The Reading / Listening - Plague - Level 0

A worker at a research laboratory in Siberia died. Local reports say she may have broken a test tube of pneumonic plague bacteria. Russia said the woman's death was from "pneumonia of an unknown origin" and not plague. The USA said there was no "cause for alarm," but officials should "keep an eye on it".

Pneumonic plague can be deadly. It can kill in 18 hours. It spreads quickly through the air when someone coughs. It can be treated if drugs are given when symptoms appear. A scientist said: "Pneumonic plague can spread from person to person, and that is why there is the concern around this."

Try the same news story at these levels:

    Plague - Level 1,  Plague - Level 2   or  Plague - Level 3

Sources
  • https://www.dw.com/en/suspected-pneumonic-plague-in-siberia-what-we-know-about-the-disease/a-79547919
  • https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cv5yn3nwp5n5o
  • https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/russia-plague-outbreak-siberia-lab-leak-trump-rubio-b3061858.html


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. A worker at a research
  2. Local reports say she may
  3. broken a test
  4. pneumonic plague
  5. the woman's
  6. pneumonia of an unknown
  7. there was no cause for
  8. keep an eye
  1. alarm
  2. bacteria
  3. origin
  4. on it
  5. have
  6. laboratory
  7. tube
  8. death

Paragraph 2

  1. Pneumonic plague can
  2. It can kill
  3. It spreads quickly through
  4. when someone
  5. It can be
  6. drugs are given when
  7. plague can spread from person
  8. that is why there is the concern
  1. in 18 hours
  2. symptoms appear
  3. to person
  4. the air
  5. coughs
  6. be deadly
  7. around this
  8. treated

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

A worker (1) _________________________________________________ laboratory in Siberia died. Local reports say she may have broken (2) ________________________________________________ of pneumonic plague bacteria. Russia said the woman's (3) _________________________________________________ "pneumonia (4) _________________________________________________ origin" and not plague. The USA said there was no "(5) ________________________________________________," but officials should "keep (6) _________________________________________________ it".

Pneumonic plague (7) _________________________________________________. It can kill in 18 hours. It (8) _________________________________________________ the air when someone coughs. It (9) _________________________________________________ if drugs are given (10) _________________________________________________. A scientist said: "Pneumonic plague can (11) _________________________________________________ to person, and that is why there is the (12) _________________________________________________."

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

AworkerataresearchlaboratoryinSiberiadied.Localreportssayshema
yhavebrokenatesttubeofpneumonicplaguebacteria.Russiasaidthew
oman'sdeathwasfrom"pneumoniaofanunknownorigin"andnotplagu
e.TheUSAsaidtherewasno"causeforalarm,"butofficialsshould"keepa
neyeonit".Pneumonicplaguecanbedeadly.Itcankillin18hours.Itspre
adsquicklythroughtheairwhensomeonecoughs.Itcanbetreatedifdru
gsaregivenwhensymptomsappear.Ascientistsaid:"Pneumonicplagu
ecanspreadfrompersontoperson,andthatiswhythereistheconcernar
oundthis."

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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_____________________________________________________________________________

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Answers

(Please check your answers against the article above.

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