The Reading / Listening - COVID-19 Vaccine - Level 0

This year has been full of bad news because of COVID-19. Now there is good news in the fight against the virus. Scientists made a vaccine. It has a 90 per cent success rate and no serious side effects. A top infectious diseases doctor said: "The results are really quite good, I mean extraordinary."

Health experts say it will be months before we get the vaccine. It must be kept at -80º Celsius. One drug company said: "Today is a great day for...humanity....We are reaching this [important time]...when the world needs it most." Infection rates are rising and hospitals are full, but we are closer to ending this global health crisis.

Try the same news story at these levels:

    COVID-19 Vaccine - Level 1,  COVID-19 Vaccine - Level 2   or  COVID-19 Vaccine - Level 3

Sources
  • https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2020-11-10/editorial-a-ray-of-hope-for-the-pandemics-end-in-2021
  • https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-03166-8
  • https://www.pfizer.com/news/press-release/press-release-detail/pfizer-and-biontech-announce-vaccine-candidate-against


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. This year has been full
  2. Now there is
  3. the fight
  4. Scientists made a
  5. It has a 90 per cent
  6. no serious side
  7. A top infectious
  8. The results are really
  1. quite good
  2. against the virus
  3. success rate
  4. effects
  5. of bad news
  6. diseases doctor
  7. good news
  8. vaccine

Paragraph 2

  1. it will be months before
  2. It must be kept at
  3. drug
  4. a great day for
  5. when the world needs
  6. Infection rates are
  7. hospitals are
  8. global health
  1. it most
  2. company
  3. crisis
  4. -80º Celsius
  5. full
  6. humanity
  7. rising
  8. we get the vaccine

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

This year has been (1) ___________________ news because of COVID-19. Now there is good news (2) ___________________ against the virus. Scientists (3) ___________________. It has a 90 per cent success rate and no (4) ___________________. A top infectious (5) ___________________: "The results are (6) ___________________, I mean extraordinary."

Health experts say it will (7) ___________________ we get the vaccine. It must (8) ___________________ -80º Celsius. One drug company said: "Today (9) ___________________ day for...humanity....We (10) ___________________ [important time]...when the world (11) ___________________." Infection rates are rising and hospitals are full, but we are closer to ending this (12) ___________________.

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

ThisyearhasbeenfullofbadnewsbecauseofCOVID-19.Nowthereisgo
odnewsinthefightagainstthevirus.Scientistsmadeavaccine.Ithasa9
0percentsuccessrateandnoserioussideeffects.Atopinfectiousdiseas
esdoctorsaid:"Theresultsarereallyquitegood,Imeanextraordinary."
Healthexpertssayitwillbemonthsbeforewegetthevaccine.Itmustbek
eptat-80ºCelsius.Onedrugcompanysaid:"Todayisagreatdayfor...h
umanity....Wearereachingthis[importanttime]...whentheworldnee
dsitmost."Infectionratesarerisingandhospitalsarefull,butweareclos
ertoendingthisglobalhealthcrisis.

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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