The Reading / Listening - Premium Honey - Level 6

A beekeeper in Turkey has come across a discovery thanks to a group of honey-stealing bears. The hobbyist beekeeper is Mr Ibrahim Sedef, who lives in the Black Sea coastal town of Trabzon, northeast of the capital Ankara. For many years, he has gone to great lengths to prevent bears from stealing the honey his bees make. In so doing, he has discovered that the bears have a particular penchant for the best quality, most expensive honey. Mr Sedef had struggled to keep the intruders and their sweet teeth away from his beehives. However, the bears evaded his metal cages and protective storage houses, and did not fall for Mr Sedef's attempts to use apples and other fruit as a decoy.

Mr Sedef told reporters that the bears have cost him over $10,000 in the past three years. During this time, he set up cameras to find out more about their tastes. He enticed the bears with four different bowls of goodies. Three bowls contained various types and quality of honey and one had cherry jam. Time after time, the bears made a beeline for the most expensive honey. They continually opted for the premium Anzer honey, which is believed to be the most expensive in the world. It is produced from the nectar of 90 flowers that only grow in the mountains of the Anzer plateau. It is said to have a whole host of medicinal and curative powers. Despite his financial losses, Sedef said he has grown to love the bears.

Try the same news story at these easier levels:

    Premium Honey - Level 4  or  Premium Honey - Level 5

Sources
  • https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/aug/29/turkish-beekeeper-finds-thieving-bears-prefer-premium-honey
  • https://www.complex.com/life/2019/08/turkish-bee-farmer-bears-stealing-honey-taste-testers
  • https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7403957/Beekeeper-enlists-bears-stealing-supply-taste-tasters.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 :-)

Warm-ups

1. PREMIUM HONEY: Students walk around the class and talk to other students about premium honey. 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?
       beekeeper / Turkey / discovery / capital / best quality / honey / sweet tooth / apples /
       bears / camera /goodies / jam / premium / nectar / mountains / medicinal / financial
Have a chat about the topics you liked. Change topics and partners frequently.
3. JAM: Students A strongly believe jam is better than honey; Students B strongly believe honey is better than jam.  Change partners again and talk about your conversations.
4. PREMIUM: What are the premium products for these things? How good are they? Complete this table with your partner(s). Change partners often and share what you wrote.

 

Premium Product

How Good?

Fruit

 

 

Beef

 

 

Smartphone

 

 

Car

 

 

English school

 

 

Clothes

 

 

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. DISCOVERY: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word "discovery". Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories.
6. SPREADS: Rank these with your partner. Put the best spreads at the top. Change partners often and share your rankings.

  • Nutella
  • vegemite
  • hummus
  • avocado
  • honey
  • jam
  • peanut butter
  • cream cheese

 

Vocabulary

    Paragraph 1

      1. hobbyist a. A person or thing used to mislead or lure an animal or person.
      2. go to great lengths b. A strong or habitual liking for something or tendency to do something.
      3. penchant c. A person (or something) who goes somewhere they shouldn't be, especially into a building with criminal intent.
      4. struggled d. A person who does a particular hobby.
      5. intruder e. Escape or avoid, especially by cleverness or trickery.
      6. evaded f. To try very hard to achieve something.
      7. decoy g. Tried hard to achieve or attain something in the face of difficulty.

    Paragraph 2

      8. enticed h. Made a choice from a range of possibilities.
      9. goodies i. Things that are attractive or desirable, especially something tasty or pleasant to eat.
      10. make a beeline for j. Of a substance or plant having healing properties.
      11. opted k. Attract or tempt by offering pleasure.
      12. nectar l. A sugary fluid in flowers to encourage pollination by insects and other animals. It is collected by bees to make into honey.
      13. a whole host of m. Move quickly and directly toward something.
      14. medicinal n. A large number of people or things.

 

Before reading / listening

1. TRUE / FALSE: Read the headline. Guess if 1-8 below are true (T) or false (F).

  1. The beekeeper lives in the Turkish capital of Ankara.     T / F
  2. The beekeeper has great lengths of beehives.     T / F
  3. The beekeeper made a pendant for the best quality honey.     T / F
  4. The beekeeper used apples to keep the bears away from his honey.     T / F
  5. The beekeeper gets $10,000 a year from his honey.     T / F
  6. The beekeeper tested to see if the bears liked cherry jam.     T / F
  7. The expensive honey is made from the nectar of 90 mountain flowers.     T / F
  8. The beekeeper loves the bears that are stealing his honey.     T / F

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

  1. come across
  2. prevent
  3. penchant
  4. struggled
  5. decoy
  6. set up
  7. goodies
  8. opted
  9. medicinal
  10. financial
  1. chose
  2. battled
  3. monetary
  4. established
  5. stop
  6. lure
  7. therapeutic
  8. discovered
  9. treats
  10. liking

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

  1. thanks to a group of honey-
  2. the Black Sea coastal
  3. he has gone to great
  4. the bears have a particular penchant
  5. attempts to use apples and other fruit as
  6. find out
  7. the bears made a beeline
  8. the nectar
  9. have a whole host of medicinal
  10. Despite his financial
  1. for the most expensive
  2. lengths to prevent bears
  3. of 90 flowers
  4. a decoy
  5. losses
  6. town of Trabzon
  7. more about their tastes
  8. for the best quality
  9. and curative powers
  10. stealing bears

Gap fill

Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
lengths
evaded
hobbyist
storage
across
decoy
coastal
penchant

A beekeeper in Turkey has come (1) ____________ a discovery thanks to a group of honey-stealing bears. The (2) ____________ beekeeper is Mr Ibrahim Sedef, who lives in the Black Sea (3) ____________ town of Trabzon, northeast of the capital Ankara. For many years, he has gone to great (4) ____________ to prevent bears from stealing the honey his bees make. In so doing, he has discovered that the bears have a particular (5) ____________ for the best quality, most expensive honey. Mr Sedef had struggled to keep the intruders and their sweet teeth away from his beehives. However, the bears (6) ____________ his metal cages and protective (7) ____________ houses, and did not fall for Mr Sedef's attempts to use apples and other fruit as a (8) ____________.

Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
tastes
opted
losses
cost
beeline
host
goodies
nectar

Mr Sedef told reporters that the bears have (9) ____________ him over $10,000 in the past three years. During this time, he set up cameras to find out more about their (10) ____________. He enticed the bears with four different bowls of (11) ____________. Three bowls contained various types and quality of honey and one had cherry jam. Time after time, the bears made a (12) ____________ for the most expensive honey. They continually (13) ____________ for the premium Anzer honey, which is believed to be the most expensive in the world. It is produced from the (14) ____________ of 90 flowers that only grow in the mountains of the Anzer plateau. It is said to have a whole (15) ____________ of medicinal and curative powers. Despite his financial (16) ____________, Sedef said he has grown to love the bears.

Listening — Guess the answers. Listen to check.

1)  The hobbyist beekeeper is Mr Ibrahim Sedef, who lives in the Black Sea ______
     a.  coast all town
     b.  cost all town
     c.  coastal town
     d.  coats all town
2)  For many years, he has gone to great ______ prevent bears
     a.  length stew
     b.  length stool
     c.  lengths to
     d.  lengths stool
3)  he has discovered that the bears have a ______
     a.  particular pen chant
     b.  particular pen shalln't
     c.  particular pond chant
     d.  particular penchant
4)  However, the bears evaded his metal cages and protective ______
     a.  storage houses
     b.  store age houses
     c.  store ridge house is
     d.  storage house is
5)  fall for Mr Sedef's attempts to use apples and other fruit ______
     a.  as a decoy
     b.  has a decoy
     c.  was a decoy
     d.  is a decoy

6)  During this time, he set up cameras to find out more ______
     a.  about them taste
     b.  about there tastes
     c.  about their tastes
     d.  about they're tastes
7)  Time after time, the bears made a beeline for ______
     a.  the most expensively
     b.  the most expansive
     c.  the most expansively
     d.  the most expensive
8) the nectar of 90 flowers that only grow in the mountains of ______
     a.  the Anzer plate oh
     b.  the Anzer plait tow
     c.  the Anzer plate tow
     d.  the Anzer plateau
9)  It is said to have a whole host of medicinal and ______
     a.  cure additive powers
     b.  cure a tiff powers
     c.  curate a tiff powers
     d.  curative powers
10)  Despite his financial losses, Sedef said he has grown to ______
     a.  loved the bears
     b.  love the bears
     c.  love their bears
     d.  love them bears

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

A beekeeper in Turkey has come across (1) ___________________ to a group of honey-stealing bears. The hobbyist beekeeper is Mr Ibrahim Sedef, who lives in the Black Sea (2) ___________________ Trabzon, northeast of the capital Ankara. For many years, he has gone to (3) ___________________ prevent bears from stealing the honey his bees make. In so doing, he has discovered that the bears have (4) ___________________ for the best quality, most expensive honey. Mr Sedef had struggled to (5) ___________________ and their sweet teeth away from his beehives. However, the bears evaded his metal cages and protective storage houses, and did not fall for Mr Sedef's attempts to use apples and other fruit (6) ___________________.

Mr Sedef told reporters that the bears have cost him over $10,000 in the past three years. (7) ___________________, he set up cameras to find out more about their tastes. He enticed the bears with four different bowls of goodies. Three bowls contained (8) ___________________ quality of honey and one had cherry jam. Time after time, the bears (9) ___________________ for the most expensive honey. They continually (10) ___________________ premium Anzer honey, which is believed to be the most expensive in the world. It is produced from the nectar of 90 flowers that only grow in the mountains of the Anzer plateau. It is said to have a (11) ___________________ medicinal and curative powers. Despite (12) ___________________, Sedef said he has grown to love the bears.

Comprehension questions

  1. In what country does the beekeeper live?
  2. What sea does the beekeeper live near?
  3. What did the beekeeper find the bees have a penchant for?
  4. What kind of cages did the beekeeper use?
  5. What did the beekeeper use as a decoy?
  6. How much money has the beekeeper lost in the past three years?
  7. What did the beekeeper fill four bowls with?
  8. What did the bears make a beeline for?
  9. How many flowers go into making the honey?
  10. How does the beekeeper feel about the bears?

Multiple choice quiz

1)  In what country does the beekeeper live?
a) Uruguay
b) Turkey
c) Japan
d) Bulgaria
2) What sea does the beekeeper live near?
a) the South Sea
b) the Andaman Sea
c) the Sea of Japan
d) the Black Sea
3) What did the beekeeper find the bees have a penchant for?
a) bees
b) honey sandwiches
c) the best quality honey
d) beehives
4) What kind of cages did the beekeeper use?
a) metal cages
b) electrified cages
c) bird cages
d) lion cages
5) What did the beekeeper use as a decoy?
a) fish
b) fruit
c) toffee
d) candy

6) How much money has the beekeeper lost in the past three years?
a) over $10,000
b) just under $10,000
c) exactly $10,000
d) around $10,000
7) What did the beekeeper fill four bowls with?
a) milk and honey
b) jam and treacle
c) honey and jam
d) apples and peaches
8) What did the bears make a beeline for?
a) honey
b) bees
c) cages
d) the mountains
9) How many flowers go into making the honey?
a) 60
b) 70
c) 80
d) 90
10) How does the beekeeper feel about the bears?
a) he hates them
b) he is bored of them
c) he loves them
d) he is afraid of them

Role play

Role  A – Honey
You think honey is the best spread. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what is wrong with their spreads. Also, tell the others which is the worst of these (and why): jam, hummus or avocado.

Role  B – Jam
You think jam is the best spread. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what is wrong with their spreads. Also, tell the others which is the worst of these (and why): honey, hummus or avocado.

Role  C – Hummus
You think hummus is the best spread. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what is wrong with their spreads. Also, tell the others which is the worst of these (and why): jam, honey or avocado.

Role  D – Avocado
You think avocado is the best spread. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what is wrong with their spreads. Also, tell the others which is the worst of these (and why): jam, hummus or honey.

After reading / listening

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

'premium'

  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • and 'honey'.

  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • • 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:

    • cost
    • set
    • jam
    • opted
    • 90
    • love
    • come
    • coastal
    • great
    • doing
    • sweet
    • fruit

    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 - Beekeeper says bears prefer premium honey

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

    1. What did you think when you read the headline?
    2. What images are in your mind when you hear the word 'bee'?
    3. What do you think of beekeeping as a hobby?
    4. What do you think of honey?
    5. What are the uses of honey?
    6. What do you know about bees?
    7. Should humans use honey that bees work so hard to make?
    8. Do you have a sweet tooth?
    9. What could the beekeeper have done to keep the bears away?
    10. What do you have a particular penchant for?

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

    1. Did you like reading this article? Why/not?
    2. What do you think of when you hear the word 'honey'?
    3. What do you think about what you read?
    4. How important are bees?
    5. Would your taste buds detect premium honey?
    6. Why do bears like honey so much?
    7. What can we do to protect bees?
    8. Which is better, honey or jam?
    9. How good is honey for our health?
    10. What questions would you like to ask beekeepers?

    Discussion — Write your own questions

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

    (a) ________________

    (b) ________________

    (c) ________________

    (d) ________________

    (e) ________________

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

    (f) ________________

    (g) ________________

    (h) ________________

    (i) ________________

    (j) ________________

    Language — Cloze (Gap-fill)

    A beekeeper in Turkey has (1) ____ across a discovery thanks to a group of honey-stealing bears. The hobbyist beekeeper is Mr Ibrahim Sedef, who lives in the Black Sea (2) ____ town of Trabzon, northeast of the capital Ankara. For many years, he has gone to great (3) ____ to prevent bears from stealing the honey his bees make. In so doing, he has discovered that the bears have a particular (4) ____ for the best quality, most expensive honey. Mr Sedef had struggled to keep the intruders and their (5) ____ teeth away from his beehives. However, the bears evaded his metal cages and protective storage houses, and did not fall for Mr Sedef's attempts to use apples and other fruit as a (6) ____.

    Mr Sedef told reporters that the bears have (7) ____ him over $10,000 in the past three years. During this time, he set up cameras to find out more about their tastes. He (8) ____ the bears with four different bowls of goodies. Three bowls contained various types and quality of honey and one had cherry jam. Time after time, the bears made a (9) ____ for the most expensive honey. They continually (10) ____ for the premium Anzer honey, which is believed to be the most expensive in the world. It is produced from the (11) ____ of 90 flowers that only grow in the mountains of the Anzer plateau. It is said to have a whole host of medicinal and curative powers. Despite his financial losses, Sedef said he has (12) ____ to love the bears.

    Which of these words go in the above text?

    1. (a)     been     (b)     come     (c)     gone     (d)     taken    
    2. (a)     coasted     (b)     coastal     (c)     coasting     (d)     casting    
    3. (a)     heights     (b)     depths     (c)     widths     (d)     lengths    
    4. (a)     pestilence     (b)     penchant     (c)     petulant     (d)     pendant    
    5. (a)     honey     (b)     sweet     (c)     sticky     (d)     premium    
    6. (a)     deploy     (b)     decor     (c)     decoy     (d)     decant    
    7. (a)     costly     (b)     costed     (c)     cost     (d)     costing    
    8. (a)     spliced     (b)     noticed     (c)     enticed     (d)     latticed    
    9. (a)     streamline     (b)     online     (c)     hardline     (d)     beeline    
    10. (a)     pasted     (b)     selection     (c)     chosen     (d)     opted    
    11. (a)     nectar     (b)     stem     (c)     roots     (d)     seeds    
    12. (a)     evolved     (b)     morphed     (c)     grown     (d)     capitulated

    Spelling

    Paragraph 1

    1. The obsbyiht beekeeper
    2. a particular thpceann for the best quality
    3. struggled to keep the rruedtsin
    4. the bears aveedd his metal cages
    5. protective ogrtsea
    6. use apples and other fruit as a yceod

    Paragraph 2

    1. He etncdie the bears
    2. made a eenileb for the most expensive honey
    3. dtpoe for the premium Anzer honey
    4. in the mountains of the Anzer auetalp
    5. mcalediin and curative powers
    6. Despite his cnaflanii losses

    Put the text back together

    (...)  stealing the honey his bees make. In so doing, he has discovered that the bears have a particular
    (...)  teeth away from his beehives. However, the bears evaded his metal cages and protective storage
    (...)  penchant for the best quality, most expensive honey. Mr Sedef had struggled to keep the intruders and their sweet
    (...)  in the mountains of the Anzer plateau. It is said to have a whole host of medicinal and curative
    (...)  houses, and did not fall for Mr Sedef's attempts to use apples and other fruit as a decoy.
    (...)  goodies. Three bowls contained various types and quality of honey and one had cherry jam. Time after
    (...)  capital Ankara. For many years, he has gone to great lengths to prevent bears from
    (...)  powers. Despite his financial losses, Sedef said he has grown to love the bears.
    ( 1 ) A beekeeper in Turkey has come across a discovery thanks to a group of honey-stealing bears. The hobbyist
    (...)  time, the bears made a beeline for the most expensive honey. They continually opted for the premium Anzer honey, which is believed
    (...)  to be the most expensive in the world. It is produced from the nectar of 90 flowers that only grow
    (...)  time, he set up cameras to find out more about their tastes. He enticed the bears with four different bowls of
    (...)  Mr Sedef told reporters that the bears have cost him over $10,000 in the past three years. During this
    (...)  beekeeper is Mr Ibrahim Sedef, who lives in the Black Sea coastal town of Trabzon, northeast of the

    Put the words in the right order

    1. in   came   Turkey   a   discovery   .   across   A   beekeeper
    2. great   He   lengths   prevent   bears   .   to   went   to
    3. for   A   penchant   quality   best   the   particular   honey   .
    4. his   metal   the   However,   bears   cages   .   evaded
    5. apples   a   fruit   other   decoy   .   and   Use   as
    6. more   .   He   cameras   to   out   find   up   set
    7. made   Bears   the   beeline   for   a   honey   .   expensive
    8. for   They   the   honey   .   opted   Anzer   premium   continually
    9. from   Produced   nectar   the   of   90   flowers   .
    10. whole   a   of   host   Have   medicinal   powers   .

    Circle the correct word (20 pairs)

    A beekeeper in Turkey has come over / across a discovery thanks to a group of honey-stealing bears. The hobbyist beekeeper is Mr Ibrahim Sedef, who lives in the Black Sea coasting / coastal town of Trabzon, northeast of the capital Ankara. For many years, he has gone to great lengths / longings to prevent bears from stealing the honey his bees make. In so done / doing, he has discovered that the bears have a particularly / particular penchant for the best quality, most expensive honey. Mr Sedef had struggled to keep the intruders / intrusion and their sweet teeth / teething away from his beehives. However, the bears evaded / invaded his metal cages and protective storage / stage houses, and did not fall for Mr Sedef's attempts to use apples and other fruit as a decor / decoy.

    Mr Sedef told reporters that the bears have costed / cost him over $10,000 in the past three years. During this time, he set up cameras to find out more about their tasty / tastes. He enticed the bears with four different bowls of goods / goodies. Three bowls contained various / variously types and quality of honey and one had cherry jam. Time after / before time, the bears made a beeline for the most expensive honey. They continually adopted / opted for the premium Anzer honey, which is believed to be the most expensive on / in the world. It is produced from the reactor / nectar of 90 flowers that only grow in the mountains of the Anzer plateau. It is said to have a hole / whole host of medicinal and curated / curative powers. Despite his financial losses, Sedef said he has grown to love the bears.

    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)

    A b__ k__ p_r _n T_r k_y h_s c_m_ _c r_s s _ d_s c_v_r y t h_n k s t_ _ g r__ p _f h_n_y - s t__ l_n g b__ r s . T h_ h_b b y_s t b__ k__ p_r _s M r I b r_h_m S_d_f , w h_ l_v_s _n t h_ B l_c k S__ c__ s t_l t_w n _f T r_b z_n , n_r t h__ s t _f t h_ c_p_t_l A n k_r_. F_r m_n y y__ r s , h_ h_s g_n_ t_ g r__ t l_n g t h s t_ p r_v_n t b__ r s f r_m s t__ l_n g t h_ h_n_y h_s b__ s m_k_. I n s_ d__ n g , h_ h_s d_s c_v_r_d t h_t t h_ b__ r s h_v_ _ p_r t_c_l_r p_n c h_n t f_r t h_ b_s t q__ l_t y , m_s t _x p_n s_v_ h_n_y . M r S_d_f h_d s t r_g g l_d t_ k__ p t h_ _n t r_d_r s _n d t h__ r s w__ t t__ t h _w_y f r_m h_s b__ h_v_s . H_w_v_r , t h_ b__ r s _v_d_d h_s m_t_l c_g_s _n d p r_t_c t_v_ s t_r_g_ h__ s_s , _n d d_d n_t f_l l f_r M r S_d_f ' s _t t_m p t s t_ _s_ _p p l_s _n d _t h_r f r__ t _s _ d_c_y .

    M r S_d_f t_l d r_p_r t_r s t h_t t h_ b__ r s h_v_ c_s t h_m _v_r $ 1 0 , 0 0 0 _n t h_ p_s t t h r__ y__ r s . D_r_n g t h_s t_m_, h_ s_t _p c_m_r_s t_ f_n d __ t m_r_ _b__ t t h__ r t_s t_s . H_ _n t_c_d t h_ b__ r s w_t h f__ r d_f f_r_n t b_w l s _f g__ d__ s . T h r__ b_w l s c_n t__ n_d v_r___s t y p_s _n d q__ l_t y _f h_n_y _n d _n_ h_d c h_r r y j_m . T_m_ _f t_r t_m_, t h_ b__ r s m_d_ _ b__ l_n_ f_r t h_ m_s t _x p_n s_v_ h_n_y . T h_y c_n t_n__ l l y _p t_d f_r t h_ p r_m__ m A n z_r h_n_y , w h_c h _s b_l__ v_d t_ b_ t h_ m_s t _x p_n s_v_ _n t h_ w_r l d . I t _s p r_d_c_d f r_m t h_ n_c t_r _f 9 0 f l_w_r s t h_t _n l y g r_w _n t h_ m__ n t__ n s _f t h_ A n z_r p l_t___. I t _s s__ d t_ h_v_ _ w h_l_ h_s t _f m_d_c_n_l _n d c_r_t_v_ p_w_r s . D_s p_t_ h_s f_n_n c__ l l_s s_s , S_d_f s__ d h_ h_s g r_w n t_ l_v_ t h_ b__ r s .

    Punctuate the text and add capitals

    a beekeeper in turkey has come across a discovery thanks to a group of honeystealing bears the hobbyist beekeeper is mr ibrahim sedef who lives in the black sea coastal town of trabzon northeast of the capital ankara for many years he has gone to great lengths to prevent bears from stealing the honey his bees make in so doing he has discovered that the bears have a particular penchant for the best quality most expensive honey mr sedef had struggled to keep the intruders and their sweet teeth away from his beehives however the bears evaded his metal cages and protective storage houses and did not fall for mr sedefs attempts to use apples and other fruit as a decoy

    mr sedef told reporters that the bears have cost him over 10000 in the past three years during this time he set up cameras to find out more about their tastes he enticed the bears with four different bowls of goodies three bowls contained various types and quality of honey and one had cherry jam time after time the bears made a beeline for the most expensive honey they continually opted for the premium anzer honey which is believed to be the most expensive in the world it is produced from the nectar of 90 flowers that only grow in the mountains of the anzer plateau it is said to have a whole host of medicinal and curative powers despite his financial losses sedef said he has grown to love the bears.

    Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

    AbeekeeperinTurkeyhascomeacrossadiscoverythankstoagroupofho
    ney-stealingbears.ThehobbyistbeekeeperisMrIbrahimSedef,wholi
    vesintheBlackSeacoastaltownofTrabzon,northeastofthecapitalAnka
    ra.Formanyyears,hehasgonetogreatlengthstopreventbearsfromste
    alingthehoneyhisbeesmake.Insodoing,hehasdiscoveredthatthebea
    rshaveaparticularpenchantforthebestquality,mostexpensivehoney.
    MrSedefhadstruggledtokeeptheintrudersandtheirsweetteethawayfr
    omhisbeehives.However,thebearsevadedhismetalcagesandprotecti
    vestoragehouses,anddidnotfallforMrSedef'sattemptstouseapplesan
    dotherfruitasadecoy.MrSedeftoldreportersthatthebearshavecosthi
    mover$10,000inthepastthreeyears.Duringthistime,hesetupcamera
    stofindoutmoreabouttheirtastes.Heenticedthebearswithfourdiffere
    ntbowlsofgoodies.Threebowlscontainedvarioustypesandqualityofh
    oneyandonehadcherryjam.Timeaftertime,thebearsmadeabeelinefo
    rthemostexpensivehoney.TheycontinuallyoptedforthepremiumAnz
    erhoney,whichisbelievedtobethemostexpensiveintheworld.Itisprod
    ucedfromthenectarof90flowersthatonlygrowinthemountainsoftheA
    nzerplateau.Itissaidtohaveawholehostofmedicinalandcurativepowe
    rs.Despitehisfinanciallosses,Sedefsaidhehasgrowntolovethebears.

    Free writing

    Write about premium honey for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

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    Academic writing

    Honey is better than jam. 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 this news story. Share what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.
    3. BEES: Make a poster about bees. Show your work to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all have similar things?
    4. HONEY: Write a magazine article about making it illegal to take honey from beehives as it is the hard work of bees. Include imaginary interviews with people who are for and against this.
    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 honey. Ask him/her three questions about honey. 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

    Buy my book

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    Answers

    (Please look at page 26 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

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