science

The Artemis II Launch to the Moon

Practice your English reading skills with this A2-level worksheet about the historic Artemis II mission to the moon.

Title

Seo_intro

Practice your English reading skills with this A2-level worksheet about the historic Artemis II mission to the moon.

Reading Text

Today is a very special day for space travel. On April 1, 2026, NASA launched the Artemis II mission from Florida. A big rocket called the Space Launch System (SLS) carried four astronauts into space. They are flying in a new spaceship named Orion. This is a historic trip. Humans have not been to the moon in more than 50 years! The astronauts will not land on the moon this time. Instead, they will travel around it for ten days and then return to Earth. The crew has four members: Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen. They are testing the spaceship to make sure it is safe. If this mission is successful, the next mission will take people to walk on the moon again. People all over the world are watching this exciting journey!

References

N A S A Artemis Program: https://www.nasa.gov/specials/artemis/

Activities

Vocabulary

Items:

Label: launched
Answer: v1
Label: mission
Answer: v2
Label: astronauts
Answer: v3
Label: spaceship
Answer: v4
Label: historic
Answer: v5
Label: successful
Answer: v6

Definitions:

Text: Sent a rocket or vehicle into the air or into space.
Text: A special job or important trip, often to space.
Text: People who are trained to travel into space.
Text: A vehicle used for traveling in space.
Text: Very important in history.
Text: Achieving the results that you wanted or hoped for.

Fill In The Blanks:

Before: The rocket was
After: from Florida today.
Answer: launched
Before: Four
After: are traveling inside the vehicle.
Answer: astronauts
Before: Their
After: is to fly around the moon for ten days.
Answer: mission
Before: They are flying in a new
After: called Orion.
Answer: spaceship
Before: This is a
After: day because humans are going back to the moon.
Answer: historic

Comprehension

Questions:

Text: Artemis II launched in 2026.
Answer: true
Text: The astronauts will walk on the moon during this trip.
Answer: false
Text: The trip will last for ten days.
Answer: true
Text: There are five astronauts on the team.
Answer: false
Text: People have not been to the moon in more than 50 years.
Answer: true

Scrambled:

Text: launched / NASA / mission / the / Artemis II .
Answer: NASA launched the Artemis II mission.
Text: around / travel / They / the / will / moon .
Answer: They will travel around the moon.
Text: are / four / There / crew / the / on / astronauts .
Answer: There are four astronauts on the crew.
Text: new / They / spaceship / flying / are / in / a .
Answer: They are flying in a new spaceship.
Text: a / day / is / space / travel / Today / for / special .
Answer: Today is a special day for space travel.

Written Expression

Questions:

Text: Would you like to travel to the moon? Why or why not?
Text:
Imagine you are an astronaut on the Artemis II mission. Write three sentences describing what you see from your window.

Examples:

Example 1: Yes, I would like to travel to the moon because I want to see the Earth from space. It looks beautiful and exciting.

Example 2: I see the dark sky with millions of bright stars. I can see the moon getting bigger and closer. Far away, the Earth looks like a tiny blue and white marble.

Critical Thinking

Title: Think and Discuss

Instructions:

Why is it important for humans to explore space and go back to the moon after 50 years?
How do you think space travel will change in the next 50 years? Will regular people be able to go to space?