Reading comprehension: Oppression and War at Home

​Reading comprehension: Oppression and war at home

Open Ended

In the scale of "Inside out 2" how are you feeling today?

Objective: today we are going to comprehend a written text about two young North Koreans scaping from their country.

But first, we are going to check some vocabulary.

​

Multiple Choice

Crept (past of creep)

• crearon

• treparon

• cortaron

Multiple Choice

fled (past of flee)

• Faltó

• huyó

• voló

Multiple Choice

hiding

• escondiéndose

• subiendo

• alcanzando

Multiple Choice

starvation

• hambruna

• extradición

• acumulación

Multiple Choice

Even though

• por otro lado

• sin embargo

• aunque

Multiple Choice

neighbors

• vecinos

• ninguneados

• compañeros

Multiple Choice

hut

• refugio

• hotel

• departamento

Multiple Choice

Despite

• sin embargo

• incluso

• a pesar de

The brothers, Young Hoon* and Young Jun, and their family members walked, rode in cars, and flew on an airplane to reach South Korea. Their journey took about a year.

They were lucky. There are about 200,000 to 300,000 North Koreans now hiding in China. But only about 2,000 of them are expected to make it to South Korea this year.

​A Long Journey

Two brothers crept carefully through the mountains in China. The boys, along with their mother, sister, and aunt, had fled their home in North Korea. They hoped to find a better life in South Korea.

Like China, North and South Korea are countries in Asia. If the Chinese police had found the family, they would have sent them back to their country to be punished or even killed.

​A Chance for Freedom

A New Life

Young Hoon, Young Jun, and their family members risked their lives to reach South Korea. Why? If they had stayed in North Korea, they faced starvation. Many North Korean children are hungry because their families cannot find food. In fact, over the past ten years, about 2 million people in North Korea have starved to death.

About a year after their arrival, the brothers tell me they are happy in Seoul, the busy capital city of South Korea. I visited Young Hoon and Young Jun at the Hannuri School, an after-school program for teens who have left North Korea and come to South Korea to start new lives.

Teachers at Hannuri help the North Koreans with their schoolwork. Many of the teens did not go to school regularly in North Korea, so they are behind in their lessons.

​Worlds Apart

Even though North and South Korea are neighbors, the two countries are very different. North Korea is very poor. Its leader spends most of the country's money on the army, not on food for the people.

Unlike North Korea, South Korea has enough food for everyone, and most people drive cars, go to work, and eat at restaurants.

Young Hoon, 18, and Young Jun, 15, say that in North Korea they lived in a hut and ate mostly corn and potatoes. In South Korea, their lives are much different. The brothers live in an apartment and eat well. They love movies and video games.

North and South Korea are countries in eastern Asia. Korea used to be one country. It was divided in half after World War II (1939--1945). In 1950, North Korea invaded South Korea, starting the Korean War (1950--1953). After the Korean War, the Demilitarized Zone, or DMZ, was set up to divide the two countries. I visited the South Korean side of the DMZ. Everywhere I looked there were soldiers. I wasn't allowed to talk to them because they were on duty.

​A Divided Region

The brothers tell me about their plans for the future. Young Hoon wants to be a pilot. Young Jun wants to help people. They also hope to do something they never could have even dreamed of while living in North Korea--they want to visit the United States.

Young Jun is already prepared to visit. An American he met on his way to South Korea gave him a U.S. dollar. Despite plenty of opportunities to spend the money in South Korea, Young Jun has kept it. After all, he tells me, he's going to need it when he gets to the United States.

Hope for the Future

​Now answer the google form in classroom