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Poverty, Homelessness, and Social Support

B2 Core Vocabulary & Pronunciation Workshop

⏱️ 20 mins Level B2

How to use this lesson

🧑‍🏫 For the teacher

Give learners 6 minutes to study the word table and listen to the models.

Have them complete the practice tasks individually, then check answers together using the short notes.

🎒 For the learner

Read through the word table first and test yourself with the quick memory tips.

Finish the 16 practice questions, then record your voice in the shadowing section to build natural rhythm.

SECTION 1

Word table

Study the 10 target words across three everyday themes. Pay close attention to word forms and memory tips.

Word	Meaning	Collocations	Word forms	Example sentence	Memory tip
Theme 1: Hard times
poverty	The state of having little or no money or resources.	extreme poverty, live in poverty, poverty line	poor (adj)	Many elderly people still live below the poverty line.	Word link: poverty is the state of being poor.
hardship	Severe difficulty or pain caused by lack of basic things.	face hardship, economic hardship, severe hardship	–	The closure of the factory brought great hardship to the town.	Word parts: hard + ship = life feels like a hard voyage.
hunger	The painful condition of not having enough food to eat.	suffer from hunger, world hunger, hunger strike	hungry (adj)	Millions of young children suffer from chronic hunger every day.	Contrast: feeling hungry lasts hours; hunger lasts months.
household	A group of people, usually a family, living together under one roof.	low-income household, household bills, head of household	–	Rising energy bills put huge strain on every low-income household.	Picture: a house that holds everyone together.
Theme 2: Losing a home
eviction	The legal process of forcing a tenant to leave a property.	face eviction, eviction notice, illegal eviction	evict (v)	The family was served an eviction notice after missing three rent payments.	Word part: e- (out) + vict (conquer) = forced out of your home.
homeless	Having nowhere permanent and safe to live.	become homeless, homeless people, homeless shelter	homelessness (n)	Local volunteer shelters offer warm beds to homeless individuals.	Suffix: home + -less = lacking a safe shelter.
rent	A regular payment made to a landlord for the use of property.	pay rent, rent increase, monthly rent	–	Half of their monthly wage goes straight into paying the rent.	Sound link: rent takes a dent out of your paycheck.
Theme 3: Help
grant	A sum of money given by an authority for a specific purpose.	apply for a grant, government grant, award a grant	–	The student received a government grant to help with living costs.	Sound link: granted money never has to be paid back.
assistance	Help, aid, or practical support given to someone in need.	financial assistance, seek assistance, provide assistance	assist (v)	The charity provides emergency financial assistance during winter.	Contrast: assist is the verb, assistance is the noun form.
donation	Money or goods given voluntarily to help a cause or charity.	make a donation, generous donation, food donation	donate (v), donor (n)	A generous private donation funded the new community food bank.	Root: don- means give; a donor gives a donation.

SECTION 2

Practice (16 items)

Work through these four practice tasks from easy collocations to word building.

A Collocation matrix: Match verbs to natural nouns

Select the single noun that forms a strong natural collocation with both verbs in each row.

1. Which noun pairs naturally with: face / suffer?

____ grant ____ hardship ____ rent ____ household

2. Which noun pairs naturally with: face / receive (a legal notice)?

____ hunger ____ eviction ____ donation ____ poverty

3. Which noun pairs naturally with: pay / increase?

____ rent ____ homeless ____ hardship ____ household

4. Which noun pairs naturally with: provide / seek?

____ assistance ____ hunger ____ eviction ____ poverty

B Gap-fills: Everyday community dialogues

Type the missing word from the bank into the blank.

Word Bank: household hunger homeless rent donation poverty grant eviction

A: "Rising energy bills mean that almost every low-income [ ___ ] in our town is cutting back on meals."
B: "That's awful. No child should have to live like that."

Your word: ____

A: "Without affordable housing options, many vulnerable people will become [ ___ ] this winter."
B: "Yes, community shelters are already at full capacity."

Your word: ____

A: "A generous local business made a cash [ ___ ] to our community soup kitchen."
B: "That will buy fresh groceries for hundreds of families."

Your word: ____

A: "Did your community youth center secure funding?"
B: "Yes, we were awarded an emergency government [ ___ ] to keep our doors open."

Your word: ____

C Choose the word: Context and precision

All three choices fit the grammar, but only one matches the real meaning of the sentence.

9. The university clinic applied for an official _____ to support free healthcare for poor residents.

____ hunger ____ grant ____ eviction

10. Emergency trucks delivered flour and clean water to prevent widespread _____ after the drought.

____ hunger ____ assistance ____ rent

11. The tenant received a formal notice of _____ after he stopped paying for his flat.

____ eviction ____ donation ____ household

12. Senior citizens living alone can request free medical _____ from social workers each week.

____ hardship ____ assistance ____ homeless

D Word-formation: Build the correct form

Use only the exact word forms given in the lesson table (for example assist, donate, donor).

13. Many [POVERTY] families struggle to pay for basic heating during the winter months.

Form: ____

14. The school provides a free breakfast club for [HUNGER] students before classes start.

Form: ____

15. The court ruled that the landlord had no legal right to [EVICTION] the elderly tenant.

Form: ____

16. Rising housing costs are causing a sharp increase in youth [HOMELESS] across big cities.

Form: ____

SECTION 3

Shadowing (12 items)

Listen to the native pronunciation, click to speak, and record yourself imitating natural speech rhythm.

1. Collocation 2 words

severe poverty

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

2. Collocation 2 words

face eviction

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

3. Collocation 2 words

monthly rent

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

4. Collocation 2 words

financial assistance

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

5. Sentence 6 words

Many poor families need urgent help.

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

6. Sentence 6 words

They received a small government grant.

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

7. Sentence 6 words

She made a generous food donation.

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

8. Sentence 7 words

The charity helps homeless people every day.

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

9. Sentence 7 words

High rent forces people into deep debt.

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

10. Sentence 7 words

Hungry children cannot study well at school.

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

11. Focus: Hardship 6 words

Families face extreme hardship this winter.

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

12. Focus: Household 7 words

Each household pays a small water fee.

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

🎯 Excellent effort! Re-listen to your recordings to ensure smooth connected speech.

Vocabulary & Pronunciation: Poverty & Social Support

Poverty, Homelessness, and Social Support

How to use this lesson

Word table

Practice (16 items)

A Collocation matrix: Match verbs to natural nouns

B Gap-fills: Everyday community dialogues

C Choose the word: Context and precision

D Word-formation: Build the correct form

Shadowing (12 items)

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