A: Questionnaire

Fill out this questionnaire by circling Yes or No. Then share your answers with a partner.

1. Do you or any of your family use a cellular phone? Yes/No
2. If yes, do you drive while talking on your cellular phone? Yes/No
3. Do you think that talking on a cellular phone while driving restricts:

a. your vision? Yes/No
b. your hearing? Yes/No
c. your steering ability? Yes/No
d. your driving concentration? Yes/No

 

B: Vocabulary

Today's article uses some words associated with law and crime. Work with a partner and try to complete the sentences with the most suitable ending.

Sentences

1. To pioneer a new law is to...
2. An ordinance is...
3. A misdemeanor crime is...
4. If a person commits an offense, he or she...
5. If a law offers some leeway, then it...

Suggested answer 1. e, 2. a, 3. b, 4. c, 5. d,

Endings

a. ...an order of a local government.
b. ...a minor crime or illegal act.
c. ...carries out a crime.
d. ...is not strictly enforced.
e. ...be the first one(s) to develop a new law.

Reading Activities

A. True or False?

Read these statements and quickly scan the article to check if they are True [ T ] or False [ F ].

1. The name of the suburb mentioned in the article is Cleveland.
2. The suburb is the first in America to introduce a law about holding a cellular phone while driving.
3. If drivers talk on their cellular phones they are breaking the new law.
4. Seat belt laws were introduced in this suburb in 1986.
5. The Mayor wants people to concentrate on their driving.
   Suggested answer 1. False 2. True 3. False (As long as a driver keeps both hands on the wheel while talking on a cellular phone) 4. False 5. True
   

Town Warns Drivers: Get a Grip While on Phone Friday March 26 BROOKLYN, Ohio (Reuters) - The Cleveland suburb that pioneered seat belt laws more than 30 years ago has found a new way to force safer driving -- make motorists using cellular phones keep both hands on the steering wheel. Brooklyn Police Chief James Maloney said Thursday his officers have issued two warnings since City Council passed a first-of-its-kind ordinance requiring drivers talking on their cellular phones to keep both hands on the wheel. The misdemeanor offense could result in a fine of $100, although some leeway was granted for emergency calls, Maloney said. Motorists would normally have to violate more than the cellular phone law to get stopped, he added. The cellular phone ordinance was the idea of Mayor John Coyne, who was also the force behind Brooklyn's groundbreaking seat belt law in 1966. "People using cellular phones has definitely reached epidemic proportions, so if there's anything we can do to keep their minds on their driving, that's a good thing,'' Maloney said. Copyright 1999 Reuters Limited.

B: Check Your Understanding

Show you understand the main points of the article by completing the following statements:

1. By law, Brooklyn drivers using cellular phones must...
2. If drivers are found breaking this law, they might have to...

3. Not only did Mayor John Coyne help create the new cellular phone law, but he also...

4. The purpose of this new law is...

Suggested answer 1. ...keep both hands on the steering wheel. 2. ...pay a fine of $100. 3. ...pioneered the seat belt law in Brooklyn in 1966. 4. ...to get drivers talking on cellular phones to keep their minds on their driving.

C: Vocabulary

Writers often use words of similar meaning (synonyms) in a text instead of using the same word more than once. Look at these words from the article and find synonyms for them in the article:

1. force

2. first-of-its-kind

3. ordinance

4. drivers

Suggested answer 1. make 2. groundbreaking 3. law 4. motorists

D: Language

We sometimes use to + infinitive to show that something is/was done in order to get a result. Look at the following examples:

I studied at university to get a degree.

Margaret listens to soft music to relax.

 

Complete the following sentences using the infinitive form of the verb. Try not to look back at the article but use your own words.

1. Mayor John Coyne pioneered seat belt laws more than 30 years ago to...

2. He said the new cellular phone law was created to...

3. Drivers would have to break more than the cellular phone law to...

4. People place two hands, rather than one hand, on the steering wheel to...

Suggested answer 1. ...reduce the number of automobile deaths due to passengers and drivers not wearing seat belts. 2. ...keep drivers' minds on their driving. 3. ...get stopped by police. 4. ...keep the car under control.