The Reading / Listening - Self-awareness - Level 4

Scientists in Hungary conducted a study to find out if dogs have self-awareness and a sense of body awareness. A researcher explained: "Self-awareness is a rather poorly investigated area of dog cognition." He added: "Body awareness is a mental capacity to organize someone's action by taking in consideration their own body exists." He put dogs in situations that would make them aware of their body position.

The scientists conducted tests on 54 dogs. A toy was attached to a mat and each dog had to give the toy to its owner. The dog would not be able to take the toy to its owner unless it got off the mat. Many of the dogs worked this out. The researchers said this showed a sense of body awareness. They wrote that body awareness is, "the ability to hold information about one's own body in mind, as an explicit object, in relation to other objects in the world".

Try the same news story at these levels:

    Self-awareness - Level 5 or  Self-awareness - Level 6

Sources
  • https://www.inverse.com/science/dog-body-awareness-study
  • https://www.ctvnews.ca/sci-tech/are-dogs-self-aware-scientists-say-there-s-a-good-chance-1.5317364
  • https://www.akc.org/expert-advice/lifestyle/do-dogs-have-self-awareness/


Make sure you try all of the online activities for this reading and listening - There are dictations, multiple choice activities, drag and drop activities, sentence jumbles, which word activities, text reconstructions, spelling, gap fills and a whole lot more. Please enjoy :-)

Phrase Matching

Paragraph 1

  1. Scientists in Hungary conducted
  2. find out if dogs have
  3. a rather poorly investigated
  4. dog
  5. a mental
  6. by taking in
  7. He put dogs
  8. make them
  1. capacity
  2. in situations
  3. aware
  4. consideration
  5. a study
  6. cognition
  7. self-awareness
  8. area

Paragraph 2

  1. The scientists conducted
  2. A toy was attached
  3. each dog had to give the
  4. unless it got off
  5. Many of the dogs worked
  6. showed a sense of body
  7. hold information about one's own
  8. in relation to
  1. this out
  2. toy to its owner
  3. body in mind
  4. other objects
  5. the mat
  6. tests
  7. awareness
  8. to a mat

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

Scientists in Hungary (1) ___________________ to find out if dogs have self-awareness and (2) ___________________ body awareness. A researcher explained: "Self-awareness is (3) ___________________ investigated area of dog cognition." He added: "Body awareness is (4) ___________________ to organize someone's (5) ___________________ in consideration their own body exists." He put dogs in situations that would (6) ___________________ of their body position.

The scientists (7) ___________________ 54 dogs. A toy was attached to a mat and each dog had to give the toy (8) ___________________. The dog would not be able to take the toy to its owner (9) ___________________ off the mat. Many of the dogs worked this out. The researchers said (10) ___________________ sense of body awareness. They wrote that body awareness is, "the (11) ___________________ information about one's own body in mind, as an explicit object, in relation (12) ___________________ in the world".

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

ScientistsinHungaryconductedastudytofindoutifdogshaveself-awa
renessandasenseofbodyawareness.Aresearcherexplained:"Self-a
warenessisaratherpoorlyinvestigatedareaofdogcognition."Headded
:"Bodyawarenessisamentalcapacitytoorganizesomeone'sactionbyt
akinginconsiderationtheirownbodyexists."Heputdogsinsituationsth
atwouldmakethemawareoftheirbodyposition.Thescientistsconducte
dtestson54dogs.Atoywasattachedtoamatandeachdoghadtogivethe
toytoitsowner.Thedogwouldnotbeabletotakethetoytoitsownerunles
sitgotoffthemat.Manyofthedogsworkedthisout.Theresearcherssaidt
hisshowedasenseofbodyawareness.Theywrotethatbodyawarenessi
s,"theabilitytoholdinformationaboutone'sownbodyinmind,asanexpli
citobject,inrelationtootherobjectsintheworld".

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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