A car company named Tesla made a new truck called the cybertruck. When they first showed it to people, the windows broke, which was a big mistake. Now, they are giving the truck to people who want to buy it. The man who runs Tesla, Elon Musk, says this truck is the best thing they ever made. But making the truck is hard, and it costs more money than they said it would.

The cybertruck is coming out when things are tough for selling cars in America. Other car companies have made electric trucks too. Some people don’t like what Elon Musk says on the internet, and they think it makes Tesla look bad. Even though many people said they want to buy the cybertruck, we don’t know how many will really buy it. Tesla hopes the new truck will make people excited about their cars, even if it’s very expensive.

Original news source: Will Tesla’s truck recover from its shattering start? (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 words related to the article (e.g. Tesla, cybertruck, Elon Musk, electric trucks, etc.). Each group takes turns choosing a word and acting it out without speaking. The other groups try to guess the word. The group that guesses correctly gets a point.

– News Summary
Instructions: Have the class read the article individually or in pairs. Then, ask each student to write a short summary of the article using their own words. Afterward, have students share their summaries with a partner or in small groups. Encourage them to discuss any differences or similarities in their summaries.

– Opinion Poll
Instructions: Create a simple opinion poll related to the article (e.g. “Do you think the cybertruck will be successful?”). Have students go around the classroom asking their classmates the question and recording their answers. Afterward, have a class discussion where students share the results of their poll and explain their opinions.

– Vocabulary Pictionary
Instructions: Prepare a list of vocabulary words from the article on separate index cards. Divide the class into pairs or small groups. One student from each group takes a card and has to draw a picture to represent the word, while their teammates try to guess what it is. The team that guesses correctly gets a point.

– Speed Summarizing
Instructions: Divide the class into pairs. Give each pair a copy of the article. Set a timer for a short amount of time (e.g. 2 minutes). Students take turns summarizing the article to their partner as quickly as possible within the time limit. After the timer goes off, students switch roles and summarize again. The pair that can summarize the article in the shortest time wins.

Comprehension Questions:

1. What is the name of the new truck made by Tesla?
2. What happened to the windows of the truck when they first showed it to people?
3. Who is the man in charge of Tesla?
4. What does Elon Musk say about the truck?
5. Are there other car companies that have made electric trucks too?
6. Do some people not like what Elon Musk says on the internet?
7. What does Tesla hope the new truck will do for their cars?
Go to answers ⇩

Listen and Fill in the Gaps:

A car company named Tesla made a new (1)______ called the cybertruck. When they first showed it to people, the windows broke, which was a big (2)______. Now, they are giving the truck to people who want to buy it. The man who runs Tesla, (3)______ Musk, says this truck is the best thing they ever (4)______. But making the truck is hard, and it costs more money than they said it would.

The cybertruck is coming out when things are tough for selling cars in America. Other car companies have made electric trucks too. Some people don’t like what Elon Musk says on the internet, and they think it (5)______ (6)______ look bad. Even though many people (7)______ they want to buy the cybertruck, we don’t know how many will really buy it. Tesla (8)______ the new truck will make people excited about their cars, even if it’s very expensive.

Go to answers ⇩

Discussion Questions:

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

1. What is a cybertruck?
2. How do you think people felt when the windows of the cybertruck broke?
3. Do you like trucks? Why or why not?
4. What do you think Elon Musk means when he says the cybertruck is the best thing they ever made?
5. How do you think Tesla feels about the cybertruck being hard to make?
6. Do you think the cybertruck is expensive or cheap? Why or why not?
7. What do you think about other car companies making electric trucks too?
8. How would you feel if you saw something bad about Tesla on the internet?
9. Do you think many people will buy the cybertruck? Why or why not?
10. How do you think Tesla feels about people being excited about their cars?
11. What do you think about the cybertruck being very expensive?
12. How do you feel about the cybertruck? Why or why not?

Individual Activities

Vocabulary Meanings:

Match each word to its meaning.

Words:
1. truck
2. windows
3. buy
4. Elon Musk
5. money
6. electric
7. internet
8. expensive

Meanings:
(a) The man who is in charge of Tesla
(b) Powered by electricity instead of gas
(c) The glass parts of a car that you can see through
(d) To get something by giving money for it
(e) The thing you need to buy things
(f) Costs a lot of money
(g) A place where you can find information and talk to people
(h) A big vehicle that carries things
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Multiple Choice Questions:

1. What is the name of the car company that made the cybertruck?
(a) Ford
(b) Tesla
(c) Toyota
(d) Honda

2. What happened to the windows of the cybertruck when they first showed it to people?
(a) They opened
(b) They disappeared
(c) They became bigger
(d) They broke

3. Who is the man that runs Tesla?
(a) Jeff Bezos
(b) Elon Musk
(c) Mark Zuckerberg
(d) Bill Gates

4. According to Elon Musk, what does he think about the cybertruck?
(a) It is the worst thing they ever made
(b) It is just okay
(c) It is the best thing they ever made
(d) He doesn’t like it

5. Is making the cybertruck easy or hard?
(a) Easy
(b) Fun
(c) Hard
(d) Boring

6. Did the cybertruck cost more money or less money than they said it would?
(a) More money
(b) Less money
(c) The same amount of money
(d) They didn’t say

7. Are other car companies making electric trucks too?
(a) Yes
(b) No
(c) Maybe
(d) I don’t know

8. What does Tesla hope the new truck will do for their cars?
(a) Make people angry about them
(b) Make people sad about them
(c) Make people bored about them
(d) Make people excited about them

Go to answers ⇩

True or False Questions:

1. Other car companies have not made electric trucks too.
2. Making the cybertruck is hard and costs more money than they said.
3. Tesla hopes the new truck will make people indifferent about their cars, even if it’s very expensive.
4. Tesla made a new truck called the cybertruck.
5. Elon Musk is not the man who runs Tesla.
6. When they displayed the truck to people, the windows broke.
7. Now, people can buy the cybertruck if they want.
8. Elon Musk says the cybertruck is the best thing they ever made.
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 name of the new truck made by Tesla?
2. What happened to the windows of the truck when they first showed it to people?
3. Who is the man who runs Tesla?
4. Why is it hard to make the cybertruck?
5. Why does Tesla hope the new truck will make people excited about their cars?

Answers

Comprehension Question Answers:

1. What is the name of the new truck made by Tesla?
The name of the new truck made by Tesla is the cybertruck.

2. What happened to the windows of the truck when they first showed it to people?
The windows of the truck broke when they first showed it to people.

3. Who is the man in charge of Tesla?
The man in charge of Tesla is Elon Musk.

4. What does Elon Musk say about the truck?
Elon Musk says that the truck is the best thing they ever made.

5. Are there other car companies that have made electric trucks too?
Yes, there are other car companies that have made electric trucks too.

6. Do some people not like what Elon Musk says on the internet?
Yes, some people do not like what Elon Musk says on the internet.

7. What does Tesla hope the new truck will do for their cars?
Tesla hopes the new truck will make people excited about their cars, even if it’s very expensive.
Go back to questions ⇧

Listen and Fill in the Gaps Answers:

(1) truck
(2) oopsie
(3) Elon
(4) made
(5) makes
(6) Tesla
(7) said
(8) hopes
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Vocabulary Meanings Answers:

1. truck
Answer: (h) A big vehicle that carries things

2. windows
Answer: (c) The glass parts of a car that you can see through

3. buy
Answer: (d) To get something by giving money for it

4. Elon Musk
Answer: (a) The man who is in charge of Tesla

5. money
Answer: (e) The thing you need to buy things

6. electric
Answer: (b) Powered by electricity instead of gas

7. internet
Answer: (g) A place where you can find information and talk to people

8. expensive
Answer: (f) Costs a lot of money
Go back to questions ⇧

Multiple Choice Answers:

1. What is the name of the car company that made the cybertruck?
Answer: (b) Tesla

2. What happened to the windows of the cybertruck when they first showed it to people?
Answer: (d) They broke

3. Who is the man that runs Tesla?
Answer: (b) Elon Musk

4. According to Elon Musk, what does he think about the cybertruck?
Answer: (c) It is the best thing they ever made

5. Is making the cybertruck easy or hard?
Answer: (c) Hard

6. Did the cybertruck cost more money or less money than they said it would?
Answer: (a) More money

7. Are other car companies making electric trucks too?
Answer: (a) Yes

8. What does Tesla hope the new truck will do for their cars?
Answer: (d) Make people excited about them
Go back to questions ⇧

True or False Answers:

1. Other car companies have not made electric trucks too. (Answer: False)
2. Making the cybertruck is hard and costs more money than they said. (Answer: True)
3. Tesla hopes the new truck will make people indifferent about their cars, even if it’s very expensive. (Answer: False)
4. Tesla made a new truck called the cybertruck. (Answer: True)
5. Elon Musk is not the man who runs Tesla. (Answer: False)
6. When they displayed the truck to people, the windows broke. (Answer: False)
7. Now, people can buy the cybertruck if they want. (Answer: True)
8. Elon Musk says the cybertruck is the best thing they ever made. (Answer: True)
Go back to questions ⇧