GROUP 1 Date :

‘A Gun Culture’

READING COMPREHENSION :

Type of document:

Author:

Date :

Title :

Pick out the following information (indicate line numbers)

Two American news magazines : ____________________ and ____________________

The two covers represent_______________________________________________________________________________________________

§1
The names of the two children : _________________________ and _________________________

The traditional figure associated with Christmas period:

§2
The two murderers live in (town, state, country) :

Their age at the time of the tragedy: __________ and __________

The number of victims / casualties :

Date of the tragedy (in full) :

§3
Another school concerned by a bloodbath :

Town, state :

Date of the tragedy (in full) :

§4
The annual total of violent crimes in the 90’s:

The annual total of murders :

The murderers’ favourite weapon (= arm) :

What schools use now to fight the problem:

§5
Where we realize that Americans are crazy about weapons : on _____________ and in ______________

Where Americans can practice shooting :

The name of a researcher on violence:

Why it’s impossible to know the exact number of weapons in the USA :

Use your notes above to help you answer the questions. 

RECAP : What happened on March 24, 1998 ? Is this sort of event exceptional in the US?
 Here are 5 headings corresponding to the 5 paragraphs: put them back in the order of the text

a. causes b. comparisons c. questions d. the shooting e. unusual front covers

1. _____ 2. _____ 3. _____ 4. _____ 5. _____

All the words linked to violence and arms – Look up their translation in a French dictionary
camouflage the shootings
a rifle civil wars
a pistol social chaos
deadly weapons violent crimes
a shotgun murders
they shot at the weapon
they fired twenty-two shots firearms
killing accidents and suicides
they wounded a killing simulator

Vocabulary from the text : Find equivalents in the text

(from line 26 to line 43)
(from line 1 to line 11)
it represented =
surprisingly =
before page 1 =
stage, point =
a young child =
plunged in =
holding =
killings =
a little =
it took place, it happened =
described =
statistically =
to sit for a photo =
a favourite arm =
lethal, causing death =
in town =
to verify =
(from line 12 to line 17)
to start = a shop to sell second-hand objects =

they fired at =
they lined out = (from line 44 to the end)
it regards =
shot =
it gives =
protecting =
a video game to practice flying =
hurt, injured =
accessible =
a majority =
teach, educate, show =
incisively, intelligently =
(from line 18 to line 25)
incidents involving guns = to demonstrate =

concerning a lot of people = to catalogue =

arrive at a stage when = bought =

 GOING FURTHER. 
 What does the writer mean when he writes : …. A shotgun for Christmas ? For Christmas ! ‘ l.24)

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 Explain the sentence: The questions asked repeatedly after the Jonesboro tragedy (…) seem depressingly familiar . (l.18)

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 Which countries have the same level of violence as the US ?

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 According to the writer,what are the causes of the high murder rate in the US?
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