Breaking News English

WARM-UPS

1. MODERN WORLD: Walk around the class and talk to other students about the modern world. Change partners often. After you finish, sit with your partner(s) and share 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.

photographs / indigenous people / rainforest / tribes / catch diseases / illegal logging / contact with modern life / secret / rainforest / warrior costumes / rights / extinct

Have a chat about the topics you liked. Change topics and partners frequently.

3. FIRST CONTACT: Imagine you have just stepped out of the deepest rainforest into the modern world. Everything is new, strange, scary... With your partner(s), discuss the things below and complete the table. Change partners and share your ideas.

	feelings	like / dislike	different to your culture
pollution
crime
microwave oven
rap music
video games
guns

4. INDIGENOUS LIFE: Are you happy with modern life? Would rainforest life be better? Rank the items below: 10 = “a million times better in the rainforest;” 1 = “a million times worse in the rainforest”. Compare your answers with your partner(s).

_____ happiness _____ family life _____ medicine and health _____ education

_____ hobbies _____ crime _____ food _____ other _________________

5. HEADLINE PREDICTION: With your partner(s), use the words in the “Chat” activity above to predict what the news article will be about. Once you have your story, change partners and share them. Who was closest to the real story?

6. TRIBE: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word ‘tribe’. 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.	Million-year-old fossils of an ancient tribe have been found in Brazil.	T / F
b.	Brazil’s government put photos of the tribe’s houses on the Internet.	T / F
c.	Influenza is a completely new disease to the tribe.	T / F
d.	Logging is probably the key to the economic future of the tribe.	T / F
e.	Hundreds more of Earth’s tribes have had no contact with modern life.	T / F
f.	Brazil’s government is not disclosing the name or location of the tribe.	T / F
g.	Men from the tribe tried to shoot down a plane with bows and arrows.	T / F
h.	An indigenous rights group said the tribe’s extinction is not a worry.	T / F

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

1.	published	a.	are real
2	isolated	b.	fighter
3.	interests	c.	precise
4.	exist	d.	remote
5.	ancient	e.	serious
6.	exact	f.	issued
7.	warrior	g.	very basic
8.	primitive	h.	very old
9.	grave	i.	dead
10.	extinct	j.	wellbeing

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

1.	an isolated community	a.	country’s disappearing tribes
2	the first time for the tribe to	b.	to wake up
3.	looks after the interests of the	c.	diseases
4.	catch	d.	its exact location
5.	destroy their ancient	e.	near the Brazil-Peru border
6.	one of the last remaining	f.	of indigenous people
7.	The name of the tribe and	g.	peoples on Earth
8.	a remote part of the rainforest	h.	way of life
9.	villagers standing in front of their	i.	see the outside world
10.	The world needs	j.	primitive thatched huts

WHILE READING / LISTENING

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

The Brazilian government has published photographs of an __________ community of indigenous people living in the Amazon rainforest. It is the first time the __________ has seen this tribe and the first time for the tribe to see the outside world. Brazil’s National Indian Foundation (NIF) put the photos on its web site on May 29th. The foundation is a government __________ that looks after the interests of the country’s __________ tribes. José Carlos dos Reis Meirelles, an NIF official, said the photographs were taken over __________ weeks in April and May. He explained: “We did the flights to show their houses, to show they are there, to show they __________.” He is worried that the tribes-people will catch diseases they have never experienced before, such as influenza. There are also __________ that the spread of illegal logging will destroy their __________ way of life.		agency concerns isolated several ancient world exist disappearing
The newly-found tribe is surely one of the last __________ peoples on Earth never to have had __________ with modern life. The name of the tribe and its exact location are being __________ a secret. The only information released so far is that the tribe lives in a remote part of the rainforest near the Brazil-Peru __________. The photographs that were taken show painted men dressed in warrior costumes with bows and arrows. They were trying to __________ down the photographer’s plane as it flew past. Another shot shows villagers standing in front of their primitive thatched __________. Survival International, a group that fights for the rights of indigenous people, warned the group and its __________ culture is “in grave danger” of disappearing. It said: "The world needs to wake up…and ensure that their __________ is protected…Otherwise, they will soon be made extinct."		huts  kept shoot territory remaining border contact unique

LISTENING:  Listen and fill in the spaces.

The Brazilian government has published photographs __________________ community of indigenous people living in the Amazon rainforest. It is the first time the world has seen this tribe and the first __________________ to see the outside world. Brazil’s National Indian Foundation (NIF) put the photos on its web site on May 29th. The foundation is a government agency that __________________ of the country’s disappearing tribes. José Carlos dos Reis Meirelles, an NIF official, said the photographs were __________________ weeks in April and May. He explained: “We did the flights to show their houses, to show they are there, __________________.” He is worried that the tribes-people will catch diseases they have never experienced before, such as influenza. There are also concerns that the spread of illegal logging will destroy __________________ of life.

The newly-found tribe ____________________ last remaining peoples on Earth __________________ contact with modern life. The name of the tribe and __________________ being kept a secret. The only information released so far is that the tribe lives in a remote part of the rainforest near the Brazil-Peru border. The photographs that were taken show painted men dressed in warrior costumes ___________________. They were trying to shoot down the photographer’s plane as it flew past. Another shot shows villagers standing in front of __________________ thatched huts. Survival International, a group that fights for the rights of indigenous people, warned the group and its unique culture is “__________________ disappearing. It said: "The world needs to wake up…and ensure that their territory is protected…Otherwise, they will ____________________."

AFTER READING / LISTENING

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

rain

forest

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

community outside interests several exist concerns

surely exact dressed standing unique wake up

STUDENT INDIGENOUS TRIBES SURVEY

Write five GOOD questions about indigenous tribes in the table. Do this in pairs. Each student must write the questions on his / her own paper.

When you have finished, interview other students. Write down their answers.

	STUDENT 1 _____________	STUDENT 2 _____________	STUDENT 3 _____________
Q.1.
Q.2.
Q.3.
Q.4.
Q.5.

• Now return to your original partner and share and talk about what you found out. Change partners often.
• Make mini-presentations to other groups on your findings.

MODERN LIFE DISCUSSION

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

a)	What did you think when you read the headline?
b)	What springs to mind when you hear the term ‘indigenous tribe’?
c)	Are you surprised researchers are still finding new tribes of people?
d)	Do you think Brazil’s government was right to put photos of the tribe on the Internet?
e)	Are you worried the tribe will now be destroyed by the modern world?
f)	Are loggers and big companies like primitive tribes?
g)	What’s the best way to look after the interests of indigenous people?
h)	Do you think your way of life is better than the ancient way of life lead by rainforest people?
i)	Where do you think modern life has gone wrong?
j)	Who do you think is to blame for the loss of so many indigenous cultures and peoples?

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

a)	Did you like reading this article?
b)	What adjectives would you use to describe modern life?
c)	What do you think the tribe would think of modern life?
d)	Do you think Brazil can keep the tribe’s location a secret forever?
e)	How sad would it be if loggers cut down the tribe’s forests?
f)	Would you swap modern life for a more primitive life?
g)	How precious is this newly-found tribe?
h)	What do you think the modern world needs to wake up to?
i)	What would you do if your culture was in grave danger of disappearing?
j)	What questions would you like to ask the people of the tribe?

LANGUAGE

The Brazilian government has published photographs of an (1) ____ community of indigenous people living in the Amazon rainforest. It is the first time the world has seen this tribe and the first time for the tribe to see the (2) ____ world. Brazil’s National Indian Foundation (NIF) put the photos on its web site on May 29th. The foundation is a government agency that looks (3) ____ the interests of the country’s disappearing tribes. José Carlos dos Reis Meirelles, an NIF official, said the photographs were taken (4) ____ several weeks in April and May. He explained: “We did the flights to show their houses, to show they are there, to show they (5) ____.” He is worried that the tribes-people will catch diseases they have never experienced before, such as influenza. There are also concerns that the spread of illegal logging will destroy their (6) ____ way of life.

The newly-found tribe is (7) ____ one of the last remaining peoples on Earth never to have had contact with modern life. The name of the tribe and its (8) ____ location are being kept a secret. The only information released so far is that the tribe lives in a remote part of the rainforest near the Brazil-Peru (9) ____. The photographs that were taken show painted men dressed (10) ____ warrior costumes with bows and arrows. They were trying to shoot down the photographer’s plane as it flew past. Another shot shows villagers standing in front of their primitive thatched huts. Survival International, a group that (11) ____ for the rights of indigenous people, warned the group and its unique culture is “in (12) ____ danger” of disappearing. It said: "The world needs to wake up…and ensure that their territory is protected…Otherwise, they will soon be made extinct."

Put the correct words from the table below in the above article.

1.	(a)	isolated	(b)	isolates	(c)	isolation	(d)	isolate
2.	(a)	upside down	(b)	outside	(c)	inside out	(d)	inside
3.	(a)	before	(b)	while	(c)	after	(d)	during
4.	(a)	with	(b)	by	(c)	before	(d)	over
5.	(a)	exit	(b)	excite	(c)	exact	(d)	exist
6.	(a)	ancestry	(b)	ancestor	(c)	ancient	(d)	anchovy
7.	(a)	surely	(b)	surly	(c)	sure	(d)	sure of
8.	(a)	exist	(b)	exact	(c)	extract	(d)	exit
9.	(a)	rim	(b)	edge	(c)	border	(d)	line
10.	(a)	in	(b)	on	(c)	an	(d)	by
11.	(a)	punches	(b)	bickers	(c)	quarrels	(d)	fights
12.	(a)	gravity	(b)	grave	(c)	gravely	(d)	graveyard

WRITING: 

Write about  rainforests  for 10 minutes. Correct your partner’s paper.

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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 out more about the new tribe in the Amazon and other newly-discovered peoples. Share what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.

3. MODERN LIFE: Make a poster about modern life and the things that are wrong with it. Compare our life with the life of people who live in rainforests. Show your work to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all have similar things?

4. CONTACT: Write a magazine article about an indigenous tribesperson from the Amazon rainforest coming to your country. It is his/her first experience of the modern world. Include an imaginary interview with him/her. Include questions about his/her thoughts and feelings on what (s)he sees.

Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Write down any new words and expressions you hear from your partner(s).

5. LETTER: Write a letter to the head of Brazil’s agency for indigenous peoples. Ask him/her three questions about the new tribe. Give him/her three pieces of advice on what (s)he should do to make sure the tribe is protected forever. Read your letter to your partner(s) in your next lesson. Your partner(s) will answer your questions.

6. DIARY / JOURNAL: You are a tribesperson from the Amazon rainforest. You have travelled to a modern country. Write your diary entry about your first day in this country. Include your thoughts on the things you see and the people you meet. Read your entry to your classmates in the next lesson.

ANSWERS

TRUE / FALSE:

a. F

b. T

c. T

d. F

e. F

f. T

g. T

h. F

SYNONYM MATCH:

1.	published	a.	issued
2	isolated	b.	remote
3.	interests	c.	wellbeing
4.	exist	d.	are real
5.	ancient	e.	very old
6.	exact	f.	precise
7.	warrior	g.	fighter
8.	primitive	h.	very basic
9.	grave	i.	serious
10.	extinct	j.	dead

PHRASE MATCH:

1.	an isolated community	a.	of indigenous people
2	the first time for the tribe to	b.	see the outside world
3.	looks after the interests of the	c.	country’s disappearing tribes
4.	catch	d.	diseases
5.	destroy their ancient	e.	way of life
6.	one of the last remaining	f.	peoples on Earth
7.	The name of the tribe and	g.	its exact location
8.	a remote part of the rainforest	h.	near the Brazil-Peru border
9.	villagers standing in front of their	i.	primitive thatched huts
10.	The world needs	j.	to wake up

GAP FILL:

New tribe found in Amazon rainforest

The Brazilian government has published photographs of an isolated community of indigenous people living in the Amazon rainforest. It is the first time the world has seen this tribe and the first time for the tribe to see the outside world. Brazil’s National Indian Foundation (NIF) put the photos on its web site on May 29th. The foundation is a government agency that looks after the interests of the country’s disappearing tribes. José Carlos dos Reis Meirelles, an NIF official, said the photographs were taken over several weeks in April and May. He explained: “We did the flights to show their houses, to show they are there, to show they exist.” He is worried that the tribes-people will catch diseases they have never experienced before, such as influenza. There are also concerns that the spread of illegal logging will destroy their ancient way of life.

The newly-found tribe is surely one of the last remaining peoples on Earth never to have had contact with modern life. The name of the tribe and its exact location are being kept a secret. The only information released so far is that the tribe lives in a remote part of the rainforest near the Brazil-Peru border. The photographs that were taken show painted men dressed in warrior costumes with bows and arrows. They were trying to shoot down the photographer’s plane as it flew past. Another shot shows villagers standing in front of their primitive thatched huts. Survival International, a group that fights for the rights of indigenous people, warned the group and its unique culture is “in grave danger” of disappearing. It said: "The world needs to wake up…and ensure that their territory is protected…Otherwise, they will soon be made extinct."

LANGUAGE WORK

1 - a

2 - b

3 - c

4 - d

5 - d

6 - c

7 - a

8 - b

9 - c

10 - a

11 - d

12 - b

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