That is the question that some BBC reporters asked a few children back in 1979 for the programme Junior That's Life. The answer is this funny video clip about the perception of wealth by innocent children that can be found on BBC Archive.
Some of the most interesting words you can come across in this video are: cabbages, lettuce, carrots, a platinum ball, a display cabinet, a pistol, miserable, a piggy bank, a booby, jolly [rich], to polish, silly me! This video with subtitles can be watched by B2 students and above.
This video can be used to end a class about the topic "Money" with a touch of humour. Here you can find a speaking task to discuss "Attitudes to Money", and you can add a split reading task about two historical figures of Capitalism in the USA, John D. Rockefeller and Andrew Carnegie, which come with a simple vocabulary matching task with a key entitled "The Birth of Capitalism (... and Philanthropy)". All these tasks are suitable for C1 students and even for B2 students.
Some of the most interesting words you will find in the Rockefeller biography are: a business trust, a partnership, [wealth] to soar, targeted [philanthropy], the hookworm, a trustee, a clerk, a janitor, [to feel] righteous, [transportation] rebates, pitiless, a grasping [monopoly], the boom and bust [of the business cycle], to rack up [profits], a well, a pipeline, to top out, a breakup, stock, to be broken up, [the companies' combined net worth rose] fivefold.
And in the Carnegie text: steel [industry], parlance, a bobbin [factory], a bill logger, [two companies] to merge, a pension fund, an oil derrick, a bond, a rags to riches [story], a dispute, unrest, to peak, staunch [anti-union sensibilities], to lock [the union] out, a lockout, to crush, a pivotal [demonstration], strikebreakers, to be tied in [for an assassination attempt].
Queen Elizabeth II died last Friday, September 8th, and was immediately succeeded by her son King Charles III. Her death started a mourning period in the United Kingdom, in the Commonwealth realm -the countries where the monarch is the head of state, in the wider Commonwealth of Nations, which includes republics like India, Pakistan, South-Africa, Nigeria, Kenya or Tanzania, and in the world at large.
The Queen's death has prompted a deluge of speeches and articles about the Crown. Former UK Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, paid tribute to her Majesty the Queen in the House of Commons, with a solemn, personal and emotional speech (8:25), which describes with brilliance and a touch of humour, the feelings of the British people towards their deceased monarch and her role in the British Constitutional system. This memorable speech can be watched with subtitles and it is suitable for C1 students. Here you can find very rich English words and collocations like [cameras] start rolling, to choke up, to be moved to tears, to be overcome with sadness, countless [people], a sense of loss, changeless, unvarying, in a pole star radiance, to be lulled into [thinking], a keener [shock], to be globally trusted, currency, to dispense [justice], to pass [a law], to swear allegiance, to be pledged, to lay down [their lives], the figurehead, the keystone, to fulfill a role, to incarnate [the essence of the nation], sheer [duration], to see off [her 14th Prime Minister], the span, a statesman, to cheer up [the nation], a smash hit, indomitability, an outrider, an armour-plated convoy, a bodyguard, to bounce, a rambler, seamlessly, grief.
In Washington, Tom Nagorski, Global Editor of Grid News, reflected upon the popularity of the Queen and the future of the Monarchy in the article "Queen Elizabeth II was beloved. The monarchy isn't. What does that mean for King Charles III?". This long and reflective text is recommended for C1 students too. Here, you can find interesting words like: thenewly minted [Prime Minister], [a subject] arises, frail health, policy, a reign, to greet, to prompt [a question], to approve of [the monarchy], to succeed [her] to the throne, profoundly unsettling, to bow, to assume the throne, to buffet, quaint [and dated], preposterous, scrappy, brass, [utterly] at odds, pageantry, the trappings [of royalty], to be battered, suffice to say, realms [of newsprint], to grasp [the moment], to shed tears, a vigil, [her] passing, a landmark, to ascend [to the thorne], at the helm, fixture, turmoil, steady, a daunting [crisis], a staple, the run-up [to the war], to throng [the celebrations], [the number of subjects] to dwindle, a diverse [country], to cheer [the monarchy], to mourn [the Queen], to struggle [to understand], to thrive [by dividing], a poll, skeptic [of the monarchy], to be born [into a family], disgraceful, to outrank, a survey, a runaway [winner], a much-revered [ruler], a few month's shy [of Elizabeth's reign], to bring concerns [about the Thai monarchy], [concerns] to simmer [below the surface], a thread, an obituary, to deprive [Britain of a thread that wove a nation together], [flags] at half-mast, [ceremonies] to unspool, [a bell] to toll, unease, [political] upheaval, an outpouring [of tributes], to take heart.
If you want to hear more tributes to the late Queen, you can check this link on BBC Sounds, Reflections on Majesty, where major novelists, historians and scholars talk about Elizabeth II.
Finally, you can watch the full BBC News broadcast of the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II on YouTube in Spain (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j8xwqi_9GDs), but for copyright reasons, it is not possible to reproduce an operating link here. The video report is over 9 hours long (9:09:38), with voice over commentary and no subtitles, which makes it suitable for B2 students and above.
The setting, the rituals, the symbolism, the music, the solemnity of the processions make this visual document a truly awe-inspiring, mourning ceremony of the British Monarchy.
Nasir is a Marketing student from Pakistan who has done an internship in the town of Fitero for a university project called KiNESIS. In the video below, Nasir explains what the project is about and what he has learnt in the project.
In this entry you can find a listening comprehension task, and you can also find the answer key. The vocabulary in the video (4': 41") is not really a barrier, and the video is divided into sections, which can help the learner to follow the narration, so the task can be recommended for B2 students, if they are familiar with the Pakistani accent. Otherwise, the task would be more suitable for C1 learners. The video has subtitles, which can be used after the listening exercise for consolidation.
Some of the most interesting words you can pick up while watching this video are: rural development, an impact, mayor, brand, heritage, gastronomy, professors, municipal authorities, a monastery, monks, landscape, to be interlinked, to perform a project, to be stuck, to be interconnected, to implement, the target audience, social media stuff, exposure, traineeship, to grab this opportunity, to share your skills, net worth.
You are going to hear Megan, a History student who works as a tour guide in the summer, talking to a group of tourists about the application process and student life in general at Oxford University. This homemade video lasts 5':35", and it comes with a listening comprehension task for C1 students and its answer key.
There is neither a script nor subtitles for the video, but you can use this list of interesting words to follow the speech, which is casual, humorous and fast at times, but also meticulous in word choice. You should look at this vocabulary list, after you have done the listening task: application process, undergraduate study, postgraduate studies, All Soul's College, a top [university], so they say, [Oxford is] way, way [better], a college, stage one, to sit an entrance exam, unique, to my knowledge, a subject, a handful [of interviews], [it's pretty] intense, you guys, [so] rigorous, one professor, the lecturer, one-on-one learning, a tutorial, research, to thrive, [it'll] improve your chances, self-guided, self-motivated [study], to keep up with [the study], the dining hall, a college choir, a degree, to set the curriculums, to set the exams, to move onwards, the stats, to give [a bit ] of a flavour [of the student body], international students, to clear up [a little bit].
