The Reading / Listening - Nuclear Weapons - Level 6

This year's Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded to Nihon Hidankyo – a grassroots group established in 1956 by survivors of the atomic bombings of the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The group has spent decades lobbying governments worldwide for the abolition of nuclear weapons. The Nobel committee said Nihon Hidankyo won the award, "for its efforts to achieve a world free of nuclear weapons". Hiroshima and Nagasaki are the only places on Earth where such weapons have been used on civilian populations. Wikipedia says: "The effects of the atomic bombings killed 90,000 to 166,000 people in Hiroshima and 60,000 to 80,000 people in Nagasaki; roughly half occurred on the first day."

The news agency Reuters praised the ongoing legacy of Nihon Hidankyo. It wrote: "For decades - thanks in large part to the work of Nihon Hidankyo – the destruction unleashed on the two Japanese cities was widely seen as a lesson from history that using nuclear weapons again was too appalling to contemplate." However, rising tensions in the world today mean we are closer to the brink of nuclear war than ever before. Russia has warned that the USA's support of Ukraine increases the risks of nuclear conflict. There are fears that Iran is developing nuclear weapons. Meanwhile, North Korea has declared it is accelerating efforts to become "a military superpower and a nuclear power".

Try the same news story at these easier levels:

    Nuclear Weapons - Level 4  or  Nuclear Weapons - Level 5

Sources
  • https://www.reuters.com/world/nobel-prize-is-warning-world-nuclear-brink-2024-10-11/
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atomic_bombings_of_Hiroshima_and_Nagasaki
  • https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20241011/p2g/00m/0in/055000c
  • https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/15463081


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. NUCLEAR WEAPONS: Students walk around the class and talk to other students about nuclear weapons. 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?
       Nobel Peace Prize / grassroots / survivors / atomic bombings / Hiroshima / Nagasaki /
       legacy / destruction / history / nuclear weapon / nuclear war / the brink / superpower
Have a chat about the topics you liked. Change topics and partners frequently.
3. DETERRENT: Students A strongly believe nuclear weapons are a useful deterrent; Students B strongly believe the opposite. Change partners again and talk about your conversations.
4. PRIZES: Who or what should get these imaginary Nobel prizes for this year? Why? Complete this table with your partner(s). Change partners often and share what you wrote.

 

Who/What?

Why?

Music

 

 

Fashion

 

 

Gaming

 

 

Business

 

 

Sport

 

 

Art

 

 
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. PEACE: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word "peace". Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories.
6. NOBEL PRIZES: Rank these with your partner. Put the most important Nobel prize at the top. Change partners often and share your rankings.

  • Literature
  • Peace
  • Physics
  • Chemistry
  • Medicine
  • Economics

 

Vocabulary

    Paragraph 1

      1. grassroots a. Not exact, but close; about or around a certain amount.
      2. established  (verb) b. Starting with or coming from regular people in a community, not from leaders or people in power.
      3. lobbying c. A group of people chosen to make decisions or work on a special task.
      4. abolition d. Started; was set up.
      5. committee e. The act of ending or stopping something, especially a system or practice, like slavery.
      6. civilian f. Trying to convince or persuade people in power, like the government, to make certain decisions or changes.
      7. roughly g. A person who is not in the military or police; a regular person.

    Paragraph 2

      8. legacy h. Something handed down from the past, like traditions, achievements, or property.
      9. unleashed i. Speeding up or happening faster.
      10. appalling j. To let something loose or set something free, often causing strong action or emotions.
      11. contemplate k. A fight or disagreement between people, groups, or countries.
      12. the brink of l. Very shocking or bad; something that causes strong feelings of fear or disgust.
      13. conflict m. To think carefully about something, usually for a long time.
      14. accelerating n. Very close to something happening, usually something bad or important.

 

Before reading / listening

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

  1. The group Nihon Hidankyo first started during World War II.     T / F
  2. Nihon Hidankyo has pressured governments to abolish nuclear weapons. T / F
  3. Only two cities have experiences the horrors of nuclear bombs.     T / F
  4. The atom bombs killed more than a quarter of a million people in Japan.  T / F
  5. Reuters said Nihon Hidankyo has taught us a history lesson.     T / F
  6. The article says we are on the brink of nuclear war.     T / F
  7. The article says Iran has developed nuclear weapons.     T / F
  8. The article says North Korea is trying to be a military superpower.     T / F

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

  1. awarded
  2. established
  3. lobbying
  4. civilian
  5. occurred
  6. praised
  7. destruction
  8. appalling
  9. brink
  10. declared
  1. horrific
  2. non-military
  3. commended
  4. stated
  5. set up
  6. verge
  7. given
  8. happened
  9. campaigning
  10. devastation

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

  1. a grassroots
  2. survivors
  3. The group has spent
  4. such weapons have been
  5. roughly
  6. The news agency Reuters
  7. too appalling
  8. we are closer to the brink
  9. increases the risks
  10. it is accelerating
  1. used on civilian populations
  2. of nuclear conflict
  3. half occurred on the first day
  4. efforts
  5. decades lobbying governments
  6. of nuclear war
  7. group established in 1956
  8. praised the ongoing legacy
  9. to contemplate
  10. of the atomic bombings

Gap fill

Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
places
survivors
abolition
roughly
awarded
decades
effects
committee

This year's Nobel Peace Prize has been (1) _________________________________ to Nihon Hidankyo - a grassroots group established in 1956 by (2) _________________________________ of the atomic bombings of the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The group has spent (3) _________________________________ lobbying governments worldwide for the (4) _________________________________ of nuclear weapons. The Nobel (5) _________________________________ said Nihon Hidankyo won the award, "for its efforts to achieve a world free of nuclear weapons". Hiroshima and Nagasaki are the only (6) _________________________________ on Earth where such weapons have been used on civilian populations. Wikipedia says: "The (7) _________________________________ of the atomic bombings killed 90,000 to 166,000 people in Hiroshima and 60,000 to 80,000 people in Nagasaki; (8) _________________________________ half occurred on the first day."

Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
brink
widely
ongoing
military
appalling
fears
support
part

The news agency Reuters praised the (9) _________________________________ legacy of Nihon Hidankyo. It wrote: "For decades - thanks in large (10) _________________________________ to the work of Nihon Hidankyo - the destruction unleashed on the two Japanese cities was (11) _________________________________ seen as a lesson from history that using nuclear weapons again was too (12) _________________________________ to contemplate." However, rising tensions in the world today mean we are closer to the (13) _________________________________ of nuclear war than ever before. Russia has warned that the USA's (14) _________________________________ of Ukraine increases the risks of nuclear conflict. There are (15) _________________________________ that Iran is developing nuclear weapons. Meanwhile, North Korea has declared it is accelerating efforts to become "a (16) _________________________________ superpower and a nuclear power".

Listening — Guess the answers. Listen to check.

1)  This year's Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded to Nihon Hidankyo - ______
     a.  a grassroot group
     b.  a grassed rootsy group
     c.  a grass rooty group
     d.  a grassroots group
2)  The group has spent decades lobbying governments worldwide ______
     a.  for the abolition
     b.  for the abolishing
     c.  for a abolition
     d.  for the a pollution
3)  The Nobel committee said Nihon Hidankyo ______
     a.  won an award
     b.  won them award
     c.  won the award
     d.  won there award
4)  the only places on Earth where such weapons have been used ______
     a.  on civil populations
     b.  on sieve ill an populations
     c.  by civilian populations
     d.  on civilian populations
5)  roughly half occurred on ______
     a.  a first day
     b.  the firsts day
     c.  the first day
     d.  the firstly day

6)  The news agency Reuters praised ______
     a.  the yon going legacy
     b.  the oncoming legacy
     c.  the ongoing legacy
     d.  the outgoing legacy
7)  thanks in large part to the work of Nihon Hidankyo - ______
     a.  the destruction unleashed
     b.  the destructive unleashed
     c.  the destruction non-leashed
     d.  the destruction unleash
8)  a lesson from history that using nuclear weapons again was too ______
     a.  appealing to contemplate
     b.  appalling toucan template
     c.  appalling too con template
     d.  appalling to contemplate
9)  Russia has warned that the USA's support of Ukraine increases the risks ______
     a.  off nuclear conflict
     b.  oft nuclear conflict
     c.  oaf nuclear conflict
     d.  of nuclear conflict
10)  declared it is accelerating efforts to become ______
     a.  a military superpower
     b.  a milita superpower
     c.  a milli tree superpower
     d.  a military superpowered

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

This year's Nobel Peace Prize has (1) _______________________________________________ Nihon Hidankyo - a grassroots group established in 1956 by survivors of the (2) _______________________________________________ the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The group has spent decades lobbying governments worldwide for (3) _______________________________________________ nuclear weapons. The Nobel committee said Nihon Hidankyo won the award, "for its (4) _______________________________________________ a world free of nuclear weapons". Hiroshima and Nagasaki are the only places on Earth where such weapons have been used (5) _______________________________________________. Wikipedia says: "The effects of the atomic bombings killed 90,000 to 166,000 people in Hiroshima and 60,000 to 80,000 people in Nagasaki; (6) _______________________________________________ on the first day."

The news agency Reuters praised the (7) _______________________________________________ Nihon Hidankyo. It wrote: "For decades - thanks in large part to the work of Nihon Hidankyo - the (8) _______________________________________________ the two Japanese cities was widely seen as a lesson from history that using nuclear weapons again was too (9) _______________________________________________." However, rising tensions in the world today mean we are closer to (10) _______________________________________________ nuclear war than ever before. Russia has warned that the USA's support of Ukraine (11) _______________________________________________ of nuclear conflict. There are fears that Iran is developing nuclear weapons. Meanwhile, North Korea has declared it is (12) _______________________________________________ become "a military superpower and a nuclear power".

Comprehension questions

  1. When was Nihon Hidankyo started?
  2. Who started Nihon Hidankyo?
  3. What did Nihon Hidankyo lobby governments for?
  4. How many cities have experienced the horrors of atomic bombs?
  5. How many of the deceased perished on the first day?
  6. What did Reuters praise Nihon Hidankyo for?
  7. What did Reuters say was "too appalling to contemplate"?
  8. What does the article say we are closer to?
  9. Who does the article say might be developing nuclear weapons?
  10. What kind of superpower does North Korea want to become?

Multiple choice quiz

1) When was Nihon Hidankyo started?
a) 1954
b) 1955
c) 1956
d) 1957
2) Who started Nihon Hidankyo?
a) survivors of the atomic bombings
b) Japan's government
c) schoolchildren
d) former soldiers
3) What did Nihon Hidankyo lobby governments for?
a) an end to testing
b) the abolition of nuclear weapons
c) fines for nuclear states
d) peace museums
4) How many cities have experienced the horrors of atomic bombs?
a) five
b) four
c) three
d) two
5) How many of the deceased perished on the first day?
a) two-fifths
b) about a quarter
c) roughly half
d) most

6) What did Reuters praise Nihon Hidankyo for?
a) its persistence
b) its (ongoing) legacy
c) its impact
d) its leadership
7) What did Reuters say was "too appalling to contemplate"?
a) all countries having weapons
b) Armageddon
c) a nuclear winter
d) using nuclear weapons
8) What does the article say we are closer to?
a) Armageddon
b) nuclear war
c) nuclear non-proliferation
d) a weapons moratorium
9) Who does the article say might be developing nuclear weapons?
a) Ukraine
b) Iran
c) the USA
d) Russia
10) What kind of superpower does North Korea want to become?
a) a military superpower
b) an economic superpower
c) an A.I. superpower
d) a diplomatic superpower

Role play

Role  A – Literature
You think the Nobel Prize for Literature is the most important prize. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what is wrong with their prize. Also, tell the others which is the least important of these (and why): peace, economics or medicine.

Role  B – Peace
You think the Nobel Peace Prize is the most important prize. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what is wrong with their prize. Also, tell the others which is the least important of these (and why): literature, economics or medicine.

Role  C – Economics
You think the Nobel Prize for Economics is the most important prize. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what is wrong with their prize. Also, tell the others which is the least important of these (and why): peace, literature or medicine.

Role  D – Medicine
You think the Nobel Prize for Medicine is the most important prize. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what is wrong with their prize. Also, tell the others which is the least important of these (and why): peace, economics or literature.

After reading / listening

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

'nuclear'

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

    • and 'weapons'.

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

    • • 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:

    • awarded
    • decades
    • efforts
    • only
    • effects
    • roughly
    • legacy
    • lesson
    • rising
    • warned
    • fears
    • power

    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 - Nuclear Weapons

    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 'nuclear'?
    3. What do you think of nuclear weapons?
    4. What do you think of the Nobel Peace Prize?
    5. What do you know about Hiroshima and Nagasaki?
    6. Which nuclear armed countries do you worry about most?
    7. What needs to happen for the world to become nuclear free?
    8. How much do you worry about nuclear war?
    9. Is peace worldwide achievable?
    10. What advice do you have for Nihon Hidankyo?

    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 'weapon'?
    3. What do you think about what you read?
    4. What is your country's policy towards nuclear weapons?
    5. When will we stop waging wars?
    6. Do you think nuclear weapons will ever be used again?
    7. How can we best remember the atomic bombings
    8. What do you know about a nuclear winter?
    9. Is there a way to stop nuclear proliferation?
    10. What questions would you like to ask the Nobel committees?

    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)

    This year's Nobel Peace Prize has been (1) ____ to Nihon Hidankyo - a grassroots group established in 1956 by (2) ____ of the atomic bombings of the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The group has spent decades (3) ____ governments worldwide for the abolition of nuclear weapons. The Nobel committee said Nihon Hidankyo won the award, "for its efforts (4) ____ achieve a world free of nuclear weapons". Hiroshima and Nagasaki are the only places on Earth where (5) ____ weapons have been used on civilian populations. Wikipedia says: "The effects of the atomic bombings killed 90,000 to 166,000 people in Hiroshima and 60,000 to 80,000 people in Nagasaki; (6) ____ half occurred on the first day."

    The news agency Reuters praised the ongoing legacy (7) ____ Nihon Hidankyo. It wrote: "For decades - thanks (8) ____ large part to the work of Nihon Hidankyo - the destruction unleashed on the two Japanese cities was widely seen as a lesson from history that (9) ____ nuclear weapons again was too appalling to contemplate." However, rising tensions in the world today mean we are closer to the (10) ____ of nuclear war than ever before. Russia has warned that the USA's support of Ukraine increases the risks of nuclear conflict. There are (11) ____ that Iran is developing nuclear weapons. Meanwhile, North Korea has declared it is (12) ____ efforts to become "a military superpower and a nuclear power".

    Which of these words go in the above text?

    1. (a)     rewarded     (b)     warded     (c)     awarded     (d)     forwarded    
    2. (a)     survivors     (b)     survives     (c)     survivalists     (d)     surveys    
    3. (a)     lobbying     (b)     lobbing     (c)     lobbyist     (d)     lobby    
    4. (a)     to     (b)     for     (c)     of     (d)     at    
    5. (a)     hutch     (b)     such     (c)     ouch     (d)     much    
    6. (a)     ruff     (b)     rougher     (c)     rough     (d)     roughly    
    7. (a)     on     (b)     by     (c)     of     (d)     that    
    8. (a)     at     (b)     of     (c)     on     (d)     in    
    9. (a)     using     (b)     usage     (c)     user     (d)     usable    
    10. (a)     clink     (b)     brink     (c)     link     (d)     slinky    
    11. (a)     frightens     (b)     fears     (c)     petrifies     (d)     horrifies    
    12. (a)     fastening     (b)     flying     (c)     accelerating     (d)     whooshing

    Spelling

    Paragraph 1

    1. a sroatsrogs group
    2. iaebetslhds in 1956
    3. bbiongly governments worldwide
    4. the liobtoain of nuclear weapons
    5. used on nilciiva populations
    6. gyuorhl half occurred on the first day

    Paragraph 2

    1. Reuters praised the ongoing gayecl
    2. the destruction ealdsuehn
    3. too lpngaaipl to contemplate
    4. the nkrib of nuclear war
    5. increases the risks of nuclear lcoinfct
    6. it is lcctainaereg efforts

    Put the text back together

    (...)   established in 1956 by survivors of the atomic bombings of the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The group
    (...)   decades - thanks in large part to the work of Nihon Hidankyo - the destruction unleashed on the two Japanese cities was
    (...)   The news agency Reuters praised the ongoing legacy of Nihon Hidankyo. It wrote: "For
    (...)   to contemplate." However, rising tensions in the world today mean we are closer to the
    (...)   widely seen as a lesson from history that using nuclear weapons again was too appalling
    (...)   in Hiroshima and 60,000 to 80,000 people in Nagasaki; roughly half occurred on the first day."
    (..1..) This year's Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded to Nihon Hidankyo - a grassroots group
    (...)   on civilian populations. Wikipedia says: "The effects of the atomic bombings killed 90,000 to 166,000 people
    (...)   risks of nuclear conflict. There are fears that Iran is developing nuclear weapons. Meanwhile, North Korea has declared
    (...)   of nuclear weapons". Hiroshima and Nagasaki are the only places on Earth where such weapons have been used
    (...)   it is accelerating efforts to become "a military superpower and a nuclear power".
    (...)   committee said Nihon Hidankyo won the award, "for its efforts to achieve a world free
    (...)   has spent decades lobbying governments worldwide for the abolition of nuclear weapons. The Nobel
    (...)   brink of nuclear war than ever before. Russia has warned that the USA's support of Ukraine increases the

    Put the words in the right order

    1. year's   This   has   Prize   been   awarded   .   Peace   Nobel
    2. grassroots   survivors   .   1956   by   established   A   group   in
    3. spent   decades   lobbying   The   group   has   governments   .
    4. a   free   to   Efforts   achieve   weapons   .   of   world
    5. on   civilian   have   used   Weapons   populations   .   been
    6. the   The   unleashed   destruction   two   on   cities   .   Japanese
    7. Using   appalling   too   was   to   nuclear   weapons   contemplate   .
    8. of   to   war   .   the   closer   nuclear   We're   brink
    9. is   fears   The   Iran   developing   weapons   .   that   nuclear
    10. become   accelerating   a   superpower   .   military   It's   efforts   to

    Circle the correct word (20 pairs)

    This year's Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded / rewarded to Nihon Hidankyo - a grassroots group establishment / established in 1956 by survivors of the atomic bombings of / off the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The group has spent decades lobbing / lobbying governments worldwide for / of the abolition of nuclear weapons. The Nobel committee said Nihon Hidankyo won the award, "for / as its efforts to achieve a world free of nuclear weapons". Hiroshima and Nagasaki are the only places on / in Earth where such weapons have been used on / of civilian populations. Wikipedia says: "The effects / affects of the atomic bombings killed 90,000 to 166,000 people in Hiroshima and 60,000 to 80,000 people in Nagasaki; rough / roughly half occurred on the first day."

    The news agency Reuters prised / praised the ongoing legacy of Nihon Hidankyo. It wrote: "For decades - thanks on / in large part to the work of Nihon Hidankyo - the destruction unleashed on the two Japanese cities was width / widely seen as a lesson from history that / what using nuclear weapons again was too appalling for / to contemplate." However, rising tensions in the world today mean we are closer to / on the brink of nuclear war than ever / never before. Russia has warned that the USA's support of Ukraine increases the risks at / of nuclear conflict. There are frightens / fears that Iran is developing nuclear weapons. Meanwhile, North Korea has declared it is accelerated / accelerating efforts to become "a military superpower and a nuclear power".

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

    Insert the vowels (a, e, i, o, u)

    Th_s  y__r's  N_b_l  P__c_  Pr_z_  h_s  b__n  _w_rd_d  t_  N_h_n  H_d_nky_  -  _  gr_ssr__ts  gr__p  _st_bl_sh_d  _n  1956  by  s_rv_v_rs  _f  th_  _t_m_c  b_mb_ngs  _f  th_  J_p_n_s_  c_t__s  _f  H_r_sh_m_  _nd  N_g_s_k_.  Th_  gr__p  h_s  sp_nt  d_c_d_s  l_bby_ng  g_v_rnm_nts  w_rldw_d_  f_r  th_  _b_l_t__n  _f  n_cl__r  w__p_ns.  Th_  N_b_l  c_mm_tt__  s__d  N_h_n  H_d_nky_  w_n  th_  _w_rd,  "f_r  _ts  _ff_rts  t_  _ch__v_  _  w_rld  fr__  _f  n_cl__r  w__p_ns".  H_r_sh_m_  _nd  N_g_s_k_  _r_  th_  _nly  pl_c_s  _n  __rth  wh_r_  s_ch  w__p_ns  h_v_  b__n  _s_d  _n  c_v_l__n  p_p_l_t__ns.  W_k_p_d__  s_ys:  "Th_  _ff_cts  _f  th_  _t_m_c  b_mb_ngs  k_ll_d  90,000  t_  166,000  p__pl_  _n  H_r_sh_m_  _nd  60,000  t_  80,000  p__pl_  _n  N_g_s_k_;  r__ghly  h_lf  _cc_rr_d  _n  th_  f_rst  d_y."

    Th_  n_ws  _g_ncy  R__t_rs  pr__s_d  th_  _ng__ng  l_g_cy  _f  N_h_n  H_d_nky_.  _t  wr_t_:  "F_r  d_c_d_s  -  th_nks  _n  l_rg_  p_rt  t_  th_  w_rk  _f  N_h_n  H_d_nky_  -  th_  d_str_ct__n  _nl__sh_d  _n  th_  tw_  J_p_n_s_  c_t__s  w_s  w_d_ly  s__n  _s  _  l_ss_n  fr_m  h_st_ry  th_t  _s_ng  n_cl__r  w__p_ns  _g__n  w_s  t__  _pp_ll_ng  t_  c_nt_mpl_t_."  H_w_v_r,  th_  r_s_ng  t_ns__ns  _n  th_  w_rld  t_d_y  m__n  w_  _r_  cl_s_r  t_  th_  br_nk  _f  n_cl__r  w_r  th_n  _v_r  b_f_r_.  R_ss__  h_s  w_rn_d  th_t  th_  _S_'s  s_pp_rt  _f  _kr__n_  _ncr__s_s  th_  r_sks  _f  n_cl__r  c_nfl_ct.  Th_r_  _r_  f__rs  th_t  _r_n  _s  d_v_l_p_ng  n_cl__r  w__p_ns.  M__nwh_l_,  N_rth  K_r__  h_s  d_cl_r_d  _t  _s  _cc_l_r_t_ng  _ff_rts  t_  b_c_m_  "_  m_l_t_ry  s_p_rp_w_r  _nd  _  n_cl__r  p_w_r".

    Punctuate the text and add capitals

    this years nobel peace prize has been awarded to nihon hidankyo  a grassroots group established in 1956 by survivors of the atomic bombings of the japanese cities of hiroshima and nagasaki the group has spent decades lobbying governments worldwide for the abolition of nuclear weapons the nobel committee said nihon hidankyo won the award for its efforts to achieve a world free of nuclear weapons hiroshima and nagasaki are the only places on earth where such weapons have been used on civilian populations wikipedia says the effects of the atomic bombings killed 90000 to 166000 people in hiroshima and 60000 to 80000 people in nagasaki roughly half occurred on the first day

    the news agency reuters praised the ongoing legacy of nihon hidankyo it wrote for decades  thanks in large part to the work of nihon hidankyo  the destruction unleashed on the two japanese cities was widely seen as a lesson from history that using nuclear weapons again was too appalling to contemplate however rising tensions in the world today mean we are closer to the brink of nuclear war than ever before russia has warned that the usas support of ukraine increases the risks of nuclear conflict there are fears that iran is developing nuclear weapons meanwhile north korea has declared it is accelerating efforts to become a military superpower and a nuclear power

    Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

    Thisyear'sNobelPeacePrizehasbeenawardedtoNihonHidankyo-agra
    ssrootsgroupestablishedin1956bysurvivorsoftheatomicbombingsof
    theJapanesecitiesofHiroshimaandNagasaki.Thegrouphasspentdeca
    deslobbyinggovernmentsworldwidefortheabolitionofnuclearweapo
    ns.TheNobelcommitteesaidNihonHidankyowontheaward,"foritseffo
    rtstoachieveaworldfreeofnuclearweapons".HiroshimaandNagasakia
    retheonlyplacesonEarthwheresuchweaponshavebeenusedoncivilia
    npopulations.Wikipediasays:"Theeffectsoftheatomicbombingskilled
    90,000to166,000peopleinHiroshimaand60,000to80,000peopleinN
    agasaki;roughlyhalfoccurredonthefirstday."ThenewsagencyReuter
    spraisedtheongoinglegacyofNihonHidankyo.Itwrote:"Fordecades-t
    hanksinlargeparttotheworkofNihonHidankyo-thedestructionunlea
    shedonthetwoJapanesecitieswaswidelyseenasalessonfromhistoryth
    atusingnuclearweaponsagainwastooappallingtocontemplate."Howe
    ver,risingtensionsintheworldtodaymeanweareclosertothebrinkofnu
    clearwarthaneverbefore.RussiahaswarnedthattheUSA'ssupportofU
    kraineincreasestherisksofnuclearconflict.TherearefearsthatIranisd
    evelopingnuclearweapons.Meanwhile,NorthKoreahasdeclareditisac
    celeratingeffortstobecome"amilitarysuperpowerandanuclearpower
    ".

    Free writing

    Write about Hiroshima and Nagasaki for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

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    Academic writing

    Nuclear weapons are the biggest threat to the world. 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. NUCLEAR WEAPONS: Make a poster about nuclear weapons. Show your work to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all have similar things?
    4. DETERRENT: Write a magazine article about allowing countries to have nuclear weapons as a deterrent. 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 nuclear weapons. Ask him/her three questions about them. Give him/her three of your opinions on nuclear weapons. 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

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

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