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ENGLISH FOR TEENAGERS · GENERAL ISSUES · PRE-INTERMEDIATE (A2-B1)

LIFE
CYCLES
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1 Warm-up
Guess the animals in the pictures below and label them.

1. 2. 3.

2 Young animals
Part A: Match the young and the adult animals.

1. bear a. cub

2. cat b. joey

3. dog c. duckling

4. duck d. kitten

5. elephant e. lamb

6. kangaroo f. calf

7. pig g. puppy

8. sheep h. piglet

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LIFE CYCLES

Part B: What animals do you see in the photos?

1. 2. 3.

4. 5. 6.

3 A metamorphosis

Part A: Label the pictures below. Can you guess how the photos are connected?

a butterfly a caterpillar a frog a pupa

a pupa a tadpole butterfly’s eggs frog’s eggs

1. 2. 3. 4.

5. 6. 7. 8.

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Part B: The photos above show the stages in the life of a frog and a butterfly. Watch the video, check
you have labelled the photos correctly and link the stages to the right animal.

1. caterpillar a. butterfly

2. pupa b. butterfly

3. tadpole c. frog

Part C: Put the stages of a butterfly’s life in the correct order.

The cocoon opens and the butterfly comes out.

Inside the eggs, caterpillars begin to grow.

It changes into a pupa.

A female butterfly lays eggs on the leaves of a plant.

4 It eats a lot and grows quickly.

When an egg is ready, it hatches and a caterpillar comes out.

The pupa stays inside a cocoon.

Part D: Read the text and match the words in bold to the synonyms and definitions below.

After the caterpillar hatches, it spends a lot of time munching leaves and it grows quickly.
After some time, its skin becomes too tight, so the caterpillar sheds it, but it has a new bigger
skin. Then, the caterpillar changes into a pupa, which hangs upside down in a cocoon. The
pupa has to stay still so that no predator can spot it and eat it. Next, the pupa grows wings
inside the cocoon and becomes a butterfly. Finally, the cocoon opens, the butterfly leaves it,
spreads its wings and flies away.

1. tight a. with head down

2. grows b. develop

3. munching c. eat

4. still d. not moving

5. spreads e. open and make bigger

6. spot f. lose or drop

7. sheds g. see

8. upside down h. too small, not big enough

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4 Language focus: talking about order

Part A: Underline all words which talk about the order in which things happen in the text in 3D.

Part B: Complete the missing words in the table.

before that / after / later / then

Here are some linking words which can be used when we talk about the order of events.

Group 1

1 2 3
First, at first, , next, , after that, , and
finally are used at the beginning of the sentence and are followed by a comma.

First, the hen lays eggs.

Then, she sits on the eggs.

Group 2

4
When, , before are used in complex sentences. When they are at the
beginning of the sentence, a comma is used at the end of the clause.

When an egg is ready, it hatches.

After the bird comes out of the egg, it starts to look for food.

There is no comma when the words are used in the middle of a sentence.

The egg hatches when it is ready.

A caterpillar grows before it changes into a pupa.

Part C: Complete the text with one of the words in the table above.

1. , a female butterfly lays eggs on the leaves of a plant.

2. , inside the eggs, caterpillars begin to grow.

3. an egg is ready, it hatches and a caterpillar comes out.

4. , the caterpillar grows and changes into a pupa and stays inside a cocoon.

5. , the cocoon opens and the butterfly comes out.

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5 How does a tadpole become a frog?

Part A: Watch the video and answer the questions.

1. Where does a frog lay her eggs?

2. How long does a tadpole stay inside the egg?

3. Which legs does a tadpole grow first, back or front?

4. How do the legs grow?

5. How does a tadpole lose its tail?

6. What does a frog use its legs for?

Part B: Look at the sentences and then fill in the gaps with linking words.

1. , the tadpole grows and changes.

2. , the tadpole hatches from the egg.

3. , the tadpole grows two more legs.

4. , it loses its tail.

5. , the tadpole grows two legs.

6 Before or after?

Link the sentences using the linking word in brackets.

Examples:

The storks build a nest before the female lays the eggs.

Before the storks build a nest, the female lays the eggs.

1. The small storks grow. They leave the nest. (when)

2. The hen lays the eggs. The chicks develop inside the eggs. (after)

3. The hen sits on the eggs for some time. The eggs hatch. (before)

4. The chicks develop inside the eggs. They crack the eggs to get outside. (after)

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7 Present what you have learnt

Talk about the life cycle of a frog or a butterfly. Use linking words. Practise your presentations in
pairs.

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8 Homework: part 1

Read the text about the life cycle of a ladybird and put the missing words and phrases in the gaps.

an egg hatches change a lot comes out don’t change grows

hangs is called lays eggs on its wings sheds its skin

There are 5,000 different species of ladybirds in the world. The species that you probably know
1 2
the seven-spotted ladybird. It has a red and black body with seven spots .
3 4
An adult ladybird on a leaf. When , a black larva comes out. It grows
5 6
quickly and several times. When the ladybird larva , it forms a pupa.
7 8
The pupa down from a leaf for a week or two. Then, an adult ladybird
and the life cycle begins again. A life cycle is the stages that animals go through in their lives. The word
cycle means circle. It is called a life cycle because it repeats over and over. Every animal has a life cycle.
9
Some animals during their life, others change just a little. For example, butterflies,
10
frogs and ladybirds go through big changes during their life cycle, while bears or dogs
as much.

9 Homework: part 2

Describe how human babies grow and change. In what order do they learn things? What do they do
first?

sit - talk - walk - read - write - drink milk - go to school - eat solid food

First, babies

Later, they

First babies learn to

Then, they

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Transcripts

3. A metamorphosis

Narrator: Butterflies. They are some of the most magical insects you can see in the environment.
Their wings look like beautiful artworks, and they come in all the colours of the rainbow.
But did you know that the beautiful butterflies you see actually used to be caterpillars?
Now you might be wondering - how did they change from a tiny wriggly worm-looking
insect to a stunning butterfly? Well, you’re about to find out.

Narrator: The life cycle of a butterfly has four stages. It all begins when a female butterfly lays her
eggs. Inside these eggs, caterpillars begin to grow. Once an egg is ready, it hatches and
out comes a larva, also known as a caterpillar. The caterpillar leaves its egg behind, finds a
leaf and starts eating, and eating, and eating. You might have seen a caterpillar in a garden
munching away. As a caterpillar grows, its skin becomes too tight for its growing body.
The caterpillar sheds this old skin because underneath there is a new bigger skin, which
is much more comfortable. This process of shedding skin is called moulting. Now it’s time
for the caterpillar to begin changing into a pupa.

Narrator: The pupa stage is pretty uneventful because all they really do is hang upside down in a
cocoon. A cocoon is also called a chrysalis. The pupa needs to stay really still, so predators
don’t spot it wriggling around and eat it for dinner. This is the stage where the caterpillar
begins to grow its wings. The last stage is when the adult butterfly breaks free. It slowly
comes out of its cocoon and spreads its beautiful wings getting ready to take flight. Once
it’s ready, it will fly off and eventually lay its own eggs starting the cycle all over again.

Narrator: As you can see the caterpillar goes through a number of changes before it reaches
the final stage of being a butterfly. This spectacular physical transformation is called
metamorphosis. Metamorphosis is said to have occurred when an animal transforms from
its young form into its adult form.

Narrator: The frog also goes through metamorphosis. It transforms from an egg to a tadpole, then
slowly grows arms and legs, and transforms into an adult frog. Can you think of any other
animals or insects that go through special stages to grow into an adult? What about you?
Have you gone through some physical changes since you were born?

5. How does a tadpole become a frog?

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Narrator: How a tadpole becomes a frog. Mom lays eggs. Dad watches over them to keep them safe
from predators. They develop over time. Day 1, 2, .... 14. When they’re ready to hatch,
they begin a whole new adventure. The transformation is called a metamorphosis. ... His
limbs will develop internally and spring out at the last minute. He still has some growing
to do over the next few weeks. He’ll lose his tail by absorbing it back into his body. (It’s a
good food source!). Then he’ll be ready to explore land.

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Key

1. Warm-up

5-7 mins.
Students guess the animal based on the pictures and label the photos accordingly. This exercise is a nice link to
the first lesson in this unit (animal bodies).

1. horse’s mouth 2. cat’s eye 3. dog’s paw

2. Young animals

5-7 mins.
Give feedback on task 2a and practise the pronunciation. Then elicit descriptions of the photos in 2b.
EXTENSIONS: Encourage the students to give as many details as they can. Ask questions to elicit more information.

Where do kangaroos live? (Only in Australia.)

Where do brown bears live? (In temperate climates, on the northern hemisphere.)
Where do ducks live? (On all continents, apart from Antarctica.)
Can ducks walk/fly? (Yes)
What do sheep eat? (Grass and other plants)
What do pigs eat? (Everything)
Part A:

1. → a. 2. → d. 3. → g. 4. → c.
5. → f. 6. → b. 7. → h. 8. → e.
Part B, possible answers:

1. This is a joey in its mother’s pouch. You can only see its head. It has big ears.
2. There are two bear cubs. They are playing together.
3. I can see a duck with her ducklings. They are swimming.
4. There is a sheep and a lamb. The sheep is eating grass. The lamb is looking at the person who is taking the
photo.
5. There are three piglets.
6. I can see a calf lying in the grass.

3. A metamorphosis

15 mins.
The students try to guess the link between the photos after labelling them. It’s also possible that they’ve learned
about life cycles in science classes. If they have, ask them to order the stages, link them to the right animal and
label the photos before they watch the video. After watching the video, check the answers with the whole class,
and proceed to task 3c, in which the students order sentences describing the stages. When they finish, they use
the language to describe the life cycle of a butterfly. Task 3d teaches some vocabulary from the video.
Part A:

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1. frog’s eggs 2. a pupa 3. a tadpole 4. a caterpillar

5. butterfly’s eggs 6. a pupa 7. a butterfly 8. a frog
Part B:

1. → b. 2. → a. 3. → c.
Part C:

A female butterfly lays eggs on the leaves of a plant.

Inside the eggs, caterpillars begin to grow.
When an egg is ready, it hatches and a caterpillar comes out.
It eats a lot and grows quickly.
It changes into a pupa.
The pupa stays inside a cocoon.
The cocoon opens and the butterfly comes out.
Part D:

1. → h. 2. → b. 3. → c. 4. → d.
5. → e. 6. → g. 7. → f. 8. → a.

4. Language focus: talking about order

10-12 mins.
The students learn to use a number of linking words to indicate sequence.
Part A: After, After some time, Then, Next, Finally
Part B:

1. later
2. then
3. before that
4. after
Part C:

1. First
2. Then/Later/After that
3. After/When
4. Then/Later/After that
5. Finally

5. How does a tadpole become a frog?

12-15 mins.
The students guess the answers to the questions before watching the video. Then, they use the information to
practise the linking words.
Part A:

1. In water.
2. About two weeks.
3. The back legs grow first.
4. They grow inside the body and come outside when they are fully grown.
5. It goes into its body.

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6. For jumping on land and swimming in water.

Part B:

1. First
2. Next/Then/After that
3. Next/Then/After that
4. Next/Then/After that
5. Finally

6. Before or after?

5-6 mins.
The students practise using the conjunctions before and after in complex sentences.

1. When the small storks grow, they leave the nest.

2. After the hen lays the eggs, the chicks develop inside the eggs.
3. The hen sits on the eggs for some time before the eggs hatch. Before the eggs hatch, the hen sits on them for
some time.
4. After the chicks develop inside the eggs, they crack the eggs to get outside.

7. Present what you have learnt

8-10 mins.
Students practise speaking about one of the life cycles introduced in the lesson. Encourage them to rehearse in
pairs or/and record their mini-presentations. Encourage pointing to the illustrations.
Extension: Use this task for assessment. The students can prepare their own visuals and add as much detail as
they want.

8. Homework: part 1

5 mins.
Students read about the life cycle of a ladybird, while the vocabulary from the lesson is practised in context.

1. is called 2. on its wings 3. lays eggs 4. an egg hatches 5. sheds its skin
6. grows 7. hangs 8. comes out 9. change a lot 10. don’t change

9. Homework: part 2

5 mins.
The linking words are practised in a personalised context.

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