Level 2
A man in Florida was the single winner of the lottery. The jackpot was a record $451 million. The man is called Shane Missler and he is only 20 years old. It is the fourth largest jackpot in US history.
He chose to receive a lump sum of $282 million, instead of smaller payments over a longer time. Mr Missler took his ticket to the lottery headquarters in Tallahassee. He said that he wants to help his family and less fortunate people.
He said: “I intend to take care of my family [and] have some fun along the way”.
His lawyer said he decided to retire from his job after winning. Mr Missler had bought his ticket at a 7-Eleven convenience store in his hometown.
He says he is excited for the future.
Difficult words
Lottery: A game where people buy a ticket and one person wins a lot of money.
Jackpot: The biggest amount of money available in a lottery.
Lump sum: One payment, instead of more smaller payments.
Retire: When a person leaves their job and stops working.
Future: Tomorrow, next week, next year etc. Time that hasn’t happened yet.
Record: The best thing of it’s kind e.g. The man held the record for the fastest running time.
Fortunate: Having good luck.
Headquarters: The main office of a company.
Activities
For listening practise, listen to the recorded article here:
British English:
American English:
Match the Synonym!
| 1. Lottery | A. Largest |
| 2. Jackpot | B. Sweepstake |
| 3. Lump sum | C. Give up work |
| 4. Retire | D. Top prize |
| 5. Future | E. One time payment |
| 6. Receive | F. Thrilled |
| 7. Excited | G. Come first |
| 8. Biggest | H. Get |
| 9. Winning | I. After this |
True or False?
1. A man won the lottery. T / F
2. The man is 30 years old. T / F
3. The man will stop working. T / F
4. The man is in Florida. T / F
5. The man gets $289 million. T / F
Unscramble the sentence!
1. Florida / man / A / in
2. excited / the / future / is / He / for
3. chose / He / receive / to / lump / a / sum
4. 20 / is / man / The / only
5. retired / job / his / He / from
Listening and Vocabulary
Listen to the article and fill in the words OR practice vocabulary and fill in the words.
British English:
American English:
| Largest | Retire | Headquarters |
| Chose | Family | Lottery |
| Million | History | Jackpot |
A man in Florida was the single winner of the __________. The _________ was a record $451 _________. The man is called Shane Missler and he is only 20 years old. It is the fourth _________ jackpot in US _________.
He _________ to receive a lump sum of $282 million, instead of smaller payments over a longer time. Mr Missler took his ticket to the lottery _________ in Tallahassee. He said that he wants to help his _________ and less fortunate people.
He said: “I intend to take care of my family [and] have some fun along the way”.
His lawyer said he decided to _________ from his job after winning. Mr Missler had bought his ticket at a 7-Eleven convenience store in his hometown.
He says he is excited for the future.
Conversation Questions
Take turns speaking with a partner or try to answer on your own:
| 1. Did you find this article interesting? Why or why not? |
| 2. Did you learn anything new from this article? If so, what? |
| 3. Do you play the lottery? |
| 4. What would you do if you won lots of money? |
| 5. Are lotteries popular in your country? |
| 6. Is gambling allowed in your country? |
| 7. What do you think of the man? |
| 8. Do you think lotteries are a good thing? |
| 9. Do you think the man’s life will change? |
| 10. Do you think money changes people? |
| 11. Should rich people give their money to charity? |
| 12. Should poor people be given money? |
| 13. Is it bad for some people to have lots of money if other people don’t have any money? |
| 14. How would you use $282 million to help people? |
| 15. What would you like to ask the man? |