Raining Cows: Activities
Video
Did a cow really fall on a the Eversons' car?
Watch the news report & answer the questions below.
True or false?
1. The accident happened on a single lane road.
2. The Eversons were staying at Wapato Point.
3. Cows often fall on cars in this area.
4. The Eversons talked to the television reporter.
5. Mr Everson didn't know it rained in this area.
6. The Eversons were not injured.
7. The policeman often saw cows falling from the sky.
8. The name of the cow was Michelle.
9. She came from a local farm.
10. She escaped that day.
Answers
Writing
1. Imagine you are Mr or Mrs Everson.
Either: Write a letter to the car-hire company explaining what happened to the car.
Or: Write a postcard to your brother/sister/bestfriend talking about what happened
3. You are the policeman arresting the cow; Write your report.
3. Write a letter from the hotel to the people who complained about the cows in the field.
4. You have $300,000 (US) and want to be a cattle farmer.
Write a business plan containing the following a) where your farm will be b) how you will make money. You need to research prices of land, cattle feed etc.
Classroom Activities
Classroom activities
a) Role play what happens when Mr & Mrs Everson arrive at the shop with their smashed car.
Possible roles: Mr & Mrs Everson, Shop-owner, arriving customer, policeman.
b) Role-play a police interview with the cow owner. The cow owner is upset about his dead cow!
Possible roles: Cow owner, policeman/policemen
Listening
Hear about the police arrest of a Cambodian cow.
You are going to listen to a story about a cow. The story involves the following: a 66-year-old man, a judge, a cow and a motor-cyclist at night. Can you guess what happens?
Now listen to the story. Did you guess correctly?
Listen again and do this quiz
Now check your answers here:
You are going to listen to a story about a cow. The story involves the following: a 66-year-old man, a judge, a cow and a motor-cyclist at night. Can you guess what happens?
Now listen to the story. Did you guess correctly?
Listen again and do this quiz
Now check your answers here:
Webquest/Project
Five things I didn't know about: cows
Work in groups to find five new facts about cows. At least one must not be from the Internet - try books, encyclopedias, dictionaries etc.
Think about:
- What different foods come from a cow?
- In which religion is a cow sacred?
- How much do cows eat and drink?
- How many stomachs do cows have?
- Name five products that come from a cow. Draw a diagram to show how to produce this product. For example, you produce leather by ....
A useful website is here
Answers
True or false?
1. The accident happened on a single lane road. False 'two lane'
2. The Eversons were staying at Wapato Point. True
3. Cows often fall on cars in this area. False 'unusual'
4. The Eversons talked to the television reporter. False - they did not 'want to talk on camera'
5. Mr Everson didn't know it rained in this area. False - he didn't know it rained cows!
6. The Eversons were not injured. True - 'without a scratch'
7. The policeman often saw cows falling from the sky. False - never in 18 years
8. The name of the cow was Michelle. True
9. She came from a local farm. True
10. She escaped that day. False - 'weeks earlier'
Cow & Cars - Answers & Transcript
1. a) false b) true. c) false d) true
2. When did the accident with the cow happen?
a) not long ago ('recently')
3. b) the cow
4. b) the cow
5. c) less than 5ft ('almost')
6. c) poor lighting
7. a) they stared at them
Transcript: Cows can be a problem for drivers. They surround your car. You sound your horn. They refuse to move.
This behaviour is annoying. But surely Cambodian police were wrong to arrest a cow recently. They blamed the animal for another traffic accident in Phnom Penh.
The white 5-ft tall cow was standing in the middle of a main road one night. Tragically, a 66-year-old motorcyclist crashed into it.
‘This cow has caused five accidents,’ said the police inspector, Pin Doman. ‘We’re holding him at the police station.’
Taking a cow to court doesn’t seem very fair. The real problem is that most Cambodian roads are dark at night. With lights most drivers could avoid even the biggest cow.
People are not always reasonable about cows. An English hotel once received this complaint from a couple:
'We looked out of our hotel room window,' they wrote, 'and there were cows in the field. We didn't like the way they were looking at us.'
