Near Cardiff Airport, a very old cemetery was found. It has bones from a long time ago, around the 6th or 7th century. There are 41 skeletons, mostly women, buried in strange ways. Some bones show they worked hard, but they were buried with fancy things. One woman was thrown in a ditch, which is very different from the others.

Half of the cemetery has been dug up so far. They found 39 grown-ups and two kids. The way they buried the kids is special. There are fancy pots and glass, showing these people might have been important. The woman in the ditch is a big mystery; she might have been in trouble with the others.

Original news source: Mystery of medieval cemetery near airport runway deepens (BBC)

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📖 Vocabulary:

Group or Classroom Activities

Warm-up Activities:

– CHARADES
Instructions: Students will be divided into small groups. Each group will take turns acting out words or phrases related to the article (e.g., cemetery, skeleton, buried, ditch). The other groups will guess what they are acting out.

– VOCABULARY PICTIONARY
Instructions: Students will draw words from the article (e.g., bones, fancy, important) on the board while their classmates guess the words. This will help them visualize vocabulary from the text.

– THINK-PAIR-SHARE
Instructions: Students will think about the question, “Why do you think people were buried with fancy things?” They will then pair up to discuss their thoughts before sharing with the class.

– HEADLINE CREATION
Instructions: In small groups, students will create a catchy headline for the article. They will present their headlines to the class and explain why they chose them.

– OPINION POLL
Instructions: The teacher will ask the class questions like, “Do you think the woman in the ditch was in trouble?” or “Do you think it was common to bury people with fancy things?” Students will raise their hands to show their opinions, and the teacher will tally the responses on the board.

🤔 Comprehension Questions:

1. Where was the old cemetery found?
2. How many skeletons were found in the cemetery?
3. Were most of the skeletons men or women?
4. What did some bones show about the people who were buried?
5. What special things were found with the skeletons?
6. How many kids were found in the cemetery?
7. Why is the woman in the ditch a mystery?
Go to answers ⇩

🎧✍️ Listen and Fill in the Gaps:

Near Cardiff (1)______, a very old cemetery was found. It has bones from a long time ago, around the 6th or 7th century. There are 41 (2)______, mostly women, buried in strange ways. Some (3)______ (4)______ they worked hard, but they were buried with fancy things. One woman was thrown in a ditch, which is very different from the others.

(5)______ of the cemetery has been dug up so far. They (6)______ 39 grown-ups and two kids. The way they buried the kids is special. There are fancy pots and glass, (7)______ these people might have been important. The woman in the ditch is a big mystery; she might have been in (8)______ with the others.
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💬 Discussion Questions:

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

1. What is a cemetery?
2. How would you feel if you found a very old bone?
3. Do you like stories about the past? Why or why not?
4. What do you think is special about old things?
5. Have you ever seen a skeleton? What did it look like?
6. Do you think it is nice to bury people with special things? Why?
7. How would you feel if you were buried in a fancy way?
8. What is a mystery?
9. Do you think it is important to remember people from the past? Why?
10. Have you ever visited a cemetery? What did you see?
11. How would you feel if you found something very old?
12. What do you think happened to the woman in the ditch?

Individual Activities

📖💭 Vocabulary Meanings:

Match each word to its meaning.

Words:
1. cemetery
2. skeletons
3. buried
4. ditch
5. mystery
6. fancy
7. important
8. trouble
9. century
10. grown-ups

Meanings:
(A) When something is wrong or causing problems
(B) Very nice or special
(C) Adults, not kids
(D) A period of 100 years
(E) Something that matters a lot
(F) A long, narrow hole in the ground
(G) A place where people are put in the ground after they die
(H) The bones of a person or animal
(I) Something that is hard to understand or explain
(J) To put something under the ground
Go to answers ⇩

🔡 Multiple Choice Questions:

1. Where was the old cemetery found?
(a) Near London
(b) Near New York
(c) Near Paris
(d) Near Cardiff Airport

2. How many skeletons were found in the cemetery?
(a) 30
(b) 50
(c) 41
(d) 25

3. What century are the bones from?
(a) 6th or 7th century
(b) 8th or 9th century
(c) 10th or 11th century
(d) 12th or 13th century

4. Who was mostly buried in the cemetery?
(a) Men
(b) Women
(c) Kids
(d) Animals

5. How were the kids buried?
(a) In a normal way
(b) In a bad way
(c) In a special way
(d) In a funny way

6. What did they find with the fancy pots?
(a) Rocks
(b) Glass
(c) Wood
(d) Dirt

7. What happened to one woman in the cemetery?
(a) She was thrown in a ditch
(b) She was buried with flowers
(c) She was buried with a dog
(d) She was buried in a house

8. What does the woman in the ditch mean for the others?
(a) She was very happy
(b) She was a queen
(c) She was a child
(d) She might have been in trouble

Go to answers ⇩

🕵️ True or False Questions:

1. The bones in the cemetery are from a recent time, around the 21st century.
2. One woman was found in a ditch.
3. There are 41 skeletons in the cemetery.
4. Some bones show that the people hardly worked.
5. Most of the skeletons are from women.
6. A very modern cemetery was found near Cardiff Airport.
7. The people were buried without fancy things.
8. The way the kids were buried is special.
Go to answers ⇩

📝 Write a Summary:

Write a summary of this news article in two sentences.
Check your writing now with the best free AI for English writing!

Writing Questions:

Answer the following questions. Write as much as you can for each answer.
Check your answers with our free English writing assistant!

1. What did people find near Cardiff Airport?
2. How many skeletons were found in the old cemetery?
3. Were most of the skeletons men or women?
4. What special things were found with the skeletons?
5. Why is the woman in the ditch a mystery?

✅ Answers

🤔✅ Comprehension Question Answers:

1. Where was the old cemetery found?
Near Cardiff Airport.

2. How many skeletons were found in the cemetery?
41 skeletons.

3. Were most of the skeletons men or women?
Most of the skeletons were women.

4. What did some bones show about the people who were buried?
Some bones showed they worked hard.

5. What special things were found with the skeletons?
Fancy pots and glass were found with the skeletons.

6. How many kids were found in the cemetery?
Two kids were found.

7. Why is the woman in the ditch a mystery?
She is a mystery because she was buried differently from the others.
Go back to questions ⇧

🎧✍️✅ Listen and Fill in the Gaps Answers:

(1) Airport
(2) skeletons
(3) bones
(4) show
(5) Half
(6) found
(7) showing
(8) trouble
Go back to questions ⇧

📖💭✅ Vocabulary Meanings Answers:

1. cemetery
Answer: (G) A place where people are put in the ground after they die

2. skeletons
Answer: (H) The bones of a person or animal

3. buried
Answer: (J) To put something under the ground

4. ditch
Answer: (F) A long, narrow hole in the ground

5. mystery
Answer: (I) Something that is hard to understand or explain

6. fancy
Answer: (B) Very nice or special

7. important
Answer: (E) Something that matters a lot

8. trouble
Answer: (A) When something is wrong or causing problems

9. century
Answer: (D) A period of 100 years

10. grown-ups
Answer: (C) Adults, not kids
Go back to questions ⇧

🔡✅ Multiple Choice Answers:

1. Where was the old cemetery found?
Answer: (d) Near Cardiff Airport

2. How many skeletons were found in the cemetery?
Answer: (c) 41

3. What century are the bones from?
Answer: (a) 6th or 7th century

4. Who was mostly buried in the cemetery?
Answer: (b) Women

5. How were the kids buried?
Answer: (c) In a special way

6. What did they find with the fancy pots?
Answer: (b) Glass

7. What happened to one woman in the cemetery?
Answer: (a) She was thrown in a ditch

8. What does the woman in the ditch mean for the others?
Answer: (d) She might have been in trouble
Go back to questions ⇧

🕵️✅ True or False Answers:

1. The bones in the cemetery are from a recent time, around the 21st century. (Answer: False)
2. One woman was found in a ditch. (Answer: True)
3. There are 41 skeletons in the cemetery. (Answer: True)
4. Some bones show that the people hardly worked. (Answer: False)
5. Most of the skeletons are from women. (Answer: True)
6. A very modern cemetery was found near Cardiff Airport. (Answer: False)
7. The people were buried without fancy things. (Answer: False)
8. The way the kids were buried is special. (Answer: True)
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