Enjoying the Zoo | Randall's ESL Cyber Listening Lab

Level:	Topic:	Type:	Speakers:	Length:
difficult	animals	conversation	man - young boy	02:24

Pre-Listening Exercise

What animals do you enjoy seeing at a zoo, including those that you would see on safari trips or Arctic sightseeing tours? What do like most about these animals?

Listening Exercise

A. Listen to the recording and answer the questions.

What did the boy like best about the zoo?

polar bears

porcupines

penguins

Father: The zoo? Oh, that was so fun when we went to the zoo. What did you like best about the zoo? Boy: Um, the porcupines.

What did the elephant do at the zoo?

The elephant kicked dirty food in their direction.

The elephant sprayed water at the children.

The elephant tossed dirt at the people.

Boy: He throwed dirt on us. Father: He did? Oh, how did he do that? With his foot? Boy: No, with his trunk.

What can we infer about the bird show?

A bird didn't mind the trainer very well.

They couldn't see the birds from where they were sitting.

One of the birds performed exactly as expected.

Father: Oh, one flew. Were they good birds? [Yeah] Were they naughty at all? Boy: One was naughty. Father: What did it do? Boy: Um, did, to, thing, what you . . . it the . . . the man what it could not do. [Translation: It did something it wasn't supposed to do.]

Where did the boy see the butterflies?

in a wire building near the bird show

flying around the zoo

inside a glass enclosure

Father: After the bird show you saw them. And were the butterflies flying around all over the zoo? Boy: Uh, um, they're inside. Father: They were inside, what, a little building? [Yeah] What was the building made of? Was it made of wood? [No] What was it made of? [Glass] Oh, made of glass. And couldn't the butterflies fly out of the glass? [No] No, oh, what stopped them from flying out? Boy: Uh, um, they're inside. Father: They were inside, what, a little building? [Yeah]

Post-Listening Exercise

Zoos can be wonderful places to visit with family and friends. Do you have any favorite memories as a child when you spent time with family or friends? What animals did you enjoy watching the most? Sometimes there are concerns about the conditions at zoos under which the animals live. What things can be done to create a better environment for animals at zoos? Discuss your ideas with a partner.

Online Investigation

Think of one exotic animal you might find at a zoo. Use the Internet to reseach these questions about it. Share your findings.

Where can you find the animal in the world?
What does it eat?
What are the animal's predators?
If you found yourself in a cage with this animal, how would you feel and what would you do?

See Listening Script

Back to Difficult Quizzes

General Listening Quiz

"Enjoying the Zoo"