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THE LION KING LEVEL 41

Teacher’s NotesPearson English Kids Readers

www.pearsonenglishkidsreaders.com

Level 4Suitable for: young learners who have

completed up to 200 hours of study in English

Type of English: American

Headwords: 800

Key words: 15 (see pages 2 and 5 of these Teacher’s Notes)

Key grammar: past simple of common irregular verbs, could, going to, irregular adverbs of manner

Summary of the storySimba is a lion cub. His father, Mufasa, is king of the Pride Lands. Mufasa’s brother, Scar, wants to be the next king. He tricks Simba into going to a dangerous place outside the Pride Lands. Simba and his best friend, Nala, go to the dangerous place. When some hyenas attack, Mufasa is there to rescue them.

Scar then takes Simba into a deep valley. A stampede of wildebeests is about to kill him when Mufasa again rescues Simba. As they escape, Scar pushes Mufasa into the stampede and Mufasa dies. Simba doesn’t see this happen – he thinks he caused his father’s death. Simba runs far away from the Pride Lands. Timon (a meerkat) and Pumbaa (a warthog) become his friends.

Years later, Nala is hunting in the jungle and finds Simba. She persuades him to return to the Pride Lands. Life there is terrible now that Scar is king. At first, Simba refuses, but then he hears Mufasa’s voice. He understands that he cannot run from the past anymore.

Simba returns home. He discovers that Scar killed Mufasa. Simba defeats Scar and becomes the true king of the Pride Lands. He thus completes the Circle of Life that Mufasa told him about as a young cub.

Background informationThe Lion King is an animated adventure movie created by Walt Disney Productions. It was first released in 1994 and was the 32nd feature-length animated movie from Disney.

It was the first Disney animated film to be based on an original story idea, and not on an existing work. Most of the movie was created using traditional hand-drawn animation. A few scenes contain some computer animation, such as the wildebeest stampede.

The movie won two Academy Awards®, one for Best Original Score and one for Best Original Song, Can You Feel the Love Tonight? The songs in the film were written by Elton John with lyrics by Tim Rice.

Did you know … ?

The animators traveled to Kenya to study real animals before working on the film.

Many of the animal names in the films are Swahili. For example, Simba means ‘brave lion’, and Nala means ‘gift’ in Swahili.

The Lion King stage show opened on Broadway, New York City, in 1997. It is one of Broadway’s longest running shows.





The charactersMufasa is a lion. He is king of the Pride Lands.

Simba is a young lion. He is Mufasa’s son.

Scar is Mufasa’s brother. He wants to be king.

Nala is a young lioness. She is Simba’s best friend.

Pumbaa is a warthog who lives in the jungle.

Timon is a meerkat. He is Pumbaa’s best friend.

Topics and themesAfrica The story is a good starting point for learning about Africa. Do the students know where Africa is on a world map? What countries are in Africa? What products come from Africa? (See also Activity 1 on page 3 of these Teacher’s Notes.)

African animals Ask the students to say which animals are in the story. Have any students seen the film? What other animals are in the film? What habitats do the animals live in? (See also Activity 1 on page 3 of these Teacher’s Notes.)

Language The story could be used as inspiration for writing poems, chants, or song lyrics. You could obtain the movie soundtrack and play some of the songs. The students could then write their own song, poem, or chant based on the story.

Friendship Simba has several true friends – Nala, Pumbaa, and Timon. How do these characters show their friendship to Simba? What are the qualities of a true friend?

Royalty Mufasa is the Lion King. His successor is his son, Simba. Do the students understand this succession? Do they know anything else about royal families in the modern world or from history?

Key words(see page 5 of these Teacher’s Notes for the Key words in context)

bone (n) safe (adj) dead (adj) secret (adj) desert (n) stampede (n) hyena (n) valley (n) king (n) voice (n) lioness (n) warthog (n) meerkat (n) wildebeest (n) return (v)

Betrayal Scar betrays his brother, Mufasa, and his nephew, Simba, in order to become king. Ask the students to explain how and why this happens in the story. Can the students think of any other examples of betrayal in fiction or in history?

Responsibility Ask the students why Simba runs away from his responsibilities as the Lion King? Why does he return to the Pride Lands in the end? What responsibilities would the Lion King have? What responsibilities do the students have?

The great Circle of Life Mufasa talks about this in the story. Explain to the students that he is talking about how every part of the natural world depends on the other and should be respected. He is also referring to natural cycles, such as birth and death, and how everyone and everything is connected. (See also Activity 4, on page 4 of these Teacher’s Notes.)

Stars Mufasa shows Simba the lion kings of the past in the stars. Do the students know anything about the stars and constellations? Perhaps download a star chart from the internet and show them the formation of one or two constellations.

Art The story could be used to inspire a variety of art projects, such as animal masks, collages, wax-resist paintings, scratchboard art, etc. (See also Activity 3, on pages 3–4 of these Teacher’s Notes.)




Class Activities (After Reading)

Here are some activities to do with your class after reading The Lion King.

1. Kenya projectMaterials: atlas, globe, or map of the world; pictures of Kenya downloaded from the internet; large sheets of colored paper; sheets of white paper; colored pens or pencils; glue; scissors

• Before the session, find out some information about Kenya (its capital city, population, important geographical features, flag, wildlife, etc.)

• Ask the students where Kenya is (East Africa). Can anyone point to Kenya on the map or globe?

• Explain that the animators that worked on The Lion King spent time in Kenya studying the animals.

• Ask the students if they know anything else about Kenya. Tell the students some additional facts and information. Show them some pictures from the internet.

• Give a large sheet of colored paper to each student. Give each group of students some sheets of white paper, the colored pens or pencils, glue, and scissors.

• The students then make a poster about Kenya. They could include some facts about the country then illustrate their poster with their own drawings of animals, the Kenyan flag, etc. or downloaded photos.

2. Shadow puppet theaterMaterials: cereal boxes (the students could bring these from home); tape; sheets of thin white paper; card; scissors; black paint; paint brushes; straws / craft sticks / skewers; a desk lamp

• Before the session, make the puppet theater and some sample puppets:

– Take a cereal box and tape it up so that it is sturdy and strong.

– Draw a large rectangle on both sides of the box about 3–4 centimeters in from the edge of the box.

– Cut out the rectangles, then tape a sheet of thin white paper inside one of the rectangular holes (this will be the screen for the puppets).

– Using the card you cut away, or thicker card, draw the outlines of two or three of the characters from the story. (You could copy them from the book.)

– Cut out the characters, paint them black on one side, then attach the other side to a straw / craft stick / skewer.

• Test out the puppets, using a desk lamp shining into the box.

• Show the students your shadow puppet theater for them to make their own in pairs or small groups.

• The students decide which scene from the story they would like to act out using the puppet theater.

• Go round the class as they make their theaters and puppets. Give help and advice where needed.

• Ask for volunteers to come to the front of the class to perform a scene from the story.

3. Scratchboard animal pictureMaterials: a piece of thick paper or card per student; colored crayons; black paint; dishwashing soap; paint brushes; a tool for scratching (e.g. nails or bent paperclips)

• Before the session make your own scratchboard animal picture:

– Take a piece of thick paper or card and use the crayons to draw a colorful pattern all over it (stripes, a rainbow, etc.).

– Mix a little dishwashing soap into some black paint. Paint a layer of black over the colorful pattern.




– When the paint has dried, scratch a picture of an animal into the surface so it reveals the colors beneath. (You could copy one of the characters from the book.)

• Give a piece of thick paper or card to each student. Place crayons, paint (with dishwashing soap added), brushes and scratching tools on each table.

• Show the students your scratchboard animal pictures. Explain to them how to make it.

• The students make their scratchboards and decide which animal from the story (or other African animal) to scratch into it.

• Display the finished scratchboard paintings in the classroom.

4. ‘Circle of Life’ recyclingMaterials: a box of junk items – the students could bring these from home (jars, boxes, plastic containers, cardboard tubes, etc.); paints; tape; paper; glue; and other materials to transform the items

• Explain to the students that part of the ‘Circle of Life’ is about respecting the environment. Recycling things is one way of doing this.

• Show the box of junk items to the students. Tell them that the things in the box could be recycled to make fun and / or useful things.

• Draw out something from the box, e.g. a jar, and explain that this could be decorated with glass paints and used as a pen pot.

• Ask the students to pick an item from the box. (Students can trade items if they wish.)

• The students say what their item could be made into. (For example, a cardboard tube into a kaleidoscope, a plastic container could become a moneybox, a plastic bottle could become a rocket.)

• They decorate and transform their items into something new. Students could also group together to make an item or sculpture.

• Display the finished items on a table for the class to see.

5 THE LION KING LEVEL 4PHOTOCOPIABLE Text copyright © Pearson Education. Disney material © Disney.


Key words

bone ............... He told Simba about a place outside the Pride Lands. There were elephant bones there. (p. 4)

dead ............... Then he saw Mufasa’s body and understood – his father was dead. (p. 11)

desert ............. Simba left the land of the lions and started to run across the desert. (p. 12)

hyena ............. “This is our place,” one hyena said. “We eat little lions who come here.” (p. 6)

king ................. Mufasa was king of the Pride Lands. (p. 3)

lioness ............ Suddenly, a lioness jumped out at Pumbaa. (p. 14)

meerkat ......... “Lions eat meerkats!” said Timon the meerkat. (p. 13)

return ............. “Run,” said Scar. “Run away and never return.” (p. 11)

safe ................. He tried to run, but there was no safe place in the valley. (p. 9)

secret ............. “But it’s a secret. Please don’t go there,” said Scar. (p. 4)

stampede ...... There were hundreds of wildebeests running through the valley. It was a stampede! (p. 8–9)

valley ............. One day Scar took Simba into a deep valley. (p. 8)

voice ............... But then a voice said, “Simba.” (p. 17)

warthog ......... “He isn’t dead!” cried Pumbaa the warthog. (p. 13)

wildebeest ..... The King of the lions pushed his way through the wildebeests. (p. 9)



While-Reading activities

Activity 1 (pages 3–5)Circle the right words.

1 One day Simba is going to be king / father of the Pride Lands.

2 Scar told Simba about a secret / safe place.

3 Simba wanted / did not want to go there.

4 Nala and Simba went to the water / dangerous place.

Activity 2 (pages 6–9)Order the sentences.

a Mufasa told Simba about the great lion kings of the past.

b Hundreds of wildebeests ran through the valley.

c Scar left Simba in a deep valley.

d Simba and Nala ran away from the hyenas.

e Mufasa put Simba on a rock above the stampede.

f Mufasa arrived and the hyenas ran away.

Activity 3 (pages 10–14)Complete the words in the sentences.

a Scar pushed Mufasa into the s of wildebeests.

b Simba saw Mufasa’s b . His father was dead.

c Scar said to Simba, “Run away and never r .”

d Simba ran for hours across the d .

e Simba met Timon the m and Pumbaa the

w .

f In a new part of the jungle, a l jumped out

at Pumbaa.



Activity 4 (pages 15–18)Copy the correct sentences next to the pictures.

a Simba walked away angrily.

b The clouds moved into a new shape. It was Mufasa!

c “What’s happening here?” asked Timon. “Do you know her?”

1

2

3



Activity 5 (pages 19–22)Write T (True) or F (False).

1 Simba ran home to the Pride Lands.

2 Simba killed Mufasa.

3 Simba pushed Scar off the rock.

4 Simba was the new Lion King.

5 Simba was a weak king.

6 Simba was now part of the Circle of Life.



After-Reading activities

Activity 1Order the letters and write the animal words from the story.

1 yeahn h _ _ _ _

2 olin l _ _ _

3 kreamet m _ _ _ _ _ _

4 sliedweebt w _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

5 growtha w _ _ _ _ _ _

6 pleathen e _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Activity 2Write the names under the sentences.

Simba Scar Pumbaa

Nala Mufasa Timon



1 Nala tried to eat him!

2 He pushed Mufasa into the stampede.

3 He saved Simba and Nala from the hyenas.

4 She went with Simba to the secret place.

5 He lived with Pumbaa and Simba in the jungle.

6 He ran away after his father died.

Activity 3Match.

1 Simba tried to run from a after running through the desert.

the stampede

2 He saw his father’s body b after he heard his father’s voice.

3 He was hungry and thirsty c because his friends were behind him.

4 He lived with Timon and d after the stampede.

Pumbaa

5 He wanted to go home e but there was no safe place.

6 He was surprised f and was part of the great circle of life.

7 He became the new king g and became a big lion.



Activity 4What do you think? Answer the questions. Then draw a picture of your favorite character.

1 Who is the funniest character in the story?

2 Who is the nicest character in the story?

3 Who is the most dangerous character in the story?

4 Who is your favorite character in the story?

My favorite character in the story




Answer Key

In the back of the Reader

Before You Read1 a meerkat b lioness c lion d warthog

e elephant f wildebeest g hyena

2 1 a 2 c 3 b

After You Read1 Timon / meerkat / friend

Pumbaa / warthog / friend Scar / lion / uncle

2 a F b F c F d T e F f T

In these Teacher’s Notes

While-Reading activities

Activity 11 king 2 secret 3 wanted 4 dangerous place

Activity 2d, f, a, c, b, e

Activity 3a stampede b body c return d desert e meerkat, warthog f lioness

Activity 41 c 2 a 3 b

Activity 51 T 2 F 3 T 4 T 5 F 6 T

After-Reading activities

Activity 11 hyena 2 lion 3 meerkat 4 wildebeest 5 warthog 6 elephant

Activity 21 Pumbaa 2 Scar 3 Mufasa 4 Nala 5 Timon 6 Simba

Activity 31 e 2 d 3 a 4 g 5 b 6 c 7 f

Activity 4Students’ own answers.

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