Listening

Warm Up

Helpful Words and Phrases

Listen and repeat.

  1. find out
    • ex. I found out that my friend is moving to the UK next month.
  2. eyesight
    • ex. It’s important to check your eyesight every year.
  3. a disease
    • ex. The doctor said that Jeff might have a rare disease.
  4. blind
    • ex. Emily trains dogs to help people who are blind.
  5. a cure
    • ex. I believe that scientists will find a cure for cancer soon.

Article

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

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After finding out that three of their four children will lose their eyesight, a Canadian family decided to take a one-year trip around the world. Edith Lemay and Sebastian Pelletier first noticed that their oldest child, Mia, was having trouble seeing. Doctors discovered that she had retinitis pigmentosa, a rare disease that causes people to slowly become blind. Their third child, Colin, and youngest child, Laurent, also have the disease.

There is no cure for retinitis pigmentosa. A specialist advised Edith and Sebastian to create “visual memories” by showing pictures to their children. However, the couple wanted their kids to see the real things, not only images in a book. They asked their children what they wanted to see and do. Mia wanted to go horseback riding, Colin wanted to ride a train, and Laurent wanted to drink juice on a camel.

The family originally planned a year-long trip starting from July 2020, but Covid-19 canceled their plans. They finally began their trip this past March. So far, the family has visited Namibia, Zambia, Tanzania, Turkey, Mongolia, and Indonesia, and they plan to keep traveling until March 2023.

Discussion

Choose a topic and discuss the questions with your tutor.

The Canadian Family

  • Do you think the family's one-year trip around the world is a good idea? Why or why not? Discuss.
  • Mia wanted to go horseback riding, Colin wanted to ride a train, and Laurent wanted to drink juice on a camel. What other "visual memories" should they make (ex. hiking in the Grand Canyon, watching the sunrise on Mount Fuji)? Why? Discuss.
  • There is no cure for retinitis pigmentosa. In your opinion, should the family have hope that a cure will be found? Why or why not? Discuss.

Making Memories

  • Imagine that you can take a one-year trip around the world. Where do you want to go? Why? Discuss.
  • Do you think it's important for parents to make amazing memories for their children? Why or why not? Discuss.
  • In your opinion, do you need to spend a lot of money in order to make amazing memories? Why or why not? Discuss.