Scientists found a very old city in the Amazon jungle. The city was covered by plants for a very long time. People who lived there had houses, open spaces, roads, and waterways. They think the city was made about 2,500 years ago and people lived there for 1,000 years.
Before, people thought only small groups lived in the Amazon. But this big city shows that the people there were smarter and better at building things than we thought. To find the city, scientists dug in the ground and used special tools on a plane. They saw 6,000 shapes that looked like houses and special buildings.
This city shows us that the people in the Amazon long ago had big towns, not just small groups in little houses. Maybe tens of thousands of people lived there. They made roads in straight lines and had ways to control water. Now, scientists want to learn more about the old cities in the Amazon.
Original news source: Huge ancient lost city found in the Amazon (BBC)
π§ Listen:
π Vocabulary:
Group or Classroom Activities
Warm-up Activities:
– Charades
Instructions: Divide the class into teams. Each team will take turns acting out a word or phrase related to the article (e.g. jungle, city, houses, roads). The other teams have to guess what the word or phrase is within a certain time limit. The team with the most correct guesses wins.
– News Summary
Instructions: In pairs, students take turns summarizing the key points of the article to their partner. They should try to include important details such as when the city was built, how long people lived there, and what the discovery tells us about the people in the Amazon. After both partners have summarized, they can compare their summaries and discuss any differences or missing information.
– Vocabulary Pictionary
Instructions: Give each student a piece of paper and a pen or pencil. One student chooses a word from the article and draws a picture to represent that word, without using any letters or numbers. The other students have to guess what word is being represented. The student who guesses correctly gets to draw the next word.
– Speed Summarizing
Instructions: Divide the class into pairs. Give each pair a copy of the article. Set a timer for 3 minutes. Students take turns summarizing as much of the article as they can in that time. After 3 minutes, they switch roles. The pair with the most accurate and complete summary wins.
– Think-Pair-Share
Instructions: Have students think individually about the following question: "What do you think the discovery of this ancient city tells us about the history of the Amazon and its people?" After a few minutes, pair students up and have them share their thoughts with each other. Finally, facilitate a class discussion where students can share their ideas and opinions.
π€ Comprehension Questions:
Scientists found a very old city in the Amazon jungle.
Scientists think the city was made about 2,500 years ago.
Scientists dug in the ground and used special tools on a plane to find the city.
The city showed that the people who lived there were smarter and better at building things than we thought.
Scientists saw 6,000 shapes that looked like houses and special buildings.
The people in the city had ways to control water.
Scientists want to learn more about the old cities in the Amazon.
π§βοΈ Listen and Fill in the Gaps:
Scientists found a very old city in the Amazon jungle. The city was by plants for a very time. People who lived there had houses, spaces, roads, and waterways. They think the city was made about 2,500 years ago and people lived there for 1,000 years. Before, people thought only groups lived in the Amazon. But this big shows that the people there were smarter and better at building than we thought. To find the city, scientists dug in the ground and tools on a plane. They saw 6,000 shapes that looked like houses and special buildings. This city shows us that the people in the Amazon long ago had big , not just small groups in little . Maybe tens of thousands of people lived there. They roads in straight lines and had ways to control water. Now, want to learn more about the old cities in the Amazon.
π¬ Discussion Questions:
1. What do you think it would be like to live in a city covered by plants?
2. How would you feel if you found out that people in the past were smarter and better at building things than we thought?
3. Do you like exploring and learning about ancient cities? Why or why not?
4. What do you think it means to control water?
5. How do you think the people in the Amazon made roads in straight lines?
6. Do you think it's important for scientists to learn more about the old cities in the Amazon? Why or why not?
7. What would you do if you found a hidden city in the jungle?
8. How do you think the people in the ancient city communicated with each other?
9. What do you think it was like to live in a big town with tens of thousands of people?
10. Why do you think the city was covered by plants for a very long time?
11. How would you feel if you discovered something that changed what people thought about history?
12. Do you think there are more hidden cities waiting to be discovered in the world? Why or why not?
Individual Activities
ππ Vocabulary Meanings:
Click a dot next to a word, then click the dot next to its meaning to draw a line connecting them.
Words
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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