The Reading / Listening - Honey Bees - Level 3

Scientists from Macquarie University in Australia have made an exciting discovery about honey bees. The scientists found out why a bee's stinger keeps putting venom into a person's skin after it leaves the bee's body. The scientists used high-speed cameras to film the tiny stinger, which is only two millimetres long. The video showed that the stinger works like a pump. It has two small parts that move backwards and forwards. These parts push the stinger deeper into a person's skin to help keep the venom flowing. The lead researcher said the design of the pump was "unique". She hopes her discovery will help companies make tiny pumps that could give medicine to people.

A bee sting can be very painful. Most people have pain, redness and swelling after a sting. However, a sting can be dangerous for people who have allergies. Some people have a serious reaction and go into anaphylactic shock. Their face or throat may swell up, or they may have trouble breathing. If someone is stung, they should remove the stinger as quickly as possible. This will help to stop more venom from entering their body. The person should also wash the area with soap and water. In addition, it is a good idea to put an ice pack over the sting to help reduce pain and swelling. If the person feels unwell, someone should call emergency services immediately.

Try the same news story at these easier levels:

    Honey Bees - Level 0,  Honey Bees - Level 1   or  Honey Bees - Level 2

Sources
  • https://phys.org/news/2026-10-high-video-reveals-honey-bee.html
  • https://www.popsci.com/environment/how-bee-stingers-work-saws-pump-venom/
  • https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/honey-bee-sting-explained-9.7376578


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 :-)

Warm-ups

1. BEES: Students walk around the class and talk to other students about bees. Change partners often and share your findings.
2. CHAT: In pairs / groups, talk about these topics or words from the article. What will the article say about them? What can you say about these words and your life?
       scientists / Australia / discovery / honey bees / venom / skin / pump / medicine /
       sting / pain / swelling / allergies / anaphylactic shock / breathing / soap / emergency
Have a chat about the topics you liked. Change topics and partners frequently.
3. FEED THE BEES: Students A strongly believe we should all feed bees every week; Students B strongly believe the opposite. Change partners again and talk about your conversations.
4. FLYING INSECTS: What do you know about these insects? What do you want to know about them? Complete this table with your partner(s). Change partners often and share what you wrote.

 

What I Know

What I Want to Know

Bees

 

 

Wasps

 

 

Hornets

 

 

Winged ants

 

 

Dragonflies

 

 

Butterflies

 

 
MY e-BOOK
ESL resource book with copiable worksheets and handouts - 1,000 Ideas and Activities for Language Teachers / English teachers
See a sample

5. HONEY: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word "honey". Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories.
6. VENOMOUS BUGS: Rank these with your partner. Put the scariest at the top. Change partners often and share your rankings.

  • Bees
  • Fire ants
  • Black widow spiders
  • Scorpions
  • Giant centipedes
  • Hornets
  • Tarantulas
  • Kissing bugs

 

Vocabulary

    Paragraph 1

      1. discovery a. Moving in a steady way.
      2. stinger b. A poison that some animals, such as bees, put into the body when they sting or bite.
      3. venom c. The sharp part of a bee that goes into the skin when it stings.
      4. tiny d. A substance used to help people feel better or get well.
      5. flowing e. Finding something new that people did not know before.
      6. unique f. Very, very small.
      7. medicine g. Being the only one of its kind or different from all others.

    Paragraph 2

      8. swelling h. A very serious reaction to something, such as a bee sting, that can make it hard to breathe and can be deadly.
      9. allergies i. Taking air in and sending air out of the lungs.
      10. reaction j. The front part of a person's or animal's neck.
      11. anaphylactic shock k. A condition in which the body reacts badly to something.
      12. throat l. Feeling sick or ill.
      13. breathing m. When a part of the body becomes bigger than normal.
      14. unwell n. A change in the body because of something that happens to it.

 

Before reading / listening

1. TRUE / FALSE: Read the headline. Guess if 1-8 below are true (T) or false (F).

  1. A honey bee's stinger pumps venom even when it comes off the bee.     T / F
  2. The stinger of a honey bee is two millimetres long.     T / F
  3. The honey bee's stinger has four parts inside it.     T / F
  4. Bee stingers could be used to give medicine to people in the future.     T / F
  5. Bee stings are rarely painful.     T / F
  6. Some people go into anaphylactic shock after a bee sting.     T / F
  7. You should never try to remove the stinger after a bee stings you.     T / F
  8. Ice can help reduce the swelling from a bee sting.     T / F

2. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article.

  1. discovery
  2. keeps
  3. like
  4. flowing
  5. medicine
  6. painful
  7. reaction
  8. trouble
  9. remove
  10. unwell
  1. moving
  2. similar to
  3. sore
  4. pull out
  5. finding
  6. response
  7. ill
  8. continues to
  9. drugs
  10. problems

3. PHRASE MATCH: (Sometimes more than one choice is possible.)

  1. made an exciting discovery
  2. a bee's stinger keeps putting venom
  3. scientists used high-
  4. two small parts that move
  5. help keep the venom
  6. Most people have pain, redness
  7. dangerous for people who
  8. Their face or
  9. help to stop more venom from
  10. someone should call emergency
  1. have allergies
  2. backwards and forwards
  3. services
  4. and swelling
  5. into a person's skin
  6. flowing
  7. entering their body
  8. about honey bees
  9. throat may swell up
  10. speed cameras

Gap fill

Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
venom
pump
medicine
body
design
discovery
film
forwards

Scientists from Macquarie University in Australia have made an exciting (1) ______________________________________________ about honey bees. The scientists found out why a bee's stinger keeps putting (2) ______________________________________________ into a person's skin after it comes off the bee's (3) ______________________________________________. The scientists used high-speed cameras to (4) ______________________________________________ the tiny stinger, which is only two millimetres long. The video showed that the stinger works like a (5) ______________________________________________. It has two small parts that move backwards and (6) ______________________________________________. These parts push the stinger deeper into a person's skin to help keep the venom flowing. The lead researcher said the (7) ______________________________________________ of the pump was "unique". She hopes her discovery will help companies make tiny pumps that could give (8) ______________________________________________ to people.

Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
wash
shock
swelling
unwell
breathing
painful
pack
remove

A bee sting can be very (9) ______________________________________________. Most people have pain, redness and (10) ______________________________________________ after a sting. However, a sting can be dangerous for people who have allergies. Some people have a serious reaction and go into anaphylactic (11) ______________________________________________. Their face or throat may swell up, or they may have trouble (12) ______________________________________________. If someone is stung, they should (13) ______________________________________________ the stinger as quickly as possible. This will help to stop more venom from entering their body. The person should also (14) ______________________________________________ the area with soap and water. In addition, it is a good idea to put an ice (15) ______________________________________________ over the sting to help reduce pain and swelling. If the person feels (16) ______________________________________________, someone should call emergency services immediately.

Listening — Guess the answers. Listen to check.

1) scientists found out why a bee's stinger keeps putting venom into ______
     a.  a person's skin
     b.  a person's skinned
     c.  a person's skinny
     d.  a person's skins
2)  used high-speed cameras to film the tiny stinger, which is only ______
     a.  two millimetres longs
     b.  two millimetres length
     c.  two millimetres longing
     d.  two millimetres long
3)  push the stinger deeper into a person's skin to help keep ______
     a.  the venom flowering
     b.  the venom flowing
     c.  the venom flown
     d.  the venom flowed
4)  The lead researcher said the design of the ______
     a.  pump was uniquely
     b.  pump was antique
     c.  pump was unique
     d.  pump was you nick
5)  her discovery will help companies make tiny pumps that could give ______
     a.  medicine two people
     b.  medicine to people
     c.  medicine too people
     d.  medicine through people

6)  Most people have pain, redness and swelling ______
     a.  after a stink
     b.  after a stings
     c.  after a stung
     d.  after a sting
7)  However, a sting can be dangerous for people ______
     a.  who have allergies
     b.  who have allergy
     c.  who have allergic
     d.  who have allergen
8)  Some people have a serious reaction and go ______
     a.  into anaphylactic shocking
     b.  into anaphylactic shocked
     c.  into anaphylactic shocker
     d.  into anaphylactic shock
9)  This will help to stop more venom from ______
     a.  enter in their body
     b.  enters their body
     c.  entering their body
     d.  entered their body
10)  put an ice pack over the sting to help reduce ______
     a.  pain and swelling
     b.  pain and swollen
     c.  pain and swell in
     d.  pain and swelling

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

Scientists from Macquarie University in Australia have made (1) __________________________________________________ about honey bees. The scientists found out why a bee's stinger keeps (2) __________________________________________________ a person's skin after it comes off the bee's body. The scientists used high-speed cameras to film (3) __________________________________________________, which is only two millimetres long. The video showed that the stinger works like a pump. It has two small parts that move (4) __________________________________________________. These parts push the stinger deeper into a person's skin to help keep (5) __________________________________________________. The lead researcher said the design of the pump was "unique". She hopes her discovery will help companies make tiny pumps that could give (6) __________________________________________________.

A bee sting can be very painful. Most people have pain, (7) __________________________________________________ after a sting. However, a sting can be dangerous for people who have allergies. Some people have a serious reaction and go into anaphylactic shock. Their (8) __________________________________________________ may swell up, or they may have trouble breathing. If someone is stung, they should remove the stinger as (9) __________________________________________________. This will help to stop more venom from entering their body. The person should also (10) __________________________________________________ with soap and water. In addition, it is a good idea to put an ice pack over the sting (11) __________________________________________________ pain and swelling. If the person feels unwell, someone (12) __________________________________________________ services immediately.

Comprehension questions

  1. In which country was the research in the news article conducted?
  2. What did scientists use to film a honey bee's stinger?
  3. What does a honey bee's stinger work like?
  4. What did a researcher say was unique?
  5. What did a researcher say her discovery might be used to give people?
  6. What might people have after a bee sting besides pain and redness?
  7. For whom are bee stings particularly dangerous?
  8. What might people have trouble doing if they have anaphylactic shock?
  9. What can reduce the pain and swelling of a bee sting?
  10. Who should people call if they feel unwell after a bee sting?

Multiple choice quiz

1) In which country was the research in the news article conducted?
a) Australia
b) the USA
c) Argentina
d) Armenia
2) What did scientists use to film a honey bee's stinger?
a) an old iPhone
b) a Polaroid camera
c) high-speed cameras
d) a movie camera
3) What does a honey bee's stinger work like?
a) a syringe
b) a pump
c) a hose pipe
d) an engine
4) What did a researcher say was unique?
a) honey bees
b) the honey bee's venom
c) honey
d) the design of the stinger's pump
5) What did a researcher say her discovery might be used to give people?
a) medicine
b) honey
c) vaccines
d) hope

6) What might people have after a bee sting besides pain and redness?
a) a smell of honey
b) headaches
c) nightmares (bad dreams)
d) swelling
7) For whom are bee stings particularly dangerous?
a) people who hate honey
b) people who have allergies
c) beekeepers
d) people who love honey
8) What might people have trouble doing if they have anaphylactic shock?
a) eating
b) thinking
c) seeing
d) breathing
9) What can reduce the pain and swelling of a bee sting?
a) honey
b) an injection
c) an ice pack
d) hot water
10) Who should people call if they feel unwell after a bee sting?
a) a beekeeper
b) emergency services
c) their best friend
d) a pest control company

Role play

Role  A – Giant Hornets
You think giant hornets are the scariest bugs. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why their bugs aren't as scary. Also, tell the others which is the least scary of these (and why): scorpions, giant centipedes or tarantulas.

Role  B – Scorpions
You think scorpions are the scariest bugs. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why their bugs aren't as scary. Also, tell the others which is the least scary of these (and why): giant hornets, giant centipedes or tarantulas.

Role  C – Giant Centipedes
You think giant centipedes are the scariest bugs. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why their bugs aren't as scary. Also, tell the others which is the least scary of these (and why): scorpions, giant hornets or tarantulas.

Role  D – Tarantulas
You think tarantulas are the scariest bugs. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why their bugs aren't as scary. Also, tell the others which is the least scary of these (and why): scorpions, giant centipedes or giant hornets.

After reading / listening

1. WORD SEARCH: Look in your dictionary / computer to find collocates, other meanings, information, synonyms … for the words...

'honey'

  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________

    • and 'bee'.

  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________

    • • Share your findings with your partners.

    • Make questions using the words you found.

    • Ask your partner / group your questions.

    2. ARTICLE QUESTIONS: Look back at the article and write down some questions you would like to ask the class about the text.

    •Share your questions with other classmates / groups. •Ask your partner / group your questions.

    3. GAP FILL: In pairs / groups, compare your answers to this exercise. Check your answers. Talk about the words from the activity. Were they new, interesting, worth learning…?

    4. VOCABULARY: Circle any words you do not understand. In groups, pool unknown words and use dictionaries to find their meanings.

    5. TEST EACH OTHER: Look at the words below. With your partner, try to recall how they were used in the text:

    • exciting
    • putting
    • speed
    • two
    • parts
    • lead
    • pain
    • dangerous
    • go
    • remove
    • area
    • reduce

    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 - Honey Bees

    STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

    1. What did you think when you read the headline?
    2. What images are in your mind when you hear the word 'honey'?
    3. What do you know about honey bees?
    4. What do you think of honey?
    5. How afraid are you of bees?
    6. What are the differences between bees, wasps and hornets?
    7. Have you ever been stung by a bee?
    8. What do you do when a bee flies near your head?
    9. What do you know about honey bees being endangered?
    10. How can we help honey bees?

    STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

    1. Did you like reading this article? Why/not?
    2. What do you think of when you hear the word 'bee'?
    3. What do you think about what you read?
    4. What should someone do if they get stung by a bee?
    5. Do you have any allergies?
    6. What do you know about anaphylactic shock?
    7. How important are bees?
    8. What would you do if there was a beehive in your garden?
    9. What do you think of the hobby of beekeeping?
    10. What questions would you like to ask the scientists?

    Discussion — Write your own questions

    STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

    (a) ________________

    (b) ________________

    (c) ________________

    (d) ________________

    (e) ________________

    STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

    (f) ________________

    (g) ________________

    (h) ________________

    (i) ________________

    (j) ________________

    Language — Cloze (Gap-fill)

    Scientists from Macquarie University in Australia have (1) ____ an exciting discovery about honey bees. The scientists found out (2) ____ a bee's stinger keeps putting venom into a person's skin after it comes (3) ____ the bee's body. The scientists used high-speed cameras to film the tiny stinger, which is only two millimetres long. The video showed that the stinger works (4) ____ a pump. It has two small parts that move backwards and forwards. These parts push the stinger deeper into a person's skin to help keep the venom (5) ____. The lead researcher said the design of the pump was "unique". She hopes her discovery will help companies make tiny pumps that could give (6) ____ to people.

    A bee sting can (7) ____ very painful. Most people have pain, redness and swelling after a sting. However, a sting can be dangerous for people who have (8) ____. Some people have a serious reaction and go into anaphylactic shock. Their face or throat may swell (9) ____, or they may have trouble breathing. If someone is stung, they should remove the stinger as quickly as possible. This will help to stop more venom (10) ____ entering their body. The person should also wash the area with soap and water. (11) ____ addition, it is a good idea to put an ice pack over the sting to help reduce pain and swelling. If the person feels unwell, someone should call emergency services (12) ____.

    Which of these words go in the above text?

    1. (a)     gave     (b)     did     (c)     made     (d)     looked    
    2. (a)     why     (b)     what     (c)     which     (d)     who    
    3. (a)     off     (b)     at     (c)     on     (d)     by    
    4. (a)     like     (b)     such     (c)     of     (d)     that    
    5. (a)     flown     (b)     flowing     (c)     flew     (d)     flower    
    6. (a)     medics     (b)     medicinal     (c)     medic     (d)     medicine    
    7. (a)     being     (b)     been     (c)     be     (d)     bee    
    8. (a)     allergen     (b)     allergic     (c)     allergy     (d)     allergies    
    9. (a)     up     (b)     over     (c)     down     (d)     under    
    10. (a)     from     (b)     of     (c)     for     (d)     at    
    11. (a)     At     (b)     In     (c)     On     (d)     By    
    12. (a)     immediate     (b)     quick     (c)     immediately     (d)     away

    Spelling

    Paragraph 1

    1. made an exciting cryisevod
    2. istesinsct used high-speed cameras
    3. move backwards and sworrafd
    4. keep the nomev flowing
    5. the design of the pump was qnuiue
    6. give ieicmden to people

    Paragraph 2

    1. A bee sting can be very npliauf
    2. pain, redness and ligelnsw
    3. dangerous for people who have llaseiger
    4. people have a serious ociaentr
    5. their face or aothtr
    6. call eceyrgmen services

    Put the text back together

    (    )   A bee sting can be very painful. Most people have pain, redness and swelling after a sting. However, a sting can
    (    )   about honey bees. The scientists found out why a bee's stinger keeps putting venom into a person's
    (    )   and swelling. If the person feels unwell, someone should call emergency services immediately.
    (    )   be dangerous for people who have allergies. Some people have a serious reaction and go into anaphylactic
    (    )   entering their body. The person should also wash the area with soap and
    (    )   her discovery will help companies make tiny pumps that could give medicine to people.
    (    )   parts that move backwards and forwards. These parts push the stinger deeper into a person's skin to help keep
    (  1  )   Scientists from Macquarie University in Australia have made an exciting discovery
    (    )   shock. Their face or throat may swell up, or they may have trouble breathing. If someone is
    (    )   skin after it comes off the bee's body. The scientists used high-speed cameras to film the
    (    )   stung, they should remove the stinger as quickly as possible. This will help to stop more venom from
    (    )   the venom flowing. The lead researcher said the design of the pump was "unique". She hopes
    (    )   tiny stinger, which is only two millimetres long. The video showed that the stinger works like a pump. It has two small
    (    )   water. In addition, it is a good idea to put an ice pack over the sting to help reduce pain

    Put the words in the right order

    1. about   an   bees   discovery   exciting   honey   Scientists   made   .
    2. cameras   film   high-speed   Scientists   stinger   the   to   used   .
    3. a   deeper   into   person's   Push   skin   stinger   the   .
    4. design   He   pump's   said   unique   the   was   .
    5. could   give   medicine   people   Tiny   pumps   that   to   .
    6. be   A   bee   can   painful   sting   very   .
    7. allergies   be   can   dangerous   for   people   Stings   with   .
    8. as   as   quickly   possible   Remove   stinger   the   .
    9. body   entering   Help   more   from   stop   their   venom   .
    10. an   ice   over   Put   sting   the   pack   .

    Circle the correct word (20 pairs)

    Scientists from Macquarie University in Australia have made an excitement / exciting discovery about honey bees. The scientists found out what / why a bee's stinger keeps putting venom into a person's skin / skinny after it comes off the bee's body. The scientists used high-speed cameras to movie / film the tiny stinger, which is only two millimetres long. The video showed that the stinger works like / such a pump. It has two smell / small parts that move backwards and forwards. These parts push the stinger deeper unto / into a person's skin to help keep the venom flower / flowing. The lead researcher said the design at / of the pump was "unique". She hopes her discovery will help companies make tiny pumps that / this could give medicine to people.

    A bee sting can being / be very painful. Most people have pain, redness and swelling after / then a sting. However, a sting can be dangerous at / for people who have allergies. Some people have a serious reaction and go / take into anaphylactic shock. Their face or throat may swell down / up, or they may have trouble breathing. If someone is stung, they should removal / remove the stinger as quickly as possible. This will help to stop more venom for / from entering their body. The person should also wash the area with soap and water. In / On addition, it is a good idea to put an ice pack over the sting to / for help reduce pain and swelling. If the person feels unwell, someone should call emergency services immediately / quick.

    Talk about the connection between each pair of words in italics, and why the correct word is correct. Look up the definition of new words.

    Insert the vowels (a, e, i, o, u)

    Sc__nt_sts  fr_m  M_cq__r__  _n_v_rs_ty  _n  __str_l__  h_v_  m_d_  _n  _xc_t_ng  d_sc_v_ry  _b__t  h_n_y  b__s.  Th_  sc__nt_sts  f__nd  __t  why  _  b__'s  st_ng_r  k__ps  p_tt_ng  v_n_m  _nt_  _  p_rs_n's  sk_n  _ft_r  _t  c_m_s  _ff  th_  b__'s  b_dy.  Th_  sc__nt_sts  _s_d  h_gh-sp__d  c_m_r_s  t_  f_lm  th_  t_ny  st_ng_r,  wh_ch  _s  _nly  tw_  m_ll_m_tr_s  l_ng.  Th_  v_d__  sh_w_d  th_t  th_  st_ng_r  w_rks  l_k_  _  p_mp.  _t  h_s  tw_  sm_ll  p_rts  th_t  m_v_  b_ckw_rds  _nd  f_rw_rds.  Th_s_  p_rts  p_sh  th_  st_ng_r  d__p_r  _nt_  _  p_rs_n's  sk_n  t_  h_lp  k__p  th_  v_n_m  fl_w_ng.  Th_  l__d  r_s__rch_r  s__d  th_  d_s_gn  _f  th_  p_mp  w_s  "_n_q__".  Sh_  h_p_s  h_r  d_sc_v_ry  w_ll  h_lp  c_mp_n__s  m_k_  t_ny  p_mps  th_t  c__ld  g_v_  m_d_c_n_  t_  p__pl_.

    _  b__  st_ng  c_n  b_  v_ry  p__nf_l.  M_st  p__pl_  h_v_  p__n,  r_dn_ss  _nd  sw_ll_ng  _ft_r  _  st_ng.  H_w_v_r,  _  st_ng  c_n  b_  d_ng_r__s  f_r  p__pl_  wh_  h_v_  _ll_rg__s.  S_m_  p__pl_  h_v_  _  s_r___s  r__ct__n  _nd  g_  _nt_  _n_phyl_ct_c  sh_ck.  Th__r  f_c_  _r  thr__t  m_y  sw_ll  _p,  _r  th_y  m_y  h_v_  tr__bl_  br__th_ng.  _f  s_m__n_  _s  st_ng,  th_y  sh__ld  r_m_v_  th_  st_ng_r  _s  q__ckly  _s  p_ss_bl_.  Th_s  w_ll  h_lp  t_  st_p  m_r_  v_n_m  fr_m  _nt_r_ng  th__r  b_dy.  Th_  p_rs_n  sh__ld  _ls_  w_sh  th_  _r__  w_th  s__p  _nd  w_t_r.  _n  _dd_t__n,  _t  _s  _  g__d  _d__  t_  p_t  _n  _c_  p_ck  _v_r  th_  st_ng  t_  h_lp  r_d_c_  p__n  _nd  sw_ll_ng.  _f  th_  p_rs_n  f__ls  _nw_ll,  s_m__n_  sh__ld  c_ll  _m_rg_ncy  s_rv_c_s  _mm_d__t_ly.

    Punctuate the text and add capitals

    scientists from macquarie university in australia have made an exciting discovery about honey bees the scientists found out why a bees stinger keeps putting venom into a persons skin after it comes off the bees body the scientists used highspeed cameras to film the tiny stinger which is only two millimetres long the video showed that the stinger works like a pump it has two small parts that move backwards and forwards these parts push the stinger deeper into a persons skin to help keep the venom flowing the lead researcher said the design of the pump was unique she hopes her discovery will help companies make tiny pumps that could give medicine to people

    a bee sting can be very painful most people have pain redness and swelling after a sting however a sting can be dangerous for people who have allergies some people have a serious reaction and go into anaphylactic shock their face or throat may swell up or they may have trouble breathing if someone is stung they should remove the stinger as quickly as possible this will help to stop more venom from entering their body the person should also wash the area with soap and water in addition it is a good idea to put an ice pack over the sting to help reduce pain and swelling if the person feels unwell someone should call emergency services immediately

    Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

    ScientistsfromMacquarieUniversityinAustraliahavemadeanexciting
    discoveryabouthoneybees.Thescientistsfoundoutwhyabee'sstinger
    keepsputtingvenomintoaperson'sskinafteritcomesoffthebee'sbody.
    Thescientistsusedhigh-speedcamerastofilmthetinystinger,whichiso
    nlytwomillimetreslong.Thevideoshowedthatthestingerworkslikeapu
    mp.Ithastwosmallpartsthatmovebackwardsandforwards.Thesepart
    spushthestingerdeeperintoaperson'sskintohelpkeepthevenomflowi
    ng.Theleadresearchersaidthedesignofthepumpwas"unique".Sheho
    pesherdiscoverywillhelpcompaniesmaketinypumpsthatcouldgivem
    edicinetopeople.Abeestingcanbeverypainful.Mostpeoplehavepain,r
    ednessandswellingafterasting.However,astingcanbedangerousforp
    eoplewhohaveallergies.Somepeoplehaveaseriousreactionandgoint
    oanaphylacticshock.Theirfaceorthroatmayswellup,ortheymayhavet
    roublebreathing.Ifsomeoneisstung,theyshouldremovethestingeras
    quicklyaspossible.Thiswillhelptostopmorevenomfromenteringtheir
    body.Thepersonshouldalsowashtheareawithsoapandwater.Inadditi
    on,itisagoodideatoputanicepackoverthestingtohelpreducepainands
    welling.Ifthepersonfeelsunwell,someoneshouldcallemergencyservi
    cesimmediately.

    Free writing

    Write about bees for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

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    Academic writing

    We should all help honey bees by leaving food for them. Discuss.

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    Homework

    1. VOCABULARY EXTENSION: Choose several of the words from the text. Use a dictionary or Google’s search field (or another search engine) to build up more associations / collocations of each word.
    2. INTERNET: Search the Internet and find out more about this news story. Share what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.
    3. BEES: Make a poster about bees. Show your work to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all have similar things?
    4. FEEDING HONEY BEES: Write a magazine article about all of us feeding honey bees to help them survive. Include imaginary interviews with people who are for and against this.
    Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Write down any new words and expressions you hear from your partner(s).
    5. WHAT HAPPENED NEXT? Write a newspaper article about the next stage in this news story. Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Give each other feedback on your articles.
    6. LETTER: Write a letter to an expert on bees. Ask him/her three questions about them. Give him/her three of your thoughts on honey bees. Read your letter to your partner(s) in your next lesson. Your partner(s) will answer your questions.

    A Few Additional Activities for Students

    Ask your students what they have read, seen or heard about this news in their own language. Students are likely to / may have have encountered this news in their L1 and therefore bring a background knowledge to the classroom.

    Get students to role play different characters from this news story.

    Ask students to keep track of this news and revisit it to discuss in your next class.

    Ask students to male predictions of how this news might develop in the next few days or weeks, and then revisit and discuss in a future class.

    Ask students to write a follow-up story to this news.

    Students role play a journalist and someone who witnessed or was a part of this news. Perhaps they could make a video of the interview.

    Ask students to keep a news journal in English and add this story to their thoughts.

    Also...

    Buy my 1,000 Ideas and Activities for Language Teachers eBook. It has hundreds of ideas, activity templates, reproducible activities for:

    • News
    • Warm ups
    • Pre-reading / Post-reading
    • Using headlines
    • Working with words
    • While-reading / While-listening
    • Moving from text to speech
    • Post-reading / Post-listening
    • Discussions
    • Using opinions
    • Plans
    • Language
    • Using lists
    • Using quotes
    • Task-based activities
    • Role plays
    • Using the central characters in the article
    • Using themes from the news
    • Homework

    Buy my book

    $US 9.99

    Answers

    (Please look at page 26 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

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