A man from Japan who is very good at baseball just made a big deal to play for a team in Los Angeles. He will get a lot of money, more than anyone has ever gotten to play baseball in America. Lots of teams wanted him to play for them, but he chose Los Angeles. He is as famous as some of the biggest sports stars. The man can hit the ball and throw the ball very well, which makes him special.
Last year, he was the best player in his group, but he got hurt and couldn't play for a little while. He helped Japan win a big game against America. He said thank you to his old team and is excited to play for his new team. His new team is very happy because he is a very good player. People are excited to watch him play baseball this year.
Original news source: Shohei Ohtani: Baseball star joins LA Dodgers in record $700m deal (BBC)
π§ Listen:
π Vocabulary:
Group or Classroom Activities
Warm-up Activities:
– Charades
Instructions: Divide the class into small groups. Give each group a set of vocabulary cards related to the article (e.g. baseball, Los Angeles, Japan, player, team, hit, throw, etc.). One student from each group will take turns acting out the words on the cards without speaking, while the rest of the group tries to guess the word. The group that guesses the most words correctly wins.
– Word Association
Instructions: Write the word "baseball" on the board. Have the students take turns saying a word that is related to or reminds them of baseball. Encourage them to think of words related to the article (e.g. player, team, hit, throw, Japan, Los Angeles, etc.). Continue going around the class until all the students have had a chance to contribute.
– Vocabulary Pictionary
Instructions: Divide the class into pairs. Give each pair a set of vocabulary cards related to the article. One student from each pair will randomly pick a card and draw a picture to represent the word, while the other student tries to guess the word. They can only use drawings, no speaking allowed. The pair that guesses the most words correctly wins.
– Speed Summarizing
Instructions: Write the following sentence starters on the board: "A man from Japan…"; "He is very good at…"; "He made a big deal to…"; "He will get a lot of…"; "He chose…"; "He is as famous as…"; "He can…"; "Last year…"; "He got hurt and…"; "He helped…"; "His new team is…"; "People are excited to…". Have the students work in pairs. Give each pair a few minutes to complete as many sentence starters as they can using information from the article. The pair with the most completed sentence starters wins.
– Think-Pair-Share
Instructions: Read the article aloud to the class. After reading, give the students a few minutes to think about the following questions: "Why do you think the man chose to play for a team in Los Angeles?"; "Why are people excited to watch him play baseball?"; "How would you feel if you were a famous sports star?". Then, have the students pair up and share their thoughts and answers with each other. Finally, ask a few pairs to share their answers with the whole class.
π€ Comprehension Questions:
The man from Japan who is good at baseball is not mentioned in the article.
The man made a big deal to play for a team in Los Angeles.
The team that he will play for is in Los Angeles.
Yes, the man is famous.
The man can hit the ball and throw the ball very well.
Last year, the man got hurt and couldn't play for a little while.
People are excited to watch the man play baseball this year.
π§βοΈ Listen and Fill in the Gaps:
A man from Japan who is very good at just made a big to play for a team in Los Angeles. He will get a lot of money, more than anyone has ever gotten to play baseball in America. Lots of teams wanted him to play for them, but he chose Los Angeles. He is as as some of the biggest stars. The man can hit the ball and throw the ball very well, which him special. Last year, he was the best player in his group, but he got hurt and couldn't play for a little . He helped Japan win a big game against America. He said you to his old team and is excited to for his new team. His new team is very happy because he is a very good player. People are excited to watch him play baseball this year.
π¬ Discussion Questions:
1. What is baseball?
2. How would you feel if you were the best player in a game and then got hurt?
3. Do you like playing baseball? Why or why not?
4. What do you think it means to be famous?
5. How would you feel if you were chosen to play for a famous team?
6. Do you think it's important to say thank you to your old team? Why or why not?
7. How do you think the new team feels about having a very good player?
8. Why do you think people are excited to watch him play baseball?
9. Have you ever played a sport before? Which one? Did you like it?
10. What do you think it means to be special?
11. How would you feel if you were the best player in a game and everyone wanted you to play for their team?
12. Do you think it's important to be good at throwing and hitting the ball in baseball? Why or why not?
Individual Activities
ππ Vocabulary Meanings:
Click a dot next to a word, then click the dot next to its meaning to draw a line connecting them.
Words
Meanings
π‘ Multiple Choice Questions:
π΅οΈ True or False Questions:
π Write a Summary:
Write a summary of this news article in two sentences.
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