brightlivesenglish.com/lessons/terry-fox-marathon-of-hope/
45-minute lesson plan
| Time | Stage | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| 0–3′ | Warm-up | Ask the class: “Do you know someone who never gives up? Think about them while you watch.” Let a few students answer. |
| 3–13′ | Words | Pre-teach the 5 words with the flashcards: dream, raise money, artificial, keep going, give up. Say each word, show the meaning, and ask for a quick example. |
| 13–20′ | Video | Play the video (5:11). Students follow the transcript. Play it a second time if needed. |
| 20–28′ | Comprehension | Worksheet C (or the online Story Challenge): check answers together. Ask “How do you know?” |
| 28–35′ | Grammar | Pick two sentences from the story and look at the verbs together. |
| 35–43′ | Worksheet | Students do worksheet A, B and D alone or in pairs. Check with the answer key. |
| 43–45′ | Speaking | In pairs: “Terry never finished his run, but he made a big difference. What is something you started that you are proud of?” |
Homework: students finish the lesson online (flashcards + Story Challenge). With your class link, you see who finished.
Words and grammar
- dream (noun): something you really want to do or have in the future. “Then he had a dream.”
- raise money (phrase): to collect money from people for a good cause. “He wanted to raise money for cancer research.”
- artificial (adjective): made by people, not natural. “He ran with one real leg and one artificial leg.”
- keep going (phrasal verb): to continue, even when something is difficult (past: kept going). “He was often tired and in pain, but he kept going.”
- give up (phrasal verb): to stop trying to do something (past: gave up). “He never gave up.”
Discussion questions
- Terry never finished his run, but he made a big difference. What is something you started that you are proud of?
- What was the hardest moment in Terry Fox's story? What did Terry Fox do?
- Which word from this lesson do you want to remember? Make a sentence about your life with it.
Student worksheet
A Match the words to their meanings
- dream (noun)
- raise money (phrase)
- artificial (adjective)
- keep going (phrasal verb)
- give up (phrasal verb)
- cancer (noun)
- cheer (verb)
- hero (noun)
- made by people, not natural
- to stop trying to do something (past: gave up)
- to collect money from people for a good cause
- a person that many people admire for doing something brave or good
- something you really want to do or have in the future
- to continue, even when something is difficult (past: kept going)
- to shout to show support for someone
- a serious disease where cells in the body grow in a bad way
B Complete the sentences from the story
raise money · hero · cancer · gave up · artificial · dream · cheer · kept going
- He never .
- He was often tired and in pain, but he .
- Soon people came out to for him.
- He ran with one real leg and one leg.
- He wanted to for cancer research.
- Terry became a .
- Doctors found in his leg.
- Then he had a .
C Did you understand?
- Why did Terry want to run across Canada?
- To win a race
- To raise money for cancer research
- To become famous
- To visit his family
- How much money did Terry want from every person in Canada?
- $1
- $10
- $100
- Nothing
- Terry was the best basketball player on his team.True / False
- Terry ran about 42 kilometers every day.True / False
- Terry finished his run on the west coast of Canada.True / False
- What happens every year now?
- A basketball game for Terry
- A film about Terry
- The Terry Fox Run
- Nothing
D Put the words in order
- big / You / don't / a / to / to / have / make / everything / difference / finish
E Your turn
Retell Terry Fox's story in 5–6 sentences. Use at least three words from exercise A.
Answer key
A. 1e 2c 3a 4f 5b 6h 7g 8d
B. 1 gave up · 2 kept going · 3 cheer · 4 artificial · 5 raise money · 6 hero · 7 cancer · 8 dream
C. 1 b · 2 a · 3 False · 4 True · 5 False · 6 c
D. 1 You don't have to finish everything to make a big difference.
Transcript
He lost his leg to cancer when he was 18.
Three years later, he started to run across Canada, a marathon every day.
This is the story of Terry Fox.
Hello, and welcome to Bright Lives English. Real stories. Real English.
Today's level is A2.
In this story, listen for five new words.
Dream. A dream is something you really want to do or have in the future.
He had a dream.
Raise money. When you raise money, you collect money from people for a good cause.
He wanted to raise money for cancer research.
Artificial. Something artificial is made by people. It is not natural.
He ran with one real leg and one artificial leg.
Keep going. When you keep going, you continue even when something is difficult.
The past is kept going.
He was tired and in pain, but he kept going.
Give up. When you give up, you stop trying to do something.
The past is gave up.
He never gave up.
Ready? Let's begin.
Terry Fox was born in Canada in 1958.
He loved sport, especially basketball.
He was not the best player, but he always worked very hard.
When Terry was 18, his right leg started to hurt.
Doctors found cancer in his leg.
They had to cut off his leg above the knee.
In the hospital, Terry saw many children with cancer.
He felt very sad.
Then he had a dream.
He wanted to run across Canada and raise money for cancer research.
He wanted $1 from every person in Canada.
Terry trained for more than a year.
In April 1980, he started his run on the east coast of Canada.
He ran with one real leg and one artificial leg.
He called his run the Marathon of Hope.
Every day, he ran about 42 kilometers.
That is a marathon every single day.
It was very hard.
He was often tired and in pain, but he kept going.
At first, not many people knew about Terry, but soon people came out to cheer for him.
They stood by the road and gave money.
Terry became a hero.
After 143 days and more than 5,000 kilometers, Terry had to stop.
The cancer was back, this time in his lungs.
Terry died in 1981. He was only 22 years old.
But his run did not end.
Every year, people all over the world do the Terry Fox Run.
Together, they have raised hundreds of millions of dollars for cancer research.
Terry never finished his run, but he never gave up.
Let's review our five words.
He had a dream.
He wanted to raise money for cancer research.
He ran with one artificial leg.
He was tired, but he kept going, and he never gave up.
Terry's story teaches us something.
You don't have to finish everything to make a big difference.
Want more practice? Go to brightlivesenglish.com for flashcards, a worksheet, and a quiz.
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See you in the next true story.