Level 2 Unit 7 Video Activity

Cycling in New Zealand

Video Script
Hello! How are you? New Zealanders or Kiwis, as they call themselves, love cycling. Touring
New Zealand with its unique sceneries on a bicycle can be amazing. And an adventure, too!
But not only in the countryside. Also, in the cities, bikes are taken seriously by the Kiwis
as a healthy and sustainable means of transportation. To improve the flow of bicycle traffic
in downtown Auckland, the city has created this amazing pink bike path on an unused
expressway off-ramp.
In addition to its flashy color, this bike path has protective glass walls and LED lighting. It’s safe
and beautiful, isn’t it? Its creators wanted to turn this concrete structure into a piece of urban art.
Have you ever cycled on a bike path? Bye-bye!

Before you watch • Have students comment on the questions from

activity 4.
1 • If you find it appropriate, ask students to form small
groups and make a poster with information about the
• Hand out the worksheet.
bike paths available in their neighborhood. If there
• Write the adjectives healthy and sustainable on the
is not a bike path in their neighborhood, ask them to
board and check students’ understanding of them.
make a poster proposing a new bike path for their
• Ask them to do activity 1.
neighborhood.

Watch to check your predictions Culture Corner

2 Like Auckland, many cities around the world are
• Play the video. Ask students to check their answers for
activity 1 and to do activity 2.
• Make students comment on why cars, escalators
and elevators are not generally described as healthy
or sustainable (their excessive use may lead to a
sedentary lifestyle and they require energy to power
them).
Answer: bikes.
Watch for details
3 along the way, like air pumps, safer intersections
• Before playing the video again, ask students to read
the questions from activity 3. Explain to them that
they should watch the video, paying close attention to
the information necessary to answer them.
• Play the video and allow some time for students to
answer the questions.
• Check answers by asking some students to read their
answers aloud.
Answers: a No, they don’t. Kiwis also use bikes in the
cities. b Auckland created a bike path to improve the flow
of bicycle traffic downtown. c The bike path was built
on an unused expressway off-ramp. d The bike path in
downtown Auckland is painted in a flashy color. It also
has protective glass walls and LED lighting. It’s safe
and beautiful. e Because its creators wanted to turn the
concrete structure into a piece of urban art.
After you watch
4 Flat streets, slow traffic and conscientious drivers
• Have students answer the final question in the video:
“Have you ever cycled on a bike path?”
• Ask them to comment on the bike paths they know of
and give them some information about bike paths in
other cities around the world (see Culture Corner box).
encouraging people to use bikes to stay active
and reduce their carbon footprint. Here are some
cities that are actively supporting this healthy and
sustainable means of transportation:
Copenhagen, Denmark
Considered the most bike-friendly city in the
world, this city has taken many measures to
encourage people to use bikes, and nearly half
of all Copenhageners commute to work by bike.
There, cyclists can enjoy around 400 km of
designated bike paths with plenty of amenities
and traffic lights timed to average cycling speed to
minimize stopping.
Amsterdam, Netherlands
It is said that there are more bikes than people in
Amsterdam. On its relatively flat streets, people
use bikes to commute to work, drop children
at school and cart around groceries. There are
also plenty of bike rental stations and illustrated
booklets intended to help people get around
efficiently.
Montreal, Canada
With an impressive figure of around 600 km of
bike paths, this city also hosts a bike festival,
welcoming bikers of all ages and skill levels to
take a tour around town. 
Tokyo, Japan
About 14% of all commuters in Tokyo are cyclists,
who count on lots of bike paths and parking
zones.
Paris, France
make this city a remarkably easy place to ride a
bike. There are about 20,000 rental bikes available
at 1,800 stations throughout the city.

#InstaEnglish Level 2 – Photocopiable © Macmillan Education Brasil Teacher’s Notes

 Level 2 Unit 7 Video Activity
Before you watch Watch to check your predictions
1 Which of the following means of 2 Watch the video and fill in the blank in the
transportation would you describe as sentence below.
healthy and sustainable? • are taken
seriously by the Kiwis as a healthy and
sustainable means of transportation.

Watch for details

3 Answer the following questions.
a Do Kiwis only use bikes in the countryside?



bikes
b Why has Auckland created a bike path?



c Where in downtown Auckland was the bike
path built?



d What does the bike path in downtown
cars
Auckland look like?



e Why is the bike path in downtown Auckland
so unusual?



elevators
After you watch
4 Discuss with your classmates.
• Are there any bike paths in your
neighborhood? What does it look like? Does
it need some kind of improvement?
• If there are no bike paths, describe how
you would create a bike path in your
neighborhood. Where could it pass through?
What amenities could it have?

escalators

#InstaEnglish Level 2 – Photocopiable © Macmillan Education Brasil Worksheet