Breaking News English

Date: Mar 27, 2007
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WARM-UPS

1. SLAVERY: Walk around the classroom and find out from other students what they know about slavery. When you have finished, sit with your partner(s) and share and talk about your findings.

2. CHAT: In pairs / groups, decide which of these topics or words from the article are most interesting and which are most boring.

slave trade / slaves / Africa / Atlantic Ocean / human history / inhumanity / dignitaries / jazz / social woes / sorrow / regret / apologies / lessons / anchors

Have a chat about the topics you liked. For more conversation, change topics and partners frequently.

3. SLAVE TO…: With your partner(s), talk about whether you are a slave to these things:

mobile phones love your computer studying

work the kitchen sink English technology

4. SLAVERY OPINIONS: Talk about each of these opinions. Do you think they are true for your country / other countries?

• There is no slavery today.
• I feel I am often treated as a slave.
• Nations involved in slavery should pay damages to descendants of slaves.
• There should be a national holiday to mark the end of slavery.
• The world is doing too little to end human trafficking.
• Man has not descended to such levels of inhumanity as the slave trade.
• There is a modern day form of slavery.
• Globalization is reducing the chances of slavery happening.

5. A DIFFERENT WORLD:  With your partner(s), discuss how different the world would be today if the slave trade from Africa to the Americas had not happened. Try to think of five differences. Change partners and share your differences.

6. SLAVERY: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with slavery. Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories.

BEFORE READING / LISTENING

1. TRUE / FALSE: Look at the article’s headline and guess whether these sentences are true (T) or false (F):

a.	The African slave trade ended two hundred years ago.	T / F
b.	Records show exactly how many slaves were taken from Africa.	T / F
c.	Conditions in the slave ships were described as barbaric.	T / F
d.	Ghana’s President said slavery broke the spirit of Africans.	T / F
e.	A jazz musician blames slavery for Africa’s current problems.	T / F
f.	Tony Blair attended the ceremony in Ghana and expressed regret.	T / F
g.	A poet is happy that man has learnt the lessons of slavery.	T / F
h.	Boats are still anchoring next to slave forts all over the world.	T / F

2. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article:

a.	marked	notorious
b.	descendants	bondage
c.	infamous	inhumane
d.	perishing	trade
e.	barbaric	recognized
f.	dignitaries	vile
g.	woes	dying
h.	dark	VIPs
i.	traffic	ancestors
j.	enslavement	problems

3. PHRASE MATCH: Match the following phrases from the article (sometimes more than one combination is possible):

a.	Africans marked	of Africa
b.	slave ships transported countless	to such low depths of inhumanity
c.	many perishing	human beings is clearly not over
d.	the…human spirit...	this anniversary on Sunday
e.	Man should never descend	numbers of innocent black Africans
f.	Many other dignitaries	into...a form of enslavement
g.	Africa’s current economic	could not be broken
h.	the impoverishment	read speeches
i.	The traffic in	in barbaric conditions
j.	people are being forced	and social woes

WHILE READING / LISTENING

GAP FILL: Put the words into the gaps in the text.

Africans mark the end of the slave trade
 

Two hundred years ago, on March 25th, 1807, Britain ________ the trade in slaves from Africa. Africans ________ this anniversary on Sunday with a special ceremony in Ghana, from where British slave ships transported ________ numbers of innocent black Africans to the USA. Descendants of these slaves gathered at one of the most ________ trading posts, Fort Elmina, known as “the door of no return”. They remembered the tens of millions who crossed the Atlantic, many ________, in barbaric conditions to provide free labour in the New World. Ghana’s President John Kufor gave a speech ________ their suffering: "Through this dark era of human history, the…human spirit...could not be broken," he said. He added: "Man should never ________ to such low ________ of inhumanity to man as the slave trade ever again."		recalling countless depths infamous banned descend marked perishing
Many other ________ read speeches at the somber ceremony. South Africa’s jazz legend Hugh Masakela blamed the slave trade for Africa’s current economic and social ________. "We have seen the manipulation, the impoverishment of Africa...That is [________ of] the effects of slavery… There is no ________, no price for what has been done," he said. British Prime Minister Tony Blair sent a recorded message expressing "________ sorrow and regret" for Britain's role in the slave trade. However, he did not offer a formal apology for his nation’s ________ role two centuries ago. Ghanaian poet Kofi Anyi Doho lamented that the world has not learnt the lessons of slavery, saying: "The traffic in human beings is ________ not over. There are no boats to anchor next to a slave fort but people are being forced into...a ________ of enslavement all over the world."		clearly woes deep dark dignitaries form proof price

LISTENING

Listen and fill in the spaces.

Africans mark the end of the slave trade

Two hundred years ago, on March 25th, 1807, Britain _________________ slaves from Africa. Africans _________________ on Sunday with a special ceremony in Ghana, from where British slave ships transported countless numbers of innocent black Africans to the USA. _________________ slaves gathered at one of the most infamous trading posts, Fort Elmina, known as “the door of no return”. They remembered the tens of millions who crossed the Atlantic, _____________________ conditions to provide free labour in the New World. Ghana’s President John Kufor gave a speech recalling their suffering: "Through _________________ human history, the…human spirit...could not be broken," he said. He added: "Man should _________________ depths of inhumanity to man as the slave trade ever again."

Many other dignitaries read speeches _________________ ceremony. South Africa’s jazz legend Hugh Masakela blamed the slave trade for Africa’s current _________________. "We have seen the manipulation, the _________________ Africa...That is [proof of] the effects of slavery… There is no price, no price for what has been done," he said. British Prime Minister Tony Blair sent a recorded message expressing "_________________" for Britain's role in the slave trade. However, he did not offer a formal apology for _________________ two centuries ago. Ghanaian poet Kofi Anyi Doho lamented that the world has not learnt the lessons of slavery, saying: "The traffic in human beings is clearly not over. There are no _________________ next to a slave fort but people are being forced into...a form of enslavement all over the world."

AFTER READING / LISTENING

1. WORD SEARCH: Look in your dictionaries / computer to find collocates, other meanings, information, synonyms … for the words ‘slave’ and ‘trade’.

• Share your findings with your partners.
• Make questions using the words you found.
• Ask your partner / group your questions.

2. ARTICLE QUESTIONS: Look back at the article and write down some questions you would like to ask the class about the text.

• Share your questions with other classmates / groups.
• Ask your partner / group your questions.

3. GAP FILL: In pairs / groups, compare your answers to this exercise. Check your answers. Talk about the words from the activity. Were they new, interesting, worth learning…?

4. VOCABULARY: Circle any words you do not understand. In groups, pool unknown words and use dictionaries to find their meanings.

5. STUDENT “SLAVERY” SURVEY: In pairs / groups, write down questions about slavery past, present and future.

• Ask other classmates your questions and note down their answers.
• Go back to your original partner / group and compare your findings.
• Make mini-presentations to other groups on your findings.

6. TEST EACH OTHER: Look at the words below. With your partner, try to recall exactly how these were used in the text:

banned countless door barbaric era depths

somber woes price dark lamented anchor

DISCUSSION

STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

1. What did you think when you read the headline?
2. Do you think the slave trade has ended?
3. How do you think the slave trade has changed the world?
4. What other countries engaged in slavery, besides European countries?
5. Should the descendants of slaves receive compensation from countries that engaged in slavery?
6. What would be the best way to mark the end of slavery?
7. Why do you think Tony Blair did not issue a formal apology for Britain’s role as a slave trader?
8. Do you think man will descend to similar depths of inhumanity again?
9. What do you know about the slave trade of Africans to America?
10. Do you ever think you are treated as a slave?

--------------------------------------------------------------------

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

1. Did you like reading this article?
2. Do you think Hugh Masakela is right about Africa’s current woes?
3. Are you surprised that Tony Blair did not attend the ceremony in person?
4. Do you think people will ever learn lessons from history?
5. What forms of slavery are there in the world today?
6. What question would you like to have asked a slave trader?
7. Do you think there are sections of your society who are slaves?
8. What question would you like to have asked a slave on a slave ship?
9. Should there be a world holiday to remember the victims of slavery?
10. Did you like this discussion?

AFTER DISCUSSION: Join another partner / group and tell them what you talked about.

1. What was the most interesting thing you heard?
2. Was there a question you didn’t like?
3. Was there something you totally disagreed with?
4. What did you like talking about?
5. Which was the most difficult question?

LANGUAGE

CORRECT WORD: Put the correct words from a–d below in the article.

Africans mark the end of the slave trade

Two hundred years ago, on March 25th, 1807, Britain banned the trade in slaves from Africa. Africans (1) ____ this anniversary on Sunday with a special ceremony in Ghana, (2) ____ where British slave ships transported countless numbers of innocent black Africans to the USA. Descendants of these slaves gathered at one of the most (3) ____ trading posts, Fort Elmina, known as “the door of no return”. They remembered the tens of millions who crossed the Atlantic, many perishing, in (4) ____ conditions to provide free labour in the New World. Ghana’s President John Kufor gave a speech
(5) ____ their suffering: "Through this dark era of human history, the…human spirit...could not be broken," he said. He added: "Man should never descend to such low (6) ____ of inhumanity to man as the slave trade ever again."

Many other dignitaries read speeches at the (7) ____ ceremony. South Africa’s jazz legend Hugh Masakela blamed the slave trade for Africa’s current economic and social (8) ____. "We have seen the manipulation, the impoverishment of Africa...That is [proof of] the effects of slavery… There is no price, no price for what has been done," he said. British Prime Minister Tony Blair sent a recorded message expressing "(9) ____ sorrow and regret" for Britain's role in the slave trade. However, he did not offer a formal apology for his nation’s (10) ____ role two centuries ago. Ghanaian poet Kofi Anyi Doho (11) ____ that the world has not learnt the lessons of slavery, saying: "The traffic in human beings is clearly not over. There are no boats to anchor next to a slave fort but people are being forced (12) ____...a form of enslavement all over the world."

1.	(a)	marked	(b)	made	(c)	marking	(d)	masked
2.	(a)	and	(b)	fro	(c)	from	(d)	over
3.	(a)	infinitive	(b)	infinity	(c)	infamy	(d)	infamous
4.	(a)	barbarian	(b)	barbaric	(c)	barbecue	(d)	barbed
5.	(a)	recalling	(b)	calling	(c)	receiving	(d)	rectifying
6.	(a)	deepens	(b)	deeply	(c)	deeps	(d)	depths
7.	(a)	sober up	(b)	somber	(c)	sombrero	(d)	sobriety
8.	(a)	woes	(b)	foes	(c)	toes	(d)	does
9.	(a)	deeply	(b)	deepness	(c)	deep	(d)	depth
10.	(a)	darken	(b)	dark	(c)	darkness	(d)	darkly
11.	(a)	lame brained	(b)	lamely	(c)	lamented	(d)	lambed
12.	(a)	to	(b)	hitherto	(c)	unto	(d)	into

HOMEWORK

1. VOCABULARY EXTENSION: Choose several of the words from the text. Use a dictionary or Google’s search field (or another search engine) to build up more associations / collocations of each word.

2. INTERNET: Search the Internet and find more information about the history of slavery. Talk about what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.

3. SLAVERY POSTER: Make a poster about the different types of slavery and the different countries involved in the slave trade. Include modern day slavery. Show your poster to your class in the next lesson. Vote on the best one(s).

4. MAGAZINE ARTICLE: Write a magazine article about the effects of slavery on the world. Discuss what the world would be like if there was no slavery. Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Which article was best and why?

5. DIARY: Write the diary entry of a slave on a slave ship headed for America two hundred years ago. Write down your three biggest fears. Include three questions. Read your letter to your partner(s) in your next lesson. Your partner(s) will answer your questions.

ANSWERS

TRUE / FALSE:

a. T

b. F

c. T

d. F

e. T

f. F

g. F

h. F

SYNONYM MATCH:

a.	marked	recognized
b.	descendants	ancestors
c.	infamous	notorious
d.	perishing	dying
e.	barbaric	inhumane
f.	dignitaries	VIPs
g.	woes	problems
h.	dark	vile
i.	traffic	trade
j.	enslavement	bondage

PHRASE MATCH:

a.	Africans marked	this anniversary on Sunday
b.	slave ships transported countless	numbers of innocent black Africans
c.	many perishing	in barbaric conditions
d.	the…human spirit...	could not be broken
e.	Man should never descend	to such low depths of inhumanity
f.	Many other dignitaries	read speeches
g.	Africa’s current economic	and social woes
h.	the impoverishment	of Africa
i.	The traffic in	human beings is clearly not over
j.	people are being forced	into...a form of enslavement

GAP FILL:

Africans mark the end of the slave trade

Two hundred years ago, on March 25th, 1807, Britain banned the trade in slaves from Africa. Africans marked this anniversary on Sunday with a special ceremony in Ghana, from where British slave ships transported countless numbers of innocent black Africans to the USA. Descendants of these slaves gathered at one of the most infamous trading posts, Fort Elmina, known as “the door of no return”. They remembered the tens of millions who crossed the Atlantic, many perishing, in barbaric conditions to provide free labour in the New World. Ghana’s President John Kufor gave a speech recalling their suffering: "Through this dark era of human history, the…human spirit...could not be broken," he said. He added: "Man should never descend to such low depths of inhumanity to man as the slave trade ever again."

Many other dignitaries read speeches at the somber ceremony. South Africa’s jazz legend Hugh Masakela blamed the slave trade for Africa’s current economic and social woes. "We have seen the manipulation, the impoverishment of Africa...That is [proof of] the effects of slavery… There is no price, no price for what has been done," he said. British Prime Minister Tony Blair sent a recorded message expressing "deep sorrow and regret" for Britain's role in the slave trade. However, he did not offer a formal apology for his nation’s dark role two centuries ago. Ghanaian poet Kofi Anyi Doho lamented that the world has not learnt the lessons of slavery, saying: "The traffic in human beings is clearly not over. There are no boats to anchor next to a slave fort but people are being forced into...a form of enslavement all over the world."

LANGUAGE WORK

1 - a

2 - c

3 - d

4 -b

5 - a

6 -d

7 - b

8 -a

9 -c

10 - b

11 -c

12 - d

 

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