Nigel Richards is a Scrabble player from New Zealand. He won a big Scrabble contest in Spanish, even though he doesn’t speak Spanish. He played in Spain and won 23 out of 24 games. Nigel learned Spanish words by memorizing them for a year. His friend Liz says he sees words like pictures in his mind.
People are amazed by Nigel’s win because he doesn’t speak Spanish. The person who won last year, Benjamín, came in second place this time. Nigel has also won Scrabble contests in French, even though he doesn’t speak French. He uses math to play Scrabble, not just words. Nigel started playing Scrabble when he was 28 and now he lives in Malaysia.
Original news source: A New Zealander studied for a year to win the Spanish world Scrabble title. He doesn’t speak Spanish (AP News)
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📖 Vocabulary:
1 | contest | A game or event where people try to win |
2 | memorizing | Remembering something by looking at it many times |
3 | amazed | Feeling surprised and impressed |
4 | second | Coming after the first |
5 | math | Using numbers to solve problems |
6 | pictures | Images you see or imagine |
7 | mind | The part of you that thinks and remembers |
8 | speak | To talk using words |
9 | French | A language spoken in France |
10 | Malaysia | A country in Asia where Nigel lives |
Group or Classroom Activities
Warm-up Activities:
– CHARADES
Instructions: Divide the class into small groups. Each group will take turns acting out words or phrases related to Scrabble (e.g., “play,” “win,” “words,” “letters”) without speaking, while the other groups guess the word or phrase.
– VOCABULARY PICTIONARY
Instructions: Write vocabulary words from the article on the board. Students will take turns drawing one word while their classmates guess what it is. This activity helps reinforce vocabulary understanding through visual representation.
– THINK-PAIR-SHARE
Instructions: Pose a question related to the article, such as “How do you think Nigel felt when he won the contest?” Students will think individually for a minute, then discuss their thoughts with a partner before sharing with the class.
– OPINION POLL
Instructions: Create a simple statement based on the article, like “Winning without speaking the language is impressive.” Have students walk around the classroom and ask their classmates if they agree or disagree, tallying responses on a chart.
– FUTURE PREDICTIONS
Instructions: Ask students to predict what Nigel might do next in his Scrabble career or if he will learn other languages. They can write or share their ideas in pairs, then some students can share their predictions with the class.
🤔 Comprehension Questions:
1. Where is Nigel Richards from?
2. What game does Nigel play?
3. How many games did Nigel win in Spain?
4. How did Nigel learn Spanish words?
5. Who came in second place after Nigel?
6. What other language contests has Nigel won?
7. How old was Nigel when he started playing Scrabble?
Go to answers ⇩
🎧✍️ Listen and Fill in the Gaps:
Nigel Richards is a (1)______ player from New Zealand. He won a big Scrabble (2)______ in Spanish, even though he doesn’t speak Spanish. He played in Spain and won 23 out of 24 games. (3)______ learned Spanish words by (4)______ them for a year. His friend Liz says he sees words like pictures in his mind.
People are amazed by Nigel’s win because he doesn’t speak (5)______. The person who won last year, Benjamín, (6)______ in second place this time. Nigel has also won Scrabble contests in French, even though he doesn’t speak French. He uses math to play Scrabble, not just words. Nigel (7)______ playing Scrabble when he was 28 and now he lives in (8)______.
Go to answers ⇩
💬 Discussion Questions:
Students can ask a partner these questions, or discuss them as a group.
1. What is your favorite game to play?
2. Do you like to learn new words? Why or why not?
3. How would you feel if you won a big game?
4. Do you think it is easy to learn a new language? Why?
5. What is a word you like?
6. How do you remember things?
7. Do you think playing games is fun? Why?
8. Have you ever played Scrabble? Did you like it?
9. How would you feel if you played a game in a different language?
10. Do you think math is important in games? Why or why not?
11. What is a country you want to visit?
12. Do you think it is good to try new things? Why?
Individual Activities
📖💭 Vocabulary Meanings:
Match each word to its meaning.
Words:
1. contest
2. memorizing
3. amazed
4. second
5. math
6. pictures
7. mind
8. speak
9. French
10. Malaysia
Meanings:
(A) Using numbers to solve problems
(B) Coming after the first
(C) Images you see or imagine
(D) Remembering something by looking at it many times
(E) A language spoken in France
(F) To talk using words
(G) A game or event where people try to win
(H) The part of you that thinks and remembers
(I) Feeling surprised and impressed
(J) A country in Asia where Nigel lives
Go to answers ⇩
🔡 Multiple Choice Questions:
1. Where is Nigel Richards from?
(a) New Zealand
(b) Australia
(c) Canada
(d) England
2. What game does Nigel play?
(a) Chess
(b) Scrabble
(c) Monopoly
(d) Cards
3. How many games did Nigel win in Spain?
(a) 20
(b) 15
(c) 10
(d) 23
4. What language did Nigel win in?
(a) French
(b) English
(c) Spanish
(d) Italian
5. Who came in second place?
(a) Nigel
(b) Benjamín
(c) Liz
(d) Maria
6. How did Nigel learn Spanish words?
(a) By talking to people
(b) By reading books
(c) By memorizing them
(d) By watching TV
7. How old was Nigel when he started playing Scrabble?
(a) 28
(b) 18
(c) 25
(d) 30
8. Where does Nigel live now?
(a) Spain
(b) New Zealand
(c) France
(d) Malaysia
Go to answers ⇩
🕵️ True or False Questions:
1. He started playing Scrabble when he was 28 years old.
2. Nigel learned Spanish words by memorizing them.
3. Nigel speaks Spanish.
4. His friend Liz says he hears words like pictures.
5. Nigel also won Scrabble games in French.
6. Nigel Richards is not from New Zealand.
7. Nigel won a big Scrabble game in Spanish.
8. He won 23 games and lost 2 games.
Go to answers ⇩
📝 Write a Summary:
Write a summary of this news article in two sentences.
Check your writing now with the best free AI for English writing!
Writing Questions:
Answer the following questions. Write as much as you can for each answer.
Check your answers with our free English writing assistant!
1. Who is Nigel Richards?
2. Where is Nigel from?
3. What game does Nigel play?
4. Did Nigel win the contest in Spanish?
5. How did Nigel learn Spanish words?
✅ Answers
🤔✅ Comprehension Question Answers:
1. Where is Nigel Richards from?
Nigel Richards is from New Zealand.
2. What game does Nigel play?
Nigel plays Scrabble.
3. How many games did Nigel win in Spain?
Nigel won 23 out of 24 games.
4. How did Nigel learn Spanish words?
Nigel learned Spanish words by memorizing them for a year.
5. Who came in second place after Nigel?
Benjamín came in second place after Nigel.
6. What other language contests has Nigel won?
Nigel has won Scrabble contests in French.
7. How old was Nigel when he started playing Scrabble?
Nigel was 28 years old when he started playing Scrabble.
Go back to questions ⇧
🎧✍️✅ Listen and Fill in the Gaps Answers:
(1) Scrabble
(2) contest
(3) Nigel
(4) memorizing
(5) Spanish
(6) came
(7) started
(8) Malaysia
Go back to questions ⇧
📖💭✅ Vocabulary Meanings Answers:
1. contest
Answer: (G) A game or event where people try to win
2. memorizing
Answer: (D) Remembering something by looking at it many times
3. amazed
Answer: (I) Feeling surprised and impressed
4. second
Answer: (B) Coming after the first
5. math
Answer: (A) Using numbers to solve problems
6. pictures
Answer: (C) Images you see or imagine
7. mind
Answer: (H) The part of you that thinks and remembers
8. speak
Answer: (F) To talk using words
9. French
Answer: (E) A language spoken in France
10. Malaysia
Answer: (J) A country in Asia where Nigel lives
Go back to questions ⇧
🔡✅ Multiple Choice Answers:
1. Where is Nigel Richards from?
Answer: (a) New Zealand
2. What game does Nigel play?
Answer: (b) Scrabble
3. How many games did Nigel win in Spain?
Answer: (d) 23
4. What language did Nigel win in?
Answer: (c) Spanish
5. Who came in second place?
Answer: (b) Benjamín
6. How did Nigel learn Spanish words?
Answer: (c) By memorizing them
7. How old was Nigel when he started playing Scrabble?
Answer: (a) 28
8. Where does Nigel live now?
Answer: (d) Malaysia
Go back to questions ⇧
🕵️✅ True or False Answers:
1. He started playing Scrabble when he was 28 years old. (Answer: True)
2. Nigel learned Spanish words by memorizing them. (Answer: True)
3. Nigel speaks Spanish. (Answer: False)
4. His friend Liz says he hears words like pictures. (Answer: False)
5. Nigel also won Scrabble games in French. (Answer: True)
6. Nigel Richards is not from New Zealand. (Answer: False)
7. Nigel won a big Scrabble game in Spanish. (Answer: True)
8. He won 23 games and lost 2 games. (Answer: False)
Go back to questions ⇧