The Reading / Listening - Electric Salt Spoon - Level 1

A new spoon will make food taste saltier. It is called the Electric Salt Spoon. It was created by a university and a drinks company in Japan. The spoon will help people use less salt. It sends a weak electric current to the tongue. This makes salt taste one and a half times stronger. We can have less salt, but still taste it. A researcher said: "People need to reduce the amount of salt in their food." However, she said food with no salt is tasteless.

Too much salt causes heart problems, high blood pressure, and strokes. The WHO says we should have less than 5 grams a day. In Japan, the average person has around 10.1g of salt a day. A lot of salt in our food comes from processed foods, and from soy sauce. The Electric Salt Spoon costs 19,800 yen (around $99). Its maker hopes to sell a million of them over the next five years. The spoon's developer has also created electric chopsticks.

Try the same news story at these levels:

    Electric Salt Spoon - Level 0 Electric Salt Spoon - Level 2   or  Electric Salt Spoon - Level 3

Sources
  • https://news.sky.com/story/electric-spoon-that-enhances-salty-taste-of-food-and-promotes-healthier-eating-launched-in-japan-13146505
  • https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/electric-spoons-chopsticks-may-help-cut-salt/7622248.html
  • https://www.who.int/data/gho/indicator-metadata-registry/imr-details/3082


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 :-)

Phrase Matching

Paragraph 1

  1. A new spoon will make
  2. It was created
  3. a drinks
  4. The spoon will help people
  5. It sends a weak electric current
  6. taste one and a
  7. People need to reduce
  8. food with no salt
  1. to the tongue
  2. company in Japan
  3. use less salt
  4. the amount of salt
  5. food taste saltier
  6. is tasteless
  7. by a university
  8. half times stronger

Paragraph 2

  1. Too much salt
  2. high blood
  3. we should have less than
  4. the average person
  5. processed
  6. Its maker hopes to sell a
  7. over the
  8. electric
  1. 5 grams a day
  2. chopsticks
  3. foods
  4. pressure
  5. next five years
  6. causes heart problems
  7. has around 10.1g
  8. million of them

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

A new spoon will make (1) ___________________. It is called the Electric Salt Spoon. It (2) ___________________ a university and a drinks company in Japan. The spoon will help people use less salt. It sends a weak electric current (3) ___________________. This makes salt taste one and a half times stronger. We can have less salt, but (4) ___________________. A researcher said: "People need to (5) ___________________ of salt in their food." However, she said food with no (6) ___________________.

Too much salt causes heart problems, (7) ___________________, and strokes. The WHO says we (8) ___________________ than 5 grams a day. In Japan, (9) ___________________ has around 10.1g of salt a day. A lot of salt in our food comes (10) ___________________, and from soy sauce. The Electric Salt Spoon costs 19,800 yen (around $99). Its maker hopes to (11) ___________________ of them over the next five years. The spoon's developer has also (12) ___________________.

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

Anewspoonwillmakefoodtastesaltier.ItiscalledtheElectricSaltSpoon
.ItwascreatedbyauniversityandadrinkscompanyinJapan.Thespoon
willhelppeopleuselesssalt.Itsendsaweakelectriccurrenttothetongue
.Thismakessalttasteoneandahalftimesstronger.Wecanhavelesssalt,
butstilltasteit.Aresearchersaid:"Peopleneedtoreducetheamountofs
altintheirfood."However,shesaidfoodwithnosaltistasteless.Toomuc
hsaltcausesheartproblems,highbloodpressure,andstrokes.TheWHO
saysweshouldhavelessthan5gramsaday.InJapan,theaverageperso
nhasaround10.1gofsaltaday.Alotofsaltinourfoodcomesfromprocess
edfoods,andfromsoysauce.TheElectricSaltSpooncosts19,800yen(a
round$99).Itsmakerhopestosellamillionofthemoverthenextfiveyear
s.Thespoon'sdeveloperhasalsocreatedelectricchopsticks.

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 — Write your own questions

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

(a) ________________

(b) ________________

(c) ________________

(d) ________________

(e) ________________

(f) ________________

(g) ________________

(h) ________________

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

(i) ________________

(j) ________________

(k) ________________

(l) ________________

(m) ________________

(n) ________________

(o) ________________

(p) ________________

Free writing

Write about this topic for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

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Answers

(Please check your answers against the article above.

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