Why read this: This is an easy reading about a famous Chinese tea. It is a good entry point for students who are not yet ready for the B2 or C1 versions. The story is simple. A farmer picks tea leaves. His father dries them in a hot pan with his hands. Today, more farmers use machines instead. Many young people left the villages, but some are now coming back. The reading helps students think about a real worry: old ways of making things can disappear when machines do the work. Mandarin L1 readers already know the topic from home, so they can focus on the English words and how to talk about this idea in English.
What to notice: The story is told in a clear order. First, students meet Xiaopeng on the hill. Then they learn the name and history of the tea. Next, they see the father doing wok-firing. After that, the writer tells them about the problem (machines, young people leaving). At the end, the writer gives some hope (young people coming back, the son returning). Ask students to notice the four key words in the margin glosses: tea bushes, Dragon Well, harvest window, wok-firing. Also ask them to find the one sentence that states the worry directly: "Many people worry that this old way of making tea will disappear." Point out that English uses "the old way" as a short way to talk about traditional hand work.
Skills practised: Students practise reading a short story in simple present and simple past tenses. They learn to follow a clear order: scene, history, work, problem, hope. They practise key A2 vocabulary about food and work (pick, dry, grow, leaves, pan, hands, machine, price, return). They practise answering simple questions that ask for facts (where, what, why) and short "describe" and "name two reasons" tasks. They also start to notice how a writer can show a worry by saying it in one direct sentence. This helps them get ready for the B2 and C1 versions in the same family, where the same worry is shown in longer, more difficult English.
China's Famous Green Tea
Longjing tea grows on green hills near Hangzhou. People worry that the old way of making it may disappear.
Tap any green word in the article to see its meaning.
Ge Xiaopeng stands on a green hill near Hangzhou. He looks at a tiny tea leaf between his fingers. He picks the leaf carefully and drops it into his basket. The basket is already full of small green leaves. Xiaopeng is a tea farmer. He grows his on this hill. He grows Longjing, one of the most famous green teas in China.
Longjing means . The tea grows on hills near West Lake in Hangzhou, in eastern China. People have loved this tea for hundreds of years. Long ago, an emperor visited Hangzhou. He tasted Longjing and loved it very much. He gave 18 tea plants a special royal name.
Spring is the busy time. The is short, only about two weeks. Farmers pick the small leaves by hand. The early spring leaves are the best. They have a soft, sweet taste. After picking, the leaves go into a very hot pan. Xiaopeng's father, Ge Zhenghua, does this work. He moves the leaves in the pan with his bare hands. This step is called . It dries the leaves and gives them a flat, pointed shape.
But this old way is changing. Today, more farmers use machines to dry the tea. Machines are faster and easier. Zhenghua says hand-made tea tastes better, but the work is very hard. Many people worry that this old way of making tea will disappear.
For many years, Zhenghua thought no young people would learn his skills. Many young people left the villages and went to big cities. But now, some are coming back. The price of real Longjing is high, so the work pays well. Zhenghua's own son has returned to help. Young people who grew up here, Zhenghua says, know this smell. It is the smell of their home.
Ge Xiaopeng stands on a green hill near Hangzhou. He looks at a tiny tea leaf between his fingers. He picks the leaf carefully and drops it into his basket. The basket is already full of small green leaves. Xiaopeng is a tea farmer. He grows his on this hill. He grows Longjing, one of the most famous green teas in China.
Longjing means . The tea grows on hills near West Lake in Hangzhou, in eastern China. People have loved this tea for hundreds of years. Long ago, an emperor visited Hangzhou. He tasted Longjing and loved it very much. He gave 18 tea plants a special royal name.
Spring is the busy time. The is short, only about two weeks. Farmers pick the small leaves by hand. The early spring leaves are the best. They have a soft, sweet taste. After picking, the leaves go into a very hot pan. Xiaopeng's father, Ge Zhenghua, does this work. He moves the leaves in the pan with his bare hands. This step is called . It dries the leaves and gives them a flat, pointed shape.
But this old way is changing. Today, more farmers use machines to dry the tea. Machines are faster and easier. Zhenghua says hand-made tea tastes better, but the work is very hard. Many people worry that this old way of making tea will disappear.
For many years, Zhenghua thought no young people would learn his skills. Many young people left the villages and went to big cities. But now, some are coming back. The price of real Longjing is high, so the work pays well. Zhenghua's own son has returned to help. Young people who grew up here, Zhenghua says, know this smell. It is the smell of their home.
Questions
Check your understanding
- 01
Where does Longjing tea grow?
- 02
What does Ge Zhenghua do with the tea leaves after they are picked?
- 03
Why are some young people coming back to the tea villages?
- 04
Describe the steps Ge Xiaopeng and his father take to make Longjing tea, from the hill to the finished tea.
Suggested length: ~50 words
- 05
Name two reasons why the old way of making Longjing tea may disappear, and one reason why there is hope.
Suggested length: ~50 words
Questions
Check your understanding
- 01
Where does Longjing tea grow?
- 02
What does Ge Zhenghua do with the tea leaves after they are picked?
- 03
Why are some young people coming back to the tea villages?
- 04
Describe the steps Ge Xiaopeng and his father take to make Longjing tea, from the hill to the finished tea.
Suggested length: ~50 words
- 05
Name two reasons why the old way of making Longjing tea may disappear, and one reason why there is hope.
Suggested length: ~50 words