A rich man builds a park with real, living dinosaurs. But something goes very wrong — and not all of the science is true.
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These are the new words. Match each word (1–8) to its meaning (A–H). Say your answers out loud — "I think 1 is C" — then check.
1 = C (a dinosaur) · 2 = E (an island) · 3 = A (a scientist) · 4 = G (danger)
5 = H (a storm) · 6 = B (to escape) · 7 = F (a machine) · 8 = D (safe)
Steven Spielberg's Jurassic Park (1993), from the novel by Michael Crichton. Read each part. Then try the questions from memory, and talk about the last one. (There are spoilers — that is fine, we want to talk about it.)
A rich man called John Hammond makes a special island. On the island, there are real, living dinosaurs — made by scientists, from very old DNA. Before the park opens, Hammond invites some experts to check it is safe: Dr Grant, who studies old dinosaur bones, Dr Sattler, who studies old plants, and Dr Malcolm, a clever scientist who believes nothing this complicated can ever be fully safe. Hammond's grandchildren, Lex and Tim, come too.
The dinosaurs are amazing — a giant Brachiosaurus eats leaves from the top of a tree! But there are problems too. The dinosaurs were all made female, so they should not be able to have babies. But Dr Grant finds broken eggs — the dinosaurs found a way to have babies anyway. Malcolm warns Hammond: something this complicated will always go wrong somehow. Hammond does not listen.
1. What has Hammond built on the island?
2. Why is Dr Grant so surprised when he finds broken eggs?
1. A theme park with real, living dinosaurs, made by scientists from very old DNA.
2. The dinosaurs were all made female so that they could not have babies, but the eggs prove they found a way to breed anyway.
That night, there is a big storm. A worker called Nedry wants to steal baby dinosaurs to sell them. He turns off all the computers and the electric fences to do this secretly. But now nothing on the island is safe.
The visitors are in small cars in the park when the fences turn off. A huge Tyrannosaurus rex — the T. rex — escapes! It attacks the cars. One man dies, and Malcolm is badly hurt. Dr Grant helps the two children escape into the dark forest.
Meanwhile, Nedry gets lost in the storm. He meets a small dinosaur that looks harmless — but it is not.
1. Why do the electric fences stop working?
2. What happens when the T. rex escapes?
1. Nedry turns off the computers and the fences so he can secretly steal baby dinosaurs during the storm.
2. It attacks the visitors' cars, kills one man, badly hurts Malcolm, and Grant must get the two children to safety.
Dr Grant and the children walk through the dark island all night. They see a group of dinosaurs running away from the T. rex. They find a broken egg — more proof that the dinosaurs are having babies.
Back at the park buildings, Dr Sattler and Lex turn the power back on. But this also opens the door of the most dangerous dinosaurs: the Velociraptors! Two raptors chase the group through the building.
Just when things look very bad, the T. rex comes back and fights the raptors instead. Everyone escapes and leaves the island by helicopter. Malcolm was right: the scientists were so excited about what they could do, they never asked if they should do it.
1. What proof do Grant and the children find that the dinosaurs are breeding?
2. What finally saves the group from the raptors?
1. They find a broken egg out in the wild.
2. The T. rex comes back and attacks the raptors, so the group can escape while the two dinosaurs fight each other.
This story is full of reasons, results and opinions about right and wrong. These simple words help you join ideas and give advice.
Read each sentence and choose the correct word.
1. Hammond wanted a safe park, one bad storm changed everything.
2. The T. rex escaped the electric fence turned off.
3. Nedry stole the computer codes, the whole island lost power.
1. but (two opposite ideas)
2. because (a reason)
3. so (a result)
Complete each sentence with should or shouldn't.
1. Before opening a dangerous new park, you test every system very carefully.
2. If a system is this complicated, engineers promise it is 100% safe.
3. If you see a dangerous animal loose, you stay calm and find safety fast.
1. should (good advice)
2. shouldn't (bad idea)
3. should (good advice)
Fill each gap with but, because, so or should. Read it aloud when you finish.
Hammond built an amazing park, he did not plan for every danger. The systems failed one worker turned them off. The fences stopped working, the dinosaurs escaped. In the end, Malcolm says people always think carefully before they use dangerous new science.
but · because · so · should
Use but for a contrast, because for a reason, so for a result, and should/shouldn't for advice.
The film's big idea — dinosaur DNA from a mosquito — is not real science. But a different kind of "bringing back" science really is happening.
DNA breaks down over time. Even in perfect conditions, DNA cannot survive for more than about 1.5 million years. But dinosaurs died out 66 million years ago — much, much longer ago than that. In the 1990s, some scientists said they had found dinosaur DNA in amber, but no one else could ever repeat their results. Today, scientists agree: real dinosaur DNA cannot survive this long, so the film's method is impossible.
A real company called Colossal Biosciences is trying to bring back the woolly mammoth. They are not using old mammoth DNA directly — it is too damaged. Instead, they change the DNA of a living elephant, the mammoth's closest relative, to give it mammoth features like thick fur. They hope to have mammoth-like baby elephants by 2028. It is real science, but it works very differently from the mosquito idea in the film.
Do all three tasks out loud. Use the timer to keep talking.
Tell the story of Jurassic Park in your own words. Use these steps to help you: a rich man builds a park of real dinosaurs → a storm and a dishonest worker turn off the power → the T. rex escapes and attacks → the raptors chase the group → everyone escapes by helicopter.
Try to use some key words (dinosaur, island, scientist, danger, storm, escape, machine, safe) and but, because, so, or should / shouldn't.
Was Hammond right to build the park? What would you do — build something amazing and exciting, even if it might be dangerous, or stay safe and simple? Say why.
Talk about science and new inventions. Use should and shouldn't.
Not sure what to say? Choose one: