Introduction

The featured video is “How to Succeed? Get More Sleep,” and is given by Arianna Huffington of the Huffington Post. The vocabulary in this video is very simple, although Arianna speaks quite quickly and with a pronounced accent.

Here are some of the more difficult words:

Vocabulary

Deprived adj – Lacking in something, for example being sleep-deprived or deprived of nutrients

Exhaustion n. – Physically or mentally extremely tired

Feminist adj./n. – Concerned with gender issues and aiming for gender equality

Brag v. – To boast about something crudely, such as “My dad just bought me a new car!”

One-upmanship n. – When a person wants to outdo someone else, and constantly “goes one better”

Hyper-connected adj. – “Hyper” means very; an example is that the internet now makes the world hyper-connected

Crisis/crises n. – A disaster or disasters

Faint v. – To pass out into a state of temporary unconsciousness

 

Listening Practice

Watch the following video. It will last 04:10. Try to answer the following questions to test your comprehension.

Comprehension Questions

1. What made her rediscover the value of sleep?
2. What is unfortunate for men?
3. Why are leaders making terrible decisions?
4. Why would Lehman Brothers benefit from having more women?
5. What are the benefits of sleep, according to Arianna Huffington?

Gap-fill

Watch the video again and fill in the blanks:

1. This is a room of ___________ women.
2. And I began the journey of ____________ the value of sleep.
3. And we women are going to lead the way in this new revolution, this new __________ issue.
4. I was recently having dinner with a guy who __________ that he had only gotten four hours sleep the night before.
5. And they think that means that they are so incredibly busy and __________.
6. We are facing all the multiple __________ in our world at the moment.

True or False?

Listen to the material and answer true or false to the following statements:

1. She fainted from exhaustion three and a half years ago.
2. Women are going to lead the revolution in getting more sleep.
3. Many men consider a lack of sleep to be a sign of strength.
4. In Washington DC, most people have breakfast at 8am.
5. Business leaders made terrible decisions because of their low IQs.
6. Ariana Huffington recommends we all get more sleep.

Speaking

Questions you might hear in the IELTS speaking exam on the topic of sleep, from part one.

• How many hours do you sleep each night?
• Why is it important to get a good night’s rest?
• Do you take a nap during the day?
• Do you like getting up early in the morning?
• Do people sleep more when they are children or elderly?

A question you might hear in the IELTS speaking exam on the topic of success, from part two:

“Describe something you have done in your life that was a success.

You should say:

What you did

When you did it

What problems you encountered

How you felt after achieving the success.”

 

 

Answers

Comprehension questions

• Fainting from exhaustion.
• Lack of sleep is a status symbol.
• Lack of foresight due to working too hard.
• Women work differently from men.
• Joy, gratitude, effectiveness, success.

Gap-fill

• sleep-deprived
• rediscovering
• feminist
• bragged
• productive
• crises

True or False?

• False – it was two and a half years ago.
• True
• True
• False – it is implied get up much earlier
• False – they have high IQs but still make mistakes
• True