The Reading / Listening - Osaka Expo - Level 2

The Osaka Expo 2025 has opened in Japan. People from many countries will visit the Expo. It ends in October. More than 28 million visitors will go to it. An Expo is an event that brings together people from all over the world. The first one took place in London in 1851. Expos try to find answers to the world's biggest problems. The Osaka Expo shows the culture, history and economy of 158 countries. The theme is "Creating a future society for our lives." At the US pavilion, people can see exhibits on space travel. The Italian pavilion has exhibits on architecture and environmental design.

The Osaka Expo is on an artificial island. The 80 pavilions are in a giant, round building called the Grand Ring. Guinness World Records said it is the world's "largest wooden architectural structure". It has a 2-kilometre circumference. A one-day ticket for adults costs about $52. Visitors can see many aspects of Japanese culture. There are exhibits on robots and flying cars, and on Hello Kitty. Visitors can also see the Expo mascot. This is a strange creature called Myaku-Myaku. It has a blue face and many red eyeballs. It is good at finding rainbows.

Try the same news story at these levels:

    Osaka Expo - Level 0 Osaka Expo - Level 1   or  Osaka Expo - Level 3

Sources
  • https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/15709562
  • https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20250414/p2g/00m/0na/012000c
  • https://www.expo2025.or.jp/en/overview/purpose/
  • https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/04/13/japan/osaka-world-expo-opening-day/


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. More than 28 million
  2. people from all
  3. The first one took
  4. find answers to the world's
  5. the culture, history and economy
  6. Creating a future society
  7. people can see exhibits
  8. exhibits on architecture and
  1. biggest problems
  2. on space travel
  3. visitors will go to it
  4. environmental design
  5. over the world
  6. of 158 countries
  7. place in London
  8. for our lives

Paragraph 2

  1. The Osaka Expo is on
  2. in a giant, round
  3. the world's largest wooden
  4. It has a 2-kilometre
  5. Visitors can see many aspects
  6. Visitors can also
  7. This is a strange creature
  8. It is good
  1. architectural structure
  2. at finding rainbows
  3. building
  4. of Japanese culture
  5. an artificial island
  6. called Myaku-Myaku
  7. circumference
  8. see the Expo mascot

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

The Osaka Expo 2025 (1) ___________________ Japan. People from many countries (2) ___________________ Expo. It ends in October. More than 28 million visitors will go to it. An Expo (3) ___________________ that brings together people from all over the world. The first one took place in London in 1851. Expos try to (4) ___________________ the world's biggest problems. The Osaka Expo shows the culture, history and economy of 158 countries. The theme is "Creating a (5) ___________________ our lives." At the US pavilion, people can see exhibits on space travel. The Italian pavilion (6) ___________________ architecture and environmental design.

The Osaka Expo is on (7) ___________________. The 80 pavilions are in a giant, round building called the Grand Ring. Guinness World Records said it (8) ___________________ "largest wooden architectural structure". It has a 2-kilometre circumference. A one-(9) ___________________ adults costs about $52. Visitors can see many aspects of Japanese culture. There (10) ___________________ robots and flying cars, and on Hello Kitty. Visitors can also see the Expo mascot. This (11) ___________________ creature called Myaku-Myaku. It has a blue face and many red eyeballs. It is (12) ___________________ rainbows.

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

TheOsakaExpo2025hasopenedinJapan.Peoplefrommanycountries
willvisittheExpo.ItendsinOctober.Morethan28millionvisitorswillgoto
it.AnExpoisaneventthatbringstogetherpeoplefromallovertheworld.
ThefirstonetookplaceinLondonin1851.Expostrytofindanswerstothe
world'sbiggestproblems.TheOsakaExposhowstheculture,historyan
deconomyof158countries.Thethemeis"Creatingafuturesocietyforou
rlives."AttheUSpavilion,peoplecanseeexhibitsonspacetravel.TheIta
lianpavilionhasexhibitsonarchitectureandenvironmentaldesign.The
OsakaExpoisonanartificialisland.The80pavilionsareinagiant,roundb
uildingcalledtheGrandRing.GuinnessWorldRecordssaiditistheworld'
s"largestwoodenarchitecturalstructure".Ithasa2-kilometrecircumf
erence.Aone-dayticketforadultscostsabout$52.Visitorscanseema
nyaspectsofJapaneseculture.Thereareexhibitsonrobotsandflyingcar
s,andonHelloKitty.VisitorscanalsoseetheExpomascot.Thisisastrang
ecreaturecalledMyakuMyaku.Ithasabluefaceandmanyredeyeballs.I
tisgoodatfindingrainbows.

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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