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Business Spotlight

Business Spotlight is a series of self-contained lesson plans by Karen Richardson that you can use in a business English class with pre-service or in-service students, in one-to-one teaching situations or to focus on a particular topic, business skill or area of business-related language. Each lesson plan provides you with material for approximately 90 minutes’ teaching.

Business Spotlight lesson plans are based on articles from Business Spotlight magazine, an award-winning bi-monthly magazine for teachers and learners of English for business.

Karen Richardson has written a comprehensive overview of the series, along with hints and tips on how best to exploit these lessons in the classroom. The first lesson, Making a start, is available free for all onestopenglish users.

In this subsection

Business Spotlight: Introduction to the series

Karen Richardson introduces a new series of lesson plans based on articles from Business Spotlight magazine, an award-winning bi-monthly magazine for teachers and learners of English for business. This article provides an overview of the series, as well as hints and tips on how best to exploit it.
Business Spotlight: Who can you trust?

In this lesson, which is based on an article from Business Spotlight magazine, an American career coach talks about practices and methods used to tell when someone is lying. Teacher's notes cover strategies for personalizing language. Student activities include answering comprehension questions and taking part in a role-play.
Business Spotlight: End and beginning

This lesson is based on an article from Business Spotlight magazine that deals with the problematic but essential Business English topic of losing a job. Teacher's notes cover strategies for report writing. Student activities include practice of vocabulary and expressions useful for discussing this topic and writing a report.
Business Spotlight: Is it ever OK to lie in a job interview?

In this lesson, which is based on two articles from Business Spotlight magazine, a former recruitment director and a director of a top employment website offer differing views on whether candidates should lie in job interviews. Teacher's notes cover strategies for staging complicated tasks. Student activities include summarizing the text and writing and answering comprehension questions.
Business Spotlight: My home is my castle

This lesson is based on an article from Business Spotlight magazine that talks about the Indian government’s use of satellite images of slums and to what ends this information may be used. Teacher's notes focus on hidden agendas and cover PowerPoint presentations in class as a teaching and learning strategy. Student activities include writing a country file and preparing a PowerPoint presentation.
Business Spotlight: Specialist or generalist?

In this lesson, which is based on an article from Business Spotlight magazine, an American career coach discusses why we should consider becoming specialists (rather than generalists). Teacher's notes cover strategies for essential and non-essential business vocabulary. Student activities include answering comprehension questions and embarking on a project.
Business Spotlight: Career focus: Recruiter for love

In this lesson, which is based on an article from Business Spotlight magazine, Sophia McDonald talks about her company, Sophisticated Matchmaking, and how her previous work experience and her people skills have helped her become a successful matchmaker. Teacher's notes cover strategies for teaching and learning idiomatic expressions. Student activities include a business vocabulary crossword, and note-taking and summarizing exercises.
Business Spotlight: Making a start

This lesson is based on an article from Business Spotlight magazine that deals with the stages of kick-off meetings and their importance in the success of new projects. Teacher's notes cover strategies for skim-reading and recording new language, and student activities include setting an agenda and writing an email. This lesson is free for all onestopenglish users.
Business Spotlight: Moving down under

In this lesson, which is based on an article from Business Spotlight magazine, Nerida Frost talks about how she moved from Germany to New Zealand with her family. The article deals with the opportunities and challenges that may be encountered when moving to another country for work reasons. Teacher's notes cover strategies for teaching and learning word frequency and corpora, and collocations. Student activities include writing a country file and presenting it to the class.
Business Spotlight: Planning the future

In this lesson, which is based on an article from Business Spotlight magazine, two students, who have decided to study abroad, talk about matters that are important to them, such as tuition fees and future job prospects. Teacher's notes cover strategies for reading for detail. Student activities include filling in a table with information from the article and rewriting parts of the dialogue.
Business Spotlight: The art doctor

In this lesson, which is based on an article from Business Spotlight magazine, a self-made businessman talks about his decision to dramatically change his career path and the consequences it has since had on him and his life. Teacher's notes cover strategies for using word clouds and word wheels, and student activities include writing a CV and completing an online career test.
Business Spotlight: The case against self-employment

This lesson is based on an article from Business Spotlight magazine that deals with the advantages and disadvantages between having a full-time (or part-time) employment contract and being self-employed. Teacher's notes cover strategies for brainstorming and using opposites, and student activities include a business simulation and writing a questionnaire.
Business Spotlight: What I've learned: 50 Cent

In this lesson, which is based on an article from Business Spotlight magazine, the American rapper 50 Cent talks to the author Robert Greene about his life, career and business decisions. Teacher's notes cover strategies for holding a class debate. Student activities include discussing quotes from the article and writing a summary of 50 Cent's life.