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Novelist Gabriel García Márquez dies (21st April, 2014)

The Reading / Listening - Level 3

Gabriel García Márquez, one of the world's greatest novelists, has died, aged 87. He passed away at his home in Mexico. The official cause of death was a lung infection. The Colombian writer won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1982, among many more top literary awards. The Colombian government has announced three days of national mourning. A spokesperson said García Márquez was, "a writer who changed the lives of his readership". His novel ''Love in the Time of Cholera" is the best selling book written in Spanish of all time. He also wrote many more classics. Many critics place García Márquez among the most important writers ever. He helped develop a style of writing called "magical realism".

U.S. President Barack Obama paid a tribute to Márquez, saying: "The world has lost one of its greatest visionary writers." Former President Bill Clinton said: "I was always amazed by his unique gifts of imagination, clarity of thought, and emotional honesty. He captured the pain and joy of our common humanity in settings both real and magical." García Márquez once said he was a storyteller from a young age. He told an interviewer: "I have often been told by the family that I started recounting things, stories and so on, almost since I was born - ever since I could speak." Peruvian Nobel prize-winning author Mario Vargas Llosa said: "His novels will survive and will continue to find new readers everywhere."

Try the same news story at these easier levels:

Level 0, Level 1 or Level 2

Sources

http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/lifestyle/2014/04/18/gabriel-garcia-marquez-to-be-cremated-novelist-honored-by-colombia-mexico/
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-27076562
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gabriel_Garc%C3%ADa_M%C3%A1rquez

Make sure you try all of the online activities for this reading and listening - There are dictations, multiple choice, drag and drop activities, crosswords, hangman, flash cards, matching activities and a whole lot more. Please enjoy :-)

The 40 Lesson Activities on the PDF Handout

WARM-UPS

1. NOVELISTS: Students walk around the class and talk to other students about novelists. Change partners often and share your findings.

2. CHAT: In pairs / groups, decide which of these topics or words from the article are most interesting and which are most boring.

novelists / infection / Nobel Prize / literary awards / mourning / best-seller / magical / tribute / visionary / amazed / unique / imagination / honesty / storyteller / survive

Have a chat about the topics you liked. Change topics and partners frequently.

3. BOOKS: Complete this table with your partner(s). Change partners often and share what you wrote.

Type	Importance	The best
Novel
Encyclopaedia
Biography
Travel guide
Atlas
Teach yourself guide

4. NOBEL PRIZE: Students A strongly believe the Nobel Prize is the best thing that can happen to an author; Students B strongly believe better things can happen. Change partners again and talk about your conversations.

MY e-BOOK

ESL resource book with copiable worksheets and handouts - 1,000 Ideas and Activities for Language Teachers / English teachers

See a sample

5. LITERARY GENRES: Rank these with your partner. Put the best at the top. Change partners often and share your rankings.

• magical realism

• mystery

• historical fiction

• humour

• fantasy

• horror

• fairy tales

• science fiction

6. NOVEL: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word "novel". Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories.

BEFORE READING / LISTENING

1. TRUE / FALSE: Read the headline. Guess if a-h below are true (T) or false (F).

a.	Gabriel García Márquez passed away at his home in Colombia.	T / F
b.	He died after having a heart attack.	T / F
c.	Márquez wrote the best selling Spanish novel of all time.	T / F
d.	Márquez helped develop a writing genre called "realism magic".	T / F
e.	Bill Clinton said Márquez's imagination amazed him.	T / F
f.	Clinton said Márquez captured both pain and joy in his novels.	T / F
g.	Márquez started telling stories from the age of 18 months.	T / F
h.	Another Nobel laureate said people will always read Márquez's novels.	T / F

2. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article.

1.	novelists	a.	technique
2.	passed away	b.	grief
3.	awards	c.	narrating
4.	mourning	d.	sang the praises of
5.	style	e.	died
6.	tribute	f.	astonished
7.	amazed	g.	etc.
8.	recounting	h.	prizes
9.	and so on	i.	carry on
10.	continue	j.	authors

3. PHRASE MATCH: (Sometimes more than one choice is possible.)

1.	one of the world's	a.	mourning
2.	He passed	b.	and so on
3.	three days of national	c.	tribute to
4.	He also wrote many more	d.	greatest novelists
5.	develop a style of writing called	e.	of its greatest
6.	paid a	f.	classics
7.	The world has lost one	g.	by his unique gifts
8.	I was always amazed	h.	"magical realism"
9.	I started recounting things, stories	i.	readers everywhere
10.	continue to find new	j.	away at his home

GAP FILL

Gabriel García Márquez, one of the world's greatest (1) ____________, has died, aged 87. He (2) ____________ away at his home in Mexico. The official cause of death was a lung (3) ____________. The Colombian writer won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1982, among many more top literary awards. The Colombian government has announced three days of national (4) ____________. A spokesperson said García Márquez was, "a writer who changed the lives of his (5) ____________ ". His novel ''Love in the Time of Cholera" is the best selling book written in Spanish of all (6) ____________. He also wrote many more (7) ____________. Many critics place García Márquez among the most important writers ever. He helped develop a (8) ____________ of writing called "magical realism".

time
style
infection
novelists
readership
passed
classics
mourning

U.S. President Barack Obama paid a (9) ____________ to Márquez, saying: "The world has lost one of its greatest (10) ____________ writers." Former President Bill Clinton said: "I was always amazed by his (11) ____________ gifts of imagination, clarity of thought, and emotional honesty. He captured the pain and joy of our common (12) ____________ in settings both real and magical." García Márquez once said he was a (13) ____________ from a young age. He told an interviewer: "I have often been told by the family that I started (14) ____________ things, stories and so on, almost since I was born - ever (15) ____________ I could speak." Peruvian Nobel prize-winning author Mario Vargas Llosa said: "His novels will (16) ____________ and will continue to find new readers everywhere."

recounting
unique
survive
tribute
storyteller
visionary
since
humanity

LISTENING - Guess the answers. Listen to check.

1)	The official cause of death was a ______
	a. lung infraction b. lung confection c. lung infection d. lung injection
2)	The Colombian government has announced three days ______
	a. of national morning b. of national mourning c. of national mourn in d. of national morn in
3)	the best selling book written in Spanish ______
	a. of all times b. at all times c. at all time d. of all time
4)	He also wrote many ______
	a. more classics b. many classics c. many classic d. more classic
5)	He helped develop a style of writing called "______"
	a. magically rhythm b. magical realist c. magical realism d. magical rhythm
6)	U.S. President Barack Obama ______
	a. said a tribute b. paid a tribute c. laid a tribute d. raid a tribute
7)	The world has lost one of its greatest ______
	a. vision are real writers b. visionary writers c. visionary writer d. vision are real writer
8)	I was always amazed by ______
	a. his unique gift b. his you need gifts c. his you niche gifts d. his yew nick gifts
9)	He captured the pain and joy of our ______
	a. commons humanity b. commoner humanity c. come on humanity d. common humanity
10)	His novels will survive and will continue to find new ______
	a. readers anywhere b. readers every wear c. readers everywhere d. readers somewhere

LISTENING – Listen and fill in the gaps

Gabriel García Márquez, (1) ___________________ greatest novelists, has died, aged 87. He passed away at his home in Mexico. The official cause of death (2) ___________________. The Colombian writer won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1982, (3) ___________________ top literary awards. The Colombian government has announced three days (4) ___________________. A spokesperson said García Márquez was, "a writer who (5) ___________________ of his readership". His novel ''Love in the Time of Cholera" is the best selling book written in Spanish of all time. He also wrote many more classics. Many critics place García Márquez among the most important writers ever. He helped (6) ___________________ writing called "magical realism".

U.S. President Barack Obama (7) ___________________ Márquez, saying: "The world has lost one of its greatest visionary writers." Former President Bill Clinton said: "I was always amazed (8) ___________________ of imagination, clarity of thought, and emotional honesty. He captured the pain and joy of (9) ___________________ in settings both real and magical." García Márquez once said he was a storyteller from a young age. He told an interviewer: "I have (10) ___________________ the family that I started recounting things, (11) ___________________, almost since I was born - ever since I could speak." Peruvian Nobel prize-winning author Mario Vargas Llosa said: "His novels will survive and (12) ___________________ find new readers everywhere."

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS

1.	How old was Gabriel García Márquez when he died?
2.	What was the cause of death?
3.	For how many days will Colombia be mourning?
4.	What did the Colombian government say Márquez changed?
5.	What was the style of writing Márquez helped to develop?
6.	What did Barack Obama say the world had lost?
7.	What did Bill Clinton say Márquez captured?
8.	From when did Márquez say he started telling stories?
9.	Who told Márquez when he started storytelling?
10.	Who said Márquez's novels will continue to get new readers?

MULTIPLE CHOICE - QUIZ

1.	How old was Gabriel García Márquez when he died?	6.	What did Barack Obama say the world had lost?
	a) 68 b) 86 c) 78 d) 87		a) a bookworm b) a visionary c) direction d) literature
2.	What was the cause of death?	7.	What did Bill Clinton say Márquez captured?
	a) old age b) a lung infection c) a heart attack d) a stroke		a) laughter and tears b) love and hope c) despair and hurt d) pain and joy
3.	For how many days will Colombia be mourning?	8.	From when did Márquez say he started telling stories?
	a) 5 b) 4 c) 3 d) 2		a) an early age b) after he read Don Quixote c) at the age of 8 d) from junior high school
4.	What did the Colombian government say Márquez changed?	9.	Who told Márquez when he started storytelling?
	a) readers' lives b) literature c) politics d) world events		a) his literature teacher b) his wife c) his family d) his first best friend
5.	What was the style of writing Márquez helped to develop?	10.	Who said Márquez's novels will continue to get new readers?
	a) mystic magical b) mystic mysticism c) magical realism d) magical relativism		a) Jorge Luis Borges b) Mario Vargas Llosa c) Isabel Allende d) Ernesto Sabato

ROLE PLAY

Role A – Novels

You think novels are the best books. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them things that aren't so interesting about their genres. Also, tell the others which is the least interesting of these (and why): encylopaedia, teach yourself guides or biographies.

Role B – Encyclopaedia

You think encylopaedia are the best books. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them things that aren't so interesting about their genres. Also, tell the others which is the least interesting of these (and why): novels, teach yourself guides or biographies.

Role C – Teach Yourself Guides

You think teach yourself guides are the best books. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them things that aren't so interesting about their genres. Also, tell the others which is the least interesting of these (and why): encylopaedia, novels or biographies.

Role D – Biographies

You think biographies is the best books. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them things that aren't so interesting about their genres. Also, tell the others which is the least interesting of these (and why): encylopaedia, teach yourself guides or novels.

AFTER READING / LISTENING

1. WORD SEARCH: Look in your dictionary / computer to find collocates, other meanings, information, synonyms … for the words 'magical' and 'realism'.

magical

realism

Share your findings with your partners.

Make questions using the words you found.
Ask your partner / group your questions.

2. ARTICLE QUESTIONS: Look back at the article and write down some questions you would like to ask the class about the text.

Share your questions with other classmates / groups.
Ask your partner / group your questions.

3. GAP FILL: In pairs / groups, compare your answers to this exercise. Check your answers. Talk about the words from the activity. Were they new, interesting, worth learning…?

4. VOCABULARY: Circle any words you do not understand. In groups, pool unknown words and use dictionaries to find their meanings.

5. TEST EACH OTHER: Look at the words below. With your partner, try to recall how they were used in the text:

passed
cause
top
changed
best
style

paid
lost
gifts
young
and so on
find

NOVELISTS SURVEY

Write five GOOD questions about novelists in the table. Do this in pairs. Each student must write the questions on his / her own paper.

When you have finished, interview other students. Write down their answers.

	STUDENT 1 _____________	STUDENT 2 _____________	STUDENT 3 _____________
Q.1.
Q.2.
Q.3.
Q.4.
Q.5.

Now return to your original partner and share and talk about what you found out. Change partners often.

Make mini-presentations to other groups on your findings.

NOVELISTS DISCUSSION

STUDENT A's QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

a)	What did you think when you read the headline?
b)	What springs to mind when you hear the word 'novel'?
c)	What do you know about Gabriel García Márquez?
d)	Have you read any of his books?
e)	What kind of books do you like?
f)	How do you think García Márquez changed peoples' lives?
g)	What other writers are among the most important ever?
h)	Do you like writing?
i)	What would you like to know about Gabriel García Márquez?
j)	What do you think "magical realism" is?

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

STUDENT B's QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

a)	Did you like reading this article? Why/not?
b)	Who is the greatest novelist ever?
c)	What do you think of Barack Obama and Bill Clintons' tributes?
d)	How is your imagination and creativity?
e)	Who is your favourite author (and why)?
f)	If you were an author, what kind of books would you write?
g)	Are men or women better writers?
h)	Are you a good storyteller?
i)	What kind of person becomes a great author?
j)	What questions would you like to have asked García Márquez?

DISCUSSION (Write your own questions)

STUDENT A's QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)
1.	________________________________________________________
2.	________________________________________________________
3.	________________________________________________________
4.	________________________________________________________
5.	________________________________________________________
6.	________________________________________________________

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

STUDENT B's QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)
1.	________________________________________________________
2.	________________________________________________________
3.	________________________________________________________
4.	________________________________________________________
5.	________________________________________________________
6.	________________________________________________________

LANGUAGE - CLOZE

Gabriel García Márquez, one of the world's greatest novelists, has died, aged 87. He passed (1) ____ at his home in Mexico. The official cause of death was a lung infection. The Colombian writer won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1982, among many more top (2) ____ awards. The Colombian government has announced three days of national (3) ____. A spokesperson said García Márquez was, "a writer who changed the lives of his readership". His novel ''Love in the Time of Cholera" is the best selling book written in Spanish of (4) ____ time. He also wrote many more classics. Many (5) ____ place García Márquez among the most important writers ever. He helped develop a style of writing called "magical (6) ____ ".

U.S. President Barack Obama paid a tribute to Márquez, saying: "The world has lost one of its greatest (7) ____ writers." Former President Bill Clinton said: "I was always amazed by his unique (8) ____ of imagination, clarity of thought, and emotional honesty. He captured the pain and joy of our common humanity in (9) ____ both real and magical." García Márquez once said he was a storyteller from a young age. He told an interviewer: "I have often been told by the family that I started (10) ____ things, stories and (11) ____ on, almost since I was born - ever since I could speak." Peruvian Nobel prize-winning author Mario Vargas Llosa said: "His novels will survive and will continue to (12) ____ new readers everywhere."

Put the correct words from the table below in the above article.

1.	(a)	over	(b)	up	(c)	away	(d)	down
2.	(a)	literary	(b)	literal	(c)	literacy	(d)	literate
3.	(a)	weeping	(b)	mourning	(c)	lament	(d)	morning
4.	(a)	every	(b)	any	(c)	whole	(d)	all
5.	(a)	criticize	(b)	plaudits	(c)	critics	(d)	pundits
6.	(a)	relativism	(b)	realism	(c)	realm	(d)	radicalism
7.	(a)	visionary	(b)	prophetic	(c)	perspicacious	(d)	predicting
8.	(a)	tips	(b)	bonuses	(c)	presents	(d)	gifts
9.	(a)	venues	(b)	locations	(c)	settings	(d)	areas
10.	(a)	practising	(b)	calculating	(c)	adding up	(d)	recounting
11.	(a)	as	(b)	so	(c)	such	(d)	say
12.	(a)	find	(b)	search	(c)	read	(d)	magic

SPELLING

Paragraph 1
1.	one of the world's greatest ssoltnevi
2.	The oiialffc cause of death
3.	many more top aryleitr awards
4.	three days of national ongrumni
5.	He also wrote many more casicssl
6.	style of writing called "gacailm realism"
Paragraph 2
7.	Obama paid a tebiurt to Márquez
8.	one of its greatest snyivriao writers
9.	amazed by his eniquu gifts
10.	emotional ntoyhes
11.	He told an itevwiernre
12.	His novels will ervisvu

PUT THE TEXT BACK TOGETHER

Number these lines in the correct order.

( )	humanity in settings both real and magical." García Márquez once said he was a storyteller from a young
( )	imagination, clarity of thought, and emotional honesty. He captured the pain and joy of our common
( )	visionary writers." Former President Bill Clinton said: "I was always amazed by his unique gifts of
( )	lives of his readership". His novel ''Love in the Time of Cholera" is the best selling book
( )	important writers ever. He helped develop a style of writing called "magical realism".
( )	written in Spanish of all time. He also wrote many more classics. Many critics place García Márquez among the most
( )	U.S. President Barack Obama paid a tribute to Márquez, saying: "The world has lost one of its greatest
( )	away at his home in Mexico. The official cause of death was a lung infection. The Colombian writer won
( )	winning author Mario Vargas Llosa said: "His novels will survive and will continue to find new readers everywhere."
( )	on, almost since I was born - ever since I could speak." Peruvian Nobel prize-
( )	age. He told an interviewer: "I have often been told by the family that I started recounting things, stories and so
( )	days of national mourning. A spokesperson said García Márquez was, "a writer who changed the
( 1 )	Gabriel García Márquez, one of the world's greatest novelists, has died, aged 87. He passed
( )	the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1982, among many more top literary awards. The Colombian government has announced three

PUT THE WORDS IN THE RIGHT ORDER

1.	passed in away Mexico at his He home.
2.	official death lung The of a cause was infection.
3.	who lives readership writer the his A changed of.
4.	Spanish of all time The best selling book written in.
5.	. style called realism" a writing "magical Develop of
6.	writers The world has lost one of its greatest visionary.
7.	was unique always gifts amazed by I his.
8.	a was he said once Márquez age young a from storyteller.
9.	recounting stories on started , so I things and.
10.	to new everywhere Continue find readers.

CIRCLE THE CORRECT WORD (20 PAIRS)

Gabriel García Márquez, one of the world's greatest novels / novelists, has died, aged 87. He passed / past away at his home in Mexico. The official cause of death was a lung infected / infection. The Colombian writer won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1982, among many more top literary / literacy awards. The Colombian government has announced three days of national morning / mourning. A spokesperson said García Márquez was, "a writer who changed / charged the lives of his reader / readership". His novel ''Love in the Time of Cholera" is the best selling book wrote / written in Spanish of all time. He also wrote many more classics / classes. Many critics place García Márquez among the most important writers ever. He helped develop a style / stage of writing called "magical realism".

U.S. President Barack Obama paid / spent a tribute to Márquez, saying: "The world has lost / mislaid one of its greatest visionary writers." Former President Bill Clinton said: "I was always amazement / amazed by his unique gifts of imagination / imagined, clarity of thought, and emotional / emotions honesty. He captured the pain / painful and joy of our common humanity in settings both real and magical." García Márquez once said he was a storyteller from a young / early age. He told an interviewer: "I have often been told by / at the family that I started recounting things, stories and so on, almost since I was born - ever since / for I could speak." Peruvian Nobel prize-winning author Mario Vargas Llosa said: "His novels will survive and will continue to fund / find new readers everywhere."

Talk about the connection between each pair of words in italics, and why the correct word is correct.

INSERT THE VOWELS (a, e, i, o, u)

G_br__l G_rcí_ Márq__z, _n_ _f th_ w_rld's gr__t_st n_v_l_sts, h_s d__d, _g_d 87. H_ p_ss_d _w_y _t h_s h_m_ _n M_x_c_. Th_ _ff_c__l c__s_ _f d__th w_s _ l_ng _nf_ct__n. Th_ C_l_mb__n wr_t_r w_n th_ N_b_l Pr_z_ _n L_t_r_t_r_ _n 1982, _m_ng m_ny m_r_ t_p l_t_r_ry _w_rds. Th_ C_l_mb__n g_v_rnm_nt h_s _nn__nc_d thr__ d_ys _f n_t__n_l m__rn_ng. _ sp_k_sp_rs_n s__d G_rcí_ Márq__z w_s, "_ wr_t_r wh_ ch_ng_d th_ l_v_s _f h_s r__d_rsh_p". H_s n_v_l ''L_v_ _n th_ T_m_ _f Ch_l_r_" _s th_ b_st s_ll_ng b__k wr_tt_n _n Sp_n_sh _f _ll t_m_. H_ _ls_ wr_t_ m_ny m_r_ cl_ss_cs. M_ny cr_t_cs pl_c_ G_rcí_ Márq__z _m_ng th_ m_st _mp_rt_nt wr_t_rs _v_r. H_ h_lp_d d_v_l_p _ styl_ _f wr_t_ng c_ll_d "m_g_c_l r__l_sm".

_.S. Pr_s_d_nt B_r_ck _b_m_ p__d _ tr_b_t_ t_ Márq__z, s_y_ng: "Th_ w_rld h_s l_st _n_ _f _ts gr__t_st v_s__n_ry wr_t_rs." F_rm_r Pr_s_d_nt B_ll Cl_nt_n s__d: "_ w_s _lw_ys _m_z_d by h_s _n_q__ g_fts _f _m_g_n_t__n, cl_r_ty _f th__ght, _nd _m_t__n_l h_n_sty. H_ c_pt_r_d th_ p__n _nd j_y _f __r c_mm_n h_m_n_ty _n s_tt_ngs b_th r__l _nd m_g_c_l." G_rcí_ Márq__z _nc_ s__d h_ w_s _ st_ryt_ll_r fr_m _ y__ng _g_. H_ t_ld _n _nt_rv__w_r: "_ h_v_ _ft_n b__n t_ld by th_ f_m_ly th_t _ st_rt_d r_c__nt_ng th_ngs, st_r__s _nd s_ _n, _lm_st s_nc_ _ w_s b_rn - _v_r s_nc_ _ c__ld sp__k." P_r_v__n N_b_l pr_z_-w_nn_ng __th_r M_r__ V_rg_s Ll_s_ s__d: "H_s n_v_ls w_ll s_rv_v_ _nd w_ll c_nt_n__ t_ f_nd n_w r__d_rs _v_rywh_r_."

PUNCTUATE THE TEXT AND ADD CAPITALS

gabriel garcía márquez one of the world's greatest novelists has died aged 87 he passed away at his home in mexico the official cause of death was a lung infection the colombian writer won the nobel prize in literature in 1982 among many more top literary awards the colombian government has announced three days of national mourning a spokesperson said garcía márquez was "a writer who changed the lives of his readership" his novel ''love in the time of cholera" is the best selling book written in spanish of all time he also wrote many more classics many critics place garcía márquez among the most important writers ever he helped develop a style of writing called "magical realism"

us president barack obama paid a tribute to márquez saying "the world has lost one of its greatest visionary writers" former president bill clinton said "i was always amazed by his unique gifts of imagination clarity of thought and emotional honesty he captured the pain and joy of our common humanity in settings both real and magical" garcía márquez once said he was a storyteller from a young age he told an interviewer "i have often been told by the family that i started recounting things stories and so on almost since i was born - ever since i could speak" peruvian nobel prize-winning author mario vargas llosa said "his novels will survive and will continue to find new readers everywhere"

PUT A SLASH ( / ) WHERE THE SPACES ARE

GabrielGarcíaMárquez,oneoftheworld'sgreatestnovelists,hasdie
d,aged87.HepassedawayathishomeinMexico.Theofficialcauseof
deathwasalunginfection.TheColombianwriterwontheNobelPrizei
nLiteraturein1982,amongmanymoretopliteraryawards.TheColo
mbiangovernmenthasannouncedthreedaysofnationalmourning.
AspokespersonsaidGarcíaMárquezwas,"awriterwhochangedtheli
vesofhisreadership".Hisnovel''LoveintheTimeofCholera"isthebes
tsellingbookwritteninSpanishofalltime.Healsowrotemanymorecl
assics.ManycriticsplaceGarcíaMárquezamongthemostimportant
writersever.Hehelpeddevelopastyleofwritingcalled"magicalreali
sm".U.S.PresidentBarackObamapaidatributetoMárquez,saying:
"Theworldhaslostoneofitsgreatestvisionarywriters."FormerPresi
dentBillClintonsaid:"Iwasalwaysamazedbyhisuniquegiftsofimagi
nation,clarityofthought,andemotionalhonesty.Hecapturedthepai
nandjoyofourcommonhumanityinsettingsbothrealandmagical."
GarcíaMárquezoncesaidhewasastorytellerfromayoungage.Hetol
daninterviewer:"IhaveoftenbeentoldbythefamilythatIstartedrec
ountingthings,storiesandsoon,almostsinceIwasborn-eversin
ceIcouldspeak."PeruvianNobelprize-winningauthorMario
VargasLlosasaid:"Hisnovelswillsurviveandwillcontinuetofindnew
readerseverywhere."

FREE WRITING

Write about novelists for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner's paper.

_____________________________________________________________________________

ACADEMIC WRITING

Reading the book is better than watching the movie. Discuss.

_____________________________________________________________________________

HOMEWORK

1. VOCABULARY EXTENSION: Choose several of the words from the text. Use a dictionary or Google's search field (or another search engine) to build up more associations / collocations of each word.

2. INTERNET: Search the Internet and find out more about Gabriel García Márquez. Share what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.

3. NOVELISTS: Make a poster about the greatest ever novelists. Show your work to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all have similar things?

4. NOBEL PRIZE IN LITERATURE: Write a magazine article about the Nobel Prize in Literature. Include imaginary interviews with people who won it and want to win it.

Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Write down any new words and expressions you hear from your partner(s).

5. WHAT HAPPENED NEXT? Write a newspaper article about the next stage in this news story. Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Give each other feedback on your articles.

6. LETTER: Write a letter to an expert on Gabriel García Márquez. Ask him/her three questions about the novelist. Give him/her three of your opinions on him. Read your letter to your partner(s) in your next lesson. Your partner(s) will answer your questions.

A Few Additional Activities for Students

Ask your students what they have read, seen or heard about this news in their own language. Students are likely to / may have have encountered this news in their L1 and therefore bring a background knowledge to the classroom.

Get students to role play different characters from this news story.

Ask students to keep track of this news and revisit it to discuss in your next class.

Ask students to male predictions of how this news might develop in the next few days or weeks, and then revisit and discuss in a future class.

Ask students to write a follow-up story to this news.

Students role play a journalist and someone who witnessed or was a part of this news. Perhaps they could make a video of the interview.

Ask students to keep a news journal in English and add this story to their thoughts.

Also...

Buy my 1,000 Ideas and Activities for Language Teachers eBook. It has hundreds of ideas, activity templates, reproducible activities for:

News
Warm ups
Pre-reading / Post-reading
Using headlines
Working with words
While-reading / While-listening
Moving from text to speech
Post-reading / Post-listening
Discussions
Using opinions
Plans
Language
Using lists
Using quotes
Task-based activities
Role plays
Using the central characters in the article
Using themes from the news
Homework

Buy my book

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ANSWERS

TRUE / FALSE (p.4)

a

F

b

F

c

T

d

F

e

T

f

T

g

F

h

T

SYNONYM MATCH (p.4)

1.	novelists	a.	authors
2.	passed away	b.	died
3.	awards	c.	prizes
4.	mourning	d.	grief
5.	style	e.	technique
6.	paid tribute to	f.	sang the praises of
7.	amazed	g.	astonished
8.	recounting	h.	narrating
9.	and so on	i.	etc.
10.	continue	j.	carry on

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS (p.8)

1.	87
2.	A lung infection
3.	Three
4.	People's (readers') lives
5.	Magical realism
6.	One of its greatest visionary writers
7.	The pain and joy of our common humanity
8.	From a young age
9.	His family
10.	Mario Vargas Llosa

MULTIPLE CHOICE - QUIZ (p.9)

1.

d

2.

b

3.

c

4.

a

5.

c

6.

b

7.

d

8.

a

9.

c

10.

b

ALL OTHER EXERCISES

Please check for yourself by looking at the Article on page 2.
(It's good for your English ;-)

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Breaking News English

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Novelist Gabriel García Márquez dies (21st April, 2014)

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