A: Discuss Spending Habits

Read the article. 

Life is full of choices. Should you buy the latest smartphone, or put your money in a savings account instead? Do you really need that phone, or is it a luxury you can live without? These are questions that are asked every day, and for many people, the answer is to reduce the amount of money they spend in order to increase their happiness. If you believe the TV commercials, the journey to a satisfying life is made in a beautiful new car. Owning nice things is supposed to produce good feelings in people. Now, though, more people are deciding not to waste their money on a new car when they can easily take the bus or drive an older car. Instead of doing things the usual way—working too much and enjoying life too little—they are choosing to focus on the quality of their lives. They're spending more time doing the things they love and less money buying things they don't need.

Complete each sentence with the correct word in blue. 

1. If you reduce something, you make it smaller.

2. The _____ way is the thing done most often in a certain situation.

3. The _____ of something is how good or bad it is.

4. If something is a _____, it’s very nice, but not necessary.

5. When you make _____, you decide what you want.

6. If something is _____, it makes people feel full or happy.

7. If you _____ something, you use too much of it for something unimportant.

8. The _____ of something is how much of it there is.

9. When you _____ something, you make it or cause it to happen.

10. If you do one thing _____ of another thing, you do the first thing and not the second.

Complete each sentence with the passive form of the verb in parentheses. 

Some things cost a lot because they (1) __________ (produce) by hand. Murano glass, for example, (2) __________ (make) by hand in Italy. Many colors (3) __________ (combine) to produce high-quality glass art. Younger glass artists (4) __________ (teach) by master artists with years of experience. Tourists like to buy the glass, and some of the best shops (5) __________ (locate) in Murano, Italy.

Match the beginning of each passive sentence to its ending. 

When are you willing to spend or save money? Write the items in the chart. 

- the phone I like is made in a new color.

- a new restaurant is opened in my neighborhood.

- a food I like is on sale at the grocery store.

- sneakers are worn by a famous athlete in an ad.

- your idea: _____________________________________