Shrinkflation

In this C1-level ESL lesson, students explore the economic concept of “shrinkflation” through an engaging video. They’ll learn how shrinkflation—a combination of “shrink” and “inflation”—affects products and pricing. Activities include identifying real-world examples of shrinkflation, discussing its impact, and creating catchy marketing slogans to justify smaller products at the same price. Students will also explore portmanteau words, developing their vocabulary and understanding of how language evolves. The lesson features engaging tasks where students analyze, create, and debate, offering a comprehensive look at both the language and economics of shrinkflation.

Lead-in

This advanced lesson on shrinkflation kicks off with an engaging visual challenge. Students examine three chocolate bars of different sizes and discuss which one is the smallest, testing their observational skills. The answer is revealed later in the video or keys file. The lead-in section, located on the following page, presents four thought-provoking questions and a brief explanation of shrinkflation. You have the flexibility to explore as many questions as needed to spark conversation and deepen understanding.

Vocabulary, Definitions

Next, the vocabulary guessing exercise prompts students to engage with 12 keywords. They’ll attempt to deduce the meanings of these words, then check their answers on the subsequent page, where the definitions are provided. Encourage students to think of synonyms or alternative phrases if they’re unfamiliar with the exact words. Once the definitions are covered, ensure that the students grasp the concepts by providing examples and forming sentences as needed.

Video, Summary, Comments

In the video section, students watch a six-minute clip detailing real-life shrinkflation examples. Afterward, they’ll compare and contrast shrinkflation and skimpflation, explaining the differences in their own words. The next page features a summary chart where students will analyze and summarize the main points from the video, providing details and examples. Use this opportunity to discuss any comments and encourage students to share personal experiences related to the topic.

Vocabulary practice, Portmanteau words

The vocabulary practice page offers 12 sentences that students must rephrase using the suggested target vocabulary in brackets. It’s not just a direct swap – students will need to restructure the sentences to make them flow naturally. Afterward, students will revisit portmanteau words, combining words from two columns to create new portmanteau words. Encourage students to make sentences with their new words to deepen their understanding.

Discussion, Marketing spin

In the discussion section, students will open a Reddit thread to find and share ridiculous examples of shrinkflation posted by other users. You can either explore this together as a class or assign small groups to gather examples that resonate with them. Finally, in the “Marketing Spin” activity, students imagine they work for a company shrinking product sizes while keeping prices the same. Their challenge is to create a creative and persuasive marketing slogan to sell the idea to customers, with a product list and example slogans to spark their creativity.