News English Lessons
FREE Handout, Listening & Quizzes - Cloned Mammoth
(11 Pages of Materials & 8 Online Activities)

Scientists Say Cloned Mammoth Possible (5th December, 2011)

Scientists think it might be possible to bring a woolly mammoth back to life. Experts from Russian and Japanese universities say they could create a mammoth clone within the next five years. They have well-preserved tissue in a thigh bone found frozen in the ground in Siberia. Many mammoth bones have been uncovered before. Scientists say this bone is special because it has genes that are undamaged. The DNA comes from a mammoth that could have lived around 23,000 years ago.

The scientists say cloning the mammoth is not so difficult. They put the DNA from the mammoth bones inside the egg cells of an elephant. The egg is then placed inside a female elephant until the mammoth is born. The Russian and Japanese teams are very excited about the chance to bring the species back to life. However, other people say it is a bad idea. Many comments on the Internet say it is dangerous to recreate these prehistoric animals. They also say that scientists should not be playing God.

PHRASE MATCH

Match the following phrases from the article.

Paragraph 1

Paragraph 2

LISTENING GAP FILL

Scientists think it __________________ to bring a woolly mammoth back to life. Experts from Russian and Japanese universities say __________________ a mammoth clone within the next five years. They have well-preserved __________________ bone found frozen in the ground in Siberia. Many mammoth bones have ______________________. Scientists say this bone is special because __________________ are undamaged. The ____________________ mammoth that could have lived around 23,000 years ago.

The ____________________ the mammoth is not so difficult. They put the DNA from the mammoth bones __________________ of an elephant. The egg is __________________ a female elephant until the mammoth is born. The Russian and Japanese teams are very excited about the __________________ the species back to life. However, other people say it is a bad idea. Many comments on the Internet say it is __________________ these prehistoric animals. They also say that scientists should not __________________.

MULTIPLE CHOICE

Scientists think it might be possible to bring a woolly mammoth back to    (1) ____. Experts from Russian and Japanese universities say they could create a mammoth clone (2) ____ the next five years. They have well-preserved (3) ____ in a thigh bone found frozen in the ground in Siberia. Many mammoth bones have been uncovered (4) ____. Scientists say this bone is special because it has genes that are (5) ____. The DNA comes from a mammoth that could have lived around 23,000 years (6) ____.

The scientists say (7) ____ the mammoth is not so difficult. They put the DNA from the mammoth bones inside the egg (8) ____ of an elephant. The egg is then (9) ____ inside a female elephant until the mammoth is born. The Russian and Japanese teams are very excited (10) ____ the chance to bring the species back to life. However, other people say it is a bad idea. Many comments (11) ____ the Internet say it is dangerous to recreate these prehistoric animals. They also say that scientists should not be (12) ____ God.

Put the correct words from this table into the article.

SPELLING

Spell the jumbled words (from the text) correctly.

PUT THE TEXT BACK TOGETHER

Number these lines in the correct order.

THE READING / TAPESCRIPT

With a partner, put the words back into the correct order.

DISCUSSION (Write your own questions)

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WRITING

Write about cloning for 10 minutes. Show your partner your paper. Correct each other’s work.

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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. CLONING: Search the Internet and find more information about cloning. Talk about what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.

3. MAGAZINE ARTICLE: Write a magazine article about the cloning of the mammoth. Include an imaginary interview with the scientists. Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Give each other feedback on your articles.

4. 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.

5. LETTER: Write a letter to a cloning expert. Ask him/her three questions about cloning. Give him/her three of your opinions on the mammoth. Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Your partner will answer the questions you asked.