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Workbook 1 - p.06

WORK ACTIVITY6

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14 views2 pages

Workbook 1 - p.06

WORK ACTIVITY6

Uploaded by

jorge.usainternational
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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READING

A. Read the article. Then choose the main idea of each paragraph.

Is better or worse to be an only child?

If you are an only child someone with no brothers or sisters — you have probably been
the object of both sympathy and suspicion. "Oh, you poor thing!” some people say. "You must
have been so lonely!" Other people might not say much, but you know they are thinking that
you are selfish, spoiled, and have no idea how to get along with others. People assume that
only children are somehow at a disadvantage because of their lack of siblings, and this idea has
probably been around as long as only children have.

Recent studies, however, have shown that the stereotype of the only child is really just a
myth. Only children show very little difference from children with siblings, and as adults they
are just as likely to be well adjusted. One slight difference they show from children with
multiple siblings is that they often score higher on intelligence and achievement tests. But first-
born children and those with only one sibling have similar results, so we can't really say this is
a characteristic of the only child, either. The one undeniable difference is that only children get
more of their parents' time and attention for the simple reason that there are fewer demands
on the parents. The same goes for educational opportunities — there tend to be more
resources available in single-child households. However, there is little evidence that this has
long-term benefits for only children.

For some reason, though, popular opinion and culture seem to have a hard time
accepting the fact that only children are just like everyone else. Movies and TV shows still
portray "onlies" as socially awkward and expecting to get whatever they ask for. What keeps
the stereotype alive? Could it be that most of us have wished - at one point or another—to be
an only child? At least we wouldn't have had to deal with siblings playing with our toys,
borrowing our clothes, and eating that last piece of cake we had saved for later.

1. First paragraph:

a. Only children all wish they had siblings.

b. Only children think other children are selfish.

c. Many people make assumptions about only children.


2. Second paragraph:

a. Only children really are different from children with siblings.

b. Only children are basically the same as those with siblings.

c. No one has really studied only children.

3. Third paragraph:

a. The popular view of only children seems difficult to change.

b. The popular view of only children has changed recently.

c. The popular view of only children is based on facts.

B Are the statements true or false? Choose the correct answer. Then rewrite the false
statements to make them true.

1. Some people feel sorry for only children. T( ) F( )

_________________________________________________________________.

2. When only children grow up, they are less sociable than children with siblings. T( ) F( )

_________________________________________________________________.

3. Only children are more intelligent than children with siblings. T( ) F( )

_________________________________________________________________.

4. According to the author, people's ideas about only children need to change. T( ) F( )

_________________________________________________________________.

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