The Reading / Listening - Remote Island - Level 5

Indian police have arrested a tourist for travelling to a remote island to visit the world's most isolated tribe. The island, North Sentinel, is part of the Andaman and Nicobar archipelago, around 1,200 km east of India. It is 60 square kilometres in size. North Sentinel is a protected area. It is home to the Sentinelese people, an indigenous tribe who have fiercely defended their isolation from the outside world. The tourist did not make contact with the islanders. However, he did leave them a can of Diet Coke and a coconut. He could face up to five years in prison.

India's government banned outsiders from visiting North Sentinel to protect the Sentinelese way of life. The ban is to shield the people from modern, potentially deadly illnesses. A non-profit group that protects isolated tribes said: "Uncontacted peoples have no immunity to common outside diseases like flu or measles, which could completely wipe them out." In the past few decades, the islanders have killed several people who attempted to visit the island. The recently arrested tourist, who called himself a thrill seeker, was luckier.

Try the same news story at these levels:

    Remote Island - Level 4 or  Remote Island - Level 6

Sources
  • https://edition.cnn.com/2025/04/04/travel/north-sentinel-island-us-tourist-arrested-intl-hnk/index.html
  • https://www.yahoo.com/news/pictured-tintin-danger-tourist-left-182937805.html
  • https://www.dw.com/en/us-tourist-arrested-for-entering-forbidden-indian-island/a-72147167


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. Indian police have
  2. visit the world's most
  3. part of the Andaman and Nicobar
  4. North Sentinel is
  5. an indigenous
  6. defended their isolation
  7. The tourist did not make
  8. He could face up
  1. archipelago
  2. contact with the islanders
  3. tribe
  4. arrested a tourist
  5. to five years in prison
  6. isolated tribe
  7. a protected area
  8. from the outside world

Paragraph 2

  1. India's government banned
  2. protect the Sentinelese
  3. The ban is to shield
  4. potentially deadly
  5. A non-profit group that protects
  6. immunity to common
  7. completely wipe
  8. a thrill
  1. them out
  2. the people
  3. isolated tribes
  4. outside diseases
  5. seeker
  6. outsiders
  7. illnesses
  8. way of life

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

Indian police have arrested a tourist for travelling to (1) ________________________________________________ to visit the world's most isolated tribe. The island, North Sentinel, is part of the Andaman and Nicobar archipelago, around 1,200 km east of India. It is 60 square kilometres in size. North Sentinel is (2) ________________________________________________. It is home to the Sentinelese people, (3) _______________________________________________ who have fiercely (4) ________________________________________________ from the outside world. The tourist did not (5) ________________________________________________ the islanders. However, he did leave them a can of Diet Coke and a coconut. He could (6) ________________________________________________ five years in prison.

India's government (7) ________________________________________________ visiting North Sentinel to protect the Sentinelese way of life. The ban (8) ________________________________________________ the people from modern, potentially deadly illnesses. A non-profit group that (9) ________________________________________________ said: "Uncontacted peoples have no immunity to common outside diseases like (10) ________________________________________________, which could completely wipe them out." In the past few decades, the islanders (11) ________________________________________________ people who attempted to visit the island. The recently arrested tourist, who called himself (12) ________________________________________________, was luckier.

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

Indianpolicehavearrestedatouristfortravellingtoaremoteislandtovisi
ttheworld'smostisolatedtribe.Theisland,NorthSentinel,ispartoftheA
ndamanandNicobararchipelago,around1,200kmeastofIndia.Itis60s
quarekilometresinsize.NorthSentinelisaprotectedarea.Itishometoth
eSentinelesepeople,anindigenoustribewhohavefiercelydefendedthe
irisolationfromtheoutsideworld.Thetouristdidnotmakecontactwitht
heislanders.However,hedidleavethemacanofDietCokeandacoconut.
Hecouldfaceuptofiveyearsinprison.India'sgovernmentbannedoutsid
ersfromvisitingNorthSentineltoprotecttheSentinelesewayoflife.The
banistoshieldthepeoplefrommodern,potentiallydeadlyillnesses.Ano
n-profitgroupthatprotectsisolatedtribessaid:"Uncontactedpeoplesh
avenoimmunitytocommonoutsidediseaseslikefluormeasles,whichc
ouldcompletelywipethemout."Inthepastfewdecades,theislandersha
vekilledseveralpeoplewhoattemptedtovisittheisland.Therecentlyarr
estedtourist,whocalledhimselfathrillseeker,wasluckier.

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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