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The Internet: Global Connections

Episode of the series Amazing Inventions

CEFR: A2, B1

In this episode

Illustrated slideshow (25 images)
Glossary
Comprehension quiz (45 questions)
18 cultural notes

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Extract: the first 30 seconds of the episode. The full episode lasts 6 min 20 s.

Level

The episode

Explore the digital revolution that began with a laughably small crash! This episode chronicles the accidental start of the internet with just two letters, "LO," and explains how its "digital confetti" design became a foundational idea, connecting the world in ways no one could have imagined.

Episode worksheets (2)

Student sheet In your teacher account
Teacher sheet In your teacher account

Teaching guide

Objective & content

This documentary episode traces the history of the internet. It starts with the 1969 experiment in which scientists at four universities tried to send the word "LOGIN", and only "L-O" arrived. It then explains why ARPANET was built during the Cold War, how packet switching works, how Ray Tomlinson invented email in 1971, and how Tim Berners-Lee invented the World Wide Web in 1989. Learners practise the past simple (regular and irregular verbs, and was/were) and vocabulary of the digital world. The main skill is listening comprehension, followed by the in-app quiz.

Materials & prerequisites

A student sheet and a teacher sheet, each as a PDF and an HTML file, plus the printable in Markdown (all in the episode's `printables/` folder).
Learners should already know the present simple and recognise basic past simple forms.

Possible adaptations

Lower levels: Offer segmented listening and additional visual aids.
Advanced levels: Encourage an oral summary and a debate in English on the theme.
Large groups: Organise group work with differentiated roles.

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