Airports want to stop hurting the air by using a new kind of fuel made from water called hydrogen. Right now, planes use a special fuel that’s better for the air, but it’s very expensive and hard to make a lot of it. Hydrogen can hold a lot of power and doesn’t make bad air when used. But it’s very cold and hard to keep safe at airports, and it could cost a lot of money to make places for it at airports.

A new company has a smart idea to keep hydrogen safe away from airports. They made special containers that can be taken to the airport and put right into the planes. These containers can keep the hydrogen cold for four days. The company is making a small plane use hydrogen, and it will fly next year to test it. But we don’t know yet if all planes will use hydrogen in the future because it’s still new.

Original news source: Could airports make hydrogen work as a fuel? (BBC)

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Group or Classroom Activities

Warm-up Activities:

– Charades
Instructions: Divide the class into small groups. Give each group a set of vocabulary words related to the article (e.g. airports, fuel, hydrogen, containers, planes). One student from each group will act out one of the words without speaking, while the other students in the group try to guess the word. The group that guesses the most words correctly wins.

– News Summary
Instructions: Read the article aloud to the class. Then, ask the students to work in pairs or small groups to write a summary of the article using their own words. Encourage them to include the main points and key details. After they finish, have a few pairs/groups share their summaries with the class.

– Vocabulary Pictionary
Instructions: Write a list of vocabulary words from the article (e.g. airports, fuel, hydrogen, containers, planes) on the board. Divide the class into two teams. One student from each team will come to the board and draw a picture representing one of the words, while their teammates try to guess the word. The team that guesses the most words correctly wins.

– Keyword Hangman
Instructions: Choose a keyword from the article (e.g. hydrogen). Write a series of dashes on the board to represent the letters in the word. Students take turns guessing letters. If a guessed letter is in the word, write the letter in the appropriate place. If the guessed letter is not in the word, begin drawing a hangman on the board. The students must guess the word before the hangman is completed.

– Pros and Cons
Instructions: Divide the class into small groups. Give each group a sheet of paper and ask them to create a pros and cons list for using hydrogen as a fuel at airports. Encourage them to think about the advantages and disadvantages mentioned in the article. After they finish, have each group share their lists with the class and facilitate a brief discussion about the topic.

Comprehension Questions:

1. What kind of fuel do airports want to use to stop hurting the air?
2. Why is the special fuel that planes use now expensive and hard to make a lot of?
3. Why is hydrogen a good fuel for planes?
4. Why is it hard to keep hydrogen safe at airports?
5. How long can the special containers keep the hydrogen cold for?
6. What is the company’s smart idea to keep hydrogen safe?
7. Will all planes use hydrogen in the future?
Go to answers ⇩

Listen and Fill in the Gaps:

Airports want to stop hurting the air by using a new kind of (1)______ (2)______ from water called hydrogen. Right now, planes use a special fuel that’s better for the air, but it’s very expensive and hard to make a lot of it. Hydrogen can hold a lot of (3)______ and doesn’t make bad air when (4)______. But it’s very cold and hard to keep safe at airports, and it could cost a lot of money to make places for it at airports.

A new (5)______ has a smart idea to keep hydrogen (6)______ away from airports. They made special containers that can be taken to the airport and put right into the planes. These containers can keep the hydrogen cold for four days. The company is making a (7)______ plane use hydrogen, and it will fly (8)______ year to test it. But we don’t know yet if all planes will use hydrogen in the future because it’s still new.
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Discussion Questions:

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

1. What is hydrogen fuel?
2. How would you feel if airplanes started using hydrogen fuel instead of regular fuel?
3. Do you think using hydrogen fuel is a good idea? Why or why not?
4. What do you think is the benefit of using hydrogen fuel instead of regular fuel?
5. Do you like the idea of using special containers to keep hydrogen fuel safe at airports? Why or why not?
6. What do you think might be some challenges of using hydrogen fuel at airports?
7. How do you think using hydrogen fuel could help the environment?
8. What is the special thing about the containers that can keep hydrogen fuel cold for four days?
9. Do you think all planes will use hydrogen fuel in the future? Why or why not?
10. How do you think the company testing the small plane with hydrogen fuel feels about their experiment?
11. What do you think might happen if hydrogen fuel becomes more popular?
12. How would you feel if you saw a plane flying with hydrogen fuel? Why?

Individual Activities

Vocabulary Meanings:

Match each word to its meaning.

Words:
1. airports
2. fuel
3. hydrogen
4. expensive
5. power
6. safe
7. containers
8. planes

Meanings:
(a) The ability to do something strong
(b) Not dangerous or harmful
(c) Costs a lot of money
(d) A special kind of fuel made from water
(e) Something that makes machines go
(f) Special boxes that hold things
(g) Big machines that fly in the sky
(h) Places where planes take off and land
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Multiple Choice Questions:

1. What kind of fuel do airports want to use to stop hurting the air?
(a) Gasoline
(b) Hydrogen
(c) Diesel
(d) Electricity

2. Why is the special fuel that planes currently use expensive and hard to make a lot of?
(a) Because it’s very cheap and easy to make a lot of it
(b) Because it’s very heavy and hard to transport
(c) Because it’s very expensive and hard to make a lot of it
(d) Because it’s very light and easy to transport

3. What is a benefit of using hydrogen as fuel for planes?
(a) It doesn’t make bad air when used
(b) It makes bad air when used
(c) It’s very expensive to produce
(d) It’s very heavy and hard to transport

4. Why is it difficult to keep hydrogen safe at airports?
(a) Because it’s very hot and easy to keep safe
(b) Because it’s very cold and hard to keep safe
(c) Because it’s very expensive and easy to keep safe
(d) Because it’s very cheap and hard to keep safe

5. What did the new company make to keep hydrogen safe away from airports?
(a) Special airplanes
(b) Special fuel
(c) Special containers
(d) Special airports

6. How long can the special containers keep the hydrogen cold for?
(a) One day
(b) One week
(c) One month
(d) Four days

7. When will the small plane that uses hydrogen fly to test it?
(a) Next year
(b) Next month
(c) Next week
(d) Tomorrow

8. Do we know yet if all planes will use hydrogen in the future?
(a) Yes, because it’s very old
(b) No, because it’s very expensive
(c) Yes, because it’s very cheap
(d) No, because it’s still new

Go to answers ⇩

True or False Questions:

1. The special fuel that planes use now is good for the air, but it’s expensive and hard to make a lot of it.
2. A small plane will use hydrogen next year to test if it works well.
3. Making places for hydrogen at airports could cost a lot of money.
4. A new company has made special containers to keep hydrogen safe at airports.
5. Airports want to use a new kind of fuel called hydrogen to harm the air.
6. These containers can keep the hydrogen warm for four days.
7. Hydrogen is a weak fuel that makes bad air when used.
8. Hydrogen is very hot and easy to keep safe at airports.
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 is the new kind of fuel that airports want to use?
2. Why is the special fuel that planes use now not good for the air?
3. Why is it hard to make a lot of the special fuel?
4. Why is it difficult to keep hydrogen safe at airports?
5. What are the special containers used for?

Answers

Comprehension Question Answers:

1. What kind of fuel do airports want to use to stop hurting the air?
Airports want to use a fuel made from water called hydrogen.

2. Why is the special fuel that planes use now expensive and hard to make a lot of?
The special fuel that planes use now is expensive and hard to make a lot of because it’s not easy to produce.

3. Why is hydrogen a good fuel for planes?
Hydrogen is a good fuel for planes because it doesn’t make bad air when used and it can hold a lot of power.

4. Why is it hard to keep hydrogen safe at airports?
It’s hard to keep hydrogen safe at airports because it’s very cold and needs special containers to store it safely.

5. How long can the special containers keep the hydrogen cold for?
The special containers can keep the hydrogen cold for four days.

6. What is the company’s smart idea to keep hydrogen safe?
The company’s smart idea is to make special containers that can be taken to the airport and put right into the planes to keep the hydrogen safe.

7. Will all planes use hydrogen in the future?
We don’t know yet if all planes will use hydrogen in the future because it’s still a new idea and needs more testing.
Go back to questions ⇧

Listen and Fill in the Gaps Answers:

(1) fuel
(2) made
(3) power
(4) used
(5) company
(6) safe
(7) small
(8) next
Go back to questions ⇧

Vocabulary Meanings Answers:

1. airports
Answer: (h) Places where planes take off and land

2. fuel
Answer: (e) Something that makes machines go

3. hydrogen
Answer: (d) A special kind of fuel made from water

4. expensive
Answer: (c) Costs a lot of money

5. power
Answer: (a) The ability to do something strong

6. safe
Answer: (b) Not dangerous or harmful

7. containers
Answer: (f) Special boxes that hold things

8. planes
Answer: (g) Big machines that fly in the sky
Go back to questions ⇧

Multiple Choice Answers:

1. What kind of fuel do airports want to use to stop hurting the air?
Answer: (b) Hydrogen

2. Why is the special fuel that planes currently use expensive and hard to make a lot of?
Answer: (c) Because it’s very expensive and hard to make a lot of it

3. What is a benefit of using hydrogen as fuel for planes?
Answer: (a) It doesn’t make bad air when used

4. Why is it difficult to keep hydrogen safe at airports?
Answer: (b) Because it’s very cold and hard to keep safe

5. What did the new company make to keep hydrogen safe away from airports?
Answer: (c) Special containers

6. How long can the special containers keep the hydrogen cold for?
Answer: (d) Four days

7. When will the small plane that uses hydrogen fly to test it?
Answer: (a) Next year

8. Do we know yet if all planes will use hydrogen in the future?
Answer: (d) No, because it’s still new
Go back to questions ⇧

True or False Answers:

1. The special fuel that planes use now is good for the air, but it’s expensive and hard to make a lot of it. (Answer: True)
2. A small plane will use hydrogen next year to test if it works well. (Answer: True)
3. Making places for hydrogen at airports could cost a lot of money. (Answer: True)
4. A new company has made special containers to keep hydrogen safe at airports. (Answer: True)
5. Airports want to use a new kind of fuel called hydrogen to harm the air. (Answer: False)
6. These containers can keep the hydrogen warm for four days. (Answer: False)
7. Hydrogen is a weak fuel that makes bad air when used. (Answer: False)
8. Hydrogen is very hot and easy to keep safe at airports. (Answer: False)
Go back to questions ⇧