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Indian PM says no to temple in his name (15th February, 2015)

The Reading / Listening - Level 6

A temple that was built and named to honour India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi might have to be renamed. Supporters of India's leader had hoped to inaugurate the Narendra Modi Temple on Sunday in the leader's home state of Gujurat, but they have had to abandon the idea due to Mr Modi's opposition to it. The leader was said to have been horrified by the idea of a temple in his name. His supporters have already unveiled a statue of Modi, which has him in a seated position under the symbol of his political party the BJP. Modi tweeted: "I was appalled. This is shocking and against India's great traditions. Building such temples is not what our culture teaches us."

There is now a discussion going on regarding what to do with the temple and statue. Some supporters have suggested replacing the statue of Mr Modi with the figure of a Hindu god. Others insist Modi's statue remains as the leader is still worthy of being honoured. Paresh Rawal, an edible oil trader who donated the land for the temple, said: "We love Modi and worship him because he is the finest leader we have ever had." Another supporter, Ramesh Undhad, told the AFP news agency: "We believe he is an incarnation of God as after he became chief minister of Gujarat, things changed for the better." Modi suggested people should use their time and resources in working towards a cleaner India.

Try the same news story at these easier levels:

Level 4 or Level 5

Sources

http://news.sky.com/story/1426159/indian-pm-calls-halt-to-temple-dedication
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-31433695
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Modi-idol-covered-inauguration-cancelled-after-PM-tweets-against-it/articleshow/46210645.cms

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 :-)

The 40 Lesson Activities on the PDF Handout

WARM-UPS

1. TEMPLES: Students walk around the class and talk to other students about temples. 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?

temple / honour / inaugurate / abandon / idea / horrified / supporters / statue / culture / discussion / Hindu god / leader / trader / worship / incarnation / change / better

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

3. NAMES: What are the best ways to name these things and why? Complete this table with your partner(s). Change partners often and share what you wrote.

Thing	What happens now?	Best naming convention	Why?
Temple
Road
Hospital
Mountain
Camera
New star

4. IN HONOUR OF: Students A strongly believe public buildings should not be named in honour of people; Students B strongly believe the opposite. Change partners again and talk about your conversations.

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. IN MY NAME: Rank these with your partner. Put the best thing to have named after you at the top. Change partners often and share your rankings.

• a new planet

• a mountain

• a place of worship

• a school

• a road

• a prize for children

• a newly discovered frog

• a museum

6. HONOUR: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word "honour". 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.	Supporters of India's leader have already inaugurated the temple.	T / F
b.	The temple is in India's capital Delhi.	T / F
c.	Supporters have already unveiled a statue of Mr Modi at the temple.	T / F
d.	Mr Modi said naming a temple after him goes against Indian culture.	T / F
e.	Some people think a statue of a god should replace Modi's statue.	T / F
f.	The person who donated the land for the temple is an oil trader.	T / F
g.	A man told the AFP news agency that Mr Modi wasn't a good leader.	T / F
h.	Mr Modi said people should use their time to grow vegetables.	T / F

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

1.	honour	a.	opposite to
2.	inaugurate	b.	stays
3.	abandon	c.	praise
4.	appalled	d.	concerning
5.	against	e.	drop
6.	regarding	f.	greatest
7.	figure	g.	open officially
8.	remains	h.	proposed
9.	finest	i.	statue
10.	suggested	j.	horrified

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

1.	A temple that was built and named to	a.	India's great traditions
2.	they have had to abandon the	b.	the figure of a Hindu god
3.	supporters have already unveiled	c.	a cleaner India
4.	This is shocking and against	d.	going on
5.	Building such temples is not what	e.	honour India's Prime Minister
6.	There is now a discussion	f.	we have ever had
7.	replacing the statue of Mr Modi with	g.	a statue of Modi
8.	he is the finest leader	h.	an incarnation of God
9.	We believe he is	i.	our culture teaches us
10.	working towards	j.	idea

GAP FILL

A temple that was built and named to (1) ____________ India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi might have to be renamed. Supporters of India's leader had hoped to (2) ____________ the Narendra Modi Temple on Sunday in the leader's home (3) ____________ of Gujurat, but they have had to (4) ____________ the idea due to Mr Modi's opposition to it. The leader was said to have been horrified by the idea of a temple in his name. His supporters have already (5) ____________ a statue of Modi, which has him in a seated position under the (6) ____________ of his political party the BJP. Modi tweeted: "I was (7) ____________. This is shocking and against India's great traditions. Building such temples is not what our (8) ____________ teaches us."

state
symbol
appalled
honour
culture
inaugurate
unveiled
abandon

There is now a (9) ____________ going on regarding what to do with the temple and statue. Some supporters have suggested replacing the statue of Mr Modi with the (10) ____________ of a Hindu god. Others insist Modi's statue remains as the leader is still (11) ____________ of being honoured. Paresh Rawal, an edible oil trader who (12) ____________ the land for the temple, said: "We love Modi and worship him because he is the (13) ____________ leader we have ever had." Another supporter, Ramesh Undhad, told the AFP news agency: "We believe he is an (14) ____________ of God as after he became chief minister of Gujarat, things changed for the (15) ____________." Modi suggested people should use their time and resources in working (16) ____________ a cleaner India.

figure
finest
better
worthy
towards
discussion
incarnation
donated

LISTENING - Guess the answers. Listen to check.

1)	A temple that was built and named ______ Prime Minister
	a. to hone our India's b. to on a India's c. two on a India's d. to honour India's
2)	but they have had to abandon the idea due to Mr Modi's ______
	a. opposition for it b. opposition to it c. opposition of it d. opposition by it
3)	His supporters have already unveiled a statue of Modi, which has him ______
	a. in a seated position b. on a seated position c. inner seated position d. in the seated position
4)	I was appalled. This is shocking and against India's ______
	a. great traditions b. greatly traditions c. grate traditions d. grated traditions
5)	Building such temples is not what ______
	a. your culture teaches us b. their culture teaches us c. our culture teaches us d. my culture teaches us
6)	There is now a discussion going on regarding what to do with ______
	a. the temple and statute b. the temple and statuesque c. the temple and statute d. the temple and statue
7)	supporters have suggested replacing the statue of Mr Modi with ______ Hindu god
	a. the figure for a b. the figure of a c. the figure by a d. the figure if a
8)	Others insist Modi's statue remains as the leader is still ______ honoured
	a. worth he of being b. worthily of being c. worth thee of being d. worthy of being
9)	We believe he is an incarnation of God as after he became ______ Gujarat
	a. chiefs minister of b. chief minister of c. chef minister of d. chefs minister of
10)	Modi suggested people should use their time and resources in working ______ India
	a. towards a cleaning b. towards a clean air c. towards a cleaner d. towards a cleansing

LISTENING – Listen and fill in the gaps

A temple that (1) ___________________ to honour India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi might have to be renamed. Supporters of India's leader had (2) ___________________ the Narendra Modi Temple on Sunday in the leader's home state of Gujurat, but they have (3) ___________________ the idea due to Mr Modi's opposition to it. The leader was said to have been horrified (4) ___________________ temple in his name. His supporters have already unveiled a statue of Modi, which has him (5) ___________________ under the symbol of his political party the BJP. Modi tweeted: "I was appalled. This is (6) ___________________ India's great traditions. Building such temples is not what our culture teaches us."

There is now a discussion going (7) ___________________ to do with the temple and statue. Some supporters have suggested replacing the statue of Mr Modi (8) ___________________ Hindu god. Others insist Modi's statue remains as the leader is still worthy of being honoured. Paresh Rawal, an edible oil trader (9) ___________________ land for the temple, said: "We love Modi and worship him because he is (10) ___________________ have ever had." Another supporter, Ramesh Undhad, told the AFP news agency: "We believe he is an incarnation of God (11) ___________________ chief minister of Gujarat, things changed for the better." Modi suggested people should use their time and resources (12) ___________________ a cleaner India.

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS

1.	Why was the temple built?
2.	On what day was the inauguration supposed to take place?
3.	Why did Mr Modi's supporters abandon the idea of naming the temple?
4.	In what position was Mr Modi in a statue of him?
5.	What did Mr Modi say the naming went against?
6.	What do some people want to replace the statue with?
7.	What is the job of the man who donated the land for the temple?
8.	Why did a supporter say he worshipped Mr Modi?
9.	What did a supporter of Mr Modi say he was an incarnation of?
10.	What did Mr Modi tell people to work towards?

MULTIPLE CHOICE - QUIZ

1.	Why was the temple built?	6.	What do some people want to replace the statue with?
	a) to honour India's Prime Minister b) to use leftover temple funds c) as part of a beautification project d) Narendra Modi requested it		a) a fountain b) a statue of Ghandi c) a McDonald's d) a Hindu god
2.	On what day of the week was the inauguration supposed to take place?	7.	What is the job of the man who donated the land for the temple?
	a) Friday b) Saturday c) Sunday d) Monday		a) a Hindu priest b) an edible oil trader c) a bricklayer d) a temple builder
3.	Why did Mr Modi's supporters abandon the idea of naming the temple?	8.	Why did a supporter say he worshipped Mr Modi?
	a) the local government said no b) Mr Modi opposed it c) they decided on another name d) not enough people liked it		a) he is handsome b) he performs miracles c) he cured him of an illness d) he is the best leader ever
4.	In what position was Mr Modi in in a statue of him?	9.	What did a supporter of Mr Modi say he was an incarnation of?
	a) praying b) standing c) elevated d) seated		a) his great grandfather b) goodness c) God d) light
5.	What did Mr Modi say the naming went against?	10.	What did Mr Modi tell people to work towards?
	a) Indian tradition b) the grain c) common belief d) the law		a) retirement b) a cleaner India c) Nirvana d) betterment

ROLE PLAY

Role A – A new planet

You think it is best to have a new planet named after you. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why their things aren't so good. Also, tell the others which is the worst to have named after you of these (and why): a charity, an award for children or a frog.

Role B – A charity

You think it is best to have a charity named after you. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why their things aren't so good. Also, tell the others which is the worst to have named after you of these (and why): a new planet, an award for children or a frog.

Role C – An award for children

You think it is best to have an award for children named after you. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why their things aren't so good. Also, tell the others which is the worst to have named after you of these (and why): a charity, a new planet or a frog.

Role D – A frog

You think it is best to have a frog named after you. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them why their things aren't so good. Also, tell the others which is the worst to have named after you of these (and why): a charity, an award for children or a new planet.

AFTER READING / LISTENING

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

build

name

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:

might
home
horrified
position
shocking
teaches

discussion
figure
worthy
love
chief
cleaner

TEMPLES SURVEY

Write five GOOD questions about temples 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.

TEMPLES DISCUSSION

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

1)	What did you think when you read the headline?
2)	What springs to mind when you hear the word 'temple'?
3)	What's the difference between a temple and other places of worship?
4)	What do you think of Mr Modi's reaction?
5)	Should the temple be renamed?
6)	Why do people name buildings after other people?
7)	What do you think of naming buildings after people?
8)	Would you prefer a mountain or a road to be named after you?
9)	What could be the reasons for Mr Modi being horrified?
10)	Why might the temple naming be against Indian tradition?

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

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

11)	Did you like reading this article? Why/not?
12)	What do you think should happen to the temple's name?
13)	Should Mr Modi respect the wishes of his followers?
14)	What kind of building would you like named in your honour?
15)	Who are buildings in your country named after, and why?
16)	What do you think of naming buildings after people?
17)	If someone made a statue of you, what pose would you like?
18)	Have your leaders changed things for the better?
19)	What do you think of Modi's suggestion of working for a cleaner India?
20)	What questions would you like to ask Mr Modi?

DISCUSSION (Write your own questions)

STUDENT A's QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)
1.	________________________________________________________
2.	________________________________________________________
3.	________________________________________________________
4.	________________________________________________________
5.	________________________________________________________
6.	________________________________________________________

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

STUDENT B's QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)
1.	________________________________________________________
2.	________________________________________________________
3.	________________________________________________________
4.	________________________________________________________
5.	________________________________________________________
6.	________________________________________________________

LANGUAGE - CLOZE

A temple that was (1) ____ and named to honour India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi might have to be renamed. Supporters of India's leader had hoped to (2) ____ the Narendra Modi Temple on Sunday in the leader's home state of Gujurat, but they have had to (3) ____ the idea due to Mr Modi's opposition to it. The leader was said to have been horrified by the idea of a temple in his name. His supporters have already (4) ____ a statue of Modi, which has him in a (5) ____ position under the symbol of his political party the BJP. Modi tweeted: "I was appalled. This is shocking and against India's great traditions. Building such temples is (6) ____ what our culture teaches us."

There is now a discussion going (7) ____ regarding what to do with the temple and statue. Some supporters have suggested replacing the statue of Mr Modi with the figure (8) ____ a Hindu god. Others insist Modi's statue remains as the leader is still worthy of being honoured. Paresh Rawal, an edible oil trader who (9) ____ the land for the temple, said: "We love Modi and worship him because he is the (10) ____ leader we have ever had." Another supporter, Ramesh Undhad, told the AFP news agency: "We believe he is an incarnation of God (11) ____ after he became chief minister of Gujarat, things changed for the better." Modi suggested people should use their time and resources (12) ____ working towards a cleaner India.

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

1.	(a)	building	(b)	builder	(c)	built	(d)	build
2.	(a)	inaugurate	(b)	invigorate	(c)	inviolate	(d)	invertebrate
3.	(a)	relish	(b)	abandon	(c)	contraption	(d)	veto
4.	(a)	uneven	(b)	unraveled	(c)	unrivaled	(d)	unveiled
5.	(a)	sit	(b)	sit down	(c)	seated	(d)	sits
6.	(a)	none	(b)	not	(c)	nor	(d)	non
7.	(a)	on	(b)	in	(c)	over	(d)	under
8.	(a)	such	(b)	as	(c)	via	(d)	of
9.	(a)	donation	(b)	donates	(c)	donated	(d)	donor
10.	(a)	finished	(b)	fines	(c)	finesse	(d)	finest
11.	(a)	is	(b)	as	(c)	was	(d)	has
12.	(a)	in	(b)	out	(c)	of	(d)	as

SPELLING

Paragraph 1
1.	uanautregi the Narendra Modi Temple
2.	they have had to aoadnnb the idea
3.	iundevel a statue of Modi
4.	the symbol of his oicplalti party
5.	against India's great iianrsttod
6.	not what our rtulceu teaches us
Paragraph 2
7.	esrptrupso have suggested replacing the statue
8.	an eblied oil trader
9.	teddano the land for the temple
10.	We love Modi and wihspro him
11.	he is an acrnoiitnan of God
12.	use their time and eroeusrcs

PUT THE TEXT BACK TOGETHER

Number these lines in the correct order.

( )	to it. The leader was said to have been horrified by the idea of a temple in his name. His supporters have already unveiled
( )	a statue of Modi, which has him in a seated position under the symbol of his political
( )	suggested replacing the statue of Mr Modi with the figure of a Hindu god. Others insist Modi's statue
( )	had." Another supporter, Ramesh Undhad, told the AFP news agency: "We believe he is an incarnation
( )	remains as the leader is still worthy of being honoured. Paresh Rawal, an edible oil trader who donated
( )	of God as after he became chief minister of Gujarat, things changed for the better." Modi suggested people
( )	renamed. Supporters of India's leader had hoped to inaugurate the Narendra Modi Temple on Sunday in the leader's home
( )	should use their time and resources in working towards a cleaner India.
( )	party the BJP. Modi tweeted: "I was appalled. This is shocking and against India's great
( 1 )	A temple that was built and named to honour India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi might have to be
( )	state of Gujurat, but they have had to abandon the idea due to Mr Modi's opposition
( )	the land for the temple, said: "We love Modi and worship him because he is the finest leader we have ever
( )	There is now a discussion going on regarding what to do with the temple and statue. Some supporters have
( )	traditions. Building such temples is not what our culture teaches us."

PUT THE WORDS IN THE RIGHT ORDER

1.	named Minister to honour Built India's and Prime.
2.	to Mr Modi's opposition to it Abandon the idea due.
3.	statue have a Modi supporters unveiled of His already.
4.	against This India's is great shocking traditions and.
5.	our culture teaches us Building such temples is not what.
6.	There do to what regarding on going discussion a now is.
7.	the replacing suggested have supporters Some statue.
8.	worthy The of leader being is honoured still.
9.	He finest have the we had is leader ever.
10.	God is an We incarnation believe of he.

CIRCLE THE CORRECT WORD (20 PAIRS)

A temple that was built / building and named to honour India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi might have to be named / renamed. Supporters of India's leader had hoped to inaugurate / invigorate the Narendra Modi Temple on Sunday in the leader's home statute / state of Gujurat, but they have had to abandon the ideal / idea due to Mr Modi's opposition to it. The leader was said to have been horrified / horrific by the idea of a temple in his name. His supporters have already unveiled / unrivaled a statue of Modi, which has him in a seated / sated position under the symbol of his political party the BJP. Modi tweeted: "I was appalled / appalling. This is shocking and against India's great traditions. Building such temples is not what our culture teaches / teach us."

There is now a discussion going on / in regarding what to do with the temple and statue. Some supporters / support have suggested replacing the statue of Mr Modi with the numeral / figure of a Hindu god. Others insist Modi's statue remains / retains as the leader is still worthy of being honoured. Paresh Rawal, an edible oil / oily trader who donated the land for the temple, said: "We love Modi and warship / worship him because he is the finest / finesse leader we have ever had." Another supporter, Ramesh Undhad, told the AFP news agency: "We believe he is an inculcation / incarnation of God as after he became chief / chef minister of Gujarat, things changed for the better." Modi suggested people should use their time and resources in to working towards a cleaner India.

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)

_ t_mpl_ th_t w_s b__lt _nd n_m_d t_ h_n__r _nd__'s Pr_m_ M_n_st_r N_r_ndr_ M_d_ m_ght h_v_ t_ b_ r_n_m_d. S_pp_rt_rs _f _nd__'s l__d_r h_d h_p_d t_ _n__g_r_t_ th_ N_r_ndr_ M_d_ T_mpl_ _n S_nd_y _n th_ l__d_r's h_m_ st_t_ _f G_j_r_t, b_t th_y h_v_ h_d t_ _b_nd_n th_ _d__ d__ t_ Mr M_d_'s _pp_s_t__n t_ _t. Th_ l__d_r w_s s__d t_ h_v_ b__n h_rr_f__d by th_ _d__ _f _ t_mpl_ _n h_s n_m_. H_s s_pp_rt_rs h_v_ _lr__dy _nv__l_d _ st_t__ _f M_d_, wh_ch h_s h_m _n _ s__t_d p_s_t__n _nd_r th_ symb_l _f h_s p_l_t_c_l p_rty th_ BJP. M_d_ tw__t_d: "_ w_s _pp_ll_d. Th_s _s sh_ck_ng _nd _g__nst _nd__'s gr__t tr_d_t__ns. B__ld_ng s_ch t_mpl_s _s n_t wh_t __r c_lt_r_ t__ch_s _s."

Th_r_ _s n_w _ d_sc_ss__n g__ng _n r_g_rd_ng wh_t t_ d_ w_th th_ t_mpl_ _nd st_t__. S_m_ s_pp_rt_rs h_v_ s_gg_st_d r_pl_c_ng th_ st_t__ _f Mr M_d_ w_th th_ f_g_r_ _f _ H_nd_ g_d. _th_rs _ns_st M_d_'s st_t__ r_m__ns _s th_ l__d_r _s st_ll w_rthy _f b__ng h_n__r_d. P_r_sh R_w_l, _n _d_bl_ __l tr_d_r wh_ d_n_t_d th_ l_nd f_r th_ t_mpl_, s__d: "W_ l_v_ M_d_ _nd w_rsh_p h_m b_c__s_ h_ _s th_ f_n_st l__d_r w_ h_v_ _v_r h_d." _n_th_r s_pp_rt_r, R_m_sh _ndh_d, t_ld th_ _FP n_ws _g_ncy: "W_ b_l__v_ h_ _s _n _nc_rn_t__n _f G_d _s _ft_r h_ b_c_m_ ch__f m_n_st_r _f G_j_r_t, th_ngs ch_ng_d f_r th_ b_tt_r." M_d_ s_gg_st_d p__pl_ sh__ld _s_ th__r t_m_ _nd r_s__rc_s _n w_rk_ng t_w_rds _ cl__n_r _nd__.

PUNCTUATE THE TEXT AND ADD CAPITALS

a temple that was built and named to honour india's prime minister narendra modi might have to be renamed supporters of india's leader had hoped to inaugurate the narendra modi temple on sunday in the leader's home state of gujurat but they have had to abandon the idea due to mr modi's opposition to it the leader was said to have been horrified by the idea of a temple in his name his supporters have already unveiled a statue of modi which has him in a seated position under the symbol of his political party the bjp modi tweeted "i was appalled this is shocking and against india's great traditions building such temples is not what our culture teaches us"

there is now a discussion going on regarding what to do with the temple and statue some supporters have suggested replacing the statue of mr modi with the figure of a hindu god others insist modi's statue remains as the leader is still worthy of being honoured paresh rawal an edible oil trader who donated the land for the temple said "we love modi and worship him because he is the finest leader we have ever had" another supporter ramesh undhad told the afp news agency "we believe he is an incarnation of god as after he became chief minister of gujarat things changed for the better" modi suggested people should use their time and resources in working towards a cleaner india

PUT A SLASH ( / ) WHERE THE SPACES ARE

AtemplethatwasbuiltandnamedtohonourIndia'sPrimeMinisterNaren
draModimighthavetoberenamed.SupportersofIndia'sleaderhadhop
edtoinauguratetheNarendraModiTempleonSundayintheleader'sho
mestateofGujurat,buttheyhavehadtoabandontheideaduetoMrModi'
soppositiontoit.Theleaderwassaidtohavebeenhorrifiedbytheideaofa
templeinhisname.HissupportershavealreadyunveiledastatueofModi
,whichhashiminaseatedpositionunderthesymbolofhispoliticalpartyt
heBJP.Moditweeted:"Iwasappalled.ThisisshockingandagainstIndia'
sgreattraditions.Buildingsuchtemplesisnotwhatourcultureteachesu
s."Thereisnowadiscussiongoingonregardingwhattodowiththetempl
eandstatue.SomesupportershavesuggestedreplacingthestatueofMr
ModiwiththefigureofaHindugod.OthersinsistModi'sstatueremainsas
theleaderisstillworthyofbeinghonoured.PareshRawal,anedibleoiltra
derwhodonatedthelandforthetemple,said:"WeloveModiandworship
himbecauseheisthefinestleaderwehaveeverhad."Anothersupporter,
RameshUndhad,toldtheAFPnewsagency:"Webelieveheisanincarnati
onofGodasafterhebecamechiefministerofGujarat,thingschangedfor
thebetter."Modisuggestedpeopleshouldusetheirtimeandresourcesi
nworkingtowardsacleanerIndia.

FREE WRITING

Write about temples for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner's paper.

_____________________________________________________________________________

ACADEMIC WRITING

It is better to be have a mountain named in your honour than a road. Discuss.

_____________________________________________________________________________

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

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

4. NAMES: Write a magazine article about naming public buildings, warships and projects after leaders. 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 Narendra Modi. Ask him three questions about his followers wanting to name a temple after him. Give him three pieces of advice on how to move forward. 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

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ANSWERS

TRUE / FALSE (p.4)

a

F

b

F

c

T

d

T

e

T

f

T

g

F

h

F

SYNONYM MATCH (p.4)

1.	honour	a.	praise
2	inaugurate	b.	open officially
3.	abandon	c.	drop
4.	appalled	d.	horrified
5.	against	e.	opposite to
6.	regarding	f.	concerning
7.	figure	g.	statue
8.	remains	h.	stays
9.	finest	i.	greatest
10.	suggested	j.	proposed

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS (p.8)

1.	To honour Narendra Modi.
2.	A Sunday.
3.	Mr Modi opposed it.
4.	Seated
5.	Indian tradition
6.	A figure of a Hindu god
7.	An edible oil trader
8.	He is the best leader ever
9.	God
10.	A cleaner India

MULTIPLE CHOICE - QUIZ (p.9)

1.

a

2.

c

3.

b

4.

d

5.

a

6.

d

7.

b

8.

d

9.

c

10.

b

ALL OTHER EXERCISES

Please check for yourself by looking at the Article on page 2.
(It's good for your English ;-)

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Indian PM says no to temple in his name (15th February, 2015)

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