.	What did a police officer say drivers should do with their phones?
	a) other road users b) the crash victims c) the police d) their family		a) put them in sleep mode b) lock them away c) leave them at home d) turn them off

ROLE PLAY

Role A – Rubbernecking

You think rubbernecking is the worst thing drivers do. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why their things aren't so bad. Also, tell the others which is the least harmful of these of these (and why): speeding, idling or tailgating.

Role B – Speeding

You think speeding is the worst thing drivers do. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why their things aren't so bad. Also, tell the others which is the least harmful of these of these (and why): rubbernecking, idling or tailgating.

Role C – Idling

You think idling is the worst thing drivers do. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why their things aren't so bad. Also, tell the others which is the least harmful of these of these (and why): speeding, rubbernecking or tailgating.

Role D – Tailgating

You think tailgating is the worst thing drivers do. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why their things aren't so bad. Also, tell the others which is the least harmful of these of these (and why): speeding, idling or rubbernecking.

AFTER READING / LISTENING

1. WORD SEARCH: Look in your dictionary / computer to find collocates, other meanings, information, synonyms … for the words 'car' and 'crash'.

car

crash

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:

busy
face
back
brake
acting
care

journalists
regard
video
vehicle
flow
lock

RUBBERNECKERS SURVEY

Write five GOOD questions about rubberneckers 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.

RUBBERNECKERS DISCUSSION

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

a)	What did you think when you read the headline?
b)	What springs to mind when you hear the word 'rubbernecker'?
c)	What do you think of rubberneckers?
d)	How bad is rubbernecking in your country?
e)	Why do people want to take photos of crash scenes?
f)	What punishment should the rubberneckers get?
g)	Why do motorists create danger for others by rubbernecking?
h)	What things do you take photos of in public?
i)	What do you think of the word "rubbernecker"?
j)	Should mobile phones be banned in cars?

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

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

a)	Did you like reading this article? Why/not?
b)	How dangerous are the roads in your country?
c)	Do motorists need to take refresher courses on driving safely?
d)	How can police stop rubberneckers slowing down?
e)	Should cars be fitted with devices to block phone signals?
f)	How have mobile phones changed the world?
g)	What is the most dangerous thing people do while driving?
h)	Do you think we are all rubberneckers?
i)	Do you think people should lock their phones away in cars?
j)	What questions would you like to ask a driving safety expert?

DISCUSSION (Write your own questions)

STUDENT A's QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)
1.	________________________________________________________
2.	________________________________________________________
3.	________________________________________________________
4.	________________________________________________________
5.	________________________________________________________
6.	________________________________________________________

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

STUDENT B's QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)
1.	________________________________________________________
2.	________________________________________________________
3.	________________________________________________________
4.	________________________________________________________
5.	________________________________________________________
6.	________________________________________________________

LANGUAGE - CLOZE

British police are (1) ____ four motorists for slowing down on a busy highway to take photos of a crash scene. It will be the first time for drivers in Britain to (2) ____ prosecution for "rubbernecking" – the act of looking back at a (3) ____ scene, usually while driving a car. The four rubberneckers slowed down to (4) ____ shots of a crash on the other side of the road. Drivers behind them were forced to brake to avoid hitting the rubberneckers. Police at the scene said the photo-taking motorists had been "(5) ____ irresponsibly" in slowing down to use their mobile phones to take photos. They will be charged with driving without (6) ____ care and attention and without reasonable consideration for other road users.

Police officer Shelley Holloway spoke to journalists about the (7) ____. She said: "Thankfully nobody was injured in the collision. However the actions of several motorists who drove through the scene showed (8) ____ regard for their own or of other people's safety, as they used their mobile phones to record or video the (9) ____ as they passed. In doing (10) ____, they were not in proper control of their vehicle. They slowed down causing motorists behind them to brake or take evasive action and slow the flow of traffic that was already (11) ____ congested." She added that: "One of the causes of serious injury and (12) ____ collisions is the use of mobile telephones." She urged motorists to lock their phones away when driving.

Put the correct words from the table below in the above article.

1.	(a)	prosecuting	(b)	persecuting	(c)	percolating	(d)	procrastinating
2.	(a)	fact	(b)	phase	(c)	face	(d)	place
3.	(a)	grizzly	(b)	gristly	(c)	grisly	(d)	greasy
4.	(a)	shoe	(b)	press	(c)	dial	(d)	snap
5.	(a)	doing	(b)	being	(c)	acting	(d)	processing
6.	(a)	pre	(b)	due	(c)	oft	(d)	sub
7.	(a)	coincidence	(b)	incident	(c)	incidence	(d)	inference
8.	(a)	not	(b)	no	(c)	non	(d)	now
9.	(a)	passage	(b)	adage	(c)	wreckage	(d)	gauge
10.	(a)	of	(b)	these	(c)	but	(d)	so
11.	(a)	slowly	(b)	ideally	(c)	fairly	(d)	heavily
12.	(a)	lotion	(b)	potion	(c)	natal	(d)	fatal

SPELLING

Paragraph 1
1.	police are prosecuting four iotrmstso
2.	looking back at a rlgyis scene
3.	acting sbiylrirnspeo
4.	Police at the neecs
5.	without due care and ttontnaei
6.	caioteiosrdnn for other road users
Paragraph 2
7.	spoke to journalists about the ednniict
8.	injured in the lnclooiis
9.	record or video the racegwke
10.	brake or take evsivea action
11.	heavily egctsendo
12.	fatal loncslsioi

PUT THE TEXT BACK TOGETHER

Number these lines in the correct order.

( )	back at a grisly scene, usually while driving a car. The four rubberneckers slowed
( )	"acting irresponsibly" in slowing down to use their mobile phones to take photos. They will be charged with driving without due
( )	Police officer Shelley Holloway spoke to journalists about the incident. She said: "Thankfully nobody was injured
( )	down to snap shots of a crash on the other side of the road. Drivers behind them were forced to brake to avoid
( )	hitting the rubberneckers. Police at the scene said the photo-taking motorists had been
( )	behind them to brake or take evasive action and slow the flow of traffic that was already
( )	scene. It will be the first time for drivers in Britain to face prosecution for "rubbernecking" – the act of looking
( )	in the collision. However the actions of several motorists who drove through the scene showed no
( )	heavily congested." She added that: "One of the causes of serious injury and fatal collisions is the use
( )	regard for their own or of other people's safety, as they used their mobile phones to record or video the
( 1 )	British police are prosecuting four motorists for slowing down on a busy highway to take photos of a crash
( )	wreckage as they passed. In doing so, they were not in proper control of their vehicle. They slowed down causing motorists
( )	of mobile telephones." She urged motorists to lock their phones away when driving.
( )	care and attention and without reasonable consideration for other road users.

PUT THE WORDS IN THE RIGHT ORDER

1.	take Slowing a to on highway photos down busy.
2.	of the a Snap the other crash shots road side on of.
3.	motorists . taking been "irresponsibly" - had acting Photo
4.	with and driving attention without due Charged care.
5.	consideration reasonable Without users road other for.
6.	nobody Thankfully collision the in injured was.
7.	in of not control vehicle were proper their They.
8.	take or Brake traffic of flow the slow and action evasive.
9.	of serious injury and fatal collisions One of the causes.
10.	away to lock She their urged phones motorists.

CIRCLE THE CORRECT WORD (20 PAIRS)

British police are prosecuting / persecuting four motorists for slowing down on a busy highway to take photos of a crash scenery / scene. It will be the first time for drivers / driving in Britain to face prosecution for "rubbernecking" – the pact / act of looking back at a grisly / grossly scene, usually while driving a car. The four rubberneckers slowed down to slap / snap shots of a crash on the another / other side of the road. Drivers behind them were forced to brake / break to avoid hitting the rubberneckers. Police at the scene said the photo-taking motorists had been "acting irresponsibly" in slowing down to use their mobile phones to take photos. They will be charged / charging with driving without due care and attention and without reasonable / reasoned consideration for other road users.

Police officer Shelley Holloway spoke to journalists / journos about the incident. She said: "Thankfully nobody was injured in the collusion / collision. However the actions of several motorists who driven / drove through the scene showed no regards / regard for their own or of other people's safety / safely, as they used their mobile phones to record or video the wrecked / wreckage as they passed. In doing so, they were not in proper / prosper control of their vehicle. They slowed down causing motorists behind them to brake or take invasive / evasive action and slow the flow of traffic that was already heavily congested / ingested." She added that: "One of the causes of serious injury and fatal collisions is the use of mobile telephones." She urged / purged motorists to lock their phones away when driving.

Talk about the connection between each pair of words in italics, and why the correct word is correct.

INSERT THE VOWELS (a, e, i, o, u)

Br_t_sh p_l_c_ _r_ pr_s_c_t_ng f__r m_t_r_sts f_r sl_w_ng d_wn _n _ b_sy h_ghw_y t_ t_k_ ph_t_s _f _ cr_sh sc_n_. _t w_ll b_ th_ f_rst t_m_ f_r dr_v_rs _n Br_t__n t_ f_c_ pr_s_c_t__n f_r "r_bb_rn_ck_ng" – th_ _ct _f l__k_ng b_ck _t _ gr_sly sc_n_, _s__lly wh_l_ dr_v_ng _ c_r. Th_ f__r r_bb_rn_ck_rs sl_w_d d_wn t_ sn_p sh_ts _f _ cr_sh _n th_ _th_r s_d_ _f th_ r__d. Dr_v_rs b_h_nd th_m w_r_ f_rc_d t_ br_k_ t_ _v__d h_tt_ng th_ r_bb_rn_ck_rs. P_l_c_ _t th_ sc_n_ s__d th_ ph_t_-t_k_ng m_t_r_sts h_d b__n "_ct_ng _rr_sp_ns_bly" _n sl_w_ng d_wn t_ _s_ th__r m_b_l_ ph_n_s t_ t_k_ ph_t_s. Th_y w_ll b_ ch_rg_d w_th dr_v_ng w_th__t d__ c_r_ _nd _tt_nt__n _nd w_th__t r__s_n_bl_ c_ns_d_r_t__n f_r _th_r r__d _s_rs.

P_l_c_ _ff_c_r Sh_ll_y H_ll_w_y sp_k_ t_ j__rn_l_sts _b__t th_ _nc_d_nt. Sh_ s__d: "Th_nkf_lly n_b_dy w_s _nj_r_d _n th_ c_ll_s__n. H_w_v_r th_ _ct__ns _f s_v_r_l m_t_r_sts wh_ dr_v_ thr__gh th_ sc_n_ sh_w_d n_ r_g_rd f_r th__r _wn _r _f _th_r p__pl_'s s_f_ty, _s th_y _s_d th__r m_b_l_ ph_n_s t_ r_c_rd _r v_d__ th_ wr_ck_g_ _s th_y p_ss_d. _n d__ng s_, th_y w_r_ n_t _n pr_p_r c_ntr_l _f th__r v_h_cl_. Th_y sl_w_d d_wn c__s_ng m_t_r_sts b_h_nd th_m t_ br_k_ _r t_k_ _v_s_v_ _ct__n _nd sl_w th_ fl_w _f tr_ff_c th_t w_s _lr__dy h__v_ly c_ng_st_d." Sh_ _dd_d th_t: "_n_ _f th_ c__s_s _f s_r___s _nj_ry _nd f_t_l c_ll_s__ns _s th_ _s_ _f m_b_l_ t_l_ph_n_s." Sh_ _rg_d m_t_r_sts t_ l_ck th__r ph_n_s _w_y wh_n dr_v_ng.

PUNCTUATE THE TEXT AND ADD CAPITALS

british police are prosecuting four motorists for slowing down on a busy highway to take photos of a crash scene it will be the first time for drivers in britain to face prosecution for "rubbernecking" – the act of looking back at a grisly scene usually while driving a car the four rubberneckers slowed down to snap shots of a crash on the other side of the road drivers behind them were forced to brake to avoid hitting the rubberneckers police at the scene said the photo-taking motorists had been "acting irresponsibly" in slowing down to use their mobile phones to take photos they will be charged with driving without due care and attention and without reasonable consideration for other road users

police officer shelley holloway spoke to journalists about the incident she said "thankfully nobody was injured in the collision however the actions of several motorists who drove through the scene showed no regard for their own or of other people's safety as they used their mobile phones to record or video the wreckage as they passed in doing so they were not in proper control of their vehicle they slowed down causing motorists behind them to brake or take evasive action and slow the flow of traffic that was already heavily congested" she added that "one of the causes of serious injury and fatal collisions is the use of mobile telephones" she urged motorists to lock their phones away when driving

PUT A SLASH ( / ) WHERE THE SPACES ARE

Britishpoliceareprosecutingfourmotoristsforslowingdownonabusy
highwaytotakephotosofacrashscene.Itwillbethefirsttimefordriver
sinBritaintofaceprosecutionfor"rubbernecking"–theactoflooki
ngbackatagrislyscene,usuallywhiledrivingacar.Thefourrubbernec
kerssloweddowntosnapshotsofacrashontheothersideoftheroad.D
riversbehindthemwereforcedtobraketoavoidhittingtherubbernec
kers.Policeatthescenesaidthephoto-takingmotoristshadbeen"acti
ngirresponsibly"inslowingdowntousetheirmobilephonestotakeph
otos.Theywillbechargedwithdrivingwithoutduecareandattentiona
ndwithoutreasonableconsiderationforotherroadusers.Policeoffice
rShelleyHollowayspoketojournalistsabouttheincident.Shesaid:"T
hankfullynobodywasinjuredinthecollision.Howevertheactionsofse
veralmotoristswhodrovethroughthesceneshowednoregardforthei
rownorofotherpeople'ssafety,astheyusedtheirmobilephonestorec
ordorvideothewreckageastheypassed.Indoingso,theywerenotinp
ropercontroloftheirvehicle.Theysloweddowncausingmotoristsbeh
indthemtobrakeortakeevasiveactionandslowtheflowoftrafficthat
wasalreadyheavilycongested."Sheaddedthat:"Oneofthecausesof
seriousinjuryandfatalcollisionsistheuseofmobiletelephones."Sheu
rgedmotoriststolocktheirphonesawaywhendriving.

FREE WRITING

Write about rubberneckers for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner's paper.

_____________________________________________________________________________

ACADEMIC WRITING

Drivers should be banned from using mobile phones in cars. Discuss.

_____________________________________________________________________________

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 out more about rubberneckers. Share what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.

3. RUBBERNECKERS: Make a poster about rubberneckers and driving safety. Show your work to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all have similar things?

4. MOBILE PHONES: Write a magazine article about mobile phones in the car. Include imaginary interviews with people who are for and against banning them in cars.

Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Write down any new words and expressions you hear from your partner(s).

5. WHAT HAPPENED NEXT? Write a newspaper article about the next stage in this news story. Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Give each other feedback on your articles.

6. LETTER: Write a letter to a road safety expert. Ask him/her three questions about rubberneckers. Give him/her three ideas on how to make roads safer. Read your letter to your partner(s) in your next lesson. Your partner(s) will answer your questions.

A Few Additional Activities for Students

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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ANSWERS

TRUE / FALSE (p.4)

a

F

b

T

c

F

d

F

e

T

f

T

g

F

h

T

SYNONYM MATCH (p.4)

1.	prosecuting	a.	taking to court
2.	drivers	b.	motorists
3.	grisly	c.	gruesome
4.	irresponsibly	d.	recklessly
5.	reasonable	e.	sensible
6.	incident	f.	episode
7.	collision	g.	accident
8.	regard	h.	consideration
9.	flow	i.	movement
10.	fatal	j.	deadly

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS (p.8)

1.	A busy highway
2.	None
3.	The other side of the road
4.	Irresponsibly
5.	Other road users
6.	None
7.	Mobile phones
8.	Brake
9.	Heavy
10.	Lock them away

MULTIPLE CHOICE - QUIZ (p.9)

1.

b

2.

c

3.

d

4.

b

5.

a

6.

a

7.

d

8.

c

9.

d

10.

b

ALL OTHER EXERCISES

Please check for yourself by looking at the Article on page 2.
(It's good for your English ;-)

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Drivers who took car crash photos in trouble (15th August, 2014)

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