©Charles and Colvard via CNN
Pre-reading questions:
I will read each question. Then, please answer them.
- How often do you see jewelry ads?
- Is gifting jewelry common in your country? Would you like to receive a piece of jewelry on your birthday?
Vocabulary:
I will read the words, meanings, and sample sentences. Then, repeat after me.
- environmental /en-vahy-ruhn-MUHN-tl/
- generation /jen-uh-REY-shuhn/
- purchase /PUR-chuhs/
- switch /swich/
- planning /PLAN-ing/
[adjective] – relating to the environment
The college students are working on an environmental project.
[noun] – all the people of about the same age within a society
The new generation is aware of our society’s issues.
[noun] – something that you buy
This umbrella is the best purchase I’ve ever made.
[verb] – to change suddenly or completely, especially from one thing to another
Mia switched to coconut oil for cooking last month.
[noun] – the act of deciding how to do something
This event took a lot of careful planning.
Article reading:
Please read the whole article. Then, I will check your pronunciation and intonation.
The diamond industry has seen a rise in the sales of lab-grown diamonds. According to Edahn Golan, an independent diamond industry analyst, the number of engagement rings sold that featured a manufactured diamond increased by 63% compared to last year, while the number of engagement rings sold with a natural diamond decreased by 25% in the same period.
The growing interest in factory-grown diamonds is likely due to their cost. The average retail price of the most popular one-carat round, man-made diamond, for an engagement ring in March was $2,318, which is 73% cheaper than a natural diamond of the same size, cut, and clarity,” said Golan. The world’s largest jewelry company, Pandora (PANDY), announced that it would stop using mined diamonds and would shift to lab-created diamonds. The move is part of the company’s effort to sell eco-friendly jewelry and meet rising consumer demand. Environmental concerns are making the younger generation reassess their purchases and switch to non-traditional engagement rings, based on a report from the wedding planning website The Knot.
The growing interest in factory-grown diamonds is likely due to their cost. The average retail price of the most popular one-carat round, man-made diamond, for an engagement ring in March was $2,318, which is 73% cheaper than a natural diamond of the same size, cut, and clarity,” said Golan. The world’s largest jewelry company, Pandora (PANDY), announced that it would stop using mined diamonds and would shift to lab-created diamonds. The move is part of the company’s effort to sell eco-friendly jewelry and meet rising consumer demand. Environmental concerns are making the younger generation reassess their purchases and switch to non-traditional engagement rings, based on a report from the wedding planning website The Knot.
Comprehension questions
I will read each question. Then, please answer them based on the article.
- How much did the sales of engagement rings that featured a manufactured diamond increase?
- How much did the sales of rings with natural diamonds decrease last year?
- What is the reason behind the growing interest in lab-grown diamonds?
- What did Pandora announce last year?
- What is making younger customers switch to non-traditional engagement rings?
Discussion questions
I will read each question. Then, please answer them.
- What are some popular jewelry brands in your country? Please tell me something about them.
- Would you be interested to work as a jeweler? Why or why not?
- If you could invent an object that could help the environment, what would it be?
- Do you think lab-grown diamonds are better than natural diamonds?
- In your opinion, what would the future of the jewelry industry look like?