Four kids lived after a plane crash. They were in the Amazon jungle for 40 days. The kids are 13, nine, four, and one years old. Colombia’s president said it is a happy day for the country. The kids’ mom and two pilots died in the crash. Many people looked for the kids.
The kids are part of the Huitoto group. The president shared a photo of people helping the kids. They gave the kids food and drink. The kids were taken to a hospital in Bogota. Their grandma is happy they are safe. The oldest child helped the others. She gave them food from the jungle.
The plane had engine problems. It was flying from Araracuara to San José del Guaviare. The kids left the crash and went into the jungle. Many people looked for them. They found things the kids left behind. They thought the kids were still alive. The kids knew how to live in the jungle. They knew what fruits to eat. Finally, they found the kids.
Original news source: Colombia plane crash: Four children found alive in Amazon after 40 days (BBC)
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Group or Classroom Activities
Warm-up Activities:
– Jungle Survival Storytelling
Instructions: Have the students sit in a circle. Each student will take a turn to add one sentence to a story about surviving in the jungle. Encourage them to use simple vocabulary and phrases they know.
– Jungle Animal Pictionary
Instructions: Divide the students into two teams. On the board, draw a simple picture of an animal that lives in the Amazon jungle (e.g. monkey, snake, parrot, etc.). Have the teams take turns guessing the name of the animal in English. The team that guesses correctly wins a point.
– Family Members Role-play
Instructions: Divide the students into pairs. Assign one student in each pair to be a family member from the story (e.g. grandma, oldest child, etc.), and the other student to be a reporter. The reporter will ask simple questions about the events of the story, and the family member will answer using basic English phrases. After a few minutes, have the students switch roles.
Comprehension Questions:
1. How many kids lived after the plane crash?
2. How long were the kids in the Amazon jungle?
3. How old are the kids?
4. Who died in the plane crash?
5. What group are the kids a part of?
6. Where were the kids taken after they were found?
7. What did the oldest child do to help the others?
8. How did the kids know what fruits to eat in the jungle?
Go to answers ⇩
Listen and Fill in the Gaps:
Four kids lived after a (1)________ crash. They were in the Amazon jungle for 40 days. The kids are 13, nine, four, and one years old. Colombia’s president said it is a happy day for the country. The kids’ mom and two pilots died in the crash. Many people looked for the kids.
The kids are part of the Huitoto group. The president shared a photo of people helping the kids. They gave the kids (2)________ and drink. The kids were taken to a hospital in Bogota. Their grandma is happy they are safe. The oldest child helped the others. She gave them food from the jungle.
The plane had (3)________ problems. It was flying from Araracuara to San José del Guaviare. The kids left the crash and went into the jungle. Many people looked for them. They found things the kids left (4)________. They thought the kids were still alive. The kids knew how to live in the jungle. They knew what (5)________ to eat. Finally, they found the kids.
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Discussion Questions:
Students can ask a partner these questions, or discuss them as a group.
1. How do you feel about the kids surviving the plane crash?
2. What do you think the jungle looks like?
3. Can you imagine living in the jungle for 40 days?
4. How do you think the oldest child helped the others?
5. What kind of food do you think they ate in the jungle?
6. Do you know any fruits that grow in the jungle?
7. How would you feel if you were lost in the jungle?
8. What would you do if you were in the jungle with these kids?
9. Do you think it was brave of the children to survive?
10. How do you think the grandma felt when she saw the kids again?
11. What do you think the people who found the kids felt?
12. How do you think the kids learned to live in the jungle?
13. What do you think the kids did during the day in the jungle?
14. What would you want to have with you if you were lost in the jungle?
15. How do you think the kids felt when they were found?
Individual Activities
Vocabulary Meanings:
Match each word to its meaning.
Words:
1. jungle
2. crash
3. pilots
4. hospital
5. grandma
6. engine
7. fruits
8. alive
Shuffled Meanings:
A) A place where sick or hurt people go to get better
B) A big area with lots of trees, plants, and animals
C) People who fly airplanes
D) A machine that makes a car or airplane go
E) Not dead, still living
F) The mother of your mom or dad
G) When something hits another thing very hard and breaks
H) Food that grows on trees, like apples and oranges
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Multiple Choice Questions:
1. How many kids lived after the plane crash?
(a) two
(b) three
(c) four
(d) five
2. How long were the kids in the Amazon jungle?
(a) 20 days
(b) 30 days
(c) 40 days
(d) 50 days
3. Who died in the plane crash?
(a) the kids’ dad
(b) the kids’ mom
(c) the kids’ grandma
(d) the kids’ uncle
4. What group are the kids part of?
(a) Huitoto
(b) Amazon
(c) Jungle
(d) Colombian
5. Where were the kids taken after they were found?
(a) to their grandma’s house
(b) to a police station
(c) to a school
(d) to a hospital in Bogota
6. What did the oldest child give the others?
(a) clothes
(b) toys
(c) food from the jungle
(d) water
7. What problem did the plane have?
(a) engine problems
(b) broken wing
(c) no fuel
(d) bad weather
8. How did people know the kids were still alive?
(a) they heard their voices
(b) they found things the kids left behind
(c) they saw them from a helicopter
(d) the kids sent a message
Go to answers ⇩
True or False Questions:
1. Four kids lived after a plane crash.
2. The kids were in the Amazon jungle for 10 days.
3. The kids’ mom and two pilots died in the crash.
4. The kids are part of the Huitoto group.
5. The kids were taken to a hospital in New York.
6. The oldest child helped the others.
7. The plane had engine problems.
8. The kids didn’t know how to live in the jungle.
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. Who lived after a plane crash in the Amazon jungle?
2. How long were the kids in the jungle?
3. Who died in the plane crash?
4. What did people give the kids when they found them?
5. Where were the kids taken after they were found?
Answers
Comprehension Question Answers:
1. How many kids lived after the plane crash?
Four kids lived after the plane crash.
2. How long were the kids in the Amazon jungle?
The kids were in the Amazon jungle for 40 days.
3. How old are the kids?
The kids are 13, nine, four, and one years old.
4. Who died in the plane crash?
The kids’ mom and two pilots died in the plane crash.
5. What group are the kids a part of?
The kids are part of the Huitoto group.
6. Where were the kids taken after they were found?
The kids were taken to a hospital in Bogota.
7. What did the oldest child do to help the others?
The oldest child gave them food from the jungle.
8. How did the kids know what fruits to eat in the jungle?
The kids knew how to live in the jungle and what fruits to eat.
Go back to questions ⇧
Listen and Fill in the Gaps Answers:
1. plane
2. food
3. engine
4. behind
5. fruits
Go back to questions ⇧
Vocabulary Meanings Answers:
1. jungle
Answer: B) A big area with lots of trees, plants, and animals
2. crash
Answer: G) When something hits another thing very hard and breaks
3. pilots
Answer: C) People who fly airplanes
4. hospital
Answer: A) A place where sick or hurt people go to get better
5. grandma
Answer: F) The mother of your mom or dad
6. engine
Answer: D) A machine that makes a car or airplane go
7. fruits
Answer: H) Food that grows on trees, like apples and oranges
8. alive
Answer: E) Not dead, still living
Go back to questions ⇧
Multiple Choice Answers:
1. How many kids lived after the plane crash?
Answer: (c) four
2. How long were the kids in the Amazon jungle?
Answer: (c) 40 days
3. Who died in the plane crash?
Answer: (b) the kids’ mom
4. What group are the kids part of?
Answer: (a) Huitoto
5. Where were the kids taken after they were found?
Answer: (d) to a hospital in Bogota
6. What did the oldest child give the others?
Answer: (c) food from the jungle
7. What problem did the plane have?
Answer: (a) engine problems
8. How did people know the kids were still alive?
Answer: (b) they found things the kids left behind
Go back to questions ⇧
True or False Answers:
1. Four kids lived after a plane crash.
Answer: True
2. The kids were in the Amazon jungle for 10 days.
Answer: False
3. The kids’ mom and two pilots died in the crash.
Answer: True
4. The kids are part of the Huitoto group.
Answer: True
5. The kids were taken to a hospital in New York.
Answer: False
6. The oldest child helped the others.
Answer: True
7. The plane had engine problems.
Answer: True
8. The kids didn’t know how to live in the jungle.
Answer: False
Go back to questions ⇧
