The Reading / Listening - Level 3

Women have to pay a lot more in stores than men for almost the same things. A new study by The Times newspaper in Britain found that many products for women cost up to twice as much as similar products for men. Researchers looked at hundreds of goods in the UK's biggest shops. They found that women's clothes and beauty products and girls' toys were on average 36 per cent more expensive than products for men and boys. One store charged over $7 more for a pink scooter aimed at girls than a black one. Another store charged double the price for ten razors simply because they were pink. Researchers said Levi's 501 jeans for women are on average 46 per cent more expensive than those for men.

The Times called this "sexist" pricing. Other people have called it a "gender tax". Maria Miller, the chairwoman of the British government's women and equalities committee, called it a "rip-off". She said she would ask Britain's government to look into this to see if there was price discrimination. Britain's Financial Times (FT) newspaper said: "Perhaps women tend to be busier and have less time to shop around. Or perhaps they care more about quality when it comes to deodorant or shampoo, whereas men just want something cheap." However, the FT said men paid more for some things and questioned why the journalists did not look at the price differences for things that appeal more to men.

Try the same news story at these easier levels:

    Level 0 Level 1   or  Level 2

Sources
  • http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/money/consumeraffairs/article4668903.ece
  • http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/b89e16da-b96c-11e5-b151-8e15c9a029fb.html
  • http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/retailandconsumer/12066820/New-Gender-Tax-study-shows-women-are-charged-more-for-being-woman.html


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. SHOPPING: Students walk around the class and talk to other students about shopping. 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?

 

stores / newspaper / products for women / products for men / expensive / scooter / sexist / gender / discrimination / newspaper / shampoo / journalists / price differences

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

3. PRODUCTS: Why might these things be more expensive for men and women? Complete this table with your partner(s). Change partners often and share what you wrote.

 

Who is it more expensive for?

Why?

Jeans

 

 

Razors

 

 

Toys

 

 

Haircut

 

 

Restaurant meals

 

 

Cars

 

 

4. THINGS FOR WOMEN: Students A strongly believe things for women are more expensive; Students B strongly believe things for men are more expensive.  Change partners again and talk about your conversations.

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ESL resource book with copiable worksheets and handouts - 1,000 Ideas and Activities for Language Teachers / English teachers
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5. SHOPS / STORES: Rank these with your partner. Put the best shops at the top. Change partners often and share your rankings.

  • clothes shop

  • bakery

  • computer shop

  • bookshop

  • CD store

  • food takeaway

  • convenience store

  • furniture shop

6. JEANS: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word "jeans". 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.

The article says everything costs more for women.

T / F

b.

Some things for women cost twice the price of similar things for men.

T / F

c.

Researchers looked at thousands of different products.

T / F

d.

Levi 501 jeans were 46% cheaper for women than men.

T / F

e.

The Times newspaper called for a gender tax to be introduced.

T / F

f.

A newspaper said women might be busier than men.

T / F

g.

The newspaper said women might care more about deodorant quality.

T / F

h.

The article said some things cost more for men.

T / F

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

1.

stores

a.

twice

2.

study

b.

just

3.

similar

c.

reporters

4.

simply

d.

report

5.

double

e.

maybe

6.

called

f.

inexpensive

7.

perhaps

g.

shops

8.

cheap

h.

named

9.

journalists

i.

attract

10.

appeal to

j.

comparable

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

1.

Women have to pay a lot

a.

for some things

2.

many products for women cost up

b.

products

3.

Researchers looked at

c.

to be busier

4.

beauty

d.

to twice as much

5.

Another store charged double the

e.

it comes to deodorant

6.

Perhaps women tend

f.

differences for things

7.

have less time to shop

g.

more in stores than men

8.

they care more about quality when

h.

around

9.

men paid more

i.

hundreds of goods

10.

look at the price

j.

price for ten razors





GAP FILL

Women have to pay a (1) ____________ more in stores than men for almost the same things. A new study by The Times newspaper in Britain found that many products for women cost up to (2) ____________ as much as (3) ____________ products for men. Researchers looked at hundreds of goods in the UK's biggest shops. They found that women's clothes and (4) ____________ products and girls' toys were on average 36 per cent more (5) ____________ than products for men and boys. One store charged over $7 more for a pink scooter (6) ____________ at girls than a black one. Another store charged (7) ____________ the price for ten razors simply because they were pink. Researchers said Levi's 501 jeans for women are on (8) ____________ 46 per cent more expensive than those for men.

 

 

similar
lot
double
expensive
twice
average
beauty
aimed

The Times called this "sexist" pricing. Other (9) ____________ have called it a "gender tax". Maria Miller, the chairwoman of the British government's women and equalities committee, called it a "rip-off". She said she would (10) ____________ Britain's government to (11) ____________ into this to see if there was price discrimination. Britain's Financial Times (FT) newspaper said: "Perhaps women tend to be (12) ____________ and have less time to shop (13) ____________. Or perhaps they care more about quality when it comes to deodorant or (14) ____________, whereas men just want something cheap." However, the FT said men paid more for some things and questioned why the (15) ____________ did not look at the price differences for things that (16) ____________ more to men.

 

ask
busier
shampoo
people
appeal
look
journalists
around

 

LISTENING - Guess the answers. Listen to check.

1)

Women have to pay a lot more in stores than men for almost ______

 

a.  the same thing
b.  the same things
c.  the same thingies
d.  the same thinks

2)

many products for women cost up to twice as much as similar ______

 

a.  product for men
b.  products for men's
c.  products for men
d.  product for men's

3)

Researchers looked at hundreds of goods in the UK's ______

 

a.  biggest shop
b.  big as shops
c.  biggest shopping
d.  biggest shops

4)

One store charged over $7 more for a pink scooter aimed at girls ______

 

a.  then a black one
b.  than the black one
c.  than a black one
d.  then the black one

5)

Levi's 501 jeans for women are on average 46 per cent ______

 

a.  more expensive
b.  more expansive
c.  mere expensive
d.  mere expansive

6)

The Times called this "sexist" pricing. Other people have called ______

 

a.  it's a "gander tax"
b.  it the "gender tax"
c.  it a "gender tax"
d.  it a "gander tax"

7)

She said she would ask Britain's government to look ______

 

a.  into this to see
b.  onto this to see
c.  up to this to see
d.  unto this to see

8)

Perhaps women tend to be busier and have less time ______

 

a.  to shop around
b.  to shop abound
c.  to shop a round
d.  to shop a bound

9)

However, the FT said men paid more for some things ______

 

a.  and questions why
b.  and questioned why
c.  and questioning why
d.  and question why

10)

the journalists did not look at the price differences for things that ______

 

a.  appeal more too men
b.  appeal more two men
c.  appeal more to men
d.  appeal more through men

LISTENING – Listen and fill in the gaps

Women have (1) ___________________ more in stores than men for almost the same things. A new study by The Times newspaper in Britain found that many products for women cost (2) ___________________ much as similar products for men. Researchers looked at hundreds of goods in the UK's biggest shops. They found that women's clothes (3) ___________________ and girls' toys were on average 36 per cent more expensive than products for men and boys. One (4) ___________________ $7 more for a pink scooter aimed at girls than a black one. Another store charged double the price for ten razors (5) ___________________ they were pink. Researchers said Levi's 501 jeans for women (6) ___________________ 46 per cent more expensive than those for men.

The Times called this (7) ___________________. Other people have called it a "gender tax". Maria Miller, the chairwoman of the British government's women and equalities committee, called (8) ___________________. She said she would ask Britain's government (9) ___________________ to see if there was price discrimination. Britain's Financial Times (FT) newspaper said: "Perhaps women (10) ___________________ busier and have less time to shop around. Or perhaps they care more about quality when it comes to deodorant or shampoo, (11) ___________________ want something cheap." However, the FT said men paid more for some things and questioned why the journalists did not look at the price differences for things that (12) ___________________ men.

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS

1.

How much more does the first sentence say women have to pay?

2.

How many goods did researchers look at?

3.

On average, how much more expensive were women's clothes?

4.

What did a store charge $7 more for?

5.

How much more expensive were women's Levi 501 jeans?

6.

What kind of tax did The Times newspaper call the increased prices?

7.

What did a British government committee call the increased prices?

8.

What did a newspaper say women might not have time to do?

9.

What did a newspaper say women might care about the quality of?

10.

Who did the FT newspaper say did not look at price differences for men?

MULTIPLE CHOICE - QUIZ

1.

How much more does the first sentence say women have to pay?

6.

What kind of tax did The Times newspaper call the increased prices?

 

a) around $50
b) a little
c) a lot
d) 10-20%

 

a) a tax for sexists
b) a sexist tax
c) a sexy tax
d) a tax on sexism

2.

How many goods did researchers look at?

7.

What did a British government committee call the increased prices?

 

a) hundreds
b) millions
c) thousands
d) 361

 

a) cheap
b) normal
c) economical
d) a rip-off

3.

On average, how much more expensive were women's clothes?

8.

What did a newspaper say women might not have time to do?

 

a) 501%
b) 46%
c) 7%
d) 36%

 

a) work
b) shop around
c) complain
d) buy jeans

4.

What did a store charge $7 more for?

9.

What did a newspaper say women might care about the quality of?

 

a) women's clothes
b) pink scooters
c) beauty products
d) jeans

 

a) shampoo
b) cars
c) jeans
d) restaurants

5.

How much more expensive were women's Levi 501 jeans?

10.

Who did the FT newspaper say did not look at price differences for men?

 

a) 36%
b) 7%
c) 46%
d) 501%

 

a) men
b) women
c) the British government
d) journalists

ROLE PLAY

Role  A – Clothes shop

You think a clothes shop is the best shop. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them things that aren't as good about their shops. Also, tell the others which is the least useful of these (and why): bookshop, convenience store or CD store.

Role  B – Bookshop

You think a bookshop is the best shop. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them things that aren't as good about their shops. Also, tell the others which is the least useful of these (and why): clothes shop, convenience store or CD store.

Role  C – Convenience store

You think a convenience store is the best shop. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them things that aren't as good about their shops. Also, tell the others which is the least useful of these (and why): bookshop, clothes shop or CD store.

Role  D – CD store

You think a CD store is the best shop. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them things that aren't as good about their shops. Also, tell the others which is the least useful of these (and why):  bookshop, convenience store or clothes shop.

AFTER READING / LISTENING

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

beauty

product

 

 

 

  • 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:

  • lot
  • twice
  • hundreds
  • 36
  • 7
  • 46
  • tax
  • rip
  • into
  • less
  • care
  • appeal

WOMEN SHOPPING SURVEY

Write five GOOD questions about women shopping 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.

WOMEN SHOPPING DISCUSSION

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

1)

What did you think when you read the headline?

2)

What springs to mind when you hear the word 'shopping'?

3)

What do you think of shopping?

4)

What do you think about what you read?

5)

Why are things in shops more expensive for women?

6)

Why might a scooter cost more if it is pink?

7)

What do you think of stores for charging women more?

8)

Should women buy the cheaper men's products?

9)

What products for women should cost more than those for men?

10)

Should women not shop in stores that charge more?

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

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

11)

Did you like reading this article? Why/not?

12)

Do you think this is 'sexist pricing'?

13)

Why do you think stores charge more for women's products?

14)

Is shopping a hobby?

15)

Do you think men are more careful with their money when shopping?

16)

Should the government stop this unfair pricing?

17)

Do women care more about quality?

18)

Does it matter if something is pink or another colour?

19)

Why do women like shopping more than men?

20)

What questions would you like to ask a store that charges more for women's products?

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

Women have to pay a (1) ____ more in stores than men for almost the same things. A new study by The Times newspaper in Britain found that many products for women cost up to (2) ____ as much as similar products for men. Researchers looked at hundreds of goods in the UK's biggest shops. They found that women's clothes and beauty products and girls' toys were (3) ____ average 36 per cent more expensive than products for men and boys. One store charged (4) ____ $7 more for a pink scooter aimed (5) ____ girls than a black one. Another store charged double the price for ten razors simply because they were pink. Researchers said Levi's 501 jeans for women are on average 46 per cent more expensive than (6) ____ for men.

The Times called this "sexist" pricing. Other people have called it a "(7) ____ tax". Maria Miller, the chairwoman of the British government's women and equalities committee, called it a "(8) ____-off". She said she would ask Britain's government to look into this to see if there was price discrimination. Britain's Financial Times (FT) newspaper said: "Perhaps women (9) ____ to be busier and have less time to shop around. Or perhaps they care more about quality when it (10) ____ to deodorant or shampoo, (11) ____ men just want something cheap." However, the FT said men paid more for some things and questioned why the journalists did not look at the price differences for things that (12) ____ more to men.

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

1.

(a)

lots

(b)

lot

(c)

loads

(d)

least

2.

(a)

doubles

(b)

double

(c)

two

(d)

twice

3.

(a)

at

(b)

on

(c)

by

(d)

on

4.

(a)

more

(b)

least

(c)

over

(d)

most

5.

(a)

at

(b)

by

(c)

of

(d)

to

6.

(a)

those

(b)

that

(c)

these

(d)

them

7.

(a)

gentler

(b)

gander

(c)

danger

(d)

gender

8.

(a)

rip

(b)

tip

(c)

lip

(d)

whip

9.

(a)

trend

(b)

tend

(c)

attend

(d)

tent

10.

(a)

arrives

(b)

reaches

(c)

comes

(d)

moves

11.

(a)

wearies

(b)

wears

(c)

whereas

(d)

whirs

12.

(a)

repeal

(b)

appeal

(c)

peel

(d)

peal

SPELLING

Paragraph 1

1.

siaimrl products for men

2.

ebtuay products

3.

on ereavag 36 per cent more

4.

a pink scooter edaim at girls

5.

Another store charged eldbuo the price

6.

more xseevnpei than those for men

Paragraph 2

7.

a "egerdn tax"

8.

women and equalities emitetcom

9.

women tend to be srbiue

10.

questioned why the alssrjtunoi did not look

11.

price cfeidfeesnr

12.

things that eapalp more to men

PUT THE TEXT BACK TOGETHER

Number these lines in the correct order.

(    )

around. Or perhaps they care more about quality when it comes to deodorant or

(    )

and questioned why the journalists did not look at the price differences for things that appeal more to men.

(    )

for men. Researchers looked at hundreds of goods in the UK's biggest shops. They found that women's clothes

(    )

and beauty products and girls' toys were on average 36 per cent more expensive than products for men

(    )

of the British government's women and equalities committee, called it a "rip-off". She said she would ask Britain's

(    )

double the price for ten razors simply because they were pink. Researchers said Levi's 501 jeans for women

1  )

Women have to pay a lot more in stores than men for almost the same things. A new study by The Times newspaper in

(    )

are on average 46 per cent more expensive than those for men.

(    )

government to look into this to see if there was price discrimination. Britain's Financial Times (FT)

(    )

shampoo, whereas men just want something cheap." However, the FT said men paid more for some things

(    )

The Times called this "sexist" pricing. Other people have called it a "gender tax". Maria Miller, the chairwoman

(    )

Britain found that many products for women cost up to twice as much as similar products

(    )

and boys. One store charged over $7 more for a pink scooter aimed at girls than a black one. Another store charged

(    )

newspaper said: "Perhaps women tend to be busier and have less time to shop

PUT THE WORDS IN THE RIGHT ORDER

1.

than   stores   in   more   lot   a   pay   to   have   Women   men   .  

2.

for   women   cost   up   to   twice   as   much   Many   products   .  

3.

more   expensive   Girls'   toys   were   on   average   36   per   cent   .  

4.

double   for   charged   price   razors   store   the   ten   Another   .  

5.

expensive   Jeans   for   women   are   on   average   46%   more   .  

6.

tax'   called   it   Other   a   people   'gender   have   .  

7.

this   would   government   into   She   Britain's   look   ask   to   .  

8.

shop  less  busier  tend  around  time  and   to  to  have   be  Women  .

9.

care   quality   comes  They   about   it   deodorant  more   when   to   .  

10.

more   for   appeal   men   differences   that   to   Price   things   .  

CIRCLE THE CORRECT WORD (20 PAIRS)

Women have to pay a lot / lots more in stores than men for almost the same things. A new study by The Times newspaper in Britain found that many products / produce for women cost up to double / twice as much as similar products for men. Researchers looked at hundred / hundreds of goods in the UK's biggest shops. They found that / those women's clothes and beauty products and girls' toys were on / in average 36 per cent more expensive than products for men and boys. One store charging / charged over $7 more for a pink scooter aimed at / to girls than a black one. Another store charged double the price for ten razors simple / simply because they were pink. Researchers said Levi's 501 jeans for women are on average 46 per cent more expensive than those / them for men.

The Times called this "sexist" / "sexy" pricing. Other people have called it a "gander / gender tax". Maria Miller, the chairwoman of the British government's women and equalities committee, called it a "rip-cord" / "rip-off". She said she would ask Britain's government to look onto / into this to see if there was price discrimination / discriminate. Britain's Financial Times (FT) newspaper said: "Perhaps women tend / trend to be busier and have less time to shop round / around. Or perhaps they care more about quality when it comes / coming to deodorant or shampoo, whereas men just want something cheap." However, the FT said men paid more for some things and questioned what / why the journalists did not look at the price differences for things that appeal / apparel more to men.

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)

W_m_n h_v_ t_ p_y _ l_t m_r_ _n st_r_s th_n m_n f_r _lm_st th_ s_m_ th_ngs. _ n_w st_dy by Th_ T_m_s n_wsp_p_r _n Br_t__n f__nd th_t m_ny pr_d_cts f_r w_m_n c_st _p t_ tw_c_ _s m_ch _s s_m_l_r pr_d_cts f_r m_n. R_s__rch_rs l__k_d _t h_ndr_ds _f g__ds _n th_ _K's b_gg_st sh_ps. Th_y f__nd th_t w_m_n's cl_th_s _nd b___ty pr_d_cts _nd g_rls' t_ys w_r_ _n _v_r_g_ 36 p_r c_nt m_r_ _xp_ns_v_ th_n pr_d_cts f_r m_n _nd b_ys. _n_ st_r_ ch_rg_d _v_r $7 m_r_ f_r _ p_nk sc__t_r __m_d _t g_rls th_n _ bl_ck _n_. _n_th_r st_r_ ch_rg_d d__bl_ th_ pr_c_ f_r t_n r_z_rs s_mply b_c__s_ th_y w_r_ p_nk. R_s__rch_rs s__d L_v_'s 501 j__ns f_r w_m_n _r_ _n _v_r_g_ 46 p_r c_nt m_r_ _xp_ns_v_ th_n th_s_ f_r m_n.

Th_ T_m_s c_ll_d th_s "s_x_st" pr_c_ng. _th_r p__pl_ h_v_ c_ll_d _t _ "g_nd_r t_x". M_r__ M_ll_r, th_ ch__rw_m_n _f th_ Br_t_sh g_v_rnm_nt's w_m_n _nd _q__l_t__s c_mm_tt__, c_ll_d _t _ "r_p-_ff". Sh_ s__d sh_ w__ld _sk Br_t__n's g_v_rnm_nt t_ l__k _nt_ th_s t_ s__ _f th_r_ w_s pr_c_ d_scr_m_n_t__n. Br_t__n's F_n_nc__l T_m_s (FT) n_wsp_p_r s__d: "P_rh_ps w_m_n t_nd t_ b_ b_s__r _nd h_v_ l_ss t_m_ t_ sh_p _r__nd. _r p_rh_ps th_y c_r_ m_r_ _b__t q__l_ty wh_n _t c_m_s t_ d__d_r_nt _r sh_mp__, wh_r__s m_n j_st w_nt s_m_th_ng ch__p." H_w_v_r, th_ FT s__d m_n p__d m_r_ f_r s_m_ th_ngs _nd q__st__n_d why th_ j__rn_l_sts d_d n_t l__k _t th_ pr_c_ d_ff_r_nc_s f_r th_ngs th_t _pp__l m_r_ t_ m_n.

PUNCTUATE THE TEXT AND ADD CAPITALS

women have to pay a lot more in stores than men for almost the same things a new study by the times newspaper in britain found that many products for women cost up to twice as much as similar products for men researchers looked at hundreds of goods in the uk's biggest shops they found that women's clothes and beauty products and girls' toys were on average 36 per cent more expensive than products for men and boys one store charged over $7 more for a pink scooter aimed at girls than a black one another store charged double the price for ten razors simply because they were pink researchers said levi's 501 jeans for women are on average 46 per cent more expensive than those for men

the times called this "sexist" pricing other people have called it a "gender tax" maria miller the chairwoman of the british government's women and equalities committee called it a "rip-off" she said she would ask britain's government to look into this to see if there was price discrimination britain's financial times (ft) newspaper said "perhaps women tend to be busier and have less time to shop around or perhaps they care more about quality when it comes to deodorant or shampoo whereas men just want something cheap" however the ft said men paid more for some things and questioned why the journalists did not look at the price differences for things that appeal more to men

PUT A SLASH ( / ) WHERE THE SPACES ARE

Womenhavetopayalotmoreinstoresthanmenforalmostthesamethin
gs.AnewstudybyTheTimesnewspaperinBritainfoundthatmanyprodu
ctsforwomencostuptotwiceasmuchassimilarproductsformen.Resea
rcherslookedathundredsofgoodsintheUK'sbiggestshops.Theyfoundt
hatwomen'sclothesandbeautyproductsandgirls'toyswereonaverage
36percentmoreexpensivethanproductsformenandboys.Onestorech
argedover$7moreforapinkscooteraimedatgirlsthanablackone.Anot
herstorechargeddoublethepricefortenrazorssimplybecausetheywer
epink.ResearcherssaidLevi's501jeansforwomenareonaverage46pe
rcentmoreexpensivethanthoseformen.TheTimescalledthis"sexist"p
ricing.Otherpeoplehavecalledita"gendertax".MariaMiller,thechairw
omanoftheBritishgovernment'swomenandequalitiescommittee,call
edita"rip-off".ShesaidshewouldaskBritain'sgovernmenttolookint
othistoseeiftherewaspricediscrimination.Britain'sFinancialTimes(FT
)newspapersaid:"Perhapswomentendtobebusierandhavelesstimeto
shoparound.Orperhapstheycaremoreaboutqualitywhenitcomestod
eodorantorshampoo,whereasmenjustwantsomethingcheap."Howe
ver,theFTsaidmenpaidmoreforsomethingsandquestionedwhythejo
urnalistsdidnotlookatthepricedifferencesforthingsthatappealmoret
omen.

FREE WRITING

Write about women shopping for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

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ACADEMIC WRITING

Prices for goods and services for men and women should always be the same. Discuss.

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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 women shopping. Share what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.

3. WOMEN'S PRODUCTS: Make a poster about the price of products for women. Do some research in local stores to find price differences between similar products for men and women. Show your work to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all have similar things?

4. GENDER TAX: Write a magazine article about price differences between similar products for men and women. Include imaginary interviews with people who think there are god reasons for this, and with people who think this is terrible.

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 an expert on women shopping. Ask him/her three questions about women shopping. Give him/her three of your ideas. 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

F

f

T

g

T

h

T

SYNONYM MATCH (p.4)

1.

stores

a.

shops

2

study

b.

report

3.

similar

c.

comparable

4.

simply

d.

just

5.

double

e.

twice

6.

called

f.

named

7.

perhaps

g.

maybe

8.

cheap

h.

inexpensive

9.

journalists

i.

reporters

10.

appeal to

j.

attract

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS (p.8)

1.

A lot more

2.

Hundreds

3.

36%

4.

Pink scooters

5.

46% more expensive

6.

A sexist tax

7.

A rip-off

8.

Shop around

9.

Deodorant or shampoo

10.

Journalists

MULTIPLE CHOICE - QUIZ (p.9)

1.

c

2.

a

3.

d

4.

b

5.

c

6.

d

7.

b

8.

d

9.

a

10.

d

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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