The Reading / Listening - Titanic Postcard - Level 2

A postcard from a worker on the Titanic could sell for $15,000 at an auction. The card was written by the ship's wireless operator Jack Phillips. He wrote to his sister while the Titanic was at port. He wrote: "Very busy working late. Hope to leave on Monday and arrive in Southampton Wednesday afternoon." His message ends with the words, "Love, Jack." The postcard has photos of the Titanic on one side. On the address side of the card there is a postmark from a post office in Belfast. The card is one of many things from the shipwreck of the Titanic in a multi-million-dollar auction.

The Titanic was completed in 1912. Its builders said the design meant it could not sink. It started its first voyage, from the UK to New York, on April the 10th, 1912. It hit an iceberg in the Atlantic Ocean five days later. The impact made a big hole in the ship. More than 1,500 of the 2,224 passengers died. Mr Phillips escaped overboard as water flooded the ship. He sat on an overturned lifeboat and waited to be rescued, but he died of exposure to the cold. He was 25 years old. The story of the Titanic was made into a 1997 Oscar-winning movie starring Leonardo DiCaprio.

Try the same news story at these levels:

    Titanic Postcard - Level 0 Titanic Postcard - Level 1   or  Titanic Postcard - Level 3

Sources
  • https://edition.cnn.com/style/article/titanic-postcard-up-for-auction-trnd/index.html
  • https://www.9news.com.au/world/postcard-from-titanic-crewmember-to-go-on-auction/119ff469-b7bb-4153-ad75-3e2cad50d1e9
  • https://nypost.com/2021/04/06/titanic-postcard-signed-love-jack-may-fetch-15k-at-auction/


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. written by the ship's
  2. He wrote to
  3. Hope to leave
  4. photos of the Titanic
  5. On the address side
  6. there is a postmark
  7. one of many things
  8. a multi-million-dollar
  1. on Monday
  2. from the shipwreck
  3. on one side
  4. from a post office
  5. auction
  6. wireless operator
  7. of the card
  8. his sister

Paragraph 2

  1. The Titanic was completed
  2. it could not
  3. It started its first
  4. It hit an
  5. The impact made a big
  6. 1,500 of the 2,224
  7. waited to be
  8. he died of exposure
  1. passengers died
  2. voyage
  3. hole in the ship
  4. sink
  5. rescued
  6. in 1912
  7. to the cold
  8. iceberg

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

A postcard from (1) ___________________ the Titanic could sell for $15,000 at an auction. The card (2) ___________________ the ship's wireless operator Jack Phillips. He wrote to his sister while the Titanic was at port. He wrote: "Very (3) ___________________. Hope to leave on Monday and arrive in Southampton Wednesday afternoon." His message (4) ___________________ words, "Love, Jack." The postcard has photos of the Titanic on one side. On the address side of the card there (5) ___________________ from a post office in Belfast. The card is one (6) ___________________ from the shipwreck of the Titanic in a multi-million-dollar auction.

The Titanic (7) ___________________ 1912. Its builders said the design meant it could not sink. It started (8) ___________________, from the UK to New York, on April the 10th, 1912. It (9) ___________________ in the Atlantic Ocean five days later. The impact made a big hole in the ship. More than 1,500 of the 2,224 passengers died. Mr Phillips (10) ___________________ water flooded the ship. He sat on an overturned lifeboat and waited to be rescued, but he (11) ___________________ to the cold. He was 25 years old. The story of the Titanic was made into a 1997 Oscar-(12) ___________________ Leonardo DiCaprio.

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

ApostcardfromaworkerontheTitaniccouldsellfor$15,000atanauction
.Thecardwaswrittenbytheship'swirelessoperatorJackPhillips.Hewro
tetohissisterwhiletheTitanicwasatport.Hewrote:"Verybusyworkingl
ate.HopetoleaveonMondayandarriveinSouthamptonWednesdayaft
ernoon."Hismessageendswiththewords,"Love,Jack."Thepostcardha
sphotosoftheTitanicononeside.Ontheaddresssideofthecardthereisa
postmarkfromapostofficeinBelfast.Thecardisoneofmanythingsfrom
theshipwreckoftheTitanicinamulti-million-dollarauction.TheTitani
cwascompletedin1912.Itsbuilderssaidthedesignmeantitcouldnotsin
k.Itstarteditsfirstvoyage,fromtheUKtoNewYork,onAprilthe10th,191
2.IthitanicebergintheAtlanticOceanfivedayslater.Theimpactmadea
bigholeintheship.Morethan1,500ofthe2,224passengersdied.MrPhill
ipsescapedoverboardaswaterfloodedtheship.Hesatonanoverturnedl
ifeboatandwaitedtoberescued,buthediedofexposuretothecold.Hew
as25yearsold.ThestoryoftheTitanicwasmadeintoa1997Oscar-winn
ingmoviestarringLeonardoDiCaprio.

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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