The Reading / Listening - Music and Genes - Level 1

We all love moving to music. We cannot stop tapping our foot or nodding our head when we listen to it. Researchers say moving our body to music is genetic. Our parents pass their sense of rhythm down to us. The study is from a university and a biotechnology company. It found 69 genes that change how we react to music, and how we move in sync with music beats. The genes also change other rhythms, like breathing, walking and sleeping.

Data on 600,000 people gave researchers a "unique opportunity" to find genetic signals. Researchers said their study is "a leap forward" for understanding the links between genetics and musicality. One of the researchers said "many hundreds of genes" can change our sense of rhythm." She said tapping, clapping and dancing in sync with music beats "is at the core of our human musicality". Doctors could use music and rhythms to make us healthier.

Try the same news story at these levels:

    Music and Genes - Level 0 Music and Genes - Level 2   or  Music and Genes - Level 3

Sources
  • https://neurosciencenews.com/genetic-lmusic-movement-21443/
  • https://newatlas.com/science/genes-beat-sync-music-study-nature/
  • https://www.nature.com/articles/s41562-022-01359-x


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. We all love moving
  2. We cannot stop tapping
  3. nodding our
  4. moving our body to
  5. sense
  6. a biotechnology
  7. how we
  8. we move in
  1. head
  2. of rhythm
  3. sync with music beats
  4. our foot
  5. react to music
  6. music is genetic
  7. to music
  8. company

Paragraph 2

  1. their study is a leap
  2. hundreds
  3. change our sense
  4. in sync
  5. tapping, clapping and
  6. at the core of our human
  7. Doctors could use music
  8. make us
  1. with music
  2. healthier
  3. dancing
  4. of genes
  5. and rhythms
  6. forward
  7. musicality
  8. of rhythm

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

We all (1) ___________________ music. We cannot stop tapping (2) ___________________ nodding our head when we listen to it. Researchers say moving our body to (3) ___________________. Our parents pass their (4) ___________________ down to us. The study is from a university and a biotechnology company. It found 69 genes that change how (5) ___________________ music, and how we move in sync with music beats. The genes also change other rhythms, like breathing, (6) ___________________.

Data on 600,000 people (7) ___________________ "unique opportunity" to find genetic signals. Researchers said their study is "(8) ___________________" for understanding the links between genetics and musicality. One of the researchers said "many hundreds of genes" can change our (9) ___________________." She said tapping, clapping and (10) ___________________ with music beats "is at (11) ___________________ our human musicality". Doctors could use music and rhythms to (12) ___________________.

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

Wealllovemovingtomusic.Wecannotstoptappingourfootornoddingo
urheadwhenwelistentoit.Researcherssaymovingourbodytomusicisg
enetic.Ourparentspasstheirsenseofrhythmdowntous.Thestudyisfro
mauniversityandabiotechnologycompany.Itfound69genesthatchan
gehowwereacttomusic,andhowwemoveinsyncwithmusicbeats.Theg
enesalsochangeotherrhythms,likebreathing,walkingandsleeping.D
ataon600,000peoplegaveresearchersa"uniqueopportunity"tofindge
neticsignals.Researcherssaidtheirstudyis"aleapforward"forunderst
andingthelinksbetweengeneticsandmusicality.Oneoftheresearcher
ssaid"manyhundredsofgenes"canchangeoursenseofrhythm."Shesa
idtapping,clappinganddancinginsyncwithmusicbeats"isatthecoreof
ourhumanmusicality".Doctorscouldusemusicandrhythmstomakeus
healthier.

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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