Breaking News English ESL Lesson Plan on Libya Air Strikes

An international coalition has launched the first wave of attacks on Libyan air defences and tanks. The military action took place just hours after an emergency summit of world leaders in Paris ended on Saturday afternoon, Paris time. While the leaders were talking, French Mirage fighter jets were seen circling the skies above Libya’s rebel-held eastern city of Benghazi. Soon after, American warships and British submarines launched the first phase of their missile assault. Their aim was to knock out Libya’s air defenses. They fired a total of 112 cruise missiles at more than 20 targets around the capital Tripoli and coastal town of Misurata. Early reports are that Libyan air defences have been severely damaged.

U.S. President Barack Obama said he was reluctant to use force on Libya but believes it is necessary to save the lives of civilians. Speaking in Brazil, he told reporters: "We cannot stand idly by when a tyrant tells his people there will be no mercy." America is trying to keep a lower profile in the military action against Libya. It does not want the world to think it is attacking another Arab country. This may not be the case with world opinion this time round. The coalition includes Arab states who have promised material support for strikes against Libya. Foreign ministers of the UAE, Qatar, Iraq, Jordan and Morocco were at the summit. It is possible some of these countries may even take part in air strikes on Libyan military targets.

WARM-UPS

1. LIBYA: Walk around the class and talk to other students about Libya. Change partners often. Sit with your first partner(s) and share your findings.

2. CHAT: In pairs / groups, decide which of these topics or words from the article are most interesting and which are most boring.

coalition / wave of attacks / military action / fighter jets / air defences / missiles / reluctant / using force / standing idly by /keeping a low profile / Arab states / targets

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

3. WORLD OPINION: Complete this table with your partner(s). Change partners and share what you wrote. Change and share again.

Country	Opinion on Libya attacks	Why
Libya
France
Egypt
U.S.A.
China
U.A.E.

4. DEFEAT: Students A strongly believe Colonel Gaddafi will be defeated quickly; Students B strongly believe he won’t. Change partners again and talk about your conversations.

5. CHANGE: Where will it come next? Rank these and share your rankings with your partner. Put the likeliest to change at the top. Change partners and share your rankings again.

Libya
Yemen
Bahrain
Jordan

Syria
Saudi Arabia
Algeria
Iran

6. MILITARY ACTION: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the term ‘military action’. Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories.

BEFORE READING / LISTENING

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

a.	The international coalition has launched several waves of attacks.	T / F
b.	A meeting of world foreign ministers met at the summit of Paris.	T / F
c.	Britain and the U.S. launched missiles from ships and submarines.	T / F
d.	The missiles struck 20 coastal towns near Tripoli.	T / F
e.	Barack Obama said he was hesitant to attack Libya.	T / F
f.	Obama does not want Libya’s leader to show no mercy to his people.	T / F
g.	Arab states did not join the weekend Summit in Paris.	T / F
h.	Some Arab countries may join in with the strikes on Libya.	T / F

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

1.	launched	a.	meeting
2	took place	b.	compassion
3.	summit	c.	stage
4.	phase	d.	happened
5.	severely	e.	dictator
6.	reluctant	f.	badly
7.	tyrant	g.	situation
8.	mercy	h.	started
9.	case	i.	participate
10.	take part	j.	hesitant

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

1.	launched the first wave	a.	skies
2	hours after an emergency	b.	case with world opinion
3.	circling the	c.	damaged
4.	launched the first	d.	force on Libya
5.	air defences have been severely	e.	material support
6.	reluctant to use	f.	of attacks
7.	We cannot stand	g.	profile
8.	trying to keep a lower	h.	summit
9.	This may not be the	i.	phase
10.	Arab states who have promised	j.	idly by

WHILE READING / LISTENING

GAP FILL: Put the words into the gaps in the text.

An international coalition has launched the first (1) ____________ of attacks on Libyan air defences and tanks. The military action took place just hours after an emergency (2) ____________ of world leaders in Paris ended on Saturday afternoon, Paris time. While the leaders were talking, French Mirage fighter jets were seen (3) ____________ the skies above Libya’s (4) ____________ -held eastern city of Benghazi. Soon after, American warships and British submarines launched the first (5) ____________ of their missile assault. Their aim was to (6) ____________ out Libya’s air defenses. They fired a total of 112 cruise missiles at more than 20 (7) ____________ around the capital Tripoli and coastal town of Misurata. Early reports are that Libyan air defences have been (8) ____________ damaged.

phase
summit
knock
rebel
severely
wave
circling
targets

U.S. President Barack Obama said he was (9) ____________ to use force on Libya but believes it is necessary to (10) ____________ the lives of civilians. Speaking in Brazil, he told reporters: "We cannot (11) ____________ idly by when a tyrant tells his people there will be no (12) ____________." America is trying to keep a lower (13) ____________ in the military action against Libya. It does not want the world to think it is attacking another Arab country. This may not be the (14) ____________ with world opinion this time round. The coalition includes Arab states who have promised material (15) ____________ for strikes against Libya. Foreign ministers of the UAE, Qatar, Iraq, Jordan and Morocco were at the summit. It is possible some of these countries may even take part in air (16) ____________ on Libyan military targets.

case
mercy
save
strikes
profile
reluctant
support
stand

LISTENING – Listen and fill in the gaps

An international coalition has launched the ____________________ on Libyan air defences and tanks. The military action ____________________ after an emergency summit of world leaders in Paris ended on Saturday afternoon, Paris time. ____________________ talking, French Mirage fighter jets were seen circling the skies above Libya’s rebel-held eastern city of Benghazi. Soon after, American warships and British submarines launched ____________________ their missile assault. Their ____________________ Libya’s air defenses. They fired a total of 112 cruise missiles at more than 20 targets around the capital Tripoli and coastal town of Misurata. Early reports are that Libyan air defences have ____________________.

U.S. President Barack Obama said ____________________ use force on Libya but believes it is necessary to save the lives of civilians. Speaking in Brazil, he told reporters: "We ____________________ by when a tyrant tells his people there ____________________." America is trying to keep a lower profile in the military action against Libya. It does not want the world to think it is attacking another Arab country. This may ____________________ with world opinion this time round. The coalition includes Arab states who have promised ____________________ strikes against Libya. Foreign ministers of the UAE, Qatar, Iraq, Jordan and Morocco were at the summit. It is possible some of these countries ____________________ in air strikes on Libyan military targets.

AFTER READING / LISTENING

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

wave

attack

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:

wave
emergency
skies
phase
knock
early

force
save
mercy
profile
material
take part

STUDENT LIBYA SURVEY

Write five GOOD questions about Libya 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.

	STUDENT 1 _____________	STUDENT 2 _____________	STUDENT 3 _____________
Q.1.
Q.2.
Q.3.
Q.4.
Q.5.

Now return to your original partner and share and talk about what you found out. Change partners often.
Make mini-presentations to other groups on your findings.

LIBYA DISCUSSION

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

a)	What did you think when you read the headline?
b)	What springs to mind when you hear the word ‘Libya’?
c)	What do you think about the coalition attacks?
d)	Is the coalition right to do what it’s doing?
e)	Are you surprised the attacks started so quickly?
f)	Do you think Colonel Gaddafi will attack other countries and passenger planes, as he has suggested?
g)	How long do you think this military campaign will last?
h)	Why did China, Russia, India and Germany abstain in the U.N. vote for the no-fly zone?
i)	What do you think will happen over the coming days/weeks/months?
j)	Could this be like another Iraq?

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

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

a)	Did you like reading this article?
b)	Why did President Obama say he was so reluctant?
c)	Is this a true world coalition attacking Libya?
d)	Why didn’t Colonel Gaddafi stick to his ceasefire?
e)	Will the U.S. keep a lower profile?
f)	What will world opinion think of the attacks on Libya?
g)	What does support from Arab countries give to the coalition?
h)	Should Arab nations be flying planes to attack Libya?
i)	Are coalition ground troops totally out of the question?
j)	What questions would you like to ask Colonel Gaddafi?

LANGUAGE – MULTIPLE CHOICE

An international coalition has launched the first wave of (1) ____ on Libyan air defences and tanks. The military action took place (2) ____ hours after an emergency summit of world leaders in Paris ended on Saturday afternoon, Paris time. While the leaders were talking, French Mirage fighter jets were seen (3) ____ the skies above Libya’s rebel-(4) ____ eastern city of Benghazi. Soon after, American warships and British submarines launched the first (5) ____ of their missile assault. Their aim was to knock out Libya’s air defenses. They fired a total of 112 cruise missiles at more than 20 targets around the capital Tripoli and coastal town of Misurata. Early reports are that Libyan air defences have been (6) ____ damaged.

U.S. President Barack Obama said he was (7) ____ to use force on Libya but believes it is necessary to save the lives of civilians. Speaking in Brazil, he told reporters: "We cannot (8) ____ idly by when a tyrant tells his people there will be no (9) ____." America is trying to keep a lower profile in the military action against Libya. It does not want the world to think it is attacking another Arab country. This may not be the (10) ____ with world opinion this time round. The coalition includes Arab states who have promised (11) ____ support for strikes against Libya. Foreign ministers of the UAE, Qatar, Iraq, Jordan and Morocco were at the summit. It is possible some of these countries may even take part (12) ____ air strikes on Libyan military targets.

Put the correct words from the table below in the above article.

1.	(a)	attacked	(b)	attack	(c)	attacker	(d)	attacks
2.	(a)	simple	(b)	just	(c)	with	(d)	once
3.	(a)	circling	(b)	orbiting	(c)	rounding	(d)	squaring
4.	(a)	hold	(b)	holding	(c)	held	(d)	holder
5.	(a)	phrase	(b)	faze	(c)	phase	(d)	glaze
6.	(a)	severed	(b)	severely	(c)	several	(d)	severance
7.	(a)	reluctant	(b)	disinfectant	(c)	constant	(d)	entrant
8.	(a)	kneel	(b)	walk	(c)	crawl	(d)	stand
9.	(a)	merciful	(b)	mercy	(c)	merciless	(d)	mercenary
10.	(a)	trunk	(b)	face	(c)	base	(d)	case
11.	(a)	maternal	(b)	maturity	(c)	material	(d)	matter
12.	(a)	in	(b)	on	(c)	an	(d)	at

WRITING

Write about Libya for 10 minutes. Correct your partner’s paper.

_____________________________________________________________________________

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 Libya. Share what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.

3. LIBYA: Make a poster about the coalition’s attacks. Show your work to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all have similar things?

4. NORTH AFRICA: Write a magazine article about the future of North Africa. Include imaginary interviews with people who are for and against change.

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. LETTER: Write a letter to Colonel Gaddafi. Ask him three questions about this conflict. Give him three ideas on what to do next. Read your letter to your partner(s) in your next lesson. Your partner(s) will answer your questions.

ANSWERS

TRUE / FALSE:

SYNONYM MATCH:

1.	launched	a.	started
2	took place	b.	happened
3.	summit	c.	meeting
4.	phase	d.	stage
5.	severely	e.	badly
6.	reluctant	f.	hesitant
7.	tyrant	g.	dictator
8.	mercy	h.	compassion
9.	case	i.	situation
10.	take part	j.	participate

PHRASE MATCH:

1.	launched the first wave	a.	of attacks
2	hours after an emergency	b.	summit
3.	circling the	c.	skies
4.	launched the first	d.	phase
5.	air defences have been severely	e.	damaged
6.	reluctant to use	f.	force on Libya
7.	We cannot stand	g.	idly by
8.	trying to keep a lower	h.	profile
9.	This may not be the	i.	case with world opinion
10.	Arab states who have promised	j.	material support

GAP FILL:

International coalition attacks Libya

An international coalition has launched the first (1) wave of attacks on Libyan air defences and tanks. The military action took place just hours after an emergency (2) summit of world leaders in Paris ended on Saturday afternoon, Paris time. While the leaders were talking, French Mirage fighter jets were seen (3) circling the skies above Libya’s (4) rebel-held eastern city of Benghazi. Soon after, American warships and British submarines launched the first (5) phase of their missile assault. Their aim was to (6) knock out Libya’s air defenses. They fired a total of 112 cruise missiles at more than 20 (7) targets around the capital Tripoli and coastal town of Misurata. Early reports are that Libyan air defences have been (8) severely damaged.

U.S. President Barack Obama said he was (9) reluctant to use force on Libya but believes it is necessary to (10) save the lives of civilians. Speaking in Brazil, he told reporters: "We cannot (11) stand idly by when a tyrant tells his people there will be no (12) mercy." America is trying to keep a lower (13) profile in the military action against Libya. It does not want the world to think it is attacking another Arab country. This may not be the (14) case with world opinion this time round. The coalition includes Arab states who have promised material (15) support for strikes against Libya. Foreign ministers of the UAE, Qatar, Iraq, Jordan and Morocco were at the summit. It is possible some of these countries may even take part in air (16) strikes on Libyan military targets.

LANGUAGE WORK

1 - d

2 - b

3 - a

4 - c

5 - c

6 - b

7 - a

8 - d

9 - b

10 - d

11 - c

12 - a

Breaking News English

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International Coalition Attacks Libya (20th March, 2011)

WARM-UPS

BEFORE READING / LISTENING

WHILE READING / LISTENING

LISTENING – Listen and fill in the gaps

AFTER READING / LISTENING

STUDENT LIBYA SURVEY

LIBYA DISCUSSION

LANGUAGE – MULTIPLE CHOICE

WRITING

HOMEWORK

ANSWERS

International coalition attacks Libya

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Sean Banville's Book

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My 1,000 Ideas e-Book	Breaking News English HOME \| HELP MY SITE \| 000s MORE FREE LESSONS	My 1,000 Ideas e-Book

Breaking News English

PRINT

13-Page PDF Handout - with all-skills activities

LISTEN

MP3 (1:57 - 934KB)

International Coalition Attacks Libya (20th March, 2011)

WARM-UPS

BEFORE READING / LISTENING

WHILE READING / LISTENING

LISTENING – Listen and fill in the gaps

AFTER READING / LISTENING

STUDENT LIBYA SURVEY

LIBYA DISCUSSION

LANGUAGE – MULTIPLE CHOICE

WRITING

HOMEWORK

ANSWERS

International coalition attacks Libya

Help Support This Web Site

Sean Banville's Book

Thank You

13-Page PDF
Handout - with
all-skills activities