The Reading / Listening - Level 3

Police in the US state of Ohio are going to look into the shooting of a 17-year-old gorilla at Cincinnati Zoo. They will investigate the facts around the killing of Harambe the gorilla after a four-year-old boy fell into the ape's enclosure on Saturday. Video footage showed the gorilla dragging the boy through shallow water in his cage for up to ten minutes. Some people who were at the zoo said they were worried about the little boy's safety. Other people said the gorilla was trying to protect the child and that the animal was becoming upset by the noise from the crowds of people looking at the event. Zookeepers made a decision to shoot the gorilla because they feared for the boy's life.

Animal rights groups are very angry that the gorilla was shot and killed. They say zookeepers should have used a tranquilizer gun on the animal to put it to sleep. Zookeepers say it would have taken too long for the 200kg gorilla to be sedated. They say this would have been too dangerous. There is now an online petition that 300,000 people have signed to hold the boy's mother and the zoo accountable for Harambe's death. Many people say the mother should have looked after her son better to stop him from falling into the gorilla's area. The mother said no parent in the world can watch their children every second. She said: "As a society, we are quick to judge how a parent could take their eyes off their child."

Try the same news story at these easier levels:

    Level 0 Level 1   or  Level 2

Sources
  • http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-36420437
  • http://edition.cnn.com/2016/05/31/us/gorilla-death-debate/
  • http://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/01/us/police-investigating-shooting-of-gorilla-at-cincinnati-zoo.html?_r=0


Make sure you try all of the online activities for this reading and listening - There are dictations, multiple choice, drag and drop activities, crosswords, hangman, flash cards, matching activities and a whole lot more. Please enjoy :-)

Warm-ups

1. GORILLAS: Students walk around the class and talk to other students about gorillas. Change partners often and share your findings.

2. CHAT: In pairs / groups, talk about these topics or words from the article. What will the article say about them? What can you say about these words and your life?

       police / shooting / investigate / facts / video / cage / safety / upset / decision / gorilla
       animal rights / zookeepers / dangerous / online / petition / parent / society / judge

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

3. CAGES: Students A strongly believe animals do not belong in cages; Students B strongly believe they do.  Change partners again and talk about your conversations.

4. ZOOS: How can they be better? Talk about these things with your partner(s). Change partners often and share what you wrote.

  • Animal cages
  • Education
  • Conservation
  • Prices
  • Public safety
  • Animal welfare
MY e-BOOK
ESL resource book with copiable worksheets and handouts - 1,000 Ideas and Activities for Language Teachers / English teachers
See a sample

5. SAFETY: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word "safety". Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories.

6. ANIMALS: Rank these with your partner. Put the best animals at the top. Change partners often and share your rankings.

  • dog
  • panda
  • koala
  • cow
  • gorilla
  • elephant
  • cheetah
  • rabbit

Before reading / listening

1. TRUE / FALSE: Read the headline. Guess if a-h below are true (T) or false (F).

  1. The gorilla that was shot was 7 years old.     T / F
  2. The little boy jumped into the gorilla's enclosure.     T / F
  3. The water the gorilla dragged the boy through was not deep.     T / F
  4. The gorilla was upset by the noises of the crowd.     T / F
  5. Zookeepers said a tranquilizer gun would never sedate a big gorilla.     T / F
  6. An online petition blaming the mother was signed by 300,000 people.     T / F
  7. The mother said some parents can watch their children every second.     T / F
  8. The mother said society is quick to judge parents.     T / F

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

  1. look into
  2. enclosure
  3. dragging
  4. protect
  5. upset
  6. angry
  7. sedated
  8. dangerous
  9. accountable
  10. judge
  1. pulling
  2. drugged
  3. frightened
  4. area
  5. risky
  6. investigate
  7. responsible
  8. criticise
  9. furious
  10. safeguard

3. PHRASE MATCH: (Sometimes more than one choice is possible.)

  1. They will investigate
  2. shallow
  3. the gorilla was trying to
  4. becoming upset by the noise
  5. they feared for the boy's
  6. Animal rights
  7. an online
  8. hold the boy's mother and the
  9. watch their children
  10. we are quick
  1. water
  2. groups
  3. life
  4. petition
  5. to judge
  6. zoo accountable
  7. the facts
  8. every second
  9. from the crowds
  10. protect the child

Gap fill

Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
investigate
shallow
protect
state
life
enclosure
upset
safety

Police in the US (1) ____________ of Ohio are going to look into the shooting of a 17-year-old gorilla at Cincinnati Zoo. They will (2) ____________ the facts around the killing of Harambe the gorilla after a four-year-old boy fell into the ape's (3) ____________ on Saturday. Video footage showed the gorilla dragging the boy through (4) ____________ water in his cage for up to ten minutes. Some people who were at the zoo said they were worried about the little boy's (5) ____________. Other people said the gorilla was trying to (6) ____________ the child and that the animal was becoming (7) ____________ by the noise from the crowds of people looking at the event. Zookeepers made a decision to shoot the gorilla because they feared for the boy's (8) ____________.

Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
accountable
sleep
angry
second
petition
eyes
sedated
area

Animal rights groups are very (9) ____________ that the gorilla was shot and killed. They say zookeepers should have used a tranquilizer gun on the animal to put it to (10) ____________. Zookeepers say it would have taken too long for the 200kg gorilla to be (11) ____________. They say this would have been too dangerous. There is now an online (12) ____________ that 300,000 people have signed to hold the boy's mother and the zoo (13) ____________ for Harambe's death. Many people say the mother should have looked after her son better to stop him from falling into the gorilla's (14) ____________. The mother said no parent in the world can watch their children every (15) ____________. She said: "As a society, we are quick to judge how a parent could take their (16) ____________ off their child."

Listening — Guess the answers. Listen to check.

1)  the killing of Harambe the gorilla after a four-year-old boy fell into the ______
     a.  ape's disclosure
     b.  ape's enclosure
     c.  ape's no closure
     d.  ape's enclose are

2)  Video footage showed the gorilla dragging the boy through ______
     a.  swallow water
     b.  shallow water
     c.  shall low water
     d.  shall owe water

3)  Other people said the gorilla was trying to ______
     a.  protects the child
     b.  protected the child
     c.  protecting the child
     d.  protect the child

4)  the animal was becoming upset by the noise from the ______
     a.  crowds for people
     b.  crowds of people
     c.  crowds from people
     d.  crowds off people

5)  Zookeepers made a decision to shoot the gorilla because they feared ______
     a.  for the boy's life
     b.  for a boy's life
     c.  for the boy's live
     d.  for the boy's alive

6)  Animal rights groups are very angry that the gorilla was ______
     a.  shoot and killed
     b.  shoot and kill
     c.  shot and kill
     d.  shot and killed

7)  They say zookeepers should have used a tranquilizer gun on the animal ______
     a.  to put it by sleep
     b.  to put it to sleepy
     c.  too put it to sleep
     d.  to put it to sleep

8)  Zookeepers say it would have taken too long for the 200kg gorilla ______
     a.  to be sedated
     b.  to be sedative
     c.  to be sedate it
     d.  to be sedate

9)  There is now an online petition that 300,000 people ______
     a.  have signage
     b.  have singed
     c.  have signed
     d.  have sighed

10)  The mother said no parent in the world can watch their children ______
     a.  every seconds
     b.  every second
     c.  every secondly
     d.  every seconded

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

Police in the US state of Ohio are going (1) ___________________ shooting of a 17-year-old gorilla at Cincinnati Zoo. They (2) ___________________ facts around the killing of Harambe the gorilla after a four-year-old boy fell into the ape's enclosure on Saturday. (3) ___________________ showed the gorilla dragging the boy through (4) ___________________ his cage for up to ten minutes. Some people who were at the zoo said they were worried about the little boy's safety. Other people said the gorilla was trying to protect the child and that the animal was (5) ___________________ by the noise from the crowds of people looking at the event. Zookeepers made a (6) ___________________ the gorilla because they feared for the boy's life.

Animal (7) ___________________ very angry that the gorilla was shot and killed. They say zookeepers should have used a tranquilizer gun on the animal to (8) ___________________. Zookeepers say it would have taken too long for the 200kg gorilla to be sedated. They say this would have been too dangerous. There is now an (9) ___________________ that 300,000 people have signed to hold the boy's mother and the zoo accountable for Harambe's death. Many people say the mother (10) ___________________ after her son better to stop him from falling into the gorilla's area. The mother said no parent in the (11) ___________________ their children every second. She said: "As a society, we are quick to judge how a parent could take their (12) ___________________ child."

Comprehension questions

  1. How old was Harambe the gorilla?
  2. How old was the little boy who fell into the gorilla's enclosure?
  3. For how long did the gorilla drag the boy through the water?
  4. Where did the noise that upset the gorilla come from?
  5. Who made the decision to shoot Harambe?
  6. Who said the zookeepers should have used a tranquilizer gun?
  7. How much did Harambe weigh?
  8. What did 300,000 people sign?
  9. What did many people say the mother should have done better?
  10. Who did the mother say judged parents quickly?

Multiple choice quiz

1) How old was Harambe the gorilla?
a) 17
b) 16
c) 15
d) 14

2) How old was the little boy who fell into the gorilla's enclosure?
a) 6
b) 5
c) 4
d) 3

3) For how long did the gorilla drag the boy through the water?
a) a few seconds
b) 10 minutes
c) 10 seconds
d) a minute

4) Where did the noise that upset the gorilla come from?
a) a loud speaker
b) zookeepers
c) other animals
d) crowds of people

5) Who made the decision to shoot Harambe?
a) zookeepers
b) the zoo's CEO
c) a police officer
d) animal rights groups

6) Who said the zookeepers should have used a tranquilizer gun?
a) a gun company CEO
b) the public
c) the police
d) animal rights groups

7) How much did Harambe weigh?
a) 180kg
b) 200kg
c) 210kg
d) 300kg

8) What did 300,000 people sign?
a) a cheque
b) a statement
c) a book
d) a petition

9) What did many people say the mother should have done better?
a) stop the gorilla from getting shot
b) posted messages on Facebook
c) looked after her son
d) tried to save her son

10) Who did the mother say judged parents quickly?
a) reporters
b) society
c) zookeepers
d) zoo visitors

Role play

Role A — Elephants

You think elephants are the best animals. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them things that aren't so good with their animals. Also, tell the others which is the least interesting of these (and why): cows, gorillas or dogs.

Role B — Cows

You think cows are the best animals. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them things that aren't so good with their animals. Also, tell the others which is the least interesting of these (and why): elephants, gorillas or dogs.

Role C — Gorillas

You think gorillas are the best animals. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them things that aren't so good with their animals. Also, tell the others which is the least interesting of these (and why): cows, elephants or dogs.

Role D — Dogs

You think dogs are the best animals. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them things that aren't so good with their animals. Also, tell the others which is the least interesting of these (and why):  cows, gorillas or elephants.

After reading / listening

1. WORD SEARCH: Look in your dictionary / computer to find collocates, other meanings, information, synonyms … for the words...

'shallow'

  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • and 'water'.

  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • • 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:

    • angry
    • sleep
    • 200
    • 300,000
    • stop
    • eyes
    • look
    • facts
    • water
    • protect
    • noise
    • life

    Student survey

    Write five GOOD questions about this topic 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.

    (Please look at page 12 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

    Discussion - U.S. police to look into shooting of zoo gorilla

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

    1. What did you think when you read the headline?
    2. What springs to mind when you hear the word 'gorilla'?
    3. What do you know about this story?
    4. What do you think about what you read?
    5. What do you think of zoos?
    6. What could zookeepers have done instead of shooting Harambe?
    7. What would have happened if the gorilla had not been killed?
    8. What do you know about gorillas?
    9. Should we be more concerned about gorillas being hunted and killed?
    10. How can zoos help gorillas?

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

    1. Did you like reading this article? Why/not?
    2. What are your feelings about the shooting of Harambe the gorilla
    3. How difficult was it for zookeepers to decide to kill Harambe?
    4. Do you agree with the animal rights groups?
    5. How can we stop gorillas from being killed in the wild?
    6. Why do people blame the zoo for the gorilla's death?
    7. Why do people blame the mother?
    8. How has social media changed events like this?
    9. Are we quick to judge other people?
    10. What questions would you like to ask the zookeepers?

    Discussion — Write your own questions

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

    (a) ________________

    (b) ________________

    (c) ________________

    (d) ________________

    (e) ________________

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

    (f) ________________

    (g) ________________

    (h) ________________

    (i) ________________

    (j) ________________

    Language — Cloze (Gap-fill)

    Police in the US state of Ohio are going to look into the (1) ____ of a 17-year-old gorilla at Cincinnati Zoo. They will investigate the facts (2) ____ the killing of Harambe the gorilla (3) ____ a four-year-old boy fell into the ape's enclosure on Saturday. Video footage showed the gorilla dragging the boy through shallow water in his cage for (4) ____ to ten minutes. Some people who were at the zoo said they were worried about the little boy's safety. Other people said the gorilla was trying to protect the child and that the animal was (5) ____ upset by the noise from the crowds of people looking at the event. Zookeepers made a decision to shoot the gorilla because they (6) ____ for the boy's life.

    Animal rights groups are very angry (7) ____ the gorilla was shot and killed. They say zookeepers should have used a tranquilizer gun on the animal to (8) ____ it to sleep. Zookeepers say it would have taken too long for the 200kg gorilla to be sedated. They say this would have been too (9) ____. There is now an online petition that 300,000 people have signed to hold the boy's mother and the zoo accountable (10) ____ Harambe's death. Many people say the mother should have looked after her son better (11) ____ stop him from falling into the gorilla's area. The mother said no parent in the world can watch their children every second. She said: "As a society, we are quick to (12) ____ how a parent could take their eyes off their child."

    Which of these words go in the above text?

    1. (a)     shooting     (b)     shots     (c)     shoot     (d)     shoots    
    2. (a)     surround     (b)     above     (c)     around     (d)     on    
    3. (a)     then     (b)     so     (c)     after     (d)     but    
    4. (a)     as     (b)     of     (c)     down     (d)     up    
    5. (a)     became     (b)     becomes     (c)     becoming     (d)     become    
    6. (a)     afraid     (b)     feared     (c)     frighten     (d)     frightened     
    7. (a)     which     (b)     about     (c)     that     (d)     for    
    8. (a)     pit     (b)     put     (c)     pet     (d)     pat    
    9. (a)     dangers     (b)     endanger     (c)     dangerous     (d)     danger    
    10. (a)     to     (b)     from     (c)     of     (d)     for    
    11. (a)     go     (b)     do     (c)     so     (d)     to    
    12. (a)     sentence     (b)     jury     (c)     trial     (d)     judge

    Spelling

    Paragraph 1

    1. video eoogtaf
    2. through asolwhl water
    3. worried about the little boy's ayefts
    4. becoming esutp by the noise from the crowds
    5. Zookeepers made a nicdseoi to shoot the gorilla
    6. they rfeaed for the boy's life

    Paragraph 2

    1. animal itrghs groups
    2. to be datdees
    3. an online tnteopii that 300,000 people have signed
    4. tbcanalucoe for Harambe's death
    5. falling into the gorilla's eraa
    6. we are quick to egujd

    Put the text back together

    (    )…..water in his cage for up to ten minutes. Some people who were at the zoo said they were worried

    (    )…..about the little boy's safety. Other people said the gorilla was trying to protect the child and that the animal was

    (    )…..enclosure on Saturday. Video footage showed the gorilla dragging the boy through shallow

    (    )…..investigate the facts around the killing of Harambe the gorilla after a four-year-old boy fell into the ape's

    (    )…..second. She said: "As a society, we are quick to judge how a parent could take their eyes off their child."

    (    )…..that 300,000 people have signed to hold the boy's mother and the zoo accountable for Harambe's

    (    )…..gorilla to be sedated. They say this would have been too dangerous. There is now an online petition

    (    )…..Animal rights groups are very angry that the gorilla was shot and killed. They say zookeepers should have used a tranquilizer

    (    )…..Police in the US state of Ohio are going to look into the shooting of a 17-year-old gorilla at Cincinnati Zoo. They will

    (    )…..decision to shoot the gorilla because they feared for the boy's life.

    (    )…..death. Many people say the mother should have looked after her son better to stop him from

    (    )…..gun on the animal to put it to sleep. Zookeepers say it would have taken too long for the 200kg

    (    )…..falling into the gorilla's area. The mother said no parent in the world can watch their children every

    (    )…..becoming upset by the noise from the crowds of people looking at the event. Zookeepers made a

    Put the words in the right order

    1. four   A   enclosure   ape's   the   into   fell   boy   old   -   year   -   .
    2. footage   Video   boy   the   dragging   gorilla   the   showed   .
    3. zoo  said   they   were  worried   Some   people   who   were  at   the   .
    4. child   Other   people  said   the   gorilla  was   trying   to  protect  the  .
    5. shoot   to   decision   a   made   Zookeepers   gorilla   the   .
    6. rights  groups  are  very  angry  that   the  gorilla  was   shot   Animal  .
    7. online   300,000   people   An   that   signed   petition   have   .
    8. The   after   mother   her   should   son   have   better   looked   .
    9. watch  their  children  every  second   No  parent   in  the   world  can  .
    10. As   are   a   quick   society   to   ,   judge   we   .

    Circle the correct word (20 pairs)

    Police in the US state / states of Ohio are going to look into the shot / shooting of a 17-year-old gorilla at Cincinnati Zoo. They will investigate the facts / factual around the killing of Harambe the gorilla after a four-year-old boy fallen / fell into the ape's enclosure on Saturday. Video footing / footage showed the gorilla drugging / dragging the boy through shallow water in his cage for up / down to ten minutes. Some people who were at the zoo said they were worried about the little boy's safe / safety. Other people said the gorilla was trying to protect / protection the child and that the animal was becoming upset by the noise from the crowds of people looking at the event. Zookeepers made a decision to shoot the gorilla because they feared / fearing for the boy's life.

    Animal rights groups are very angrily / angry that the gorilla was shot and killed. They say zookeepers should have used / using a tranquilizer gun on the animal to put / pet it to sleep. Zookeepers say it would have took / taken too long for the 200kg gorilla to be sedated / sedative. They say this would have been too dangerous / danger. There is now an online petition that 300,000 people have signed / singed to hold the boy's mother and the zoo accountable for Harambe's death. Many people say the mother should have looked / looking after her son better to stop him from falling into the gorilla's area. The mother said no parent on / in the world can watch their children every second. She said: "As a society, we are quick to judge how a parent could take their eyes on / off their child."

    Talk about the connection between each pair of words in italics, and why the correct word is correct.

    Insert the vowels (a, e, i, o, u)

    P_l_c_ _n th_ _S st_t_ _f _h__ _r_ g__ng t_ l__k _nt_ th_ sh__t_ng _f _ 17-y__r _ld g_r_ll_ _t C_nc_nn_t_ Z__. Th_y w_ll _nv_st_g_t_ th_ f_cts _r__nd th_ k_ll_ng _f H_r_mb_ th_ g_r_ll_ _ft_r _ f__r-y__r-_ld b_y f_ll _nt_ th_ _p_'s _ncl_s_r_ _n S_t_rd_y. V_d__ f__t_g_ sh_w_d th_ g_r_ll_ dr_gg_ng th_ b_y thr__gh sh_ll_w w_t_r _n h_s c_g_ f_r _p t_ t_n m_n_t_s. S_m_ p__pl_ wh_ w_r_ _t th_ z__ s__d th_y w_r_ w_rr__d _b__t th_ l_ttl_ b_y's s_f_ty. _th_r p__pl_ s__d th_ g_r_ll_ w_s try_ng t_ pr_t_ct th_ ch_ld _nd th_t th_ _n_m_l w_s b_c_m_ng _ps_t by th_ n__s_ fr_m th_ cr_wds _f p__pl_ l__k_ng _t th_ _v_nt. Z__k__p_rs m_d_ _ d_c_s__n t_ sh__t th_ g_r_ll_ b_c__s_ th_y f__r_d f_r th_ b_y's l_f_.

    _n_m_l r_ghts gr__ps _r_ v_ry _ngry th_t th_ g_r_ll_ w_s sh_t _nd k_ll_d. Th_y s_y z__k__p_rs sh__ld h_v_ _s_d _ tr_nq__l_z_r g_n _n th_ _n_m_l t_ p_t _t t_ sl__p. Z__k__p_rs s_y _t w__ld h_v_ t_k_n t__ l_ng f_r th_ 200kg g_r_ll_ t_ b_ s_d_t_d. Th_y s_y th_s w__ld h_v_ b__n t__ d_ng_r__s. Th_r_ _s n_w _n _nl_n_ p_t_t__n th_t 300,000 p__pl_ h_v_ s_gn_d t_ h_ld th_ b_y's m_th_r _nd th_ z__ _cc__nt_bl_ f_r H_r_mb_'s d__th. M_ny p__pl_ s_y th_ m_th_r sh__ld h_v_ l__k_d _ft_r h_r s_n b_tt_r t_ st_p h_m fr_m f_ll_ng _nt_ th_ g_r_ll_'s _r__. Th_ m_th_r s__d n_ p_r_nt _n th_ w_rld c_n w_tch th__r ch_ldr_n _v_ry s_c_nd. Sh_ s__d: "_s _ s_c__ty, w_ _r_ q__ck t_ j_dg_ h_w _ p_r_nt c__ld t_k_ th__r _y_s _ff th__r ch_ld."

    Punctuate the text and add capitals

    police in the us state of ohio are going to look into the shooting of a 17-year-old gorilla at cincinnati zoo they will investigate the facts around the killing of harambe the gorilla after a four-year-old boy fell into the ape's enclosure on saturday video footage showed the gorilla dragging the boy through shallow water in his cage for up to ten minutes some people who were at the zoo said they were worried about the little boy's safety other people said the gorilla was trying to protect the child and that the animal was becoming upset by the noise from the crowds of people looking at the event zookeepers made a decision to shoot the gorilla because they feared for the boy's life

    animal rights groups are very angry that the gorilla was shot and killed they say zookeepers should have used a tranquilizer gun on the animal to put it to sleep zookeepers say it would have taken too long for the 200kg gorilla to be sedated they say this would have been too dangerous there is now an online petition that 300000 people have signed to hold the boy's mother and the zoo accountable for harambe's death many people say the mother should have looked after her son better to stop him from falling into the gorilla's area the mother said no parent in the world can watch their children every second she said "as a society we are quick to judge how a parent could take their eyes off their child"

    Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

    PoliceintheUSstateofOhioaregoingtolookintotheshootingofa17yea
    roldgorillaatCincinnatiZoo.Theywillinvestigatethefactsaroundthekillingo
    fHarambethegorillaafterafour-year-oldboyfellintotheape'sencl
    osureonSaturday.Videofootageshowedthegorilladraggingtheboythr
    oughshallowwaterinhiscageforuptotenminutes.Somepeoplewhowe
    reatthezoosaidtheywereworriedaboutthelittleboy'ssafety.Otherpeo
    plesaidthegorillawastryingtoprotectthechildandthattheanimalwasb
    ecomingupsetbythenoisefromthecrowdsofpeoplelookingattheevent
    .Zookeepersmadeadecisiontoshootthegorillabecausetheyfearedfort
    heboy'slife.Animalrightsgroupsareveryangrythatthegorillawasshot
    andkilled.Theysayzookeepersshouldhaveusedatranquilizergunonth
    eanimaltoputittosleep.Zookeeperssayitwouldhavetakentoolongfort
    he200kggorillatobesedated.Theysaythiswouldhavebeentoodanger
    ous.Thereisnowanonlinepetitionthat300,000peoplehavesignedtoho
    ldtheboy'smotherandthezooaccountableforHarambe'sdeath.Manyp
    eoplesaythemothershouldhavelookedafterhersonbettertostophimfr
    omfallingintothegorilla'sarea.Themothersaidnoparentintheworldca
    nwatchtheirchildreneverysecond.Shesaid:"Asasociety,wearequickt
    ojudgehowaparentcouldtaketheireyesofftheirchild."

    Free writing

    Write about gorilla shooting for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

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    Academic writing

    Animals do not belong in zoos. Discuss.

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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 gorillas. Share what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.

    3. ZOOS: Make a poster about how good or bad zoos are for animals. Show your work to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all have similar things?

    4. HARAMBE: Write a magazine article about the shooting of Harambe the gorilla. Include imaginary interviews with people who are for and against it.

    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. WHAT HAPPENED NEXT? Write a newspaper article about the next stage in this news story. Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Give each other feedback on your articles.

    6. LETTER: Write a letter to an expert on gorillas. Ask him/her three questions about Harambe's killing. Give him/her three of your ideas on what else could have been done. Read your letter to your partner(s) in your next lesson. Your partner(s) will answer your questions.

    A Few Additional Activities for Students

    Ask your students what they have read, seen or heard about this news in their own language. Students are likely to / may have have encountered this news in their L1 and therefore bring a background knowledge to the classroom.

    Get students to role play different characters from this news story.

    Ask students to keep track of this news and revisit it to discuss in your next class.

    Ask students to male predictions of how this news might develop in the next few days or weeks, and then revisit and discuss in a future class.

    Ask students to write a follow-up story to this news.

    Students role play a journalist and someone who witnessed or was a part of this news. Perhaps they could make a video of the interview.

    Ask students to keep a news journal in English and add this story to their thoughts.

    Also...

    Buy my 1,000 Ideas and Activities for Language Teachers eBook. It has hundreds of ideas, activity templates, reproducible activities for:

    • News
    • Warm ups
    • Pre-reading / Post-reading
    • Using headlines
    • Working with words
    • While-reading / While-listening
    • Moving from text to speech
    • Post-reading / Post-listening
    • Discussions
    • Using opinions
    • Plans
    • Language
    • Using lists
    • Using quotes
    • Task-based activities
    • Role plays
    • Using the central characters in the article
    • Using themes from the news
    • Homework

    Buy my book

    $US 9.99

    Answers

    (Please look at page 26 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

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