Listening

Warm Up

Helpful Words and Phrases

Listen and repeat.

  1. elect
    • ex. The country elects a president every four years.
  2. a mayor
    • ex. The mayor announced new guidelines for people who ride their bikes on the street.
  3. a mutt
    • ex. My dog is a mutt. I think he’s part chihuahua, but I’m not sure.
  4. a fundraiser
    • ex. Many celebrities participated in the fundraiser to help the school.
  5. vote
    • ex. I didn’t vote in the last election because I was sick that day.

Article

Read the article below and answer your tutor's questions.

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A French bulldog named Wilbur has been elected as the new mayor of Rabbit Hash, a small town in Kentucky, USA. Wilbur won the 2020 election with 13,143 votes. The six-month-old dog will be the mayor of Rabbit Hash for the next four years.

Rabbit Hash has never had a human mayor, but the town began to elect animals as mayor in 1998. A mutt named Goofy was the first mayor. In the most recent election, sixteen animals campaigned to be the next mayor. The candidates included a cat, a donkey, a rooster, and thirteen dogs. The campaign season usually begins in August, and the winner is announced on Election Day in November.

Rabbit Hash’s election is a fundraiser for the community, but anyone around the world can pay one dollar to vote. The 2016 election helped pay to rebuild a historic building that had recently burned down. The 2020 election brought in almost $23,000 for the town.

Discussion

Choose a topic and discuss the questions with your tutor.

Elections

  • Do you think it's important to always vote in every election? Why or why not? Discuss.
  • How should people decide which candidate to vote for (ex. research their policies, choose based on their political party)? Why? Discuss.
  • Do you think candidates should spend a lot of money on their campaigns? Why or why not? Discuss.

Animal Mayors

  • Do you think it's a good idea to elect animals to be mayor? Why or why not? Discuss.
  • Imagine that your town has decided to choose an animal to be mayor. What animal will you choose (ex. a dog, a cat)? Why? Discuss.
  • In your opinion, how should people decide which animal candidate to vote for (ex. their cuteness, their campaign)? Why? Discuss.