A2/B1

Facts and myths about technology

1. Look at the pictures and complete the tasks below.

A. Name the devices.

from left to right and top to bottom: joystick/game(s) console, e-reader, USB memory stick/flash
drive, HDMI cable, laptop, keyboard, printer, mobile phone/cell phone, webcam, router, speakers,
headset/headphones, tablet, smartwatch, PC
B. Name three more devices.
Possible answers: mouse, robotic vacuum cleaner, voice assistant
C. Choose five devices and say what you can do with them.
D. Choose three devices and say how useful they are to you.
You can play Kim’s game: ask students to look at the pictures for 30 seconds and try to memorize the
T
items. Then, give them a minute to write down all the devices they can remember.

2. Read the sentences and choose the correct word or phrase.

A. If your phone’s lifespan/lifeline is long, it will work well for a long time.
B. If your devices overheat/overhot, they become hotter than they should. It can be dangerous.
C. If you damage/dangerous something, you cause harm to it or you make it less good.
D. If you charge your phone when you are asleep, you charge it on the night/overnight.
E. If something downloads/overloads, it’s because it is having to do more that it can.
F. If you want to know the middle/average number of devices people have at home, you want to know
how many devices most people usually have at home.

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 A2/B1
Facts and myths about technology

3. Complete the text below with the words from ex. 2. One word is not used.
A survey from 2022 about the cell phone habits of Americans discovered
some interesting facts.

In the US, most people (64%) charge their phone overnight, and 69% of
Americans said they have to charge their phones two or more times a day.
However, 33% are afraid this may damage their phone or overload or
damage the battery.

The average smartphone has a lifespan of 2.58 years. In contrast, the

average lifespan of game consoles and e-readers, for example, is about 6
years.

4. Look at the text in ex. 3 and discuss the questions.

• Were you surprised by any of the facts in the text?
• When do you usually charge your phone? Do you do it once a day or more often?
• What is your experience with devices' lifespans? Have you had a device for more than six years?

5. Look at the sentences and tick the ones that are grammatically correct. Correct the mistakes in the
incorrect sentences.
A. You mustn’t to charge your phone for more than six hours.
You mustn’t charge your phone for more than six hours.
B. Many people think you should damage the battery if you charge it overnight.
Many people think you can/may/might damage the battery if you charge it overnight.
C. You should charge your phone when the battery is between 20% and 50% to increase its lifespan.
correct
D. Your phone don’t overheat if you charge overnight.
Your phone doesn’t overheat if you charge overnight.
E. Some apps can help you increase your phone’s battery life.
correct

6. Read the sentences in ex. 5 again and decide if they are true or false.

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 A2/B1
Facts and myths about technology

7. Watch a video [https://www.youtube.com/shorts/kpk61QbxFUA] and check your answers

from ex. 6.
T This video is quite short and fast so you can play it several times if necessary.
A. false – there’s no problem if you charge it for more than six hours
B. true
C. false – you should charge your phone when the battery is between 20% and 80%
D. true
E. true

8. Discuss the questions.

• Will you change your habits based on the information from the video? If so, how? If not, why?
• How do you take care of your devices?
• What other facts or myths about phone and laptop batteries do you know?

9. Your teacher will give you a card with a quiz about technology. Read the sentences to your partner.
They will tell you if they think the sentences are true or false and give reasons why.
You can find the task cards at the end of this worksheet. If you’re working with fewer than four
T students, you can also read them the sentences and ask them to discuss whether it's true or false and
give reasons.

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 A2/B1
Facts and myths about technology

This worksheet includes an additional task that you can use as homework or revision. It’s only
T available in the teacher’s version of the worksheet. The task with the answer key is below, while the
students’ version is on the last page. Print it, cut it up and hand it out to your students.

Complete the sentences using one word. Then, create one more sentence using the same word.
EXAMPLE: We stopped overnight at a hotel.
This kind of change doesn't happen overnight.
I left the washing to dry overnight.
Possible answers:
A. The batteries can overheat and cause a fire.
Don't overheat the oil when cooking because the food will burn.
Her car started to overheat so she had to find a garage.
B. A fox's natural lifespan could be ten years.
Science discovered that men have a shorter lifespan than women.
A tablet’s lifespan is approximately four to five years.
C. Don’t put more than 7kg into the washing machine. It will overload!
Be careful. If you overload the printer with too much paper, it won’t work well.
This elevator is for six people. Please don’t overload it.
D. Tsunamis can damage homes, cars and buildings.
If you smoke, you might seriously damage your health.
The sun can damage your skin.
E. In the USA, the average working week is 9 am to 5 pm from Monday to Friday.
72 is the average number of messages a person sends every day.
The average salary in my company is $75,000 a year.

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Facts and myths about technology

EX. 9 – TASK CARDS

Student A
True or false? Test your partner. Ask them to give reasons.
A. If your phone falls in the water, you shouldn’t put it in rice. It might damage your phone.
B. If you use incognito mode or private search, your internet company can’t see the
information you’re looking for.
C. Too many open apps slow down your phone.
D. You should always switch on airplane mode when you travel by plane.

Answers:
A. True. Don’t put your phone in rice. It’s better to keep it in a dry place for a few days.
B. False. The company can still see them.
C. True. They also use up more battery.
D. False. Modern planes are protected against this.

Student B
True or false? Test your partner. Ask them to give reasons.
A. Refreshing your PC makes it faster.
B. You should buy an expensive HDMI cable if you want better images.
C. If your device overheats when you travel by plane, you must inform a flight attendant
immediately.
D. You should stop printing if you see a “low ink” (or “low colour”) message on your printer.

Answers:
A. False. Refreshing has no effect on your PC’s speed.
B. False. A more expensive HDMI cable doesn’t make images better.
C. True. It can be very dangerous because it can catch fire or explode.
D. False. Most printers can still print many pages after you see this message.

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Facts and myths about technology

Complete the sentences using one word. Then, create one more sentence using the same word.
EXAMPLE: We stopped overnight at a hotel.
This kind of change doesn't happen overnight.
I left the washing to dry overnight.
A. The batteries can ____________ and cause a fire.
Don't ____________ the oil when cooking because the food will burn.
B. A fox's natural ____________ could be ten years.
Science discovered that men have a shorter ____________ than women.
C. Don’t put more than 7kg into the washing machine. It will ____________!
Be careful. If you ____________ the printer with too much paper, it won’t work well.
D. Tsunamis can ____________homes, cars and buildings.
If you smoke, you might seriously ____________ your health.
E. In the USA, the ____________ working week is 9 am to 5 pm from Monday to Friday.
72 is the ____________ number of messages a person sends every day.

Complete the sentences using one word. Then, create one more sentence using the same word.
EXAMPLE: We stopped overnight at a hotel.
This kind of change doesn't happen overnight.
I left the washing to dry overnight.
A. The batteries can ____________ and cause a fire.
Don't ____________ the oil when cooking because the food will burn.
B. A fox's natural ____________ could be ten years.
Science discovered that men have a shorter ____________ than women.
C. Don’t put more than 7kg into the washing machine. It will ____________!
Be careful. If you ____________ the printer with too much paper, it won’t work well.
D. Tsunamis can ____________homes, cars and buildings.
If you smoke, you might seriously ____________ your health.
E. In the USA, the ____________ working week is 9 am to 5 pm from Monday to Friday.
72 is the ____________ number of messages a person sends every day.

Copyrights by ESL Brains. For use only with license.