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FREE Handout, Listening & Quizzes on Family Meals
(11 Pages of Materials & 8 Online Activities)

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Family Meals Keep Kids Slimmer (3rd May, 2011)

A new study shows that family meals help children stay slim. Researchers from the University of Illinois found that kids who eat at the table with their family are healthier and have a lower risk of obesity. The research team also says that sitting down for breakfast, lunch or dinner teaches children healthy eating habits. Researcher Dr Amber Hammons wrote: “Families that eat five or more meals together have children who are up to 25 per cent less likely to encounter nutritional health issues.”

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Family meals also encourage other positive behaviour in children. They learn better manners sitting at the table and are more sociable because they join their parents’ conversation. This is not the case with children who eat alone or who sit in front of the television with their meal. In recent decades, more and more children sit on the sofa watching TV. This can lead to their food going cold and them not eating it. Eating alone also means the child misses out on developing social skills.

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PHRASE MATCH

Match the following phrases from the article.

Paragraph 1

1.	family meals help	a.	at the table
2	kids who eat	b.	likely
3.	sitting down for	c.	health issues
4.	healthy eating	d.	children stay slim
5.	up to 25 per cent less	e.	breakfast
6.	encounter nutritional	f.	habits

Paragraph 2

1.	encourage other positive	a.	sitting at the table
2	They learn better manners	b.	going cold
3.	they join their parents’	c.	eat alone
4.	not the case with children who	d.	behaviour
5.	This can lead to their food	e.	out
6.	the child misses	f.	conversation

LISTENING GAP FILL

A ___________________ that family meals help children stay slim. Researchers from the University of Illinois found that kids who eat ___________________ their family are healthier and have a ___________________. The research team also says that sitting down for breakfast, lunch or dinner teaches children ___________________. Researcher Dr Amber Hammons wrote: “Families that eat five or ___________________ have children who are up to 25 per cent _____________________ nutritional health issues.”

Family meals ___________________ positive behaviour in children. They ___________________ sitting at the table and are more sociable because they join their parents’ conversation. This ___________________ children who eat alone or who sit in front of the television with their meal. In recent decades, more and ___________________ on the sofa watching TV. This can ___________________ going cold and them not eating it. Eating alone also means the child misses out on ___________________.

MULTIPLE CHOICE

A new study (1) ____ that family meals help children stay slim. Researchers from the University of Illinois (2) ____ that kids who eat at the table with their family are healthier and have a lower risk (3) ____ obesity. The research team also says that sitting down for breakfast, lunch or dinner teaches children healthy eating (4) ____. Researcher Dr Amber Hammons wrote: “Families (5) ____ eat five or more meals together have children who are up to 25 per cent less (6) ____ to encounter nutritional health issues.”

Family meals also encourage other positive behaviour in children. They learn better (7) ____ sitting at the table and are more sociable because they (8) ____ their parents’ conversation. This is not the case (9) ____ children who eat alone or who sit in front of the television with their meal. In (10) ____ decades, more and more children sit on the sofa watching TV. This can lead to their food (11) ____ cold and them not eating it. Eating alone also means the child misses (12) ____ on developing social skills.

Put the correct words from this table into the article.

1.	(a)	showing	(b)	shows	(c)	show
2.	(a)	discovery	(b)	found	(c)	looks up
3.	(a)	of	(b)	for	(c)	by
4.	(a)	habit	(b)	habitual	(c)	habits
5.	(a)	that	(b)	what	(c)	when
6.	(a)	liking	(b)	likable	(c)	likely
7.	(a)	manners	(b)	mannered	(c)	manner
8.	(a)	connect	(b)	join	(c)	link
9.	(a)	about	(b)	where	(c)	with
10.	(a)	recent	(b)	lately	(c)	these days
11.	(a)	coming	(b)	going	(c)	doing
12	(a)	in	(b)	up	(c)	out

SPELLING

Spell the jumbled words (from the text) correctly.

Paragraph 1
1.	ehcsRseerra from the university
2.	a lower risk of soiebyt
3.	igsntti down for breakfast
4.	healthy eating bsthai
5.	up to 25% less illeky
6.	health iussse
Paragraph 2
7.	encourage other seipivto behaviour
8.	They learn better esanmnr
9.	In recent acdsdee
10.	food oggni cold
11.	the child ssmise out
12.	developing social llkssi

PUT THE TEXT BACK TOGETHER

Number these lines in the correct order.

( )	means the child misses out on developing social skills.
( 1 )	A new study shows that family meals help children stay slim. Researchers from
( )	25 per cent less likely to encounter nutritional health issues.”
( )	manners sitting at the table and are more sociable because they join their parents’ conversation. This is not the
( )	teaches children healthy eating habits. Researcher Dr Amber Hammons wrote: “Families that
( )	decades, more and more children sit on the sofa watching TV. This can lead to their food
( )	case with children who eat alone or who sit in front of the television with their meal. In recent
( )	risk of obesity. The research team also says that sitting down for breakfast, lunch or dinner
( )	eat five or more meals together have children who are up to
( )	the University of Illinois found that kids who eat at the table with their family are healthier and have a lower
( )	going cold and them not eating it. Eating alone also
( )	Family meals also encourage other positive behaviour in children. They learn better

WORD JUMBLE

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

1.	stay meals children slim Family help.
2.	at with eat table family who the their Kids.
3.	meals eat together five or Families more that.
4.	likely less cent per 25 to Up.
5.	issues health nutritional encounter to likely Less.
6.	other encourage also meals Family behavior positive.
7.	manners sitting They at learn the better table.
8.	with children who eat alone This is not the case.
9.	on the More sofa children watching sit TV.
10.	This food can going lead cold to their.

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 family meals 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. FAMILY MEALS: Search the Internet and find more information about family meals. Talk about what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.

3. MAGAZINE ARTICLE: Write a magazine article about family meals. Include imaginary interviews with parents who sit with their children at meal times and those who don’t. 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 a family behavior expert. Ask him/her three questions about family meals. Give him/her three of your opinions on them. 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 Family Meals (11 Pages of Materials & 8 Online Activities)