brightlivesenglish.com/lessons/jacques-cousteau-underwater/
45-minute lesson plan
| Time | Stage | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| 0–3′ | Warm-up | Ask the class: “Have you ever swum underwater or used goggles? What did you see?” Let a few students answer. |
| 3–11′ | Words | Pre-teach the 5 words with the flashcards: underwater, dive, breathe, tank, coral. Say each word, show the meaning, and ask for a quick example. |
| 11–18′ | Video | Play the video (4:19). Students follow the transcript. Play it a second time if needed. |
| 18–26′ | Comprehension | Worksheet C (or the online Story Challenge): check answers together. Ask “How do you know?” |
| 26–34′ | Grammar | for the first time: to say that something has never happened before. Show “For the first time, he swam like a fish.”, then do worksheet E together. |
| 34–42′ | Worksheet | Students do worksheet A, B and D alone or in pairs. Check with the answer key. |
| 42–45′ | Speaking | In pairs: “A car accident ended Cousteau's dream of flying, but it opened a new world. Has something bad ever led to something good in your life?” |
Homework: students finish the lesson online (flashcards + Story Challenge). With your class link, you see who finished.
Words and grammar
- underwater (adverb): below the surface of the water. “For the first time, he could see clearly underwater.”
- dive (verb): to go down under the water. “With two friends, he dived to hunt fish.”
- breathe (verb): to take air into your body and let it out again. “They always had to come up to breathe.”
- tank (noun): a metal container for a liquid or a gas. “He carried tanks of air on his back.”
- coral (noun): a hard, colourful material made by tiny sea animals in warm seas. “He filmed coral reefs in the Red Sea.”
Grammar: for the first time — to say that something has never happened before. “For the first time, he swam like a fish.”
Discussion questions
- A car accident ended Cousteau's dream of flying, but it opened a new world. Has something bad ever led to something good in your life?
- What was the hardest moment in Jacques Cousteau's story? What did Jacques Cousteau do?
- Make two sentences about your own life with “for the first time”. (From the story: “For the first time, he swam like a fish.”)
Student worksheet
A Match the words to their meanings
- underwater (adverb)
- dive (verb)
- breathe (verb)
- tank (noun)
- coral (noun)
- documentary (noun)
- fin (noun)
- scuba (noun)
- to go down under the water
- a hard, colourful material made by tiny sea animals in warm seas
- a film about real life and real facts
- a thin flat part on a fish, or a rubber shoe that helps you swim
- below the surface of the water
- diving with a tank of air on your back
- a metal container for a liquid or a gas
- to take air into your body and let it out again
B Complete the sentences from the story
fins · scuba · breathe · underwater · tanks · coral · documentary · dived
- They always had to come up to .
- He filmed reefs in the Red Sea.
- For the first time, he could see clearly .
- Today, millions of people learn diving.
- With two friends, he to hunt fish.
- He carried of air on his back.
- Divers wear on their feet.
- The Silent World is a .
C Did you understand?
- Cousteau made the Aqua-Lung alone.True / False
- Why did he start swimming in the sea every day?
- To catch fish for money
- To get well after a car accident
- To win a race
- To find coral
- Where did he film coral reefs?
- In a river in Paris
- In a swimming pool
- In the Red Sea
- Near the North Pole
- His film won a prize at the Cannes Film Festival.True / False
D Put the words in order
- he / time / fish / For / first / like / a / swam / the
E Grammar: for the first time
We use it for to say that something has never happened before. For the first time, he swam like a fish. · For the first time, he could see clearly underwater.
Example from the story: For the first time, he swam like a fish.
- For the time, he swam like a fish. (first / one / once)
- I saw snow the first time last winter. (for / at / in)
- She flew on a plane for the first . (time / times / hour)
F Your turn
Retell Jacques Cousteau's story in 5–6 sentences. Use at least three words from exercise A.
Answer key
A. 1e 2a 3h 4g 5b 6c 7d 8f
B. 1 breathe · 2 coral · 3 underwater · 4 scuba · 5 dived · 6 tanks · 7 fins · 8 documentary
C. 1 False · 2 b · 3 c · 4 True
D. 1 For the first time he swam like a fish.
E. 1 first · 2 for · 3 time
Transcript
After a bad car accident, a young navy officer swam in the sea to get well.
A friend gave him goggles, and he saw a new world.
This is the story of Jacques Cousteau.
Welcome to brightlivesenglish.com, where we teach real English using real-life stories.
Underwater. Underwater means below the surface of the water.
For the first time, he could see clearly underwater.
Dive. To dive is to go down under the water.
With two friends, he dived to hunt fish.
Breathe. To breathe is to take air into your body and let it out again.
They always had to come up to breathe.
Tank. A tank is a metal container for a liquid or a gas.
He carried tanks of air on his back.
Coral. Coral is a hard, colourful material made by tiny sea animals.
It grows in warm seas.
He filmed coral reefs in the Red Sea.
Now, one pattern: for the first time.
We use it when something happens that has never happened before.
For the first time, he swam like a fish.
Ready? Let's begin.
Jacques Cousteau was born in France in 1910.
He was often sick as a child, and swimming helped him.
At 13, he bought a film camera and made little films.
In 1930, he joined the French Navy school.
He wanted to fly planes for the navy.
But in 1936, he had a bad car accident at night.
His arms were badly hurt, and his dream of flying was over.
To get well, he swam in the sea every day.
A friend gave him a pair of goggles.
He put his head under the water and looked.
Rocks, sea plants and silver fish!
For the first time, he could see clearly underwater.
From that day, he wanted to explore the sea.
With two friends, he dived to hunt fish.
But they could not stay down for long.
They always had to come up to breathe.
Could people breathe underwater, like fish?
During the war, he met an engineer, Émile Gagnan.
Gagnan had made a valve for car engines that burned gas, not petrol.
Together, they changed it into a valve for divers.
In June 1943, he tried it in the sea.
He carried tanks of air on his back, and the valve gave him air each time he breathed in.
For the first time, he swam like a fish.
He later wrote, "Now I flew without wings."
They made hundreds of test dives.
They called their invention the Aqua-Lung.
It helped to make diving easy and safe enough for many people.
In 1950, he got a ship called Calypso, and he sailed to warm seas.
He filmed coral reefs in the Red Sea.
His film, "The Silent World", won the main prize at the Cannes Film Festival in 1956, and an Oscar too.
Later, millions of people watched his TV programmes.
For the first time, many of them saw life under the sea.
He also warned that the oceans needed protecting.
He died in 1997.
Let's review. For the first time, he could see clearly underwater.
With two friends, he dived to hunt fish.
They always had to come up to breathe.
He carried tanks of air on his back.
He filmed coral reefs in the Red Sea.
And remember: for the first time, he swam like a fish.
Jacques Cousteau's story teaches us: when one door closes, a whole new world can open.
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