Some men who flew very far away from our world, farther than anyone else, are now very old or have passed away. There are only eight of these space travelers left. One of them, Buzz Aldrin, was the second man to walk on the Moon. He likes to talk about space and has traveled to very cold places on Earth. Another man, Bill Anders, took a very famous picture of our world from space that made many people want to take care of the Earth.

Charlie Duke walked on the Moon and helped his friends land there safely. Fred Haise was on a space trip that had a big problem, but he was okay. James Lovell is the oldest of these space travelers now. Harrison Schmitt studied rocks and was the last to go to the Moon, and he also helped make laws. David Scott drove a special car on the Moon, and Tom Stafford made sure everything was ready for the first Moon landing.

Original news source: The last of the Moon men: the stories of the surviving Apollo astronauts (BBC)

🎧 Listen:

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📖 Vocabulary:

Group or Classroom Activities

Warm-up Activities:

– Charades
Instructions: Divide the class into two teams. Write the names of the space travelers on separate pieces of paper and put them in a hat. One student from each team will take turns picking a name from the hat and acting out the space traveler without speaking. The team members will try to guess the name of the space traveler before the time runs out.

– Vocabulary Pictionary
Instructions: Give each student a piece of paper and ask them to draw a picture that represents one of the space travelers. They should not write any words or letters on their drawing. After a few minutes, collect the drawings and display them for the class. Have the students take turns guessing which space traveler each drawing represents.

– Keyword Hangman
Instructions: Write the names of the space travelers on the board, leaving out some of the letters. Divide the class into two teams. Call on one student from each team to guess a letter. If the letter is in the name, write it in the correct place. If not, draw one part of the hangman. The team that correctly guesses the name first wins.

– Speed Summarizing
Instructions: Divide the class into pairs. Give each pair a copy of the article. Set a timer for two minutes and have the students take turns summarizing the article to their partner. After the two minutes, have the pairs switch roles and summarize again. Repeat this process a few times, gradually reducing the time to challenge the students to summarize faster.

– Think-Pair-Share
Instructions: Ask the students to think about one thing they found interesting or surprising in the article. Then, have them pair up with a partner and share their thoughts. After a few minutes, ask some pairs to share their discussions with the whole class. Encourage the students to ask questions or make comments about their classmates’ thoughts.

🤔 Comprehension Questions:

1. Who was the second man to walk on the Moon?
2. What did Bill Anders do that made people want to take care of the Earth?
3. Who helped his friends land safely on the Moon?
4. Who was the oldest of the space travelers?
5. What did Harrison Schmitt study on the Moon?
6. What did David Scott drive on the Moon?
7. What did Tom Stafford do to make sure everything was ready for the first Moon landing?
Go to answers ⇩

🎧✍️ Listen and Fill in the Gaps:

Some men who flew very far away from our world, farther than anyone else, are now very old or have passed away. There are only eight of these space travelers left. One of them, (1)______ (2)______, was the second man to walk on the Moon. He likes to talk about space and has traveled to very cold places on Earth. Another man, Bill (3)______, took a very famous picture of our world from space that made many people want to take (4)______ of the Earth.

Charlie Duke walked on the Moon and helped his friends land there safely. Fred Haise was on a (5)______ trip that had a big problem, but he was okay. (6)______ Lovell is the oldest of these space travelers now. Harrison Schmitt studied rocks and was the last to go to the Moon, and he also helped make laws. David Scott drove a special car on the Moon, and Tom Stafford made sure everything was (7)______ for the (8)______ Moon landing.
Go to answers ⇩

💬 Discussion Questions:

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

1. What is a space traveler?
2. How would you feel if you could travel to space?
3. Do you like looking at pictures of space?
4. What do you think it would be like to walk on the Moon?
5. Why do you think Buzz Aldrin likes to talk about space?
6. What is a famous picture of our world from space?
7. How would you feel if you saw the Earth from space?
8. Why do you think many people want to take care of the Earth after seeing the picture from space?
9. What do you think it means to help your friends land safely on the Moon?
10. Do you think it would be scary to be in space if there was a big problem?
11. Why do you think Harrison Schmitt studied rocks on the Moon?
12. What do you think it means to make laws?

Individual Activities

📖💭 Vocabulary Meanings:

Match each word to its meaning.

Words:
1. travelers
2. famous
3. Earth
4. picture
5. space
6. rocks
7. laws
8. special
9. oldest
10. ready

Meanings:
(A) A photo
(B) All set to do something
(C) People who go to different places
(D) Hard things you find on the ground or in the dirt
(E) The person who has lived the longest
(F) The big round place where we all live
(G) Known by a lot of people
(H) The big, dark place above the sky where the stars and planets are
(I) Rules that tell people what they can or cannot do
(J) Not like other things, very different
Go to answers ⇩

🔡 Multiple Choice Questions:

1. Who was the second man to walk on the Moon?
(a) Buzz Aldrin
(b) Bill Anders
(c) Charlie Duke
(d) Fred Haise

2. Who took a famous picture of our world from space?
(a) Buzz Aldrin
(b) Charlie Duke
(c) Bill Anders
(d) Fred Haise

3. Who helped his friends land safely on the Moon?
(a) Buzz Aldrin
(b) Charlie Duke
(c) James Lovell
(d) Harrison Schmitt

4. Who is the oldest of the space travelers?
(a) James Lovell
(b) Buzz Aldrin
(c) Harrison Schmitt
(d) David Scott

5. Who studied rocks and was the last to go to the Moon?
(a) Buzz Aldrin
(b) David Scott
(c) Harrison Schmitt
(d) Tom Stafford

6. Who drove a special car on the Moon?
(a) Buzz Aldrin
(b) Tom Stafford
(c) Fred Haise
(d) David Scott

7. Who made sure everything was ready for the first Moon landing?
(a) Buzz Aldrin
(b) Fred Haise
(c) James Lovell
(d) Tom Stafford

8. How many space travelers are left?
(a) Seven
(b) Eight
(c) Six
(d) Five

Go to answers ⇩

🕵️ True or False Questions:

1. Buzz Aldrin dislikes talking about space and has never been to very cold places on Earth.
2. Some men who went really far away from our world are now very old or have died.
3. Fred Haise was on a space trip that had a big problem, but he was okay.
4. There are more than eight of these space travelers left.
5. Bill Anders took an ordinary picture of our world from space that made people not want to take care of the Earth.
6. James Lovell is not the oldest of these space travelers now.
7. Charlie Duke walked on the Moon and helped his friends land there safely.
8. Buzz Aldrin was the second man to walk on the Moon.
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 space travelers that are very old or have passed away?
2. What did Buzz Aldrin do on the Moon?
3. What did Bill Anders do that made people want to take care of the Earth?
4. What did Charlie Duke do on the Moon to help his friends?
5. What did Harrison Schmitt do on the Moon and how did he help make laws?

✅ Answers

🤔✅ Comprehension Question Answers:

1. Who was the second man to walk on the Moon?
Buzz Aldrin.

2. What did Bill Anders do that made people want to take care of the Earth?
He took a famous picture of our world from space.

3. Who helped his friends land safely on the Moon?
Charlie Duke.

4. Who was the oldest of the space travelers?
James Lovell.

5. What did Harrison Schmitt study on the Moon?
He studied rocks.

6. What did David Scott drive on the Moon?
He drove a special car.

7. What did Tom Stafford do to make sure everything was ready for the first Moon landing?
He made sure everything was ready.
Go back to questions ⇧

🎧✍️✅ Listen and Fill in the Gaps Answers:

(1) Buzz
(2) Aldrin
(3) Anders
(4) care
(5) space
(6) James
(7) ready
(8) first
Go back to questions ⇧

📖💭✅ Vocabulary Meanings Answers:

1. travelers
Answer: (C) People who go to different places

2. famous
Answer: (G) Known by a lot of people

3. Earth
Answer: (F) The big round place where we all live

4. picture
Answer: (A) A photo

5. space
Answer: (H) The big, dark place above the sky where the stars and planets are

6. rocks
Answer: (D) Hard things you find on the ground or in the dirt

7. laws
Answer: (I) Rules that tell people what they can or cannot do

8. special
Answer: (J) Not like other things, very different

9. oldest
Answer: (E) The person who has lived the longest

10. ready
Answer: (B) All set to do something
Go back to questions ⇧

🔡✅ Multiple Choice Answers:

1. Who was the second man to walk on the Moon?
Answer: (a) Buzz Aldrin

2. Who took a famous picture of our world from space?
Answer: (c) Bill Anders

3. Who helped his friends land safely on the Moon?
Answer: (b) Charlie Duke

4. Who is the oldest of the space travelers?
Answer: (a) James Lovell

5. Who studied rocks and was the last to go to the Moon?
Answer: (c) Harrison Schmitt

6. Who drove a special car on the Moon?
Answer: (d) David Scott

7. Who made sure everything was ready for the first Moon landing?
Answer: (d) Tom Stafford

8. How many space travelers are left?
Answer: (b) Eight
Go back to questions ⇧

🕵️✅ True or False Answers:

1. Buzz Aldrin dislikes talking about space and has never been to very cold places on Earth. (Answer: False)
2. Some men who went really far away from our world are now very old or have died. (Answer: True)
3. Fred Haise was on a space trip that had a big problem, but he was okay. (Answer: True)
4. There are more than eight of these space travelers left. (Answer: False)
5. Bill Anders took an ordinary picture of our world from space that made people not want to take care of the Earth. (Answer: False)
6. James Lovell is not the oldest of these space travelers now. (Answer: False)
7. Charlie Duke walked on the Moon and helped his friends land there safely. (Answer: True)
8. Buzz Aldrin was the second man to walk on the Moon. (Answer: True)
Go back to questions ⇧