The Reading / Listening - Clothes Repair - Level 6

In this age of consumerism, we unnecessarily discard millions of tons of clothes every year. A lot of these items are as good as new. Some may be a little threadbare or miss a button or two. France has come up with a new scheme to encourage people to increase the longevity of their apparel. The government will pay a "repair bonus" to people who get their garments repaired at special repair workshops, or take their shoes to a cobbler. The bonus allows individuals to claim back up to $27 of the cost of their repair bill. The scheme will be run by an eco-organization called Refashion. The government said the goals of its new initiative are "to support those who carry out repairs" and help the environment.

An estimated 700,000 tons of clothing are thrown away in France every year. Around two-thirds of this ends up in landfills. Furthermore, the global fashion industry accounts for between 8-10 per cent of global carbon emissions every year. The emergence of fast fashion has exacerbated this. Fast fashion is the practice of purchasing cheap clothes to wear just a few times. It utilizes a lot of synthetic materials and chemicals, which harm the environment. The Refashion group also aims to encourage people to reduce the amount of clothing they buy, and to donate unwanted clothes and footwear to charity. It says over half of donations can be reused, and a third can be recycled into something new.

Try the same news story at these easier levels:

    Clothes Repair - Level 4  or  Clothes Repair - Level 5

Sources
  • https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20230712-france-to-pay-bonus-for-shoe-clothes-repairs-to-cut-waste-1
  • https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/jul/12/stitch-in-time-france-to-help-pay-for-clothes-to-be-mended-to-cut-waste
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fast_fashion


Make sure you try all of the online activities for this reading and listening - There are dictations, multiple choice activities, drag and drop activities, sentence jumbles, which word activities, text reconstructions, spelling, gap fills and a whole lot more. Please enjoy :-)

Warm-ups

1. CLOTHES REPAIRS: Students walk around the class and talk to other students about clothes repairs. Change partners often and share your findings.
2. CHAT: In pairs / groups, talk about these topics or words from the article. What will the article say about them? What can you say about these words and your life?
       consumerism / clothes / button / scheme / government / repair / bonus / goals /
       landfills / fashion / carbon / emissions / synthetic / chemicals / environment / charity
Have a chat about the topics you liked. Change topics and partners frequently.
3. TEN YEARS: Students A strongly believe we should all wear our clothes for at least ten years; Students B strongly believe otherwise. Change partners again and talk about your conversations.
4. REPAIRS: What repairs might these things need? How good are you at repairing these things? Complete this table with your partner(s). Change partners often and share what you wrote.

 

Repairs

How Good You Are

Shirts

 

 

Socks

 

 

Shoes

 

 

Cars

 

 

Bags

 

 

Toys

 

 
MY e-BOOK
ESL resource book with copiable worksheets and handouts - 1,000 Ideas and Activities for Language Teachers / English teachers
See a sample

5. CONSUMERISM: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word "consumerism". Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories.
6. WASTE: Rank these with your partner. Put the worst examples of waste in our society at the top. Change partners often and share your rankings.

  • Discarded clothes
  • Uneaten food
  • Lights left on
  • Our life
  • Money
  • Water
  • Paper
  • Talent

 

Vocabulary

    Paragraph 1

      1. consumerism a. Clothing.
      2. discard b. An act or strategy intended to resolve a difficulty or improve a situation.
      3. threadbare c. The obsession of society with the buying things.
      4. longevity d. Get rid of someone or something as no longer being useful or desirable.
      5. apparel e. Long life.
      6. cobbler f. A person whose job is repairing shoes.
      7. initiative g. Becoming thin and ragged with age.

    Paragraph 2

      8. landfill h. Give money or goods for a good cause.
      9. emissions i. Made by chemical processes, especially to imitate a natural product.
      10. emergence j. Made a problem, bad situation, or negative feeling worse.
      11. exacerbated k. An area used for disposing of or burying waste.
      12. synthetic l. An organization set up to provide help and raise money for those in need.
      13. donate m. The production and discharge of something, especially gas or radiation.
      14. charity n. The process of coming into existence or prominence.

 

Before reading / listening

1. TRUE / FALSE: Read the headline. Guess if 1-8 below are true (T) or false (F).

  1. The article says it's a necessity to discard tons of clothing.     T / F
  2. Some discarded clothes are missing just one or two buttons.     T / F
  3. France's clothes repair scheme is only for bills of above $27.     T / F
  4. France's government wants to support repair workshops and cobblers.     T / F
  5. Around 700,000 tons of clothing are thrown away annually worldwide.     T / F
  6. Global fashion is responsible for 8-10% of the world's carbon emissions.  T / F
  7. Fast fashion is making emissions worse.     T / F
  8. Half of clothes donated to charity can be recycled into something new.    T / F

2. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article.

  1. age
  2. discard
  3. threadbare
  4. garments
  5. initiative
  6. estimated
  7. accounts for
  8. emergence
  9. synthetic
  10. donate
  1. approximate
  2. artificial
  3. scheme
  4. worn / tatty
  5. makes up
  6. dispose of
  7. contribute
  8. clothes
  9. appearance
  10. era

3. PHRASE MATCH: (Sometimes more than one choice is possible.)

  1. In this age of
  2. A lot of these items are
  3. encourage people to increase the
  4. The bonus allows individuals to
  5. the goals
  6. The emergence of fast fashion
  7. synthetic
  8. encourage people to reduce
  9. donate unwanted clothes and
  10. It says over half of
  1. footwear to charity
  2. longevity of their apparel
  3. the amount of clothing
  4. of its new initiative
  5. as good as new
  6. materials
  7. donations can be reused
  8. consumerism
  9. has exacerbated this
  10. claim back up to $27

Gap fill

Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
longevity
individuals
initiative
discard
garments
consumerism
run
threadbare

In this age of (1) _____________________, we unnecessarily (2) _____________________ millions of tons of clothes every year. A lot of these items are as good as new. Some may be a little (3) _____________________ or miss a button or two. France has come up with a new scheme to encourage people to increase the (4) _____________________ of their apparel. The government will pay a "repair bonus" to people who get their (5) _____________________ repaired at special repair workshops, or take their shoes to a cobbler. The bonus allows (6) _____________________ to claim back up to $27 of the cost of their repair bill. The scheme will be (7) _____________________ by an eco-organization called Refashion. The government said the goals of its new (8) _____________________ are "to support those who carry out repairs" and help the environment.

Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
donations
estimated
encourage
emissions
synthetic
donate
landfills
exacerbated

An (9) _____________________ 700,000 tons of clothing are thrown away in France every year. Around two-thirds of this ends up in (10) _____________________. Furthermore, the global fashion industry accounts for between 8-10 per cent of global carbon (11) _____________________ every year. The emergence of fast fashion has (12) _____________________ this. Fast fashion is the practice of purchasing cheap clothes to wear just a few times. It utilizes a lot of (13) _____________________ materials and chemicals, which harm the environment. The Refashion group also aims to (14) _____________________ people to reduce the amount of clothing they buy, and to (15) _____________________ unwanted clothes and footwear to charity. It says over half of (16) _____________________ can be reused, and a third can be recycled into something new.

Listening — Guess the answers. Listen to check.

1)  In this age of consumerism, we unnecessarily discard millions of ______
     a.  tins of clothes
     b.  tons of clothes
     c.  terms of clothes
     d.  tans of clothes
2)  A lot of these items are as ______
     a.  good as newt
     b.  good as news
     c.  good as new
     d.  good as anew
3)  France has come up with a new scheme to encourage people to ______
     a.  increase the longevity
     b.  increase the long gravity
     c.  increase the long jeopardy
     d.  increase the long japers
4)  The government will pay a "repair bonus" to people who get ______
     a.  their garments repaired
     b.  their gourmets repaired
     c.  their Germans repaired
     d.  their garbage repaired
5)  The government said the goals of ______
     a.  initiative
     b.  innit shift
     c.  initiation
     d.  inner shift

6)  Around two-thirds of this ends ______
     a.  up in landfalls
     b.  up in land files
     c.  up in land flies
     d.  up in landfills
7)  the global fashion industry accounts for between 8-10 per cent of ______
     a.  global carbon emission
     b.  global carbon emitting
     c.  global carbon emissaries
     d.  global carbon remissions
8)  the practice of purchasing cheap clothes to wear just ______
     a.  a flu times
     b.  a phew times
     c.  afar times
     d.  a few times
9)  It utilizes a lot of synthetic materials and chemicals, which ______
     a.  farm the environment
     b.  calm the environment
     c.  harm the environment
     d.  pharm the environment
10)  donate unwanted clothes and ______
     a.  feet wear to charity
     b.  footwear too charity
     c.  footwear two charity
     d.  footwear to charity

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

In (1) ____________________ consumerism, we unnecessarily discard millions of tons of clothes every year. A lot of (2) ____________________ as good as new. Some may be a little threadbare or miss a (3) ____________________ France has come up with a new scheme to encourage people to increase the longevity of their apparel. The government will pay a "repair bonus" to people who (4) ____________________ repaired at special repair workshops, or take their shoes to a cobbler. The bonus allows individuals to (5) ____________________ to $27 of the cost of their repair bill. The scheme will be run by an eco-organization called Refashion. The government said the goals of (6) ____________________ are "to support those who carry out repairs" and help the environment.

An estimated 700,000 tons of clothing (7) ____________________ in France every year. Around two-thirds of this ends (8) ____________________. Furthermore, the global fashion industry accounts for between 8-10 per cent of global carbon emissions every year. The (9) ____________________ fashion has exacerbated this. Fast fashion is the practice of purchasing cheap clothes to wear just a few times. It utilizes a lot (10) ____________________ and chemicals, which harm the environment. The Refashion group also aims to encourage people to reduce the amount of clothing they buy, (11) ____________________ unwanted clothes and footwear to charity. It says over (12) ____________________ can be reused, and a third can be recycled into something new.

Comprehension questions

  1. What age is mentioned in the opening sentence of the article?
  2. What does the article say clothes might be missing one or two of?
  3. What will France's government pay to people who get clothes repaired?
  4. What is the most people will be able to claim back for repairs?
  5. What's the name of the organization that will run the scheme?
  6. How much of the clothes thrown away in France end up in landfills?
  7. How much of the world's carbon emissions is fashion responsible for?
  8. According to the article, how many times do people wear fast fashion?
  9. What kind of materials does fast fashion use?
  10. What proportion of the clothes that are donated to charity are reused?

Multiple choice quiz

1) What age is mentioned in the opening sentence of the article?
a) communism
b) commercialism
c) commiserations
d) consumerism
2) What does the article say clothes might be missing one or two of?
a) zips
b) buttons
c) hems
d) stitches
3) What will France's government pay to people who get clothes repaired?
a) compliments
b) cash
c) a repair bonus
d) attention
4) What is the most people will be able to claim back for repairs?
a) $27
b) $26
c) $25
d) $24
5) What's the name of the organization that will run the scheme?
a) Rashion
b) Fashion-R
c) Refashion
d) R-Fashion

6) How much of the clothes thrown away in France end up in landfills?
a) around seven-eighths
b) around two-thirds
c) around three-hundredths
d) around five-sixths
7) How much of the world's carbon emissions is fashion responsible for?
a) between 5-7%
b) between 6-8%
c) between 7-9%
d) between 8-10%
8) According to the article, how many times do people wear fast fashion?
a) just a few times
b) four times
c) several times
d) numerous times
9) What kind of materials does fast fashion use?
a) novel materials
b) natural materials
c) synthetic materials
d) recycled materials
10) What proportion of the clothes that are donated to charity are reused?
a) exactly half
b) over half
c) just under half
d) around half

Role play

Role  A – Clothing
You think clothing is the thing we should never waste. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why it's OK to waste their things. Also, tell the others which is the least problematic to waste of these (and why): food, water or energy.

Role  B – Food
You think food is the thing we should never waste. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why it's OK to waste their things. Also, tell the others which is the least problematic to waste of these (and why): clothes, water or energy.

Role  C – Water
You think water is the thing we should never waste. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why it's OK to waste their things. Also, tell the others which is the least problematic to waste of these (and why): food, clothes or energy.

Role  D – Energy
You think energy is the thing we should never waste. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why it's OK to waste their things. Also, tell the others which is the least problematic to waste of these (and why): food, water or clothes.

After reading / listening

1. WORD SEARCH: Look in your dictionary / computer to find collocates, other meanings, information, synonyms … for the words...

'repair'

  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________

    • and 'recycle'.

  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________

    • • Share your findings with your partners.

    • Make questions using the words you found.

    • Ask your partner / group your questions.

    2. ARTICLE QUESTIONS: Look back at the article and write down some questions you would like to ask the class about the text.

    •Share your questions with other classmates / groups. •Ask your partner / group your questions.

    3. GAP FILL: In pairs / groups, compare your answers to this exercise. Check your answers. Talk about the words from the activity. Were they new, interesting, worth learning…?

    4. VOCABULARY: Circle any words you do not understand. In groups, pool unknown words and use dictionaries to find their meanings.

    5. TEST EACH OTHER: Look at the words below. With your partner, try to recall how they were used in the text:

    • age
    • miss
    • come
    • pay
    • run
    • goals
    • thrown
    • ends
    • practice
    • lot
    • reduce
    • half

    Student survey

    Write five GOOD questions about this topic in the table. Do this in pairs. Each student must write the questions on his / her own paper. When you have finished, interview other students. Write down their answers.

    (Please look at page 12 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

    Discussion - Clothes Repair

    STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

    1. What did you think when you read the headline?
    2. What images are in your mind when you hear the word 'repair'?
    3. What do you think of consumerism?
    4. How often do you throw clothes away?
    5. Should we all repair our clothes when they become worse for wear?
    6. What item of clothing have you had longest?
    7. Would you like to get a 'repair bonus'?
    8. How important is fashion to you?
    9. What damage does the clothing industry do to the environment?
    10. How good are you at sewing on buttons and patches?

    STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

    1. Did you like reading this article? Why/not?
    2. What do you think of when you hear the word 'clothes'?
    3. What do you think about what you read?
    4. How do you feel about the millions of tons of discarded clothing?
    5. Should discarded clothing end up in landfills?
    6. What do you think of fast fashion?
    7. How can the fashion industry become more environmentally friendly?
    8. Should we all donate our old clothes to charity?
    9. Should we all buy second-hand clothes?
    10. What questions would you like to ask a fast fashion fan?

    Discussion — Write your own questions

    STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

    (a) ________________

    (b) ________________

    (c) ________________

    (d) ________________

    (e) ________________

    STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

    (f) ________________

    (g) ________________

    (h) ________________

    (i) ________________

    (j) ________________

    Language — Cloze (Gap-fill)

    In this (1) ____ of consumerism, we unnecessarily discard millions of tons of clothes every year. A lot of these items are as good as (2) ____. Some may be a little threadbare or miss a button or (3) ____. France has come up with a new scheme to encourage people to increase the longevity of their (4) ____. The government will pay a "repair bonus" to people who get their garments repaired at special repair workshops, or take their shoes to a cobbler. The bonus allows individuals to claim back up to $27 of the cost of their repair (5) ____. The scheme will be run by an eco-organization called Refashion. The government said the goals of its new initiative are "to support those who (6) ____ out repairs" and help the environment.

    An estimated 700,000 tons of clothing are thrown away in France every year. Around two-thirds of this (7) ____ up in landfills. Furthermore, the global fashion industry accounts for between 8-10 per cent of global carbon emissions every year. The emergence (8) ____ fast fashion has exacerbated this. Fast fashion is the practice of purchasing cheap clothes to wear just a few times. It utilizes a lot of (10) ____ materials and chemicals, which harm the environment. The Refashion group also aims to encourage people to reduce the amount of (11) ____ they buy, and to donate unwanted clothes and footwear to charity. It says over half of donations can be reused, and a third can be recycled (12) ____ something new.

    Which of these words go in the above text?

    1. (a)     agent     (b)     aghast     (c)     age     (d)     ageism    
    2. (a)     new     (b)     OK     (c)     old     (d)     gold    
    3. (a)     two     (b)     ten     (c)     dozen     (d)     few    
    4. (a)     apparel     (b)     apparent     (c)     apparition     (d)     apparatus    
    5. (a)     bob     (b)     bill     (c)     ray     (d)     pat    
    6. (a)     take     (b)     convey     (c)     shift     (d)     carry    
    7. (a)     starts     (b)     lasts     (c)     ends     (d)     eventually    
    8. (a)     by     (b)     at     (c)     on     (d)     of    
    9. (a)     practice     (b)     occupation     (c)     drill     (d)     dummy run    
    10. (a)     synthetic     (b)     syntactic     (c)     synth     (d)     synthesis    
    11. (a)     cloth     (b)     clothing     (c)     clothe     (d)     clots    
    12. (a)     onto     (b)     up to     (c)     into     (d)     unto

    Spelling

    Paragraph 1

    1. In this age of isnmrocuems
    2. discard sillinom of tons of clothes
    3. Some may be a little rhaetrdaeb
    4. increase the golenyitv of their apparel
    5. people who get their ntamergs repaired
    6. the goals of its new iiaitinevt

    Paragraph 2

    1. An detesamti 700,000 tons of clothing
    2. two-thirds of this ends up in lfindalls
    3. global carbon mnoisssie
    4. fast fashion has rbteaedxaec this
    5. a lot of stnhcyite materials
    6. over half of nsdnitooa

    Put the text back together

    (  1  ) In this age of consumerism, we unnecessarily discard millions of tons of clothes every year. A lot of
    (...)   to charity. It says over half of donations can be reused, and a third can be recycled into something new.
    (...)   of this ends up in landfills. Furthermore, the global fashion industry accounts for between 8-10 per cent of global
    (...)   An estimated 700,000 tons of clothing are thrown away in France every year. Around two-thirds
    (...)   these items are as good as new. Some may be a little threadbare or miss a button or two. France has come
    (...)   the practice of purchasing cheap clothes to wear just a few times. It utilizes a lot of synthetic materials and
    (...)   up with a new scheme to encourage people to increase the longevity of their apparel. The government will
    (...)   pay a "repair bonus" to people who get their garments repaired at special repair workshops, or take their
    (...)   reduce the amount of clothing they buy, and to donate unwanted clothes and footwear
    (...)   bill. The scheme will be run by an eco-organization called Refashion. The government said the
    (...)   shoes to a cobbler. The bonus allows individuals to claim back up to $27 of the cost of their repair
    (...)   goals of its new initiative are "to support those who carry out repairs" and help the environment.
    (...)   carbon emissions every year. The emergence of fast fashion has exacerbated this. Fast fashion is
    (...)   chemicals, which harm the environment. The Refashion group also aims to encourage people to

    Put the words in the right order

    1. tons   millions   discard   clothes   .   of   of   We   unnecessarily
    2. of   are   Lots   new   .   these   good   as   as
    3. government   pay   repair   will   The   bonus   .   a
    4. repair   repaired   workshops   .   their   Get   at   special   garments
    5. support   are   to   initiative   those   .   goals   of   The   its
    6. thrown   clothing   in   Tons   are   of   away   France   .
    7. emergence   fashion   of   this.   fast   The   has   exacerbated
    8. people   clothing   .   reduce   to   the   amount   of   Encourage
    9. be   reused   .   Over   of   half   can   donations
    10. new   .   third   recycled   into   something   can   be   A

    Circle the correct word (20 pairs)

    In this age of consumerism / consumers, we unnecessarily discard millions of tons of clothes every year. A lot of them / these items are as good as new. Some may be a little threadbare or miss / mess a button or too / two. France has come up with a new scheme to encourage people to increase the longevity of their apparel / apparatus. The government will pay a "repair bonus" to people who get their garments / gourmets repaired at special repair workshops, or take their shoes to a gobbler / cobbler. The bonus allows individuals to claim / clammer back up to $27 of the cost of their repair bill. The scheme will be run of / by an eco-organization called Refashion. The government said the goals of its new initiative are "to support those who carry on / out repairs" and help the environment.

    An estimated / esteemed 700,000 tons of clothing are thrown away in France every year. Around two-thirds of this ends down / up in landfills. Furthermore, the global fashion industry reports / accounts for between 8-10 per cent of global carbon remissions / emissions every year. The emergence of fast fashion has exacerbated these / this. Fast fashion is the practice of purchasing cheap cloths / clothes to wear just a few times. It utilizes a lot of synthetic materials and chemicals, which harm the environment. The Refashion group also aims to discourage / encourage people to reduce the amount of clothing we / they buy, and to donate unwanted clothes and footwear to / in charity. It says over half of donations can be refused / reused, and a third can be recycled into something new.

    Talk about the connection between each pair of words in italics, and why the correct word is correct. Look up the definition of new words.

    Insert the vowels (a, e, i, o, u)

    _n  th_s  _g_  _f  c_ns_m_r_sm,  w_  _nn_c_ss_r_ly  d_sc_rd  m_ll__ns  _f  t_ns  _f  cl_th_s  _v_ry  y__r.  _  l_t  _f  th_s_  _t_ms  _r_  _s  g__d  _s  n_w.  S_m_  m_y  b_  _  l_ttl_  thr__db_r_  _r  m_ss  _  b_tt_n  _r  tw_.  Fr_nc_  h_s  c_m_  _p  w_th  _  n_w  sch_m_  t_  _nc__r_g_  p__pl_  t_  _ncr__s_  th_  l_ng_v_ty  _f  th__r  _pp_r_l.  Th_  g_v_rnm_nt  w_ll  p_y  _  "r_p__r  b_n_s"  t_  p__pl_  wh_  g_t  th__r  g_rm_nts  r_p__r_d  _t  sp_c__l  r_p__r  w_rksh_ps,  _r  t_k_  th__r  sh__s  t_  _  c_bbl_r.  Th_  b_n_s  _ll_ws  _nd_v_d__ls  t_  cl__m  b_ck  _p  t_  $27  _f  th_  c_st  _f  th__r  r_p__r  b_ll.  Th_  sch_m_  w_ll  b_  r_n  by  _n  _c_-_rg_n_z_t__n  c_ll_d  R_f_sh__n.  Th_  g_v_rnm_nt  s__d  th_  g__ls  _f  _ts  n_w  _n_t__t_v_ _r_  "t_  s_pp_rt  th_s_  wh_  c_rry  __t  r_p__rs"  _nd  h_lp  th_  _nv_r_nm_nt.

    _n  _st_m_t_d  700,000  t_ns  _f  cl_th_ng  _r_  thr_wn  _w_y  _n  Fr_nc_  _v_ry  y__r.  _r__nd  tw_-th_rds  _f  th_s  _nds  _p  _n  l_ndf_lls.  F_rth_rm_r_,  th_  gl_b_l  f_sh__n  _nd_stry  _cc__nts  f_r  b_tw__n  8-10  p_r  c_nt  _f  gl_b_l  c_rb_n  _m_ss__ns  _v_ry  y__r.  Th_  _m_rg_nc_  _f  f_st  f_sh__n  h_s  _x_c_rb_t_d  th_s.  F_st  f_sh__n  _s  th_  pr_ct_c_  _f  p_rch_s_ng  ch__p  cl_th_s  t_  w__r  j_st  _  f_w  t_m_s.  _t  _t_l_z_s  _  l_t  _f  synth_t_c  m_t_r__ls  _nd  ch_m_c_ls,  wh_ch  h_rm  th_  _nv_r_nm_nt.  Th_  R_f_sh__n  gr__p  _ls_  __ms  t_  _nc__r_g_  p__pl_  t_  r_d_c_  th_  _m__nt  _f  cl_th_ng  th_y  b_y,  _nd  t_  d_n_t_  _nw_nt_d  cl_th_s  _nd  f__tw__r  t_  ch_r_ty.  _t  s_ys  _v_r  h_lf  _f  d_n_t__ns  c_n  b_  r__s_d,  _nd  _  th_rd  c_n  b_  r_cycl_d  _nt_  s_m_th_ng  n_w.

    Punctuate the text and add capitals

    in this age of consumerism we unnecessarily discard millions of tons of clothes every year a lot of these items are as good as new some may be a little threadbare or miss a button or two france has come up with a new scheme to encourage people to increase the longevity of their apparel the government will pay a repair bonus to people who get their garments repaired at special repair workshops or take their shoes to a cobbler the bonus allows individuals to claim back up to 27 of the cost of their repair bill the scheme will be run by an ecoorganization called refashion the government said the goals of its new initiative are to support those who carry out repairs and help the environment

    an estimated 700000 tons of clothing are thrown away in france every year around twothirds of this ends up in landfills furthermore the global fashion industry accounts for between 8-10 per cent of global carbon emissions every year the emergence of fast fashion has exacerbated this fast fashion is the practice of purchasing cheap clothes to wear just a few times it utilizes a lot of synthetic materials and chemicals which harm the environment the refashion group also aims to encourage people to reduce the amount of clothing they buy and to donate unwanted clothes and footwear to charity it says over half of donations can be reused and a third can be recycled into something new

    Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

    Inthisageofconsumerism,weunnecessarilydiscardmillionsoftonsofcl
    otheseveryyear.Alotoftheseitemsareasgoodasnew.Somemaybealit
    tlethreadbareormissabuttonortwo.Francehascomeupwithanewsche
    metoencouragepeopletoincreasethelongevityoftheirapparel.Thego
    vernmentwillpaya"repairbonus"topeoplewhogettheirgarmentsrepai
    redatspecialrepairworkshops,ortaketheirshoestoacobbler.Thebonu
    sallowsindividualstoclaimbackupto$27ofthecostoftheirrepairbill.Th
    eschemewillberunbyaneco-organizationcalledRefashion.Thegove
    rnmentsaidthegoalsofitsnewinitiativeare"tosupportthosewhocarryo
    utrepairs"andhelptheenvironment.Anestimated700,000tonsofcloth
    ingarethrownawayinFranceeveryyear.Aroundtwo-thirdsofthisend
    supinlandfills.Furthermore,theglobalfashionindustryaccountsforbet
    ween8-10percentofglobalcarbonemissionseveryyear.Theemergen
    ceoffastfashionhasexacerbatedthis.Fastfashionisthepracticeofpurc
    hasingcheapclothestowearjustafewtimes.Itutilizesalotofsyntheticm
    aterialsandchemicals,whichharmtheenvironment.TheRefashiongro
    upalsoaimstoencouragepeopletoreducetheamountofclothingtheyb
    uy,andtodonateunwantedclothesandfootweartocharity.Itsaysoverh
    alfofdonationscanbereused,andathirdcanberecycledintosomething
    new.

    Free writing

    Write about clothes repair for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

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    Academic writing

    We should wear all our clothes for at least year. Discuss.

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    Homework

    1. VOCABULARY EXTENSION: Choose several of the words from the text. Use a dictionary or Google’s search field (or another search engine) to build up more associations / collocations of each word.
    2. INTERNET: Search the Internet and find out more about this news story. Share what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.
    3. CLOTHES REPAIRS: Make a poster about clothes repairs. Show your work to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all have similar things?
    4. TEN-YEAR RULE: Write a magazine article about making all of us keep and wear all our clothes for at least ten years. Include imaginary interviews with people who are for and against this.
    Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Write down any new words and expressions you hear from your partner(s).
    5. WHAT HAPPENED NEXT? Write a newspaper article about the next stage in this news story. Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Give each other feedback on your articles.
    6. LETTER: Write a letter to an expert on clothes repairs. Ask him/her three questions about them. Give him/her three of your opinions on repairing clothes. Read your letter to your partner(s) in your next lesson. Your partner(s) will answer your questions.

    A Few Additional Activities for Students

    Ask your students what they have read, seen or heard about this news in their own language. Students are likely to / may have have encountered this news in their L1 and therefore bring a background knowledge to the classroom.

    Get students to role play different characters from this news story.

    Ask students to keep track of this news and revisit it to discuss in your next class.

    Ask students to male predictions of how this news might develop in the next few days or weeks, and then revisit and discuss in a future class.

    Ask students to write a follow-up story to this news.

    Students role play a journalist and someone who witnessed or was a part of this news. Perhaps they could make a video of the interview.

    Ask students to keep a news journal in English and add this story to their thoughts.

    Also...

    Buy my 1,000 Ideas and Activities for Language Teachers eBook. It has hundreds of ideas, activity templates, reproducible activities for:

    • News
    • Warm ups
    • Pre-reading / Post-reading
    • Using headlines
    • Working with words
    • While-reading / While-listening
    • Moving from text to speech
    • Post-reading / Post-listening
    • Discussions
    • Using opinions
    • Plans
    • Language
    • Using lists
    • Using quotes
    • Task-based activities
    • Role plays
    • Using the central characters in the article
    • Using themes from the news
    • Homework

    Buy my book

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    Answers

    (Please look at page 26 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

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