Level: B1/B2
Type of English: general
Lesson activities: listening comprehension, vocabulary building, speaking practice.
Additional Activity: Honesty Quiz
Tags: english learning, speaking english, honesty, social experiment
Dig into the experiment known as the lost wallet test, and find out the surprising results of this study of honesty.
During the 1-hour class your teacher will take notes of your mistakes and make corrections.
These will be emailed to you after the lesson.
It is a good idea to revise the same vocabulary at the start of the next lesson.
Opening Questions:
Have you heard of the wallet test?
What do you think it is?
Have you ever found a lost wallet? What did you do?
Have you ever lost a wallet or something valuable and got it back?
Do we live in an honest society?
How do you define honesty?
New Vocabulary Questions:
If we have a meal and I say dig in, what do I mean?
How many hours is a typical work shift?
Can you use shift as a verb?
If I hurriedly approach someone, what am I doing?
The front desk = …………….. ?
Describe the last time you were in a rush?
Can you use to follow up in 2 different way?
How many tasks did you handle this morning?
If you go out with friends and someone runs off, what happened?
What is on your grocery list?
What’s another way to say around the globe?
Can you think of a situation when you were an unwitting participant?
Why do we use the verb run with experiment, “to run an experiment” and what else can we run?
Name someone that you rely on heavily?
What is a baseline expectation for these English workshops?
What does “outside the lab” mean?
sought is the past tense of which verb?
Describe the last time you engaged in opportunistic behaviour?
Do you agree that there is little-to-no chance of winning the lottery?
caught is the past tense of which verb? Name 2 things that can be caught?
If something is clear, do you understand?
If a material is clear, can you see it?
What’s the difference between insure and ensure?
What does overpower mean?
Do you do anything altruistic?
If I let you off the hook for a mistake, what happened?
What is a hook?
What is a hook in marketing?
Who was Captain Hook?
Can you use the expression to call in ?
If I drop off my kids to their grandparents, what am I doing?
If you are playing poker and the stakes are high, what’s happening?
Watch the Video:
Task: Try to remember the 3 principles of the concept
Listening Comprehension Questions:
When answering these questions, please use the new vocabulary
How many front desk workers were surveyed in the study?
How did the video define honesty?
Why is understanding honesty a vital research subject for economists, psychologists, and sociologists?
Why is honesty difficult to investigate?
Describe the lost wallet test
Where did they go to conduct this test?
Why did they use clear wallets?
How do people justify (or letting themselves off the hook) for stealing small amounts of money?
What were the surprising results of the study?
What happened when researchers increased the amount of money in wallets?
Discussion:
Were you surprised by the results?
Discuss the quote “every healthy society relies on a shared foundation of honesty” and what it says about us?
Tell me about a time when you let yourself off the hook?
Do you think that people are more or less honest outside the office?
New Vocabulary Practice:
When we use new vocabulary in a different context It helps to memorize.
How many different contexts can you dig into?
How many hours is a long work shift?
What things can you shift?
How would you approach the problem of hybrid working?
Name 2 places with a front desk
What is the opposite of being in a rush?
Do you know how to follow up after an interview?
Can you handle the winter weather?
Can you think of a situation when someone ran off suddenly, what happened?
Name a technology that you rely on heavily.
What is a baseline expectation for a 5-star hotel?
Create a context for “outside the lab“
What have you sought on the internet recently?
Give me an example of a politician and opportunistic behavior
What has little-to-no chance of happening this year?
Name 3 things that can be caught.
is the use of caught clear?
Do you remember the difference between to insure and to ensure?
What does overpower mean?
Tell me about when you let someone off the hook
describe something that can be called in
Name 2 things that can be dropped off
Politically, where are the stakes high?
Additional Activity: Honest Quiz
QUIZ: Honestly? How honest are you?
1. A cashier mistakes your €5 for €10 and gives you back an extra €5. Do you speak up?
– Nope, it’s not your mistake!
– Yes, you give her the €5 back
2. Your friend asks you if she looks fat in her new dress. And Yup, she does. Do you tell the truth?
– No, you tell her that she looks fine. You don’t want to upset her.
– You tell her straight up that it does not suit her.
3. You damage a car in a parking lot in the middle of the night. Nobody sees you and there are no cameras. What do you do?
– You take off/ run off quickly.
– You leave a note with all your info.
4. Your friend is cheating on his girlfriend. The girlfriend also happens to be a friend of yours. When she mentions that your friend has been acting strange lately, you:
– Tell her about the cheating
– Keep out of it
5. You’re late to a job interview for a position you’re really hoping to get. You:
– Claim that you got caught behind a horrible accident
– Apologise for being late, but give no excuses
6. Downloading movies and music illegally are:
– Something you’d never do
– A great way to get free stuff
Solution and definitions:
2 Competing factors
the altruistic desire not to harm the wallet’s owner V’s the desire to maintain a positive self-image
Vocabulary:
“Dig in” – to start eating with enthusiasm and determination.
“A shift” – a change or alteration, especially in a schedule or pattern.
“To shift” – to move or change position, direction, or focus.
“To approach” – to move or advance closer to someone or something.
“In a rush” – with a sense of hurry or urgency.
“To follow up” – to take further action after an initial step, often to check the status of a previous request.
“To handle” – to take charge of, deal with, or manage a situation, task, or problem.
“To run off” – to escape, flee, or leave quickly.
“A grocery list” – a written or mental list of items needed to be purchased at a grocery store.
“Around the globe” – all over the world, globally.
“An unwitting participant” – a person who is involved in something without realizing it or intending to.
“To run an experiment” – to conduct a controlled scientific test to observe and gather data.
“To rely on” – to trust in and depend on someone or something for support or assistance.
“A baseline expectation” – a minimum or basic level of performance or outcome that is expected.
“Outside the lab” – in real-world settings, as opposed to a laboratory.
“Sought” – looked for, searched for, or attempted to obtain.
“To engage in opportunistic behavior” – to take advantage of a situation for personal gain, often at the expense of others.
“Little-to-no chance” – a low probability of success or occurrence.
“Caught” – apprehended, detected, or captured.
“To insure” – to provide financial coverage or protection against loss or damage through insurance.
“To ensure” – to make certain that something will happen or be the case.
“To overpower” – to defeat or overcome with greater strength or force.
“Altruistic” – unselfishly concerned with the well-being of others.
“To let off the hook” – to release or exempt from responsibility or punishment.
“A hook” – a curved or bent device used for catching, holding, or pulling.
“A hook in marketing” – an attention-grabbing feature or aspect used to entice customers or potential buyers.
“To call in” – to telephone or report to a central location or authority.
“To drop off” – to deliver or leave something or someone at a specified place.
“The stakes are high” – the potential consequences or risks are significant or great.
60 minutes
- listening comprehension
- vocabulary building
- speaking practice
Different topics each week. General English and Business English
Level: Intermediate or above.
For workshop invite email justin@multimediaenglish.org
For any questions and bookings please send mail
Check out my massive article How to prepare for a job interview in English for the non-native speaker
