Education
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25 Aug 2026
Iran War Forcing Families to Choose Between School and Survival
Warm-up → Read & Listen → Check Understanding → Language → Use It
WARM UP
Think Ahead: Which detail do you think appears in this story?
a) Children ride in small wooden boats to reach their lake school.
b) Students travel to class using an electric train on tracks.
c) A school builds a new highway across the water.
Ask:
(1) How do you travel to school every morning?
(2) Why does expensive fuel make daily travel difficult for families?
VOCABULARY
afford (/əˈfɔːd/, verb)
Meaning: To have enough money to pay for something.
Example: Some poor families cannot afford expensive boat trips.
capsize (/kæpˈsaɪz/, verb)
Meaning: To turn over in the water by accident.
Example: Parents fear the small boat might capsize in heavy rain.
floating (/ˈfləʊ.tɪŋ/, adjective)
Meaning: Staying or moving on top of water without sinking.
Example: The children live in a floating village on the lake.
fuel (/ˈfjuː.əl/, noun)
Meaning: Liquid like petrol used to power boat engines and cars.
Example: The price of boat fuel went up this year.
lake (/leɪk/, noun)
Meaning: A large area of fresh water surrounded by land.
Example: Tonle Sap is a very big lake in Southeast Asia.
remote (/rɪˈməʊt/, adjective)
Meaning: Far away from cities and difficult to reach.
Example: Teachers travel far to reach remote lake villages.
Many children in Cambodia live on Tonle Sap Lake. This is a very large freshwater lake in Southeast Asia. People live in floating wooden houses on the water. Children must travel to school by boat every morning.
Thirteen-year-old Sou Sreynich lives in a floating village. She wants to become a school teacher one day. However, her family faces a big challenge. Global news and conflicts far away have made engine fuel very expensive. It costs much more money for boats to move across the water now.
Because petrol costs have risen, some poor families cannot afford to send their children to class every day. Sreynich sometimes misses school to help her family collect firewood. School books and paper are also more expensive now. Charities are trying to help these remote villages. Teachers hope all children can return to class soon.
Listen
Students board school boats to return to their homes in a floating village on Cambodia’s Tonle Sap Lake on Monday, June 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Anton L. Delgado)
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. How do students on Tonle Sap Lake go to school every morning?
2. Why did boat travel become more expensive for families recently?
3. What job does thirteen-year-old Sou Sreynich want to have in the future?
4. Why is it important for children to attend school every day?
5. How can school charities help poor families who live near lakes?
FILL IN THE GAPS
FILL THE GAPS
Section 1: Fill in the Gaps
Word Bank: afford, floating, fuel, lake
Many children in Cambodia live on Tonle Sap ______(1). This is a very large freshwater body of water. People live in ______(2) wooden houses on the water. Children must travel to school by boat every morning.
Thirteen-year-old Sou Sreynich lives in a village on the water. She wants to become a school teacher one day. However, her family faces a big challenge. Global news and conflicts far away have made engine ______(3) very expensive. It costs much more money for boats to move across the water now.
Because petrol costs have risen, some poor families cannot ______(4) to send their children to class every day. Sreynich sometimes misses school to help her family collect firewood. School books and paper are also more expensive now. Charities are trying to help these villages. Teachers hope all children can return to class soon.
Section 2: Main Idea
What is the main idea of this news article?
a) Children in Cambodia are learning how to build new wooden boats.
b) Rising fuel prices make it harder for lake children to travel to school.
c) Tonle Sap Lake is drying up because of warm summer weather.
UNDERSTANDING
Section 3: True or False
1. Tonle Sap Lake is located in Southeast Asia. T/F
2. Sou Sreynich wants to become a boat captain when she grows up. T/F
3. Higher fuel prices make boat travel to school more expensive. T/F
Section 4: Put Events in Order
Put the following events in order from 1 to 3:
[ ] Global fuel prices increase, making petrol more expensive for boat engines.
[ ] Children travel across Tonle Sap Lake by boat to attend daily lessons.
[ ] Some poor families struggle to afford boat trips and miss school days.
LANGUAGE
Section 5: Vocab Match
1. afford
2. capsize
3. floating
4. fuel
5. lake
a) stay on top of water
b) liquid petrol for engine power
c) have enough money to buy
d) turn over in deep water
e) a large body of fresh water
USE IT
Section 6: Discussion Builder
1. When boat petrol becomes very expensive, families must _______ how much money to spend on travel.
a) decide
b) destroy
c) capsize
2. Teachers want every child to stay in school so they can _______ good skills for the future.
a) float
b) learn
c) skip
Section 7: Sentence Unscramble
1. Put the parts in order (A-E):
A) by boat / B) travel to school / C) Many children / D) every morning / E) in Cambodia
2. Put the parts in order (A-E):
A) petrol prices / B) make boat rides / C) Higher / D) more expensive / E) for families
ANSWER KEY
Answer Key - A1 Level
Warm Up Answer: a
Section 1: Fill in the Gaps
1. lake
2. floating
3. fuel
4. afford
Section 2: Main Idea
b
Section 3: True or False
1. T
2. F
3. T
Section 4: Put Events in Order
Order: 2, 1, 3
Section 5: Vocab Match
1. c
2. d
3. a
4. b
5. e
Section 6: Discussion Builder
1. a
2. b
Section 7: Sentence Unscramble
1. C, E, B, A, D (Many children in Cambodia travel to school by boat every morning.)
2. C, A, B, D, E (Higher petrol prices make boat rides more expensive for families.)
Section 8: Discussion Questions
(Open teacher-led conversation based on student thoughts.)
Thank you for your feedback!