Listening for Details in News Reports
CEFR Level B1Lesson Goals
In this lesson, you will practice extracting key factual information (like names, places, and reasons) from short English news reports.
The '5 Ws' of a News Report
To understand the news, it helps to listen for specific information. Most news reports answer five basic questions, known as the '5 Ws'. When you listen, focus on finding the answers to these questions:
- Who? — The people or groups involved.
- What? — The main event or action that happened.
- Where? — The location of the event.
- When? — The time or date of the event.
- Why? — The reason or cause of the event.
Listening for these five things will help you understand the main points of any news story quickly.
Key Tip: Prepare Before You Listen
A great strategy for listening tests and real-life situations is to prepare for what you are about to hear. If you have questions to answer, read them before you listen.
By reading the questions first, you know exactly what information to listen for. This turns listening from a passive activity into an active search for facts.
Practice Activities
Listen to the news reports in the audio player. For each report, answer the '5 Ws' questions.
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A Local Event
"Good evening. The city of Siem Reap opened a new public library today. The mayor, Mr. Chea Sokun, cut the ribbon at a ceremony this morning. He said the library was built to provide more educational resources for students and the community."
- What was opened?
- Where was it opened?
- When did it open?
- Who opened it?
- Why was it built?
Show Answers
A new public library; In Siem Reap; Today; The mayor, Mr. Chea Sokun; To provide educational resources.
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A Weather Warning
"The Ministry of Environment has issued a warning for heavy rain across northern Cambodia, including Siem Reap province. The warning is for this weekend, from Friday to Sunday. Officials are advising residents to be careful of potential flooding because of a powerful storm system moving in from the east."
- Who issued the warning?
- What is the warning about?
- Where is the warning for?
- When is the warning for?
- Why was the warning issued?
Show Answers
The Ministry of Environment; Heavy rain; Northern Cambodia; This weekend (Friday to Sunday); Because of a powerful storm system.
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A Community Event
"An international charity organization will host a clean-up event at the Tonlé Sap lake this Saturday. The event will begin at eight A.M. Volunteers will collect plastic and other trash from the lakeside to help protect the local environment."
- Who is hosting the event?
- What is the event?
- Where will it be?
- When will it begin?
- Why are they doing it?
Show Answers
An international charity organization; A clean-up event; At the Tonlé Sap lake; This Saturday at 8 AM; To help protect the local environment.
Vocabulary
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Factual Information (noun phrase) [ព័ត៌មានពិត]
Details that are true, real, and can be proven.
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News Report (noun) [សេចក្តីរាយការណ៍ព័ត៌មាន]
A spoken or written story about a recent event.
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To issue (a warning) (verb) [ចេញ (ការព្រមាន)]
To formally and officially announce something to the public.
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Resident (noun) [អ្នកស្រុក]
A person who lives in a particular place.
Your Mission
Ready to test your skills? Complete these tasks to practice listening for details.
- Be a News Reporter: Find a short (1-2 minute) news report in English online. Good sources are VOA Learning English or BBC News. Listen two or three times and write down the answers to as many of the '5 Ws' as you can find.
- Create Your Own Report: Think of a small, real event that happened recently (e.g., a new coffee shop opened, there was a local football match). Write a short, two-sentence news report about it. Make sure you include the Who, What, Where, and When.