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Lesson Info

Type
Article
Level
4 / B2
Published
Title
20-Year-Old Lottery Winner Chooses Weekly Payments
Webpage
https://eslnewsstories.com/articles/2026-01-29-lottery-winner-weekly-payments/

Lesson Content

Warm-up, Vocab List, Reading and Audio

Understanding: True or False, Put Events in Order, Multiple Choice

Language: Vocab Match

Use It: Discussion Builder, Discussion Questions

Answers

(1) Do you buy lottery tickets? Why or why not?

(2) What would you do with one million dollars?

Close-up photo of a $1,000,000 scratch-off lottery ticket on a wooden table, with three piggy bank icons revealed in a scratched silver panel and scratch-off flakes scattered around.
A winning scratch ticket.

Vocab List

Lottery (n.) — A game where people buy tickets and some win money.
Risk (n.) — The chance of losing money or having a bad result.
Jackpot (n.) — The top prize in a lottery.
Flexibility (n.) — The ability to change plans or use something in different ways.
Taxed (v.) — Charged money by the government.
Inflation (n.) — A general rise in prices over time.
Penalty (n.) — A punishment or extra cost for doing something.
Weekly (adj.) — Happening every week.
Return (n.) — The amount of money gained from an investment.
Debate (n.) — A discussion with different opinions.
Reading

Many lottery winners must choose between a large one-time payment and smaller payments. A 20-year-old woman from Quebec, Canada, Brenda Aubin-Vega, faced that choice after winning the top prize on a scratch ticket. She saw three piggy bank symbols and froze. "I couldn't believe my eyes! I checked my ticket over and over again," she told Yahoo News Canada. She called her dad, took time off work, and then picked a weekly payment of $1,000 instead of a $1 million cash prize.

Her decision drew criticism online and started a debate about money today versus money later. In the United States, lottery income is taxed by federal, state, and local governments, so big jackpots shrink fast. A $1.5 billion Powerball winner would keep about $516.7 million after federal taxes. Aubin-Vega is Canadian, and lottery prizes there are not taxed, so she could have taken the $1 million with no penalty.

The weekly plan gives her $52,000 a year, which works like a 5.2% yearly return on $1 million. The money comes from the province of Quebec and is backed by its government, so the risk is very low. Her age also matters: at $1,000 a week she reaches $1 million at 39 and about $3.1 million by 80.

A fixed weekly payment offers little flexibility, while a $1 million cash payment could be invested in many kinds of assets. A low-cost fund that follows the stock market and grows 7% a year could turn $1 million into several million in about 10 years. Inflation also reduces buying power over time. With 2% yearly price rises, $1,000 a week could be worth less than half its current value by age 56. The weekly choice also removes the chance to brag about being a 20-year-old millionaire.

20-Year-Old Lottery Winner Chooses Weekly Payments

Level 4 Article Source: finance.yahoo.com
Warm-up → or → Check Understanding → Language → Use It

Close-up photo of a $1,000,000 scratch-off lottery ticket on a wooden table, with three piggy bank icons revealed in a scratched silver panel and scratch-off flakes scattered around.
A winning scratch ticket.

Many lottery winners must choose between a large one-time payment and smaller payments. A 20-year-old woman from Quebec, Canada, Brenda Aubin-Vega, faced that choice after winning the top prize on a scratch ticket. She saw three piggy bank symbols and froze. "I couldn't believe my eyes! I checked my ticket over and over again," she told Yahoo News Canada. She called her dad, took time off work, and then picked a weekly payment of $1,000 instead of a $1 million cash prize.

Her decision drew criticism online and started a debate about money today versus money later. In the United States, lottery income is taxed by federal, state, and local governments, so big jackpots shrink fast. A $1.5 billion Powerball winner would keep about $516.7 million after federal taxes. Aubin-Vega is Canadian, and lottery prizes there are not taxed, so she could have taken the $1 million with no penalty.

The weekly plan gives her $52,000 a year, which works like a 5.2% yearly return on $1 million. The money comes from the province of Quebec and is backed by its government, so the risk is very low. Her age also matters: at $1,000 a week she reaches $1 million at 39 and about $3.1 million by 80.

A fixed weekly payment offers little flexibility, while a $1 million cash payment could be invested in many kinds of assets. A low-cost fund that follows the stock market and grows 7% a year could turn $1 million into several million in about 10 years. Inflation also reduces buying power over time. With 2% yearly price rises, $1,000 a week could be worth less than half its current value by age 56. The weekly choice also removes the chance to brag about being a 20-year-old millionaire.

Speaker: American Female  Duration: 2:17  YouTube

Listen Closely

Listen and Fill Gaps

Listen to the audio on eslnewsstories.com and complete the gaps below:

Many lottery winners must (1) between a large one-time payment and smaller payments. A 20-year-old woman from Quebec, Canada, Brenda Aubin-Vega, faced that choice after winning the top prize on a scratch ticket. She saw three piggy bank symbols and froze. "I couldn't believe my eyes! I checked my ticket over and over again," she told Yahoo News Canada. She called her dad, took time off work, and then picked a (2) payment of $1,000 instead of a $1 million cash prize.

Her decision drew criticism online and started a (3) about money today versus money later. In the United States, lottery income is (4) by federal, state, and local governments, so big jackpots shrink fast. A $1.5 billion Powerball winner would keep about $516.7 million after federal taxes. Aubin-Vega is Canadian, and lottery prizes there are not taxed, so she could have taken the $1 million with no penalty.

The weekly plan gives her $52,000 a year, which works like a 5.2% yearly (5) on $1 million. The money comes from the province of Quebec and is backed by its government, so the (6) is very low. Her age also matters: at $1,000 a week she reaches $1 million at 39 and about $3.1 million by 80.

A fixed weekly payment offers little flexibility, while a $1 million cash payment could be invested in many kinds of assets. A low-cost fund that follows the stock market and grows 7% a year could turn $1 million into several million in about 10 years. (7) also reduces buying power over time. With 2% yearly price rises, $1,000 a week could be worth less than half its current value by age 56. The weekly choice also removes the chance to brag about being a 20-year-old millionaire.

Listen and Fill Gaps

Loading listening activity...

Discussion Builder

  2. Q: What are the advantages of a large one-time payment?

    A:

  3. Q: What are the advantages of a large one-time payment?

    A:
Use It

Discussion Builder

Choose the best phrase for each gap:

  1. Her decision drew criticism online and started a debate about money today versus money later. it became a trending topic across social media.

    Because of that, / For example, / Also, / Still,

    Her decision drew criticism online and started a debate about money today versus money later. Because of that, it became a trending topic across social media.

  2. Q: What are the advantages of a large one-time payment?

    A: Lottery prizes in Canada are not taxed. she could have taken the $1 million with no penalty.

    So, / For example, / Still, / Also,

    Lottery prizes in Canada are not taxed. So, she could have taken the $1 million with no penalty.

  3. Q: What are the advantages of a large one-time payment?

    A: A fixed weekly payment offers little flexibility. a $1 million cash payment could be invested in many kinds of assets.

    However, / As a result, / For example, / Furthermore,

    A fixed weekly payment offers little flexibility. However, a $1 million cash payment could be invested in many kinds of assets.

  4. Inflation reduces buying power over time. the weekly payment feels like much less money in the future.

    Therefore, / However, / For example, / In addition,

    Inflation reduces buying power over time. Therefore, the weekly payment feels like much less money in the future.

Discussion Questions
  1. Did Brenda make the right choice, in your opinion?
  2. What are the benefits of receiving money every week?
  3. What are the advantages of a large one-time payment?
  4. Would you prefer a large one-time payment or smaller weekly payments? Why?
  5. Is inflation a problem in your country? How have prices changed in recent years?
  6. Is a low-cost fund that follows the stock market a good investment? Why do you think so?
  7. What are some other investments that you would consider?
  8. When it comes to investing, do you prefer low-risk, low-reward, or high-risk, high-reward?
  9. Is it smart to take time off work after a big win? Why or why not?
  10. If you received $1,000 a week, how would you use it?

Discussion Questions

  1. Did Brenda make the right choice, in your opinion?
  2. What are the benefits of receiving money every week?
  3. What are the advantages of a large one-time payment?
  4. Would you prefer a large one-time payment or smaller weekly payments? Why?
  5. Is inflation a problem in your country? How have prices changed in recent years?
  6. Is a low-cost fund that follows the stock market a good investment? Why do you think so?
  7. What are some other investments that you would consider?
  8. When it comes to investing, do you prefer low-risk, low-reward, or high-risk, high-reward?
  9. Is it smart to take time off work after a big win? Why or why not?
  10. If you received $1,000 a week, how would you use it?

Answers 20-Year-Old Lottery Winner Chooses Weekly Payments / Level 4

Listening: (1) choose, (2) weekly, (3) debate, (4) taxed, (5) return, (6) risk, (7) inflation

True or False:

  1. True. She picked a weekly payment of $1,000 rather than the $1 million cash prize.
  2. False. The story says Canadian lottery prizes are not taxed, so she could take the $1 million with no penalty.
  3. True. It states that a fixed weekly payment offers little flexibility, while the cash could be invested.

Multiple Choice: b, a, a, c, a

Put Events in Order:

  1. She saw three piggy bank symbols and froze.
  2. She checked her ticket over and over again.
  3. She called her dad and took time off work.
  4. She picked the $1,000 weekly payment instead of the $1 million cash prize.
  5. Her decision drew criticism online and started a debate about money today versus money later.

Vocabulary:

  1. Lottery: A game where people buy tickets and some win money.
  2. Jackpot: The top prize in a lottery.
  3. Taxed: Charged money by the government.
  4. Penalty: A punishment or extra cost for doing something.
  1. Return: The amount of money gained from an investment.
  2. Risk: The chance of losing money or having a bad result.
  3. Flexibility: The ability to change plans or use something in different ways.
  4. Inflation: A general rise in prices over time.

Discussion Builder:

Hints: 1) Result. 2) Result. 3) Contrast. 4) Result.

  1. Because of that,
  2. So,
  3. However,
  4. Therefore,

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