Nelson Mandela dies, aged 95

Level 1 Elementary
1 Warmer
Write down five words or expressions that describe Nelson Mandela.

2 Key words
Match the key words to the definitions below. Then find them in the article to read them in context. The
paragraph numbers are given to help you.

clan transformed apartheid

sorrow state funeral unifier

1. great sadness _____________________ (para 4)

2. a big official ceremony that takes place after someone important dies _____________________ (para 6)
3. a large group of families that are related to each other _____________________ (para 7)
4. changed completely and usually for the better _____________________ (para 7)
5. someone who brings people or beliefs together _____________________ (para 10)
6. the political system that existed in the past in South Africa, in which only white people had political rights and
power _____________________ (para 11)

mourning armed struggle banned

law firm released underground

7. the feeling and time of great sadness because someone has died _____________________ (para 12)
8. a company that deals with legal matters _____________________ (para 16)
9. officially not allowed or forbidden _____________________ (para 17)
10. the act of going into hiding so people do not know where you are _____________________ (para 17)
11. an attempt to do something by using guns and other weapons _____________________ (para 17)
12. set free _____________________ (para 18)
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NEWS LESSONS / Nelson Mandela dies, aged 95 / Elementary

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Nelson Mandela dies, aged 95
Level 1 Elementary
Nelson Mandela, South Africa’s first
black president, dies aged 95
David Smith
6 December, 2013
1 Nelson Mandela, the most important person
in Africa’s fight for freedom and a hero to
millions of people around the world, has died
at the age of 95.
2 South Africa’s first black president died with
his family with him at home in Johannesburg
after years of illness.
3 The news was told to the country by the
current president, Jacob Zuma, who said
Mandela died around 8.50pm local time and
was at peace.
4 “This is the moment of our deepest sorrow,”
Zuma said. “Our nation has lost its
greatest son.
5 “South Africans, Nelson Mandela brought us
together and it is together that we will say
goodbye to him.”
6 Zuma said that Mandela would receive a
state funeral.
7 Barack Obama called Mandela by his clan
name – Madiba. The US president said:
“Madiba transformed South Africa – and
moved all of us.”
8 UK prime minister David Cameron said: “A
great light has gone out in the world” and he
described Mandela as “a hero of our time”.
9 FW de Klerk – the South African president
who freed Mandela from prison and shared
the Nobel Peace Prize with him in 1993 –
said the news was very sad for South Africa
and the world.
10 “He was a great unifier,” De Klerk said.
11 In Soweto, people came together to sing
and dance near the house where Mandela
once lived. They sang songs from the
anti-apartheid struggle. Some people were
wearing South African flags and the green,
yellow and black colours of Mandela’s party,
the African National Congress (ANC).
12 Mandela’s death sends South Africa deep
into mourning nearly 20 years after he led the
country from racial apartheid to democracy.
13 But his death will also be felt by people
around the world who thought Mandela was
© Macmillan Publishers Ltd 2013
NEWS LESSONS / Nelson Mandela dies, aged 95 / Elementary
one of history’s last great political leaders,
similar to Gandhi and Martin Luther King.
14 After spending 27 years in prison, including
18 years on Robben Island, Mandela won
the country’s first multiracial election in
1994, with his party, the ANC.
15 Born with the name Rolihlahla Dalibhunga
in a small village in the Eastern Cape on 18
July, 1918, a teacher at Mandela’s school
gave him his English name, Nelson.
16 He joined the ANC in 1943. In 1952, he
started South Africa’s first black law firm with
his partner, Oliver Tambo.
17 When the ANC was banned in 1960,
Mandela went underground. After the
Sharpeville massacre, in which 69 black
protesters were shot dead by police, he
took the difficult decision to begin an armed
struggle. He was arrested and sent to prison
for life.
18 Finally, in 1990, FW de Klerk ended the ban
on the ANC and Mandela was released
from prison.
19 Archbishop Desmond Tutu, said: “He made
people believe in Africa and Africans again.”
20 Mandela’s 91st birthday was celebrated by
the first annual “Mandela Day” in his honour.
He was married three times and he had six
children, 17 grandchildren and 14
great-grandchildren.
© Guardian News and Media 2013
First published in The Guardian, 06/12/13
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Nelson Mandela dies, aged 95
Level 1 Elementary
3 Find the information
Answer the questions with information from the article.

1. What was Mandela’s name when he was born? How did he get the name Nelson?
2. What was his clan name?
3. Which other political leaders is he compared to?
4. Did he have any other job, apart from his life in politics?
5. Which political party was he connected with and when did he join it?
6. How long did Mandela spend in prison?
7. How many years was he on Robben Island?
8. What did he get in 1993 and who did he get it with?
9. When was the first Mandela Day?
10. Did he have any family?

4 Political vocabulary
Write all the political words and expressions from the article onto the word wheel.

Political
vocabulary
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NEWS LESSONS / Nelson Mandela dies, aged 95 / Elementary

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Nelson Mandela dies, aged 95
Level 1 Elementary
5 Paying tribute
a. Who said these things about Mandela? What is their job or position?

1. “He made people 2. “Our nation has

believe in Africa and lost its greatest son.”
Africans again.”

4. “He was a
3. ”Madiba transformed great unifier.”
South Africa – and moved
all of us.”

5. “[Mandela was] a
hero of our time.”

b. Write your own personal tribute to Nelson Mandela in the empty speech bubble.

6 Webquest
Find, watch and listen to Zuma’s announcement of Mandela’s passing and Obama’s tribute, both from 5
December, 2013. Listen carefully for the quotes that are mentioned in the article.
Find out more about Nelson Mandela by going to www.nelsonmandela.org/.
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NEWS LESSONS / Nelson Mandela dies, aged 95 / Elementary

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Nelson Mandela dies, aged 95
Level 1 Elementary

KEY

1 Warmer 4 Political vocabulary

Teacher’s note: Get the students to do this task Teacher’s note: These are possible answers; they may
individually or in pairs (if possible, before you hand vary so accept any that students can justify.
out the worksheets). Then write their ideas on the
president; prime minister; democracy; election; victory;
board. Which, if any, words and expressions repeat
party; ANC; congress; nation; flags; political leader;
themselves? Leave the words on the board, if possible,
(racial) apartheid; state
until after the students have read the article, at which
point they can say whether any of their words appear in
the article.
5 Paying tribute

a.
2 Key words 1. Archbishop Desmond Tutu
2. Jacob Zuma, president of South Africa
1. sorrow
3. Barack Obama, president of the United States
2. state funeral
4. FW de Klerk, former president of South Africa
3. clan
5. David Cameron, UK prime minister
4. transformed
5. unifier
b. Teacher’s note: Students could discuss and agree
6. apartheid
on a class tribute.
7. mourning
8. law firm
9. banned
10. underground
11. armed struggle
12. released

3 Find the information

1. Rolihlahla Dalibhunga; a teacher at his school gave

Mandela his English name, Nelson.
2. Madiba
3. Martin Luther King and Ghandi
4. He worked as a lawyer in a law firm.
5. the ANC (African National Congress); in 1943
6. 27 years
7. 18 years
8. the Nobel Peace Prize; FW de Klerk
9. on Mandela’s 91st birthday
10. He had a large family: he was married three times
and he had six children, 17 grandchildren and 14
great-grandchildren.
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NEWS LESSONS / Nelson Mandela dies, aged 95 / Elementary

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