Scientists at NASA sent a short movie of a cat playing with a light from very, very far away back to Earth. They used a special kind of light, called a laser, to send the movie. The cat in the movie is named Taters, and he is trying to catch a little red dot. The movie had to travel a super long way, even farther than the moon is from us. NASA is happy because they think this new way of sending movies can help them talk to spaceships that are far away in space.
The movie of Taters the cat came to a big telescope on Earth and then to a place in California where NASA scientists work. Even though it was sent from so far away, it got to Earth very fast, faster than the internet at home. NASA is trying to find new ways to send big movies and pictures from space because the old way with radio waves is not strong enough. They think this new way with lasers is a big step to help them talk to spaceships that will go to other planets one day. They want to send more things like this in the future.
Original news source: Nasa beams cat video from deep space with laser (BBC)
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Group or Classroom Activities
Warm-up Activities:
– Charades
Instructions: Divide the class into two teams. One person from each team will act out a word or phrase related to the article (e.g. cat, laser, spaceship) without speaking, while their team guesses what it is. The team with the most correct guesses wins.
– Word Association
Instructions: Write the words "NASA" and "space" on the board. Have students take turns saying a word or phrase that is related to those words. For example, if a student says "moon," the next student could say "astronaut." Keep going until no one can think of any more words.
– Vocabulary Pictionary
Instructions: Write several words from the article (e.g. cat, laser, telescope) on separate pieces of paper and put them in a hat. Divide the class into pairs. One student from each pair will pick a word and draw a picture of it while their partner guesses what it is. The pair with the most correct guesses wins.
– Speed Summarizing
Instructions: Give each student a copy of the article. Set a timer for one minute. Students must read the article and then summarize it to a partner in one minute or less. After one minute, students switch roles. Encourage students to use their own words and not read directly from the article.
– Synonym Challenge
Instructions: Write several words from the article on the board (e.g. movie, far, catch). Have students work in pairs or small groups to come up with as many synonyms for each word as they can in a given time limit. The group with the most synonyms wins.
π€ Comprehension Questions:
NASA sent a movie back to Earth from very, very far away.
They used a special kind of light called a laser to send the movie.
The cat's name in the movie is Taters.
The cat is trying to catch a little red dot in the movie.
The movie had to travel a long way.
The movie came to a big telescope on Earth and then to a place in California where NASA scientists work.
NASA is happy because they think this new way of sending movies can help them talk to spaceships that are far away in space.
π§βοΈ Listen and Fill in the Gaps:
Scientists at NASA sent a short movie of a cat playing with a from very, very far away back to Earth. They used a kind of light, called a laser, to send the movie. The cat in the movie is named Taters, and he is trying to catch a little red dot. The movie had to travel a super long way, even farther than the is from us. NASA is happy because they think this new way of sending movies can help them talk to ships that are far away in space. The movie of Taters the cat came to a big telescope on Earth and then to a place in where NASA scientists work. Even though it was sent from so far away, it got to Earth very fast, faster than the internet at home. NASA is to find new ways to send big movies and pictures from space because the old way with radio waves is not strong enough. They think this new way with lasers is a big to help them talk to spaceships that will go to other one day. They want to send more things like this in the future.
π¬ Discussion Questions:
1. What is a laser?
2. How would you feel if you saw a cat playing with a light?
3. Do you like watching movies of cats?
4. How do you think the movie of Taters the cat got back to Earth?
5. Do you think it is important for NASA to find new ways to send movies and pictures from space? Why or why not?
6. What do you think the scientists at NASA will do with the movies and pictures they send from space?
7. Have you ever seen a telescope? What did you see with it?
8. Do you think it is amazing that the movie of Taters the cat got to Earth faster than the internet at home? Why or why not?
9. How do you think the movie of Taters the cat can help NASA talk to spaceships in space?
10. Would you like to go to other planets one day? Why or why not?
11. What other things do you think NASA can send from space using lasers?
12. If you could send a movie from space, what would it be about?
Individual Activities
ππ Vocabulary Meanings:
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Meanings
π‘ Multiple Choice Questions:
π΅οΈ True or False Questions:
π Write a Summary:
Write a summary of this news article in two sentences.
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