Gentrification
Lesson plan overview
This ESL lesson plan is about an issue a lot of cities are facing – gentrification. Students will talk about neighborhoods, amenities, and the pros and cons of gentrification, as well as practice conjunctions and linking devices. It can be combined with the lessons: “Buying a home“, “Is hosting the Olympics worth it?“, “Carpooling and car sharing“, “Digital nomads“, and “Inflation and young people”.
The lesson starts with an initial discussion about affordable housing. Next, students look at different amenities and discuss which amenities they consider to be important when choosing an area to live in.
Vocabulary: Students look at adjectives used to describe neighborhoods and areas (booming, quaint, welcoming, run-down, shabby, bustling) and divide them into negative and positive. Next, they are asked to describe 2 different areas in their cities, using both positive and negative adjectives.
Next, students talk about gentrification and think about different pros and cons from the perspective of long-term residents, new residents, local businesses, etc. After that, they read a short text about gentrification which introduces key vocabulary (be priced out, displaced, unaffordable, evicted, undergo a transformation, rent stabilization). They match the words to their definitions and then complete a few sentences with their own ideas.
Listening: Students watch a video called “Queens residents struggle with gentrification, rising rents, and displacement” and complete 2 listening comprehension activities. After that they further discuss gentrification.
Grammar: Students look at a few sentences in which the linking devices although, so as to, as, and lead to are used. They match the words to their usage. Then, they complete 4 sentences with the correct word. After that, they use the linking words to talk about their own living situation.
Lastly, students role-play a meeting between different people affected by gentrification (homeowners, tenants, city planners) and discuss possible concerns and solutions. You can combine this lesson with lessons about urban development and renewal, city planning and infrastructure, life in the city vs life in the country
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Pre-class activities
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In-class activities
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Additional resources
Each video-based lesson plan includes links to additional resources (videos and articles), which are FREE can be found online (in the pre-class activities page. These links aim to extend the learning experience, enabling students to connect classroom knowledge with real-world applications.
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Teacher’s lesson plan
Student’s worksheet
Student’s interactive PDF
Conversation cards PDF
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