The Reading / Listening - Child Grooms - Level 2

There is a new UNICEF report on boys who get married. It says that 115 million boys and men were married as children. About 23 million of these were married before they were 15. It is UNICEF's first in-depth study of child grooms. A lot of news focuses on young girls being forced into marriage as child brides. The UNICEF report looks at forced marriages for boys. UNICEF looked at data from 82 countries. It found that child marriage among boys is common in countries in Africa, Latin America, Asia and the Pacific. The Central African Republic has the highest rate of child grooms.

UNICEF commented on how child marriage damages boys. It said: "Marriage steals childhood. Child grooms are forced to take on adult responsibilities for which they may not be ready. Early marriage brings early fatherhood, and with it added pressure to provide for a family, cutting short education and job opportunities." UNICEF added: "When we think about child marriage we often think about girls, and rightly so because girls are most affected, but boys do marry in childhood." It said the boys are still children and it is unfair they have to look after a family.

Try the same news story at these levels:

    Child Grooms - Level 0 Child Grooms - Level 1   or  Child Grooms - Level 3

Sources
  • https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/115-million-boys-and-men-around-world-married-children-unicef
  • https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/child-grooms-unicef-boys-men-marriage-children-a8947296.html
  • https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2019/jun/07/its-not-just-girls-one-in-30-young-men-were-married-as-children


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. 23 million of these were married
  2. It is UNICEF's first in-depth
  3. A lot of news focuses
  4. child
  5. The UNICEF report looks at forced
  6. UNICEF looked at data
  7. child marriage among boys is
  8. the highest rate
  1. brides
  2. common
  3. study
  4. of child grooms
  5. from 82 countries
  6. on young girls
  7. before they were 15
  8. marriages for boys

Paragraph 2

  1. how child marriage
  2. forced to take on adult
  3. they may not
  4. pressure to provide
  5. cutting short education and
  6. girls are most
  7. boys do marry in
  8. they have to look
  1. be ready
  2. childhood
  3. job opportunities
  4. after a family
  5. affected
  6. for a family
  7. damages boys
  8. responsibilities

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

There is a new UNICEF report on boys (1) ___________________. It says that 115 million boys and men (2) ___________________ children. About 23 million of these were married before they were 15. It is UNICEF's (3) ___________________ of child grooms. A lot of news focuses on young girls being forced into marriage as child brides. The UNICEF report (4) ___________________ marriages for boys. UNICEF looked at data from 82 countries. It found that child marriage among boys (5) ___________________ countries in Africa, Latin America, Asia and the Pacific. The Central African Republic has the highest (6) ___________________ grooms.

UNICEF (7) ___________________ child marriage damages boys. It said: "Marriage steals childhood. Child grooms are (8) ___________________ on adult responsibilities for which they may not be ready. Early marriage (9) ___________________, and with it added pressure to provide for a family, cutting short (10) ___________________ opportunities." UNICEF added: "When we think about child marriage we often think about girls, and rightly so because girls (11) ___________________, but boys do marry in childhood." It said the boys are still children and it (12) ___________________ have to look after a family.

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

ThereisanewUNICEFreportonboyswhogetmarried.Itsaysthat115mil
lionboysandmenweremarriedaschildren.About23millionofthesewer
emarriedbeforetheywere15.ItisUNICEF'sfirstin-depthstudyofchildg
rooms.Alotofnewsfocusesonyounggirlsbeingforcedintomarriageasc
hildbrides.TheUNICEFreportlooksatforcedmarriagesforboys.UNICE
Flookedatdatafrom82countries.Itfoundthatchildmarriageamongbo
ysiscommonincountriesinAfrica,LatinAmerica,AsiaandthePacific.Th
eCentralAfricanRepublichasthehighestrateofchildgrooms.UNICEFco
mmentedonhowchildmarriagedamagesboys.Itsaid:"Marriagesteals
childhood.Childgroomsareforcedtotakeonadultresponsibilitiesforwh
ichtheymaynotbeready.Earlymarriagebringsearlyfatherhood,andwi
thitaddedpressuretoprovideforafamily,cuttingshorteducationandjo
bopportunities."UNICEFadded:"Whenwethinkaboutchildmarriagew
eoftenthinkaboutgirls,andrightlysobecausegirlsaremostaffected,bu
tboysdomarryinchildhood."Itsaidtheboysarestillchildrenanditisunfa
irtheyhavetolookafterafamily.

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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