ABOUT YOU
Watch the video and then answer the questions. How important are friends to you? What makes a good friend, in your opinion?
Friends are extremely important to me because they support me when I have problems and make every day much more fun. In my opinion, a good friend is someone who is honest, loyal, and always ready to listen to you and keep your secrets.
VOCABULARY
1 Read the quiz. Choose the five sentences that are most true for you.
1 I love hanging out with a big group of friends. 2 If my friends have a problem, then I’ll listen. 3 I’d do anything to help my best friends. 4 My friends trust me with their secrets. 5 I love laughing, especially when I feel silly!
2 Read the descriptions on the right. Do you agree with what the quiz says about you?
Yes, I agree with what the quiz says. My answers were mostly orange, describing me as a “Brilliant best friend”. It fits my personality well because I try to be thoughtful, reliable, and supportive to everyone around me.
3 Match the words in Exercises 1 and 2 to the meanings.
1 annoying (making you feel angry) 2 reliable (someone you can trust and/or believe) 3 sensible (behaving in a careful way that shows good judgement) 4 sociable (enjoying being with people) 5 anxious (worried and nervous) 6 easygoing (relaxed and calm) 7 silly (behaving in a way that is funny and not serious) 8 talented (having a natural ability to do something) 9 loyal (always supporting and liking someone) 10 thoughtful (thinking about how you can help other people) 11 jealous (wanting something that someone else has) 12 sensitive (being easily upset by things other people say or do to you)
4 Listen to Sophie and Ben talking about the quiz. Which of the adjectives from Exercises 1 and 2 would you use to describe them? How would you describe yourself with these adjectives?
Based on the conversation:
- Ben can be described as thoughtful, reliable, and sensible because he listens carefully to his friends and always keeps their secrets.
- Sophie can be described as sociable, easygoing, reliable, and honest because she loves hanging out with large groups of people, has lots of friends, and always does what she promises.
I would describe myself as sociable and loyal because I enjoy spending time with people and I always stand by my friends, though I can also be a bit sensitive sometimes.
READING
1 Make a list of the differences between your online friends and your real friends.
Online friends:
- You usually talk to them through texts, messages and social media.
- They are available at any time, even late at night.
- You can easily connect with them over specific shared hobbies, but you might never meet them in person.
Real friends:
- You spend time together in the same physical space and do activities together.
- You can hug them, give them high fives and see their facial expressions.
- Resolving disagreements takes more responsibility because you cannot simply block or unfriend them.
2 Read the article quickly. Were any of your ideas mentioned?
Yes, several ideas were mentioned in the article, such as online friends being available 24/7 to send messages of support, the possibility of finding people with the exact same hobbies online, and the fact that you can share physical contact like hugs and high fives only with real face-to-face friends.
3 Read the article again. Answer the questions.
1 An online friend can support you by sending a text, a message or just leaving a ‘like’ when you feel anxious late at night. 2 Online friends help your memory because you process lots of information every day and make mental notes about their posts and photos to ask them about later. 3 When you hug a friend, your body produces a chemical called oxytocin that makes you feel good, trusted and loved. 4 When you talk to people face-to-face, you naturally copy their words and gestures, and you smile when they smile. 5 According to the article, both online and real friends are equally great for you because they support us in different and important ways.
4 Match the highlighted words in the article to the meanings.
1 friend — pal 2 movements of your hands, arm or head to show a feeling — gestures 3 remove someone from your social media account — unfriend 4 putting your arms around someone because you like them — hugging 5 getting more information about something — finding out
TALKING POINTS
Do you think you will have the same online friends in five years’ time? Why? / Why not? What about your real friends? What are the disadvantages of having online friends?
I might lose touch with some online friends in five years because people change their interests and social media platforms over time. However, I expect to keep most of my real friends because our connection is built on shared real-life memories and school experiences. The main disadvantages of having online friends are that you cannot spend time together in person, you cannot get physical support like a hug when you feel down, and it is difficult to know if someone online is truly being honest about who they are.
GRAMMAR
1 Match the examples to the rules.
1 a (He enjoys finding out about friendship in the 21st century. — After some verbs such as enjoy and hate, we use the -ing form.) 2 c (Hugging is good for us. — We can use the -ing form as the subject of a sentence.) 3 b (Are you good at keeping in touch with your friends? — Some adjectives are followed by a preposition and then by the -ing form.)
2 Complete the sentences with the -ing form of the verbs in the box.
1 I don’t mind going to the cinema with my parents and their friends. 2 Learning English is easy, especially when I’m with my friends. 3 The girls enjoyed preparing a presentation together for their English class. 4 David can’t stand working in groups in class, as he always disagrees with the other people. 5 Pablo is interested in reading more articles about friendship in the 21st century. 6 Visiting museums is part of our history class.
3 Match the sentence halves.
1 b (Jo is afraid of disappointing her friends.) 2 e (Mike is good at listening to other people’s problems.) 3 c (Jackie is keen on going to football matches with friends.) 4 a (Nina is crazy about playing online games with her friends.) 5 d (Phil is interested in making music in the school band.)
4 Correct the mistakes in the sentences.
1 I really like seeing my friends after school. 2 Mike loves going shopping with his parents. 3 Susan really enjoyed visiting the museum. 4 Playing a musical instrument is fun. 5 Our teacher is good at teaching us English. 6 Are those boys afraid of watching horror films? 7 My parents are interested in visiting Slovakia.
5 Complete the sentences so they are true for you. Compare your sentences with your classmates. Find someone who has similar ideas.
1 I’m good at playing basketball with my friends. 2 I’m afraid of losing touch with my best friends. 3 I really like hanging out in the park at weekends. 4 Watching football is really exciting for me. 5 I’m keen on learning foreign languages. 6 I’m crazy about listening to modern music. 7 I’m tired of doing too much homework late at night. 8 I’m interested in taking professional photos with my camera. 9 I really enjoy riding my bike around the city in summer. 10 Washing the dishes is boring for me.
VOCABULARY
1 Read the examples. How do un- and dis- change the meaning of the words? Which prefix do we often add to verbs?
The prefixes un- and dis- change the meaning of words to make them negative or opposite. We often add the prefix dis- to verbs.
2 Write the correct negative form of the words. Use un- or dis-.
1 unpleasant 2 dislike 3 unkind 4 disappear 5 unlucky 6 unreliable 7 unhappy
3 Complete the text with the words in the box. Add a negative prefix to the words if necessary.
Many people have an opinion about online friendships, especially parents. It can be really boring and 1 uninteresting to talk about it. They always say the same thing! Last year, Mum had an 2 unpleasant surprise – an old classmate contacted her and started posting old photos of her online. My sister and I thought it was funny, but Mum didn’t! Fortunately, Mum just closed her page and the classmate 3 disappeared. Another friend told me about someone who was writing 4 unkind things about her on her wall. That’s not nice! I’m very 5 lucky because nothing like that has happened to me. But I 6 agree when people say you have to be careful about the online world.
LISTENING
1 Have you ever written a quiz? Who was it for? What did you ask?
Yes, I wrote a quiz last year for my classmates during an English lesson. It was a personality quiz, and I asked questions about their hobbies, favourite music, and how they react in different funny situations.
2 Read the notes. What are they about? What kind of information is missing in each space?
The notes are about instructions and rules for a school project on writing a quiz.
The missing information in each space is:
- (1) the title or name of the quiz (a noun phrase);
- (2) a plural noun / topic (such as facts or details about a person);
- (3) a singular countable noun (a situation or context);
- (4) an adjective describing a personality trait;
- (5) an ordinal number or date (a day in July);
- (6) a surname or username for an email address.
3 Listen and complete the notes in Exercise 2. For each question, write the correct answer in the gap. Write one or two words or a number or a date or a time.
The name of the quiz is ‘(1) Understanding others’. The quiz should not just include questions about (2) facts, such as people’s interests. Write ten questions using a different (3) situation each time. Write options for people to select, which show whether a person is (4) sociable or shy, for example. Give the finished quiz to the teacher by (5) 17th July. Email the teacher at (6) vickers@ourschool.ukr with any questions.
SPEAKING
1 Listen to an interview with Ahmed and Sandrine. Tick (✓) the questions that they answer. Do they just answer yes or no, or do they add more information?
| No. | Question | Ahmed (A) | Sandrine (S) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | What’s your name? | ✓ | ✓ |
| 2 | How old are you? | ||
| 3 | What’s your surname? | ✓ | ✓ |
| 4 | Who do you sit next to in English? | ||
| 5 | Where do you live? | ✓ | ✓ |
| 6 | Do you study English? | ✓ | ✓ |
| 7 | Do you like studying English? | ✓ | |
| 8 | Do you listen to music? | ✓ | |
| 9 | What’s your favourite kind of music? | ||
| 10 | Do you get up early or late? | ✓ | |
| 11 | How often do you go to the cinema? | ✓ |
Ahmed and Sandrine do not just answer yes or no; they add more information to their answers by giving reasons, details, and examples.
2 Read the Prepare to speak box, then listen again. Which phrases do Ahmed and Sandrine use?
Ahmed and Sandrine use all the phrases from the Prepare to speak box:
- Ahmed uses: I don’t like it because …, I prefer …, and I think it’s ….
- Sandrine uses: I like it because …, I think it’s …, I usually …, and I sometimes ….
3 Ask and answer the questions with a partner. Use phrases from the Prepare to speak box to add more information.
1 What’s your surname? My surname is Melnyk, and I share it with my whole family.
2 Where are you from? I am from Kyiv, the capital city of Ukraine, and I live near the city centre.
3 What’s your house like? My flat is quite modern and cosy, and I like it because it has large windows and a lot of natural light.
4 Do you play sports? Why? / Why not? I play basketball twice a week because I think it’s exciting and it helps me stay active, but I prefer cycling at the weekends.
5 What time do you go to bed? I usually go to bed at around 10:30 pm on weekdays, but I sometimes stay up later at weekends to watch films.
6 Do you enjoy reading books? Why? / Why not? I really enjoy reading fantasy novels because I think they are fascinating, although I sometimes prefer reading science magazines.
CULTURE
1 Read the texts on the opposite page. Which place would you most like to visit? Where should people go in London if they …
I would most like to visit Camden because I find vintage and alternative fashion fascinating, and I really enjoy walking around open-air markets with friends.
1 would like to go shopping for toys? People should go to Hamleys on Regent Street (near Carnaby Street).
2 are looking for second-hand clothes? People should go to Camden.
3 plan to shop and then see a film? People should go to Westfield in White City.
2 Are the sentences true or false? Correct the false sentences.
1 False. Most Oxford Street shops are typical high street brands, and the prices are quite good. 2 True. 3 True. 4 False. Carnaby Street is a pedestrian area, so there are no cars or traffic. 5 True. 6 False. Westfield is simply the size of 30 football pitches; it does not actually have football fields inside.
3 Match the highlighted words in the text to the meanings.
1 trendy 2 pedestrian 3 awful 4 huge 5 stalls
4 Listen to a report on teenagers’ shopping habits in the UK. Number the questions in the order you hear them.
5 Have you bought anything online in the last three months? 6 Where do you usually get the money from when you go shopping? 1 How often do you go shopping? 3 Do you count shopping as one of your hobbies? 4 Do you shop more in-store or online? 2 What do you buy when you go shopping?
5 Listen again and match the pie charts to five of the questions (1–6) in Exercise 4.
- Chart A: Question 3 (Do you count shopping as one of your hobbies?)
- Chart B: Question 5 (Have you bought anything online in the last three months?)
- Chart C: Question 1 (How often do you go shopping?)
- Chart D: Question 2 (What do you buy when you go shopping?)
- Chart E: Question 4 (Do you shop more in-store or online?)
6 Read the Useful language phrases. Complete them with the words in the box.
1 I’m doing a survey about shopping … 2 Can I ask you a few questions? 3 The first / next / last question is … 4 Can you give me an example? 5 An amazing 80% said yes! 6 This really surprised me.