Click here for the PDF handout or try the online quiz, reading, listening, and activities on grammar, spelling and vocabulary for this lesson on Ikea. Click on the links below or see the activities below this article:
READ
IKEA is a Swedish furniture and home products retailer that has stores all over the world. It is famous for well-priced flat pack furniture that customers assemble at home. It also sells accessories and bathroom and kitchen items. It is the world's largest furniture retailer. IKEA was started in 1943 by 17-year-old Ingvar Kamprad from Elmtaryd in Agunnaryd, South Sweden. The IKEA acronym comes from the initials of the founder and the places he grew up. The company operates over 300 stores as franchises in 37 countries. It has over 12,000 products in its catalogue. The company employs over 125,000 people worldwide. IKEA’s vision is “to create a better everyday life for the many people…by offering a wide range of well-designed, functional home furnishing products at prices so low that as many people as possible will be able to afford them”.
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WORKSHEET ACTIVITIES
WARM-UPS
1. BRAINSTORM: Write all the words you can think of about IKEA on the board or on a piece of paper. Talk about these words with your partner(s).
2. IKEA MORNING: Each student pretends to be an employee of IKEA. They walk around the class and talk about the company and their job.
3. RUMOURS:Each student writes down a pretend rumour about IKEA. They then walk around the class and talk to other students about their rumour.
4. GOOD AND BAD:Brainstorm good and bad things about IKEA and write them on the board. Students talk about these in pairs.
5. TRUE OR FALSE:Students find out several facts about IKEA. They write these down and add the same number of things about the company that are false. Students test each other on which of their points are true or false.
6. FACTS:In groups, students write down as many facts as they can about IKEA. The winner is the group with the most facts. Teacher may wish to have groups share their facts to make sure they are real.
LISTENING / READING GAP FILL
IKEA is a Swedish furniture _____________________ that has stores all over the world. It is famous for _____________________ furniture that customers assemble at home. It _____________________ bathroom and kitchen items. It is the world's largest furniture retailer. IKEA was started in 1943 by 17-year-old Ingvar Kamprad from Elmtaryd in Agunnaryd, South Sweden. The IKEA _____________________ initials of the founder and _____________________. The company operates over 300 stores as franchises in 37 countries. It has over 12,000 products in its catalogue. The company employs over 125,000 people worldwide. IKEA’s vision is “to create _____________________ for the many people…by _____________________ of well-designed, functional home furnishing products at prices so low that as many people as possible _____________________ them”.
CORRECT THE SPELLING
IKEA is a Swedish furniture and home products tilrreae that has stores all over the world. It is famous for well-ceprdi flat pack furniture that customers assemble at home. It also sells accessories and bathroom and kitchen mstei. It is the world's largest furniture retailer. IKEA was started in 1943 by 17-year-old Ingvar Kamprad from Elmtaryd in Agunnaryd, South Sweden. The IKEA yraomcn comes from the linaitis of the founder and the places he grew up. The company teaerspo over 300 stores as franchises in 37 countries. It has over 12,000 products in its catalogue. The company elpsymo over 125,000 people worldwide. IKEA’s vision is “to create a better ryevadey life for the many people…by goierfnf a wide range of well-designed, functional home furnishing products at prices so low that as many people as possible will be able to fdoarf them”.
UNJUMBLE THE WORDS
IKEA is a Swedish home furniture products and retailer that has stores all over the world. It is famous for well-pack flat priced customers that furniture assemble at home. It also sells accessories and bathroom and kitchen items. It retailer furniture largest world's the is. IKEA was started in 1943 by 17-year-old Ingvar Kamprad from Elmtaryd in Agunnaryd, South Sweden. The IKEA acronym of initials the from comes the founder and the places he grew up. The company operates over 300 countries 37 in franchises as stores. It has over 12,000 products catalogue The employs its . company in over 125,000 people worldwide. IKEA’s vision is “to create a people everyday for many better life the…by offering a wide range of well-designed, functional home furnishing at as prices many so people low products that as possible will be able to afford them”.
ikea is a swedish furniture and home products retailer that has stores all over the world it is famous for well-priced flat pack furniture that customers assemble at home it also sells accessories and bathroom and kitchen items it is the world's largest furniture retailer ikea was started in 1943 by 17-year-old ingvar kamprad from elmtaryd in agunnaryd south sweden the ikea acronym comes from the initials of the founder and the places he grew up the company operates over 300 stores as franchises in 37 countries it has over 12000 products in its catalogue the company employs over 125000 people worldwide ikea’s vision is “to create a better everyday life for the many people…by offering a wide range of well-designed functional home furnishing products at prices so low that as many people as possible will be able to afford them”
CHOOSE THE CORRECT TENSE
IKEA .......... (be) a Swedish furniture and home products retailer that .......... (have) stores all over the world. It .......... (be) famous for well-priced flat pack furniture that customers assemble at home. It also .......... (sell) accessories and bathroom and kitchen items. It .......... (be) the world's largest furniture retailer. IKEA .......... (be) started in 1943 by 17-year-old Ingvar Kamprad from Elmtaryd in Agunnaryd, South Sweden. The IKEA acronym .......... (come) from the initials of the founder and the places he .......... (grow) up. The company .......... (operate) over 300 stores as franchises in 37 countries. It .......... (have) over 12,000 products in its catalogue. The company employs over 125,000 people worldwide. IKEA’s vision is “to .......... (create) a better everyday life for the many people…by offering a wide range of well-designed, functional home furnishing products at prices so low that as many people as possible will be able to .......... (afford) them”.
IKEA is a Swedish furniture and home products ____________ that has stores all over the world. It is famous for well-____________ flat pack furniture that customers assemble at home. It also sells accessories and bathroom and kitchen ____________. It is the world's largest furniture retailer. IKEA was started in 1943 by 17-year-old Ingvar Kamprad from Elmtaryd in Agunnaryd, South Sweden. The IKEA ____________ comes from the initials of the founder and the places he grew up. The company ____________ over 300 stores as franchises in 37 countries. It has over 12,000 products in its ____________. The company employs over 125,000 people worldwide. IKEA’s ____________ is “to create a better everyday life for the many people…by offering a wide ____________ of well-designed, functional home furnishing products at prices so ____________ that as many people as possible will be able to ____________ them”.
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PROJECT IKEA
Part 1. Your mission is to increase the profits and sales of IKEA. Complete this table with your project partner(s):
Main products
How to improve them
A brand new ‘killer’ product
How IKEA is better than the competition
How to beat the competition
Part 2. Change partners and look at their project. Suggest improvements. Ask for advice on your project:
Part 3. Make a presentation on your project. Give it to the class. Vote the best projects.
IKEA – ROLE PLAY 1
Role A – IKEA CEO
You believe your company is the best in the world. It pays its workers very well and working conditions are great. Your company is very green – it cares about the environment. You think your levels of customer service are great. Disagree with person B, C and D.
Role B – IKEA worker
You think it’s a bad company to work for. You’re very unhappy with pay, raises and bonuses. You are very unhappy with the working environment. You don’t like the company’s policy on the environment. You keep hearing profits are more important than customers. Disagree with A and C. Tell D the truth.
Role C – IKEA customer
You are a customer of IKEA. You used to think it was great, but not now. Its workers are always very rude. No one ever answers the phone. You are shocked about its policy on the environment. You think all staff should get less pay. You disagree with person A and B. Tell D the truth.
Role D – A journalist
You keep hearing bad things about IKEA. You want to tell the world in your newspaper. You heard the CEO gets a huge bonus every year. You found a company memo saying profits are more important than the environment. You want to know why so many staff are ill. Find the truth.
IKEA – ROLE PLAY 2
Role A – IKEA New Products Director
You have created a new product for IKEA. You believe the new product will be the company’s best ever. It will be a bestseller. There are people who do not agree with you. You need B, C and D on your side. Tell them why this is a product that will bring great things to IKEA.
Role B – IKEA Marketing Director
You think the company’s new product is a really bad idea. It will give your company a really bad name. You think the New Products Director is trying to destroy the company. Try to get him/her to understand there’s no way the new product will sell. Try to get person C and D on your side.
Role C – IKEA Market Researcher
You have interviewed thousands of people about the new product. They don’t like it or hate it. You think it will be successful if they make many changes. Tell the New Products Director he/she needs to change the product. You neither like nor trust person B. Disagree will him/her.
Role D – IKEA Shareholder
You know a lot about IKEA’s new product. You are worried it will not sell and share prices will go down. You think A is crazy and must find a new job. You agree with everything B says. You don’t agree with C. The new product should not go on the market.
Write a letter of apology to the customer. Explain why you cannot give a refund. Show your partner your letter. Correct each other’s work.
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HOMEWORK
1. VOCABULARY EXTENSION: Choose several of the words from the text. Use a dictionary or Google’s search field (or another search engine) to build up more associations / collocations of each word.
2. INTERNET INFO: Search the Internet and find more information about IKEA. Talk about what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.
3. MAGAZINE ARTICLE:Write a magazine article about IKEA. What have they done recently? What are their plans? Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Give each other feedback on your articles.
4. IKEA POSTERMake a poster about IKEA. Make sure you sell the company to the public. Show it to your classmates in the next lesson. Give each other feedback on your posters.
5. MY IKEA LESSON:Make your own English lesson on IKEA. Make sure there is a good mix of things to do. Find some good online activities. Teach the class / another group when you have finished.
6. ONLINE SHARING:Use your blog, wiki, Facebook page, MySpace page, Twitter stream, Del-icio-us / StumbleUpon account, or any other social media tool to get opinions on IKEA. Share your findings with the class.
ANSWERS
Check your answers in the article at the top of this page.
