boomerang-kids-british-english-teacher

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BUSINESS ENGLISH · BUSINESS ISSUES · INTERMEDIATE (B1-B2)
BOOMERANG
KIDS
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176F-86BB-1LCK
1 Warm up
In pairs, discuss the following questions.
1. How old were you when you left home for the first time? Or how old do you think you will be
when you leave home for the first time?
2. What was the reason you left home/will leave home for the first time?
3. In your country, at what age do people normally leave home? Why?
4. If someone who is 25 or older is living with their parents in your country, what do people usually
think of that situation? Why?
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INTERMEDIATE (B1-B2)
BOOMERANG KIDS
2 Focus on vocabulary
Match the following vocabulary to the correct definitions.
1. forecast (v) a. money borrowed, usually from a bank, that will be paid back,
often each month
2. the cost of living (n) b. say what you think is going to happen in the future, using
the evidence you have at the moment
3. income (n) c. the total amount of money someone receives from working,
businesses etc.
4. loan (n) d. a discussion between two or more people to reach a result
that everyone agrees with
5. negotiation (n) e. the amount of money needed to live, including how much
rent, food, energy bills and other essential items cost
6. retired (adj.) f. no longer working, usually because someone has reached an
age where they do not need to or can no longer work
7. fund (v) g. an agreement which is supported by the law
8. contract (n) h. give the money which is needed for something to happen,
often in an official way
Now put the vocabulary from Part A into the correct gaps in the following sentences. You may have
to change the form of the word.
1. My grandfather is a policeman who lives by the beach now. He moved out of

the city over 15 years ago.
2. He is using the money he made from his clothing business to his new business
which is making cheese.
3. The sales department is a difficult year and doesn’t expect sales to increase.
4. Out management team is in a with them at the moment, but I think they will
agree to sell the business.
5. I need to save some cash as I will have no for a month while I’m changing jobs.
6. I’m moving in with a friend in London which will help us both as is so high there.
7. The salary they offered after the interview is different to what is written in the ,
so I need to talk to my manager about that.
8. We’ve had several good years for the business in a row and we’ve nearly paid off the
we took with the bank.
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BOOMERANG KIDS
Now in pairs, discuss the following questions.
1. Have you ever had to take out a loan? What was it for? Is it easy to get a loan in your country?
2. Is the cost of living high in your country? What effect does the cost of living have on the way
people live there?
3. What do you expect to do with your life when you are retired?
4. Do people in your country often have more than one source of income? Why/why not?
5. Do you always read everything on a contract before you sign it? Why/why not?
6. Have you ever been involved in a negotiation with someone? What was it about? What was the
result?
3 Listening for details
Listen to the interview and tick the questions which you hear.
Where are we mostly seeing this trend? Will the child be paying rent?
Will the government help with the situation? Is it all positive?
What should the rules be? What does ‘boomerang kids’ mean?
What has created this situation? Will they be buying their own food?

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BOOMERANG KIDS
4 Listening comprehension
Listen to the interview again and decide if the following statements are True (T) or False (F).
1. The pandemic is the cause of the number of children moving back in with their parents.
2. One of the reasons for the situation is the amount needed to pay for rent, food, etc. has increased
so much.
3. Elderly parents can always afford to allow their children to return to the family home.
4. According to the Professor, it’s a good idea to decide what the rules are when an adult child moves
back into the home.
5. In Western societies, children generally leave their parents’ house in their late teens.
6. According to the Professor, boomerang kids always feel very positive about the decision to move
back home.
7. According to the Professor, spending time living with your parents as an adult can refresh your
relationship with them and create a more developed relationship.
5 Scanning for details
Quickly read through the article on page five about the return of ’boomerang kids’ and match the
numbers to what they mean.
18 34 5 52 55 9
a. The number of years Scott lived in the UAE
b. The number of years Scott lived abroad
c. The percentage of young adults living with their parents in July 2020.
d. The percentage increase in the number of young adults choosing to live with their parents between
2008 and 2017.
e. Scott’s age
f. The number of months Scott spent living with his parents

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BOOMERANG KIDS
Back again
The return of the boomerang kids
1. In January 2020, Scott resigned from his between 2008 and 2017, the number of 20 – 34-
management position with a construction company year-olds without children who chose to live with
in the UAE and made plans to fly back to the United their parents increased by 55%.
Kingdom. He’d spent five years in the Gulf and 4. The situation can be difficult. For many, they feel
four years before that in the United States and it as though they are going backwards and losing the
was time to go home. After so much time away, independence they had previously enjoyed. ‘There
he planned to stay with his parents for a couple of were definitely a few difficult conversations at the
months before moving to wherever he could find beginning,’ said Scott. ‘I ended up changing what
work. He could help them out with a few projects time I was used to going to bed and what times I
around the house and relax with them after not ate as I had to fit in with them. Their house, their
spending more than 10 days in their company for rules. I also wasn’t able to get a car and had to rely
the last 9 years. However, after only three weeks at on Dad to take me to a few appointments, which
home, the pandemic changed Scott’s plans. didn’t feel very cool at 34.’ Worry surrounding the
2. ‘The job market seemed to dry up overnight,’ said situation is common among boomerang kids, as they
Scott of the time. ‘I even had a company I was didn’t picture themselves doing this when they were
scheduled to interview with call me just a couple of younger, and it can make them feel as though they
hours before the Zoom call to tell me they’d had a have failed in some way.
hiring freeze and could no longer offer the position.’ 5. However, it can offer a good opportunity to create
Scott’s stay turned from a couple of months into a stable financial situation. For most, staying with
a couple of years. ‘Fortunately, I was able to find parents is a very cheap way of living, even if they
some freelance work which I was able to do from contribute towards bills. There’s also the opportunity
my parents’ house,’ he said. ‘My parents are in their it gives for children to rediscover their relationships
seventies, so for a while I couldn’t really risk leaving with their parents and spend a lot more quality time
the house or going to interviews as, if I caught Covid, with them. ‘I really enjoyed chatting with Mum and
I could easily pass it on to them.’ Dad about my day over an evening meal,’ said Scott.
3. Scott’s situation isn’t unusual, even before the ‘We watched a lot of crime films together, which
pandemic. He is part of an increasing trend of we all love, and talked a lot about the stories and
‘boomerang kids’, named because they leave home, our favourite actors. We connected over things we
and then return. In July 2020, research showed haven’t really done together since I was a teenager. It
that the number of young adults living with their turned out to be a really good 18 months of my life,
parents in the US sat at 52%. Meanwhile, research even if it was unexpected.’
by Loughborough University showed that in the UK, Sources: BBC, The Independent, The Times

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BOOMERANG KIDS
6 Scanning for vocabulary
Quickly read through the article on page five and find vocabulary which means the following.
1. say you no longer want to keep working at a particular place in an official way
(v, para. 1)
2. find that the supply of something has reduced to nothing or almost nothing
(phr. v, para. 2)
3. plan for a particular event to happen at a certain time (v, para. 2)
4. a situation when a company decides not to employ any new people, often
because of a poor financial situation (n phrase, para. 2)
5. selling your services by working for several different companies doing
temporary or part-time work (adj., para. 2)
6. need someone else to help you do something (phr. v, para. 4)
7. safe and unlikely to change (adj., para. 5)
8. help by giving time, money or goods to provide something for someone else
(v, para. 5)

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BOOMERANG KIDS
7 Reading comprehension
Complete the following text with one, two or three words from the article on page five.
Scott made the decision to return to the UK after five years working in
1
in the UAE. On arrival in the UK, he found it difficult to
find new work as a result of the pandemic which massively reduced what was available on
2
the .
3
wasn’t an option for him as his parents are elderly and he didn’t
want to risk infecting them, but luckily, he found some freelance work. These days, it
4
for adult children to live with their parents, and it’s a trend that
has been increasing since before the pandemic.
One of the challenges for boomerang kids is the feeling that they are
5
which they had previously found. Scott was forced to change
6
his routine in order to the way his parents lived. However,
Scott found that there were a lot of things he enjoyed, such as sharing his passion for
7
with his parents.
8
Although it was an event in his life, he found there was a lot that
he really enjoyed about it.
8 Talking point
In pairs, discuss the following questions.
1. What is your view on boomerang kids? Do you think it is a positive or a negative situation? Why?
2. Would you be comfortable living with your parents? Why/why not? If you live with your parents,
what do you like/dislike about it?
3. Would you be comfortable with your children returning to live with you in the future?
4. Do you think boomerang kids are a good thing for society generally or not? Why?

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BOOMERANG KIDS
9 Extended activity/homework
Read the following essay question.
The trend of adult children returning to live with their parents is not a healthy one. It is important
for adults to make their way in the world without help from their parents. Living with your parents
after the age of 21 is a sign that you have failed as a person.
To what extent do you agree with the above statement?
You should:
• Write at least 250 words
• Check your grammar, spelling and punctuation

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TEACHER MATERIALS · INTERMEDIATE (B1-B2)
BOOMERANG KIDS
Transcripts
3. Listening for details
Interviewer: And now we take a look at ‘boomerang kids’, the trend that has been
building for some time. Here to tell us more about the situation is Professor
Hopeworth. Professor, thank you for joining us!
Professor Hopeworth: Thanks for having me on.
Interviewer: So tell us, Professor, what does ‘boomerang kids’ mean?
Professor Hopeworth: It’s to describe the situation where we are seeing increasing numbers of
young adults choosing to return to live with their parents after they have
already moved out. They leave and then they come back, similar to the
famous tool used by Aboriginal Australians. The pandemic increased the
number of people doing this, but the percentage was increasing long before
the world knew about Covid-19 and it is forecasted to continue.
Interviewer: And what has created this situation?
Professor Hopeworth: There are several reasons. First of all, the cost of living has increased, making
it hard for a lot of young people to make the income they need to pay the
bills, particularly if they are studying full-time, or starting their own business,
or just not able to find work. It can also be a strategy for saving money if you
need to pay back student loans after university or you need to save money.
Short term pain for long term gain, some would say (laughs).
Interviewer: Is it all positive?
Professor Hopeworth: Well, no. There can be challenges for both the child and the parents when
boomerang kids move back in. It can require a negotiation over what the
rules will be: will the child be paying rent? Will they be buying their own
food? Parents who are retired, for example, may not have enough money
to fund their adult child’s life without some help. But then again, that adult
child can make a big difference to the cost of running their home in a positive
way. It depends on what you agree to. I’m not saying you need to sign a
contract, but you should certainly have an agreement that is understood by
both parents and children.
Interviewer: Where are we mostly seeing this trend?
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BOOMERANG KIDS
Professor Hopeworth: We are, of course, mainly talking about Western societies here. In Asian
cultures, there’s not as much importance placed on the idea of a child moving
out around the age of 18. In the US and the UK, there is very much the idea
that becoming an adult is strongly connected to moving out of your parents’
house. So, we see some boomerang kids struggling with the situation as they
feel as though they have somehow failed. However, we will see less of this as
the situation becomes more common. There are a lot of benefits emotionally
to spending more time with your parents too. It can help you reconnect as
adults and learn to do things together that are different from when you were
growing up.
Interviewer: Yes, very interesting. I’m afraid that’s all we have time for now. Thank you
for talking to us.
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BOOMERANG KIDS
Key
1. Warm up
5 mins.
This introduces the idea and gets students to think about the topic from their own perspective. You may want to
bring this back to a short class discussion to get an idea on general attitudes towards the issue.
2. Focus on vocabulary
Part A
5 mins.
Ensure students can pronounce the target vocabulary. Ask students to do this exercise unaided in the first instance,
but to use a reference to check their work later if required.
1. → b. 2. → e. 3. → c. 4. → a. 5. → d. 6. → f. 7. → h. 8. → g.
Part B
10 mins.
Ask students to predict which part of speech can fill the gaps before completing the exercise. When they have
completed it, ask them to discuss the questions in pairs or small groups to practise using the vocabulary. Circulate
and help as needed.
1. retired 2. fund 3. forecasting 4. negotiation
5. income 6. the cost of living 7. contract 8. loan
3. Listening for details
5 mins.
This gives students an opportunity to listen to the interview ahead of the main listening. You may want to tell
lower-level students that three of the questions are not used.
X Where are we mostly seeing this trend? X Will the child be paying rent?
X Is it all positive? X What does 1‘boomerang kids’ mean?
X What has created this situation? X Will they be buying their own food?
4. Listening comprehension
5 mins.
Allow students to listen again and encourage them to take notes to aid in their understanding of whether the
statements are True or False.
Note: You may want to explain that ‘Aboriginal Australians’ are the native inhabitants of Australia whose ancestors
have always lived on those lands.
1. False. ‘...the percentage was increasing long before the world knew about Covid-19...’
2. True. ‘First of all, the cost of living has increased, making it hard for a lot of young people to make the income
they need to pay the bills...’
3. False. ‘Parents who are retired, for example, may not have enough money to fund their adult child’s life without
some help.’
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BOOMERANG KIDS
4. True. ‘...you should certainly have an agreement that is understood by both parents and children.’
5. True. ‘We are, of course, mainly talking about Western societies here. In Asian cultures, there’s not as much
importance placed on the idea of a child moving out around the age of 18.’
6. False. ‘...we see some boomerang kids struggling with the situation as they feel as though they have somehow
failed.’
7. True. ‘It can help you reconnect as adults and learn to do things together that are different from when you
were growing up.
5. Scanning for details
5 mins.
This gives students practice scanning. You may want to set a time limit to encourage scanning rather than reading
for detail. Ask students to quickly look through and underline the numbers when they find them, then quickly
read around it to understand what it refers to.
a. 5 b. 9 c. 52 d. 55 e. 34 f. 18
6. Scanning for vocabulary
5 mins.
This provides students with vocabulary support for the article. You may want to set a strict time limit to encourage
scanning over reading in depth.
1. resign (v) 2. dry up (phr. v.) 3. schedule (v)
4. hiring freeze (n) 5. freelance (adj.) 6. rely on (phr. v)
7. stable (adj.) 8. contribute (v)
7. Reading comprehension
10 mins.
Ask students to read the article more carefully and complete the gaps with one, two or three words from the
article.
1. construction
2. job market
3. Leaving the house
4. isn’t unusual
5. losing the independence
6. fit in with
7. crime films
8. unexpected
8. Talking point
10 mins. Encourage student discussion. Monitor the task.
9. Extended activity/homework
45 mins+. Ask students to plan, write and edit their essays based on the work they have done during the lesson.
You may want to ask them to do additional research to improve the essay and then write the essay in class. Or
you may want them to complete it at home. Be sure to give students feedback on their work.
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HEAAADERLOGORIGHT

BUSINESS ENGLISH · BUSINESS ISSUES · INTERMEDIATE (B1-B2)

QrrkoD Scan to review worksheet

In pairs, discuss the following questions.

FOOOOTERRIGHT Learn without forgetting! 1/8

Match the following vocabulary to the correct deﬁnitions.

1. My grandfather is a policeman who lives by the beach now. He moved out of

FOOOOTERLEFT Learn without forgetting! 2/8

Now in pairs, discuss the following questions.

3 Listening for details

Will the government help with the situation? Is it all positive?

FOOOOTERRIGHT Learn without forgetting! 3/8

5 Scanning for details

a. The number of years Scott lived in the UAE

b. The number of years Scott lived abroad

f. The number of months Scott spent living with his parents

FOOOOTERLEFT Learn without forgetting! 4/8

FOOOOTERRIGHT Learn without forgetting! 5/8

6 Scanning for vocabulary

3. plan for a particular event to happen at a certain time (v, para. 2)

6. need someone else to help you do something (phr. v, para. 4)

7. safe and unlikely to change (adj., para. 5)

FOOOOTERLEFT Learn without forgetting! 6/8

In pairs, discuss the following questions.

FOOOOTERRIGHT Learn without forgetting! 7/8

Read the following essay question.

To what extent do you agree with the above statement?

FOOOOTERLEFT Learn without forgetting! 8/8

Professor Hopeworth: Thanks for having me on.

Interviewer: So tell us, Professor, what does ‘boomerang kids’ mean?

Interviewer: And what has created this situation?

Interviewer: Is it all positive?

Interviewer: Where are we mostly seeing this trend?

3. Listening for details

5. Scanning for details

6. Scanning for vocabulary

10 mins. Encourage student discussion. Monitor the task.

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