Listen to News with Tara Benwell - Instructions:
1. Preview the vocabulary and read the gapfill text.
2. Play the news report and try to fill in the blanks.
3. Answer the comprehension questions by writing full sentences.
4. Use the discussion question to write an essay or discuss the story with other students.
5. Click "show Answers" to see the full text.
6. Pretend to be a news anchor by reading each story out loud.

8 comments

• English Club Indonesia says:
  

  Lake Erie belongs to the Great Lakes group. Toledo citizens are concerned about the fate of the Great Lakes ecosystem. The good news regarding that is the government agreed to give the lake a “right to exist.” A similar right has also been given to certain natural ecosystems in Bolivia. I believe this is a good move, as this ecosystem has existed longer than our civilization. We’ve got to respect that.

• Galo says:
  

  I think granting these rights is a very wise decision.

• Carmen Ponce says:
  

  Thank you for sharing useful information. It´s a great way to learn English.

• Rusiate Vurai says:
  

  Hi from Kiribati in the Pacific,

  I am very glad to have this first listening activity. It is very helpful for beginners of English learners. I hope this good provision will continue as it is a very important learning way for ESL students.

  Finally, I am also very happy to see and know better views from my previous commentators on the caring of our mother land, our environment and the laws. Which is adaptive and which one is technical? Thank you colleagues.

• Bijan says:
  

  Hi Tara,

  First, thank you for this week’s audio news report.

  Second, I could understand the subject without seeing the text and fill in the blanks all the words except “its”.

  Third, we always read and hear on the news about the Rights of Mother Earth every day, but it looks like there’s not a strong will about it among people and governments of the world.

  Thus many international conventions has been made for supporting the Mother Earth, but we see some big countries ignore them easily.

  We should start supporting the Mother Earth from ourselves and be kind with it and teach to the children to love the Mother Earth from childhood.

  We should make the culture of liking the Mother Earth instead of passing the laws.

  Making the culture is better than making the laws.

  Thank you for this wonderful news.

  Best wishes and have a great week in nice Canada,
  Bijan from the Persian Gulf

• Mallett says:
  

  We have neglected our most precious resource, water. We continue to abuse it daily. We spend millions of dollars cleaning it only to pollute it again. When will this stop? A new law will only put a bandage on the wound we have all created. Even if the law passes, it will not be obeyed. The only way for our Earth to heal from the damage we have caused, is to change to attitude and behavior of every global citizen who treats our Mother with such blatant disregard.

• Alberto. says:
  

  I don´t agree. In this case we should give rights to everything. Complicated.

• baris says:
  

  that’s
  great