ELA | MIDDLE SCHOOL

The Unsuccessful Quest For A Universal Language

In the 17th century, people were determined to overcome communications barriers between the people of the world by creating a universal language. Sir Isaac Newton is known for discovering gravity, but he was also the creator of the “Newtonian” language. The language Newton created was never successful. The language of Esperanto was created in the 1960 but also never caught on. Listen to learn more about invented languages and why they never became universal.

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Story Length: 3:48

Listen to the Story:

Listening Comprehension Questions

In what ways did Andrew Carnegie’s libraries serve their communities?
How did Carnegie benefit from a library when he was growing up?
Which personality traits helped propel Carnegie from poverty to riches? Bring specific details from the story to support your ideas.
According to Carnegie, what should rich people do with their money and why? Why was Carnegie known as both generous and “brutal”?

Discussion Themes

In your opinion, what should really rich people do with their fortunes?
What does it take for a person to rise from “rags to riches”?

Socrative users can import these questions using the following code: SOC-1234

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