The Reading / Listening - Level 2

A scary slide has opened in Los Angeles. Slides are usually in children's parks, but the scary Skyslide is on the outside of a 70-story building. It is made of glass just 3 cm thick. People who go on it look down at the street 300 metres below. It is part of a tower in downtown L.A. It cost $3.5 million to build. The slide starts at the 70th floor and goes down 15 metres to the 69th floor. It takes about five seconds to get from top to bottom. Riders sit on a special safety mat and push themselves out of a window. Only one person can go on the slide at one time.

The company that owns the building said it had many meetings about what attraction to make. It wanted something special. The president said: "We have to do something that doesn't exist anywhere else." The slide is safe enough to support a school bus filled with people. A reporter spoke about the slide. He said: "Before you can get a really proper scream going, you're launched out onto a safety mat on an outdoor deck on the 69th floor." Tickets to get into the Skyspace area on the 70th floor are $25 for adults and $19 for children. A ride on the Skyslide costs an additional $8.

Try the same news story at these levels:

    Level 0 Level 1   or  Level 3

Sources
  • http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-skyslide-downtown-los-angeles-tourism-20160623-snap-story.html
  • http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/arts/la-et-cm-hawthorne-skyslide-20160621-snap-story.html
  • https://www.timeout.com/los-angeles/blog/braving-the-glass-skyslide-at-the-us-bank-towers-skyspace-062316


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 :-)

Phrase Matching

Paragraph 1

  1. on the outside of
  2. It is made of glass
  3. It cost $3.5 million
  4. The slide starts
  5. It takes about five seconds to get
  6. Riders sit on a special
  7. push themselves out
  8. Only one person can go on the
  1. from top to bottom
  2. of a window
  3. just 3 cm thick
  4. slide at one time
  5. a 70-story building
  6. at the 70th floor
  7. safety mat
  8. to build

Paragraph 2

  1. The company that owns
  2. it had many
  3. It wanted something
  4. something that doesn't exist
  5. a school bus
  6. a safety
  7. an outdoor deck on
  8. A ride on the Skyslide costs
  1. anywhere else
  2. special
  3. the 69th floor
  4. mat
  5. the building
  6. an additional $8
  7. meetings
  8. filled with people

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

A scary slide (1) ___________________ Los Angeles. Slides are usually in children's parks, but the scary Skyslide (2) ___________________ of a 70-story building. It is made of glass just 3 cm thick. People who (3) ___________________ down at the street 300 metres below. It is (4) ___________________ in downtown L.A. It cost $3.5 million to build. The slide starts at the 70th floor and (5) ___________________ metres to the 69th floor. It takes about five seconds to get from top to bottom. Riders sit on a special safety mat and push themselves out of a window. Only one person can go on the (6) ___________________.

The company that (7) ___________________ said it had many meetings about what (8) ___________________. It wanted something special. The president said: "We have to do something that doesn't exist anywhere else." The slide (9) ___________________ support a school bus filled with people. A reporter spoke about the slide. He said: "Before you can get a really (10) ___________________ going, you're launched out onto a safety mat on an (11) ___________________ on the 69th floor." Tickets to get into the Skyspace area on the 70th floor are $25 for adults and $19 for children. A ride on the Skyslide costs (12) ___________________.

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

AscaryslidehasopenedinLosAngeles.Slidesareusuallyinchildren'spar
ks,butthescarySkyslideisontheoutsideofa70-storybuilding.Itism
adeofglassjust3cmthick.Peoplewhogoonitlookdownatthestreet300
metresbelow.ItispartofatowerindowntownL.A.Itcost$3.5milliontob
uild.Theslidestartsatthe70thfloorandgoesdown15metrestothe69thf
loor.Ittakesaboutfivesecondstogetfromtoptobottom.Riderssitonasp
ecialsafetymatandpushthemselvesoutofawindow.Onlyonepersonca
ngoontheslideatonetime.Thecompanythatownsthebuildingsaiditha
dmanymeetingsaboutwhatattractiontomake.Itwantedsomethingsp
ecial.Thepresidentsaid:"Wehavetodosomethingthatdoesn'texistan
ywhereelse."Theslideissafeenoughtosupportaschoolbusfilledwithpe
ople.Areporterspokeabouttheslide.Hesaid:"Beforeyoucangetareally
properscreamgoing,you'relaunchedoutontoasafetymatonanoutdoo
rdeckonthe69thfloor."TicketstogetintotheSkyspaceareaonthe70thfl
oorare$25foradultsand$19forchildren.ArideontheSkyslidecostsana
dditional$8.

Student survey

Write five GOOD questions about this topic 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.

(Please look at page 12 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

Discussion — Write your own questions

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

(a) ________________

(b) ________________

(c) ________________

(d) ________________

(e) ________________

(f) ________________

(g) ________________

(h) ________________

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

(i) ________________

(j) ________________

(k) ________________

(l) ________________

(m) ________________

(n) ________________

(o) ________________

(p) ________________

Free writing

Write about this topic for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

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Answers

(Please check your answers against the article above.

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