The Reading / Listening - Bird Photos - Level 0

We put many photos online. Researchers looked at what bird photos people "liked". They did research on the photo-sharing app Instagram. They wanted to know: "What makes a great bird photo?". They found the most 'instagrammable' bird is the frogmouth. This is a nocturnal bird that lives in India and Australia.

The researchers looked at 30,000 bird photos. They used a programme to find which photos got the most "likes". The frogmouth was top because of its large eyes. Most birds' eyes are on the sides of their head, but the frogmouth's eyes are in the centre. This makes it look human, cute and cuddly.

Try the same news story at these levels:

    Bird Photos - Level 1,  Bird Photos - Level 2   or  Bird Photos - Level 3

Sources
  • https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-56946165
  • https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/apr/30/researchers-find-frogmouth-is-worlds-most-instagrammable-bird
  • https://www.businessinsider.com/photos-of-the-bird-that-researchers-deemed-most-instagrammable-2021-4


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 :-)

Phrase Matching

Paragraph 1

  1. We put many photos
  2. what bird photos people
  3. They did
  4. the photo-sharing
  5. They wanted
  6. a great bird
  7. the most 'instagrammable' bird
  8. This is a nocturnal
  1. research
  2. is the frogmouth
  3. "liked"
  4. bird
  5. photo
  6. app
  7. online
  8. to know

Paragraph 2

  1. researchers looked at
  2. which photos got
  3. The frogmouth
  4. because of its large
  5. on the sides
  6. the frogmouth's eyes are in
  7. This makes
  8. cute and
  1. the centre
  2. was top
  3. cuddly
  4. the most "likes"
  5. it look human
  6. 30,000 bird photos
  7. of their head
  8. eyes

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

We (1) ___________________ online. Researchers looked (2) ___________________ photos people "liked". (3) ___________________ on the photo-sharing app Instagram. They (4) ___________________: "What makes a great bird photo?" They (5) ___________________ 'instagrammable' bird is the frogmouth. This is a nocturnal bird (6) ___________________ India and Australia.

The (7) ___________________ 30,000 bird photos. They used a programme (8) ___________________ photos got the most "likes". The frogmouth (9) ___________________ of its large eyes. Most (10) ___________________ on the sides of their head, but the frogmouth's (11) ___________________ the centre. This makes it look human, (12) ___________________.

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

Weputmanyphotosonline.Researcherslookedatwhatbirdphotospeo
ple"liked".Theydidresearchonthephoto-sharingappInstagram.Th
eywantedtoknow:"Whatmakesagreatbirdphoto?"Theyfoundthemos
t'instagrammable'birdisthefrogmouth.Thisisanocturnalbirdthatlives
inIndiaandAustralia.Theresearcherslookedat30,000birdphotos.The
yusedaprogrammetofindwhichphotosgotthemost"likes".Thefrogmo
uthwastopbecauseofitslargeeyes.Mostbirds'eyesareonthesidesofth
eirhead,butthefrogmouth'seyesareinthecentre.Thismakesitlookhu
man,cuteandcuddly.

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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