Learn English Through Song Rocket Man - Performed by Elton John Lyrics by Bernie Taupin 1 Terminology: Space Travel countdown (n) the act of counting down to zero,(e.g. the launching of a rocket) 2 She packed my bags last night pre-flight. Zero hour nine a.m. And I'm gonna be high as a kite by then. preflight (n) operations to perform prior flight zero hour (n) time an operation begins 3 I miss the earth so much, I miss my wife. It's lonely out in space on such a timeless flight. mission control (n) the earth-based control center for space flights 4 And I think it's gonna be a long long time 'till touchdown brings me round again to find touchdown (n) the moment when an aircraft touches ground (opposite - liftoff) 5 I'm not the man they think I am at home. Oh no, no, no, I'm a rocket man, rocket man burning out his fuse up here alone. fuse (n) material (or device) which burns or sparks to explode a bomb or firework 6 And I think it's gonna be a long long time 'till touch down brings me round again to find astronaut (n) a person trained to travel in a spacecraft, (spaceman is a male astronaut) 7 I'm not the man they think I am at home. Oh no, no, no, I'm a rocket man, rocket man burning out his fuse up here alone. Words with "space" include: spacecraft, (or -ship), spacesuit, spaceport, aerospace 8 Mars ain't the kind of place to raise your kids; in fact, it's cold as hell. And there's no one there to raise them if you did. Mars (n) 4th planet from the sun and nearest to the Earth (Martian is adjective) 9 And all this science I don't understand... It's just my job five days a week. A rocket man, a rocket man... NASA (acronym) National Aeronautics and Space Administration (US) 10 And I think it's gonna be a long long time 'till touch down brings me round again to find space (n.) (or outer space) the universe beyond earth’s atmosphere (about 500 mi.) 11 I'm not the man they think I am at home. Oh no, no, no, I'm a rocket man, rocket man burning out his fuse up here alone. And I think it's gonna be a long long time... 'till touch down brings me round again to find I'm not the man they think I am at home. Oh no, no, no, I'm a rocket man, rocket man burning out his fuse up here alone. And I think it's gonna be a long long time... And I think it's gonna be a long long time...(etc. etc) ***** EXERCISE Fill in the correct word(s) from the list below: spacesuit preflight zero hour Mars mission control touchdown spacecraft countdown astronaut NASA When it's time for an ________________________________ to go up into space, it's called ____________ ____________. He goes to ____________ ____________ and checks the ________________________________ and gives it a ____________. Then, he puts on his ____________________________ and goes into his spacecraft. Soon, the ________________________________ begins and he is launched into space. After he completes his mission, he will ____________________ on earth. ___________________ is now talking about sending astronauts to ____________, the fourth planet from the sun. TeacherFrankPrograms© www.learn-to-speak-english-esl.com