Pelé was a very famous football player. Now, his name is in a dictionary. It means “special, one of a kind, and unique.” The dictionary is called Michaelis. It is in Portuguese. Many people in Brazil use it. Pelé’s name is in the dictionary because many people wanted it. They signed their names to show they wanted it. More than 125,000 people signed.

Pelé was a great football player. He won the World Cup three times. He played for a long time. He scored many goals. He played for Santos, Brazil’s team, and New York Cosmos. He died in December when he was 82 years old. People think he was the best football player ever.

People wanted to remember Pelé. They made his name a word in the dictionary. Now, people can use his name to say someone is the best at what they do. The Pelé Foundation is happy about this. They think it is a good way to remember “the king.”

Original news source: Football great Pelé enters dictionary to mean ‘unique’ (BBC)

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Group or Classroom Activities

Warm-up Activities:

– Pelé Charades
Instructions: Divide students into two teams. One student from each team will act out a scene related to Pelé, such as playing football, winning the World Cup, or scoring a goal. The other students on the team must guess the action and shout out “Pelé!” when they think they know the answer. The first team to correctly identify the action wins a point.

– Name Chain
Instructions: Have students sit in a circle. The first student says, “Pelé was a famous football player.” The next student must repeat the sentence and add another famous person, such as “Pelé was a famous football player, and Michael Jackson was a famous singer.” The chain continues with each student repeating the sentence and adding a new famous person. If a student cannot remember the sequence or makes a mistake, they are out of the game. The last student remaining wins.

– Pelé Sentence Scramble
Instructions: Write sentences from the article on separate strips of paper, but cut the words apart so that they are mixed up. Divide students into pairs or small groups, and give each group a set of scrambled sentence strips. Students must put the words in the correct order to form a sentence from the article. The first group to correctly arrange all of their sentences wins.

– Pelé Role Play
Instructions: Divide students into pairs. One student will pretend to be Pelé, and the other will be an interviewer. The “interviewer” will ask questions about Pelé’s life and career, and the “Pelé” student will answer based on information from the article. After a few minutes, have students switch roles. This activity helps students practice forming questions and using vocabulary from the article.

Comprehension Questions:

1. Who was Pelé?
2. What does Pelé’s name mean in the dictionary?
3. Which dictionary is Pelé’s name in?
4. How many people signed to show they wanted Pelé’s name in the dictionary?
5. How many times did Pelé win the World Cup?
6. What teams did Pelé play for?
7. How old was Pelé when he died?
8. Why is the Pelé Foundation happy about his name being in the dictionary?
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Listen and Fill in the Gaps:

Pelé was a very famous football player. Now, his name is in a (1)_______. It means “special, one of a kind, and unique.” The dictionary is called Michaelis. It is in (2)_______. Many people in Brazil use it. Pelé’s name is in the dictionary because many people wanted it. They signed their names to show they wanted it. More than 125,000 people signed.

Pelé was a great football player. He won the World Cup three times. He played for a long time. He scored many (3)_______. He played for Santos, Brazil’s team, and New York Cosmos. He died in December when he was 82 years old. People think he was the best football player ever.

People wanted to remember Pelé. They made his name a word in the dictionary. Now, people can use his name to say someone is the best at what they do. The (4)______ Foundation is happy about this. They think it is a good way to remember “the (5)______.”
Go to answers ⇩

Discussion Questions:

Students can ask a partner these questions, or discuss them as a group.

1. Who was Pelé?
2. What sport did he play?
3. How many times did he win the World Cup?
4. What teams did he play for?
5. How old was he when he died?
6. Why is his name in a dictionary?
7. What does his name mean in the dictionary?
8. How many people signed to put his name in the dictionary?
9. What language is the Michaelis dictionary in?
10. What do people call Pelé?
11. Do you like football?
12. Who is your favorite football player?
13. What makes someone special or unique?
14. Can you think of someone who is the best at what they do?
15. How do you like to remember special people?

Individual Activities

Vocabulary Meanings:

Match each word to its meaning.

Words:
1. famous
2. dictionary
3. unique
4. Portuguese
5. goals
6. signed
7. remember
8. foundation

Shuffled Meanings:
A) A book that explains the meanings of words
B) To put your name on something, like a paper
C) To think about someone or something from the past
D) A group that helps people or causes
E) Very well-known by many people
F) The language spoken in Brazil and Portugal
G) Being the only one of its kind, special
H) Points scored in a game, like football
Go to answers ⇩

Multiple Choice Questions:

1. What was Pelé famous for?
(a) singing
(b) playing football
(c) painting
(d) acting

2. What does Pelé’s name mean in the dictionary?
(a) funny and silly
(b) special and unique
(c) fast and strong
(d) smart and clever

3. What language is the Michaelis dictionary in?
(a) English
(b) Spanish
(c) French
(d) Portuguese

4. Why is Pelé’s name in the dictionary?
(a) He wrote the dictionary
(b) He was a famous writer
(c) Many people wanted it
(d) He was a famous actor

5. How many times did Pelé win the World Cup?
(a) one
(b) two
(c) three
(d) four

6. Which team did Pelé not play for?
(a) Paris Saint-Germain
(b) Brazil
(c) New York Cosmos
(d) Santos

7. How old was Pelé when he died?
(a) 72
(b) 82
(c) 92
(d) 102

8. What does the Pelé Foundation think about his name in the dictionary?
(a) They are angry
(b) They are sad
(c) They are confused
(d) They are happy
Go to answers ⇩

True or False Questions:

1. Pelé was a famous basketball player.
2. Pelé’s name is in a Spanish dictionary.
3. The dictionary is in English.
4. More than 100,000 people signed their names.
5. Pelé won the World Cup five times.
6. He played for New York Cosmos.
7. Pelé died at 82 years old.
8. People can use his name to say someone is the best.
Go to answers ⇩

Write a Summary:

Write a summary of this news article in two sentences.

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Writing Questions:

Answer the following questions. Write as much as you can for each answer.

1. Who was Pelé?
2. What does Pelé’s name mean in the dictionary?
3. Why did so many people sign their names to show they wanted Pelé’s name in the dictionary?
4. What did Pelé do as a football player?
5. How do people use Pelé’s name in the dictionary now?

Answers

Comprehension Question Answers:

1. Who was Pelé?
Pelé was a very famous football player.

2. What does Pelé’s name mean in the dictionary?
Pelé’s name means “special, one of a kind, and unique.”

3. Which dictionary is Pelé’s name in?
Pelé’s name is in the Michaelis dictionary.

4. How many people signed to show they wanted Pelé’s name in the dictionary?
More than 125,000 people signed.

5. How many times did Pelé win the World Cup?
Pelé won the World Cup three times.

6. What teams did Pelé play for?
Pelé played for Santos, Brazil’s team, and New York Cosmos.

7. How old was Pelé when he died?
Pelé was 82 years old when he died.

8. Why is the Pelé Foundation happy about his name being in the dictionary?
The Pelé Foundation is happy because it is a good way to remember “the king.”
Go back to questions ⇧

Listen and Fill in the Gaps Answers:

1. dictionary
2. Portuguese
3. goals
4. Pelé
5. king
Go back to questions ⇧

Vocabulary Meanings Answers:

1. famous
Answer: E) Very well-known by many people

2. dictionary
Answer: A) A book that explains the meanings of words

3. unique
Answer: G) Being the only one of its kind, special

4. Portuguese
Answer: F) The language spoken in Brazil and Portugal

5. goals
Answer: H) Points scored in a game, like football

6. signed
Answer: B) To put your name on something, like a paper

7. remember
Answer: C) To think about someone or something from the past

8. foundation
Answer: D) A group that helps people or causes
Go back to questions ⇧

Multiple Choice Answers:

1. What was Pelé famous for?
Answer: (b) playing football

2. What does Pelé’s name mean in the dictionary?
Answer: (b) special and unique

3. What language is the Michaelis dictionary in?
Answer: (d) Portuguese

4. Why is Pelé’s name in the dictionary?
Answer: (c) Many people wanted it

5. How many times did Pelé win the World Cup?
Answer: (c) three

6. Which team did Pelé not play for?
Answer: (a) Paris Saint-Germain

7. How old was Pelé when he died?
Answer: (b) 82

8. What does the Pelé Foundation think about his name in the dictionary?
Answer: (d) They are happy
Go back to questions ⇧

True or False Answers:

1. Pelé was a famous basketball player.
Answer: False

2. Pelé’s name is in a Spanish dictionary.
Answer: False

3. The dictionary is in English.
Answer: False

4. More than 100,000 people signed their names.
Answer: True

5. Pelé won the World Cup five times.
Answer: False

6. He played for New York Cosmos.
Answer: True

7. Pelé died at 82 years old.
Answer: True

8. People can use his name to say someone is the best.
Answer: True
Go back to questions ⇧