Welcome to the CBC Newscast Lesson

Welcome to the CBC Newscast Lesson!

The CBC EAL Newscast is a listening lesson for students who are learning English. The lessons are for students who are at Canadian Language Benchmarks 3 and 4 (high beginner / low intermediate). Each newscast has a lesson file and an audio file.

The Lesson File

You will need to print the lesson file first. Here’s what you will find in each lesson.

1. A vocabulary match exercise for each story

Learning new vocabulary before you listen makes it easier for you to understand the story.

2. Questions on the main ideas or details of each story

Can you listen to a news story and understand the main ideas? Are you hearing the most important details? Answer the questions and find out!

3. A transcript for the newscast
If you are having difficulty understanding the story when you listen, you can use the transcript to help you.

4. Answers to the questions in the lesson

The answers are at end of the lesson on page 5.

5. An internet link or other resource suggestion

Some stories will have an internet link or suggest another resource you can use to find more information.

(Note: CBC does not endorse and is not responsible for the content of external websites)

The Audio File
Click on this file to hear three real world news stories read by a CBC news reader. The first is a Manitoba story. The second is a Canadian story. The third is an international story. All of the stories are in the same audio file

There are new stories and lessons every Thursday.

Now you are ready to begin. Read on!

Story 1: Winnipeg police chief says citizens should pray for a safer city

Step 1: Learn new vocabulary. Learning new vocabulary before you listen makes it easier for you to understand the story. Can you match these vocabulary words with their meaning? The first one is completed for you as an example.

Vocabulary Word / Meaning
1. _e the police chief / a) / the group of people who are trained to do police work
2. __ to inspire someone / b) / a priest, minister etc. who is responsible for the faith needs of a specific organization
3. __ a chaplain / c) / to speak about your faith
4. __ the police force / d) / religious beliefs; trust in God
5. __ to express your religious views / e) / the person in charge of the police force
6. __ faith / f) / to encourage someone; to make them feel confident or eager to do something

Step 2: Listen to the first story in the audio file. Focus on listening for the main ideas and key information. Listen as many times as you need to.

Step 3: Answer questions about the story. Fill in the blank with the correct word from the box below. The first one is completed for you as an example.

1. Winnipeg’s new police chief would like citizens to ______for a ______city.

2. The police chief believes that ______can ______people to help others and work toward ______.

3. The police chief used to work as the ______for the police force.

4. Some people have said the police chief should not ______his religious ______while doing his job.

5. The police chief says his ______is important to him.

6. Whether ______believe in prayer or not, the new police chief wants them to _____ about what they can do to build a safer city.

change pray express chaplain inspire police prayer
views safer faith citizens think

To find out more: www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/story/2012/10/22/mb-winnipeg-police-chief-prayer-clunis.html

Story 2: Bilingualism increasing in Canada, but not in official languages

Vocabulary Word / Meaning
1. _b to be bilingual / a) / the survey that collects information about the population of a country, e.g. economic, cultural and social trends
2. __ official languages / b) / to write/speak in two languages
3. __ Statistics Canada / c) / facts and statistics collected together for review and analysis
4. __ the census / d) / to happen often
5. __ data / e) / the languages that have special legal status in a country
6. __ to be common / f) / the organization that collects and analyses information about economic and social trends in Canada

Step 2: Listen to the first story in the audio file. Focus on listening for the main ideas and key information. Listen as many times as you need to.

Step 3: Answer questions about the story. Does option a) or option b) make the sentence correct? Underline or circle your answer. The first one is completed for you as an example.

1. / The 2011 census data shows Canada has ______. / a) about 200 official languages
b) about 200 spoken languages
2. / Just over seventeen percent of the Canadian population ______. / a) speaks two languages at home
b) speaks at least two languages at home
3. / Other than English, the language most Canadians speak is ______. / a) an immigrant language
b) French
4. / Among the most common immigrant languages are ______. / a) Punjabi, Mandarin, Cantonese and Tagalog
b) Punjabi, Mandarin, Cantonese, Tagalog and Ukrainian
5. / Since 2006, the number of people who speak both French and English in Canada ______. / a) hasn’t increased
b) has increased

To find out more:
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/story/2012/10/24/census-language.html

Story 3: Unemployment rate in Spain reaches twenty-five per cent

Step 1: Learn new vocabulary. Learning new vocabulary before you listen makes it easier for you to understand the story. Can you match these vocabulary words with their meaning? The first one is completed for you as an example.

Vocabulary Word / Meaning
1. _g the unemployment rate / a) / to owe money
2. __ to reach a number / b) / a bank that is not profitable
3. __ to have a debt / c) / to get to or arrive at a number
4. __ a household / d) / to give money, debt relief etc.
5. __ to give financial aid / e) / to stop work as part of a protest about something
6. __ a failing bank / f) / an organization that gives money or other assistance to people in need
7. __ to protest / g) / the percentage of people who are looking for work but can’t find a job
8. __ to go on strike / h) / to publicly show your opposition to something, e.g. a government policy
9. __ to lay off workers / i) / one house/apartment and the people who live in it, e.g. a family
10. __ a charity / j) / to tell workers that their jobs have temporarily or permanently ended

Step 2: Listen to the third story in the audio file. Focus on listening for the main ideas and key information. Listen as many times as you need to.

Step 3: Answer questions about the story. Which of the following statements about the story are true? Which are false? Underline or circle the correct answer. The first one is completed for you as an example.

1. / Spain’s unemployment rate has reached twenty-five percent. / True / False
2. / Over six million people in Spain do not have jobs. / True / False
3. / Spain needs financial help from other countries. / True / False
4. / New labour laws have caused strikes and protests. / True / False
5. / Ten thousand people need food and financial help. / True / False
6. / A charity is donating millions of dollars to help buy food, medicine and school supplies. / True / False

To find out more:
www.cbc.ca/news/business/story/2012/10/26/spain-unemployment.html

Hi, this is Heather Wells. You’re listening to Learning English with CBC newscast for the week of October 22nd.

Here is our first news story.

Winnipeg police chief says citizens should pray for a safer city

Winnipeg’s new police chief Devon Clunis has encouraged Winnipeggers to pray for a safer city. He says that people of all faiths often look to prayer to inspire them to help others and work towards change. The new police chief is a Christian. He worked as a chaplain with the police force. Some people in Winnipeg do not believe that the police chief should be expressing his religious views while doing his job. The police chief says that his faith is important to him. He says all citizens, whether they believe in prayer or not, should think about what they can do to make the city safer.

And in Canadian news,

Bilingualism increasing in Canada, but not in official languages

Statistics Canada released 2011 census data showing that there are about two-hundred languages spoken across the country. Just over seventeen per cent of the Canadian population speaks at least two languages at home. Most of those who speak more than one language speak English plus an immigrant language. The most common immigrant languages in Canada are Punjabi, Chinese languages such as Mandarin and Cantonese, and Tagalog. Twenty per cent of Canadians speak a language other than French or English at home. The number of people who can speak both French and English has not increased since the 2006 census.

And in international news,

Unemployment rate in Spain reaches twenty-five per cent

Spain’s unemployment rate is now at twenty-five per cent. Close to six million people in Spain do not have jobs. There are nearly two million households in which no one has work. The country may need to ask for help from other countries to deal with its debt. Spain already received financial aid to help its failing banks. Many people have protested and gone on strike as a result of new labour laws that make it easier for employers to lay off workers. Tens of thousands of people are in need of food and financial help. One charitable organization said it will donate millions of dollars to help buy food, medicine and school supplies.

Answers for Story 1

Vocabulary: 1) e; 2) f; 3) b; 4) a; 5) c; 6) d

Questions: 1) police, pray, safer 2) prayer, inspire, change 3) chaplain 4) express, views 5) faith 6) citizens, think

Answers for Story 2

Vocabulary: 1) b; 2) e; 3) f; 4) a; 5) c; 6) d

Questions: 1) b; 2) b; 3) a; 4) a; 5) a

Answers for Story 3

Vocabulary: 1) g; 2) c; 3) a; 4) i; 5) d; 6) b; 7) h; 8) e; 9) j; 10) f

Questions: 1) T; 2) F; 3) T; 4) T; 5) F; 6) T