Animals & Environment
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31 Aug 2026
Image credit: Getty Images
Terror Birds: The Fearsome Giant Birds That Ruled Earth
Warm-up → Read & Listen → Check Understanding → Language → Use It
WARM UP
Think Ahead: Which detail do you think appears in this story?
a) Giant birds ruled Earth long ago.
b) Dinosaurs still live in forests today.
c) Birds learned to drive cars.
Ask:
(1) Have you ever seen a very big bird?
(2) Do you like learning about dinosaurs?
VOCABULARY
survive (/səˈvaɪv/, verb)
Meaning: To stay alive after a dangerous event.
Example: Small birds survive when giant rocks fall from space.
giant (/ˈdʒaɪənt/, adjective)
Meaning: Extremely large in size.
Example: The giant bird walks across the green fields.
creature (/ˈkriːtʃə/, noun)
Meaning: A living animal or person.
Example: A parrot is a colourful creature that lives in trees.
hunt (/hʌnt/, verb)
Meaning: To chase and catch animals for food.
Example: Big birds hunt small animals in the forest.
fossil (/ˈfɒs.əl/, noun)
Meaning: Very old animal bones turned into stone.
Example: The scientist finds an old bird fossil in the dirt.
history (/ˈhɪs.tər.i/, noun)
Meaning: Events that happened in the past.
Example: Children learn about Earth's history in school.
Long ago, big dinosaurs disappear from Earth. Giant rocks fall from space. The big dinosaurs die. But small birds do not die. They survive and live in warm green forests. Today, scientists learn about these amazing ancient creatures.
After the dinosaurs, giant birds rule the land. These special birds are huge and very strong. They have long legs and big sharp beaks. They run fast across open fields. They hunt small animals for food every day. Other mammals stay small during this time.
Scientists find old fossils deep in the ground. Fossils are hard animal bones from long ago. The fossils show that giant birds live for millions of years. Many giant birds cannot fly because they are very heavy. They walk on two big feet like ostriches.
Today, tiny birds fly happily in our sunny gardens. Many children love watching colourful birds outside. Birds are now smaller and very friendly. We enjoy learning about Earth's long and exciting history!
Demon ducks were actually herbivores - Image credit: Science Photo Library
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
(1) Would you like to see a giant bird in real life?
(2) Why do you think small birds survived when dinosaurs died?
(3) What is your favourite bird today?
(4) How do birds help our environment today?
(5) What would you do if you found a dinosaur fossil in your garden?
FILL IN THE GAPS
FILL THE GAPS
Section 1: Fill in the Gaps
Word Bank: fossil, giant, hunt, survive
Long ago, big dinosaurs disappear from Earth. Giant rocks fall from space. The big dinosaurs die. But small birds do not die. They _______(1) and live in warm green forests. Today, scientists learn about these amazing ancient creatures.
After the dinosaurs, _______(2) birds rule the land. These special birds are huge and very strong. They have long legs and big sharp beaks. They run fast across open fields. They _______(3) small animals for food every day. Other mammals stay small during this time.
Scientists find old fossils deep in the ground. Fossils are hard animal bones from long ago. The _______(4) show that giant birds live for millions of years. Many giant birds cannot fly because they are very heavy. They walk on two big feet like ostriches.
Today, tiny birds fly happily in our sunny gardens. Many children love watching colourful birds outside. Birds are now smaller and very friendly. We enjoy learning about Earth's long and exciting history!
Section 2: Main Idea
What is the main idea of the story?
a) Big rocks created new zoos for animals.
b) Giant birds ruled Earth after dinosaurs died.
c) Ostriches learn to fly in sunny gardens.
UNDERSTANDING
Section 3: True or False
(1) Small birds survived after big rocks fell from space. T/F
(2) Giant birds had small beaks and short legs. T/F
(3) Many giant birds could not fly because they were heavy. T/F
Section 4: Put Events in Order
Put the following events in order from 1 to 3:
[ ] Giant birds rule the land and hunt small animals.
[ ] Big rocks fall from space and dinosaurs die.
[ ] Tiny, friendly birds live in our gardens today.
LANGUAGE
Section 5: Vocab Match
(1) survive
(2) giant
(3) creature
(4) hunt
(5) fossil
a) very old animal bones turned into stone
b) to chase and catch animals for food
c) to stay alive after a dangerous event
d) extremely large in size
e) a living animal or person
USE IT
Section 6: Discussion Builder
(1) The giant birds had very long legs, so they _______ across the fields.
a) ran fast
b) swam deeply
c) slept quietly
(2) Scientists look for hard bones in the ground to _______ ancient animals.
a) paint pictures of
b) understand more about
c) cook dinner for
Section 7: Sentence Unscramble
(1) Unscramble the sentence:
A) rule
B) Giant
C) the
D) land
E) birds
(2) Unscramble the sentence:
A) find
B) ground
C) Scientists
D) old
E) fossils
ANSWER KEY
A1 Answer Key
Warm Up Answer: a
Section 1: Fill in the Gaps
(1) survive
(2) giant
(3) hunt
(4) fossils
Section 2: Main Idea
b
Section 3: True or False
(1) True
(2) False
(3) True
Section 4: Put Events in Order
[2] Giant birds rule the land and hunt small animals.
[1] Big rocks fall from space and dinosaurs die.
[3] Tiny, friendly birds live in our gardens today.
Section 5: Vocab Match
(1) c
(2) d
(3) e
(4) b
(5) a
Section 6: Discussion Builder
(1) a
(2) b
Section 7: Sentence Unscramble
(1) B - E - A - C - D (Giant birds rule the land)
(2) C - A - D - E - B (Scientists find old fossils ground)
Section 8: Discussion Questions
(Open student responses)
Thank you for your feedback!