There is a new map that shows places with not many trees have dirty air. The map was made by some groups who care about trees and health. They used information from Google and other things to make a “tree score” for different places in the UK. The map tells us that poor places don’t have many trees and the air is not good to breathe. The people who made the map want the leaders to plant more trees in these places.

The map shows that some places are not fair because they don’t have many trees. A lady from the tree group says rich places have more trees. Trees are good because they make the air cleaner and help when it’s very hot. In a city in America, they planted more trees where people don’t have much money and gave them jobs to plant the trees. A man named Tyree got a job planting trees and it made his life better. Some leaders in the UK are starting to think about trees and poor places. The people who made the map want all leaders to use the tree score to plant more trees where people live in cities.

Original news source: Air pollution: map shows ‘concrete jungles’ more polluted (BBC)

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Vocabulary:

Group or Classroom Activities

Warm-up Activities:

– Charades
Instructions: Divide the class into two teams. Write down key words from the article on separate slips of paper. Have one student from each team come up and choose a slip of paper. They must act out the word without speaking, and their team must guess what word they are acting out. The team that guesses correctly earns a point.

– Word Association
Instructions: Write down key words from the article on the board. Have students take turns saying a word that they associate with each key word. Encourage them to explain why they made that association.

– Vocabulary Pictionary
Instructions: Divide the class into pairs. Give each pair a key word from the article. One student must draw a picture to represent the word, while the other student tries to guess what the word is. Once they have guessed correctly, they can switch roles.

– Speed Summarizing
Instructions: Divide the class into pairs. Give each pair a sentence or paragraph from the article. Set a timer for one minute. One student must summarize the sentence or paragraph to their partner within the one-minute time limit. The partner must then try to retell the summary to the class. The pair that can accurately and quickly summarize the most sentences or paragraphs wins.

– Pros and Cons
Instructions: Divide the class into two groups. Assign one group to discuss the pros of planting more trees in poor places, and the other group to discuss the cons. Give them a few minutes to brainstorm their ideas. Then, have a class discussion where each group presents their arguments. Encourage students to use the vocabulary and language from the article to support their points.

Comprehension Questions:

1. What does the new map show?
2. Why is the air not good to breathe in places with not many trees?
3. What do trees do to the air?
4. Who made the map?
5. What did they use to make the “tree score”?
6. What do the people who made the map want the leaders to do?
7. What happened to Tyree when he got a job planting trees?
Go to answers ⇩

Listen and Fill in the Gaps:

There is a new map that shows places with not (1)______ trees have (2)______ air. The map was made by some groups who care about trees and health. They used information from Google and other things to make a “tree score” for different places in the UK. The map tells us that poor places don’t (3)______ many trees and the air is not good to breathe. The people who made the map (4)______ the leaders to plant more trees in these places.

The map shows that some places are not fair because they don’t have many trees. A lady from the tree group (5)______ rich places have more trees. Trees are (6)______ because they make the air cleaner and help when it’s very hot. In a city in America, they planted more trees where people don’t have much money and gave them jobs to plant the trees. A man named Tyree got a job planting trees and it made his life better. Some leaders in the UK are (7)______ to think about trees and poor places. The (8)______ who made the map want all leaders to use the tree score to plant more trees where people live in cities.
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Discussion Questions:

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

1. What is a tree?
2. How would you feel if you lived in a place with dirty air?
3. Do you like trees? Why or why not?
4. Do you think it’s fair that some places have more trees than others? Why or why not?
5. How do trees help make the air cleaner?
6. What do trees do when it’s very hot?
7. Have you ever planted a tree before? How did it make you feel?
8. Do you think it’s a good idea for leaders to plant more trees in poor places? Why or why not?
9. How do you think planting more trees could make people’s lives better?
10. Do you think leaders should use the tree score to decide where to plant trees? Why or why not?
11. Have you ever seen a map before? What did it show?
12. What can you do to help take care of trees in your city?

Individual Activities

Vocabulary Meanings:

Match each word to its meaning.

Words:
1. map
2. trees
3. air
4. breathe
5. places
6. score
7. leaders
8. poor
9. plant
10. cities

Meanings:
(A) People who tell others what to do
(B) Tall things that grow in the ground and have leaves
(C) Taking air into your body
(D) Locations or areas
(E) The stuff you breathe in and out
(F) Big towns with lots of buildings and people
(G) A number that shows how good or bad something is
(H) Not having a lot of money or things
(I) A picture that shows different places
(J) Putting something in the ground so it can grow
Go to answers ⇩

Multiple Choice Questions:

1. What does the new map show?
(a) Places with not many trees have dirty air
(b) Places with many trees have dirty air
(c) Places with not many trees have clean air
(d) Places with many trees have clean air

2. How did the groups make the “tree score” for different places?
(a) They asked people about the number of trees in their area
(b) They counted the number of trees themselves
(c) They used information from Google and other things
(d) They guessed the number of trees in each place

3. What does the map tell us about poor places?
(a) They don’t have many trees and the air is not good to breathe
(b) They have many trees and the air is not good to breathe
(c) They don’t have many trees and the air is good to breathe
(d) They have many trees and the air is good to breathe

4. Why are trees good?
(a) They make the air dirtier and help when it’s very hot
(b) They make the air cleaner and make it colder
(c) They make the air dirtier and make it colder
(d) They make the air cleaner and help when it’s very hot

5. What did they do in a city in America to help people who don’t have much money?
(a) They planted more trees and gave them money to buy trees
(b) They planted more trees and gave them free trees
(c) They planted more trees and gave them free air
(d) They planted more trees and gave them jobs to plant the trees

6. Who got a job planting trees in the city in America?
(a) A lady named Tree
(b) A man named Tyree
(c) A man named Tree
(d) A lady named Tyree

7. What are some leaders in the UK starting to think about?
(a) Trees and rich places
(b) Trees and poor places
(c) Trees and clean air
(d) Trees and jobs

8. What do the people who made the map want all leaders to do?
(a) Use the tree score to cut down trees where people live in cities
(b) Use the tree score to plant more trees where people live in forests
(c) Use the tree score to plant more trees where people live in cities
(d) Use the tree score to cut down trees where people live in forests

Go to answers ⇩

True or False Questions:

1. There is no new map that shows places without many trees have dirty air.
2. The map does not tell us that poor places don’t have many trees and the air is not good to breathe.
3. The people who made the map want the leaders to plant more trees in these places.
4. In a city in America, they planted more trees where people don’t have much money and gave them jobs to plant the trees.
5. They used information from Google and other things to make a “tree score” for different places in the UK.
6. Some leaders in the UK are not starting to think about trees and poor places.
7. The map was not made by groups who care about trees and health.
8. Trees are good because they make the air cleaner and help when it’s very hot.
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 does the new map show about places with not many trees?
2. Why is it important to have trees in a place?
3. What did they do in a city in America to help people with not much money?
4. How did planting trees make Tyree’s life better?
5. What do the people who made the map want leaders to do?

Answers

Comprehension Question Answers:

1. What does the new map show?
The new map shows places with not many trees.

2. Why is the air not good to breathe in places with not many trees?
The air is not good to breathe because there are not many trees to clean it.

3. What do trees do to the air?
Trees make the air cleaner.

4. Who made the map?
Some groups who care about trees and health made the map.

5. What did they use to make the “tree score”?
They used information from Google and other things to make the “tree score”.

6. What do the people who made the map want the leaders to do?
The people who made the map want the leaders to plant more trees in places with not many trees.

7. What happened to Tyree when he got a job planting trees?
When Tyree got a job planting trees, it made his life better.
Go back to questions ⇧

Listen and Fill in the Gaps Answers:

(1) many
(2) dirty
(3) have
(4) want
(5) says
(6) good
(7) starting
(8) people
Go back to questions ⇧

Vocabulary Meanings Answers:

1. map
Answer: (I) A picture that shows different places

2. trees
Answer: (B) Tall things that grow in the ground and have leaves

3. air
Answer: (E) The stuff you breathe in and out

4. breathe
Answer: (C) Taking air into your body

5. places
Answer: (D) Locations or areas

6. score
Answer: (G) A number that shows how good or bad something is

7. leaders
Answer: (A) People who tell others what to do

8. poor
Answer: (H) Not having a lot of money or things

9. plant
Answer: (J) Putting something in the ground so it can grow

10. cities
Answer: (F) Big towns with lots of buildings and people
Go back to questions ⇧

Multiple Choice Answers:

1. What does the new map show?
Answer: (a) Places with not many trees have dirty air

2. How did the groups make the “tree score” for different places?
Answer: (c) They used information from Google and other things

3. What does the map tell us about poor places?
Answer: (a) They don’t have many trees and the air is not good to breathe

4. Why are trees good?
Answer: (d) They make the air cleaner and help when it’s very hot

5. What did they do in a city in America to help people who don’t have much money?
Answer: (d) They planted more trees and gave them jobs to plant the trees

6. Who got a job planting trees in the city in America?
Answer: (b) A man named Tyree

7. What are some leaders in the UK starting to think about?
Answer: (b) Trees and poor places

8. What do the people who made the map want all leaders to do?
Answer: (c) Use the tree score to plant more trees where people live in cities
Go back to questions ⇧

True or False Answers:

1. There is no new map that shows places without many trees have dirty air. (Answer: False)
2. The map does not tell us that poor places don’t have many trees and the air is not good to breathe. (Answer: False)
3. The people who made the map want the leaders to plant more trees in these places. (Answer: True)
4. In a city in America, they planted more trees where people don’t have much money and gave them jobs to plant the trees. (Answer: True)
5. They used information from Google and other things to make a “tree score” for different places in the UK. (Answer: True)
6. Some leaders in the UK are not starting to think about trees and poor places. (Answer: False)
7. The map was not made by groups who care about trees and health. (Answer: False)
8. Trees are good because they make the air cleaner and help when it’s very hot. (Answer: True)
Go back to questions ⇧