special report SHARKS AREN T SCARY WELL, there are definitely some out there that are a bit scarylooking, but the truth is that sharks are almost no threat to humans at all. However, that doesn t mean that we re not scared of them and our fear is having an impact on conservation efforts. We spent the day at the shark tank in London s Sea Life Aquarium with Team Bite-Back (a leading shark conservation charity) and wildlife expert Steve Backshall to find out more. I M SCARED OF SHARKS! Don t worry, lots of us are! In fact, Team Bite-Back found that while 83% of Brits think more should be done to protect the world s oceans, 64% would prefer that sharks just didn t exist! In fact, more people in the UK are terrified of sharks than there are people scared of spiders, snakes and rodents combined. So you re not alone in your fear of these big fish, but just why is it that so many of us are scared of sharks? Steve and his celebrity pals in the shark tank BAD PUBLICITY Sharks have had a bad public image ever since Steven Spielberg s sharkstarring thriller Jaws hit the big screen, forever changing people s opinion of sharks. Since then, we ve been obsessed with shark attacks and it seems like you hear about them all the time, but the truth is that there aren t really many shark attacks at all. Deadly 60 s Steve Backshall explained it to us: It s all down to perception. We think that since we re in the water with a shark, we re going to get eaten. But that s simply not true! So what do we do to change people s opinions? Steve says that we need to stop exaggerating shark attacks: On average, six people are killed by sharks a year, out of everyone who dies every year that s just six! The chances of you getting hurt by a shark are so impossibly small, it s just not worth worrying about. But it s not just Jaws that s to blame. Shark attacks are often reported on by the media, and made out to be more terrifying than they should be. A few weeks ago, there was headline news about a man punching a shark off his friend, who was uninjured, Steve told us. If we break that down, that s headline news about a man not being eaten by a shark! And that story will be ahead of serious earthquakes. WHY ARE THEY BEING KILLED? Sharks have been around for some 440 million years! Some of the best fossils we have are of ancient sharks, so why are 73 million sharks being killed every year now? One reason is our incredibly wasteful fishing methods, which means that hundreds of thousands of sharks are caught in nets meant for tuna and swordfish. Another reason is the popularity of shark fin soup. Sharks are plucked out of the ocean for their fins, while the rest of the shark isn t used. Then these fins are used for the base of a soup, despite having very little flavour. WHAT CAN WE DO?! One of the most powerful ways you can help save sharks is by sharing Team Bite-Back s message that sharks really aren t much of a threat to us humans. More people are killed by cows in the UK than are killed by sharks worldwide! Another way you can help is by being a thoughtful shopper, and by making sure your family eats sharkfriendly sustainable fish. As an ambassador for Mountain Warehouse, Steve has created a children s shark T-shirt to raise funds for Team Bite-Back, available in stores and online. And Team Bite-Back has collaborated with 12 of the world s most celebrated underwater photographers to create a 2018 calendar, available from its website at: www.bite-back.com.
GLOSSARY Steven Spielberg An American director, producer and screenwriter. Jaws A famous film in which a giant man-eating shark attacks beachgoers. Deadly 60 A television series which follows Steve Backshall as he travels to different places in search of 60 of the world s deadliest animals. Part A: Find and explain the facts A1. What is Team Bite-Back? A2. What do the following percentages refer to? 83% 64% A3. Find the correct numbers to fill the gaps and complete the sentences about sharks. Sharks have been around for some... million years.... million sharks are being killed every year. On average,... people are killed by sharks a year. A4. Who is Steve Backshall? A5. Are the following statements true or false? STATEMENT Sharks are a huge threat to humans. More people are scared of spiders, snakes and rodents than sharks. More people are killed by cows in the UK than are killed by sharks worldwide. A few weeks ago, there was headline news about a man punching a shark off his friend. TRUE/FALSE? Part B: Deduce and infer information B1. The chances of getting hurt by a shark are impossibly small, so why are people so terrified of them? B2. Backshall mentions headline news about a man punching a shark off his friend, who was uninjured. He commented that: If we break that down, that s headline news about a man not being eaten by a shark! How do you think that Backshall regards such headline news? Explain your answer. B3. Why is it significant that sharks have been around for 440 million years? B4. Why are so many sharks being killed every year now? B5. How is our fear of sharks having an impact on conservation efforts and how is Steve Backshall working with Team Bite-Back and Mountain Warehouse to change this? Part C: Analyse the writing and presentation C1. Do you think that the headline is effective? Why/why not? C2. How does the writer use language in the main body text to persuade the reader to help save sharks? C3. Analyse the picture of Steve and his celebrity pals in the shark tank. Why do you think the picture has been included with this report?
GLOSSARY Steven Spielberg An American director, producer and screenwriter. Jaws A famous film in which a giant man-eating shark attacks beachgoers. Deadly 60 A television series which follows Steve Backshall as he travels to different places in search of 60 of the world s deadliest animals. Part A: Find and explain the facts A1. What is Team Bite-Back? A2. What do the following percentages refer to? 83% 64% A3. Find the correct numbers to fill the gaps and complete the sentences about sharks. Sharks have been around for some... million years.... million sharks are being killed every year. On average,... people are killed by sharks a year. A4. Who is Steve Backshall? A5. Are the following statements true or false? STATEMENT Sharks are a huge threat to humans. TRUE/FALSE? More people are scared of spiders, snakes and rodents than sharks. More people are killed by cows in the UK than are killed by sharks worldwide. A few weeks ago, there was headline news about a man punching a shark off his friend.
Part B: Deduce and infer information B1. The chances of getting hurt by a shark are impossibly small, so why are people so terrified of them? B2. Backshall mentions headline news about a man punching a shark off his friend, who was uninjured. He commented that: If we break that down, that s headline news about a man not being eaten by a shark! How do you think that Backshall regards such headline news? Explain your answer. B3. Why is it significant that sharks have been around for 440 million years?
B4. Why are so many sharks being killed every year now? B5. How is our fear of sharks having an impact on conservation efforts and how is Steve Backshall working with Team Bite-Back and Mountain Warehouse to change this?
Part C: Analyse the writing and presentation C1. Do you think that the headline is effective? Why/why not?.................. C2. How does the writer use language in the main body text to persuade the reader to help save sharks?................ C3. Analyse the picture of Steve and his celebrity pals in the shark tank. Why do you think the picture has been included with this report?............
teacher answers AIM OF THE NEWS COMPREHENSIONS News reports are unique non-fiction texts. Being real, they naturally engage students, and with the range of topics that are covered, help to develop pupils knowledge and understanding of the wider world outside the classroom. The reports are ideal for short, focused comprehension or discussion activities. Along with the opportunity to find fascinating facts and appreciate the opinions of those involved, there is plenty to be inferred and deduced to understand in more depth what is being reported. Like authors, journalists play with language, so news stories are rich nuggets of text to investigate and provide the opportunity for literacy programmes. TEACHER ANSWER GUIDE The teacher answers are intended to provide a guide to the reading skill each question is practising. Suggestions are given for a starting point for responses that students would be expected to give at the start of KS3. Further suggestions then give fuller, more developed responses that students will work towards by the end of KS3, in preparation for the non-fiction elements of GCSE English language. TEACHER ANSWERS Part A A1. What is Team Bite-Back? Team Bite-Back is a leading shark conservation charity. Representatives from the charity met First News at the shark tank in London s Sea Life Aquarium to talk about the need to protect sharks. A2. What do the following percentages refer to? Expected response 83% The percentage of Brits who think that more should be done to protect the world s oceans. 64% The percentage of Brits who would prefer that sharks didn t exist. A3. Find the correct numbers to fill the gaps and complete the sentences about sharks. Expected response Sharks have been around for some 440 million years. 73 million sharks are being killed every year. On average, 6 people are killed by sharks a year. A4. Who is Steve Backshall? Steve Backshall is a wildlife expert. He fronts Deadly 60, a television series, which shows him travelling to different places in search of 60 of the world s deadliest animals. He supports the conservation of sharks so he came with representatives from Team Bite-Back to talk with First News at the shark tank in London s Sea Life Aquarium.
A5. Are the following statements true or false? Expected response STATEMENT Sharks are a huge threat to humans. More people are scared of spiders, snakes and rodents than sharks. More people are killed by cows in the UK than are killed by sharks worldwide. A few weeks ago, there was headline news about a man punching a shark off his friend. TRUE/FALSE? FALSE FALSE TRUE TRUE Part B B1. The chances of getting hurt by a shark are impossibly small so why are people so terrified of them? It is likely that people are scared of sharks because they have such a bad public image. The film Jaws was released in the 1970s and, as it has come to be considered a classic, its appeal has lasted. Therefore, it has really affected people s opinion of sharks. The image of a fearsome great white shark terrorising people on a small beach resort has stuck in the minds of many. It has made people think that if you re in the water with a shark then you re going to get eaten. Furthermore, the media often sensationalises shark attacks. Recently there was a story about a shark attack that made headline news, even though the victim was uninjured! Even the most minor incidents involving sharks tend to get reported on and consequently it feels like shark attacks are happening all of the time. This makes people fearful. B2. Backshall mentions headline news about a man punching a shark off his friend, who was uninjured. He commented that: If we break that down, that s headline news about a man not being eaten by a shark! How do you think that Backshall regards such headline news? Explain your answer. Backshall does not think that such a story should be headline news. He is highlighting the irony of that story being headline news because it is a non-story, which is the very opposite of what headline news should be. The use of the exclamation mark shows that Backshall is speaking with emphasis because he can t believe the absurdity of the reportage. Backshall does not like such stories because they prejudice people against sharks and thus make the work of shark conservationists even more difficult. He believes that the media should stop exaggerating stories about shark attacks. B3. Why is it significant that sharks have been around for 440 million years? It is significant that sharks have been around for 440 million years because it shows they are a very successful species. Sharks have adapted to the environmental changes that have occurred over millions of years and they have lived through every major mass extinction event so far. This makes it seem even more appalling that all species of sharks are currently under threat from humans and human activity. B4. Why are so many sharks being killed every year now? 73 million sharks are being killed every year because of our wasteful fishing methods and because of the popularity of shark fin soup. Our fishing methods are partly to blame because hundreds of thousands of sharks are caught in nets meant for tuna and swordfish. Sharks are also being killed for their fins even though the rest of the shark isn t used. The fins are used for the base of a soup that is traditional in Chinese and Vietnamese cuisine. However, the fins don t even have very much flavour so it really is senseless killing.
B5. How is our fear of sharks having an impact on conservation efforts and how is Steve Backshall working with Team Bite-back and Mountain Warehouse to change this? Our fear of sharks is having an impact on conservation efforts because people aren t interested in helping to save a species that they don t like. It has been reported that 64% of people in Britain would prefer it if sharks didn t exist. That is a high percentage of people who are not going to want to help to protect sharks because they don t want them to exist anyway! It makes the job of shark conservationists very difficult. Team Bite-Back and Steve Backshall are trying to change perceptions. Backshall has worked with Mountain Warehouse in order to create a children s shark T-shirt. Hopefully this will make the image of a shark seem less frightening for children. Furthermore, Team Bite-Back has collaborated with 12 of the world s most celebrated underwater photographers to create a 2018 calendar featuring sharks. If people can see the beauty and magnificence of sharks then they might be more inclined to help. The projects will also help to raise funds for the protection of sharks as the T-shirts and calendars are being sold to raise money for Team Bite-Back. Part C C1. Do you think that the headline is effective? Why/why not? READING SKILL Explain methods used by the writer with appropriate use of terminology The headline is effective because it is a clear, blunt statement and it prepares the reader for what they will read about in the main body text. The use of the statement does not allow for any argument. It is presented as fact. The writer does qualify the statement in the lead paragraph by allowing that some sharks do look scary and that many people are afraid of them. However, as a result of the powerful headline, the overriding message is that there is no need to be afraid of sharks. This is effective because the report is about the conservation work of Bite-Back and Steve Backshall, and people need to be reassured so that they feel inclined to support the work being done to protect sharks. C2. How does the writer use language in the main body text to persuade the reader to help save sharks? READING SKILL Recognise effect of language choices The writer uses language in the main body text in order to create a friendly and inclusive tone designed to persuade readers to help save sharks. The use of discourse makers like well and so make the writing seem more conversational and thus more friendly. This is persuasive because you are more likely to do a favour for a friend, so you are more likely to support the conservation of sharks if the writer seems friendly and engaging. The use of the pronouns us and we is inclusive. It puts the reader and the writer on the same team. Initially there is acknowledgement that lots of us are afraid of sharks. This establishes a sense of understanding and ensures that the reader doesn t feel foolish. Then there is reassurance that those fears are unfounded. Next, we is used to suggest collective action. For example, the reader is asked..what do we do to change people s opinions? This is persuasive because there is the assumption that readers want to be part of the team working for the good of sharks and they just get carried along. C3. Analyse the picture of Steve and his celebrity pals in the shark tank. Why do you think the picture has been included with this report? READING SKILL Identify benefits of text organisation and presentation There is a high-angle shot of Steve and four of his friends in the shark tank. They are all looking directly at the camera and smiling. Due to the fact that they are smiling, Steve and his friends look very relaxed and not at all fearful. Therefore, the picture is included with this report because it adds power to the assertion that sharks are almost no threat to humans at all.