The Reading / Listening - No Smoking - Level 0

France has banned smoking in public. France's health minister said public places are for children "to play, learn, and breathe; not for smoking". The ban will protect children from passive smoking. This is breathing in the "second-hand" smoke from smokers. France wants a tobacco-free generation by 2032.

Smoking is falling in France. However, passive smoking still kills many people. Most French people support a smoking ban in restaurants. Smoking can damage nearly every organ of the body. The smoke harms children's bodies. When children breathe in second-hand smoke, they can have breathing problems.

Try the same news story at these levels:

    No Smoking - Level 1 No Smoking - Level 2   or  No Smoking - Level 3

Sources
  • https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jun/29/france-implements-smoking-ban-at-beaches-and-parks-in-step-towards-tobacco-free-generation
  • https://www.euronews.com/health/2025/06/28/france-to-ban-smoking-in-schools-parks-beaches-to-protect-children
  • https://www.npr.org/2025/06/30/nx-s1-5450376/france-bans-smoking-parks-beaches-pools-children


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. France has banned smoking
  2. France's health
  3. public
  4. for children
  5. not
  6. The ban will
  7. passive
  8. breathing in the second-
  1. for smoking
  2. places
  3. smoking
  4. in public
  5. hand smoke
  6. minister
  7. protect children
  8. to play

Paragraph 2

  1. Smoking is
  2. smoking still
  3. Most French
  4. support a
  5. nearly every organ
  6. The smoke harms
  7. When children
  8. breathing
  1. people
  2. of the body
  3. breathe
  4. falling in France
  5. problems
  6. kills many people
  7. children's bodies
  8. smoking ban

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

France has banned (1) _________________________________________________. France's health minister (2) _________________________________________________ are for children "to play, (3) _________________________________________________; not for smoking". The ban (4) _________________________________________________ from passive smoking. This is breathing in the (5) _________________________________________________ from smokers. France wants a tobacco-(6) _________________________________________________ 2032.

Smoking (7) _________________________________________________ France. However, passive smoking (8) _________________________________________________ people. Most French people (9) _________________________________________________ ban in restaurants. Smoking can damage nearly (10) _________________________________________________ the body. The smoke harms children's bodies. (11) _________________________________________________ in second-hand smoke, they can (12) _________________________________________________.

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

Francehasbannedsmokinginpublic.France'shealthministersaidpubli
cplacesareforchildren"toplay,learn,andbreathe;notforsmoking".Th
ebanwillprotectchildrenfrompassivesmoking.Thisisbreathinginthe"
second-hand"smokefromsmokers.Francewantsatobacco-freegener
ationby2032.SmokingisfallinginFrance.However,passivesmokingsti
llkillsmanypeople.MostFrenchpeoplesupportasmokingbaninrestaur
ants.Smokingcandamagenearlyeveryorganofthebody.Thesmokeha
rmschildren'sbodies.Whenchildrenbreatheinsecond-handsmoke,th
eycanhavebreathingproblems.

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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