Pencils and Pens

10/10/2020 8:26:00 PM
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Image: hinative.com

Do you know?

  • History of writing instruments, pencils and pens, is thousands of years long. We have used pens, in one form or another, since the First Dynasty of Ancient Egypt.
  • The word “pencil” comes from Old French word “pincel” meaning “a small paintbrush”.

Let's explore more about pens and pencils!

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Pencils and pens have existed for thousands of years. Image: kindpng.com

Listen and choose the correct answer to each of the following questions.

  1. One pencil can write ____ words.
  2. A fountain pen can hold _____ inside it.
  3. The Biro brothers made thousands of pens in _______.
One pencil can write ____ words.
  • 50,000
  • 55,000
  • 55
A fountain pen can hold _____ inside it.
  • lead
  • graphite
  • ink

The Biro brothers began their production of pens in _______ during World War II.

  • England
  • Hungary
  • France

Complete the text you are listening to by dragging the correct word to each blank.

Pencils and Pens

   No one knows who invented pencils or when it happened. A Swiss described a pencil in a book in 1565. He said it was a piece of wood with lead inside it. (Lead is a very heavy metal.) Pencils weren’t popular, and people continued to write with pens. They used bird feather as pens.

   Then in 1795 someone started making pencils from graphite and they became very popular. Graphite is a kind of coal. (Coal is black, and we it for heat and energy.) Today people make pencils in the same way. They the , make it into the shape of a stick, and bake it. Then they put it inside a piece of wood. One pencil can write 50,000 English words or make a line 55 kilometers long.

   People wrote with feather pens and then used pens with metal points. They had to dip the point into ink after every few letters. Next someone invented a  that could hold ink inside it. A fountain pen can write several pages before you have to fill it again. 

   Two Hungarian brothers, Ladislao and Georg Biro, invented the ballpoint pen that we all use today. They left Hungary and started making ballpoint pens in England in 1943 during World War II. English pilots liked the pens. They couldn’t write with fountain pens in airplanes because the ink out. Later, a French company called Bic bought the Biro’s company.   

   Some people call bics. Australians call them biros. Whatever we call them, we use them every day.

Read the passage and answer the questions.

Pencils and Pens

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Pens are older than pencils. Image: pngtree.com

   No one knows who invented pencils or when it happened. A Swiss described a pencil in a book in 1565. He said it was a piece of wood with lead inside it. (Lead is a very heavy metal.) Pencils weren’t popular, and people continued to write with pens. They used bird feather as pens.

   Then in 1795 someone started making pencils from graphite and they became very popular. Graphite is a kind of coal. (Coal is black, and we burn it for heat and energy.) Today people make pencils in the same way. They grind the graphite, make it into the shape of a stick, and bake it. Then they put it inside a piece of wood. One pencil can write 50,000 English words or make a line 55 kilometers long.

   People wrote with feather pens and then used pens with metal points. They had to dip the point into ink after every few letters. Next someone invented a fountain pen that could hold ink inside it. A fountain pen can write several pages before you have to fill it again. 

   Two Hungarian brothers, Ladislao and Georg Biro, invented the ballpoint pen that we all use today. They left Hungary and started making ballpoint pens in England in 1943 during World War II. English pilots liked the pens. They couldn’t write with fountain pens in airplanes because the ink leaked out. Later, a French company called Bic bought the Biro’s company.   

   Some people call ballpoint pens bics. Australians call them biros. Whatever we call them, we use them every day.

Source: Thoughts and Notions

How do people make pencils today?
  • They grind the graphite, burn it for heat and energy and then put it inside a piece of wood.
  • They put the graphite into a stick and then bake it.
  • They grind and make the graphite into a stick shape, then bake it and put it inside a piece of wood.

What kind of pens did people write with right after feather pens?

  • Ballpoint pens
  • Pencils
  • Pens with metal points

According to the passage, why was a ballpoint better than a fountain pen for pilots?

  • Because the ballpoint pens were more expensive and convenient for pilots.
  • Because pilots couldn't use fountain pens to write in airplanes.
  • Because the quality of fountain pens was bad.
Where were the inventors of the ballpoint pen from?
  • England
  • Hungary
  • France

Put the right word in each blank. The sentences are from the text.

  1. Graphite is a kind of coal. (Coal is black, and we it for heat and energy.)
  2. They the , make it into the shape of a stick, and bake it.
  3. They had to dip the point into ink after every few letters. Next someone invented a that could hold ink inside it.
  4. They couldn’t write with fountain pens in airplanes because the ink out.
  5. Some people call  a bic.

Put the right word in each blank. These are new sentences for the words in the text.

  1. Our shower . A little water runs out of it all day.
  2. is a soft, heavy metal.
  3. We coffee before we mix it with hot water.
  4. The ball in moves the ink from the pen to the paper.
  5. A is a pen with a container that you fill with ink.
  6. Several protesters American flags.