ESL WORKSHEET 1

NELSON MANDELA

LinguaHouse
Stephanie Hirschman
July 12, 2021

Level: Pre-Intermediate (A2-B1)

Type of English: General English

Tags: Society And Change; People And Places; Celebrities And Historical Figures; Celebrations And Special Events; Ethics And Conduct; Adjectives; Vocabulary Lesson

Publication date: 07/12/2021

This audio-aided lesson covers the work of South African freedom fighter and president Nelson Mandela. The lesson focuses on vocabulary, listening comprehension, and speaking and includes a quick look at how infinitives are used to explain purpose. There is also an optional extension activity about adjectives with the -ful suffix.

by Stephanie Hirschman

• CLICK HERE to download the student worksheet (color).
• CLICK HERE to download the student worksheet (b/w).
• CLICK HERE to download the teacher's notes (color).
• CLICK HERE to download the teacher's notes (b/w).
• CLICK HERE to download the audio (American English).
• CLICK HERE to download the audio (British English).

AUDIO TRANSCRIPT

Rolihlahla Mandela was born in a small village in South Africa in 1918. His family members were leaders of the Xhosa people. When Mandela went to school, his teachers gave him the English name Nelson. Mandela studied law at university.
In 1943, Mandela joined the African National Congress political party. At this time, South Africa was a racist country, and in 1948, the government introduced apartheid laws to keep the white population separate from other races.
These laws affected every area of life, including housing, education, hospitals, and transportation, and black people could not vote. Mandela set up his law practice in 1952 to defend black people when they broke these unfair laws.
In 1955, Mandela helped to write the Freedom Charter, a plan for non-racist social democracy in the country. However, peaceful protests were not enough to end apartheid.
After the 1960 Sharpeville massacre, where police shot at and killed or wounded 250 peaceful protesters, the African National Congress decided that they would need to use violence to end the apartheid system. The police arrested Mandela for his role in these activities.
At his trial, he gave a famous speech saying that he was ready to die to achieve equality. He went to prison on Robben Island, where conditions were very bad. Later he was moved.
While he was in prison, people all over the world asked the South African government to free him and end apartheid. Mandela was finally released from prison in 1990. In 1991, he and South African president F.W. de Klerk worked together to set up a new political system.
The change was surprisingly peaceful, and the two men shared the Nobel Peace Prize. In 1994, Mandela became president - this election was the first time he had voted! He chose people of all races to work in his government. He also set up a group to find out more about what had happened during the apartheid years. Mandela was president until 1999. He continued to work for peace and equality around the world until his death in 2013, at the age of 95.

Source: https://www.linguahouse.com/esl-lesson-plans/general-english/nelson-mandela. Accessed on July 13, 2021.