England’s youngest grandmother at age 21
What
do you think happened in this story?
Why
would someone marry another person much younger or older than them?
A woman in England has just had a baby and
she is already a grandmother. She is only 21. This is a few years after tying the knot with a granddad.
Becca Keeley married 56-year-old Mark after
they got engaged on holiday on a beautiful Spanish island. And their 7 month
old baby is already an aunt.
The couple hooked up at a rock concert. Her husband Mark was the singer in the
band that was performing. At that time she was just 16 and he was 51.
She's eight years younger than one of his
children from a previous relationship and six years younger than his oldest.
Last October they had their own baby. Their
four-month-old daughter is called
Presley.
Mark's other kids are Aaron, 27, Jake, 21,
Luke, 16, and Emma, 13.
Becca is a former office manager and doesn't mind being called a grandmother.
This is despite Mark initially advising her to go find someone
younger and her own age.
Becca said: “Mark said I won’t want to be called
Grandma, but his family are my family.”
Mark said: “A lot of people thought it was
wrong. That Mark was a cradle snatcher.
I told her to find someone her own age but we made each other so happy we
decided to try and conquer it.”
They married at a government office in
front of 300 guests in August 2018. They regularly share love selfies photos on social media.
Rock singer Mark has just released a new music
album called Return to Sender and still regularly performs live.
Try
to guess the meaning of the words in bold and match them with their closest
meaning from the choices in the right. Some of the answers are very close and
have similar meaning. The meaning of these words is how they are used in the
reading. Some of these words have different meanings in the dictionary
depending on how they are used.
The
answers are below the table.
tying the knot
|
A
|
1
|
To connect two people or things, to start a
relationship
|
hooked up
|
B
|
2
|
At the start/beginning
|
doesn't mind
|
C
|
3
|
To date/marry someone who is much younger who
could be your daughter or son
|
despite
|
D
|
4
|
To take photos of yourself
|
initially
|
E
|
5
|
To get married
|
cradle snatcher
|
F
|
6
|
To succeed, to win, to capture
|
conquer
|
G
|
7
|
Not worried, okay with something, does not
care about something
|
selfies
|
H
|
8
|
Anyway, to do something without worrying
about some other thing
|
A=5, B=1, C=7, D=8, E=2, F=3, G=6, H=4
Some example sentences using the new words or phrases from the
meaning of how they are used in the reading to help you understand better.
A lot of people tie the knot in springtime when the
days are beautiful.
Many students hook up in the freshman year of
university.
My mother doesn’t mind if we stay out late but we must phone or text her.
Despite the heavy rain we had a fun
time.
Initially, the price was high but after
some time it became cheaper.
I would feel embarrassed to be
a cradle snatcher. She looks like my
daughter.
The Spanish conquered most of South America 500
years ago.
Everyone takes selfies now and posts them on social
media.
Some questions using the new words/phrases. Try to use the
words/phrases in your answer.
How did most people tie the knot in your country?
How do most young people hook up in Korea?
Would your family mind if you hooked up with someone much older or
younger than you?
Despite a big age difference, would you hook up with someone if you loved them?
And initially, how would you friends
and family think?
Do you know/know of someone who
cradle snatched? Talk about it.
How do you conquer someone to love you?
Are you a big fan of taking selfies? Talk about why you are or are
not.