SESSION 8: EXERCISES WORKING WITH THE TEXT

SESSION 8: EXERCISES WORKING WITH THE TEXT

NOTE: IN ORDER TO WORK WITH THE TEXT, UNDERSTAND AND PREPARE IT BETTER I RECOMMEND THESE EXERCISES.

THERE WILL BE TWO TYPES OF EXERCISES:

1. EXERCISES WORKING WITH THE TEXT: THESE ARE EXERCISES FOCUSING ON THE READING COMPREHENSION, WORKING WITH VOCABULARY AND EXPRESSIONS.
2. EXERCISES FOR DISCUSSION: EXERCISES FOCUSING ON THE PREPARATION FOR THE DISCUSSION.

1. EXERCISES WORKING WITH THE TEXT

1.1 TRUE/FALSE: Look at the article and guess whether these sentences are true (T) or False (F):
a. People who eat lots of Mediterranean food are generally miserable.
b. Researchers said you need to be rich to eat lots of whole grain food.
c. Those in Mediterranean countries are the most depressed Europeans.
d. The writer says live oil is needed with meals in Italy, Spain and Greece.
e. Scientists studied 10,000 people for about four years.
f. A Mediterranean diet can reduce the risk of depression by 30%.
g. Scientists say the diet reduces depression because it is low in fats.
h. The authors say the diet can have a bad effect on our blood vessels.

1.2 SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article:
1. follow ................. a. probable
2. published ............ b. improve
3. likely .................. c. eating
4. laid back .............. d. uncertain
5. complete .............. e. stick to
6. Keep track of ......... f. finished
7. dietary ................. g. work
8. unsure .................. h. printed
9. boost ................... i. note down
10. perform .............. j. relaxed

1.3 PHRASE MATCH: Match the following phrases from the article (sometimes more than one option is possible):
1. People who follow .................. a. develop depression
2. a diet that is rich .................... b. developing depression
3. less likely to .......................... c. against depression
4. more laid back ....................... d. what they ate
5. olive oil protects ..................... e. habits
6. keep track of .......................... f. a Mediterranean diet
7. scientists observed dietary .......... g. of depression
8. a thirty per cent lower risk of ....... h. in vegetables
9. reduces the likelihood ................. i. to produce oxygen
10. increase the body’s efficiency ...... j. than other Europeans

1.4 GAP FILL: Put the words into the gaps in the text:

mental - whole - complete - likely - previous - protects - authors - explain
People who follow a Mediterranean diet are ____________ to be happier in life. This is the conclusion of a new report published in the journal ‘Archives of General Psychiatry’. The study’s ____________ say a diet that is rich in vegetables, fruits, nuts, ____________ grains and fish seems to make people less likely to develop depression. This may ____________ why people who live in Mediterranean countries are more laid back than other Europeans. There are fewer ____________ disorders in Mediterranean countries and scientists believe this could be because of the diet. The new research supports ____________ studies that suggested olive oil ____________ against depression. No Italian, Spanish or Greek meal is ____________ without olive oil.

unsure -risk - track - perform - blood - natural - habits - stuck

Researchers from Spain’s University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and the Clinic of the University of Navarra, Pamplona asked 10,000 people to keep ____________ of what they ate. The scientists observed dietary ____________ and instances of depression for four years. They discovered there was a thirty per cent lower ____________ of developing depression in people who ____________ to the Mediterranean diet. The research team says it is still ____________ why this diet reduces the likelihood of depression. They said the diet could boost ____________ vessel performance and increase the body’s efficiency to produce oxygen. Both these things make the brain and heart ____________ better. If our mind and body are healthier, it seems ____________ we will be happier.