Jackie Robinson: People Shouted at Him… Then He Changed Baseball Forever
Level A1 (Beginner) · Watch the video and do the online quiz at https://brightlivesenglish.com/lessons/jackie-robinson-42/
A Match the words to their meanings
- baseball (noun)
- player (noun)
- shout (verb)
- brave (adjective)
- number (noun)
- fan (noun)
- uniform (noun)
- angry (adjective)
- a person who loves a sport, a team or a star
- not afraid to do hard or scary things
- to speak very loudly
- a game with a bat and a ball
- a person who plays a sport or a game
- 1, 2, 3… — we use numbers to count; a player has a number on his shirt
- the same clothes that all players in a team wear
- feeling very bad because something is wrong
B Complete the sentences from the story
number · angry · brave · shouted · player · fans · uniform · baseball
- He wore a white .
- Some people were , but he stayed calm.
- He played very well.
- People bad words.
- Many came to see him play.
- His was 42.
- He was the first Black in the big leagues.
- He was very .
C Did you understand?
- Black players could always play in the big leagues.True / False
- How many sports did he play at university?
- One
- Two
- Four
- Ten
- What was his number?
- 24
- 42
- 15
- 1947
- He did not fight back.True / False
D Put the words in order
- promise / fight / made / a / he / He / because / did / back / not
E Grammar: because + reason
We use it for to give the reason for something. He did not fight back because he made a promise. · Every player wears 42 because of Jackie.
Example from the story: He did not fight back because he made a promise.
- He did not fight back he made a promise. (because / but / or)
- I am tired because I late. (went to bed / go to bed tomorrow / will sleep)
- Why do players wear 42? of Jackie. (Because / So / And)
F Your turn
Retell Jackie Robinson's story in 5–6 sentences. Use at least three words from exercise A.
Transcript
Once a year, every player in the big baseball league wears the same number: 42. Why?
This is the story of Jackie Robinson.
Welcome to brightlivesenglish.com, where we teach real English using real-life stories.
Baseball. Baseball is a game with a bat and a ball.
He played baseball very well.
Player. A player plays a sport.
He was the first Black player in the big leagues.
Shout. To shout is to speak very loudly.
People shouted bad words.
Brave. Brave people do hard and scary things.
He was very brave.
Number. Two is a number.
His number was 42.
Now, one pattern: because.
It gives a reason.
He did not fight back because he made a promise.
Ready? Let's begin.
Jackie was born in America in 1919.
He played four sports at university.
But there was a bad rule.
Black players could not play in the big leagues.
Then a team boss said: come and play for us, but do not fight back.
In 1947, Jackie walked onto the field.
He was the first Black player in the big leagues.
People shouted bad words.
He did not fight back because he made a promise.
He played baseball very well.
He was very brave.
His number was 42.
Today, every year on 15 April, every player wears 42 because of Jackie.
Let's review. He played baseball very well.
He was the first Black player in the big leagues.
People shouted bad words.
He was very brave.
His number was 42.
And remember: he did not fight back because he made a promise.
Jackie Robinson's story teaches us: being brave can change the world.
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Answer key
A. 1d 2e 3c 4b 5f 6a 7g 8h
B. 1 uniform · 2 angry · 3 baseball · 4 shouted · 5 fans · 6 number · 7 player · 8 brave
C. 1 False · 2 c · 3 b · 4 True
D. 1 He did not fight back because he made a promise.
E. 1 because · 2 went to bed · 3 Because