Jane Goodall: She Had No Degree… Then Changed What We Know About Chimpanzees
She had no university degree, only a notebook and a dream. For months the chimpanzees ran away, then one day she saw a chimpanzee use a piece of grass as a tool. Learn five A2 words with the true story of Jane Goodall.
Transcript
Tap a time to jump to that moment. Highlighted words have a meaning: tap them. Words in bold show today's grammar.
She had no university .
She went into an African with only a .
For months, the ran away from her.
Then one day, she saw something amazing.
What did she see?
This is the story of Jane Goodall.
Welcome to brightlivesenglish.com, where we teach real English using real-life stories.
. A is a clever animal from the of Africa.
It is very close to humans.
The ran away from her.
. A is a big area of land with many trees.
Every morning, she walked into the .
. When you are , you can wait for a long time and stay calm.
She was very .
. A is a small book for writing notes.
She wrote everything in her .
. is the green plant that covers the ground.
The pushed a piece of into the hole.
Now, one pattern: dream of doing something.
We use it for a big wish.
She wanted to live in Africa.
She dreamed of living in Africa.
She dreamed of living with animals in Africa.
Ready? Let's begin.
Jane Goodall was born in London in 1934.
As a little girl, she loved animals.
Once, she hid in a henhouse for hours to see a hen lay an egg.
Her family looked for her everywhere.
She read books about Africa, and she dreamed of living with animals there.
But there was no money for university.
So she worked as a waitress and saved every penny.
In 1957, she sailed to Kenya.
There, she met a famous scientist, Louis Leakey.
Later, he gave her a big job: watch wild in the .
In 1960, she arrived at Gombe, in Tanzania.
Her mother came with her.
Every morning, she walked into the with her .
But the ran away from her.
Weeks passed. Months passed.
She was very .
Then one day, she saw an old at an insect hill.
The pushed a piece of into the hole.
He pulled it out, full of insects, and ate them.
He was using a tool!
Before, people believed that only humans made tools.
Her discovery changed science.
She wrote everything in her .
As a little girl, she dreamed of living with animals.
Now, she really did.
Later, she studied at Cambridge University, without a first .
Then she dreamed of and their .
For many years, she travelled almost three hundred days a year to speak for them.
Let's review. The ran away from her.
Every morning, she walked into the .
She was very .
She wrote everything in her .
The pushed a piece of into the hole.
And remember: she dreamed of living with animals in Africa.
Jane Goodall's story teaches us: be , and follow your dream.
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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.
chimpanzee noun
a clever animal from the forests of Africa, very close to humans
“The chimpanzees ran away from her.”
forest noun
a big area of land with many trees
“Every morning, she walked into the forest.”
patient adjective
able to wait for a long time and stay calm
“She was very patient.”
notebook noun
a small book for writing notes
“She wrote everything in her notebook.”
grass noun
the green plant that covers the ground (a piece of grass)
“The chimpanzee pushed a piece of grass into the hole.”
termite noun
a small insect that lives in a big hill of earth
“The chimpanzee ate the termites from the grass.”
degree noun
what you get when you finish a university course
“She studied at Cambridge University, without a first degree.”
protect verb
to keep someone or something safe
“She dreamed of protecting chimpanzees and their forests.”
Grammar in the story
dream of + verb-ing
We use it for: to talk about a big wish or hope
- She wanted to live in Africa. → She dreamed of living in Africa.
- dream of + verb-ing, not dream of to live
From the story
- She dreamed of living with animals in Africa.
- She dreamed of protecting chimpanzees and their forests.
Find it in the story 7 times
Your turn
As a girl, she dreamed of in Africa.
Many children dream of animals.
Later, she dreamed protecting the forests.
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: What animals would you like to watch for a whole day? Why?
After you watch: Write three sentences with dream of + -ing about you. For example: I dream of visiting Africa.
Think about it: Jane Goodall waited for months before the chimpanzees came close. When were you very patient? What happened?
