Lesson Plan: Stressed Out Parents Now Hire Virtual Baby Sitters
II. While Reading Activities
Word Inference
- unwind |ˌənˈwīnd| verb (past and past participle unwound |-ˈwound| )• [no object] relax after a period of work or tension: the Grand Hotel is a superb place to unwind.
- down |doun| verb consume (something, typically a drink): he downed a six-pack.
- ease |ēz| verb [with object] make (something unpleasant, painful, or intense) less serious or severe: a huge road-building program to ease congestion.
- profile |ˈprōˌfīl| noun( on a social media website or application) a user’s summary of their personal details or current situation: he posted the pictures on his Facebook profile.
- technique |tekˈnēk| noun a way of carrying out a particular task, especially the execution or performance of an artistic work or a scientific procedure.
- cue |kyo͞o| noun a hint or indication about how to behave in particular circumstances: my teacher joked about such attitudes and I followed her cue.
- high-end |ˌhīˈend| adjective denoting the most expensive of a range of products [or services].
- curate |ˌkyo͝oˈrātˈkyo͝oˌrāt| select, organize, and present (online content, merchandise, information, etc.), typically using professional or expert knowledge: nearly every major news organization is using Twitter’s new lists feature to curate tweets about the earthquake | (as adjective curated) : a curated alternative to the world’s most popular video portal.
- expectation |ˌekspekˈtāSH(ə)n| noun a [strong] belief that someone will or should achieve something: students had high expectations for their future.
- freelance |ˈfrēˌlans| adjective working for different companies at different times rather than being permanently employed by one company: a freelance journalist.
Source: New Oxford American Dictionary
Grammar Focus: Word -Recognition
People use this service differently from a babysitter, said Africk. While before the pandemic, the commitment for a sitter was a few hours, a virtual sitter can be booked for shorter periods of time throughout the day — just long enough to get some housekeeping or work done or even take a shower.
Reading Comprehension: Identify The Speakers
- Jennika Aronowitz, a 44-year-old mother of three: “It’s not like you’re watching a show or something that isn’t tuned in to you. It’s a living person on the other side that’s reading your cues, seeing if you’re interested or not interested.”
- Rachel Charlupski, founder of the Babysitting Company:“If you would have told me this is something we’d be offering, I’d never have believed it. It’s such a personal-contact-based profession.”
- Babysitter Victoria Rodriguez, a nursing student,:“The hardest part, she said, is bringing them back when they walk out of the camera’s range.”
- Erin Upton-Cosulich , her 3-year-old son has taken to doing pretend play over video while his parents work from home in the same room: “It doesn’t always keep him occupied for the desired two hours, says Upton-Cosulich, and if he’s tired or anxious, he prefers his parents.”
- Alycia Bennett, an intelligence and risk consultant in Columbia, Md.,: “It is a viable option if you’re willing to be a little bit unorthodox and give it a try.”
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