Breaking News English Lesson: Famous Sights

Rome's mayor said the fee could raise $7.6 million a year. He said 30,000 people visited the attraction every day this year. That is over ten million visitors. City residents will not have to pay the fee. The mayor said: "Culture is a fundamental right of citizenship. The citizens of Rome can enjoy our museums free of charge." The fountain was completed in 1762. It depicts the god of all water, and symbolizes the wild force of the world's seas and rivers.

Try the same news story at these levels:

https://www.reuters.com/world/rome-charge-tourists-get-close-famed-trevi-fountain-2025-12-19/
https://www.dw.com/en/rome-to-introduce-entry-fee-for-historic-trevi-fountain/a-75248561
https://abcnews.go.com/Business/wireStory/visiting-trevi-fountain-now-cost-coin-toss-2-128563022

Make sure you try all of the online activities for this reading and listening - There are dictations, multiple choice activities, drag and drop activities, sentence jumbles, which word activities, text reconstructions, spelling, gap fills and a whole lot more. Please enjoy :-)

Buy my 1,000 Ideas and Activities for Language Teachers eBook. It has hundreds of ideas, activity templates, reproducible activities, and more.

$US 9.99

News

"Much has been said and written on the utility of newspapers; but one principal advantage which might be derived from these publications has been neglected; we mean that of reading them in schools."

The Portland Eastern Herald (June 8, 1795)

"News is history in its first and best form, its vivid and fascinating form, and. history is the pale and tranquil reflection of it."

Mark Twain, in his autobiography (1906)

"Current events provide authentic learning experiences for students at all grade levels. In studying current events, students are required to use a range of cognitive, affective, critical thinking and research skills."

Haas, M. and Laughlin, M. (2000) Teaching Current Events: It's Status in Social Studies Today.

Phrase Matching Paragraph 1

Rome will charge
get close to its world-
pay two euros to
deal with the growing numbers
suffering because of
There is a lot of congestion
people taking
the stonework surrounding

the fountain
get close to it
overtourism
in the summer
a fee
selfies
famous Trevi Fountain
of sightseers

Paragraph 2

the fee could
30,000 people visited
City residents will not have
Culture is a fundamental
enjoy our museums free
The fountain was
It depicts the god of
symbolizes the wild force

of charge
all water
right of citizenship
of the world's seas
raise $7.6 million
to pay the fee
completed in 1762
the attraction

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

Rome (1) ________________________________________________ fee to get close to its world-famous Trevi Fountain. From February, visitors will have to pay two euros to get (2) ________________________________________________. Rome wants to deal with the growing numbers of sightseers (3) ________________________________________________. The famous fountain is suffering because of overtourism. There is a (4) ________________________________________________ in the summer. Crowds and people taking selfies are (5) ________________________________________________. Visitors have also damaged the stonework (6) ________________________________________________.

Rome's mayor said the (7) ________________________________________________ $7.6 million a year. He said 30,000 people visited (8) ________________________________________________ day this year. That is over ten million visitors. City residents will not have to pay the fee. The mayor said: "Culture is (9) ________________________________________________ of citizenship. The citizens of Rome can enjoy our museums (10) ________________________________________________." The fountain was completed in 1762. It (11) ________________________________________________ of all water, and symbolizes the (12) ________________________________________________ the world's seas and rivers.

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

Romewillchargeafeetogetclosetoitsworld-famousTreviFountain.Fr omFebruary,visitorswillhavetopaytwoeurostogetclosetoit.Romewa ntstodealwiththegrowingnumbersofsightseersatthesight.Thefamou sfountainissufferingbecauseofovertourism.Thereisalotofcongestion inthesummer.Crowdsandpeopletakingselfiesaredamagingtheambia nce.Visitorshavealsodamagedthestoneworksurroundingthefountai n.Rome'smayorsaidthefeecouldraise$7.6millionayear.Hesaid30,00 0peoplevisitedtheattractioneverydaythisyear.Thatisovertenmillion visitors.Cityresidentswillnothavetopaythefee.Themayorsaid:"Cultu reisafundamentalrightofcitizenship.ThecitizensofRomecanenjoyour museumsfreeofcharge."Thefountainwascompletedin1762.Itdepicts thegodofallwater,andsymbolizesthewildforceoftheworld'sseasandri vers.

Student survey

Write five GOOD questions about this topic in the table. Do this in pairs. Each student must write the questions on his / her own paper. When you have finished, interview other students. Write down their answers.

(Please look at page 12 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

Discussion — Write your own questions

STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

(a) ________________

(b) ________________

(d) ________________

(e) ________________

(f) ________________

(g) ________________

(h) ________________

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

(i) ________________

(j) ________________

(k) ________________

(l) ________________

(m) ________________

(n) ________________

(o) ________________

(p) ________________

Free writing

Write about this topic for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

Answers

(Please check your answers against the article above.

Help Support This Web Site

Please consider helping Breaking News English.com

Sean Banville's Book

Download a sample of my book "1,000 Ideas & Activities for Language Teachers".

📎📎📎📎📎📎📎📎📎📎