The Reading / Listening - Eggs - Level 3

Scientists believe they know why birds' eggs are different shapes. Some eggs are quite round; some are kind of potato-shaped; and others are longer and pointy. Two thousand years ago, the Greek philosopher Aristotle said flatter eggs had female chicks inside them and rounder eggs contained male chicks. But he was wrong. A new study from Princeton University in the USA suggests that the shape of the egg depends on how well and how fast the female bird flies. Professor Mary Stoddard said: "It has not gone unnoticed that birds have evolved to [lay eggs with] shapes that are quite diverse in form - everything from a spherical owl egg to a pointy sandpiper egg."

Professor Stoddard and her colleagues created a mathematical formula to map the shape of different eggs. They looked at almost 50,000 eggs from 1,400 different bird species. The researchers put the shape, length and height of the eggs into a computer database. They also looked at how oval the eggs were. The researchers found that the birds that laid the most-oval-shaped eggs were the best fliers. Professor Stoddard said: "We were shocked to see that one of the best explanations for egg shape variation was flight ability." The researchers found that hummingbirds and sandpipers laid the most-oval-shaped eggs; owls laid the roundest eggs; and sea birds laid the pointiest eggs.

Try the same news story at these easier levels:

    Eggs - Level 0 Eggs - Level 1   or  Eggs - Level 2

Sources
  • http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/06/bird-eggs-shapes-flight-evolution/
  • http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2017-06/23/c_136387440.htm
  • http://www.popsci.com/bird-flight-egg-shape#page-2


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 :-)

Warm-ups

1. BIRDS: Students walk around the class and talk to other students about birds. 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?

       scientists / birds / eggs / potato / female / chicks / university / flies / diverse / owl /
       colleagues / formula / species / computer / database / shocked / ability / oval

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

3. EGGS: Students A strongly believe eggs are the most important food; Students B strongly believe otherwise.  Change partners again and talk about your conversations.

4. DIFFERENT: Why are these things in animals different? Complete this table with your partner(s). Change partners often and share what you wrote.

 

What are the differences?

Why?

Eggs

 

 

Feathers

 

 

Eyes

 

 

Fur

 

 

Teeth

 

 

Calls

 

 

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. SHAPE: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word "shape". Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories.

6. COOKING: Rank these with your partner. Put the best ways of eating eggs at the top. Change partners often and share your rankings.

  • omelet
  • poached
  • baked
  • soft-boiled
  • raw
  • fried
  • scrambled
  • hard-boiled

 

Before reading / listening

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

  1. Scientists are not sure why bird eggs have different shapes.     T / F
  2. Aristotle said flatter eggs contained female chicks.     T / F
  3. The shape of an egg affects how well a bird flies.     T / F
  4. Owl eggs are spherical.     T / F
  5. Researchers looked at nearly 50,000 eggs.     T / F
  6. The researchers looked at 14,000 bird species.     T / F
  7. The researchers were not shocked at what they found.     T / F
  8. Eagles laid the pointiest eggs.     T / F

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

  1. believe
  2. quite
  3. contained
  4. fast
  5. evolved
  6. colleagues
  7. map
  8. shocked
  9. ability
  10. round
  1. held
  2. co-workers
  3. chart
  4. fairly
  5. skill
  6. developed
  7. think
  8. circular
  9. quickly
  10. amazed

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

  1. Scientists believe they know
  2. some are kind of potato-
  3. rounder eggs contained male
  4. how fast the female
  5. shapes that are quite diverse
  6. created a mathematical
  7. 50,000 eggs from 1,400 different
  8. They also looked at how oval the eggs
  9. flight
  10. owls laid
  1. bird species
  2. bird flies
  3. were
  4. formula
  5. chicks
  6. ability
  7. shaped
  8. in form
  9. the roundest eggs
  10. why

Gap fill

Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
contained
evolved
believe
form
philosopher
spherical
round
depends

Scientists (1) ____________ they know why birds' eggs are different shapes. Some eggs are quite (2) ____________; some are kind of potato-shaped; and others are longer and pointy. Two thousand years ago, the Greek (3) ____________ Aristotle said flatter eggs had female chicks inside them and rounder eggs (4) ____________ male chicks. But he was wrong. A new study from Princeton University in the USA suggests that the shape of the egg (5) ____________ on how well and how fast the female bird flies. Professor Mary Stoddard said: "It has not gone unnoticed that birds have (6) ____________ to [lay eggs with] shapes that are quite diverse in (7) ____________ - everything from a (8) ____________ owl egg to a pointy sandpiper egg."

Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
formula
shocked
oval
laid
colleagues
ability
best
length

Professor Stoddard and her (9) ____________ created a mathematical (10) ____________ to map the shape of different eggs. They looked at almost 50,000 eggs from 1,400 different bird species. The researchers put the shape, (11) ____________ and height of the eggs into a computer database. They also looked at how (12) ____________ the eggs were. The researchers found that the birds that laid the most-oval-shaped eggs were the (13) ____________ fliers. Professor Stoddard said: "We were (14) ____________ to see that one of the best explanations for egg shape variation was flight (15) ____________." The researchers found that hummingbirds and sandpipers laid the most-oval-shaped eggs; owls laid the roundest eggs; and sea birds (16) ____________ the pointiest eggs.

Listening — Guess the answers. Listen to check.

1)  Scientists believe they know why birds' eggs are ______
     a.  differently shapes
     b.  different shaped
     c.  difference shapes
     d.  different shapes

2)  Some eggs are quite round; some are kind ______
     a.  off potato-shape
     b.  of potatoes shaped
     c.  off potatoes shape
     d.  of potato-shaped

3)  flatter eggs had female chicks inside them and rounder eggs ______
     a.  contain male chicks
     b.  contains male chicks
     c.  contained male chicks
     d.  containing male chicks

4)  the shape of the egg depends on how well and how fast the ______
     a.  female bird flies
     b.  female birds flies
     c.  female birds fly
     d.  female birds fly

5)  birds have evolved to lay eggs with shapes that are quite ______
     a.  diverse on form
     b.  diverse in form
     c.  diverse in farm
     d.  diverse in firm

6)  Professor Stoddard and her colleagues created a ______
     a.  mathematical formula
     b.  mathematical formulae
     c.  mathematically formula
     d.  mathematical form mule

7)  They looked at almost 50,000 eggs from 1,400 different ______
     a.  birds species
     b.  birds' species
     c.  bird's species
     d.  bird species

8)  The researchers put the shape, length and height of the eggs into a ______
     a.  computer databases
     b.  computer database
     c.  computers database
     d.  computers databases

9)  one of the best explanations for egg shape variation ______
     a.  was flight ability
     b.  was flight abilities
     c.  was flights ability
     d.  were flight ability

10)  owls laid the roundest eggs; and sea birds laid ______
     a.  the point east egg
     b.  the paint east eggs
     c.  the pointiest egg
     d.  the pointiest eggs

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

Scientists believe (1) ___________________ birds' eggs are different shapes. Some eggs are quite round; some (2) ___________________ potato-shaped; and others are longer and pointy. Two thousand years ago, the Greek philosopher Aristotle said (3) ___________________ female chicks inside them and rounder eggs contained male chicks. But he was wrong. A new study from Princeton University in the USA suggests (4) ___________________ of the egg depends on how well and how fast the female bird flies. Professor Mary Stoddard said: "It (5) ___________________ unnoticed that birds have evolved to [lay eggs with] shapes that are quite (6) ___________________ form - everything from a spherical owl egg to a pointy sandpiper egg."

Professor Stoddard and her colleagues created (7) ___________________ formula to map the shape of different eggs. They looked at almost 50,000 eggs from 1,400 different (8) ___________________. The researchers put the shape, length and height of the eggs into a computer database. They also looked (9) ___________________ the eggs were. The researchers found that the birds that laid the most-oval-shaped eggs were (10) ___________________. Professor Stoddard said: "We were shocked to see that one of the best explanations for egg shape variation was (11) ___________________." The researchers found that hummingbirds and sandpipers laid the most-oval-shaped eggs; owls laid the roundest eggs; and sea (12) ___________________ pointiest eggs.

Comprehension questions

  1. What vegetable did the article say some eggs are shaped like?
  2. Which philosopher was mentioned?
  3. Which university is the research from?
  4. What is Mary Stoddard's job?
  5. Which bird did the article say was spherical?
  6. What kind of formula did the researchers make?
  7. How many eggs did the researchers look at?
  8. Which shape eggs did the best fliers come from?
  9. How did the researchers feel about the findings of the research?
  10. Which birds lay the pointiest eggs?

Multiple choice quiz

1) What vegetable did the article say some eggs are shaped like?
a) cucumbers
b) carrots
c) potatoes
d) onions

2) Which philosopher was mentioned?
a) Aristotle
b) Plato
c) Confucius
d) Nietzsche

3) Which university is the research from?
a) Sorbonne
b) Princeton
c) Oxford
d) Tokyo

4) What is Mary Stoddard's job?
a) philosopher
b) egg farmer
c) bird watcher
d) professor

5) Which bird's egg did the article say was spherical?
a) eagle
b) emu
c) owl
d) crow

6) What kind of formula did the researchers make?
a) physics
b) mathematical
c) chemical
d) engineering

7) How many eggs did the researchers look at?
a) about 50,000
b) exactly 50,000
c) over 50,000
d) almost 50,000

8) Which shape eggs did the best fliers come from?
a) circular
b) oval
c) potato-shaped
d) pointy

9) How did the researchers feel about the findings of the research?
a) excited
b) shocked
c) angry
d) bored

10) Which birds lay the pointiest eggs?
a) sea birds
b) birds of prey
c) woodland birds
d) birds of paradise

Role play

Role  A – Raw

You think the best way to eat eggs is raw. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what is wrong with their ways. Also, tell the others which is the least tasty of these (and why): fried, boiled or an omelet.

Role  B – Fried

You think the best way to eat eggs is fried. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what is wrong with their ways. Also, tell the others which is the least tasty of these (and why): raw, boiled or an omelet.

Role  C – Boiled

You think the best way to eat eggs is boiled. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what is wrong with their ways. Also, tell the others which is the least tasty of these (and why): fried, raw or an omelet.

Role  D – Omelet

You think the best way to eat eggs is making an omelet. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what is wrong with their ways. Also, tell the others which is the least tasty of these (and why):  fried, boiled or raw.

After reading / listening

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

'bird'

  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • and 'egg'.

  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • • 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:

    • map
    • 50,000
    • height
    • also
    • ability
    • sea
    • believe
    • two
    • wrong
    • depends
    • gone
    • diverse

    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 - The shape of eggs helps birds fly well

    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 'bird'?
    3. What do you know about bird eggs?
    4. How often do you eat eggs?
    5. Why are eggs different colours?
    6. What are the tastiest eggs?
    7. What do you think of eating raw eggs?
    8. What’s your favorite way of cooking eggs?
    9. Are there any interesting customs in your country using eggs?
    10. Do you think eggs are good value for money?

    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 'egg'?
    3. What do you think about what you read?
    4. Have you had eggs from birds other than chickens?
    5. Do you prefer the egg white or the yolk?
    6. Do you usually buy free range eggs or those from battery chickens?
    7. What have you eaten in the past few days that contained eggs?
    8. Do you prefer soft- or hard-boiled eggs?
    9. What would your life be like without eggs?
    10. What questions would you like to ask the researchers?

    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)

    Scientists believe they know why birds' eggs are (1) ____ shapes. Some eggs are quite round; some are kind of potato-(2) ____; and others are longer and pointy. Two thousand years ago, the Greek philosopher Aristotle said flatter eggs had female (3) ____ inside them and rounder eggs contained male chicks. But he was wrong. A new study from Princeton University in the USA suggests that the shape of the egg depends (4) ____ how well and how fast the female bird flies. Professor Mary Stoddard said: "It has not (5) ____ unnoticed that birds have evolved to [lay eggs with] shapes that are quite diverse in form - everything from a spherical owl egg (6) ____ a pointy sandpiper egg."

    Professor Stoddard and her colleagues created a mathematical formula to (7) ____ the shape of different eggs. They looked at (8) ____ 50,000 eggs from 1,400 different bird species. The researchers put the shape, length and height of the eggs into a computer database. They also looked at (9) ____ oval the eggs were. The researchers found that the birds that laid the most-oval-shaped eggs were the best (10) ____. Professor Stoddard said: "We were shocked to see that one of the best explanations for egg shape variation was (11) ____ ability." The researchers found that hummingbirds and sandpipers laid the most-oval-shaped eggs; owls laid the roundest eggs; and (12) ____ birds laid the pointiest eggs.

    Which of these words go in the above text?

    1. (a)     different     (b)     differential     (c)     differences     (d)     differentiate    
    2. (a)     shaping     (b)     shapes     (c)     shaped     (d)     shape    
    3. (a)     checks     (b)     chucks     (c)     chicks     (d)     chocks    
    4. (a)     of     (b)     at     (c)     in     (d)     on    
    5. (a)     went     (b)     gone     (c)     going     (d)     go    
    6. (a)     of     (b)     to     (c)     at     (d)     in    
    7. (a)     mapping     (b)     mapped     (c)     maps     (d)     map    
    8. (a)     must     (b)     almost     (c)     most     (d)     mostly    
    9. (a)     why     (b)     what     (c)     how     (d)     which    
    10. (a)     fillers     (b)     files     (c)     filers     (d)     fliers    
    11. (a)     flying     (b)     flies     (c)     fliers     (d)     flight    
    12. (a)     seen     (b)     sea     (c)     seeing     (d)     scene

    Spelling

    Paragraph 1

    1. Scientists bilveee they know
    2. the Greek rhlohepipos Aristotle
    3. rounder eggs contained male hisckc
    4. esneddp on how well
    5. shapes that are quite rveseid
    6. a hriceaspl owl egg

    Paragraph 2

    1. Professor Stoddard and her lecsolaeug
    2. a mathematical mrolfua
    3. 1,400 different bird siepces
    4. thiegh of the eggs
    5. fhtlig ability
    6. The aserrserhec found that

    Put the text back together

    (    )     height of the eggs into a computer database. They also looked at how oval the eggs

    (    )     shape variation was flight ability." The researchers found that hummingbirds and sandpipers

    (    )     chicks. But he was wrong. A new study from Princeton University in the USA suggests that the shape of the egg depends

    (    )     laid the most-oval-shaped eggs; owls laid the roundest eggs; and sea birds laid the pointiest eggs.

    (    )     eggs. They looked at almost 50,000 eggs from 1,400 different bird species. The researchers put the shape, length and

    (    )     Professor Stoddard and her colleagues created a mathematical formula to map the shape of different

    (    )     fliers. Professor Stoddard said: "We were shocked to see that one of the best explanations for egg

    1  )     Scientists believe they know why birds' eggs are different shapes. Some eggs are quite round; some are kind

    (    )     of potato-shaped; and others are longer and pointy. Two thousand years ago, the Greek

    (    )     were. The researchers found that the birds that laid the most-oval-shaped eggs were the best

    (    )     gone unnoticed that birds have evolved to [lay eggs with] shapes that are quite diverse in

    (    )     form - everything from a spherical owl egg to a pointy sandpiper egg."

    (    )     on how well and how fast the female bird flies. Professor Mary Stoddard said: "It has not

    (    )     philosopher Aristotle said flatter eggs had female chicks inside them and rounder eggs contained male

    Put the words in the right order

    1. eggs   they   are   know   different   why   Scientists   birds'   believe   .
    2. flatter   inside   eggs   them   had   Aristotle   female   said   chicks   .
    3. female   and   bird   how   flies   fast   How   the   well   .
    4. have   gone   evolved   unnoticed   It   that   has   birds   not   .
    5. with   eggs   Lay   form   in   diverse   quite   are   that   shapes   .
    6. map   of  A   to   shape   eggs   formula  the   different   mathematical  .
    7. eggs   at   were   how   They   oval   also   the   looked   .
    8. that   the   shaped   laid   best  eggs   oval-  the   Birds   were   most-  .
    9. for   of   egg   the   shape   best   variation   explanations   One   .
    10. most   eggs   -   Sandpipers   oval   laid   -   the   shaped   .

    Circle the correct word (20 pairs)

    Scientists believe / belief they know why birds' eggs are different shapes. Some eggs are quiet / quite round; some are kind of potato-shaped; and others are longer and pointy. Two thousand years age / ago, the Greek philosopher Aristotle said flatter eggs had female chicks inside / insider them and rounder eggs contents / contained male chicks. But he was wrong. A new study from Princeton University in the USA suggestion / suggests that the shape of the egg depends in / on how well and how fast the female bird flies. Professor Mary Stoddard said: "It has not gone unnoticed that / what birds have evolved to [lay eggs with] shapes that are quite diverse in / on form - everything from a spherical owl egg of / to a pointy sandpiper egg."

    Professor Stoddard and her colleagues / colleges created a mathematical formula to map the shape of / off different eggs. They looked at most / almost 50,000 eggs from 1,400 different bird species. The researchers put the shape, length and height / high of the eggs into a computer database. They also looked at how oval the eggs / egg were. The researchers found that the birds that laid the most-oval-shaped eggs were the best fillers / fliers. Professor Stoddard said: "We were shocked / shocking to see that one of the best explanations for egg shape vary / variation was flight ability / able." The researchers found that hummingbirds and sandpipers laid the most-oval-shaped eggs; owls laid the roundest eggs; and see / sea birds laid the pointiest eggs.

    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)

    Sc__nt_sts b_l__v_ th_y kn_w why b_rds' _ggs _r_ d_ff_r_nt sh_p_s. S_m_ _ggs _r_ q__t_ r__nd; s_m_ _r_ k_nd _f p_t_t_-sh_p_d; _nd _th_rs _r_ l_ng_r _nd p__nty. Tw_ th__s_nd y__rs _g_, th_ Gr__k ph_l_s_ph_r _r_st_tl_ s__d fl_tt_r _ggs h_d f_m_l_ ch_cks _ns_d_ th_m _nd r__nd_r _ggs c_nt__n_d m_l_ ch_cks. B_t h_ w_s wr_ng. _ n_w st_dy fr_m Pr_nc_t_n _n_v_rs_ty _n th_ _S_ s_gg_sts th_t th_ sh_p_ _f th_ _gg d_p_nds _n h_w w_ll _nd h_w f_st th_ f_m_l_ b_rd fl__s. Pr_f_ss_r M_ry St_dd_rd s__d: "_t h_s n_t g_n_ _nn_t_c_d th_t b_rds h_v_ _v_lv_d t_ [l_y _ggs w_th] sh_p_s th_t _r_ q__t_ d_v_rs_ _n f_rm - _v_ryth_ng fr_m _ sph_r_c_l _wl _gg t_ _ p__nty s_ndp_p_r _gg."

    Pr_f_ss_r St_dd_rd _nd h_r c_ll__g__s cr__t_d _ m_th_m_t_c_l f_rm_l_ t_ m_p th_ sh_p_ _f d_ff_r_nt _ggs. Th_y l__k_d _t _lm_st 50,000 _ggs fr_m 1,400 d_ff_r_nt b_rd sp_c__s. Th_ r_s__rch_rs p_t th_ sh_p_, l_ngth _nd h__ght _f th_ _ggs _nt_ _ c_mp_t_r d_t_b_s_. Th_y _ls_ l__k_d _t h_w _v_l th_ _ggs w_r_. Th_ r_s__rch_rs f__nd th_t th_ b_rds th_t l__d th_ m_st-_v_l-sh_p_d _ggs w_r_ th_ b_st fl__rs. Pr_f_ss_r St_dd_rd s__d: "W_ w_r_ sh_ck_d t_ s__ th_t _n_ _f th_ b_st _xpl_n_t__ns f_r _gg sh_p_ v_r__t__n w_s fl_ght _b_l_ty." Th_ r_s__rch_rs f__nd th_t h_mm_ngb_rds _nd s_ndp_p_rs l__d th_ m_st-_v_l-sh_p_d _ggs; _wls l__d th_ r__nd_st _ggs; _nd s__ b_rds l__d th_ p__nt__st _ggs.

    Punctuate the text and add capitals

    scientists believe they know why birds' eggs are different shapes some eggs are quite round some are kind of potato-shaped and others are longer and pointy two thousand years ago the greek philosopher aristotle said flatter eggs had female chicks inside them and rounder eggs contained male chicks but he was wrong a new study from princeton university in the usa suggests that the shape of the egg depends on how well and how fast the female bird flies professor mary stoddard said "it has not gone unnoticed that birds have evolved to [lay eggs with] shapes that are quite diverse in form - everything from a spherical owl egg to a pointy sandpiper egg"

    professor stoddard and her colleagues created a mathematical formula to map the shape of different eggs they looked at almost 50000 eggs from 1400 different bird species the researchers put the shape length and height of the eggs into a computer database they also looked at how oval the eggs were the researchers found that the birds that laid the most-oval-shaped eggs were the best fliers professor stoddard said "we were shocked to see that one of the best explanations for egg shape variation was flight ability" the researchers found that hummingbirds and sandpipers laid the most-oval-shaped eggs owls laid the roundest eggs and sea birds laid the pointiest eggs

    Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

    Scientistsbelievetheyknowwhybirds'eggsaredifferentshapes.Some
    eggsarequiteround;somearekindofpotato-shaped;andothersare
    longerandpointy.Twothousandyearsago,theGreekphilosopherArist
    otlesaidflattereggshadfemalechicksinsidethemandroundereggscon
    tainedmalechicks.Buthewaswrong.AnewstudyfromPrincetonUniver
    sityintheUSAsuggeststhattheshapeoftheeggdependsonhowwelland
    howfastthefemalebirdflies.ProfessorMaryStoddardsaid:"Ithasnotgo
    neunnoticedthatbirdshaveevolvedto[layeggswith]shapesthatarequ
    itediverseinform-everythingfromasphericalowleggtoapointysandp
    iperegg."ProfessorStoddardandhercolleaguescreatedamathematic
    alformulatomaptheshapeofdifferenteggs.Theylookedatalmost50,0
    00eggsfrom1,400differentbirdspecies.Theresearchersputtheshape,
    lengthandheightoftheeggsintoacomputerdatabase.Theyalsolooked
    athowovaltheeggswere.Theresearchersfoundthatthebirdsthatlaidth
    emost-oval-shapedeggswerethebestfliers.ProfessorStoddardsai
    d:"Wewereshockedtoseethatoneofthebestexplanationsforeggshap
    evariationwasflightability."Theresearchersfoundthathummingbirds
    andsandpiperslaidthemost-oval-shapedeggs;owlslaidtheroundes
    teggs;andseabirdslaidthepointiesteggs.

    Free writing

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

    _____________________________________________________________________________

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    Academic writing

    Eggs are among the most amazing things in 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. Share what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.

    3. EGGS: Make a poster about eggs. Show your work to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all have similar things?

    4. EGG SHAPE: Write a magazine article about what we can learn from eggs and their shape. Include imaginary interviews with egg experts and engineers.

    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 eggs. Ask him/her three questions about them. Give him/her three of your ideas on why eggs might have different shapes. 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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