Famous Places

Stonehenge

Stonehenge Pre-Reading Warm Up Questions ☀

1. Do you know where Stonehenge is located?

Stonehenge is an ancient monument that is located on
Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, Southern England. The United 2. Look at the picture of Stonehenge below. What do you
Nations declared it a World Heritage Site in 1986. think it was built for?

3. How do you think the stones in Stonehenge were

Stonehenge was built in three phases, beginning over 5,000
moved to the area?
years ago. About 3100 bc, several logs were placed on end in a
circle and surrounded by a wide ditch. Archeologists believe 4. Do you know what an archeologist does?
the ditch was dug using animal antlers.
5. What is a World Heritage Site?

About 2500 bc, it was rebuilt with stones, called bluestones,

from South Wales, over 245 miles away. These stones, each
weighing 4 to 5 tons, were likely dragged to the sea, placed on
large rafts, and floated down the coast and then upriver. From
there, they were dragged overland to Salisbury Plain.

About 2300 bc, the bluestones were rearranged and even

bigger stones, some weighing up to 45 tons, were brought
from 20 miles away. Thirty massive sandstones, each about 13
feet high, were stood on end about 3 to 4 feet apart in a large
circle. Heavy rectangular stones were placed on top of them
and fitted together using woodworking methods. This
continuous circle of stone around the top makes Stonehenge
special.

Modern scientists believe that three different groups of

prehistoric people built Stonehenge. It was a tremendous COMPREHENSION ✍
engineering achievement, and thousands of people would A. True or False. Read the statements below. If the
have worked on it. statement is true, write T beside the sentence. If it is
false, write F. If it is false, correct the information.
No one knows why Stonehenge was built on Salisbury Plain or
1. Stonehenge was built in three phases over a period of
for what purpose. It may have been a temple, a place to watch
about 800 years.
the movement of the sun and stars, a burial place for high-
ranking people, or all three. Hundreds of burial mounds 2. Wood was used to build the circle in the first phase.
surround it.
3. In the second phase, stones from the nearby area were
used.
Today, only about half of the original monument exists. In
later centuries, many of the stones were used to build homes or 4. Stonehenge may have been a place for people to pray.
roads. People continued to chip off parts of the stones until
5. Many of the original stones have been removed.
into the 1970s. To stop the damage, since 1978, Stonehenge
can only be viewed from a distance.

1
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 Famous Places
Stonehenge

B. Practice asking and answering the following questions with your partner. Then write the answers in complete sentences.

1. What is Stonehenge?
2. Briefly describe the three phases in the building of Stonehenge.
3. How were the bluestones of South Wales transported to Salisbury Plain?
4. Describe Stonehenge in the third phase.
5. Why was Stonehenge built?
6. What happened to many of the original stones?
7. Why can Stonehenge only be viewed from a distance now?

VOCABULARY REVIEW ✍
A. Choose the word(s) with the closest meaning to the underlined words in the following sentences.

1. Stonehenge was built in three phases.

a) years b) stages c) places DISCUSS
2. Several logs were placed on end in a circle.
a) stones b) temples c) cut pieces of trees 1. Why do people think that
3. A ditch was dug using animal antlers. Stonehenge is a tremendous
a) feet b) horns c) skins engineering achievement?
4. The stones, each weighing 4 to 5 tons, were dragged to the sea.
a) pulled along b) carried c) sailed 2. Do you think people should only
5. Thirty massive sandstones, each about 13 feet high, were stood on end in a large circle. be allowed to view Stonehenge
a) bluestone b) monument c) huge from a distance or do you think
6. Thirty massive sandstones were stood on end in a large circle. there might be another way to stop
a) placed flat down b) placed upright c) cut the damage to the site?

B. Match the words on the left with correct meaning on the right. 3. What other tremendous
engineering achievements took
place in ancient times? Describe
_____ 1. ancient a) first or earliest
_____ 2. monument b) a place used for the worship of a god some of these.
_____ 3. ditch c) harm or injury that causes loss of value
4. The article gives three possible
_____ 4. likely d) from long ago; very old
reasons why Stonehenge was built.
_____ 5. raft e) probably
Can you think of any other
_____ 6. float f) placing in the ground
explanations for this ancient
_____ 7. achievement g) cut or break a piece off
monument?
_____ 8. temple h) a narrow channel dug in the ground
_____ 9. burial i) a pile of earth; a small hill
_____ 10. mound j) a flat structure for moving things on water
_____ 11. original k) something done very well
_____ 12. chip l) move on water
_____ 13. damage m) a building, structure, or statue built in memory of something or someone

2
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photocopied by members of ESL-Library.com in accordance with membership terms and conditions. Contact [email protected] for complete details.
 Famous Places
Stonehenge

ANSWER KEY

Please note: The reading for this topic is also available in full-page format at the end of the lesson (page 4).

PRE-READING QUESTIONS
1-5. individual answers (and)
4. An archeologist studies past human life and remains of prehistoric times.
5. A World Heritage Site is chosen by the United Nations as a place with outstanding value to humanity. The United
Nations tries to protect and preserve places of cultural heritage and natural importance. There are over 800 such sites
around the world.

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS
A. True or False
1. T 2. T 3. F 4. T 5. T

B. Written Answers
1. Stonehenge, an ancient monument located on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, Southern England, is a World Heritage Site.
2. In the first phase, several logs were placed on end in a circle and surrounded by a wide ditch. In the second phase, the
logs were replaced with huge bluestones from South Wales. In the third phase, the bluestones were rearranged and even
larger stones were added.
3. The bluestones were dragged to the sea, placed on large rafts, floated down the coast and upriver, and then dragged
overland.
4. In the third phase, thirty huge stones, each about 13 feet high, were stood on end about three or four feet apart in a
circle. Heavy rectangular stones were placed on top and fitted together in a continuous circle of stone around the top.
5. Stonehenge may have been built as a temple, a place to watch the sun and the stars, or a burial place.
6. Many of the original stones were used to build homes or roads.
7. Over the years, people continued to damage the monument by removing or chipping off pieces of the stones, so now
visitors must view it from a distance.

VOCABULARY REVIEW
A. Choose the word(s) with the closest meaning
1. b 2. c 3. b 4. a 5. c 6. b

B. Matching
1. d 2. m 3. h 4. e 5. j 6. l 7. k 8. b
9. f 10. i 11. a 12.g 13. c

3
Copyright 2011. This eBook is produced and distributed by Red River Press Inc. All rights reserved. The contents within this e-book/document may only be
photocopied by members of ESL-Library.com in accordance with membership terms and conditions. Contact [email protected] for complete details.
 Famous Places
Stonehenge

Stonehenge

Stonehenge is an ancient monument that is located on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, Southern England.
The United Nations declared it a World Heritage Site in 1986.

Stonehenge was built in three phases, beginning over 5,000 years ago. About 3100 bc, several logs were
placed on end in a circle and surrounded by a wide ditch. Archeologists believe the ditch was dug using
animal antlers.

About 2500 bc, it was rebuilt with stones, called bluestones, from South Wales, over 245 miles away.
These stones, each weighing 4 to 5 tons, were likely dragged to the sea, placed on large rafts, and
floated down the coast and then upriver. From there, they were dragged overland to Salisbury Plain.

About 2300 bc, the bluestones were rearranged and even bigger stones, some weighing up to 45 tons,
were brought from 20 miles away. Thirty massive sandstones, each about 13 feet high, were stood on
end about 3 to 4 feet apart in a large circle. Heavy rectangular stones were placed on top of them and
fitted together using woodworking methods. This continuous circle of stone around the top makes
Stonehenge special.

Modern scientists believe that three different groups of prehistoric people built Stonehenge. It was a
tremendous engineering achievement, and thousands of people would have worked on it.

No one knows why Stonehenge was built on Salisbury Plain or for what purpose. It may have been a
temple, a place to watch the movement of the sun and stars, a burial place for high-ranking people, or
all three. Hundreds of burial mounds surround it.

Today, only about half of the original monument exists. In later centuries, many of the stones were used
to build homes or roads. People continued to chip off parts of the stones until into the 1970s. To stop the
damage, since 1978, Stonehenge can only be viewed from a distance.

4
Copyright 2011. This eBook is produced and distributed by Red River Press Inc. All rights reserved. The contents within this e-book/document may only be
photocopied by members of ESL-Library.com in accordance with membership terms and conditions. Contact [email protected] for complete details.