The Reading / Listening - Bullet Trains - Level 3

Ten of Japan's famous bullet trains will be scrapped. They were caught in the floods after Typhoon Hagibis hit eastern Japan in October. The typhoon caused widespread damage and loss of life in Japan. There were many photos and TV footage of the 10 shiny bullet trains lined up next to each other at a train yard near the central city of Nagano. They were deep in floodwater after the nearby Chikuma River burst its banks. The trains used to run between Tokyo and a city on the Sea of Japan coast called Kanazawa. The line is now running 80 per cent of its normal services. The bullet train company said it hopes to be running a full service again by the end of March 2020.

Bullet trains are called Shinkansen in Japan. They started in 1964 in time for the Tokyo Olympics. They became an iconic symbol of Japan and were the world's fastest trains. They currently reach speeds of 320kph. The bullet train rail network has expanded to currently consist of 2,764km. People take around 350 million rides a year on the Shinkansen. A Shinkansen president, Yuji Fukasawa, spoke about the flooded trains. He said the floodwater seriously damaged their motors and braking systems. The total cost of the damage is around $135 million. He said: "For stability and safety, we [will] replace the trains with newly built ones instead of repairing them."

Try the same news story at these easier levels:

    Bullet Trains - Level 0,  Bullet Trains - Level 1   or  Bullet Trains - Level 2

Sources
  • https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20191106_37/
  • https://english.kyodonews.net/news/2019/11/4e7dfd267c83-all-10-typhoon-flooded-shinkansen-bullet-trains-to-be-scrapped.html
  • https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-50323239
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shinkansen


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. BULLET TRAINS: Students walk around the class and talk to other students about bullet trains. 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?
       bullet train / floods / typhoon / damage / photos / banks / normal / service / March /
       1964 / Olympics / iconic / network / president / motors / systems / stability / safety
Have a chat about the topics you liked. Change topics and partners frequently.
3. FLYING: Students A strongly believe flying is better than taking the train; Students B strongly believe the opposite.  Change partners again and talk about your conversations.
4. ICONIC SYMBOLS: What are the iconic symbols of these countries. Why? Complete this table with your partner(s). Change partners often and share what you wrote.

 

Three Iconic Symbols

Why Are They Symbols?

Japan

 

 

USA

 

 

China

 

 

India

 

 

France

 

 

Brazil

 

 
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. FLOOD: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word "flood". Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories.
6. TRANSPORTATION: Rank these with your partner. Put the best at the top. Change partners often and share your rankings.

  • bullet train
  • helicopter
  • river taxi
  • rickshaw
  • airplane
  • bus
  • motorbike
  • bicycle

 

Vocabulary

    Paragraph 1

      1. scrapped a. An overflowing of a large amount of water above its normal level.
      2. flood b. A length of film made for movies, television or news.
      3. widespread c. Thrown away or remove from service.
      4. footage d. The land that is the sides of a river.
      5. shiny e. Reflecting light, usually because it is very new, clean or polished.
      6. banks f. The part of the land near the sea; the edge of the land where it meets the sea.
      7. coast g. Found or seen over a large area or number of people.

    Paragraph 2

      8. iconic h. Change one thing with another.
      9. symbol i. A machine that gives power for a vehicle or for some other device with moving parts.
      10. expanded j. The total amount of money for something.
      11. motor k. Making many people think it is really great.
      12. cost l. A thing that represents or stands for something else.
      13. stability m. Being firm and strong and not likely to change.
      14. replace n. Made bigger.

 

Before reading / listening

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

  1. A dozen bullet trains are going to be scrapped in Japan.     T / F
  2. The trains were in a train yard in a city called Nagoya in central Japan.    T / F
  3. The scrapped bullet trains used to run between Tokyo and Osaka.     T / F
  4. Full service will be resumed on the bullet train line by March 2020.     T / F
  5. Bullet trains first came into service in Japan in 1964.     T / F
  6. The bullet train travels at speeds of 320kph.     T / F
  7. Around 350,000,000 rides a year are taken on the bullet trains.     T / F
  8. A Shinkansen president said the trains' wheels and seats were damaged. T / F

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

  1. famous
  2. widespread
  3. shiny
  4. burst
  5. normal
  6. started
  7. symbol
  8. seriously
  9. cost
  10. repairing
  1. began
  2. broke
  3. regular
  4. fixing
  5. extensive
  6. badly
  7. price
  8. well-known
  9. sign
  10. gleaming

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

  1. They were caught
  2. The typhoon caused widespread
  3. shiny bullet trains lined
  4. the nearby Chikuma River burst
  5. it hopes to be running a
  6. They became an iconic
  7. They currently reach
  8. The bullet train rail network
  9. damaged their motors and
  10. replace the trains with newly built ones
  1. up next to each other
  2. instead of repairing them
  3. full service again
  4. symbol of Japan
  5. speeds of 320kph
  6. damage
  7. braking systems
  8. in the floods
  9. has expanded
  10. its banks

Gap fill

Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
shiny
floods
banks
famous
running
deep
normal
loss

Ten of Japan's (1) ____________ bullet trains will be scrapped. They were caught in the (2) ____________ after Typhoon Hagibis hit eastern Japan in October. The typhoon caused widespread damage and (3) ____________ of life in Japan. There were many photos and TV footage of the 10 (4) ____________ bullet trains lined up next to each other at a train yard near the central city of Nagano. They were (5) ____________ in floodwater after the nearby Chikuma River burst its (6) ____________. The trains used to run between Tokyo and a city on the Sea of Japan coast called Kanazawa. The line is now running 80 per cent of its (7) ____________ services. The bullet train company said it hopes to be (8) ____________ a full service again by the end of March 2020.

Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
network
safety
seriously
time
repairing
symbol
cost
rides

Bullet trains are called Shinkansen in Japan. They started in 1964 in (9) ____________ for the Tokyo Olympics. They became an iconic (10) ____________ of Japan and were the world's fastest trains. They currently reach speeds of 320kph. The bullet train rail (11) ____________ has expanded to currently consist of 2,764km. People take around 350 million (12) ____________ a year on the Shinkansen. A Shinkansen president, Yuji Fukasawa, spoke about the flooded trains. He said the floodwater (13) ____________ damaged their motors and braking systems. The total (14) ____________ of the damage is around $135 million. He said: "For stability and (15) ____________, we [will] replace the trains with newly built ones instead of (16) ____________ them."

Listening — Guess the answers. Listen to check.

1)  The typhoon caused widespread damage and ______ in Japan
     a.  lots of live
     b.  loss of live
     c.  lots of life
     d.  loss of life
2)  There were many photos and TV footage of the ______ trains
     a.  10 tiny bullet
     b.  10 shinny bullet
     c.  10 shimmy bullet
     d.  10 shiny bullet
3)  The trains used to run between Tokyo and a city on the Sea ______
     a.  of Japan coast
     b.  of Japan coastal
     c.  of Japan coaster
     d.  of Japan cost
4)  The line is now running 80 per cent of ______
     a.  its normally services
     b.  its normal services
     c.  its normality services
     d.  its normalcy services
5)  The bullet train company said it hopes to be running a full service again by _____ March
     a.  the end off
     b.  an end of
     c.  the end of
     d.  an end off

6)  They became an iconic ______
     a.  symbolic of Japan
     b.  symbols of Japan
     c.  symbol of Japan
     d.  symbolism of Japan
7)  The bullet train rail network has expanded to currently ______ 2,764km
     a.  cons is of
     b.  coexist of
     c.  persist of
     d.  consist of
8)  People take around 350 million ______
     a.  ridings a year
     b.  rides a year
     c.  riders a year
     d.  rise a year
9)  He said the floodwater seriously damaged their motors ______
     a.  and bracken systems
     b.  and broken systems
     c.  and breaking systems
     d.  and braking systems
10)  we will replace the trains with newly built ones instead ______
     a.  of repairing them
     b.  of repair in them
     c.  of rip air in them
     d.  of rip airing them

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

Ten of Japan's famous bullet trains will be scrapped. They were caught in (1) ___________________ Typhoon Hagibis hit eastern Japan in October. The typhoon caused widespread damage and (2) ___________________ in Japan. There were many photos and TV (3) ___________________ 10 shiny bullet trains lined up next to each other at a train yard near the central city of Nagano. They were deep in floodwater (4) ___________________ Chikuma River burst its banks. The trains used to run between Tokyo and a city on the Sea of (5) ___________________ Kanazawa. The line is now running 80 per cent of its normal services. The bullet train company said it hopes to be running a full service again by (6) ___________________ March 2020.

Bullet trains are called Shinkansen in Japan. They started in 1964 (7) ___________________ the Tokyo Olympics. They became (8) ___________________ of Japan and were the world's fastest trains. They currently reach speeds of 320kph. The bullet train rail network has expanded (9) ___________________ of 2,764km. People take around 350 million rides a year on the Shinkansen. A Shinkansen president, Yuji Fukasawa, spoke (10) ___________________ trains. He said the floodwater seriously damaged their motors and braking systems. The (11) ___________________ the damage is around $135 million. He said: "For stability and safety, we [will] replace the trains with newly built (12) ___________________ repairing them."

Comprehension questions

  1. How many bullet trains will Japan have to scrap?
  2. Where in the city of Nagano were the trains lined up?
  3. What happened to the Chikuma River?
  4. Where did the trains run to from Kanazawa?
  5. When will fill service start again?
  6. When did the bullet train service begin in Japan?
  7. How fast do the bullet trains go?
  8. How many rides are taken on the bullet trains every year?
  9. Who is Yuji Fukasawa?
  10. How much was the damage to the bullet trains?

Multiple choice quiz

1) How many bullet trains will Japan have to scrap?
a) 12
b) 10
c) 20
d) 28
2) Where in the city of Nagano were the trains lined up?
a) a factory
b) a repair yard
c) a train station
d) a train yard
3) What happened to the Chikuma River?
a) it burst its banks
b) it dried up
c) it got blocked
d) it changed colour
4) Where did the trains run to from Kanazawa?
a) Nagano
b) Osaka
c) Tokyo
d) Hiroshima

5) When will fill service start again?
a) April 2020
b) March 2020
c) January 2020
d) August 2020

6) When did the bullet train service begin in Japan?
a) 1976
b) 1968
c) 1964
d) 1970
7) How fast do the bullet trains go?
a) 600kph
b) 440kph
c) 380kph
d) 320kph
8) How many rides are taken on the bullet trains every year?
a) about 350 million
b) just under 350,000,000
c) exactly 350,000,000
d) over 350 million
9) Who is Yuji Fukasawa?
a) a bullet train president
b) a flood survivor
c) a bullet train driver
d) a bullet train passenger
10) How much was the damage to the bullet trains?
a) $145 million
b) $135 million
c) $153 million
d) $154 million

Role play

Role  A – Bullet Train
You think bullet train is the best form of transportation. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what is wrong with their forms. Also, tell the others which is the worst of these (and why): helicopter, bicycle or bus.

Role  B – Helicopter
You think helicopter is the best form of transportation. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what is wrong with their forms. Also, tell the others which is the worst of these (and why): bullet train, bicycle or bus.

Role  C – Bicycle
You think bicycle is the best form of transportation. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what is wrong with their forms. Also, tell the others which is the worst of these (and why): helicopter, bullet train or bus.

Role  D – Bus
You think bus is the best form of transportation. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what is wrong with their forms. Also, tell the others which is the worst of these (and why): helicopter, bicycle or bullet train.

After reading / listening

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

'bullet'

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

    • and 'train'.

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

    • • 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:

    • famous
    • loss
    • shiny
    • yard
    • run
    • 80
    • time
    • reach
    • take
    • spoke
    • total
    • newly

    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 - Bullet Trains

    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 'bullet'?
    3. What do you know about bullet trains?
    4. Why are Japan's bullet trains so famous?
    5. How can companies better protect trains from weather?
    6. How safe is train travel?
    7. What do you think of the name 'bullet train'?
    8. What is the best train journey you have been on?
    9. What will train travel be like in the future?
    10. What three adjectives best describe this story?

    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 'train'?
    3. What do you think about what you read?
    4. What do you think of trains?
    5. What is the train system like in your country?
    6. What are the best and worst things about train travel?
    7. Should there be a speed limit on trains?
    8. How can train travel be improved?
    9. Which country has the best trains?
    10. What questions would you like to ask the rail company bosses?

    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)

    Ten of Japan's famous bullet trains will be (1) ____. They were caught in the floods after Typhoon Hagibis hit eastern Japan in October. The typhoon caused widespread damage and (2) ____ of life in Japan. There were many photos and TV footage of the 10 shiny bullet trains lined (3) ____ next to each other at a train yard near the central city of Nagano. They were (4) ____ in floodwater after the nearby Chikuma River burst its banks. The trains used to run between Tokyo and a city on the Sea of Japan (5) ____ called Kanazawa. The line is now running 80 per cent of its normal services. The bullet train company said it hopes to be (6) ____ a full service again by the end of March 2020.

    Bullet trains are called Shinkansen in Japan. They started in 1964 in time for the Tokyo Olympics. They became an (7) ____ symbol of Japan and were the world's fastest trains. They (8) ____ reach speeds of 320kph. The bullet train rail network has expanded to currently (9) ____ of 2,764km. People take around 350 million rides a year on the Shinkansen. A Shinkansen president, Yuji Fukasawa, spoke about the flooded trains. He said the floodwater (10) ____ damaged their motors and braking systems. The total cost (11) ____ the damage is around $135 million. He said: "For stability and safety, we [will] replace the trains with (12) ____ built ones instead of repairing them."

    Which of these words go in the above text?

    1. (a)     scrapped     (b)     scraped     (c)     scuppered     (d)     scooped    
    2. (a)     lots     (b)     lost     (c)     loss     (d)     lose    
    3. (a)     down     (b)     in     (c)     up     (d)     out    
    4. (a)     weep     (b)     seep     (c)     asleep     (d)     deep    
    5. (a)     coast     (b)     wave     (c)     tide     (d)     ocean     
    6. (a)     burning     (b)     running     (c)     furnishing     (d)     tracking    
    7. (a)     sonic     (b)     laconic     (c)     tonic     (d)     iconic    
    8. (a)     present     (b)     currently     (c)     recent     (d)     past    
    9. (a)     contrast     (b)     contest     (c)     consist     (d)     combust    
    10. (a)     series     (b)     seriously     (c)     severs     (d)     serviced    
    11. (a)     as     (b)     at     (c)     in     (d)     of    
    12. (a)     dated     (b)     newly     (c)     modernity     (d)     fasten

    Spelling

    Paragraph 1

    1. They were cutgha in the floods
    2. The typhoon caused dwapsdeeir damage
    3. many photos and TV ageooft
    4. the rclnaet city of Nagano
    5. the nearby Chikuma River urtbs its banks
    6. on the Sea of Japan scato

    Paragraph 2

    1. an iconic bymsol
    2. They cylnrtreu reach speeds of 320kph
    3. The bullet train rail etknowr
    4. currently ctosnsi of 2,764km
    5. aittlysib and safety
    6. instead of iepinrgar them

    Put the text back together

    (...)  Olympics. They became an iconic symbol of Japan and were the world's fastest trains. They currently reach
    (...)  speeds of 320kph. The bullet train rail network has expanded to currently consist of 2,764km. People take around 350
    (...)  called Kanazawa. The line is now running 80 per cent of its normal services. The bullet train company
    (  1  ) Ten of Japan's famous bullet trains will be scrapped. They were caught in the floods after Typhoon Hagibis hit
    (...)  million rides a year on the Shinkansen. A Shinkansen president, Yuji Fukasawa, spoke
    (...)  its banks. The trains used to run between Tokyo and a city on the Sea of Japan coast
    (...)  safety, we [will] replace the trains with newly built ones instead of repairing them."
    (...)  photos and TV footage of the 10 shiny bullet trains lined up next to each other at a train
    (...)  eastern Japan in October. The typhoon caused widespread damage and loss of life in Japan. There were many
    (...)  yard near the central city of Nagano. They were deep in floodwater after the nearby Chikuma River burst
    (...)  systems. The total cost of the damage is around $135 million. He said: "For stability and
    (...)  Bullet trains are called Shinkansen in Japan. They started in 1964 in time for the Tokyo
    (...)  about the flooded trains. He said the floodwater seriously damaged their motors and braking
    (...)  said it hopes to be running a full service again by the end of March 2020.

    Put the words in the right order

    1. be   scrapped   .   Japan's   of   trains   Ten   will   bullet
    2. of   life   and   Widespread   Japan   .   loss   damage   in
    3. of   shiny   the   TV   trains   .   footage   bullet   10
    4. nearby   its   Chikuma   River   the   banks   .   After   burst
    5. hopes   full   be   It   running   a   to   service   .
    6. trains   Japan   .   are   Bullet   in   Shinkansen   called
    7. symbol   of   iconic   Japan   .   They   an   became
    8. a   350   People   around   year   .   take   rides   million
    9. the   motors   .   their   floodwater   He   said   seriously   damaged
    10. the   replace   trains   built   with   newly   We'll   ones   .

    Circle the correct word (20 pairs)

    Ten of Japan's famous bullet trains will be scuppered / scrapped. They were caught in the floods after Typhoon Hagibis hit / smacked eastern Japan in October. The typhoon caused widely / widespread damage and loss of life in Japan. There were many photos and TV feet / footage of the 10 shiny bullet trains livened / lined up next to each other at a train yard near the central city of Nagano. They were deep in / on floodwater after the nearby Chikuma River burst / baste its banks. The trains used to run among / between Tokyo and a city on the Sea of Japan coast called Kanazawa. The line is now running 80 per cent of its normal / normally services. The bullet train company said it hopes to be running a full service against / again by the end of March 2020.

    Bullet trains are called Shinkansen in Japan. They started in 1964 in time / timed for the Tokyo Olympics. They became an iconic symbolic / symbol of Japan and was / were the world's fastest trains. They currently reach / reached speeds of 320kph. The bullet train rail network has explained / expanded to currently consist of 2,764km. People take around 350 million hides / rides a year on the Shinkansen. A Shinkansen president, Yuji Fukasawa, spoke about the flooded trains. He said the floodwater serious / seriously damaged their motors and breaking / braking systems. The total cost of the damage is around $135 million. He said: "For stable / stability and safety, we [will] replace the trains with newly built ones instead of / for repairing them."

    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_n _f J_p_n ' s f_m__ s b_l l_t t r__ n s w_l l b_ s c r_p p_d . T h_y w_r_ c__ g h t _n t h_ f l__ d s _f t_r T y p h__ n H_g_b_s h_t __ s t_r n J_p_n _n O c t_b_r . T h_ t y p h__ n c__ s_d w_d_s p r__ d d_m_g_ _n d l_s s _f l_f_ _n J_p_n . T h_r_ w_r_ m_n y p h_t_s _n d T V f__ t_g_ _f t h_ 1 0 s h_n y b_l l_t t r__ n s l_n_d _p n_x t t_ __ c h _t h_r _t _ t r__ n y_r d n__ r t h_ c_n t r_l c_t y _f N_g_n_. T h_y w_r_ d__ p _n f l__ d w_t_r _f t_r t h_ n__ r b y C h_k_m_ R_v_r b_r s t _t s b_n k s . T h_ t r__ n s _s_d t_ r_n b_t w__ n T_k y_ _n d _ c_t y _n t h_ S__ _f J_p_n c__ s t c_l l_d K_n_z_w_. T h_ l_n_ _s n_w r_n n_n g 8 0 p_r c_n t _f _t s n_r m_l s_r v_c_s . T h_ b_l l_t t r__ n c_m p_n y s__ d _t h_p_s t_ b_ r_n n_n g _ f_l l s_r v_c_ _g__ n b y t h_ _n d _f M_r c h 2 0 2 0 .

    B_l l_t t r__ n s _r_ c_l l_d S h_n k_n s_n _n J_p_n . T h_y s t_r t_d _n 1 9 6 4 _n t_m_ f_r t h_ T_k y_ O l y m p_c s . T h_y b_c_m_ _n _c_n_c s y m b_l _f J_p_n _n d w_r_ t h_ w_r l d ' s f_s t_s t t r__ n s . T h_y c_r r_n t l y r__ c h s p__ d s _f 3 2 0 k p h . T h_ b_l l_t t r__ n r__ l n_t w_r k h_s _x p_n d_d t_ c_r r_n t l y c_n s_s t _f 2 , 7 6 4 k m . P__ p l_ t_k_ _r__ n d 3 5 0 m_l l__ n r_d_s _ y__ r _n t h_ S h_n k_n s_n . A S h_n k_n s_n p r_s_d_n t , Y_j_ F_k_s_w_, s p_k_ _b__ t t h_ f l__ d_d t r__ n s . H_ s__ d t h_ f l__ d w_t_r s_r___s l y d_m_g_d t h__ r m_t_r s _n d b r_k_n g s y s t_m s . T h_ t_t_l c_s t _f t h_ d_m_g_ _s _r__ n d $ 1 3 5 m_l l__ n . H_ s__ d : " F_r s t_b_l_t y _n d s_f_t y , w_ [ w_l l ] r_p l_c_ t h_ t r__ n s w_t h n_w l y b__ l t _n_s _n s t__ d _f r_p__ r_n g t h_m . "

    Punctuate the text and add capitals

    ten of japans famous bullet trains will be scrapped they were caught in the floods after typhoon hagibis hit eastern japan in october the typhoon caused widespread damage and loss of life in japan there were many photos and tv footage of the 10 shiny bullet trains lined up next to each other at a train yard near the central city of nagano they were deep in floodwater after the nearby chikuma river burst its banks the trains used to run between tokyo and a city on the sea of japan coast called kanazawa the line is now running 80 per cent of its normal services the bullet train company said it hopes to be running a full service again by the end of march 2020

    bullet trains are called shinkansen in japan they started in 1964 in time for the tokyo olympics they became an iconic symbol of japan and were the worlds fastest trains they currently reach speeds of 320kph the bullet train rail network has expanded to currently consist of 2764km people take around 350 million rides a year on the shinkansen a shinkansen president yuji fukasawa spoke about the flooded trains he said the floodwater seriously damaged their motors and braking systems the total cost of the damage is around 135 million he said for stability and safety we will replace the trains with newly built ones instead of repairing them

    Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

    TenofJapan'sfamousbullettrainswillbescrapped.Theywerecaughtint
    hefloodsafterTyphoonHagibishiteasternJapaninOctober.Thetyphoo
    ncausedwidespreaddamageandlossoflifeinJapan.Thereweremanyp
    hotosandTVfootageofthe10shinybullettrainslinedupnexttoeachothe
    ratatrainyardnearthecentralcityofNagano.Theyweredeepinfloodwat
    erafterthenearbyChikumaRiverburstitsbanks.Thetrainsusedtorunb
    etweenTokyoandacityontheSeaofJapancoastcalledKanazawa.Theli
    neisnowrunning80percentofitsnormalservices.Thebullettraincompa
    nysaidithopestoberunningafullserviceagainbytheendofMarch2020.
    BullettrainsarecalledShinkanseninJapan.Theystartedin1964intimef
    ortheTokyoOlympics.TheybecameaniconicsymbolofJapanandweret
    heworld'sfastesttrains.Theycurrentlyreachspeedsof320kph.Thebull
    ettrainrailnetworkhasexpandedtocurrentlyconsistof2,764km.Peopl
    etakearound350millionridesayearontheShinkansen.AShinkansenpr
    esident,YujiFukasawa,spokeaboutthefloodedtrains.Hesaidtheflood
    waterseriouslydamagedtheirmotorsandbrakingsystems.Thetotalco
    stofthedamageisaround$135million.Hesaid:"Forstabilityandsafety,
    we[will]replacethetrainswithnewlybuiltonesinsteadofrepairingthem
    ."

    Free writing

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

    _____________________________________________________________________________

    _____________________________________________________________________________

    _____________________________________________________________________________

    _____________________________________________________________________________

    _____________________________________________________________________________

    _____________________________________________________________________________

    _____________________________________________________________________________

    _____________________________________________________________________________

    _____________________________________________________________________________

     

    Academic writing

    There should be a speed limit on super-fast trains. 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 this news story. Share what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.
    3. BULLET TRAINS: Make a poster about bullet trains. Show your work to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all have similar things?
    4. SUPER-FAST: Write a magazine article about putting a speed limit on super-fast trains. 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 bullet trains. Ask him/her three questions about them. Give him/her three of your opinions on super-fast trains. 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.)

    Back to the top

    Help Support This Web Site

    • Please consider helping Breaking News English.com

    Sean Banville's Book

    Thank You