brightlivesenglish.com/lessons/grace-hopper-real-bug/
45-minute lesson plan
| Time | Stage | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| 0–3′ | Warm-up | Ask the class: “What does a "bug" in a computer mean? Do you know any computer languages?” Let a few students answer. |
| 3–10′ | Words | Pre-teach the 5 words with the flashcards: moth, debug, compiler, sceptical, persuade. Say each word, show the meaning, and ask for a quick example. |
| 10–17′ | Video | Play the video (4:53). Students follow the transcript. Play it a second time if needed. |
| 17–25′ | Comprehension | Worksheet C (or the online Story Challenge): check answers together. Ask “How do you know?” |
| 25–33′ | Grammar | be supposed to + verb: to say what people expect, believe or plan should happen (often when the reality is different). Show “Computers were supposed to use only numbers.”, then do worksheet E together. |
| 33–40′ | Worksheet | Students do worksheet A, B and D alone or in pairs. Check with the answer key. |
| 40–45′ | Speaking | In pairs: “People were sceptical, but Grace Hopper built it anyway. Is it better to ask permission or to try first?” |
Homework: students finish the lesson online (flashcards + Story Challenge). With your class link, you see who finished.
Words and grammar
- moth (noun): an insect like a butterfly that usually flies at night. “Her team discovered a moth stuck inside the machine.”
- debug (verb): to find and remove the mistakes in a computer program. “Programmers still say they debug their code.”
- compiler (noun): a program that turns human-like instructions into code a computer understands. “In 1952, she built a compiler.”
- sceptical (adjective): doubting that something is true or possible. “Many experts were sceptical.”
- persuade (verb): to make someone agree by giving good reasons. “Slowly, she persuaded people to use words in programs.”
Grammar: be supposed to + verb — to say what people expect, believe or plan should happen (often when the reality is different). “Computers were supposed to use only numbers.”
Discussion questions
- People were sceptical, but Grace Hopper built it anyway. Is it better to ask permission or to try first?
- What was the hardest moment in Grace Hopper's story? What did Grace Hopper do?
- Make two sentences about your own life with “be supposed to + verb”. (From the story: “Computers were supposed to use only numbers.”)
Student worksheet
A Match the words to their meanings
- moth (noun)
- debug (verb)
- compiler (noun)
- sceptical (adjective)
- persuade (verb)
- logbook (noun)
- navy (noun)
- nanosecond (noun)
- doubting that something is true or possible
- to make someone agree by giving good reasons
- a country's army at sea
- one billionth of a second
- to find and remove the mistakes in a computer program
- a book where people write down what happens each day
- a program that turns human-like instructions into code a computer understands
- an insect like a butterfly that usually flies at night
B Complete the sentences from the story
compiler · nanosecond · debug · moth · sceptical · Navy · persuaded · logbook
- Programmers still say they their code.
- Slowly, she people to use words in programs.
- Her team discovered a stuck inside the machine.
- They taped the moth into the .
- Many experts were .
- In 1952, she built a .
- Her short wire showed one .
- The sent her to Harvard.
C Did you understand?
- Grace Hopper invented the word bug.True / False
- What did her team find inside the Mark Two?
- A mouse
- A moth
- A spider
- A key
- What did her short wires show?
- How long a computer is
- How tall she was
- How far electricity travels in one nanosecond
- How to fix a clock
- When she retired in 1986, she was the oldest officer in the US Navy.True / False
D Put the words in order
- to / only / supposed / use / numbers / Computers / were
E Grammar: be supposed to + verb
We use it for to say what people expect, believe or plan should happen (often when the reality is different). Computers were supposed to use only numbers. · The meeting is supposed to start at nine.
Example from the story: Computers were supposed to use only numbers.
- Computers were to use only numbers. (supposed / suppose / supposing)
- The train is supposed at nine, but it's late. (to arrive / arriving / arrived)
- You supposed to use your phone in class. (aren't / don't / haven't)
F Your turn
Retell Grace Hopper's story in 5–6 sentences. Use at least three words from exercise A.
Answer key
A. 1h 2e 3g 4a 5b 6f 7c 8d
B. 1 debug · 2 persuaded · 3 moth · 4 logbook · 5 sceptical · 6 compiler · 7 nanosecond · 8 Navy
C. 1 False · 2 b · 3 c · 4 True
D. 1 Computers were supposed to use only numbers.
E. 1 supposed · 2 to arrive · 3 aren't
Transcript
In 1947, a huge computer stopped working.
Inside, the team discovered a real insect.
This is the story of Grace Hopper.
Welcome to brightlivesenglish.com, where we teach real English using real-life stories.
Moth. A moth is an insect like a butterfly that flies at night.
Her team discovered a moth stuck inside the machine.
Debug. To debug a program is to find and remove its mistakes.
Programmers still say they debug their code.
Compiler. A compiler is a program that turns human-like instructions into the code a computer understands.
In 1952, she built a compiler.
Sceptical. If you are sceptical, you doubt that something is true or possible.
Many experts were sceptical.
Persuade. To persuade someone is to make them agree, by giving good reasons.
Slowly, she persuaded people to use words in programs.
Now, one pattern: be supposed to.
It describes what people expect or believe should happen.
Computers were supposed to use only numbers.
That was what everyone expected.
Computers were supposed to use only numbers.
Ready? Let's begin.
Grace Hopper was born in New York in 1906.
At seven, she took apart an alarm clock to see how it worked.
She couldn't put it back together, so she took apart several more.
She studied mathematics and physics, and in 1934 she earned a doctorate in mathematics at Yale, one of very few women of her time to do so.
She also taught at Vassar College.
During World War Two, she wanted to join the Navy.
They said no: she was too old and too thin.
She did not give up, and she got special permission.
She finished first in her class of officers.
The Navy sent her to Harvard to work on the Mark One, a computer as long as a room.
In September 1947, the Mark Two stopped working.
Her team discovered a moth stuck inside the machine.
They taped it into the logbook and wrote, "First actual case of bug being found."
Engineers had called problems bugs for many years, so the team was making a joke.
But the story became famous.
Programmers still say they debug their code.
In the early 1950s, computers were supposed to use only numbers.
Grace had a different idea.
Why not let people give instructions in words?
Could a computer understand them?
In 1952, she built a compiler.
She later said, "I had a running compiler, and nobody would touch it."
Many experts were sceptical.
They believed computers could only do arithmetic.
She did not give up.
Her next language used English words like "add" and "compare".
Slowly, she persuaded people to use words in programs.
Her work helped to create COBOL, a language that businesses used for decades.
She was a wonderful teacher, too.
She gave people short wires about 30 centimetres long, to show how far electricity travels in one nanosecond.
She wanted everyone to understand computers.
The Navy asked her to retire in 1966, but called her back the next year, for six months.
She stayed for 19 years.
When she finally retired in 1986, aged 79, she was the oldest officer in the US Navy.
She died in 1992.
A Navy ship carries her name.
She liked to say, "It's easier to ask forgiveness than it is to get permission."
Let's review. Her team discovered a moth stuck inside the machine.
Programmers still say they debug their code.
In 1952, she built a compiler.
Many experts were sceptical.
Slowly, she persuaded people to use words in programs.
And remember: computers were supposed to use only numbers.
Grace Hopper's story teaches us: when people say it can't be done, build it and show them.
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