Cambridge English Empower B1+
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UHappiness 3
1 SPEAKING
a Before beginning the task, ask students what makes
them happy. Elicit ideas and note some of these on the
board. Ask students if they think that happiness changes
over time, or that there are times in their life when
they are happier. Again, note their ideas. Put students
into groups and ask them to read through the options,
deciding which of each pair is happier. Explain that
they should give reasons for their choices. Once students
have discussed all the options, ask one or two groups to
summarise their views, and provide the reasons for their
choices. Alternatively, you could conduct a class vote, and
note the consensus on the board.
2 READING
a Explain that the focus of this task is on reading for gist.
Ask the students to quickly read the text, noting down the
answers to the pairings in 1a. Tell them that at this point
it is not important to understand every word. To ensure
students read quickly, set a time limit.
Answers
1 women
2 older people
3 extroverts
4 employed people
5 richer people
6 married people
7 people who focus on relationships
b Explain that this task requires students to read the
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READING PLUS
BETTER READING: PATTERNS OF ORGANISATION
This task aims to raise students’ awareness of the general
organisation of ideas in an opinion-giving newspaper
article. Explain that this will help them to anticipate what
information will appear in different parts of the text and will
help them to more quickly comprehend the text.
1 Ask students to look at the two patterns, and decide
which matches that used in the article.
Answer
A
Explain that in opinion-focussed texts the author’s opinion is
given the most prominence – although there will be reference
to the ideas of others, and possibly research, this is unlikely
to be summarised in the conclusion as the author wants to
emphasise their own role.
2 Explain that a useful process in understanding patterns of
organisation is to identify the purpose or function of each
paragraph. Explain that as students read a longer text
they could note down their ideas about the function in the
margins. This will help them identify key areas in reading
tests, and also assist in structuring their own written
work. Ask students to read the functions, and the text, and
then match. Check answers as a class.
Answers
1 Paragraph C
2 Paragraph E
3 Paragraph G
4 Paragraph D
5 Paragraph B
6 Paragraph A
7 Paragraph F
text in more detail. Explain that as they now have an
understanding of the organisation of the text that they
should be able to more quickly navigate the article and
identify the paragraphs where the information is likely to
occur. Set a time limit and ask students to complete the
table. Check answers as a whole class.
1

Answers
happiness 1 women are happier than men
Ways the author’s life and 2 extroverts are happier than
research match introverts
3 people without children
are happier than those with
children
4 people with strong
relationships are happier
than those without them
unhappiness 1 people who are married are
Ways the author’s life and happier than unmarried
research match people
2 unemployed people are
unhappier and the author’s
job is unstable
Unit 3
3 SPEAKING
a Explain that the questions in this section provide an
opportunity to respond personally to the text. Explain that
this is generally the outcome of an opinion-focussed piece
of writing – readers are encouraged to reflect on the topic
and think about how it is relevant to them. Ask students
to first read through the options, and note down their own
ideas. Monitor, helping with vocabulary where necessary.
Ask students to then work in small groups, and discuss
their views. Monitor, noting any interesting ideas. Ask
a selection of groups to summarise their discussion and
present their ideas to the class.

Points the author thinks 1 18-year-olds are happier than

are wrong people in their twenties
2 18-year-olds are less stressed

c Explain that this task focuses on reading for detail.

Remind students that they should use their knowledge of
the pattern of organisation to identify where to find the
answers quickly. Set a time limit, then check answers as a
whole class.
Answers
1 She wanted to ensure that her current happiness would
continue through life.
2 The research states that old people are happier than young
people, but the author believes young people are healthy, and
life is full of excitement and possibility when you’re young. So
she is surprised that younger people are less happy than older
people.
3 She thinks she should concentrate more on her relationships
than her career.

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