Australia has made a special promise to help people from a small island country called Tuvalu because their homes are in danger from the sea getting higher. Every year, 280 people from Tuvalu can move to Australia to live, work, and go to school. This is the first time Australia has let people from another country come to live there because of the sea rising. Australia is showing that it cares about its neighbors in the Pacific Ocean.

Australia will also help Tuvalu fight the sea rising and keep their country safe. They will give money to make Tuvalu’s biggest island a little bit bigger. Australia will protect Tuvalu if anyone tries to hurt them, and Tuvalu promises to talk to Australia before making any big safety deals with other countries. The leader of Tuvalu is very happy and says this is a big day because Australia is helping.

Tuvalu is a very small place with about 11,200 people. They are trying to save their country from the sea that keeps getting higher. They even want to make a copy of their country on the computer in a place called the metaverse to keep their stories and ways of living safe.

Original news source: Australia offers climate refuge to Tuvalu citizens (BBC)

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Group or Classroom Activities

Warm-up Activities:

– News Reporter Role-play
Instructions: Students are divided into pairs. One student acts as a news reporter for an Australian news channel, and the other as the leader of Tuvalu. The reporter interviews the Tuvalu leader about the recent agreement with Australia. Students should focus on using the past simple tense and future tense to discuss the agreement and the plans for Tuvalu’s future.

– Vocabulary Pictionary
Instructions: Write down key vocabulary words from the article (e.g., promise, danger, sea, rising, move, school, fight, safety, leader, metaverse) on individual slips of paper. Students take turns picking a word and drawing it on the board without writing any letters or speaking. Their teammates must guess the word within a set time limit.

– Opinion Spectrum
Instructions: Create a line in the classroom that represents a spectrum of opinions from “strongly agree” to “strongly disagree.” Make statements related to the article, such as “Countries should always help their neighbors in need” or “Moving to a new country is a good solution for the people of Tuvalu.” Students stand where they fit on the spectrum and discuss their reasons with classmates nearby.

– Future Predictions
Instructions: Students work in small groups to discuss and write down predictions about the future of Tuvalu and its people, based on the information in the article. Topics can include the success of the migration program, the impact of sea-level rise, and the digital preservation of Tuvalu in the metaverse. Each group can then share their predictions with the class.

– Sketch It
Instructions: Students are given a few minutes to sketch a scene or concept from the article, such as the island of Tuvalu facing rising sea levels, the cooperation between Tuvalu and Australia, or the idea of preserving a country in the metaverse. After sketching, students show their drawings to the class and explain what they’ve drawn and why it’s significant.

Comprehension Questions:

1. What is Australia’s special promise to the people of Tuvalu?
2. How many people from Tuvalu can move to Australia every year?
3. Why are people from Tuvalu allowed to move to Australia?
4. What will Australia do to help stop Tuvalu’s land from going under the sea?
5. How will Australia protect Tuvalu?
6. How does the leader of Tuvalu feel about Australia’s help?
7. What is Tuvalu trying to create in the metaverse to save their culture?
Go to answers ⇩

Listen and Fill in the Gaps:

(1)______ has (2)______ a special promise to help people from a small island country called Tuvalu because their homes are in danger from the sea getting higher. Every year, 280 people from Tuvalu can move to Australia to live, work, and go to school. This is the (3)______ time Australia has let people from another country (4)______ to live there because of the sea (5)______. Australia is showing that it cares about its neighbors in the Pacific Ocean.

Australia will also help Tuvalu fight the sea rising and keep their country safe. They will (6)______ money to make Tuvalu’s biggest island a little bit bigger. Australia will protect (7)______ if anyone tries to hurt them, and Tuvalu promises to (8)______ to Australia before making any big safety (9)______ with other countries. The leader of Tuvalu is very happy and says this is a big day because Australia is helping.

Tuvalu is a very small place with about 11,200 people. They are trying to (10)______ their country from the sea that keeps (11)______ higher. They even want to make a copy of their country on the computer in a place called the metaverse to keep their stories and ways of living (12)______.
Go to answers ⇩

Discussion Questions:

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

1. What is a promise?
2. How would you feel if you had to move to another country because your home was in danger?
3. Do you like the idea of one country helping another country? Why or why not?
4. What do you think about Australia’s promise to help Tuvalu?
5. Have you ever seen the sea? Do you think it’s powerful?
6. Why do you think it’s important to help people from small island countries?
7. Do you know what the metaverse is? What do you think about making a copy of a country there?
8. If your country was in trouble, what kind of help would you want from other countries?
9. How do you think the people from Tuvalu feel about moving to Australia?
10. Do you think it’s a good idea to make Tuvalu’s biggest island a little bit bigger? Why or why not?
11. What does it mean to protect a country?
12. Can you think of ways to keep your own country’s stories and ways of living safe?

Individual Activities

Vocabulary Meanings:

Match each word to its meaning.

Words:
1. promise
2. danger
3. Pacific
4. island
5. leader
6. computer
7. stories
8. ways

Meanings:
(a) A piece of land surrounded by water
(b) The largest ocean in the world
(c) Something that could cause harm
(d) A machine that can store and process data
(e) The person in charge
(f) Something that is told or written to entertain or teach
(g) A special agreement to do something
(h) Different methods of doing things
Go to answers ⇩

Multiple Choice Questions:

1. How many people from Tuvalu can move to Australia every year?
(a) 500
(b) 280
(c) 150
(d) 100

2. What is Australia doing to help Tuvalu fight the sea rising?
(a) Building a wall around Tuvalu
(b) Sending soldiers to protect Tuvalu
(c) Giving money to make Tuvalu’s biggest island bigger
(d) Ignoring the problem

3. How many people live in Tuvalu?
(a) About 50,000
(b) About 5,000
(c) About 20,000
(d) About 11,200

4. What is the name of the big ocean near Tuvalu and Australia?
(a) Atlantic Ocean
(b) Indian Ocean
(c) Pacific Ocean
(d) Arctic Ocean

5. What is the leader of Tuvalu happy about?
(a) Australia helping Tuvalu
(b) Tuvalu becoming a big country
(c) Tuvalu moving to a new island
(d) Australia ignoring Tuvalu’s problem

6. What does Tuvalu want to do in the metaverse?
(a) Build a new island
(b) Make a copy of their country
(c) Create a new language
(d) Start a new government

7. How is Australia showing that it cares about its neighbors in the Pacific Ocean?
(a) By building a wall around Australia
(b) By ignoring Tuvalu’s problem
(c) By sending soldiers to Tuvalu
(d) By letting people from Tuvalu move to Australia

8. What is Tuvalu trying to save their country from?
(a) The sea getting higher
(b) Earthquakes
(c) Forest fires
(d) Volcanic eruptions

Go to answers ⇩

True or False Questions:

1. Tuvalu is a very small place with about 11,200 people.
2. Every year, 280 people from Tuvalu can move to Australia to live, work, and go to school.
3. Australia will give money to make Tuvalu’s biggest island a little bit bigger.
4. Australia has not promised to help people from Tuvalu due to the rising sea levels.
5. Australia will not protect Tuvalu if anyone tries to hurt them.
6. Australia will not help Tuvalu fight the sea rising and keep their country safe.
7. This is the first time Australia has allowed people from another country to live there because of the sea rising.
8. Australia is not showing that it cares about its neighbors in the Pacific Ocean.
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 has Australia promised to do for the people of Tuvalu?
2. How many people from Tuvalu can move to Australia every year?
3. Why are people from Tuvalu moving to Australia?
4. What will Australia do to help Tuvalu’s biggest island?
5. What is Tuvalu trying to do in the metaverse to protect their culture?

Answers

Comprehension Question Answers:

1. What is Australia’s special promise to the people of Tuvalu?
Australia has promised to let 280 people from Tuvalu move to Australia every year because their homes are being threatened by the rising sea.

2. How many people from Tuvalu can move to Australia every year?
280 people from Tuvalu can move to Australia every year.

3. Why are people from Tuvalu allowed to move to Australia?
People from Tuvalu are allowed to move to Australia because the sea is getting higher and it’s putting their homes in danger.

4. What will Australia do to help stop Tuvalu’s land from going under the sea?
Australia will give money to make Tuvalu’s biggest island bigger to help fight against the sea rising.

5. How will Australia protect Tuvalu?
Australia will protect Tuvalu by promising to keep them safe if anyone tries to hurt them, and Tuvalu will talk to Australia first before making any big safety deals with other countries.

6. How does the leader of Tuvalu feel about Australia’s help?
The leader of Tuvalu is very happy about Australia’s help and says it is a big day for their country.

7. What is Tuvalu trying to create in the metaverse to save their culture?
Tuvalu is trying to create a copy of their country in the metaverse to keep their stories and ways of living safe.
Go back to questions ⇧

Listen and Fill in the Gaps Answers:

(1) Australia
(2) made
(3) first
(4) come
(5) rising
(6) give
(7) Tuvalu
(8) talk
(9) deals
(10) save
(11) getting
(12) safe
Go back to questions ⇧

Vocabulary Meanings Answers:

1. promise
Answer: (g) A special agreement to do something

2. danger
Answer: (c) Something that could cause harm

3. Pacific
Answer: (b) The largest ocean in the world

4. island
Answer: (a) A piece of land surrounded by water

5. leader
Answer: (e) The person in charge

6. computer
Answer: (d) A machine that can store and process data

7. stories
Answer: (f) Something that is told or written to entertain or teach

8. ways
Answer: (h) Different methods of doing things
Go back to questions ⇧

Multiple Choice Answers:

1. How many people from Tuvalu can move to Australia every year?
Answer: (b) 280

2. What is Australia doing to help Tuvalu fight the sea rising?
Answer: (c) Giving money to make Tuvalu’s biggest island bigger

3. How many people live in Tuvalu?
Answer: (d) About 11,200

4. What is the name of the big ocean near Tuvalu and Australia?
Answer: (c) Pacific Ocean

5. What is the leader of Tuvalu happy about?
Answer: (a) Australia helping Tuvalu

6. What does Tuvalu want to do in the metaverse?
Answer: (b) Make a copy of their country

7. How is Australia showing that it cares about its neighbors in the Pacific Ocean?
Answer: (d) By letting people from Tuvalu move to Australia

8. What is Tuvalu trying to save their country from?
Answer: (a) The sea getting higher
Go back to questions ⇧

True or False Answers:

1. Tuvalu is a very small place with about 11,200 people. (Answer: True)
2. Every year, 280 people from Tuvalu can move to Australia to live, work, and go to school. (Answer: True)
3. Australia will give money to make Tuvalu’s biggest island a little bit bigger. (Answer: True)
4. Australia has not promised to help people from Tuvalu due to the rising sea levels. (Answer: False)
5. Australia will not protect Tuvalu if anyone tries to hurt them. (Answer: False)
6. Australia will not help Tuvalu fight the sea rising and keep their country safe. (Answer: False)
7. This is the first time Australia has allowed people from another country to live there because of the sea rising. (Answer: True)
8. Australia is not showing that it cares about its neighbors in the Pacific Ocean. (Answer: False)
Go back to questions ⇧