Inside Out - eLessons Archive

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eLessons Archive
Welcome to the Inside Out warehouse. The latest free English worksheets, teacher's notes and glossaries are available to download.

2nd June - A new government
(British & American English)
The first of this week’s lessons is about the recent British general election, which provoked renewed debates about the merits of the electoral system and eventually resulted in something very unusual in British political history: a coalition government.

Level
Upper-intermediate and above (equivalent to CEF level B2 and above)

British English eLesson Student's Worksheet: PDF DOC	American English eLesson Student's Worksheet: PDF DOC
Teacher's Worksheet: PDF DOC	Teacher's Worksheet: PDF DOC

Glossary:
PDF
DOC

Related Websites (British English)
Send your students to these websites, or just take a look yourself.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/election_2010/default.stm
Comprehensive coverage of the British general election from the BBC. Challenging for upper intermediate level.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/general-election-2010
The Guardian’s election coverage. Challenging for upper intermediate level.

http://ukelection.blogs.cnn.com/
For a slightly different perspective, a CNN blog (videos and text) provides a view of the British election from the United States. Challenging for upper intermediate level.

Related Websites (American English)
Send your students to these websites, or just take a look yourself.

http://ukelection.blogs.cnn.com/
A CNN blog (videos and text) about the British election and the new government’s first days. Accessible to upper intermediate level.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/04/30/
AR2010043002093.html
A Washington Post opinion piece (April 30, 2010), which asks several well-known US political figures their thoughts on including a third political party in US/UK elections. Challenging for upper intermediate level.

http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/hendrikhertzberg/2010/05/
all-worked-up-about-pr.html
An article in The New Yorker (May 6, 2010) discussing proportional representation. Challenging for upper intermediate level.

Glossary based on the Macmillan English Dictionary and the Macmillan Essential Dictionary

2nd June - Unnecessary cruelty
(British & American English)
The subject of this week’s second lesson is about animal testing, which is a controversial subject in some countries..

Level
Pre-intermediate and above (equivalent to CEF level A2-B1 and above)

British English eLesson Student's Worksheet: PDF DOC	American English eLesson Student's Worksheet: PDF DOC
Teacher's Worksheet: PDF DOC	Teacher's Worksheet: PDF DOC

Glossary:
PDF
DOC

Glossary
PDF
DOC

Related Websites (British English)
Send your students to these websites, or just take a look yourself.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/newsid_3420000/newsid_3429900/3429993.stm
Resources for a classroom debate on animal testing from BBC Newsround (2006), with arguments in favour and against. Accessible to pre-intermediate level.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/ethics/animals/index.shtml
A section of the BBC website on ‘animal ethics’, including a sub-section on animal experimentation. Intermediate level and above.

http://www.aboutanimaltesting.co.uk/
The website ‘About Animal Testing’, which seeks to present ‘all sides of the debate’. Intermediate level and above.

http://www.speakcampaigns.org/
The website of SPEAK, a British organization involved in protesting against animal testing at a laboratory belonging to Oxford University. Intermediate level and above.

http://www.pro-test.org.uk/
The website of Pro-Test, an organization set up to counter the activities of SPEAK in Oxford. Intermediate level and above.

Related Websites (American English)
Send your students to these websites, or just take a look yourself.

http://socialissues.wiseto.com/Topics/AnimalExperimentation
Three different viewpoints on the issue of animal experimentation are offered here, along with linked news stories and statistics. Challenging for pre-intermediate level.

http://www.amprogress.org/animal-research
The “Americans for Medical Progress” website, giving the reasons in favor of supporting animal experimentation, including a timeline of medical breakthroughs showing which animals were involved in testing. Accessible to pre-intermediate level.

http://www.peta.org/about/faq.asp
The “People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals” (PETA) animal-rights organization website, with links to videos (“TV”) and news stories about animal testing. Accessible to pre-intermediate level.

16th June - World Cup
(British & American English)
The first of this week’s lessons is about the football World Cup in South Africa, which begins on 11th June.

Level
Pre-intermediate and above (equivalent to CEF level A2-B1 and above)

British English eLesson Student's Worksheet: PDF DOC	American English eLesson Student's Worksheet: PDF DOC
Teacher's Worksheet: PDF DOC	Teacher's Worksheet: PDF DOC

Glossary:
PDF
DOC

Related Websites (British English)
Send your students to these websites, or just take a look yourself.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/specials/world_cup_2010/default.stm
The World Cup section of the BBC Newsround website, with much of the content focusing on the England team. Accessible to pre-intermediate level.

http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/
The official website of the 2010 World Cup. Intermediate level and above.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/world_cup_2010/default.stm
The World Cup section of the BBC website. Intermediate level and above.

Related Websites (American English)
Send your students to these websites, or just take a look yourself.

http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/
The official website of the 2010 World Cup. Shows games (“matches”), groups, teams, pictures, videos, news, and more. Accessible to pre-intermediate level.

http://www.worldcupblog.org/
An excellent source of World Cup news by country and other resources, including a video of the official World Cup song by Shakira and a beginner’s guide to the World Cup. Challenging for pre-intermediate level.

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/world-cup/story/_/id/4713726/ce/us/united-states-draws
-england-first-game&cc=5739?ver=global
ESPN sports news video and related article about the US soccer team’s reaction to their group in the World Cup draw, plus background information on the US team in previous World Cups. Accessible to pre-intermediate level.

16th June - Not bad for 13 (Everest teenager)
(British & American English)
The second of this week’s lessons is about the recent successful ascent of the world’s highest mountain, Mount Everest, by a 13-year-old American, Jordan Romero.

Level
Intermediate and above (equivalent to CEF level B1 and above)

British English eLesson Student's Worksheet: PDF DOC	American English eLesson Student's Worksheet: PDF DOC
Teacher's Worksheet: PDF DOC	Teacher's Worksheet: PDF DOC

Glossary:
PDF
DOC

Glossary
PDF
DOC

Related Websites (British English)
Send your students to these websites, or just take a look yourself.

http://articles.sfgate.com/2010-05-21/world/20909593_1_base-camp-climbers-mount-everest
A San Francisco Chronicle article from a couple of days after Jordan Romero reached the summit of Mount Everest. Intermediate level and above.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/8615400.stm
A BBC article about Jordan written shortly before he began his ascent, including a short video interview with him and an audio interview with his mother. Intermediate level and above.

http://www.jordanromero.com/
Jordan’s blog. Intermediate level and above.

Related Websites (American English)
Send your students to these websites, or just take a look yourself.

http://www.jordanromero.com/weblog/
Jordan’s blog, including video clips and a CNN interview. Intermediate level and above.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/china/China-bans-children-climbing-Mt-Everest/articleshow/6032359.cms
A Times of India news article about China’s new age restrictions on Everest climbers, introduced in reaction to Jordan’s ascent. Intermediate level and above.

30th June - Michael Jackson
(British & American English)
The first of this week’s lessons is about one of the most influential performers in the history of pop music, who died almost a year ago on 25th June 2009: Michael Jackson.

Level
Intermediate and above (equivalent to CEF level B1 and above)

British English eLesson Student's Worksheet: PDF DOC	American English eLesson Student's Worksheet: PDF DOC
Teacher's Worksheet: PDF DOC	Teacher's Worksheet: PDF DOC

Glossary:
PDF
DOC

Related Websites (British English)
Send your students to these websites, or just take a look yourself.

http://www.mjfanclub.net/home/index.php?option=com_content&view=frontpage&It emid=1
A Michael Jackson fan site, including (in ‘Music’) the lyrics to many of his songs. Intermediate level and above.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/4612963.stm
Jackson’s obituary (June 2009) on the BBC website. Challenging for intermediate level.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-jackson-memorial8- 2009jul08,0,199118.story
Jackson’s obituary (June 2009) in the Los Angeles Times. Upper-intermediate level and above.

Related Websites (American English)
Send your students to these websites, or just take a look yourself.

http://www.michaeljackson.com
“The official Michael Jackson site,” including videos and (under “Music”: “Lyrics”) the words to many of his songs. Accessible to intermediate level.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-jackson-memorial8-2009jul08,0,199118.story
Michael’s obituary (June 2009) in the Los Angeles Times. Challenging for intermediate level.

http://www.nydailynews.com/real_estate/galleries/michael_jackon_/michael_jackon_.html
Forty-two pictures of Neverland Ranch. Accessible to all levels.

30th June - The United States
(British & American English)
The second of this week’s lessons is about the United States, which famously celebrates its national independence on 4th July.

Level
Pre-intermediate and above (equivalent to CEF level A2-B1 and above)

British English eLesson Student's Worksheet: PDF DOC	American English eLesson Student's Worksheet: PDF DOC
Teacher's Worksheet: PDF DOC	Teacher's Worksheet: PDF DOC

Glossary:
PDF
DOC

Glossary
PDF
DOC

Related Websites (British English)
Send your students to these websites, or just take a look yourself.

http://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_states
The United States entry in Simple English Wikipedia. Accessible to pre-intermediate level.

http://www.usa.gov/Topics/Independence_Day.shtml
From a US government website, a section on the 4th July Independence Day celebrations and related themes. Intermediate level and above.

http://eleaston.com/brit-eng.html#diff
From the E. L. Easton EFL website, a page with links to numerous sites on the subject of the differences between American and British English.

Related Websites (American English)
Send your students to these websites, or just take a look yourself.

http://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_states
The United States entry in Simple English Wikipedia. Accessible to pre-intermediate level.

http://www.usa.gov/Topics/Independence_Day.shtml
From a US government website, a section on Fourth of July celebrations and related themes. Intermediate level and above.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/
General information on US politics and government, biographies of important politicians such as Obama and Clinton, and coverage of current issues such as the military in Afghanistan. Challenging for pre-intermediate level.

http://www.nfl.com/superbowl/44
The official NFL (National Football League) web page about the February 2010 Super Bowl, with text, pictures, and videos. Accessible to all levels.