Monthly topical news lessons
Topical news items with worksheets for each level for you to use in class. Each worksheet contains vocabulary, speaking and grammar work as well as reading practice.
All the articles are from the Guardian, onestopenglish's principal news partner. As well as using the language exercises which accompany each article, you can exploit these news texts in a number of ways:
- as extra reading, especially for advanced students;
- by asking students to compare the political slant of different news organizations;
- as a way to start projects on the issues covered, etc.
Please note: All news lessons are available on the site for a full year from the date of publication. They are then removed to make way for new, fresh and up-to-date news lessons.
Latest monthly news lessons
News lesson: Chimps and orangutans may experience midlife crises
A team of scientists claims to have found evidence for a slump in well-being among middle-aged apes that mirrors midlife crises in humans. The study, which included 500 apes, required zookeepers to complete questionnaires about their animals’ moods.
News lesson: Lottery millionaires each fund six jobs a year
Since its launch in 1994, the UK lottery has created 3,000 millionaires who have won more than £8.5 billion in total. This article details how they spent it.
News lesson: Food shortages could force world into vegetarianism, warn scientists
Leading water scientists have said that people may have to switch almost completely to a vegetarian diet by 2050 to avoid catastrophic shortages. The world’s population is expected to reach nine billion in the next forty years.
News lesson: Neil Armstrong's death prompts yearning for America's past glories
The first man to walk on the moon, Neil Armstrong, died at the age of 82 in August. His death has prompted a bout of soul-searching about America’s national destiny as well as mourning for an icon of the twentieth century.
News lesson: Colorado shooting renews father’s anti-gun mission
The recent shooting that left 12 people dead in a cinema in Aurora, Colorado, shocked the US and the world. Tom Mauser, whose son died in the 1999 Columbine massacre, is a campaigner for stricter gun controls and is in despair that the laws have got progressively looser in the last 13 years.
News lesson: Naples chefs take sides in the ‘ultra pizza’ wars
Naples is the home of the simple margherita, and the opening of a gourmet pizza restaurant that uses unconventional ingredients such as salt cod, figs and truffle oil has angered an army of traditionalists. Should some foods be sacred?
News lesson: Why reaching the start line is worth gold to Qatari sprinter
Seventeen-year-old Noor al-Malki is one of only three Qatari women competing at London 2012. Although she is not in it for a medal, Noor hopes to encourage more women from her country to get into sport.
News lesson: Sale of ‘stolen’ Banksy mural cancelled
The Banksy mural that disappeared from a wall in London was withdrawn from an auction moments before it was due to go on sale. Banksy is a street artist who displays his work on public surfaces such as walls. His identity remains unknown.
News lesson: Billionaires 'adding to poverty'
According to Oxfam, vast fortunes made by the world’s richest 100 billionaires are driving up inequality and hindering the world’s ability to tackle poverty. Without pointing a finger at individuals, the charity argued that the $240bn net income amassed in 2012 by the richest 100 billionaires would be enough to make extreme poverty history four times over.
Monthly news lesson: Insects could be the planet’s next food source
Insects are plentiful, full of protein and many experts believe that there is a clear environmental benefit to humans eating them. So what will it take for Western society to overcome its prejudices and start eating creepy-crawlies?
News lesson: Life expectancy data packed with surprises
A team of researchers in Seattle has put together a huge database to assess the global burden of disease. The aim of the project – which has revealed some surprising results – is to help global organizations and individual governments to better care for us all.
