The life of youth. Youth problems. Teenage groups and movements

Some people say that youth is the most wonderful period in a person’s life. Young people are usually full of optimism and positive energy. They enjoy their life!

Other people think that youth is a very complicated period when young people are undergoing the painful transition from childhood to independence. They are also sure that young people face too many problems nowadays.

So, today in the lesson we will:

● talk about the life of youth;

● discuss youth problems;

● talk about teenage groups and movements;

And

● put the knowledge into practice.

Youth is the most important period in every person’s life. It’s also the time when a person is trying to find his place in the world.

The desire of young people to become qualified specialists in future motivates them to enter higher educational establishments.

For young people higher education is the method of developing their talents and abilities, their creative potential.

That’s why…

Colleges and universities have a great variety of different clubs for young people. For example, there are:

Sport clubs, where young people can play basketball, football, tennis, etc.

Theatre clubs, where they can stage different literary works.

Music clubs, where young people are taught to sing and dance.

Art clubs, where they can learn how to draw and paint.

Religious clubs, where young people can learn more about their faith.

Volunteer clubs, where they can do something good without being forced or paid for this.

And so on.

– In my opinion, youth is a very complicated period, because young people have to make some very important decisions, which will influence all their future life.

– Charles, I totally agree with you! It may seem that young people, especially teenagers, have no problems, as they don’t work, take care of their families or have any responsibilities. But it’s not true! They have lots of different problems.

Now let’s discuss some of the youth problems!

1. Choosing a career

It’s probably the most vital problem, because choosing a career is really difficult. It is widely known that the future of young people depends on this choice. That is why they must choose a career with utmost care analyzing all advantages and disadvantages.

2. Getting education

There are a lot of educational institutions in the world, but the quality of education is different. Some institutions prepare specialists who can easily find a prestigious and well-paid job, others offer their graduates only poor-paid positions.

It’s a great problem to find a suitable institute and a profession for the rest of your life. But it’s very important as making the wrong choice will influence your future life.

3. Poverty and money

Some families give pocket money to their children for buying things for themselves such as fashion clothes, makeup, etc. Others don’t have the opportunity to do that. In large or poor families children have to work to pay for extra clothes, things necessary for hobbies or things they want to have.

4. Independence

All young people want to be independent and free in the way of living, making friends, spending free time, clothing and style. In order to find something new, they often ignore social rules. As a result, it becomes difficult for young people to find common language with adults.

This can lead to the following problem…

5. Generation gap

Generation gap is a difference in values and attitudes between one generation and another, especially between young people and their parents.

Teenagers often consider their parents old-fashioned. And parents sometimes don’t want to understand modern views, ideals and system of values.

6. Friendship and loneliness

It is difficult to find good friends. A good friend will never betray you. You can share all the good times and the bad times with him. If you have a good friend, you will never feel lonely.

Unfortunately, there are many shy and unsociable young people in the world. It is very difficult for them to start a conversation with a stranger or to make new friends. As a result, they feel lonely and miserable.

Now let’s read the letter from our pen friend Freddie. He wants to tell you about the problems he faced.

“Hi, guys. Today I would like to tell you about the two problems I faced when I was younger.

I was 16 years old when I got into bad company. I started smoking and taking drugs, because I wanted to look more mature and cool.

I started with light cigarettes. After a while my fake friends gave me a cigarette with a narcotic inside. Then I changed to injection. And day by day I became totally dependent on this deadly habit. I wanted to get new emotions, stimulate my imagination and creative abilities. But, on the contrary, drugs turned me into a passive and lazy person without any interests. My life became focused on the need to get and apply drugs.

Luckily, my parents helped me to cope with those problems. I’m very grateful to them for that!”

Guys, we’ve talked about different youth problems. Now…

Look at the pictures and write the name of the problem under each of them!

Let’s check the right answers!

1. The problem of independence

2. Friendship and loneliness

3. Smoking

4. Choosing a career

5. Getting education

6. Taking drugs

7. Generation gap

8. Poverty and money

Great! Now…

Answer the questions!

1. What problems did Freddie face when he was 16 years old?

Let’s check!

When he was 16 years old, he started smoking and taking drugs.

2. How did drugs change Freddie’s personality?

Check yourselves!

Freddie became a passive and lazy person without any interests.

3. Why did he start smoking and taking drugs?

Let’s check!

He started smoking and taking drugs, because he wanted to look more mature and cool.

4. Who helped Freddie to cope with the problems?

Check yourselves!

Freddie’s parents helped him to cope with his problems.

Now let’s talk about teenage groups and movements.

A lot of teenagers join different groups and movements nowadays. Some of them do that to protest against their parents or rebel against the older generation. Others want to show their solidarity with likeminded friends.

There are a lot of different subcultures, so young people can find a group or a movement that will suit their interests.

A subculture is any group with a distinct style and identity. Different subcultures have their own beliefs, values, fashion and favourite music.

Now look! These people belong to different groups and they would like to tell you about them.

“Hi. I’m Tyler. And I belong to the punk subculture. We are aggressive and cruel sometimes. We like to listen to loud and violent music, wear strange clothes and hair of unusual colours.”

“Hey. I’m Frank. And I belong to the goth subculture. We see the world as a dark place and like it that way. With white makeup, black or purple hair, black fingernails and clothes, we certainly stand out in the crowd.”

“Hi. I’m Jacob. I belong to the hipster subculture. We usually follow the latest trends and fashions. We are independent thinkers and believe in progressive politics.”

“Hey. I’m Kyle. I belong to the emo subculture. We usually wear black clothes and listen to romantic or sad music. We are often nervous, worried and unhappy.”

You’ve just listened to Tyler, Frank, Jacob and Kyle. Now…

Match the people with their speech bubbles!

Let’s check the right answers!

One

I belong to the goth subculture. We see the world as a dark place.

Two

I belong to the hipster subculture. We usually follow the latest trends and fashions.

Three

I belong to the emo subculture. We are often nervous, worried and unhappy.

Four

I belong to the punk subculture. We are aggressive and cruel sometimes.

– Some people think that all subcultures are awful. But they are not as bad as they are thought to be.

– In conclusion, I would like to say that youth is a period, which may be very complicated and happy at the same time.

– It’s impossible to protect young people from all problems and difficulties that they have to overcome. However, it is necessary to support them and to help them.