In Thailand, there was a big flood, and the water was very high. Four elephants had to walk through the water to get to a safe place. One elephant was blind, so it moved slower than the others. The flood happened because of a big storm called Typhoon Yagi. The storm made the river rise and water came into the elephant park.

The people who take care of the elephants worked hard to keep them safe. They moved all 126 elephants to a safe place. Nine elephants were stuck at first, but they were saved too. The video of the elephants shows how strong and brave they are. It also shows how much the people care for the elephants, even when things are hard.

Original news source: Watch: Elephants escape floodwaters in Thailand (BBC)

🎧 Listen:

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📖 Vocabulary:

Group or Classroom Activities

Warm-up Activities:

– Charades
Instructions: Write down key words related to the article (flood, elephants, water, storm, park, care, safe) on separate cards. Have students take turns picking a card and acting out the word without speaking while the others guess what it is.

– Vocabulary Pictionary
Instructions: Choose 5-7 key vocabulary words from the article and write them on the board. Divide the class into teams and have one student from each team come up to the board to draw the word while their team tries to guess. Encourage the use of English to describe the drawing.

– Headline Creation
Instructions: In pairs or small groups, have students come up with a catchy headline for the article about the elephants in Thailand. Encourage them to use vocabulary and key points from the article. Each group can share their headline with the class.

– Opinion Poll
Instructions: Divide the class into two groups, one representing the elephants and the other representing the people taking care of them. Have students come up with opinions or feelings these two groups might have about the flood situation. Then, conduct a poll within each group to see which opinions are most popular.

– Sketch It
Instructions: Provide each student with a piece of paper and ask them to draw a scene from the article, such as the elephants walking through the water or the people helping them. After a few minutes, have students share their drawings with a partner and describe what they drew using English.

🤔 Comprehension Questions:

1. Why did the elephants have to walk through the water?
2. How many elephants were in the park?
3. What made the flood happen in Thailand?
4. How many elephants were stuck at first?
5. What did the people do to keep the elephants safe?
6. Why did one elephant move slower than the others?
7. What does the video show about the elephants and the people who care for them?
Go to answers ⇩

🎧✍️ Listen and Fill in the Gaps:

In Thailand, there was a big (1)______, and the water was very high. Four elephants had to walk through the water to get to a safe (2)______. One elephant was blind, so it moved slower than the others. The flood happened because of a big storm called (3)______ Yagi. The storm made the river rise and water came into the elephant (4)______.

The people who take (5)______ of the elephants worked hard to keep them safe. They (6)______ all 126 elephants to a safe place. Nine elephants were stuck at first, but they were saved too. The video of the elephants (7)______ how strong and brave they are. It also shows how much the (8)______ care for the elephants, even when things are hard.
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💬 Discussion Questions:

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

1. What is a flood?
2. How would you feel if you had to walk through high water like the elephants?
3. Do you like elephants?
4. Do you think the people who take care of the elephants are kind?
5. Why do you think the elephants had to move to a safe place?
6. What is a storm?
7. How do you think the elephants felt when they were stuck at first?
8. Why do you think the people worked hard to keep the elephants safe?
9. What does it mean to be strong and brave?
10. How would you help someone if they were stuck in a flood?
11. Do you think it’s important to take care of animals like elephants?
12. Why do you think it’s important to help others, even when things are hard?

Individual Activities

📖💭 Vocabulary Meanings:

Match each word to its meaning.

Words:
1. flood
2. blind
3. storm
4. rise
5. park
6. stuck
7. brave
8. care
9. safe
10. video

Meanings:
(A) Not afraid, even when things are scary
(B) A very strong wind and rain
(C) Cannot see
(D) When too much water covers the land
(E) A moving picture you can watch
(F) To look after someone or something
(G) A place where people can visit and see animals
(H) Not in danger
(I) Unable to move
(J) To go up
Go to answers ⇩

🔡 Multiple Choice Questions:

1. Why did the flood happen in Thailand?
(a) Because of a big storm
(b) Because of a drought
(c) Because of a heatwave
(d) Because of a snowstorm

2. How many elephants had to walk through the water?
(a) Five
(b) Four
(c) Three
(d) Six

3. Why did one elephant move slower than the others?
(a) Because it was scared
(b) Because it was tired
(c) Because it was blind
(d) Because it was hungry

4. What was the name of the storm that caused the flood?
(a) Hurricane Maria
(b) Typhoon Yagi
(c) Tornado Johnson
(d) Blizzard Smith

5. How many elephants were stuck at first?
(a) Ten
(b) Eight
(c) Eleven
(d) Nine

6. How many elephants were moved to a safe place?
(a) 126
(b) 100
(c) 150
(d) 200

7. What does the video of the elephants show?
(a) How fast they can run
(b) How big they are
(c) How loud they can trumpet
(d) How strong and brave they are

8. What did the people who take care of the elephants do to keep them safe?
(a) Left them in the flood
(b) Gave them food
(c) Moved them to a safe place
(d) Ignored them

Go to answers ⇩

🕵️ True or False Questions:

1. Nine elephants were stranded but were not rescued.
2. People abandoned 126 elephants during the flood.
3. Elephants were not required to wade through high water in Thailand.
4. The elephants were strong and brave in the video.
5. One elephant was blind and moved slower.
6. The river rose due to the rainfall.
7. The video showed how much people care for the elephants.
8. A big storm called Typhoon Yagi caused the flood.
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 happened in Thailand that made the elephants have to walk through the water?
2. How many elephants were saved by the people who take care of them?
3. Why was one of the elephants moving slower than the others?
4. What caused the flood in Thailand?
5. What did the video of the elephants show about the people who care for them?

✅ Answers

🤔✅ Comprehension Question Answers:

1. Why did the elephants have to walk through the water?
The elephants had to walk through the water because there was a big flood in Thailand.

2. How many elephants were in the park?
There were 126 elephants in the park.

3. What made the flood happen in Thailand?
The flood happened because of a big storm called Typhoon Yagi.

4. How many elephants were stuck at first?
Nine elephants were stuck at first.

5. What did the people do to keep the elephants safe?
The people moved all the elephants to a safe place to keep them safe.

6. Why did one elephant move slower than the others?
One elephant was blind, so it moved slower than the others.

7. What does the video show about the elephants and the people who care for them?
The video shows how strong and brave the elephants are, and how much the people care for them even in difficult times.
Go back to questions ⇧

🎧✍️✅ Listen and Fill in the Gaps Answers:

(1) flood
(2) place
(3) Typhoon
(4) park
(5) care
(6) moved
(7) shows
(8) people
Go back to questions ⇧

📖💭✅ Vocabulary Meanings Answers:

1. flood
Answer: (D) When too much water covers the land

2. blind
Answer: (C) Cannot see

3. storm
Answer: (B) A very strong wind and rain

4. rise
Answer: (J) To go up

5. park
Answer: (G) A place where people can visit and see animals

6. stuck
Answer: (I) Unable to move

7. brave
Answer: (A) Not afraid, even when things are scary

8. care
Answer: (F) To look after someone or something

9. safe
Answer: (H) Not in danger

10. video
Answer: (E) A moving picture you can watch
Go back to questions ⇧

🔡✅ Multiple Choice Answers:

1. Why did the flood happen in Thailand?
Answer: (a) Because of a big storm

2. How many elephants had to walk through the water?
Answer: (b) Four

3. Why did one elephant move slower than the others?
Answer: (c) Because it was blind

4. What was the name of the storm that caused the flood?
Answer: (b) Typhoon Yagi

5. How many elephants were stuck at first?
Answer: (d) Nine

6. How many elephants were moved to a safe place?
Answer: (a) 126

7. What does the video of the elephants show?
Answer: (d) How strong and brave they are

8. What did the people who take care of the elephants do to keep them safe?
Answer: (c) Moved them to a safe place
Go back to questions ⇧

🕵️✅ True or False Answers:

1. Nine elephants were stranded but were not rescued. (Answer: False)
2. People abandoned 126 elephants during the flood. (Answer: False)
3. Elephants were not required to wade through high water in Thailand. (Answer: False)
4. The elephants were strong and brave in the video. (Answer: True)
5. One elephant was blind and moved slower. (Answer: True)
6. The river rose due to the rainfall. (Answer: False)
7. The video showed how much people care for the elephants. (Answer: True)
8. A big storm called Typhoon Yagi caused the flood. (Answer: True)
Go back to questions ⇧