The Reading / Listening - Women's Day Off - Level 3

Women across Iceland joined their prime minister in going on strike on Tuesday. The action was part of a campaign for greater gender equality in the country. Prime minister Katrin Jakobsdottir told reporters why she took part in the "Women's Day Off". She said: "As you know, we have not yet reached our goals of full gender equality and we are still tackling the gender-based wage gap, which is unacceptable in 2023." A spokeswoman for the day off said: "On 24 October, all women in Iceland were encouraged to stop work, both paid and unpaid. For the whole day, women (and non-binary people) went on strike, to demonstrate the importance of their contribution to society."

Yesterday was the seventh time that women in Iceland have gone on strike. It was the first such action in nearly 50 years. The last strike was in 1975, when 90 per cent of women did not go to work and did not do housework. The following year, Iceland passed an equal pay law. In 1980, Iceland became the first country in Europe to elect a woman as head of state. According to the World Economic Forum, Iceland has had the smallest gender gap of any country for 14 years in a row. Despite this, Ms Jakobsdottir, said there is still a long way to go. She wants women's pay to be equal to men's pay. She also wants a reduction in gender-based violence. Ms Jakobsdottir said this was a "priority" for her government to tackle.

Try the same news story at these easier levels:

    Women's Day Off - Level 0,  Women's Day Off - Level 1   or  Women's Day Off - Level 2

Sources
  • https://edition.cnn.com/2023/10/23/europe/iceland-women-strike-scli-intl/index.html
  • https://www.icelandreview.com/news/healthcare-and-education-services-especially-impacted-by-womens-strike/
  • https://time.com/6327860/iceland-jakobsdottir-womens-strike/


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 :-)

Warm-ups

1. ICELAND: Students walk around the class and talk to other students about Iceland. 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?
       women / Iceland / prime minister / campaign / gender equality / gender gap / society
       strike / 50 years ago / housework / equal pay / head of state / violence / priority
Have a chat about the topics you liked. Change topics and partners frequently.
3. GENDER EQUALITY: Students A strongly believe we will achieve equality between men and women; Students B strongly believe the opposite. Change partners again and talk about your conversations.
4. EQUALITY: How far are these things from equality? How can we move towards equality? Complete this table with your partner(s). Change partners often and share what you wrote.

 

Equality?

How Can We Get There?

Gender equality

 

 

Wealth equality

 

 

Digital equality

 

 

Religious equality

 

 

Environmental equality

 

 

Employment equality

 

 
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. CAMPAIGN: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word "campaign". Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories.
6. WOMEN ARE BETTER: Rank these with your partner. Put the things women can do better than men at the top. Change partners often and share your rankings.

  • Cook
  • Teach
  • Listen
  • Love
  • Write books
  • Act
  • Win arguments
  • Drive

 

Vocabulary

    Paragraph 1

      1. prime minister a. The state of being the same, especially in status, rights, or opportunities.
      2. campaign b. The leader of a country (like a president).
      3. gender c. Either male or female.
      4. equality d. A fixed regular payment for work or services, usually paid on a daily or weekly basis.
      5. tackling e. The part played by a person or thing in getting a result or helping something to be better.
      6. wage f. An organized course of action to reach a goal.
      7. contribution g. Make a big effort to deal with a problem or difficult task.

    Paragraph 2

      8. housework h. One after the other.
      9. elect i. A thing that is thought to be more important than others.
      10. gap j. Behaviour involving physical force to hurt, damage, or kill someone or something.
      11. in a row k. A difference, especially a negative one, between two situations.
      12. reduction l. The action or fact of making something smaller or less in amount, degree, or size.
      13. violence m. Regular work done in the home, like cleaning and tidying.
      14. priority n. Choose someone to hold an important position by voting.

 

Before reading / listening

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

  1. A women's strike in Iceland was to campaign for the environment.     T / F
  2. The strike was called "Men Against Women".     T / F
  3. Iceland's leader said differences in men and women's pay were OK.     T / F
  4. Women who were unpaid also went on strike.     T / F
  5. It is the first time for women in Iceland to strike.     T / F
  6. Iceland passed an equal pay law in 1976.     T / F
  7. Iceland was the first country in the world to have a female leader.     T / F
  8. A priority for Iceland is to lower gender-based violence.     T / F

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

  1. campaign
  2. took part
  3. reached
  4. encouraged
  5. contribution
  6. following
  7. elect
  8. in a row
  9. reduction
  10. priority
  1. involvement
  2. achieved
  3. urged
  4. consecutively
  5. cut
  6. effort
  7. main concern
  8. vote in
  9. participated
  10. next

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

  1. part of a campaign for greater
  2. we have not yet reached
  3. tackling the
  4. all women in Iceland were encouraged
  5. the importance of their contribution
  6. It was the first such action
  7. Iceland passed an
  8. for 14 years
  9. there is still a long
  10. this was a "priority" for her government
  1. equal pay law
  2. to society
  3. way to go
  4. our goals
  5. in nearly 50 years
  6. in a row
  7. gender-based wage gap
  8. to tackle
  9. to stop work
  10. gender equality

Gap fill

Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
part
wage
joined
contribution
reached
unpaid
campaign
spokeswoman

Women across Iceland (1) _____________________ their prime minister in going on strike on Tuesday. The action was part of a (2) _____________________ for greater gender equality in the country. Prime minister Katrin Jakobsdottir told reporters why she took (3) _____________________ in the "Women's Day Off". She said: "As you know, we have not yet (4) _____________________ our goals of full gender equality and we are still tackling the gender-based (5) _____________________ gap, which is unacceptable in 2023." A (6) _____________________ for the day off said: "On 24 October, all women in Iceland were encouraged to stop work, both paid and (7) _____________________. For the whole day, women (and non-binary people) went on strike, to demonstrate the importance of their (8) _____________________ to society."

Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
elect
last
way
priority
gone
pay
row
following

Yesterday was the seventh time that women in Iceland have (9) _____________________ on strike. It was the first such action in nearly 50 years. The (10) _____________________ strike was in 1975, when 90 per cent of women did not go to work and did not do housework. The (11) _____________________ year, Iceland passed an equal pay law. In 1980, Iceland became the first country in Europe to (12) _____________________ a woman as head of state. According to the World Economic Forum, Iceland has had the smallest gender gap of any country for 14 years in a (13) _____________________. Despite this, Ms Jakobsdottir, said there is still a long (14) _____________________ to go. She wants women's pay to be equal to men's (15) _____________________. She also wants a reduction in gender-based violence. Ms Jakobsdottir said this was a "(16) _____________________" for her government to tackle.

Listening — Guess the answers. Listen to check.

1) Women across Iceland joined their prime minister in ______
     a.  going in strike
     b.  going on strike
     c.  going of strike
     d.  going gong strike
2)  The action was part of a campaign for ______
     a.  greatly gender equality
     b.  grey tar gender equality
     c.  great agenda equality
     d.  greater gender equality
3)  goals of full gender equality and we are still tackling the gender-______
     a.  based waged gap
     b.  based waged app
     c.  based wage gape
     d.  based wage gap
4)  all women in Iceland were encouraged to stop work, both ______
     a.  pay end unpaid
     b.  paid end unpaid
     c.  paid an done paid
     d.  paid and unpaid
5)  women (and non-binary people) went on strike, to ______
     a.  demonstrate the importance
     b.  demonstrate the important
     c.  demonstrate the import tents
     d.  demonstrate the import tense

6)  It was the first such action in ______
     a.  nearly 50 years
     b.  really 50 years
     c.  near life 50 years
     d.  near lie 50 years
7)  The following year, Iceland passed an ______
     a.  equal pay raw
     b.  equal paid lore
     c.  equal pay law
     d.  equal pay roar
8)  In 1980, Iceland became the first country in Europe to elect a woman as ______
     a.  head off state
     b.  head of state
     c.  heads of state
     d.  head of slate
9)  Iceland has had the smallest gender gap of any country for 14 years ______
     a.  in a bow
     b.  in a row
     c.  in a low
     d.  in arrow
10)  Ms Jakobsdottir said this was a "priority" for her ______
     a.  government to tickle
     b.  government to tackle
     c.  government to trickle
     d.  government to talkie

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

Women across Iceland joined their prime minister (1) ____________________ strike on Tuesday. The action was part of a campaign (2) ____________________ equality in the country. Prime minister Katrin Jakobsdottir told reporters why she took part in the "Women's Day Off". She said: "As you know, we have not (3) ____________________ goals of full gender equality and we are still tackling the gender-based wage gap, (4) ____________________ in 2023." A spokeswoman for the day off said: "On 24 October, all women in Iceland were (5) ____________________ work, both paid and unpaid. For the whole day, women (and non-binary people) went on strike, to demonstrate (6) ____________________ their contribution to society."

Yesterday was (7) ____________________ that women in Iceland have gone on strike. It was the (8) ____________________ in nearly 50 years. The last strike was in 1975, when 90 per cent of women did not go to work and did not do housework. (9) ____________________, Iceland passed an equal pay law. In 1980, Iceland became the first country in Europe to elect a woman as (10) ____________________. According to the World Economic Forum, Iceland has had the smallest gender gap of any country for 14 years (11) ____________________. Despite this, Ms Jakobsdottir, said there is still a long way to go. She wants women's pay to be equal to men's pay. She also wants (12) ____________________ gender-based violence. Ms Jakobsdottir said this was a "priority" for her government to tackle.

Comprehension questions

  1. Who joined women in Iceland in a strike?
  2. What is the name of the strike?
  3. What did Iceland's leader say was not being tackled?
  4. What did Iceland's leader say was unacceptable in 2023?
  5. What did women want to demonstrate their importance to?
  6. How many times have women in Iceland now gone on strike?
  7. When did the previous women's strike take place?
  8. What did Iceland do in 1980?
  9. For how many years in a row has Iceland had the smallest gender gap?
  10. What is a "priority" for Iceland's government to tackle?

Multiple choice quiz

1) Who joined women in Iceland in a strike?
a) men in Iceland
b) women across Iceland
c) children in Iceland
d) women across the world
2) What is the name of the strike?
a) Equality For All
b) Women On Strike
c) Equality For Women
d) the Women's Day Off
3) What did Iceland's leader say was not being reached?
a) full gender equality
b) climate change
c) inflation
d) crime
4) What did Iceland's leader say was unacceptable in 2023?
a) the level of wages
b) the level of unemployment
c) the gender-based wage gap
d) climate change
5) What did women want to demonstrate their importance to?
a) family life
b) society
c) men
d) each other

6) How many times have women in Iceland now gone on strike?
a) five
b) six
c) seven
d) eight
7) When did the previous women's strike take place?
a) 1976
b) 1973
c) 1974
d) 1975
8) What did Iceland do in 1980?
a) elect a woman as head of state
b) become independent
c) hold the Olympics
d) strike
9) For how many years in a row has Iceland had the smallest gender gap?
a) 14 years
b) 15 years
c) 16 years
d) 17 years
10) What is a "priority" for Iceland's government to tackle?
a) climate change
b) reduce gender-based violence
c) unemployment
d) crime

Role play

Role  A – Cook
You think cooking is the top thing that women can do better than men. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why men might be better at their things. Also, tell the others which of these women aren't so good at (and why): listening, winning arguments or driving.

Role  B – Listening
You think listening is the top thing that women can do better than men. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why men might be better at their things. Also, tell the others which of these women aren't so good at (and why): cooking, winning arguments or driving.

Role  C – Winning Arguments
You think winning arguments is the top thing that women can do better than men. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why men might be better at their things. Also, tell the others which of these women aren't so good at (and why): listening, cooking or driving.

Role  D – Drive
You think driving is the top thing that women can do better than men. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why men might be better at their things. Also, tell the others which of these women aren't so good at (and why): listening, winning arguments or cooking.

After reading / listening

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

'women'

  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________

    • and 'strike'.

  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________

    • • 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:

    • joined
    • greater
    • reached
    • still
    • all
    • whole
    • seventh
    • such
    • following
    • head
    • 14
    • reduction

    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 - Women's Day Off

    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 'woman'?
    3. How equal are men and women in your country?
    4. Why do men get paid more than women?
    5. What do you think of the prime minister going on strike?
    6. How can we achieve equality for women?
    7. What do you think of the 'Women's Day Off'?
    8. In what ways is there inequality between men and women?
    9. Would you ever go on strike?
    10. What is the contribution of women in your society?

    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 'strike'?
    3. What do you think about what you read?
    4. Who should do the housework?
    5. Are male or female leaders better?
    6. What great female presidents or prime ministers do you know of?
    7. How can we reduce gender-based violence?
    8. What do you think is your country's biggest priority?
    9. What do you know about Iceland?
    10. What questions would you like to ask the striking women?

    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)

    Women (1) ____ Iceland joined their prime minister in going on strike on Tuesday. The action was part of a campaign for (2) ____ gender equality in the country. Prime minister Katrin Jakobsdottir told reporters why she took (3) ____ in the "Women's Day Off". She said: "As you know, we have not yet reached our goals of full gender equality and we are still (4) ____ the gender-based wage gap, which is unacceptable in 2023." A spokeswoman for the day off said: "On 24 October, all women in Iceland were encouraged (5) ____ stop work, both paid and unpaid. For the whole day, women (and non-binary people) went on strike, to demonstrate the importance of their contribution (6) ____ society."

    Yesterday was the seventh time that women in Iceland have (7) ____ on strike. It was the first such action in nearly 50 years. The last strike was in 1975, when 90 per cent of women did not go to work and did not do housework. The (8) ____ year, Iceland passed an equal pay law. In 1980, Iceland became the first country in the world to (9) ____ a woman as head of state. According to the World Economic Forum, Iceland has had the smallest gender gap of (10) ____ country for 14 years in a row. Despite this, Ms Jakobsdottir, said there is still a long way to (11) ____. She wants women's pay to be equal to men's pay. She also wants a reduction in gender-based violence. Ms Jakobsdottir said this was a "(12) ____" for her government to tackle.

    Which of these words go in the above text?

    1. (a)     cross     (b)     across     (c)     crossed     (d)     crossing    
    2. (a)     greats     (b)     greatly     (c)     great     (d)     greater    
    3. (a)     bit     (b)     part     (c)     some     (d)     whole    
    4. (a)     throwing     (b)     heading     (c)     tackling     (d)     kicking    
    5. (a)     to     (b)     by     (c)     of     (d)     so    
    6. (a)     to     (b)     of     (c)     by     (d)     at    
    7. (a)     done     (b)     went     (c)     going     (d)     gone    
    8. (a)     following     (b)     follows     (c)     followed     (d)     follow    
    9. (a)     eject     (b)     elect     (c)     erect     (d)     edict    
    10. (a)     many     (b)     some     (c)     any     (d)     more    
    11. (a)     work     (b)     let     (c)     go     (d)     do    
    12. (a)     prior     (b)     priority     (c)     prioritize     (d)     priorities

    Spelling

    Paragraph 1

    1. The action was part of a ampaicgn
    2. our goals of full gender uelaqity
    3. which is aucetpnaclbe in 2023
    4. ncuearoged to stop work
    5. went on strike to smodertnate the importance
    6. their contribution to cseioty

    Paragraph 2

    1. did not do uesowhrok
    2. the ollfwiong year
    3. elect a woman as head of state
    4. a reduction in gender-based ilvneoce
    5. Jakobsdottir said this was a rroiipty
    6. for her government to acktle

    Put the text back together

    (..1 ..) Women across Iceland joined their prime minister in going on strike on Tuesday. The action was part of a campaign
    (...)   had the smallest gender gap of any country for 14 years in a row. Despite this, Ms Jakobsdottir, said there is still a long
    (...)   for the day off said: "On 24 October, all women in Iceland were encouraged to stop
    (...)   housework. The following year, Iceland passed an equal pay law. In 1980, Iceland became the first
    (...)   part in the "Women's Day Off". She said: "As you know, we have not yet reached our goals of full gender
    (...)   country in Europe to elect a woman as head of state. According to the World Economic Forum, Iceland has
    (...)   50 years. The last strike was in 1975, when 90 per cent of women did not go to work and did not do
    (...)   on strike, to demonstrate the importance of their contribution to society."
    (...)   violence. Ms Jakobsdottir said this was a "priority" for her government to tackle.
    (...)   Yesterday was the seventh time that women in Iceland have gone on strike. It was the first such action in nearly
    (...)   way to go. She wants women's pay to be equal to men's pay. She also wants a reduction in gender-based
    (...)   for greater gender equality in the country. Prime minister Katrin Jakobsdottir told reporters why she took
    (...)   equality and we are still tackling the gender-based wage gap, which is unacceptable in 2023." A spokeswoman
    (...)   work, both paid and unpaid. For the whole day, women (and non-binary people) went

    Put the words in the right order

    1. equality   .   gender   greater   campaign   Part   for   of   a
    2. We   yet   goals   .   not   reached   have   our
    3. are   gap   .   the   still   wage   tackling   We   gender-based
    4. were   in   work   .   to   encouraged   Iceland   Women   stop
    5. society   .   of   contribution   to   their   importance   the   Demonstrate
    6. The   action   nearly   such   years   .   first   in   50
    7. passed   After   that,   an   Iceland   pay   law   .   equal
    8. woman   Elect   of   a   head   as   state   .
    9. smallest   gender   of   The   any   gap   country   .
    10. for   A   her   priority   to   government   tackle   .

    Circle the correct word (20 pairs)

    Women across Iceland joined / joint their prime minister in going in / on strike on Tuesday. The action was part off / of a campaign for greater gender equality in the country. Prime minister Katrin Jakobsdottir told reporters why she took part in / on the "Women's Day Off". She said: "As you know, we have not yet reached / reaching our goals of full gender equality / equal and we are still tackling the gender-based wage gap, which is acceptable / unacceptable in 2023." A spokeswoman for the day off said: "On 24 October, all women in Iceland were encouraged to stopping / stop work, both paid and unpaid. For the whole / while day, women (and non-binary people) went on strike, to demonstrate the important / importance of their contribution to society."

    Yesterday was the seventh time that women in Iceland have going / gone on strike. It was the first much / such action in nearly 50 years. The last / lastly strike was in 1975, when 90 per cent of women did not go to work and did not do homework / housework. The following year, Iceland passed an equal pay / paid law. In 1980, Iceland became the first country in Europe to eject / elect a woman as head of state. According to the World Economic Forum, Iceland has had the small / smallest gender gap of any country for 14 years in a row. Despite / Spite this, Ms Jakobsdottir, said there is still a long way to go. She wants women's pay to be equal to men's pay. She also wants a reduction / reduce in gender-based violence. Ms Jakobsdottir said this was a "priority" for her government to tickle / tackle.

    Talk about the connection between each pair of words in italics, and why the correct word is correct. Look up the definition of new words.

    Insert the vowels (a, e, i, o, u)

    W_m_n  _cr_ss  _c_l_nd  j__n_d  th__r  pr_m_  m_n_st_r  _n  g__ng  _n  str_k_  _n  T__sd_y.  Th_  _ct__n  w_s  p_rt  _f  _  c_mp__gn  f_r  gr__t_r  g_nd_r  _q__l_ty  _n  th_  c__ntry.  Pr_m_  m_n_st_r  K_tr_n  J_k_bsd_tt_r  t_ld  r_p_rt_rs  why  sh_  t__k  p_rt  _n  th_  "W_m_n's  D_y  _ff".  Sh_  s__d:  "_s  y__  kn_w,  w_  h_v_  n_t  y_t  r__ch_d  __r  g__ls  _f  f_ll  g_nd_r  _q__l_ty  _nd  w_  _r_  st_ll  t_ckl_ng  th_  g_nd_r-b_s_d  w_g_  g_p,  wh_ch  _s  _n_cc_pt_bl_  _n  2023."  _  sp_k_sw_m_n  f_r  th_  d_y  _ff  s__d:  "_n  24  _ct_b_r,  _ll  w_m_n  _n  _c_l_nd  w_r_  _nc__r_g_d  t_  st_p  w_rk,  b_th  p__d  _nd  _np__d.  F_r  th_  wh_l_  d_y,  w_m_n  (_nd  n_n-b_n_ry  p__pl_)  w_nt  _n  str_k_,  t_  d_m_nstr_t_  th_  _mp_rt_nc_  _f  th__r  c_ntr_b_t__n  t_  s_c__ty."

    Y_st_rd_y  w_s  th_  s_v_nth  t_m_  th_t  w_m_n  _n  _c_l_nd  h_v_  g_n_  _n  str_k_.  _t  w_s  th_  f_rst  s_ch  _ct__n  _n  n__rly  50  y__rs.  Th_  l_st  str_k_  w_s  _n  1975,  wh_n  90  p_r  c_nt  _f  w_m_n  d_d  n_t  g_  t_  w_rk  _nd  d_d  n_t  d_  h__s_w_rk.  Th_  f_ll_w_ng  y__r,  _c_l_nd  p_ss_d  _n  _q__l  p_y  l_w.  _n  1980,  _c_l_nd  b_c_m_  th_  f_rst  c__ntry  _n  __r_p_ t_  _l_ct  _  w_m_n  _s  h__d  _f  st_t_.  _cc_rd_ng  t_  th_  W_rld  _c_n_m_c  F_r_m,  _c_l_nd  h_s  h_d  th_  sm_ll_st  g_nd_r  g_p  _f  _ny  c__ntry  f_r  14  y__rs  _n  _  r_w.  D_sp_t_  th_s,  Ms  J_k_bsd_tt_r,  s__d  th_r_  _s  st_ll  _  l_ng  w_y  t_  g_.  Sh_  w_nts  w_m_n's  p_y  t_  b_  _q__l  t_  m_n's  p_y.  Sh_  _ls_  w_nts  _  r_d_ct__n  _n  g_nd_r-b_s_d  v__l_nc_.  Ms  J_k_bsd_tt_r  s__d  th_s  w_s  _  "pr__r_ty"  f_r  h_r  g_v_rnm_nt  t_  t_ckl_.

    Punctuate the text and add capitals

    women across iceland joined their prime minister in going on strike on tuesday the action was part of a campaign for greater gender equality in the country prime minister katrin jakobsdottir told reporters why she took part in the womens day off she said as you know we have not yet reached our goals of full gender equality and we are still tackling the genderbased wage gap which is unacceptable in 2023 a spokeswoman for the day off said on 24 october all women in iceland were encouraged to stop work both paid and unpaid for the whole day women and nonbinary people went on strike to demonstrate the importance of their contribution to society

    yesterday was the seventh time that women in iceland have gone on strike it was the first such action in nearly 50 years the last strike was in 1975 when 90 per cent of women did not go to work and did not do housework the following year iceland passed an equal pay law in 1980 iceland became the first country in Europe to elect a woman as head of state according to the world economic forum iceland has had the smallest gender gap of any country for 14 years in a row despite this ms jakobsdottir said there is still a long way to go she wants womens pay to be equal to mens pay she also wants a reduction in genderbased violence ms jakobsdottir said this was a priority for her government to tackle

    Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

    WomenacrossIcelandjoinedtheirprimeministeringoingonstrikeonTu
    esday.Theactionwaspartofacampaignforgreatergenderequalityinth
    ecountry.PrimeministerKatrinJakobsdottirtoldreporterswhyshetook
    partinthe"Women'sDayOff".Shesaid:"Asyouknow,wehavenotyetre
    achedourgoalsoffullgenderequalityandwearestilltacklingthegender-
    basedwagegap,whichisunacceptablein2023."Aspokeswomanforthe
    dayoffsaid:"On24October,allwomeninIcelandwereencouragedtosto
    pwork,bothpaidandunpaid.Forthewholeday,women(andnon-binar
    ypeople)wentonstrike,todemonstratetheimportanceoftheircontribu
    tiontosociety."YesterdaywastheseventhtimethatwomeninIcelandha
    vegoneonstrike.Itwasthefirstsuchactioninnearly50years.Thelaststri
    kewasin1975,when90percentofwomendidnotgotoworkanddidnotdo
    housework.Thefollowingyear,Icelandpassedanequalpaylaw.In1980
    ,IcelandbecamethefirstcountryinEuropetoelectawomanasheadofsta
    te.AccordingtotheWorldEconomicForum,Icelandhashadthesmallest
    gendergapofanycountryfor14yearsinarow.Despitethis,MsJakobsdot
    tir,saidthereisstillalongwaytogo.Shewantswomen'spaytobeequalto
    men'spay.Shealsowantsareductioningender-basedviolence.MsJa
    kobsdottirsaidthiswasa"priority"forhergovernmenttotackle.

    Free writing

    Write about women's day off for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

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    Academic writing

    A women's day off is a great idea. 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. GENDER EQUALITY: Make a poster about gender equality. Show your work to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all have similar things?
    4. WOMEN'S DAY OFF: Write a magazine article about every country having a women's day off. 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 gender equality. Ask him/her three questions about it. Give him/her three of your ideas on how we can move further towards gender equality. 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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