Sleep, Compared (advanced comparison)

Sleep, Compared

Nowhere near as much sleep as…

B2 · 60 minutes

Warmer

TASK Class poll. Answer questions 1 and 2, then ask a partner question 3.

How many hours do you sleep on a normal weeknight?

1

Are you an early bird or a night owl?

2

What's the earliest you've ever got up, and why?

3

Guess the findings

TASK In pairs. The report you're going to read compares groups of sleepers. Guess: more, less or about the same?

Compared with office workers, night-shift nurses sleep…

more

less

about the same

Compared with school nights, teenagers at weekends sleep…

more

less

about the same

Compared with students, retired people sleep…

more

less

about the same

Compared with people in their thirties, people over 65 sleep…

more

less

about the same

The Great Sleep Survey

TASK Read the report. Check your guesses.

2,000 imaginary readers told us how they sleep. Every person and every figure in this report is invented for this lesson.

The night shift

Night-shift nurses get nowhere near as much sleep as office workers: 5 hours 40 minutes a night, against 7 hours 20. Far more nurses than office workers said they often felt tired at work: 62 per cent, against 18. "I sleep in the daytime with the curtains closed, and I still get a lot less sleep than my friends," one nurse told us.

Night owls and early birds

Night owls went to bed much later than early birds, as you would expect, but they didn't sleep as many hours as the early birds did: 6 hours 30, against 7 hours 10. And the later people went to bed, the more tired they felt the next morning.

Young and old

Teenagers sleep far longer at weekends than on school nights: nine and a half hours, against seven. People over 65 don't sleep quite as long as people in their thirties (7 hours, against 7 hours 15), and retired people sleep just as long as students: exactly 7 hours each.

Town and country

Readers in cities slept slightly less than readers in the countryside: 7 hours 5 minutes, against 7 hours 15. Three times as many city readers as country readers said that traffic woke them at night. "It's only a bit quieter here, but I can feel the difference," said one reader who had just moved to a village.

Screens

The more screen time people reported, the worse they slept. Heavy screen users took twice as long to fall asleep as light users: 30 minutes, against 15. Readers who kept their phones out of the bedroom slept significantly longer than those who didn't, about 40 minutes more a night.

Our advice, for what imaginary figures are worth: move your phone out of the bedroom. The sooner the better.

Talk about it

TASK In pairs. Answer the questions, then tell the class.

Look at our class poll. Which group in the report sleeps most like our class?

1

Every figure in the report is invented. Which one do you think is furthest from real life?

2

Read it again

TASK Look at these sentences from the report. Match each one to a chart (invented figures).

Night-shift nurses get nowhere near as much sleep as office workers.

7 h 00

1

A

7 h 00

2

People over 65 don't sleep quite as long as people in their thirties.

7 h 20

B

5 h 40

3

Retired people sleep just as long as students.

7 h 15

C

7 h 00

How big is the difference?

TASK In pairs. Put the words on the line, from no difference to a huge difference.

no difference

huge difference

far

just as … as

slightly

nowhere near as … as

a bit

significantly

not quite as … as

much

a lot

Which is correct?

TASK Find each sentence in the report. Which is correct? Then complete the rule.

1

Night owls went to bed ________ than early birds.

much more later

much later

2

Heavy screen users took ________ to fall asleep as light users.

twice as long

twice longer

3

________ than office workers said they often felt tired at work.

Much more nurses

Far more nurses

4

The more screen time people reported, ________ they slept.

the more worse

the worse

5

The later people went to bed, ________ the next morning.

the more tired they felt

the more they felt tired

In the … the … sentences, each half starts with the + __________

and more + an adjective stay __________.

Grammar reference

Modifier + comparative + than

Big: far / much / a lot / significantly · small: slightly / a bit + comparative. Teenagers sleep far longer at weekends than on school nights.

Modifier + as … as

Big: nowhere near as … as · small: not quite as … as · none: just as … as · exact: twice / three times as … as. With nouns: as much sleep as, as many hours as.

The + comparative, the + comparative

The more screen time people reported, the worse they slept. Keep more + adjective together: the more tired they felt. Short form: the sooner the better.

Written

slightly, significantly, considerably

Spoken

a bit, a lot

Not as … as = less: Night owls didn't sleep as many hours as early birds.

CAREFUL

with plural nouns use many / far / a lot more: far more nurses, never much more nurses. Never very longer or much more longer.

Read the chart

TASK More from the survey (invented figures). Look at each chart. Choose the word that fits.

1

Weekend naps are ________ as long as weekday naps.

just

twice

not quite

weekday naps

weekend naps

20 minutes

40 minutes

2

Cat owners sleep ________ less than dog owners.

far

very

slightly

dog owners

cat owners

7 hours 5

7 hours 10

3

________ more night owls than early birds said they had their best ideas in the evening.

Many

Much

Slightly

night owls

early birds

120

480

4

Early birds press "snooze" ________ as often as night owls.

not quite

nowhere near

just

night owls

early birds

once

5 times a morning

5

People who read before bed sleep ________ as long as people who listen to music.

nowhere near

twice

just

reading

music

7 hours 20

7 hours 20

The more…, the…

TASK Join each pair of ideas in one the … the … sentence.

1

The room is warm.

It's hard to sleep.

2

You drink a lot of coffee.

You sleep badly.

3

The film is boring.

I fall asleep fast.

4

Your commute is long.

You have to get up early.

5

You feel relaxed.

You fall asleep quickly.

6

You book the hotel soon.

It's good. (End the sentence with just the better.)

Where would you live?

TASK In groups. Two neighbourhoods in one imaginary city. Compare them, then choose where to live.

Riverside

Hilltop

• 10 minutes to the centre on foot

• a two-bedroom flat: 55 m²

• noise at night: 8 out of 10

• 120 cafés and restaurants

• nearest supermarket: 5 minutes' walk

• average sleep: 6 hours 50

• 40 minutes to the centre by bus

• a two-bedroom flat: 110 m²

• noise at night: 3 out of 10

• 15 cafés and restaurants

• nearest supermarket: 6 minutes' walk

• average sleep: 7 hours 40

1

Compare the two places on every line. Say how big each difference is.

2

Choose where you would live. Tell the class why, with one the … the … sentence.

Homework

TASK Part 1: find and fix the mistakes in 1–6. Part 2: write a short report on the survey (80–120 words). Use at least five of these: a modifier + comparative + than · just as … as · not quite / nowhere near as … as · twice / three times as … as · the … the …

Part 1 · Find and fix (one sentence is correct)

Part 2 · The commuting survey

1

My new flat is much more closer to the station.

500 imaginary office workers told us how they get to work. Every figure is invented.

2

The more you cycle, the more fitter you get.

minutes

workers

good mood

3

There are much more cars on the road on Mondays.

By bike

22

18%

8 out of 10

On foot

21

17%

8 out of 10

4

The train is nowhere near as crowded on Fridays as on Mondays.

By bus

44

35%

5 out of 10

By car

40

30%

6 out of 10

5

The bus is very slower than the train.

Commutes over 45 minutes: 3 out of 10 arrive in a good mood.

Commutes under 15 minutes: 9 out of 10.

6

The more you are tired, the more mistakes you make.

TEACHER'S REFERENCE · SKIP OR DELETE BEFORE CLASS

Answer key (1)

GUESS THE FINDINGS

Less · 1, 4. More · 2. About the same · 3.

READ IT AGAIN

1 B · 2 C · 3 A

HOW BIG IS THE DIFFERENCE?

No difference just as … as

Small slightly, a bit, not quite as … as

Big much, a lot, far, significantly, nowhere near as … as (any order inside a group)

WHICH IS CORRECT?

1 much later

2 twice as long

WHICH IS CORRECT? (CONT.)

3 Far more nurses

4 the worse

5 the more tired they felt

The rule comparative; together

READ THE CHART

1 twice

2 slightly

3 Many

4 nowhere near

5 just

TEACHER'S REFERENCE · SKIP OR DELETE BEFORE CLASS

Answer key (2)

THE MORE…, THE…

1 The warmer the room (is), the harder it is to sleep.

2 The more coffee you drink, the worse (or: the less well) you sleep. (The more you drink coffee is also heard; teach the more coffee: more + noun stay together too.)

3 The more boring the film (is), the faster (or: the sooner / the more quickly) I fall asleep.

4 The longer your commute (is), the earlier you have to get up.

5 The more relaxed you feel, the more quickly (or: the faster / the quicker / the sooner) you fall asleep.

6 The sooner you book the hotel, the better.

HOMEWORK, PART 1

1 much closer

HOMEWORK, PART 1 (CONT.)

2 the fitter you get

3 many / far / a lot more cars

4 correct

5 much / far / a lot slower

6 The more tired you are

HOMEWORK, PART 2 (POSSIBLE ANSWER)

• Cycling to work takes just as long as walking: about 21 or 22 minutes. The bus takes twice as long as the bike, and it is slightly slower than the car. Twice as many people go by bus as on foot. People with commutes over 45 minutes are nowhere near as likely to arrive in a good mood as people with commutes under 15 minutes: 3 out of 10, against 9. The longer the commute, the fewer people arrive in a good mood.