Hans Christian Andersen: The Poor Boy Who Wrote for the World
He was a poor boy from Denmark with a big dream. Then he wrote a story about a little duck, and the whole world read it. Learn five A1 words with the true story of Hans Christian Andersen.
Transcript
Tap a time to jump to that moment. Highlighted words have a meaning: tap them. Words in bold show today's grammar.
A boy had a big dream.
A wise woman said: one day, he will be a great man.
Was she right?
This is the of Hans Christian Andersen.
Welcome to brightlivesenglish.com, where we teach real English using real-life .
. When you are , you have very little money.
His family was very .
. A tells us about people and the things that happen to them.
The plural is .
His father read him .
. A is a bird.
It swims on water and says quack.
He wrote a about a little .
. means not nice to look at.
It is the opposite of beautiful.
The other said he was .
. When you are , many people know your name.
Today, his are all over the world.
Now, one pattern: there was and there were.
Was is for one thing.
Were is for many.
There is a boy in Denmark.
There was a boy in Denmark.
Ready? Let's begin.
There was a boy in Denmark.
His name was Hans.
He was born in 1805.
His family was very .
There was only one small room in their home.
His father made shoes.
His father also read him .
A wise woman said: your son will be a great man.
At fourteen, Hans went to Copenhagen with almost no money.
He wanted to act and sing.
But the theatre said: you are too thin!
Then kind people helped him.
At school, he was seventeen.
There were boys of eleven in his class!
Later, Hans wrote for children.
In 1843, he wrote a about a little .
The other said he was .
He was sad and alone.
Then, one day, he looked into the water.
There was a beautiful white bird.
It was him!
He was not a .
He was a !
Maybe the little was Hans.
In 1867, there was a big party for him in his town.
There were lights everywhere.
The wise woman was right!
Today, his are all over the world.
Let's review. His family was very .
His father read him .
He wrote a about a little .
The other said he was .
Today, his are all over the world.
And remember: there was a boy in Denmark.
Andersen's teaches us: a start is not the end of your .
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Step 3
Words from the story
Say the word, guess its meaning, then flip the card. Keep the ones you know, and practise the rest again.
Great work, you know every word in this story. Now try the quiz below.
poor adjective
with very little money
“His family was very poor.”
story noun
words that tell us about people and the things that happen to them (plural: stories)
“His father read him stories.”
duck noun
a bird that swims on water and says quack
“He wrote a story about a little duck.”
ugly adjective
not nice to look at; the opposite of beautiful
“The other ducks said he was ugly.”
famous adjective
known by many people
“Today, his stories are famous all over the world.”
shoemaker noun
a person who makes shoes
“His father made shoes.”
fairy tale noun
a story for children, often with magic in it
“Later, Hans wrote stories for children.”
swan noun
a big white bird with a long neck that swims on water
“He was a swan!”
Grammar in the story
there was / there were
We use it for: to say that something was in a place in the past
- there was + one thing
- there were + many things
From the story
- There was only one small room in their home.
- There were boys of eleven in his class!
Find it in the story 9 times
Your turn
only one small room in their home.
lights everywhere.
In 1867, a big party for him in his town.
Step 4
Story Challenge
9 quick rounds: choose, fill the gap, build the sentence and match the words. Answer in a row to build a streak and earn bonus points.
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Take it further
Before you watch: Do you know a story about a duck or a bird? Say one sentence about it in English.
After you watch: Tell Hans’s story in four sentences. Use there was and there were.
Think about it: Hans had a poor start, but he had a big dream. What is your big dream?
