ENGLISH WORKSHEET / YEAR 10

TOPIC: A news report Date:

A1. Read the news article and label the paragraphs with

these headings. detailed description summary of event comments, action taken

2. Read the news report again and underline all the verbs which are in the passive. Write them in your notebook and say what tense each verb is in:

e.g. Two people were killed – past simple

3. Read the news article again and mark the statements as T (true) or F (false).a. Three people were killed in the crash.b. Felicity Kensit lost control of her Alfa Romeo and

hit John Cameron’s Ford Granada.c. Mr Cameron was on his way home from work.d. Mr Cameron is now in hospital.e. The police are going to arrest him.

4. Fill in the correct word from the list. In your notebook make sentences using the completed phrases.

Skidded, car, killed, stable, heart, badly, lost, main

1. ………………..………hurt 5. …………….……instantly2. ……………...………crash 6. …………….……condition3. …………………….…road 7. …………….….……attack4. ……….…… off the bridge 8. ……………….……control

******************************************************B

STUDY TIP 1A news report has a headline to capture the reader’s attention. A good headline gives a short, clear summary of what the news report is about. When writing a headline we:- use the present simple for recent events e.g. EARTHQUAKE KILLS THIRTY TWO- omit the verb to be when using the passive to describe a past event e.g. SKIER TRAPPED IN AVALANCHE- omit articles (a, an, the), full stops, etc. e.g. PLANE CRASHES - omit unnecessary adjectives, pronouns, etc. e.g. THREE KILLED IN MOTORWAY ACCIDENT

1. Change the sentences into headlines, as in the examplea. A young boy has been reunited with his family. - YOUNG BOY REUNITED WITH FAMILYb. Several fires caused serious damage in the city centre. - c. A twelve-year-old boy saved his sister from drowning. - d. Hundreds of people died in recent flood. - e. A retired security guard caught an armed robber. - f. A clever dog warned his owner of a fire. -

2. Use the notes to write appropriate beginnings for 3 of the following news reports, than give each report a headline.

plane crash 3 pm yesterday Hillington Airport 2 people seriously injured, 5 people

treated for shock

ancient Roman coins discovered last Saturday back garden of cottage display local museum

opening of new art gallery next Saturday at 7.30 pm Gallery Modern Art, Windsor Avenue Famous artist to give speech

3. Join the sentences, using the words in brackets.

a. The girl was saved by her next-door neighbour. He is a fire-fighter. whob. Two boys were arrested. They were caught stealing a motorcycle. whenc. The town that suffered the most serious damage was Reading. There, more than 500 people were left homeless. where

2 KILLED ON POOTOWN MAIN ROAD

Intro

duct

ion Two people were killed and another person

was seriously injured in a car crash on the A585, the main road into Pooltown, late last night.

Para 1________

Mai

n Bo

dy

The accident happened when John Cameron, 42, lost control of his Ford Granada on the Westbury Bridge on the A585. The car skidded off the bridge at a speed of 50 miles per hour and landed on top of an Alfa Romeo which was travelling on the road below. The driver of the second car, Felicity Kensit, 33, and her passenger, Margaret Hall, 54, were killed instantly. Mr Cameron, a well-known local businessman, had been working late at his office and was driving home when the accident happened. It is believed that he had a heart attack at the wheel, which caused him to lose control of the vehicle. Mr Cameron was taken to St James Hospital, where he had heart surgery and was treated for his injuries. His condition is reported to be serious but stable.

Para 2

____

_____

Para 3

_____

_____

Conc

lusio

n A police spokesperson said, “Obviously this is a terrible tragedy, but it is unlikely that any action will be taken against Mr Cameron.”

Para 4____

d. There was a terrible fire last night in Gamble’s toy store. The fire completely destroyed the building. whiche. Actor Charles Grey was at the award ceremony. His son died last week. whose

CSTUDY TIP 2News reports are written in formal style and contain accurate facts. To write a news report we:- use the passive e.g. A man was arrested…- use direct speech to quote people e.g. ”I owe my success to my family”, said actress Vanessa Reid.- use reported speech to rephrase what people have said e.g. The PM said that crime prevention was the government’s top priority.

1. Read the paragraphs below, then say which are from stories and which are from news reports.

A. A gang of five armed men yesterday robbed the York and General, one of city’s the biggest banks, and escaped with over £2 million. Two of the bank’s employees and seven customers were seriously injured.

B. It was a cold and snowy morning and the roads were covered with ice. Judy was driving slowly to work when the weather forecast was broadcast on the car radio.

C. Amy went into the kitchen to put away her shopping. She was opening a cupboard door when all of a sudden she heard a loud deep noise that seemed to be coming from under her feet. At that moment the house started shaking.

D. An earthquake measuring 6.2 on Richter scale struck the Huntington area at four pm yesterday. Local residents reported hearing a loud rumbling noise just before the earth started shaking violently. Homes, buildings and roads were completely destroyed by the quake.

2. Say whether the guidelines below apply to stories (S), news reports (NR), or both (B).

a. …S… start by setting the scene.b. ……. give a summary of the incident.c. ……. describe events in chronological order.d. ……. use past tenses to describe events.

e. ……. Mention your own feelings.f. ……. mention people’s comments and refer to action taken.g. ……. use a variety of adjectives and adverbs.h. ……. use passive voice, direct and/or reported speech.

DSTUDY TIP 3When we write a news report we can divide it into 4 paragraphs.In the introduction, we write a short summary of the event (i.e. what happened, where and when it happened, who was involved.In the main body we write a detailed description of the event.In the conclusion we write people’s comments as well as the action taken.We normally use past tenses in this type of writing. We give a news report an eye-catching headline.

1. Read the news report below and underline the correct words in bold. Then think of a suitable headline for the report. Early this morning, 40-year-old Carmen Douglas was pulling/pulled to safety after being trapped in her car for 10 hours. The vehicle had been buried/was being buried under two metres of snow on Dalwich Road, Preston.Mrs Douglas was driving/driving home when there was an unexpected/unknown snowstorm that caused her to lose/miss control of the car, which skidded / was skidded off the road and into a ditch. She called the police on her mobile phone but as/because of the severe storm, they were unable to locate her. Several hours later, when/at last the storm cleared, rescue workers found/finding her and dug her out of the snow.Mrs Douglas was immediately took/taken to Riverview Hospital, where/there she was treated for minor injuries and frostbite. She released/was released a few hours later, exhausted but happy to be alive. A spokesman from the city council said/told “As there have been many accidents on this road, we strongly advice/advise motorists to be careful during/while stormy weather”.

2. Write your own news report.

You are a reporter for a local newspaper and have been asked to write a report about a robbery that took place in your area last night.

Write your report giving details of the event (120 – 180 words).

Follow the plan in Study Tip 3.

Source: Targets 3 – Reading / Writing Virginia Evans & Jenny Doyle (adapted)