Two brothers, Anton and James, went to a big school called MIT. They got in trouble for taking $25 million in cryptocurrency very quickly. They used their smart computer skills to trick the system. Now, they might go to jail for a long time. This is the first time something like this has happened.

A lady named Lisa said the brothers planned this for a long time. Special agents helped find out what they did. The brothers did not give the money back when asked. They tried to hide the stolen money. This story shows that stealing cryptocurrency is a big problem.

Original news source: US brothers allegedly stole $25m in 12 seconds (BBC)

🎧 Listen:

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📖 Vocabulary:

Group or Classroom Activities

Warm-up Activities:

– Charades
Instructions: Divide the class into small groups. Give each group a slip of paper with a keyword from the article (e.g. “brothers”, “cryptocurrency”, “jail”). One student from each group will act out the keyword without speaking, while the other students try to guess what it is. The group that guesses correctly gets a point. Repeat with different keywords from the article.

– Vocabulary Pictionary
Instructions: Divide the class into pairs. Give each pair a list of vocabulary words from the article (e.g. “trick”, “hide”, “stolen”). One student from each pair will draw a picture to represent a word, while the other student tries to guess what it is. The pair that guesses correctly gets a point. Repeat with different vocabulary words from the article.

– Keyword Hangman
Instructions: Write a keyword from the article on the board, leaving out the vowels. Students take turns guessing letters to try and figure out the word. If a guessed letter is correct, write it in the correct spot. If a guessed letter is incorrect, draw a body part of a stick figure on the board. The students must guess the word before the stick figure is completed.

– Speed Summarizing
Instructions: Divide the class into pairs. Give each pair a different sentence from the article (e.g. “Two brothers, Anton and James, went to a big school called MIT.”). Set a timer for one minute. Each pair must try to summarize their sentence as quickly as possible, using their own words. After one minute, pairs take turns sharing their summarized sentence with the class.

– Think-Pair-Share
Instructions: Ask the students to think about why stealing cryptocurrency is a big problem. Give them a few minutes to think individually, then have them pair up with a partner to discuss their thoughts. After a few minutes, ask a few pairs to share their ideas with the whole class.

🤔 Comprehension Questions:

1. What did Anton and James do that got them in trouble?
2. How did Anton and James trick the system?
3. What might happen to Anton and James for what they did?
4. Who helped find out what Anton and James did?
5. Did Anton and James give the money back when asked?
6. What did Anton and James try to do with the stolen money?
7. Why is stealing cryptocurrency a big problem?
Go to answers ⇩

🎧✍️ Listen and Fill in the Gaps:

Two brothers, Anton and (1)______, (2)______ to a big school called MIT. They got in trouble for taking $25 million in cryptocurrency very quickly. They used their smart (3)______ skills to trick the system. Now, they might go to (4)______ for a long time. This is the first time something like this has happened.

A lady named (5)______ said the brothers planned this for a (6)______ time. Special agents helped find out what they did. The brothers did not give the money back when asked. They tried to (7)______ the stolen money. This story (8)______ that stealing cryptocurrency is a big problem.
Go to answers ⇩

💬 Discussion Questions:

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

1. What is a big school called MIT?
2. How would you feel if you had $25 million?
3. What do you think about the brothers tricking the system?
4. Do you think the brothers should go to jail? Why or why not?
5. How do you think the special agents helped in this situation?
6. Do you think it’s right to keep stolen money? Why or why not?
7. What do you think about stealing cryptocurrency?
8. Have you ever heard of someone stealing money before? What happened?
9. Do you like using computers? Why or why not?
10. How would you feel if you were caught stealing something?
11. What do you think the punishment should be for stealing a lot of money?
12. Do you think this will happen again? Why or why not?

Individual Activities

📖💭 Vocabulary Meanings:

Match each word to its meaning.

Words:
1. trouble
2. cryptocurrency
3. trick
4. jail
5. planned
6. agents
7. hide
8. stolen
9. problem
10. stealing

Meanings:
(A) To make someone believe something that is not true
(B) When you do something bad and get caught
(C) Taken without permission
(D) Something that is hard to fix or deal with
(E) Taking something that is not yours
(F) To think about and arrange something before doing it
(G) Digital money you can’t touch
(H) A place where bad people are kept
(I) To put something where no one can see it
(J) People who work to catch bad guys
Go to answers ⇩

🔡 Multiple Choice Questions:

1. Who went to MIT?
(a) Lisa
(b) Special agents
(c) Anton and James
(d) Nobody

2. What did Anton and James do?
(a) Went to jail
(b) Took $25 million in cryptocurrency
(c) Helped find out what they did
(d) Gave the money back

3. Who said the brothers planned this for a long time?
(a) Anton and James
(b) Special agents
(c) Nobody
(d) Lisa

4. What did the brothers do when asked to give the money back?
(a) They gave the money back
(b) They went to jail
(c) They did not give the money back
(d) They hid the stolen money

5. What did the special agents do?
(a) Went to jail
(b) Helped find out what the brothers did
(c) Took $25 million in cryptocurrency
(d) Went to MIT

6. What is the main problem shown in this story?
(a) Stealing cryptocurrency
(b) Going to jail
(c) Going to MIT
(d) Hiding stolen money

7. How much money did the brothers take?
(a) $10 million
(b) $1 million
(c) $100
(d) $25 million

8. Is this the first time something like this has happened?
(a) Yes
(b) No
(c) Maybe
(d) I don’t know

Go to answers ⇩

🕵️ True or False Questions:

1. The sisters promptly returned the money when asked.
2. They attempted to return the misplaced money.
3. Two sisters named Anton and Jamie went to a small school called NYU.
4. Special agents helped find out what the brothers did.
5. A lady named Lisa said the brothers planned this for a long time.
6. The sisters used their creativity to navigate the system.
7. They got in trouble for taking $25 million in cryptocurrency very quickly.
8. They might go to jail for a long time because of what they did.
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 are the two brothers in the story?
2. What did the two brothers do that got them in trouble?
3. How did the brothers use their computer skills to trick the system?
4. What did the special agents do to help find out what the brothers did?
5. Why is stealing cryptocurrency a big problem?

✅ Answers

🤔✅ Comprehension Question Answers:

1. What did Anton and James do that got them in trouble?
They took $25 million in cryptocurrency.

2. How did Anton and James trick the system?
They used their smart computer skills to trick the system.

3. What might happen to Anton and James for what they did?
They might go to jail for a long time.

4. Who helped find out what Anton and James did?
Special agents helped find out what they did.

5. Did Anton and James give the money back when asked?
No, they did not give the money back when asked.

6. What did Anton and James try to do with the stolen money?
They tried to hide the stolen money.

7. Why is stealing cryptocurrency a big problem?
Stealing cryptocurrency is a big problem because it can cause people to lose a lot of money and it is difficult to trace and recover the stolen funds.
Go back to questions ⇧

🎧✍️✅ Listen and Fill in the Gaps Answers:

(1) James
(2) went
(3) computer
(4) jail
(5) Lisa
(6) long
(7) hide
(8) shows
Go back to questions ⇧

📖💭✅ Vocabulary Meanings Answers:

1. trouble
Answer: (B) When you do something bad and get caught

2. cryptocurrency
Answer: (G) Digital money you can’t touch

3. trick
Answer: (A) To make someone believe something that is not true

4. jail
Answer: (H) A place where bad people are kept

5. planned
Answer: (F) To think about and arrange something before doing it

6. agents
Answer: (J) People who work to catch bad guys

7. hide
Answer: (I) To put something where no one can see it

8. stolen
Answer: (C) Taken without permission

9. problem
Answer: (D) Something that is hard to fix or deal with

10. stealing
Answer: (E) Taking something that is not yours
Go back to questions ⇧

🔡✅ Multiple Choice Answers:

1. Who went to MIT?
Answer: (c) Anton and James

2. What did Anton and James do?
Answer: (b) Took $25 million in cryptocurrency

3. Who said the brothers planned this for a long time?
Answer: (d) Lisa

4. What did the brothers do when asked to give the money back?
Answer: (c) They did not give the money back

5. What did the special agents do?
Answer: (b) Helped find out what the brothers did

6. What is the main problem shown in this story?
Answer: (a) Stealing cryptocurrency

7. How much money did the brothers take?
Answer: (d) $25 million

8. Is this the first time something like this has happened?
Answer: (a) Yes
Go back to questions ⇧

🕵️✅ True or False Answers:

1. The sisters promptly returned the money when asked. (Answer: False)
2. They attempted to return the misplaced money. (Answer: False)
3. Two sisters named Anton and Jamie went to a small school called NYU. (Answer: False)
4. Special agents helped find out what the brothers did. (Answer: True)
5. A lady named Lisa said the brothers planned this for a long time. (Answer: True)
6. The sisters used their creativity to navigate the system. (Answer: False)
7. They got in trouble for taking $25 million in cryptocurrency very quickly. (Answer: True)
8. They might go to jail for a long time because of what they did. (Answer: True)
Go back to questions ⇧