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FREE Handout, Listening & Quizzes on China's Mega City
(11 Pages of Materials & 8 Online Activities)

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China to Create City of 42 Million People (27th January, 2011)

China is planning to create the world’s largest city. It wants to join nine existing cities around the Pearl River Delta to make a mega-city of 42 million people. That’s twice the population of cities like New York, Mexico City and Sao Paolo. The new city will be 26 times larger in size than Greater London. China will start up to 150 huge projects to make this a reality. These include 29 new rail lines, and energy, water and telecommunications networks. In the future, China may even build cities of 100 million people.

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It is hard to imagine a city with over 40 million people living in it. That’s bigger than the population of most countries. There are sure to be many problems with such a large urban area, although they can learn from other big cities. Urban planners need to take lessons from other mega cities to avoid dangerous levels of pollution and heavy traffic. If China makes so many enormous cities, there will be fewer and fewer people left in the countryside. This may cause food shortages.

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PHRASE MATCH

Match the following phrases from the article.

Paragraph 1

1.	planning to create the	a.	reality
2	join nine	b.	like New York
3.	twice the population of cities	c.	times larger
4.	The new city will be 26	d.	world’s largest city
5.	make this a	e.	29 new rail lines
6.	These include	f.	existing cities

Paragraph 2

1.	It is hard	a.	many problems
2	bigger than the population	b.	shortages
3.	There are sure to be	c.	big cities
4.	they can learn from other	d.	from other mega cities
5.	take lessons	e.	to imagine
6.	food	f.	of most countries

LISTENING GAP FILL

China is planning to create the world’s largest city. ____________________ nine existing cities around the Pearl River Delta to make a mega-city of 42 million people. That’s twice ____________________ cities like New York, Mexico City and Sao Paolo. The new city will be 26 ____________________ than Greater London. China ____________________ 150 huge projects to ____________________. These include 29 new rail lines, and energy, water and telecommunications networks. In the future, China ____________________ of 100 million people.

It ____________________ city with over 40 million people living in it. That’s ____________________ population of most countries. There are sure to be many problems ____________________ urban area, although they can learn from other big cities. Urban planners ____________________ from other mega cities to ____________________ of pollution and heavy traffic. If China makes so many enormous cities, there will be fewer and fewer people left in the countryside. This may ____________________.

MULTIPLE CHOICE

China is (1) ____ to create the world’s largest city. It wants to join nine (2) ____ cities around the Pearl River Delta to make a mega-city of 42 million people. That’s (3) ____ the population of cities like New York, Mexico City and Sao Paolo. The new city will be 26 times larger (4) ____ size than Greater London. China will start up to 150 huge projects to make this a (5) ____. These include 29 new rail lines, and energy, water and telecommunications networks. In the future, China may (6) ____ build cities of 100 million people.

It is hard to (7) ____ a city with over 40 million people living in it. That’s bigger than the population of most countries. There are sure to be many problems with (8) ____ a large urban area, although they can learn from other big cities. Urban planners need to (9) ____ lessons from other mega cities to avoid dangerous (10) ____ of pollution and (11) ____ traffic. If China makes so many enormous cities, there will be fewer and fewer people left in the countryside. This may cause food (12) ____.

Put the correct words from this table into the article.

1.	(a)	planning	(b)	plans	(c)	planned
2.	(a)	exists	(b)	existed	(c)	existing
3.	(a)	two	(b)	duo	(c)	twice
4.	(a)	in	(b)	by	(c)	at
5.	(a)	real	(b)	reality	(c)	really
6.	(a)	even	(b)	ever	(c)	event
7.	(a)	imagination	(b)	imagine	(c)	imagining
8.	(a)	such	(b)	so	(c)	much
9.	(a)	make	(b)	fake	(c)	take
10.	(a)	level	(b)	leveled	(c)	levels
11.	(a)	weighty	(b)	heavy	(c)	fat
12	(a)	shortens	(b)	shortages	(c)	shorts

SPELLING

Spell the jumbled words (from the text) correctly.

Paragraph 1
1.	create the world’s elgstar city
2.	nine tiixnseg cities
3.	iecwt the population
4.	150 huge srjtcpeo
5.	telecommunications ntesrowk
6.	In the uuretf
Paragraph 2
7.	hard to mniaige
8.	many slprbmoe
9.	Urban napslner
10.	take ensslos
11.	avoid dangerous esevll of pollution
12.	food sargsehto

PUT THE TEXT BACK TOGETHER

Number these lines in the correct order.

( )	population of most countries. There are sure to be many problems with such a large urban
( 1 )	China is planning to create the world’s largest city. It wants to join nine existing cities
( )	new rail lines, and energy, water and telecommunications networks. In the
( )	traffic. If China makes so many enormous cities, there will be fewer
( )	future, China may even build cities of 100 million people.
( )	It is hard to imagine a city with over 40 million people living in it. That’s bigger than the
( )	around the Pearl River Delta to make a mega-city of 42 million people. That’s twice the population
( )	than Greater London. China will start up to 150 huge projects to make this a reality. These include 29
( )	lessons from other mega cities to avoid dangerous levels of pollution and heavy
( )	and fewer people left in the countryside. This may cause food shortages.
( )	of cities like New York, Mexico City and Sao Paolo. The new city will be 26 times larger in size
( )	area, although they can learn from other big cities. Urban planners need to take

WORD JUMBLE

With a partner, put the words back into the correct order.

1.	is create largest China to world’s planning the city.
2.	cities existing nine join to wants It.
3.	like the cities York twice of New That’s population.
4.	to China 150 will huge start projects up.
5.	China build 100 even of people may cities million.
6.	million people Hard to imagine a city with over 40.
7.	population the than Bigger countries most of.
8.	to from cities need lessons mega Planners take other.
9.	dangerous Avoid pollution of levels.
10.	left Fewer in and the fewer countryside people.

DISCUSSION (Write your own questions)

STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)
1.	________________________________________________________
2.	________________________________________________________
3.	________________________________________________________
4.	________________________________________________________
5.	________________________________________________________
6.	________________________________________________________

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)
1.	________________________________________________________
2.	________________________________________________________
3.	________________________________________________________
4.	________________________________________________________
5.	________________________________________________________
6.	________________________________________________________

WRITING

Write about mega cities for 10 minutes. Show your partner your paper. Correct each other’s work.

______________________________________________________________________________

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. MEGA CITIES: Search the Internet and find more information about mega cities. Talk about what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.

3. MAGAZINE ARTICLE: Write a magazine article about China’s mega city. Include imaginary interviews with those for and against it. Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Give each other feedback on your articles.

4. 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.

5. LETTER: Write a letter to the designer of the new mega city. Ask him/her three questions about it. Give him/her three of your opinions. Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Your partner will answer the questions you asked.

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News English Lessons FREE Handout, Listening & Quizzes on China's Mega City (11 Pages of Materials & 8 Online Activities)