The Reading / Listening - Bread Recipe - Level 2

Researchers have found the world's oldest example of bread. The researchers found 24 ancient breadcrumbs on an archaeological dig in Jordan. The breadcrumbs were burnt, which is how they survived for so long. The crumbs come from bread made about 14,000 years old. This means that Stone Age people were baking bread. This is 4,000 years earlier than scientists thought. The people who baked the bread lived in Jordan from 12,500 to 9,500 B.C. They were hunter-gatherers. They lived thousands of years before humans settled down to become farmers.

The breadcrumbs were made from cereals such as barley, wheat and oats. The lead researcher said the bread took a long time to make. The ancient people ground the cereals into flour and mixed it with water to make dough. After that, they baked it in hot ashes or on a hot stone. The bread looked like the flat pitta bread made across the Middle East. Another researcher said the bread could be one reason why the agricultural revolution started. Stone Age people understood it was easier to farm the wheat for bread instead of collecting it from the wild.

Try the same news story at these levels:

    Bread Recipe - Level 0 Bread Recipe - Level 1   or  Bread Recipe - Level 3

Sources
  • https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/archaeologists-discover-evidence-bread-baked-advent-agriculture-180969667/
  • https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-44846874
  • https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trade-china-eu/forcing-china-on-trade-with-illegal-action-will-not-work-eus-malmstrom-idUSKBN1K912H


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 :-)

Phrase Matching

Paragraph 1

  1. the world's oldest example
  2. The researchers found 24
  3. on an archaeological
  4. how they survived for
  5. 4,000 years earlier than
  6. The people who
  7. They lived thousands
  8. humans settled
  1. of years before
  2. so long
  3. scientists thought
  4. down to become farmers
  5. of bread
  6. dig in Jordan
  7. baked the bread
  8. ancient breadcrumbs

Paragraph 2

  1. The breadcrumbs were made
  2. barley, wheat
  3. the bread took a
  4. ground the cereals
  5. they baked it
  6. why the agricultural
  7. it was easier to farm the
  8. collecting it from
  1. wheat for bread
  2. into flour
  3. the wild
  4. revolution started
  5. from cereals
  6. in hot ashes
  7. and oats
  8. long time to make

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

Researchers have found the (1) ___________________ of bread. The researchers found (2) ___________________ on an archaeological dig in Jordan. The breadcrumbs were burnt, which is how they survived (3) ___________________. The crumbs come from bread made about 14,000 years old. This means that Stone Age people (4) ___________________. This is 4,000 years earlier than scientists thought. The people who (5) ___________________ lived in Jordan from 12,500 to 9,500 B.C. They were hunter-gatherers. They lived thousands of years before humans settled (6) ___________________ farmers.

The breadcrumbs were made (7) ___________________ as barley, wheat and oats. The lead researcher said the bread (8) ___________________ time to make. The ancient people ground the cereals into flour and mixed it with water (9) ___________________. After that, they baked it in hot ashes or on a hot stone. The bread looked like the flat pitta bread (10) ___________________ Middle East. Another researcher said the bread could be (11) ___________________ the agricultural revolution started. Stone Age people understood it was easier to farm the wheat for bread instead of collecting it (12) ___________________.

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

Researchershavefoundtheworld'soldestexampleofbread.Theresear
chersfound24ancientbreadcrumbsonanarchaeologicaldiginJordan.T
hebreadcrumbswereburnt,whichishowtheysurvivedforsolong.Thecr
umbscomefrombreadmadeabout14,000yearsold.ThismeansthatSt
oneAgepeoplewerebakingbread.Thisis4,000yearsearlierthanscienti
ststhought.ThepeoplewhobakedthebreadlivedinJordanfrom12,500t
o9,500B.C.Theywerehunter-gatherers.Theylivedthousandsofyea
rsbeforehumanssettleddowntobecomefarmers.Thebreadcrumbswe
remadefromcerealssuchasbarley,wheatandoats.Theleadresearcher
saidthebreadtookalongtimetomake.Theancientpeoplegroundthecer
ealsintoflourandmixeditwithwatertomakedough.Afterthat,theybak
editinhotashesoronahotstone.Thebreadlookedliketheflatpittabread
madeacrosstheMiddleEast.Anotherresearchersaidthebreadcouldbe
onereasonwhytheagriculturalrevolutionstarted.StoneAgepeopleun
derstooditwaseasiertofarmthewheatforbreadinsteadofcollectingitfr
omthewild.

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 — Write your own questions

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

(a) ________________

(b) ________________

(c) ________________

(d) ________________

(e) ________________

(f) ________________

(g) ________________

(h) ________________

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

(i) ________________

(j) ________________

(k) ________________

(l) ________________

(m) ________________

(n) ________________

(o) ________________

(p) ________________

Free writing

Write about this topic for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

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Answers

(Please check your answers against the article above.

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