The Reading / Listening - Mutant Virus - Level 1

Forty countries have blocked travel to the United Kingdom. The reason is a new kind of COVID-19. The new coronavirus is a mutant - it changed from the original virus that started earlier this year. Some nations blocked links to the UK for a few days; others for two weeks. Many countries are reviewing the situation. The biggest problems are being caused by a travel ban from France. A lot of the UK's food comes across the English Channel from France.

The UK says the new virus is 70% more infectious than the original one. It is fast-spreading and out of control. A lot of the UK is now in lockdown. There are new rules about mixing with other people. Most people can only spend Christmas with people they live with. They cannot travel to meet other people. A politician said the news was very bad. The number of coronavirus cases has nearly doubled. The UK leader told people that there would be enough food.

Try the same news story at these levels:

    Mutant Virus - Level 0,  Mutant Virus - Level 2   or  Mutant Virus - Level 3

Sources
  • https://www.thenationalnews.com/world/coronavirus-latest-britain-cut-off-by-30-countries-as-mutant-covid-strain-out-of-control-1.1098247
  • https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-55391289
  • https://www.reuters.com/article/health-coronavirus-britain/wrapup-1-world-closes-borders-to-britain-as-new-coronavirus-strain-breeds-panic-idUSL1N2J10IW


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. Forty countries have blocked
  2. The reason is a new kind
  3. The new coronavirus is a
  4. it changed from
  5. Some nations blocked links
  6. Many countries are reviewing
  7. caused by a travel
  8. A lot of the UK's food comes
  1. ban from France
  2. the original virus
  3. across
  4. travel
  5. the situation
  6. of COVID-19
  7. to the UK
  8. mutant

Paragraph 2

  1. the new virus is 70% more
  2. the original
  3. out of
  4. A lot of the UK is
  5. There are new rules
  6. spend Christmas with people
  7. The number of coronavirus cases
  8. there would be
  1. enough food
  2. control
  3. about mixing
  4. they live with
  5. infectious
  6. has nearly doubled
  7. one
  8. now in lockdown

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

Forty countries (1) ___________________ to the United Kingdom. The reason is (2) ___________________ of COVID-19. The new coronavirus is a mutant - it changed from (3) ___________________ that started earlier this year. Some nations blocked links to the UK for (4) ___________________; others for two weeks. Many countries are reviewing the situation. The biggest problems are (5) ___________________ a travel ban from France. A lot of the UK's (6) ___________________ the English Channel from France.

The UK says (7) ___________________ is 70% more infectious than (8) ___________________. It is fast-spreading and out of control. A lot of the UK is now in lockdown. There are new rules about (9) ___________________ people. Most people can only spend Christmas with people they live with. They cannot travel to (10) ___________________. A politician said the news was very bad. The number of coronavirus cases (11) ___________________. The UK leader told people that there would (12) ___________________.

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

FortycountrieshaveblockedtraveltotheUnitedKingdom.Thereasonis
anewkindofCOVID-19.Thenewcoronavirusisamutant-itchangedfro
mtheoriginalvirusthatstartedearlierthisyear.Somenationsblockedli
nkstotheUKforafewdays;othersfortwoweeks.Manycountriesarerevi
ewingthesituation.Thebiggestproblemsarebeingcausedbyatravelba
nfromFrance.AlotoftheUK'sfoodcomesacrosstheEnglishChannelfro
mFrance.TheUKsaysthenewvirusis70%moreinfectiousthantheorigi
nalone.Itisfast-spreadingandoutofcontrol.AlotoftheUKisnowinlock
down.Therearenewrulesaboutmixingwithotherpeople.Mostpeoplec
anonlyspendChristmaswithpeopletheylivewith.Theycannottravelto
meetotherpeople.Apoliticiansaidthenewswasverybad.Thenumberof
coronaviruscaseshasnearlydoubled.TheUKleadertoldpeoplethatthe
rewouldbeenoughfood.

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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