A man named Amoako Boafo from Ghana makes beautiful pictures and is now very famous. He didn’t plan to be an artist, but now his pictures are shown in big art places and even went to space! Amoako is not proud; he says thank you to his friends who also make art in West Africa. He makes pictures of black people using his fingers, and now people will pay a lot of money to have his art.

Amoako grew up in a place called Accra and helped his mom by learning to make art. He used to play tennis before someone helped him go to art school. A famous artist saw his pictures on the internet and told art places about him. Now, Amoako is very successful and helps other people make art too.

Original news source: Amoako Boafo – the Ghanaian artist who has exhibited in space (BBC)

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Group or Classroom Activities

Warm-up Activities:

– Sketch It
Instructions: Show students a simple drawing of an artist painting. Ask them to guess the topic of today’s lesson. After revealing the article is about an artist, have students try to sketch something from the article, like a paintbrush, a portrait, or an art gallery, based on their understanding of the keywords you provide (e.g., artist, pictures, art school). Have them share their sketches with a partner and explain their drawings in simple English.

– Word Association
Instructions: Write the word “artist” on the board. Ask students to say or write any words they associate with an artist, such as “paint,” “picture,” “famous,” etc. After collecting a list of words, read the article and have students clap every time they hear one of the words they associated with “artist.”

– News Reporter Role-play
Instructions: Split the class into groups of two. One student is a news reporter, the other is Amoako Boafo. The reporter should ask questions about Amoako’s life and art (e.g., “Where are you from?” “Did you always want to be an artist?”). The student playing Amoako must answer based on information from the article. This encourages speaking practice and comprehension.

– Opinion Poll
Instructions: After discussing the article, write a statement on the board: “Art is important for everyone.” Students walk around the class and ask their classmates whether they agree or disagree with the statement, and why. This gets students to practice forming simple opinions and reasons in English.

– Future Predictions
Instructions: Discuss the article briefly, then have students practice the future tense by making predictions about Amoako Boafo’s career. Prompts could include “Amoako will…” or “His art will be…”. Each student can write down their prediction and share it with the class. This helps with future tense construction and encourages imaginative use of language.

Comprehension Questions:

1. What does Amoako Boafo make?
2. Where is Amoako from?
3. How does Amoako make his pictures?
4. What sport did Amoako play before he went to art school?
5. Who helped Amoako become famous?
6. What do people do with a lot of money for Amoako’s art?
7. What does Amoako do for other people now that he is successful?
Go to answers ⇩

Listen and Fill in the Gaps:

A man named Amoako Boafo from Ghana makes beautiful pictures and is now very (1)______. He didn’t plan to be an (2)______, but now his pictures are shown in big art places and even went to space! Amoako is not proud; he says thank you to his friends who also make art in (3)______ Africa. He (4)______ pictures of black people using his fingers, and now people will pay a lot of money to have his art.

Amoako grew up in a place (5)______ Accra and helped his mom by learning to make art. He used to (6)______ tennis before someone helped him go to art (7)______. A famous artist saw his pictures on the (8)______ and told art places about him. Now, Amoako is very successful and helps other people make art too.
Go to answers ⇩

Discussion Questions:

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

1. What is a picture?
2. Do you like to make pictures? Why or why not?
3. How would you feel if your picture went to space?
4. What is an artist?
5. Do you think making pictures with fingers is fun? Why?
6. Can you tell me about a time you said thank you to a friend?
7. Do you like to help your mom or dad? What do you do to help?
8. Have you ever played tennis? Did you like it?
9. What do you want to be when you grow up? Why?
10. Do you think it is good to help other people? Why or why not?
11. Have you ever seen a picture of a person? Did you like it?
12. Do you think pictures can be important? Why?

Individual Activities

Vocabulary Meanings:

Match each word to its meaning.

Words:
1. Amoako
2. pictures
3. art
4. famous
5. black
6. money
7. school
8. successful

Meanings:
(a) Something you use to buy things
(b) Doing well and achieving what you want
(c) A place where you learn new things
(d) A man’s name
(e) The color of the night sky
(f) Making things that are beautiful or interesting
(g) Images that you can look at
(h) Known by many people
Go to answers ⇩

Multiple Choice Questions:

1. Where is Amoako Boafo from?
(a) France
(b) China
(c) Ghana
(d) Brazil

2. What does Amoako Boafo make?
(a) Pictures
(b) Music
(c) Food
(d) Clothes

3. Where are Amoako Boafo’s pictures shown?
(a) Schools
(b) Parks
(c) Restaurants
(d) Big art places

4. What did Amoako Boafo learn to make to help his mom?
(a) Music
(b) Food
(c) Clothes
(d) Art

5. What did Amoako Boafo use to make his pictures?
(a) A paintbrush
(b) His fingers
(c) A pencil
(d) A computer

6. What did Amoako Boafo used to play before he became an artist?
(a) Soccer
(b) Basketball
(c) Tennis
(d) Baseball

7. Who helped Amoako Boafo go to art school?
(a) Someone
(b) His mom
(c) His friend
(d) His teacher

8. What did a famous artist do after seeing Amoako Boafo’s pictures on the internet?
(a) Told his mom
(b) Told art places about him
(c) Bought his pictures
(d) Played tennis with him

Go to answers ⇩

True or False Questions:

1. Amoako Boafo is a woman from Ghana who makes beautiful pictures.
2. He used to play soccer before someone helped him go to art school.
3. His pictures are shown in big art places and even went to space.
4. People are willing to pay a lot of money to have his art.
5. Amoako grew up in a place called Kumasi and learned to make art from his dad.
6. Amoako is thankful to his friends who also make art in West Africa.
7. He didn’t plan to be an artist, but now he is very famous.
8. He makes pictures of white people using his fingers.
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. Where is Amoako Boafo from?
2. How does Amoako make his pictures?
3. What did Amoako do before he went to art school?
4. Who helped Amoako become famous?
5. What does Amoako do now that he is successful?

Answers

Comprehension Question Answers:

1. What does Amoako Boafo make?
Amoako Boafo makes beautiful pictures.

2. Where is Amoako from?
Amoako is from a place called Accra in Ghana.

3. How does Amoako make his pictures?
Amoako makes his pictures using his fingers.

4. What sport did Amoako play before he went to art school?
Amoako played tennis before he went to art school.

5. Who helped Amoako become famous?
A famous artist who saw his pictures on the internet helped Amoako become famous.

6. What do people do with a lot of money for Amoako’s art?
People pay a lot of money to have Amoako’s art.

7. What does Amoako do for other people now that he is successful?
Now that he is successful, Amoako helps other people make art too.
Go back to questions ⇧

Listen and Fill in the Gaps Answers:

(1) famous
(2) artist
(3) West
(4) makes
(5) called
(6) play
(7) school
(8) internet
Go back to questions ⇧

Vocabulary Meanings Answers:

1. Amoako
Answer: (d) A man’s name

2. pictures
Answer: (g) Images that you can look at

3. art
Answer: (f) Making things that are beautiful or interesting

4. famous
Answer: (h) Known by many people

5. black
Answer: (e) The color of the night sky

6. money
Answer: (a) Something you use to buy things

7. school
Answer: (c) A place where you learn new things

8. successful
Answer: (b) Doing well and achieving what you want
Go back to questions ⇧

Multiple Choice Answers:

1. Where is Amoako Boafo from?
Answer: (c) Ghana

2. What does Amoako Boafo make?
Answer: (a) Pictures

3. Where are Amoako Boafo’s pictures shown?
Answer: (d) Big art places

4. What did Amoako Boafo learn to make to help his mom?
Answer: (d) Art

5. What did Amoako Boafo use to make his pictures?
Answer: (b) His fingers

6. What did Amoako Boafo used to play before he became an artist?
Answer: (c) Tennis

7. Who helped Amoako Boafo go to art school?
Answer: (a) Someone

8. What did a famous artist do after seeing Amoako Boafo’s pictures on the internet?
Answer: (b) Told art places about him
Go back to questions ⇧

True or False Answers:

1. Amoako Boafo is a woman from Ghana who makes beautiful pictures. (Answer: False)
2. He used to play soccer before someone helped him go to art school. (Answer: False)
3. His pictures are shown in big art places and even went to space. (Answer: True)
4. People are willing to pay a lot of money to have his art. (Answer: True)
5. Amoako grew up in a place called Kumasi and learned to make art from his dad. (Answer: False)
6. Amoako is thankful to his friends who also make art in West Africa. (Answer: True)
7. He didn’t plan to be an artist, but now he is very famous. (Answer: True)
8. He makes pictures of white people using his fingers. (Answer: False)
Go back to questions ⇧