The Reading / Listening - Jerusalem - Level 6

The President of the United States of America, Donald Trump, has announced that the USA officially recognizes that Jerusalem is the capital city of Israel. This comes ahead of the USA moving its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. The decision by President Trump overturns decades of America having its embassy in the city of Tel Aviv. In an address at the White House, Mr Trump explained his rationale for his decision. He said he, "judged this course of action to be in the best interests of the United States of America, and the pursuit of peace between Israel and the Palestinians". He added that recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital was, "nothing more or less than a recognition of reality".

The UN called the decision "a moment of great anxiety". It added: "There is no alternative to the two-state solution." Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said it was "a historic day". He said Israel was profoundly grateful to President Trump. Palestinian leader, Ismail Haniya, described Trump's decision as a "flagrant aggression," and "the official announcement of the end of the peace process." A Palestinian diplomat told the BBC that Mr Trump, "is declaring war in the Middle East and against 1.5 billion Muslims." Israel's Haaretz newspaper wrote: "It will certainly provide Iran and its allies with a wonderful rallying cry and could even breathe new life into terrorist organizations like ISIS."

Try the same news story at these easier levels:

    Jerusalem - Level 4  or  Jerusalem - Level 5

Sources
  • http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-42259443
    • https://www.haaretz.com/opinion/1.827053
  • http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/12/palestinian-days-rage-trump-jerusalem-plan-171206103433314.html
  • https://www.voanews.com/a/trump-informs-leaders-of-plan-to-recognize-jerusalem-as-israeli-capital/4150167.html


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 :-)

Warm-ups

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

2. CHAT: In pairs / groups, talk about these topics or words from the article. What will the article say about them? What can you say about these words and your life?

       president / Jerusalem / capital city / embassy / rationale / action / peace / reality /
       decision / anxiety / alternative / grateful / announcement / aggression / war / breathe

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

3. DONALD TRUMP: Students A strongly believe Donald Trump was right to officially recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital city; Students B strongly believe he wasn't right.  Change partners again and talk about your conversations.

4. WORLD REACTION: Check the Internet to find out how the leaders of these countries reacted to Donald Trump's decision? Do you agree with them? Complete this table with your partner(s). Change partners often and share what you wrote.

 

What did they say?

Do you agree?

Russia

 

 

United Kingdom

 

 

Iran

 

 

Jordan

 

 

China

 

 

Canada

 

 
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ESL resource book with copiable worksheets and handouts - 1,000 Ideas and Activities for Language Teachers / English teachers
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5. EMBASSY: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word "embassy". Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories.

6. PEACE: Rank these with your partner. Put the places where peace will come to first at the top. Change partners often and share your rankings.

  • Syria
  • Myanmar
  • Ukraine
  • Congo
  • Israel/Palestine
  • Afghanistan
  • North Korea
  • Punjab

 

Vocabulary

    Paragraph 1

      1. recognizes a. The world or the state of things as they actually exist, rather than an imaginary idea of them.
      2. embassy b. Gets rid of, cancels, or reverses a previous system, decision, or situation.
      3. overturns c. A set of reasons or a logical basis for a course of action or a particular belief.
      4. address d. Speak to a person or group of people, usually in a formal way.
      5. rationale e. The action of following or running after someone or something.
      6. pursuit f. The official residence or offices of one country in another.
      7. reality g. Accepts and acknowledges the existence, truth, or legality of something.

    Paragraph 2

      8. anxiety h. In a very great or intense way.
      9. alternative i. One or more things available as another possibility.
      10. solution j. A means of solving a problem or dealing with a difficult situation.
      11. profoundly k. Of something considered wrong or immoral.
      12. flagrant l. An official representing a country abroad.
      13. diplomat m. A call, shout or action that brings people together to support a person or cause or take action.
      14. rallying cry n. A feeling of worry, nervousness, or unease, usually about an event that is about to happen.

 

Before reading / listening

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

  1. The USA has moved its embassy in Israel to Jerusalem.     T / F
  2. The American embassy has been in Tel Aviv for a few years.     T / F
  3. Trump said recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital was good for the US.  T / F
  4. Trump said it was a reality that Jerusalem is Israel's capital city.     T / F
  5. The UN is very worried about President Trump's declaration.     T / F
  6. Israel's leader suggested the declaration wasn't so historic.     T / F
  7. A Palestinian leader said Mr Trump has declared war on Muslims.     T / F
  8. An Israeli newspaper said the announcement would not help ISIS.     T / F

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

  1. announced
  2. moving
  3. overturns
  4. address
  5. reality
  6. anxiety
  7. solution
  8. profoundly
  9. flagrant
  10. breathe
  1. inject
  2. speech
  3. fact
  4. answer
  5. transferring
  6. shocking
  7. concern
  8. declared
  9. deeply
  10. reverses

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

  1. This comes ahead of the USA
  2. Mr Trump explained his rationale
  3. the pursuit of
  4. recognizing Jerusalem
  5. nothing more or less than a
  6. a moment
  7. There is no alternative
  8. profoundly
  9. declaring
  10. breathe new life
  1. recognition of reality
  2. grateful
  3. moving its embassy
  4. into terrorist organizations
  5. peace
  6. war
  7. of great anxiety
  8. as Israel's capital
  9. to the two-state solution
  10. for his decision

Gap fill

Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
address
pursuit
ahead
reality
announced
added
decades
course

The President of the United States of America, Donald Trump, has (1) ____________ that the USA officially recognizes that Jerusalem is the capital city of Israel. This comes (2) ____________ of the USA moving its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. The decision by President Trump overturns (3) ____________ of America having its embassy in the city of Tel Aviv. In an (4) ____________ at the White House, Mr Trump explained his rationale for his decision. He said he, "judged this (5) ____________ of action to be in the best interests of the United States of America, and the (6) ____________ of peace between Israel and the Palestinians". He (7) ____________ that recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital was, "nothing more or less than a recognition of (8) ____________ ".

Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
aggression
grateful
life
diplomat
anxiety
allies
solution
war

The UN called the decision "a moment of great (9) ____________". It added: "There is no alternative to the two-state (10) ____________." Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said it was "a historic day". He said Israel was profoundly (11) ____________ to President Trump. Palestinian leader, Ismail Haniya, described Trump's decision as a "flagrant (12) ____________," and "the official announcement of the end of the peace process." A Palestinian (13) ____________ told the BBC that Mr Trump, "is declaring (14) ____________ in the Middle East and against 1.5 billion Muslims." Israel's Haaretz newspaper wrote: "It will certainly provide Iran and its (15) ____________ with a wonderful rallying cry and could even breathe new (16) ____________ into terrorist organizations like ISIS."

Listening — Guess the answers. Listen to check.

1)  the USA officially recognizes that Jerusalem is ______ of Israel
     a.  the capital cities
     b.  the capitalist city
     c.  a capital city
     d.  the capital city

2)  This comes ahead of the USA moving its ______ Tel Aviv
     a.  ambassador from
     b.  ambassadorial from
     c.  embassies from
     d.  embassy from

3)  In an address at the White House, Mr Trump explained his ______ decision
     a.  rational for his
     b.  rationale for his
     c.  rational for this
     d.  rationale from his

4)  He said he, "judged this course of action to be in the best ______ the United States
     a.  interested of
     b.  interests off
     c.  interests of
     d.  inter rests off

5)  nothing more or less than a recognition ______
     a.  of reality
     b.  of reality
     c.  of reality
     d.  of reality

6)  The UN called the decision "a moment ______"
     a.  of grated anxious
     b.  of greatly anxiety
     c.  of great anxiety
     d.  of great anxiety

7)  It added: "There is no alternative to the ______ solution."
     a.  two-state
     b.  twos state
     c.  too stale
     d.  two straight

8)  Palestinian leader Ismail Haniya described Trump's decision as a "______"
     a.  fragrant aggressive
     b.  flagrant aggression
     c.  fragrant aggression
     d.  flagrant aggressive

9)  A Palestinian diplomat told the BBC that Mr Trump ______ war
     a.  is declared in
     b.  is the éclair in
     c.  is descaling
     d.  is declaring

10)  It will certainly provide Iran and its allies with a wonderful ______
     a.  rallying cry
     b.  rally in cry
     c.  rally ink cry
     d.  railing cry

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

The President of the United States of America, Donald Trump, has (1) ___________________ the USA officially recognizes that Jerusalem is the capital city of Israel. This (2) ___________________ the USA moving its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. The decision by President Trump (3) ___________________ America having its embassy in the city of Tel Aviv. In (4) ___________________ the White House, Mr Trump explained his rationale for his decision. He said he, "judged this course of action to be in the best interests of the United States of America, and (5) ___________________ peace between Israel and the Palestinians". He added that recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital was, "nothing more or less (6) ___________________ of reality".

The UN called the decision "a moment (7) ___________________". It added: "There is (8) ___________________ the two-state solution." Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said it was "a historic day". He said Israel was (9) ___________________ President Trump. Palestinian leader, Ismail Haniya, described Trump's decision as a "flagrant aggression," and "the official announcement of the end of (10) ___________________." A Palestinian diplomat told the BBC that Mr Trump, "is (11) ___________________ the Middle East and against 1.5 billion Muslims." Israel's Haaretz newspaper wrote: "It will certainly provide Iran and its allies with a wonderful rallying cry and could (12) ___________________ life into terrorist organizations like ISIS."

Comprehension questions

  1. Where is the current US embassy in Israel?
  2. How long has the US embassy been in its present location?
  3. Where did President Trump give an address?
  4. Which country did Mr Trump say he was acting in the best interests of?
  5. What did President Trump say his decision was a recognition of?
  6. What did the UN say the decision was a great moment of?
  7. What kind of day did Israel's leader say it was?
  8. What did a Palestinian leader say had come to an end?
  9. How many Muslims did a diplomat suggest Trump had declared war on?
  10. What did an Israeli newspaper say could have new life breathed into it?

Multiple choice quiz

1) Where is the current US embassy in Israel?
a) Jerusalem
b) Tel Aviv
c) Nazareth
d) Haifa

2)  How long has the US embassy been in its present location?
a) 8 years
b) 27 years
c) centuries
d) decades

3) Where did President Trump give an address?
a) the White House
b) Camp David
c) New York
d) Jerusalem

4) Which country did Mr Trump say he was acting in the best interests of?
a) Jordan
b) Iran
c) the USA
d) Israel

5) What did President Trump say his decision was a recognition of?
a) nothing
b) reality
c) peace
d) Israel

6) What did the UN say the decision was a great moment of?
a) anxiety
b) history
c) peace
d) triumph

7) What kind of day did Israel's leader say it was?
a) cloudy and overcast
b) a Wednesday
c) historic
d) humdrum

8) What did a Palestinian leader say had come to an end?
a) the peace process
b) hope
c) the road
d) talking

9) How many Muslims did a diplomat suggest Trump had declared war on?
a) 1.5 billion
b) 1.5 million
c) 15 million
d) 150,000

10) What did an Israeli newspaper say could have new life breathed into it?
a) Jerusalem
b) a fire
c) a dragon
d) ISIS

Role play

Role  A – Israel/Palestine

You think Israel/Palestine is the region where peace is most likely to come to first. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why their country or region won't experience peace as quickly. Also, tell the others which is the least likely of these to achieve peace so quickly of these (and why): North Korea, Syria or Myanmar.

Role  B – North Korea

You think North Korea is the region where peace is most likely to come to first. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why their country or region won't experience peace as quickly. Also, tell the others which is the least likely of these to achieve peace so quickly of these (and why): Israel/Palestine, Syria or Myanmar.

Role  C – Syria

You think Syria is the region where peace is most likely to come to first. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why their country or region won't experience peace as quickly. Also, tell the others which is the least likely of these to achieve peace so quickly of these (and why): North Korea, Israel/Palestine or Myanmar.

Role  D – Myanmar

You think Myanmar is the region where peace is most likely to come to first. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why their country or region won't experience peace as quickly. Also, tell the others which is the least likely of these to achieve peace so quickly of these (and why): North Korea, Syria or Israel/Palestine.

After reading / listening

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

'capital'

  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________

    • and 'city'.

  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________

    • • 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:

    • moment
    • historic
    • leader
    • war
    • provide
    • life
    • announced
    • ahead
    • decades
    • rationale
    • course
    • less

    Student survey

    Write five GOOD questions about this topic 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.

    (Please look at page 12 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

    Discussion - Trump says Jerusalem is Israel's capital city

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

    1. What did you think when you read the headline?
    2. What images are in your mind when you hear the word 'capital'?
    3. How big is this news (and why)?
    4. Why has Donald Trump made this official announcement?
    5. Why haven't previous US presidents recognized Jerusalem as a capital?
    6. What do you know about Jerusalem?
    7. Why might the decision be best for the USA?
    8. How might this be good for peace in the Middle East?
    9. If Israel says Jerusalem is its capital, why shouldn't it be?
    10. What is the media in your country saying about this news?

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

    1. Did you like reading this article? Why/not?
    2. What do you think of when you hear the word 'embassy'?
    3. What do you think about what you read?
    4. Why might Trump's decision have caused "a moment of great anxiety"?
    5. What will bring about a two-state solution?
    6. Why might Mr Trump's decision be a "flagrant aggression"?
    7. Is President Trump's decision good or bad for the Middle East?
    8. What will the Middle East be like this time next year?
    9. Will President Trump's decision be a rallying cry for Iran?
    10. What questions would you like to ask Donald Trump about his decision?

    Discussion — Write your own questions

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

    (a) ________________

    (b) ________________

    (c) ________________

    (d) ________________

    (e) ________________

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

    (f) ________________

    (g) ________________

    (h) ________________

    (i) ________________

    (j) ________________

    Language — Cloze (Gap-fill)

    The President of the United States of America, Donald Trump, has announced that the USA (1) _____ recognizes that Jerusalem is the capital city of Israel. This comes (2) _____ of the USA (3) _____ its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. The decision by President Trump overturns decades of America having its embassy in the city of Tel Aviv. In an (4) _____ at the White House, Mr Trump explained his rationale for his decision. He said he, "judged this course of action to be in the best interests of the United States of America, and the (5) _____ of peace between Israel and the Palestinians". He added that recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital was, "(6) _____ more or less than a recognition of reality".

    The UN called the decision "a moment of great (7) _____ ". It added: "There is no alternative to the two-state solution." Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said it was "a (8) _____ day". He said Israel was profoundly grateful to President Trump. Palestinian leader, Ismail Haniya, described Trump's decision as a "(9) _____ aggression," and "the official announcement of the end of the peace process." A Palestinian diplomat told the BBC that Mr Trump, "is (10) _____ war in the Middle East and against 1.5 billion Muslims." Israel's Haaretz newspaper wrote: "It will certainly provide Iran and its (11) _____ with a wonderful rallying cry and could even (12) _____ new life into terrorist organizations like ISIS."

    Which of these words go in the above text?

    1. (a)     officialdom     (b)     officially     (c)     officials     (d)     official    
    2. (a)     heading     (b)     headed     (c)     heads     (d)     ahead    
    3. (a)     movement     (b)     moving     (c)     mover     (d)     moves    
    4. (a)     alert     (b)     emergency     (c)     address     (d)     article    
    5. (a)     pursuit     (b)     perusal     (c)     parsing     (d)     appraise    
    6. (a)     nothing     (b)     thing     (c)     things     (d)     anything     
    7. (a)     anxiolytics     (b)     anxiously     (c)     anxious     (d)     anxiety    
    8. (a)     historic     (b)     historian     (c)     histories     (d)     history    
    9. (a)     fragility     (b)     flagrant     (c)     fragment     (d)     fragrant    
    10. (a)     declarative     (b)     declared     (c)     declaring     (d)     declares    
    11. (a)     allied     (b)     alliterate     (c)     allies     (d)     alliterates    
    12. (a)     suck     (b)     breathe     (c)     respire     (d)     inhale

    Spelling

    Paragraph 1

    1. Trump has nncoundae that
    2. moving its essmyab
    3. overturns ecseadd
    4. explained his olantaeri
    5. the upuirst of peace
    6. a recognition of ylrtaie

    Paragraph 2

    1. a moment of great inxayet
    2. There is no rtatlnaeive
    3. the two-state usolotni
    4. Israel was duopfnylor grateful
    5. A Palestinian mdpotali
    6. Iran and its iaslle

    Put the text back together

    (    )     capital was, "nothing more or less than a recognition of reality".

    (    )     that Jerusalem is the capital city of Israel. This comes ahead of the USA moving its embassy from

    (    )     Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. The decision by President Trump overturns decades of America having its embassy in the

    (    )     city of Tel Aviv. In an address at the White House, Mr Trump explained his rationale for his

    (    )     day". He said Israel was profoundly grateful to President Trump. Palestinian leader, Ismail Haniya, described

    (    )     The UN called the decision "a moment of great anxiety". It added: "There is no alternative

    (    )     to the two-state solution." Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said it was "a historic

    (    )     in the Middle East and against 1.5 billion Muslims." Israel's Haaretz newspaper wrote: "It will certainly provide Iran

    (    )     decision. He said he, "judged this course of action to be in the best interests of the United States of America, and the pursuit

    (    )     Trump's decision as a "flagrant aggression," and "the official announcement of the end of the peace

    (    )     of peace between Israel and the Palestinians". He added that recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's

    (  1  )     The President of the United States of America, Donald Trump, has announced that the USA officially recognizes

    (    )     and its allies with a wonderful rallying cry and could even breathe new life into terrorist organizations like ISIS."

    (    )     process." A Palestinian diplomat told the BBC that Mr Trump, "is declaring war

    Put the words in the right order

    1. capital   recognizes   Jerusalem   the   Officially   that   is   .
    2. the   This   USA   comes   moving   ahead   its   of   embassy   .
    3. Decades   embassy   of   in   America   the   having   city   its   .
    4. of   in   the   the   USA   best   To   interests   be   .
    5. a   more   recognition   Nothing   or   of   less   reality   than   .
    6. state   is   to   There   alternative   two-   solution   no   the   .
    7. aggression   flagrant   a   as   decision   Trump's   described   Haniya   .
    8. announcement   the   of   peace   the   process   end   The   of   .
    9. Iran   a   and   rallying   its   cry   allies   Provide   with   .
    10. into   life   new   Breathe   ISIS   like   organizations   terrorist   .

    Circle the correct word (20 pairs)

    The President of the United States of America, Donald Trump, has announced / announcing that the USA officially recognizes what / that Jerusalem is / as the capital city of Israel. This goes / comes ahead of the USA moving its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. The decision by President Trump overturns / overruns decades of America having its embassy in the city of Tel Aviv. In an addressing / address at the White House, Mr Trump explained his rational / rationale for his decision. He said he, "judged this course / cause of action to be in the best interests of the United States of America, and the pursuit / purchase of peace between Israel and the Palestinians". He added that recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital was, "nothing more or less than a recognition of really / reality".

    The UN called the decision "a moment of great anxious / anxiety". It added: "There is no alternatively / alternative to the two-state solution." Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said it was "a historic / historian day". He said Israel was profoundly gratitude / grateful to President Trump. Palestinian leader, Ismail Haniya, described Trump's decision as a "fragrant / flagrant aggression," and "the official announcement of the end of the peace process / progress." A Palestinian diplomacy / diplomat told the BBC that Mr Trump, "is declaring/ declaration war in the Middle East and against 1.5 billion Muslims." Israel's Haaretz newspaper wrote: "It will certainly / certain provide Iran and its allies with a wonderful rallying cry and could even breathe / breath new life into terrorist organizations like ISIS."

    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)

    Th_ Pr_s_d_nt _f th_ _n_t_d St_t_s _f _m_r_c_, D_n_ld Tr_mp, h_s _nn__nc_d th_t th_ _S_ _ff_c__lly r_c_gn_z_s th_t J_r_s_l_m _s th_ c_p_t_l c_ty _f _sr__l. Th_s c_m_s _h__d _f th_ _S_ m_v_ng _ts _mb_ssy fr_m T_l _v_v t_ J_r_s_l_m. Th_ d_c_s__n by Pr_s_d_nt Tr_mp _v_rt_rns d_c_d_s _f _m_r_c_ h_v_ng _ts _mb_ssy _n th_ c_ty _f T_l _v_v. _n _n _ddr_ss _t th_ Wh_t_ H__s_, Mr Tr_mp _xpl__n_d h_s r_t__n_l_ f_r h_s d_c_s__n. H_ s__d h_, "j_dg_d th_s c__rs_ _f _ct__n t_ b_ _n th_ b_st _nt_r_sts _f th_ _n_t_d St_t_s _f _m_r_c_, _nd th_ p_rs__t _f p__c_ b_tw__n _sr__l _nd th_ P_l_st_n__ns". H_ _dd_d th_t r_c_gn_z_ng J_r_s_l_m _s _sr__l's c_p_t_l w_s, "n_th_ng m_r_ _r l_ss th_n _ r_c_gn_t__n _f r__l_ty".

    Th_ _N c_ll_d th_ d_c_s__n "_ m_m_nt _f gr__t _nx__ty". _t _dd_d: "Th_r_ _s n_ _lt_rn_t_v_ t_ th_ tw_-st_t_ s_l_t__n." _sr__l's Pr_m_ M_n_st_r B_nj_m_n N_t_ny_h_ s__d _t w_s "_ h_st_r_c d_y". H_ s__d _sr__l w_s pr_f__ndly gr_t_f_l t_ Pr_s_d_nt Tr_mp. P_l_st_n__n l__d_r, _sm__l H_n_y_, d_scr_b_d Tr_mp's d_c_s__n _s _ "fl_gr_nt _ggr_ss__n," _nd "th_ _ff_c__l _nn__nc_m_nt _f th_ _nd _f th_ p__c_ pr_c_ss." _ P_l_st_n__n d_pl_m_t t_ld th_ BBC th_t Mr Tr_mp, "_s d_cl_r_ng w_r _n th_ M_ddl_ __st _nd _g__nst 1.5 b_ll__n M_sl_ms." _sr__l's H__r_tz n_wsp_p_r wr_t_: "_t w_ll c_rt__nly pr_v_d_ _r_n _nd _ts _ll__s w_th _ w_nd_rf_l r_lly_ng cry _nd c__ld _v_n br__th_ n_w l_f_ _nt_ t_rr_r_st _rg_n_z_t__ns l_k_ _S_S."

    Punctuate the text and add capitals

    the president of the united states of america donald trump has announced that the usa officially recognizes that jerusalem is the capital city of israel this comes ahead of the usa moving its embassy from tel aviv to jerusalem the decision by president trump overturns decades of america having its embassy in the city of tel aviv in an address at the white house mr trump explained his rationale for his decision he said he "judged this course of action to be in the best interests of the united states of america and the pursuit of peace between israel and the palestinians" he added that recognizing jerusalem as israel's capital was "nothing more or less than a recognition of reality"

    the un called the decision "a moment of great anxiety" it added "there is no alternative to the two-state solution" israel's prime minister benjamin netanyahu said it was "a historic day" he said israel was profoundly grateful to president trump palestinian leader ismail haniya described trump's decision as a "flagrant aggression" and "the official announcement of the end of the peace process" a palestinian diplomat told the bbc that mr trump "is declaring war in the middle east and against 15 billion muslims" israel's haaretz newspaper wrote "it will certainly provide iran and its allies with a wonderful rallying cry and could even breathe new life into terrorist organizations like isis"

    Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

    ThePresidentoftheUnitedStatesofAmerica,DonaldTrump,hasannou
    ncedthattheUSAofficiallyrecognizesthatJerusalemisthecapitalcityof
    Israel.ThiscomesaheadoftheUSAmovingitsembassyfromTelAvivtoJ
    erusalem.ThedecisionbyPresidentTrumpoverturnsdecadesofAmeric
    ahavingitsembassyinthecityofTelAviv.InanaddressattheWhiteHous
    e,MrTrumpexplainedhisrationaleforhisdecision.Hesaidhe,"judgedth
    iscourseofactiontobeinthebestinterestsoftheUnitedStatesofAmerica
    ,andthepursuitofpeacebetweenIsraelandthePalestinians".Headdedt
    hatrecognizingJerusalemasIsrael'scapitalwas,"nothingmoreorlesst
    hanarecognitionofreality".TheUNcalledthedecision"amomentofgrea
    tanxiety".Itadded:"Thereisnoalternativetothetwo-statesolution."Is
    rael'sPrimeMinisterBenjaminNetanyahusaiditwas"ahistoricday".He
    saidIsraelwasprofoundlygratefultoPresidentTrump.Palestinianlead
    er,IsmailHaniya,describedTrump'sdecisionasa"flagrantaggression,
    "and"theofficialannouncementoftheendofthepeaceprocess."APalest
    iniandiplomattoldtheBBCthatMrTrump,"isdeclaringwarintheMiddleE
    astandagainst1.5billionMuslims."Israel'sHaaretznewspaperwrote:"
    ItwillcertainlyprovideIrananditsallieswithawonderfulrallyingcryand
    couldevenbreathenewlifeintoterroristorganizationslikeISIS."

    Free writing

    Write about Jerusalem for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

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    Academic writing

    What will happen in the Middle East in the coming years? Discuss three possibilities.

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    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 this news story. Share what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.

    3. JERUSALEM: Make a poster about Jerusalem. Show your work to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all have similar things?

    4. TWO-STATE SOLUTION: Write a magazine article about the possibility of a two-state solution in the Middle East. Include imaginary interviews with people who believe this will happen and with people who don't think it will happen.

    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 the Middle East. Ask him/her three questions about it. Give him/her three of your ideas on how to achieve long-term peace. 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

    $US 9.99

    Answers

    (Please look at page 26 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

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