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 Bottled Water is Bad
Upper-Intermediate
the ARTICLE (for teachers)

Bottled Water is Bad

Sales of bottled water have quadrupled in the past twenty years. In just the US, sales accounted for $11.7 billion
in 2007, which was the year of record sales. More and more people make health-conscious decisions to buy
water instead of soda, sugary juices, and caffeinated drinks. However, one liter of bottled water produces as
much as half a pound of greenhouse gases once the plastic is produced and the product shipped halfway
around the world. With all the water consumed in the US, you could power 250,000 homes for a year. It's
a drain on and an unnecessary use of resources.

Bottled water can be useful, though. For example, it provides a healthy alternative at large events because
people will need to buy something to drink. In areas without access to clean water sources, bottled water is
beneficial. Yet too many people reach for bottled water instead of tap water at home. Both bottled water and tap
water are equally healthy, and tap water costs a lot less. In addition, most people would find it difficult to notice
any difference between the two. In taste tests at Ithaca College in New York, tap water beat out bottled water
four out of five times.

Many people recycle the plastic bottles, which of course helps the environment. But too many plastic bottles still
end up in landfills - in the US, 3900 million pounds (1770 million kilograms). Many states in the US don't redeem
plastic, which worsens the problem. More importantly, though, people should strive to reduce their use of
resources, reuse resources whenever possible, and lastly recycle resources. All those empty water bottles
simply don't allow that.

Teacher's Notes:

* Underlined words in red typeface are the recommended vocabulary for this lesson.

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 Bottled Water is Bad
Upper-Intermediate
WARM-UPS
Select one or all of the following warm-up activities.

1: Define: What does "landfill" mean? Can you use it in a sentence? Can you give examples?

2: Brainstorm: Brainstorm with a partner(s) words and ideas associated with "bottled water" for 2 minutes.
Spend another 5 minutes or less discussing the words and ideas together.

3: Title: Speculate and/or discuss the contents of today's article from its title: "Bottled Water is Bad."

4: Do you agree or disagree? Why?

a. Tap water is better than bottled water.
b. There is a big difference in taste among the varieties of bottled water.
c. I drink at least five bottles of water every day.
d. Bottled water is a waste of resources.
e. I recycle the plastic from bottled water.

5: Rank It!: Which of the following wastes the most resources? Rank the activities in order and support your
decisions.
a. driving SUVs
b. drinking bottled water
c. hunting whales
d. throwing away uneaten food
e. traveling around the world by plane

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 Bottled Water is Bad
Upper-Intermediate
VOCABULARY
Select one of the following vocabulary acquisition activities.

1: Vocabulary match: Individually or in pairs/groups, match the words in column A (from the article) with the
best choice in column B.
a. quadruple q. drink
b. account r. entry
c. conscious s. make up
d. consume t. try hard
e. drain u. cash in
f. alternative v. use up
g. access w. four times
h. beat out x. awareness
i. redeem y. defeat
j. strive z. other

2: Fill in the Blanks: Fill in the blank with the correct word.
conscious alternative access quadrupled beat out
redeem accounted strive consumed drain
a. Sales of bottled water have ( ) in the past twenty years.
b. In just the US, sales ( ) for $11.7 billion in 2007.
c. More people make health-( ) decisions to buy water instead of soda and caffeinated drinks.
d. With all the water ( ) in the US, you could power 250,000 homes for a year.
e. It's a ( ) on and an unnecessary use of resources.
f. Bottled water is a healthy ( ) at large events because people need to buy something to drink.
g. In areas without ( ) to clean water sources, bottled water is beneficial.
h. In taste tests at Ithaca College in New York, tap water ( ) bottled water four out of five times.
i. Many states in the US don't ( ) plastic, which worsens the problem.
j. People should ( ) to reduce their use, reuse resources, and recycle resources.

3: Define: Define each word, correctly pronounce it, explain the meaning and/or usage, and offer an example
sentence to the class.
a. quadruple c. conscious e. drain g. access i. redeem
b. account d. consume f. alternative h. beat out j. strive

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 Bottled Water is Bad
Upper-Intermediate
WORD RECOGNITION
1: Word Search: Find the target words (in bold). Time yourself, and see how many words you can find in three
minutes. In five minutes. In ten minutes.
conscious alternative access quadrupled beat out
redeem accounted strive consumed drain

D A S P S D B S A W B D N M G
A R B K D S E S H F F E C F C
I P A B D E E L F W D L H M O
Z S L I M O T C P E V P C E N
P M M M N S T X C U P U J E S
A C C O U N T E D A R R D D I
E V I T A N R E T L A D S E O
I D C R E D E A M B O U A R U
E K K O O C F L E H O A V U S
E M U S N O C A N I J Q G E Q
Q B F R V S T J C P Q W V U Z
U O N B G O U S M C I I M Z H
A U Z U U I N M V I R O Q K K
G G R T P O Y H E T G S B W C
X O I B C J L B S D B C K G M

2: Target Word Pool: Find the target words (in bold) with their exact match. Time yourself, and see how many
words you can find in three minutes. In five minutes. In ten minutes.
conscious alternative access quadrupled beat out
redeem accounted strive consumed drain

conscience redeeming redeemed

beats out alternator drained
consuming duplex
consumes accounted
accessible conscious
strife beating out
account alternative consumer
redeem quadrupled unconscious inadvertent accesses
drains strive draining
alternatives quadrupling
inaccessible beef out
consciously accounted
consumed stove
beat up striving
accounts access alternatively
quad consciousness
unredeemed
accessory quadruple strives
dripping beat out
comprehend
accounting drain
redemption

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 Bottled Water is Bad
Upper-Intermediate
pre- or post-COMPREHENSION
1: Word Association: Brainstorm words associated with today's topic for two minutes. Present to the class.

2: Brainstorm Questions: Brainstorm questions that you would like to ask about today's topic. Answer the
questions without looking at the article.

3: True or False?: Guess (before the article) or answer (after the article) whether the sentence is true or false.
If false, correct the sentence.
a. People drink bottled water for health reasons. T/ F
b. Bottled water is a waste of resources and has no useful value. T/ F
c. Most people can taste the difference between bottled water and tap water. T/F
d. Many people recycle plastic, so bottled water doesn't end up in landfills. T/F
e. It's best to reduce, reuse, and recycle resources, in that order. T/F

4: Questions: Answer the questions to check comprehension.

a. What has happened to sales of bottled water?
b. Why do people choose to drink bottled water?
c. In what situations is bottled water useful?
d. How does the article know that people can't taste the difference between bottled water and tap water?
e. How many plastic bottles end up in landfills?

5: Vocabulary: In pairs/groups, remember how the words were used in today's article.
a. quadrupled c. conscious e. drain g. access i. redeem
b. accounted d. consumed f. alternative h. beat out j. strive

6: Fragments: Remember how the fragments were used, and complete the sentence from today's article.
a. More and more people make health-conscious decisions to buy water...
b. With all the water consumed in the US, you could...
c. Yet too many people reach for...
d. In addition, most people would find it difficult to...
e. Many states in the US don't redeem plastic...

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 Bottled Water is Bad
Upper-Intermediate
post-COMPREHENSION
1: Vocabulary: Circle any additional unknown words/phrases in the article. In pairs/groups, use your
dictionaries to understand the meanings. Present to the class.

2: Class Questions: Read through the article once more, and write down any questions that you would like to
discuss in pairs/groups or as a class. Discuss.

3: Summarize: Work with a partner to summarize the article in your own words.

4: Discuss: Talk about the following questions in pairs/groups. Remember to support your answers!
a. Did you like this article?
b. What was your general impression after reading this article?
c. Do you drink bottled water? If yes, how much? If no, why don't you drink it?
d. How concerned are you with plastic bottles and their use of resources? Why?
e. Will this article cause you to stop buying bottled water? Why/not?
f. What do you do to protect the environment? Is it enough? Please explain.
g. What problem causes the greatest damage to the environment? Why do you think so?
h. Do you agree that it's best to reduce, reuse, and recycle resources? Why/not?
i. If we continue to use resources and pollute, what will the world be like in fifty years? Please explain.
j. Were you surprised by how much Americans pollute? Why/not? How does your country compare?

5: Discuss: People should reduce, reuse, and recycle resources whenever possible. With a partner discuss
how to do this with each item below. Share your answers with another pair of students, and decide on the best
course of action for each.
item: reduce consumption: reuse resources: recycle:

plastic bottles

papers

oil/gas

???

6: Google Search: Type "plastic bottles" into Google news and read additional articles on this topic. Discuss or
write an essay about your findings.

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 Bottled Water is Bad
Upper-Intermediate
STUDENT HANDOUT (the article)

Bottled Water is Bad

Sales of bottled water have quadrupled in the past twenty years. In just the US, sales accounted for $11.7 billion
in 2007, which was the year of record sales. More and more people make health-conscious decisions to buy
water instead of soda, sugary juices, and caffeinated drinks. However, one liter of bottled water produces as
much as half a pound of greenhouse gases once the plastic is produced and the product shipped halfway
around the world. With all the water consumed in the US, you could power 250,000 homes for a year. It's a
drain on and an unnecessary use of resources.

Bottled water can be useful, though. For example, it provides a healthy alternative at large events because
people will need to buy something to drink. In areas without access to clean water sources, bottled water is
beneficial. Yet too many people reach for bottled water instead of tap water at home. Both bottled water and tap
water are equally healthy, and tap water costs a lot less. In addition, most people would find it difficult to notice
any difference between the two. In taste tests at Ithaca College in New York, tap water beat out bottled water
four out of five times.

Many people recycle the plastic bottles, which of course helps the environment. But too many plastic bottles still
end up in landfills - in the US, 3900 million pounds (1770 million kilograms). Many states in the US don't redeem
plastic, which worsens the problem. More importantly, though, people should strive to reduce their use of
resources, reuse resources whenever possible, and lastly recycle resources. All those empty water bottles
simply don't allow that.

Notes:

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 Bottled Water is Bad
Upper-Intermediate
STUDENT HANDOUT (fill in the blank)
Fill in the blank with the correct word.
accounted resources drain strive conscious
beat out difference access quadrupled redeem
environment consumed shipped reach alternative
Bottled Water is Bad
Sales of bottled water have (a. _______________) in the past twenty years. In just the US, sales
(b. _______________) for $11.7 billion in 2007, which was the year of record sales. More and more people
make health-(c. _______________) decisions to buy water instead of soda, sugary juices, and caffeinated
drinks. However, one liter of bottled water produces as much as half a pound of greenhouse gases once
the plastic is produced and the product (d. _______________) halfway around the world. With all the water
(e. _______________) in the US, you could power 250,000 homes for a year. It's a (f. _______________)
on and an unnecessary use of resources.

Bottled water can be useful, though. For example, it provides a healthy (g. _______________) at large
events because people will need to buy something to drink. In areas without (h. _______________) to
clean water sources, bottled water is beneficial. Yet too many people (i. _______________) for bottled
water instead of tap water at home. Both bottled water and tap water are equally healthy, and tap water
costs a lot less. In addition, most people would find it difficult to notice any (j. _______________) between
the two. In taste tests at Ithaca College in New York, tap water (k. _______________) bottled water four out
of five times.

Many people recycle the plastic bottles, which of course helps the (l. _______________). But too many
plastic bottles still end up in landfills - in the US, 3900 million pounds (1770 million kilograms). Many states
in the US don't (m. _______________) plastic, which worsens the problem. More importantly, though,
people should (n. _______________) to reduce their use of resources, reuse resources whenever
possible, and lastly recycle (o. _______________). All those empty water bottles simply don't allow that.

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 Bottled Water is Bad
Upper-Intermediate
STUDENT HANDOUT (extended listening)
Listen and fill in the missing sentences. Compare your answers with a partner, and
then listen once more.

Bottled Water is Bad

a) _______________________________________________________________. In just the US, sales
accounted for $11.7 billion in 2007, which was the year of record sales. More and more people make health-
conscious decisions to buy water instead of soda, sugary juices, and caffeinated drinks. However, one liter of
bottled water produces as much as half a pound of greenhouse gases once the plastic is produced and the
product shipped halfway around the world. With all the water consumed in the US, you could power 250,000
homes for a year. b) ___________________________________________________________________.

Bottled water can be useful, though. For example, c) ______________________________________________

__________________. In areas without access to clean water sources, bottled water is beneficial. Yet too many
people reach for bottled water instead of tap water at home. Both bottled water and tap water are equally
healthy, and tap water costs a lot less. In addition, most people would find it difficult to notice any difference
between the two. d) _______________________________________________________________, tap water
beat out bottled water four out of five times.

Many people recycle the plastic bottles, which of course helps the environment. e) _______________________
_________________________________________ - in the US, 3900 million pounds (1770 million kilograms).
Many states in the US don't redeem plastic, which worsens the problem. More importantly, though, people
should strive to reduce their use of resources, reuse resources whenever possible, and lastly recycle resources.
All those empty water bottles simply don't allow that.

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 Bottled Water is Bad
Upper-Intermediate
STUDENT HANDOUT (notes)

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 Bottled Water is Bad
Upper-Intermediate
ANSWER KEY

Vocabulary
1. Vocabulary Match: 2. Fill in the Blanks:
a. w f. z a. quadrupled f. alternative
b. s g. r b. accounted g. access
c. x h. y c. conscious h. beat out
d. q i. u d. consumed i. redeem
e. v j. t e. drain j. strive

pre- or post-Comprehension
1. True or False: 2. Fragments:
a. T a. instead of soda, sugary juices, and caffeinated drinks.
b. F b. power 250,000 homes for a year.
c. F c. bottled water instead of tap water at home.
d. F d. notice any difference between the two.
e. T e. which worsens the problem.

Student Handout
1. Fill in the Blanks
a. quadrupled i. reach
b. accounted j. difference
c. conscious k. beat out
d. shipped l. environment
e. consumed m. redeem
f. drain n. strive
g. alternative o. resources
h. access

2. Extended Listening
a. Sales of bottled water have quadrupled in the past twenty years
b. It's a drain on and an unnecessary use of resources
c. it provides a healthy alternative at large events because people will need to buy something to drink
d. In taste tests at Ithaca College in New York
e. But too many plastic bottles still end up in landfills

Heads Up English - 11
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