Retirement Opportunities


Retiring might mean having more time to do the things you have always wanted to. Or it might mean looking for new ideas to do things you never thought you would enjoy. Either way, there is a whole range of opportunities that you can enjoy in retirement.


1 ___ Learning can be fun and a great way to relax and meet people. It doesn’t need to be formal study, and you don’t need to study for a qualification. It’s easy to find free courses and, if you’re learning for fun, you can choose anything you find interesting – whether it’s something new or a subject you already know about. Look at our education and learning section for more advice and links to local colleges.


2 ___


When you retire, you’ll probably have more time to enjoy your favourite leisure activities, and you will probably be keen to take up a new interest or activity to fill your spare time. Our sports, leisure and tourism section has information about what you can do in and around the local area.


3 ___


Doing voluntary work allows you to work in a way that suits your timetable. It’s a very good way to put into use your skills and experience to help others, and at the same time learn something new. There are all sorts of organizations that need volunteers. Think about what you can offer and what you want to get from it.


4 ___ Reaching the age that you are entitled to a pension doesn’t mean that you have to stop working. You can either continue to work and claim your pension entitlement, or delay your claim and get paid more later.


Related Information: Further and Higher Education Over 60s Reduced costs of travel


For questions 5–12, complete the summary below with words from the box. You do not need to use all the words.


voluntary work fun retirement study different wait work stop leisure first time hobby experience


When you retire, you will have time and there are many (5) ________ ways to enjoy it. You can do what you have always wanted to do or try new things for the (6) ________. A lot of people go back to college and learn something. They have (7) ________ and meet people. Other people want to enjoy their favourite leisure activities, and many begin a new (8) ________. Helping others by doing (9) ________ is a popular way of using skills and experience. You should remember, though, that being of (10) ________ age doesn’t mean that you can’t (11) ________. Many retired people claim a pension and have a job, or (12) ________ until later to start claiming.


C Check the key on page 172. How many questions did you answer correctly?


D Tick the sentences about the reading task that are true for you and think about how you can answer more questions correctly next time.


1. I read the summary and looked at the words in the box carefully before I started the second task.


2. I found it challenging to read the text and the summary at the same time. 3. I thought about both the meaning of words and if they fitted grammatically into the summary.


∫ WB


4. I was happy with how quickly I answered the questions and the number I answered correctly.


For focus on reading skills, go to Workbook page 161. 104 Pathway to IELTS 1


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