The Reading / Listening - Poonami - Level 1

Beaches in England closed because water companies pumped raw sewage into the sea. The UK told people to avoid dozens of popular swimming and surfing beaches. People could get diseases if they went into the water. Water companies said people should keep their mouth closed in the sea. A woman said she saw things she didn't want to see floating in the sea. She said: "It's filthy…and it stinks." She called the mess a "poonami".

People are angry with the water companies. England sold its water to private companies. The bosses get million-dollar bonuses while raw sewage is polluting the environment. In 2016, the European Union said England's beaches were among the cleanest in Europe; now they are the dirtiest. A woman said clean water was a human right, and not for companies to make profits from. She said CEOs cared more about their bonuses than the environment.

Try the same news story at these levels:

    Poonami - Level 0 Poonami - Level 2   or  Poonami - Level 3

Sources
  • https://news.sky.com/story/huge-increase-in-raw-sewage-released-into-uk-waterways-and-sea-data-reveals-12677730
  • https://www.lbc.co.uk/news/do-not-swim-at-22-beaches-in-england-after-sewage-discharge-environment-agency/
  • https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/1658177/MP-Labour-environment-agency-sewage-dumps-sea-GB-News-vn


Make sure you try all of the online activities for this reading and listening - There are dictations, multiple choice activities, drag and drop activities, sentence jumbles, which word activities, text reconstructions, spelling, gap fills and a whole lot more. Please enjoy :-)

Phrase Matching

Paragraph 1

  1. Beaches in England
  2. popular swimming and
  3. if they went
  4. keep their mouth
  5. she saw things she didn't
  6. floating in the
  7. It's filthy and it
  8. She called the mess a
  1. closed in the sea
  2. stinks
  3. surfing beaches
  4. "poonami"
  5. into the water
  6. want to see
  7. sea
  8. closed

Paragraph 2

  1. England sold its water to private
  2. get million-
  3. polluting the
  4. England's beaches were among
  5. now they are the
  6. clean water was a human
  7. companies to make
  8. CEOs cared more about
  1. the cleanest
  2. profits
  3. companies
  4. their bonuses
  5. right
  6. dollar bonuses
  7. dirtiest
  8. environment

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

Beaches in England (1) ___________________ companies pumped raw sewage into the sea. The UK told people to (2) ___________________ popular swimming and surfing beaches. People could (3) ___________________ they went into the water. Water companies said people should keep their (4) ___________________ the sea. A woman said she saw things she didn't want (5) ___________________ in the sea. She said: "It's filthy...and it stinks." She (6) ___________________ a "poonami".

People (7) ___________________ the water companies. England sold its water to private companies. The (8) ___________________-dollar bonuses while raw sewage (9) ___________________ environment. In 2016, the European Union said England's beaches were (10) ___________________ in Europe; now they (11) ___________________. A woman said clean water was a human right, and not for companies to make profits from. She said CEOs (12) ___________________ their bonuses than the environment.

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

BeachesinEnglandclosedbecausewatercompaniespumpedrawsewa
geintothesea.TheUKtoldpeopletoavoiddozensofpopularswimminga
ndsurfingbeaches.Peoplecouldgetdiseasesiftheywentintothewater.
Watercompaniessaidpeopleshouldkeeptheirmouthclosedinthesea.A
womansaidshesawthingsshedidn'twanttoseefloatinginthesea.Shes
aid:"It'sfilthy...anditstinks."Shecalledthemessa"poonami".Peoplea
reangrywiththewatercompanies.Englandsolditswatertoprivatecom
panies.Thebossesgetmillion-dollarbonuseswhilerawsewageispollu
tingtheenvironment.In2016,theEuropeanUnionsaidEngland'sbeach
eswereamongthecleanestinEurope;nowtheyarethedirtiest.Awoman
saidcleanwaterwasahumanright,andnotforcompaniestomakeprofits
from.ShesaidCEOscaredmoreabouttheirbonusesthantheenvironme
nt.

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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