Unlocking Word Meanings
Read the following words/expressions found in today’s article.
1. misbehave (v.) [mis-bi-heyv] – being naughty or acting badly
Read the following words/expressions found in today’s article.
1. misbehave (v.) [mis-bi-heyv] – being naughty or acting badly
Example: Parents often scold
their children who misbehave in
public places.
2. toddler (n.) [tod-ler] – a young child
Example: The toddler loves to play with stuffed toys.
3. tantrum (n.) [tan-truhm] – expression of uncontrollable anger or frustration, often in a childish way
Example: The child’s tantrum caught the attention of people
nearby.
4. pacify (v.) [pas-uh-fahy] –to make someone calm and quiet
Example: The mother tried to pacify the crying boy by singing him a
song.
5. overreact (v.) [oh-ver-ree-akt] – to say
or do something unnecessary because of strong emotion
Example: Teachers should
avoid overreacting by shouting at students
when they make a mistake.
Article
Read the text below.
A family’s vacation
was canceled after Alaska Airlines told the family of a child who was misbehaving to get off the airplane.
Mark Yanchuk, a
salesman from Washington, along with his wife, mother-in-law and children
were supposed to be on a flight from Seattle to Miami. It was the first part
of their planned trip to the Virgin Islands.
Daniel, Yanchuk’s 3-year-old
son, was with him in the plane’s main cabin, while the rest of his family
stayed in first class.
The toddler was playing with an iPad when flight
personnel asked passengers to turn off their gadgets to prepare for takeoff. Yanchuk
took away the iPad, which caused the child to throw a tantrum.
As Yanchuk was
trying to put a seatbelt on his screaming son, flight attendants offered to
help pacify Daniel.
Paul McElroy,
spokesperson for Alaska Airlines, said the flight attendants were concerned because
the boy would not sit properly. The boy’s seatbelt ended near his neck at one
time and the attendants were afraid he would choke.
Because of the
danger, the airline staff said it had no choice but to request father and son
to leave the plane. The rest of Yanchuk’s family was allowed to stay, but
they decided to also leave.
Yanchuk believed
the staff overreacted. He reasoned
that a crying child was hardly a dangerous situation.
The airline offered
to rebook their flight the next day, but the Yanchuk family said it no longer
wanted to fly with the airline. McElroy said that the family would be
receiving a refund.
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Viewpoint Discussion
Enjoy a discussion with your tutor.
Discussion A
Enjoy a discussion with your tutor.
Discussion A
·
Do you agree with the airline’s decision to
make the family leave? Why or why not?
·
How do you think similar incidents can be
prevented in the future?
Discussion B
·
What do you think causes a child to misbehave?
How
can parents and guardians discipline their children properly?