The Reading / Listening - Bullet Trains - Level 0

Ten of Japan's bullet trains were destroyed in a typhoon. The typhoon caused great damage. There were many photos of the bullet trains. They were deep in water after a river overflowed. The trains ran between Tokyo and the Sea of Japan coast. The bullet train company will operate a full service again by March 2020.

Bullet trains are called Shinkansen in Japan. They started in 1964 and are a symbol of Japan. They travel at 320kph. A Shinkansen president said the damage was around $135 million. He said water damaged motors and brakes. He added: "For stability and safety, we [will] replace the trains with newly built ones instead of repairing them."

Try the same news story at these levels:

    Bullet Trains - Level 1,  Bullet Trains - Level 2   or  Bullet Trains - Level 3

Sources
  • https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20191106_37/
  • https://english.kyodonews.net/news/2019/11/4e7dfd267c83-all-10-typhoon-flooded-shinkansen-bullet-trains-to-be-scrapped.html
  • https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-50323239
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shinkansen


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 :-)

Phrase Matching

Paragraph 1

  1. bullet trains
  2. The typhoon caused
  3. They were deep
  4. after a river
  5. the Sea of
  6. The bullet train
  7. operate a full service
  8. by
  1. March 2020
  2. in water
  3. company
  4. great damage
  5. again
  6. overflowed
  7. were destroyed
  8. Japan coast

Paragraph 2

  1. Bullet trains are called
  2. a symbol
  3. They travel
  4. the damage was around
  5. water damaged motors
  6. For stability and
  7. replace the trains
  8. instead
  1. at 320kph
  2. and brakes
  3. of repairing them
  4. of Japan
  5. with newly built ones
  6. $135 million
  7. Shinkansen in Japan
  8. safety

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

Ten of Japan's bullet trains (1) ___________________ a typhoon. The typhoon (2) ___________________. There were many photos of the bullet trains. They (3) ___________________ water after a river overflowed. The (4) ___________________ Tokyo and the Sea (5) ___________________. The bullet train company will operate a full (6) ___________________ March 2020.

Bullet (7) ___________________ Shinkansen in Japan. They started in 1964 and are (8) ___________________ Japan. They travel at 320kph. A Shinkansen president (9) ___________________ was around $135 million. He said water damaged (10) ___________________. He added: "For (11) ___________________, we [will] replace the trains with newly built ones instead (12) ___________________."

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

TenofJapan'sbullettrainsweredestroyedinatyphoon.Thetyphooncau
sedgreatdamage.Thereweremanyphotosofthebullettrains.Theywer
edeepinwaterafterariveroverflowed.ThetrainsranbetweenTokyoand
theSeaofJapancoast.Thebullettraincompanywilloperateafullservice
againbyMarch2020.BullettrainsarecalledShinkanseninJapan.Theyst
artedin1964andareasymbolofJapan.Theytravelat320kph.AShinkan
senpresidentsaidthedamagewasaround$135million.Hesaidwaterda
magedmotorsandbrakes.Headded:"Forstabilityandsafety,we[will]r
eplacethetrainswithnewlybuiltonesinsteadofrepairingthem."

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 — Write your own questions

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

(a) ________________

(b) ________________

(c) ________________

(d) ________________

(e) ________________

(f) ________________

(g) ________________

(h) ________________

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

(i) ________________

(j) ________________

(k) ________________

(l) ________________

(m) ________________

(n) ________________

(o) ________________

(p) ________________

Free writing

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

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Answers

(Please check your answers against the article above.

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