The Reading / Listening - Nagorno-Karabakh - Level 3

Heavy fighting has broken out between Armenia and Azerbaijan. There is a danger the fighting could lead to a bigger conflict between the two countries. Their trouble is over a region that is on their border called Nagorno-Karabakh. This is a disputed territory. It is internationally recognized as being part of Azerbaijan but it has a majority Armenian ethnic population. It has governed itself for the past few decades. The recent clashes resulted in the deaths of both civilians and soldiers. Armenia blamed Azerbaijan for starting the recent conflict. It said Azerbaijan launched missiles into the region. Azerbaijan's defence ministry said it launched missiles to "ensure the safety of the population" in the region.

There have been tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan since the end of the Nagorno-Karabakh War in 1994. There have been many flashpoints between the two countries. The current clashes have seen the worst fighting in many years. An Al Jazeera journalist who is an expert on Nagorno-Karabakh described the situation as, "a very serious escalation". Neighboring countries are now getting involved. Turkey's President said his country would support Azerbaijan. Russia has given its backing to Armenia, but called for an immediate ceasefire and urgent negotiations. Iran, which shares a border with both Azerbaijan and Armenia, has offered to arrange peace talks.

Try the same news story at these easier levels:

    Nagorno-Karabakh - Level 0,  Nagorno-Karabakh - Level 1   or  Nagorno-Karabakh - Level 2

Sources
  • https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-54314341
  • https://edition.cnn.com/2020/09/27/europe/armenia-azerbaijan-tensions-nagorno-karabakh-intl/index.html
  • https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/9/27/heavy-fighting-erupts-in-disputed-nagorno-karabakh-region


Make sure you try all of the online activities for this reading and listening - There are dictations, multiple choice activities, drag and drop activities, sentence jumbles, which word activities, text reconstructions, spelling, gap fills and a whole lot more. Please enjoy :-)

Warm-ups

1. CONFLICT: Students walk around the class and talk to other students about conflict. 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?
       fighting / danger / conflict / countries / territory / majority / population / region /
       tensions / flashpoints / journalist / expert / situation / backing / ceasefire / peace
Have a chat about the topics you liked. Change topics and partners frequently.
3. WAR: Students A strongly believe there will be no wars in the future; Students B strongly believe there will always be wars. Change partners again and talk about your conversations.
4. CONFLICTS: What do you know about these conflicts? How did they change the world or the region? Complete this table with your partner(s). Change partners often and share what you wrote.

 

What I Know

How It Changed The World

World War II

 

 

Iraq Wars

 

 

Yemen

 

 

Mexican Drug War

 

 

Syrian Civil War

 

 

The Balkans War

 

 
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. BORDER: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word "border". Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories.
6. SOURCES OF CONFLICT: Rank these with your partner. Put the most serious sources of conflict at the top. Change partners often and share your rankings.

  • Religion
  • Borders
  • Oil
  • Independence
  • Ethnic groups
  • Money
  • Terrorism
  • Land grab

 

Vocabulary

    Paragraph 1

      1. conflict a. The bigger number of.
      2. region b. A line that separates two countries or areas.
      3. border c. An area or part of a country or the world with no fixed borders.
      4. disputed d. Sent a missile or rocket into the air.
      5. majority e. A battle, disagreement or war between countries.
      6. civilian f. Something that not everyone agrees with and is arguing about it.
      7. launched g. People who are not in the army or the police force.

    Paragraph 2

      8. tension h. A place, event, or time at which trouble, such as violence or anger, suddenly starts.
      9. flashpoint i. Give help to, especially with money.
      10. expert j. When it is very important that something needs immediate action or attention.
      11. escalation k. A person who has a lot of knowledge of or skill in a particular area.
      12. support l. A short stopping of fighting, usually one during which peace talks take place.
      13. ceasefire m. An increase in the danger or seriousness of something.
      14. urgent n. A difficult and stressful relationship between people or countries.

 

Before reading / listening

1. TRUE / FALSE: Read the headline. Guess if 1-8 below are true (T) or false (F).

  1. Light fighting has broken out between Armenia and Azerbaijan.     T / F
  2. The fighting is over oil and minerals in the region.     T / F
  3. Nagorno-Karabakh has a largely Armenian ethnic population.     T / F
  4. Armenia blamed Azerbaijan for firing missiles in the area.     T / F
  5. The Nagorno-Karabakh War ended in 2004.     T / F
  6. A journalist said the recent fighting was a serious escalation.     T / F
  7. Turkey said it would not support Azerbaijan.     T / F
  8. Russia said it would back Azerbaijan.     T / F

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

  1. fighting
  2. lead to
  3. territory
  4. launched
  5. tensions
  6. expert
  7. escalation
  8. backing
  9. ceasefire
  10. arrange
  1. intensification
  2. land
  3. specialist
  4. set up
  5. result in
  6. truce
  7. battles
  8. support
  9. fired
  10. strains

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

  1. Heavy fighting has broken
  2. a danger the fighting could lead
  3. It has governed itself
  4. launched
  5. ensure the safety of the
  6. There have been many flashpoints
  7. a very serious
  8. Russia has given its
  9. called for an immediate
  10. offered to
  1. for the past few decades
  2. backing to Armenia
  3. population in the region
  4. arrange peace talks
  5. ceasefire
  6. out
  7. to a bigger conflict
  8. escalation
  9. missiles
  10. between the two

Gap fill

Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
conflict
civilians
safety
broken
launched
majority
region
recent

Heavy fighting has (1) _____________________ out between Armenia and Azerbaijan. There is a danger the fighting could lead to a bigger (2) _____________________ between the two countries. Their trouble is over a (3) _____________________ that is on their border called Nagorno-Karabakh. This is a disputed territory. It is internationally recognized as being part of Azerbaijan but it has a (4) _____________________ Armenian ethnic population. It has governed itself for the past few decades. The recent clashes resulted in the deaths of both (5) _____________________ and soldiers. Armenia blamed Azerbaijan for starting the (6) _____________________ conflict. It said Azerbaijan (7) _____________________ missiles into the region. Azerbaijan's defence ministry said it launched missiles to "ensure the (8) _____________________ of the population" in the region.

Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
immediate
serious
tensions
talks
current
support
border
expert

There have been (9) _____________________ between Armenia and Azerbaijan since the end of the Nagorno-Karabakh War in 1994. There have been many flashpoints between the two countries. The (10) _____________________ clashes have seen the worst fighting in many years. An Al Jazeera journalist who is an (11) _____________________ on Nagorno-Karabakh described the situation as, "a very (12) _____________________ escalation". Neighboring countries are now getting involved. Turkey's President said his country would (13) _____________________ Azerbaijan. Russia has given its backing to Armenia, but called for an (14) _____________________ ceasefire and urgent negotiations. Iran, which shares a (15) _____________________ with both Azerbaijan and Armenia, has offered to arrange peace (16) _____________________.

Listening — Guess the answers. Listen to check.

1) There is a danger the fighting could lead to ______
     a.  a bigger conflicts
     b.  a bigger conflicted
     c.  a bigger conflict
     d.  a bigger con flicked
2)  Their trouble is over a region that is ______
     a.  on their boarder
     b.  on their border
     c.  on their broader
     d.  on their bored are
3)  recognized as being part of Azerbaijan but it has a majority Armenian______
     a.  ethnics population
     b.  yes Nick population
     c.  ethnically population
     d.  ethnic population
4)  It has governed itself for the past few decades. The ______
     a.  recent clashes
     b.  recent clash is
     c.  recent caches
     d.  recent crashes
5)  it launched missiles to "ensure the safety of the population" ______
     a.  inner region
     b.  in them region
     c.  in the region
     d.  in the regional

6)  There have been tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan ______
     a.  since a end
     b.  since the ends
     c.  since the end
     d.  since the ended
7)  The current clashes have seen ______
     a.  the worse fighting
     b.  the worst fighting
     c.  the warts fighting
     d.  the worsts fighting
8) an expert on Nagorno-Karabakh described the situation as a ______
     a.  very cereal escalation
     b.  very series escalation
     c.  very seriously escalation
     d.  very serious escalation
9)  Turkey's President said his country would ______
     a.  supports Azerbaijan
     b.  support Azerbaijan
     c.  supportive Azerbaijan
     d.  supported Azerbaijan
10)  with both Azerbaijan and Armenia, has offered to ______
     a.  arrange piece talks
     b.  arrange peas talks
     c.  arrange appease talks
     d.  arrange peace talks

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

Heavy fighting has broken out between Armenia and Azerbaijan. There is a danger the fighting (1) ____________________ a bigger conflict between the two countries. Their trouble is (2) ____________________ that is on their border called Nagorno-Karabakh. This is a disputed territory. It is internationally recognized as (3) ____________________ Azerbaijan but it has a majority Armenian ethnic population. It has governed itself for the past few decades. (4) ____________________ resulted in the deaths of both civilians and soldiers. Armenia blamed Azerbaijan (5) ____________________ recent conflict. It said Azerbaijan launched missiles into the region. Azerbaijan's defence ministry said it launched missiles to "ensure (6) ____________________ the population" in the region.

There (7) ____________________ between Armenia and Azerbaijan since the end of the Nagorno-Karabakh War in 1994. There have been many flashpoints between the two countries. The (8) ____________________ seen the worst fighting in many years. An Al Jazeera journalist who is an expert on Nagorno-Karabakh (9) ____________________ as, "a very serious escalation". Neighboring countries are now getting involved. Turkey's President said his country would support Azerbaijan. Russia has given its backing to Armenia, but called (10) ____________________ ceasefire and urgent negotiations. Iran, which (11) ____________________ with both Azerbaijan and Armenia, has offered to (12) ____________________.

Comprehension questions

  1. What kind of fighting did the article say had broken out?
  2. What is the major ethnicity of people in Nagorno-Karabakh?
  3. Who else did the article say had died, besides soldiers?
  4. Who blamed Azerbaijan for starting the conflict?
  5. What did Azerbaijan say it had launched?
  6. When did the Nagorno-Karabakh War end?
  7. Where does the expert on Nagorno-Karabakh work?
  8. What did the expert describe the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh as?
  9. Which country said it would support Azerbaijan?
  10. Who offered to arrange peace talks?

Multiple choice quiz

1) What kind of fighting did the article say had broken out?
a) small arms fire
b) light fighting
c) all-out fighting
d) heavy fighting
2) What is the major ethnicity of people in Nagorno-Karabakh?
a) Azerbaijani
b) Armenian
c) Nagorn
d) Russian
3) Who else did the article say had died, besides soldiers?
a) bystanders
b) journalists
c) politicians
d) civilians
4) Who blamed Azerbaijan for starting the conflict?
a) Russia
b) the UN
c) Armenia
d) the USA
5) What did Azerbaijan say it had launched?
a) a truce
b) a peace campaign
c) a website
d) missiles

6) When did the Nagorno-Karabakh War end?
a) 1974
b) 1984
c) 1994
d) 2004
7) Where does the expert on Nagorno-Karabakh work?
a) at Al Jazeera
b) the BBC
c) CNN
d) RT
8) What did the expert describe the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh as?
a) a flash in the pan
b) troubling
c) a very serious escalation
d) a hotspot
9) Which country said it would support Azerbaijan?
a) Russia
b) Turkey
c) Iran
d) Armenia
10) Who offered to arrange peace talks?
a) Iran
b) Armenia
c) Russia
d) Turkey

Role play

Role  A – Religion
You think religion is the most serious cause of war. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why their causes aren't as serious. Also, tell the others which is the least serious of these (and why): borders, independence or money.

Role  B – Borders
You think borders is the most serious cause of war. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why their causes aren't as serious. Also, tell the others which is the least serious of these (and why): religion, independence or money.

Role  C – Independence
You think independence is the most serious cause of war. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why their causes aren't as serious. Also, tell the others which is the least serious of these (and why): borders, religion or money.

Role  D – Money
You think money is the most serious cause of war. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why their causes aren't as serious. Also, tell the others which is the least serious of these (and why): borders, independence or religion.

After reading / listening

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

'fighting'

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

    • and 'country'.

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

    • • 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:

    • heavy
    • border
    • majority
    • few
    • both
    • safety
    • end
    • between
    • expert
    • situation
    • backing
    • arrange

    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 - Nagorno-Karabakh

    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 'fight'?
    3. Why do countries go to war?
    4. What wars has your country been in?
    5. What do you think of war?
    6. What do you know about Nagorno-Karabakh?
    7. Should the UN decide where borders are?
    8. How safe is the region in which you live?
    9. Will there be more or fewer wars in the future?
    10. What advice do you have for those in Nagorno-Karabakh?

    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 'country'?
    3. What do you think about what you read?
    4. How can we reduce tensions between countries?
    5. What was the last flashpoint your country was involved in?
    6. How would you feel if you saw armies fighting?
    7. Will the actions of Turkey, Russia and Iran help?
    8. What should the sides talk about in their negotiations?
    9. Would you be good in peace talks?
    10. What questions would you like to ask the leaders?

    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)

    Heavy fighting has broken (1) ____ between Armenia and Azerbaijan. There is a danger the fighting could lead (2) ____ a bigger conflict between the two countries. Their trouble is over a region that is on their border called Nagorno-Karabakh. This is a disputed territory. It is internationally recognized (3) ____ being part of Azerbaijan but it has a majority ethnic population. It has governed itself for the (4) ____ few decades. The recent clashes resulted in the deaths of both civilians and soldiers. Armenia blamed Azerbaijan for starting the (5) ____ conflict. It said Azerbaijan launched missiles into the region. Azerbaijan's defence ministry said it launched missiles to "ensure the (6) ____ of the population" in the region.

    There have been tensions (7) ____ Armenia and Azerbaijan since the end of the Nagorno-Karabakh War in 1994. There have been many (8) ____ between the two countries. The current clashes have seen the worst fighting in many years. An Al Jazeera journalist who is an (9) ____ on Nagorno-Karabakh described the situation as, "a very serious escalation". Neighboring countries are now (10) ____ involved. Turkey's President said his country would support Azerbaijan. Russia has given its backing to Armenia, but (11) ____ for an immediate ceasefire and urgent negotiations. Iran, which shares a border with both Azerbaijan and Armenia, has offered to (12) ____ peace talks.

    Which of these words go in the above text?

    1. (a)     in     (b)     out     (c)     up     (d)     over    
    2. (a)     of     (b)     to     (c)     at     (d)     on    
    3. (a)     has     (b)     is     (c)     was     (d)     as    
    4. (a)     parsed     (b)     past     (c)     psst     (d)     passed    
    5. (a)     recently     (b)     recent     (c)     recount     (d)     decent    
    6. (a)     safe     (b)     safer     (c)     safety     (d)     save    
    7. (a)     under     (b)     about     (c)     between     (d)     moreover    
    8. (a)     flashed     (b)     flashlights     (c)     flashpoints     (d)     flash mobs    
    9. (a)     army     (b)     endgame     (c)     armour     (d)     expert    
    10. (a)     getting     (b)     gets     (c)     get     (d)     gotten    
    11. (a)     called     (b)     whispered     (c)     shouted     (d)     talked    
    12. (a)     upper     (b)     ask     (c)     arrange     (d)     endanger

    Spelling

    Paragraph 1

    1. lead to a bigger coftlinc
    2. a majority Armenian tecihn population
    3. for the past few eaeddcs
    4. deaths of both iniclivsa and soldiers
    5. it launched simslsei
    6. nseeur the safety of the population

    Paragraph 2

    1. There have been ntisoesn
    2. many iltpsanfsho between the two countries
    3. The current slschea
    4. An Al Jazeera journalist who is an teperx
    5. a very serious asnciaolet
    6. etrugn negotiations

    Put the text back together

    (...)  seen the worst fighting in many years. An Al Jazeera journalist who is an
    (...)  soldiers. Armenia blamed Azerbaijan for starting the recent conflict. It said Azerbaijan launched
    (...)  There have been tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan since the end of the Nagorno-Karabakh War in
    (...)  a border with both Azerbaijan and Armenia, has offered to arrange peace talks.
    (...)  lead to a bigger conflict between the two countries. Their trouble is over a
    (...)  few decades. The recent clashes resulted in the deaths of both civilians and
    (  1  ) Heavy fighting has broken out between Armenia and Azerbaijan. There is a danger the fighting could
    (...)  expert on Nagorno-Karabakh described the situation as, "a very serious escalation". Neighboring countries are now
    (...)  1994. There have been many flashpoints between the two countries. The current clashes have
    (...)  missiles into the region. Azerbaijan's defence ministry said it launched missiles to "ensure the safety of the population" in the region.
    (...)  getting involved. Turkey's President said his country would support Azerbaijan. Russia has given its
    (...)  backing to Armenia, but called for an immediate ceasefire and urgent negotiations. Iran, which shares
    (...)  recognized as being part of Azerbaijan but it has a majority Armenian ethnic population. It has governed itself for the past
    (...)  region that is on their border called Nagorno-Karabakh. This is a disputed territory. It is internationally

    Put the words in the right order

    1. The   bigger   conflict   .   lead   a   to   fighting   could
    2. region   on   their   is   border   .   that   A
    3. majority   ethnic   has   population   .   It   a   Armenian
    4. the   past   governed   for   itself   has   It   decades   .
    5. into   Azerbaijan   launched   region   .   missiles   said   It   the
    6. the   been   have   There   between   two   flashpoints   countries   .
    7. current   have   clashes   fighting   .   seen   the   worst   The
    8. Described   situation   the   serious   as   escalation   .   a   very
    9. President   Azerbaijan  .  would   his   country   said   Turkey's   support
    10. for   urgent   immediate   an   and   Called   ceasefire   negotiations   .

    Circle the correct word (20 pairs)

    Heavy fighting has broken up / out between Armenia and Azerbaijan. There is a danger the fighting could lead to a biggest / bigger conflict between the two countries. Their trouble is over a region that is on their border called Nagorno-Karabakh. This is a deputy / disputed territory. It is internationally recognized as being part / partner of Azerbaijan but it has a majority Armenian ethnic population / populated. It has governed itself / themselves for the past few decades. The recent clashes resulted on / in the deaths of both civilians and soldiers. Armenia blamed Azerbaijan for stated / started the recent conflict. It said Azerbaijan launched missiles into the regional / region. Azerbaijan's defence ministry said it launched missiles to "ensure the safe / safety of the population" in the region.

    There have been tensions / tension between Armenia and Azerbaijan since the end off / of the Nagorno-Karabakh War in 1994. There have been many flashpoints between them / the two countries. The current / currency clashes have seen the worst fighting in many years. An Al Jazeera journalist who is an expert on Nagorno-Karabakh description / described the situation as, "a very serious / seriously escalation". Neighboring countries are non / now getting involved. Turkey's President said his country would support Azerbaijan. Russia has giving / given its backing to Armenia, but called for an immediate ceasefire and urgent / urgency negotiations. Iran, which shares a border with both Azerbaijan and Armenia, has offered to arrange piece / peace talks.

    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)

    H__ v y f_g h t_n g h_s b r_k_n __ t b_t w__ n A r m_n__ _n d A z_r b__ j_n . T h_r_ _s _ d_n g_r t h_ f_g h t_n g c__ l d l__ d t_ _ b_g g_r c_n f l_c t b_t w__ n t h_ t w_ c__ n t r__ s . T h__ r t r__ b l_ _s _v_r _ r_g__ n t h_t _s _n t h__ r b_r d_r c_l l_d N_g_r n_- K_r_b_k h . T h_s _s _ d_s p_t_d t_r r_t_r y . I t _s _n t_r n_t__ n_l l y r_c_g n_z_d _s b__ n g p_r t _f A z_r b__ j_n b_t _t h_s _ m_j_r_t y A r m _ n _ _ n _t h n_c p_p_l_t__ n . I t h_s g_v_r n_d _t s_l f f_r t h_ p_s t f_w d_c_d_s . T h_ r_c_n t c l_s h_s r_s_l t_d _n t h_ d__ t h s _f b_t h c_v_l__ n s _n d s_l d__ r s . A r m_n__ b l_m_d A z_r b__ j_n f_r s t_r t_d t h_ r_c_n t c_n f l_c t . I t s__ d A z_r b__ j_n l__ n c h_d m_s s_l_s _n t_ t h_ r_g__ n . A z_r b__ j_n ' s d_f_n c_ m_n_s t r y s__ d _t l__ n c h_d m_s s_l_s t_ "_n s_r_ t h_ s_f_t y _f t h_ p_p_l_t__ n " _n t h_ r_g__ n .

    T h_r_ h_v_ b__ n t_n s__ n s b_t w__ n A r m_n__ _n d A z_r b__ j_n s_n c_ t h_ _n d _f t h_ N_g_r n_- K_r_b_k h W_r _n 1 9 9 4 . T h_r_ h_v_ b__ n m_n y f l_s h p__ n t s b_t w__ n t h_ t w_ c__ n t r__ s . T h_ c_r r_n t c l_s h_s h_v_ s__ n t h_ w_r s t f_g h t_n g _n m_n y y__ r s . A n A l J_z__ r_ j__ r n_l_s t w h_ _s _n _x p_r t _n N_g_r n_- K_r_b_k h d_s c r_b_d t h_ s_t__ t__ n _s , "_ v_r y s_r___s _s c_l_t__ n " . N__ g h b_r_n g c__ n t r__ s _r_ n_w g_t t_n g _n v_l v_d . T_r k_y ' s P r_s_d_n t s__ d h_s c__ n t r y w__ l d s_p p_r t A z_r b__ j_n . R_s s__ h_s g_v_n _t s b_c k_n g t_ A r m_n__ , b_t c_l l_d f_r _n _m m_d__ t_ c__ s_f_r_ _n d _r g_n t n_g_t__ t__ n s . I r_n , w h_c h s h_r_s _ b_r d_r w_t h b_t h A z_r b__ j_n _n d A r m_n__ , h_s _f f_r_d t_ _r r_n g_ p__ c_ t_l k s .

    Punctuate the text and add capitals

    heavy fighting has broken out between armenia and azerbaijan there is a danger the fighting could lead to a bigger conflict between the two countries their trouble is over a region that is on their border called nagornokarabakh this is a disputed territory it is internationally recognized as being part of azerbaijan but it has a majority armenian ethnic population it has governed itself for the past few decades the recent clashes resulted in the deaths of both civilians and soldiers armenia blamed azerbaijan for starting the recent conflict it said azerbaijan launched missiles into the region azerbaijans defence ministry said it launched missiles to ensure the safety of the population in the region

    there have been tensions between armenia and azerbaijan since the end of the nagornokarabakh war in 1994 there have been many flashpoints between the two countries the current clashes have seen the worst fighting in many years an al jazeera journalist who is an expert on nagornokarabakh described the situation as a very serious escalation neighboring countries are now getting involved turkeys president said his country would support azerbaijan russia has given its backing to armenia but called for an immediate ceasefire and urgent negotiations iran which shares a border with both azerbaijan and armenia has offered to arrange peace talks

    Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

    HeavyfightinghasbrokenoutbetweenArmeniaandAzerbaijan.Therei
    sadangerthefightingcouldleadtoabiggerconflictbetweenthetwocoun
    tries.TheirtroubleisoveraregionthatisontheirbordercalledNagorno-
    Karabakh.Thisisadisputedterritory.Itisinternationallyrecognizedasb
    eingpartofAzerbaijanbutithasamajorityArmenianethnicpopulation.I
    thasgoverneditselfforthepastfewdecades.Therecentclashesresulted
    inthedeathsofbothciviliansandsoldiers.ArmeniablamedAzerbaijanfo
    rstartingtherecentconflict.ItsaidAzerbaijanlaunchedmissilesintothe
    region.Azerbaijan'sdefenceministrysaiditlaunchedmissilesto"ensur
    ethesafetyofthepopulation"intheregion.Therehavebeentensionsbet
    weenArmeniaandAzerbaijansincetheendoftheNagorno-Karabak
    hWarin1994.Therehavebeenmanyflashpointsbetweenthetwocountr
    ies.Thecurrentclasheshaveseentheworstfightinginmanyyears.AnAlJ
    azeerajournalistwhoisanexpertonNagorno-Karabakhdescribedthes
    ituationas,"averyseriousescalation".Neighboringcountriesarenowg
    ettinginvolved.Turkey'sPresidentsaidhiscountrywouldsupportAzerb
    aijan.RussiahasgivenitsbackingtoArmenia,butcalledforanimmediat
    eceasefireandurgentnegotiations.Iran,whichsharesaborderwithbot
    hAzerbaijanandArmenia,hasofferedtoarrangepeacetalks.

    Free writing

    Write about Nagorno-Karabakh for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

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    Academic writing

    There will be a time when no more countries fight each other. Discuss.

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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. NAGORNO-KARABAKH: Make a poster about Nagorno-Karabakh. Show your work to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all have similar things?
    4. CONFLICT: Write a magazine article about making war and conflict illegal. Include imaginary interviews with people who are for and against this.
    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 conflict. Ask him/her three questions about it. Give him/her three of your ideas on how to prevent it. 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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