The Amazon rainforest in Brazil has been getting smaller. But this year, it didn’t get as small as fast. The people in charge of Brazil said that the forest only got 33.6% smaller in the first half of this year. Last year, it got smaller much quicker.
The new person in charge of Brazil, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, has promised to stop the forest from getting smaller by the year 2030. But this is going to be hard. Even though the forest is not getting smaller as quickly, it is still getting smaller a lot. In fact, the part of the forest that got smaller this year is bigger than three New York Cities!
The Amazon rainforest is very important for the whole world. It helps to stop the world from getting too hot. But in the last few years, more and more of the forest has been cut down.
The people in charge of Brazil have been watching the forest from space. They have seen that less of the forest is being cut down. But they have also seen more fires in the forest. These fires let out a lot of bad gas that makes the world hotter.
The president of Brazil wants the rich countries to give money to help save the forest. He has also made some parts of the forest safe from people who want to cut down the trees or dig for things in the ground. But the people who live in the forest say that more parts of the forest need to be made safe.
Original news source: Amazon deforestation down by a third in 2023, says Brazilian government (BBC)
Listen
Slow
Normal
Fast
Group or Classroom Activities
Warm-up Activities:
– AMAZON RAINFOREST FACTS
Instructions: Divide the class into small groups, and ask each group to come up with three facts about the Amazon rainforest based on the article. Then, have each group share their facts with the rest of the class.
– FOREST FIRE MIME
Instructions: Explain that a mime is a person who acts out a scene without speaking. Ask for a volunteer to mime the scene of a forest fire. The rest of the class must guess what the scene is about. This will help students to understand the concept of ‘fire in the forest’.
– SAVE THE AMAZON POSTER PROJECT
Instructions: Ask each student to draw a poster that encourages people to save the Amazon rainforest. They can use images and simple English phrases from the article. This activity will help students to understand the importance of the Amazon rainforest and also practice their English writing skills.
Comprehension Questions:
1. What is happening to the Amazon rainforest in Brazil?
2. How much smaller did the forest get in the first half of this year?
3. What has the new person in charge of Brazil promised to do by the year 2030?
4. Why is the Amazon rainforest important for the whole world?
5. What have the people in charge of Brazil seen when they watch the forest from space?
6. What do the fires in the forest do to the world?
7. What does the president of Brazil want rich countries to do?
8. What do the people who live in the forest want to happen to more parts of the forest?
Go to answers ⇩
Listen and Fill in the Gaps:
The Amazon rainforest in (1)______ has been getting smaller. But this year, it didn’t get as small as fast. The people in (2)______ of Brazil said that the forest only got 33.6% smaller in the first half of this year. Last year, it got smaller much quicker.
The new person in charge of Brazil, (3)_____________ Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, has promised to stop the forest from getting smaller by the year 2030. But this is going to be hard. Even though the forest is not getting smaller as quickly, it is still getting smaller a lot. In fact, the part of the forest that got smaller this year is bigger than three (4)______ Cities!
The Amazon rainforest is very important for the whole world. It helps to stop the world from getting too hot. But in the last few years, more and more of the forest has been cut down.
The people in charge of Brazil have been watching the (5)________ from space. They have seen that less of the forest is being cut down. But they have also seen more fires in the forest. These fires let out a lot of bad gas that makes the world hotter.
The president of Brazil wants the (6)________ countries to give money to help save the forest. He has also made some parts of the forest safe from people who want to cut down the trees or dig for things in the ground. But the people who live in the forest say that more parts of the forest need to be made (7)______.
Go to answers ⇩
Discussion Questions:
Students can ask a partner these questions, or discuss them as a group.
1. How do you feel about the Amazon rainforest getting smaller?
2. Why do you think the rainforest is important?
3. What can happen if the rainforest gets too small?
4. How would you feel if your home was getting smaller like the forest?
5. Why do you think the forest is not getting smaller as fast this year?
6. What do you think about the president’s promise to stop the forest from getting smaller?
7. Do you think it’s a good idea to watch the forest from space?
8. How do you think we can stop the forest from getting smaller?
9. What do you think about the fires in the forest?
10. Why is the bad gas from the fires not good for the world?
11. How can the rich countries help save the forest?
12. Why do you think people cut down the trees in the forest?
13. How do you feel about some parts of the forest being made safe?
14. Do you think more parts of the forest should be made safe? Why?
15. How can we help the people who live in the forest?
Individual Activities
Vocabulary Meanings:
Match each word to its meaning.
Words:
1. rainforest
2. smaller
3. President
4. promised
5. important
6. watching
7. fires
8. safe
Shuffled Meanings:
A) Looking at something carefully
B) A big area with lots of trees and animals where it rains a lot
C) The person who is in charge of a country
D) Less in size or amount
E) Something that matters a lot
F) Said that he or she will do something
G) Places where nothing bad can happen
H) When something is burning and it’s very hot and dangerous
Go to answers ⇩
Multiple Choice Questions:
1. Where is the Amazon rainforest?
(a) Australia
(b) Brazil
(c) China
(d) Canada
2. What is happening to the Amazon rainforest?
(a) It is getting bigger
(b) It is staying the same size
(c) It is getting smaller
(d) It is moving to another place
3. Who is the new person in charge of Brazil?
(a) President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva
(b) President Barack Obama
(c) Queen Elizabeth II
(d) Prime Minister Justin Trudeau
4. What does the Amazon rainforest do for the world?
(a) It makes the world hotter
(b) It makes the world colder
(c) It helps to stop the world from getting too hot
(d) It helps to make the world spin
5. How do the people in charge of Brazil watch the forest?
(a) With binoculars
(b) From space
(c) From a tower
(d) With a microscope
6. What has been happening more in the forest?
(a) Rain
(b) Snow
(c) Fires
(d) Wind
7. What does the president of Brazil want from rich countries?
(a) Trees
(b) Food
(c) Cars
(d) Money
8. What do the people who live in the forest want?
(a) More trees
(b) More animals
(c) More rain
(d) More parts of the forest to be made safe
Go to answers ⇩
True or False Questions:
1. The Amazon rainforest in Brazil is getting bigger.
2. The forest got 33.6% smaller in the first half of this year.
3. The new person in charge of Brazil is President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
4. The forest is getting smaller slower than last year.
5. The part of the forest that got smaller this year is smaller than three New York Cities.
6. The Amazon rainforest makes the world hotter.
7. The people in charge of Brazil have seen more fires in the forest.
8. The president of Brazil wants poor countries to give money to help save the forest.
Go to answers ⇩
Write a Summary:
Write a summary of this news article in two sentences.
Writing Questions:
Answer the following questions. Write as much as you can for each answer.
1. What happened to the Amazon rainforest in Brazil this year?
2. How much smaller did the forest get this year compared to last year?
3. Who is the new person in charge of Brazil?
4. What did the new president promise to do by the year 2030?
5. Why is the Amazon rainforest important for the world?
Answers
Comprehension Question Answers:
1. What is happening to the Amazon rainforest in Brazil?
The Amazon rainforest in Brazil is getting smaller.
2. How much smaller did the forest get in the first half of this year?
The forest got 33.6% smaller in the first half of this year.
3. What has the new person in charge of Brazil promised to do by the year 2030?
The new person in charge of Brazil, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, has promised to stop the forest from getting smaller by the year 2030.
4. Why is the Amazon rainforest important for the whole world?
The Amazon rainforest is important because it helps to stop the world from getting too hot.
5. What have the people in charge of Brazil seen when they watch the forest from space?
They have seen that less of the forest is being cut down, but they have also seen more fires in the forest.
6. What do the fires in the forest do to the world?
The fires in the forest let out a lot of bad gas that makes the world hotter.
7. What does the president of Brazil want rich countries to do?
The president of Brazil wants the rich countries to give money to help save the forest.
8. What do the people who live in the forest want to happen to more parts of the forest?
The people who live in the forest want more parts of the forest to be made safe from people who want to cut down the trees or dig for things in the ground.
Go back to questions ⇧
Listen and Fill in the Gaps Answers:
1. Brazil
2. charge
3. President
4. New York
5. forest
6. rich
7. safe
Go back to questions ⇧
Vocabulary Meanings Answers:
1. rainforest
Answer: B) A big area with lots of trees and animals where it rains a lot
2. smaller
Answer: D) Less in size or amount
3. President
Answer: C) The person who is in charge of a country
4. promised
Answer: F) Said that he or she will do something
5. important
Answer: E) Something that matters a lot
6. watching
Answer: A) Looking at something carefully
7. fires
Answer: H) When something is burning and it’s very hot and dangerous
8. safe
Answer: G) Places where nothing bad can happen
Go back to questions ⇧
Multiple Choice Answers:
1. Where is the Amazon rainforest?
Answer: (b) Brazil
2. What is happening to the Amazon rainforest?
Answer: (c) It is getting smaller
3. Who is the new person in charge of Brazil?
Answer: (a) President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva
4. What does the Amazon rainforest do for the world?
Answer: (c) It helps to stop the world from getting too hot
5. How do the people in charge of Brazil watch the forest?
Answer: (b) From space
6. What has been happening more in the forest?
Answer: (c) Fires
7. What does the president of Brazil want from rich countries?
Answer: (d) Money
8. What do the people who live in the forest want?
Answer: (d) More parts of the forest to be made safe
Go back to questions ⇧
True or False Answers:
1. The Amazon rainforest in Brazil is getting bigger.
Answer: False
2. The forest got 33.6% smaller in the first half of this year.
Answer: True
3. The new person in charge of Brazil is President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
Answer: True
4. The forest is getting smaller slower than last year.
Answer: True
5. The part of the forest that got smaller this year is smaller than three New York Cities.
Answer: False
6. The Amazon rainforest makes the world hotter.
Answer: False
7. The people in charge of Brazil have seen more fires in the forest.
Answer: True
8. The president of Brazil wants poor countries to give money to help save the forest.
Answer: False
Go back to questions ⇧
