School Garden Wins Prize. By Amy Chen. Students at Oakfield School have won first prize in the city's Green Schools competition. Over two years, the students turned an old car park into a garden with vegetables, fruit trees and a pond. „We eat our own salad at lunch now," says Year 9 student Leon. The prize is 5,000 pounds. The school wants to use the money for a greenhouse.
1Find the information.
The headline is the title, the byline says who wrote it.
a)Headline:
b)Who wrote the article?
c)Which school won?
d)How much is the prize?
2True or false?
Compare with the text.
a)The garden was a car park before.
b)It took one year.
c)There is a pond.
d)The school wants to buy a bus.
3Who says it? Write the name.
Quote → the person in quotation marks. Other information → the author.
a)„We eat our own salad at lunch now."
b)The school wants a greenhouse.
4Write a headline for this news.
Short, present tense, no article at the beginning: School Starts Bike Club
a)A school in your town starts a bike repair club.
School Garden Wins Prize. By Amy Chen. Students at Oakfield School have won first prize in the city's Green Schools competition. Over two years, the students turned an old car park into a garden with vegetables, fruit trees and a pond. „We eat our own salad at lunch now," says Year 9 student Leon. The prize is 5,000 pounds. The school wants to use the money for a greenhouse.
1Find the information.
The headline is the title, the byline says who wrote it.
a)Headline:School Garden Wins Prize
b)Who wrote the article?Amy Chen
c)Which school won?Oakfield School
d)How much is the prize?5,000 pounds
2True or false?
Compare with the text.
a)The garden was a car park before.true
b)It took one year.false (two years)
c)There is a pond.true
d)The school wants to buy a bus.false (a greenhouse)
3Who says it? Write the name.
Quote → the person in quotation marks. Other information → the author.
a)„We eat our own salad at lunch now."Leon (Year 9 student)
b)The school wants a greenhouse.the author / the article
4Write a headline for this news.
Short, present tense, no article at the beginning: School Starts Bike Club
a)A school in your town starts a bike repair club.e.g. Local School Opens Bike Repair Club
Town Bans Cars from High Street — and Shops Say Thank You. By Sarah Lowe. Six months ago, the town council of Harrowby closed its high street to cars. Local businesses feared the worst. „We thought we would lose half our customers," says baker Tom Riley. Instead, footfall has risen by 22 per cent, according to council figures released on Monday. Cafés have put tables outside, and a weekly market now fills the street on Saturdays. Not everyone is happy, however. Residents of the nearby streets complain about parked cars, and taxi drivers say they have lost income. The council will review the scheme in March.
1Structure: Find the parts of the article.
Headline – byline – lead – body – outlook.
a)Write down the headline and the byline.
b)Which sentence is the lead (the summary of the whole story)?
c)Which paragraph gives the other side of the argument? Quote the signal word that introduces it.
2Answer the questions in full sentences.
Use your own words where possible.
a)What did the council do and when?
b)Why is Tom Riley quoted?
c)What has changed on the high street? Name two things.
d)Who is unhappy and why?
3Fact or opinion? Write F or O and give the words that show it.
4Write a comment (60 to 80 words): Should your town do the same?
In my opinion … / Firstly … / However … / To sum up …
a)Take a clear position and give two reasons from the article or your own experience.
Town Bans Cars from High Street — and Shops Say Thank You. By Sarah Lowe. Six months ago, the town council of Harrowby closed its high street to cars. Local businesses feared the worst. „We thought we would lose half our customers," says baker Tom Riley. Instead, footfall has risen by 22 per cent, according to council figures released on Monday. Cafés have put tables outside, and a weekly market now fills the street on Saturdays. Not everyone is happy, however. Residents of the nearby streets complain about parked cars, and taxi drivers say they have lost income. The council will review the scheme in March.
1Structure: Find the parts of the article.
Headline – byline – lead – body – outlook.
a)Write down the headline and the byline.(article)
b)Which sentence is the lead (the summary of the whole story)?Headline: Town Bans Cars from High Street — and Shops Say Thank You. Byline: By Sarah Lowe.
c)Which paragraph gives the other side of the argument? Quote the signal word that introduces it.Six months ago, the town council of Harrowby closed its high street to cars.
2Answer the questions in full sentences.
Use your own words where possible.
a)What did the council do and when?The council closed the high street to cars six months ago.
b)Why is Tom Riley quoted?He is a local business owner who feared losing customers — his quote shows how the mood has changed.
c)What has changed on the high street? Name two things.Cafés have tables outside; there is a weekly market on Saturdays; more people visit (footfall up 22 %).
d)Who is unhappy and why?Residents of nearby streets (parked cars) and taxi drivers (lost income).
3Fact or opinion? Write F or O and give the words that show it.
a)Footfall has risen by 22 per cent.F — number, „according to council figures"
b)„We thought we would lose half our customers."O — direct quote, „we thought"
c)Taxi drivers say they have lost income.O / claim — „say"
d)The council will review the scheme in March.F — announced plan
4Write a comment (60 to 80 words): Should your town do the same?
In my opinion … / Firstly … / However … / To sum up …
a)Take a clear position and give two reasons from the article or your own experience.Own text. Check: position in the first sentence, two reasons, one counter-argument with however, conclusion.
Four-Day School Week: Bold Reform or Risky Experiment? By Daniel Reyes. From September, students at Westbridge Academy will only attend school from Monday to Thursday. The head teacher, Dr Nkemelu, calls it „a chance to give young people back their time". Fridays will be for independent study at home, sports or work experience. Critics are not convinced. The parents' association warns that many families cannot supervise their children on Fridays, and the teachers' union fears that four longer days will exhaust the youngest students. A similar trial in a Scottish school was stopped after a year because test results fell. Dr Nkemelu points to studies from the US, where some districts report better attendance. „We will measure everything," she says, „and if it doesn't work, we will change it." Whether this is courage or gambling, Westbridge will know by next summer.
1Analyse the structure.
Look for says, warns, fears, points to — and for a sentence with no source.
a)What is the function of the question in the headline?
b)Name the four groups or sources the author quotes or mentions, and the position of each.
c)Which sentence is the author's own comment? How can you tell?
2Balanced or biased? Give two pieces of evidence for your answer.
A balanced article gives both sides similar space and does not end with a judgement.
a)Count the arguments for and against. Look at the order and at the last word.
3Language of journalism: Explain the effect.
Direct quotes make it vivid and let the source speak. Short sentences mark a turn. Contrast pairs sharpen a choice.
a)„give young people back their time" — why quote this rather than paraphrase it?
b)„Critics are not convinced." — What does this short sentence do in the text?
c)„courage or gambling" — what kind of stylistic device is this, and what does it do?
4Write a letter to the editor (100 to 120 words) reacting to the article.
Dear Editor, … I read your article on … with interest. While … , I believe … Yours sincerely, …
a)Refer to one argument from the text, add one of your own, take a clear position.
Four-Day School Week: Bold Reform or Risky Experiment? By Daniel Reyes. From September, students at Westbridge Academy will only attend school from Monday to Thursday. The head teacher, Dr Nkemelu, calls it „a chance to give young people back their time". Fridays will be for independent study at home, sports or work experience. Critics are not convinced. The parents' association warns that many families cannot supervise their children on Fridays, and the teachers' union fears that four longer days will exhaust the youngest students. A similar trial in a Scottish school was stopped after a year because test results fell. Dr Nkemelu points to studies from the US, where some districts report better attendance. „We will measure everything," she says, „and if it doesn't work, we will change it." Whether this is courage or gambling, Westbridge will know by next summer.
1Analyse the structure.
Look for says, warns, fears, points to — and for a sentence with no source.
a)What is the function of the question in the headline?(article)
b)Name the four groups or sources the author quotes or mentions, and the position of each.It presents the two possible views at once and makes the reader curious without deciding.
c)Which sentence is the author's own comment? How can you tell?Dr Nkemelu / head teacher (for), parents' association (against — supervision), teachers' union (against — exhaustion), Scottish trial (against — results fell), US studies (for — attendance).
2Balanced or biased? Give two pieces of evidence for your answer.
A balanced article gives both sides similar space and does not end with a judgement.
a)Count the arguments for and against. Look at the order and at the last word.Mostly balanced: two sources for, three against, both sides quoted; but the author has the last word and frames it as a risk — slightly critical.
3Language of journalism: Explain the effect.
Direct quotes make it vivid and let the source speak. Short sentences mark a turn. Contrast pairs sharpen a choice.
a)„give young people back their time" — why quote this rather than paraphrase it?The quote shows the head teacher's optimistic tone and makes her responsible for the claim.
b)„Critics are not convinced." — What does this short sentence do in the text?It marks the turn from the plan to the criticism and makes the reader stop.
c)„courage or gambling" — what kind of stylistic device is this, and what does it do?A contrast (antithesis): two extreme labels for the same thing make the reader take sides.
4Write a letter to the editor (100 to 120 words) reacting to the article.
Dear Editor, … I read your article on … with interest. While … , I believe … Yours sincerely, …
a)Refer to one argument from the text, add one of your own, take a clear position.Own text. Check: reference to the article, one argument from it, one own argument, clear position, formal ending.
The parts
Headline (short, present tense), byline (by …), lead (the whole story in one or two sentences), body (details, quotes, both sides), outlook (what happens next).
Fact or opinion?
Facts have numbers, dates and sources (according to). Opinions and claims come with says, thinks, fears, argues. A balanced article gives both sides similar space.
Signal words
however, but, critics say, not everyone … mark the turn to the other side. The last sentence often shows the author's own attitude.