Biographies - Stage 6 - Bear Grills - Comprehension Pack.pdf

STAGE 6 Unit focus: Biographies Text focus: Information Text The National Churches Trust, CC BY 2.0 BEAR GRYLLS Bear Grylls OBE is one of the most recognisable adventurers and survival experts in the world. You may recognise him from his TV work or his adventures as UK Chief Scout. However you know...

STAGE 6 Unit focus: Biographies Text focus: Information Text The National Churches Trust, CC BY 2.0 BEAR GRYLLS Bear Grylls OBE is one of the most recognisable adventurers and survival experts in the world. You may recognise him from his TV work or his adventures as UK Chief Scout. However you know him, you will understand why he is so popular. Born in 1974, Bear isn’t actually his real name. He was named Edward Michael Grylls by his parents but was nicknamed “Bear” by his older sister when he was just a week or so old. His family had important ties. His grandfather was a top cricketer, and his dad was a politician. His dad’s connections meant that he had access to places like the Royal Yacht Squadron. This was an elite institution where Bear learned to sail, climb and take part in other outdoor pursuits from a very young age. Adventuring was always in his blood. His thirst for excitement didn’t end there. As a teenager, he learned how to skydive and reached one of the top belts in karate. He speaks several languages and studied at the prestigious Eton College. Continuing his love of travel, Grylls le school and spent three years as a soldier in the British Special Forces. These years taught him many of the survival skills that would become the staple of his shows on TV. In 1996, aged just 21, Grylls was exploring his love of skydiving in Zambia, Africa. On one jump, his parachute failed to open properly, and he landed on his back; he broke it in three places. It took him a year of painful rehabilitation to overcome it, and he says that he still feels pain from it every day. The fall and subsequent pain have never stopped Bear from fulfilling his ambitions. Two years a er the accident, he became the youngest Brit to reach the summit of Mount Everest. He has gone on to write over 90 books, selling over 20 million copies worldwide. Not everything is serious with Bear, although there is usually a strong purpose behind everything he does. In 2000, he led a team of jet skiers on an expedition to circumnavigate the British Isles. It all resources ©2023 Literacy Shed http://www.literacyshedplus.com took them 30 days and raised lots of money for the Royal National Lifeboat Institution. In another charity event, he rowed a bathtub along the River Thames. 2005 saw Bear and several other adventurers eating a formal dinner in a hot air balloon. They rose to 7,600 meters above sea level and paired their formal army uniforms with gas masks to allow them to breathe. It broke the record for the highest open-air formal dinner, but once again, there was an honourable purpose. The dinner raised awareness of The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award and The Prince’s Trust charity. Pretty much every TV show that Bear leads has been a resounding success. His show Man vs. Wild was viewed by an estimated 1.2 billion people, making it one of the most-watched shows in history. His adventure with Indian Prime Minister Modi reached 3.6 billion people. 1. What did Bear’s dad do as a job? RETRIEVAL FOCUS 2. How old was Grylls when he had his skydiving accident? 3. Where did Bear eat his famous dinner in 2005? 4. Who did Bear take on an adventure that was watched by billions of people? 5. What did Grylls use to row along the Thames? V I V VIPERS QUESTIONS Find and copy a word that means “following”. What evidence is there that people like Grylls’ books? Which word means “did together”? fulfilling S V paired survival How did Bear’s time in the Special Forces influence his future work? “The staple of his shows on TV…” What does staple mean? all resources ©2023 Literacy Shed http://www.literacyshedplus.com