Reading - The World of Silent Movies

Read the text and complete the activities below.

Imagine a movie with no voices. You see the actors, but you don't hear them. This is a silent movie. In the past, all films were like this.

How do the actors tell a story? They use their bodies and their faces. This is very important. If the actor is happy, he has a big smile. If the actor is sad, he cries. People call this "physical comedy."

Silent movies are special because they are for everyone. You don't need to speak English or French to understand a joke. When a man trips and falls, it is funny in every country. Today, we have special effects and loud music, but the old movies are still great. They show us that a simple story about a poor man or a good friend is always beautiful.

ACTIVITIES

Activity 1: True or False

Select True or False based on the text.

1. In silent movies, actors talk all the time.
Select... True False

2. Body language is important in physical comedy.
Select... True False

3. You need to speak English to understand a silent movie joke.
Select... True False

4. Modern movies have more special effects than old movies.
Select... True False

5. Silent movies only show happy stories.
Select... True False

Activity 2: Vocabulary Match

Match the words to their correct definitions.

• a. To have tears because you are unhappy.
• b. A person in a story or movie.
• c. Without any sound or voices.
• d. To move your body and fall by accident.
• e. Something funny you say to make people laugh.

1. Silent Select... a b c d e

2. Trip Select... a b c d e

3. Joke Select... a b c d e

4. Character Select... a b c d e

5. Cry Select... a b c d e

Activity 3: Category Sort

Drag the words from the top box and drop them into the correct category box below.

Explosions

Big Smiles

No Talking

CGI

Fast Actions

Dialogue

Piano Music

3D Glasses

Silent Movies

Modern Movies