A-Z BOOKS.

Gorillas

Gorillas are members of the great ape

family. They live in the forests of Africa.

Gorillas have strong, heavy bodies.

They can walk on two legs like people
do. Most of the time they walk on their
feet and hands.

Gorillas eat leaves, stems, bark, fruits,

flowers, and wood. They also eat insects
and snails. Most gorillas do not hunt.

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Gorillas make faces to show how they feel.
Their faces tell if they are happy, sad, or
upset. Gorillas can cry, and they laugh
when they are tickled.

Gorilla families
A gorilla baby nurses and stays close to its mother for a few years.
It rides on her back to move around.

A gorilla family is called a troop. A troop eats, sleeps, and plays together.
Family members play tag, catch, and dress-up with leaves.

A baby gorilla stays near its mother until it is about ten years old.

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When a male gorilla grows up, the fur on its back turns silver.
It is called a silverback. The silverback's job is to protect the troop

An adult female gorilla

weighs 91 kg. A silverback
gorilla weighs 181 kg.

Learning to talk

Gorillas are very smart.

A woman named Penny taught a gorilla
to use sign language. The gorilla' s
name is Koko. Koko uses signs to tell
Penny what she wants and how she
feels.

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Gorillas in danger

Many gorillas have been killed by hunters.

Their forest homes are being cut down.
Gorillas are now endangered.
Many people are trying to save these great apes.

A scientist looks at a gorilla nest

She is trying to find out how many
gorillas are left in the forest

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QUESTIONS Gorillas
1. What group of animals do gorillas belong to?
A. reptiles
B. amphibians.
C. apes.

2. Where do gorillas live?

A. in all continents.
B. In cages
C. in central Africa.

3. What’s their habitat?

A. jungle nests.
B. deserts.
C. tropical forests.

4. Are gorillas omnivorous?

A. No, they are not.
B. Yes, they are.
C. It depends on where they live.

5. In what way are gorillas similar to people? (4 reasons)

.....................................................................................................................

.....................................................................................................................

.....................................................................................................................

.....................................................................................................................

6. Write one reason to protect gorillas.

.....................................................................................................................

.....................................................................................................................

7. A troop in this context is a ...

A. gorilla habitat.
B. gorilla social group.
C. a group of soldiers.

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8. How long does it take to became a grown up gorilla?
A. four years.
B. two years.
C. ten years more or less.

9. Are female gorillas heavier than males?

A. No, they are not.
B. Sometimes.
C. Yes, they are.

10. A silverback is a...

A. troop.
B. job.
C. an adult male gorilla.

11. Who does usually take care of baby gorillas?

A. the father.
B. the mother.
C. both parents.

12. Find in the text two reasons explaining why gorillas can disappear and
write them below.

.....................................................................................................................

.....................................................................................................................

13. What animals do gorillas eat according to the text?

.....................................................................................................................

14. The underlined nouns are all in the plural. Write them down in the singular.
Gorillas have strong, heavy bodies (............................).
Gorillas eat leaves,(............................) stems,(............................)
bark, fruits, flowers,(............................) and wood.
Most of the time they walk on their feet (............................) and hands.
15. Underline all the subjects in the following sentences:
EXAMPLES: A scientist looks at a gorilla nest.
The gorilla' s name is Koko.
An adult female gorilla weighs 91 kg.

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Gorillas make faces to show how they feel. Their faces tell everything.
Gorillas can cry. A gorilla family is called a troop. A troop eats, sleeps, and
plays together.

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 TEACHER'S PAPER
QUESTIONS GORILLAS

Q. Marks Answers
1 1 C. apes.
2 1 C. in central Africa.
3 1 C. tropical forests.
4 1 B. Yes, they are..
5 4 They can walk on two legs/. They live in families
They show their feelings. /They laugh and cry/ They can be taught/ They
are intelligent.
6 2 They are like humans. Or....
They are very valuable animals. / They are in danger
7 1 B. gorilla social group.
8 1 C. ten years more or less.
9 1 A. No, they are not.

10 1 C. an adult male gorilla.

11 1 B. the mother.
12 4 Some people kill gorillas.
Their forests are cut down. / Their habitat is disappearing.
13 2 They eat insects and snails.
14 2 Gorillas have strong, heavy bodies (...BODY.....).
Gorillas eat leaves,(...LEAF....) stems,(....STEM.....) bark, fruits,
flowers,(..FLOWER...) and wood.
…they walk on their feet (....FOOT....) and hands.(….HAND....)
15 2 Gorillas make faces to show how they feel.
Their faces tell everything.
Gorillas can cry.
A gorilla family is called a troop.
A troop eats, sleeps, and plays together.
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GORILLAS
COMENTARIOS SOBRE LA CORRECCIÓN Y LOS RESULTADOS DE LA
MUESTRA

Son 5 centros en la muestra: 8 clases y 172 alumnos

El texto puede considerarse fácil en líneas generales. Sigue un patrón y un

tema que conocen a través de textos y documentales televisivos; típico texto
informativo sobre un animal: rasgos físicos, hábitat, conducta, relaciones con
los humanos. Seguramente leen textos breves con estructura similar en el
libro de texto de inglés. Las ilustraciones pueden facilitar la comprensión y la
ambientación de la historia. Las preguntas son típicas y predecibles.

1. What group of animals do gorillas belong to? La mayoría entiende la

pregunta. Responden bien el 79.6%.

2. Where do gorillas live? Hay apoyo visual y textual.

Responden bien el 96.5%.

3. What’s their habitat? El distractor “jungle nests” atrae a demasiados, les

gusta lo de, “jungle” aunque desconozcan la palabra “nests”.
Responden bien el 69.7%.

4. Are gorillas omnivorous? Requiere la pregunta una pequeña inferencia y

advertir qué animales comen. Les distrae que el texto afirma que sólo unos
pocos son cazadores. Los distractores son discretos.
Responden bien el 55.8%.

5. In what way are gorillas similar to people? (4 reasons) Todas las

preguntas abiertas entrañan dificultad, en ésta hay incluso una razón
enumerada que algunos copian tal cual y se acepta; pero a veces repiten la
misma razón con frases diferentes para demostrar que tienen sentimientos,
ríen, lloran, etc. y esas no se contabilizan. Llegar a dar cuatro razones señala
un nivel de excelencia, que sólo alcanzan unos pocos.
Responden bien el 69%, pero la mayoría parcialmente,

6. Write one reason to protect gorillas. De nuevo tienen que escribir.

Bastantes copian bien una frase pasiva compleja que contiene el texto y que
son capaces de entender.
Responden bien 36.6% (9 parcialmente),

7. A troop in this context is a ...

Responden bien el 55%.

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8. How long does it take to became a grown up gorilla?
Responden bien el 73.8%.

9. Are female gorillas heavier than males? La dificultad radica en entender

oraciones comparativas con adjetivo en grado positivo, además de conocer el
vocabulario.
Responden bien el 31%.
10. A silverback is a.... No parece tan difícil aunque había que entender
“male; por otro lado había información gráfica.
Responden bien el 36.6%.

11. Who does usually take care of baby gorillas? Resulta sencilla, con
distractores que no les confunden.
Responden bien el 90%.

12. Find in the text two reasons explaining why gorillas can disappear
and write them below. Hay que escribir y eso hace que algunos rehuyan
incluso copiar. Una de las razones dadas por el texto, como ya se comentó
antes, es gramaticalmente muy compleja.
Responden bien el 30.8%.

13. What animals do gorillas eat according to the text? Ésta es

complementaria o paralela a la 4, tienen porcentajes de acierto similares.
Confirma la fiabilidad de la prueba y ayuda a que puedan contestar mejor,
porque se les pregunta dos veces lo mismo de diferente manera.
Responden bien el 50%, algunos parcialmente, pues eran dos animales y
citan sólo uno.

14. The underlined nouns are all in the plural. Write them down in the
singular.
Gorillas have strong, heavy bodies (............................). Gorillas eat
leaves,(............................) stems,(............................) bark, fruits,
flowers,(............................) and wood. Most of the time they walk on their feet
(............................) and hands.
Responden bien e183%, la mayoría parcialmente.

15. Underline all the subjects in the following sentences.

Example: Gorillas make faces to show how they feel.
Muchos señalan sólo el núcleo del sujeto y no el sintagma, se les ha
penalizado, por ello hay puntuaciones parciales.
Responden bien el 65%, la mayoría parcialmente.

• En el examen revisado se ilustra la respuesta con ejemplos que incluyen

todo el sintagma.

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1 1 C. apes.
2 1 C. in central Africa.
3 1 C. tropical forests.
4 1 B. Yes, they are..
They can walk on two legs/. They live in families
5 4 They show their feelings. /They laugh and cry/ They can be taught/ They are intelligent.
They are like humans. Or....
6 2 They are very valuable animals. / They are in danger

7 1 B. gorilla social group.

8 1 C. ten years more or less.
9 1 A. No, they are not.
10 1 C. an adult male gorilla.
11 1 B. the mother.
Some people kill gorillas.
12 4 Their forests are cut down. / Their habitat is disappearing.

13 2 insects , snails.
(...BODY.....).LEAF....)
14 2 (....STEM.....),(..FLOWER...)
(....FOOT....).(….HAND....)
Gorillas make faces to show…..
15 2 Their faces tell everything.
Gorillas can cry.
A gorilla family is called a troop.
A troop eats, ...

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