Writing Activity - Climate Change (Part 1)

WRITING

Read the following text and, if necessary, take some notes so that you will be able to answer the questions in "Writing Activity - Climate Change (Part 2)"

Climate Change

 

 

Learn about climate change. Prepare for the impacts, and reduce your carbon footprint.

The term 'climate change' usually refers to recent changes in climate that have been observed since the early 1900s.

Climate is not the same as weather

Climate refers to the average weather experienced in a region over a long period, typically 30 years. This includes temperature, wind and rainfall patterns. The climate of the Earth is not static, and has changed many times in the past - this is known as 'natural variability'.

ü  The greenhouse effect

 

The earth is kept warm by the greenhouse effect. Greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide and methane are naturally found in the atmosphere. They trap heat from the sun and keep our planet warm enough to inhabit. Without greenhouse gases the Earth would be about -18 degrees Celsius.

ü  Human impact on climate

There is a scientific consensus that the recent observed rise in global temperature can only be explained by the rise in greenhouse gas emissions caused by human activities.

Since the industrial revolution, human activity, mostly the burning of fossil fuels, has resulted in the release of large amounts of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. This is enhancing the greenhouse effect and pushing up global temperatures.

Average global temperatures have already risen approximately one degree Celsius since pre-industrial levels, and even if we could stop emitting all greenhouse gases tomorrow, they would continue to rise by at least a further 0.6 degrees. Limiting temperature rise to below two degrees is the internationally agreed target to avert dangerous climate change.

There are clear signs that our world is warming. We’ve had markedly higher global average temperatures over the last decade, ice sheets and glaciers are melting and average river water temperatures are increasing. Globally, the hottest ten years on record have all been since 1990, and February 2010 was warmest on record for southern hemisphere.

How will the climate change?

While a two degree rise in average global temperatures doesn’t sound very dangerous, the effects will be unambiguous. The present one degree rise has already shown severe impacts for our polar regions and small island states. The Arctic is warming at about twice the global average and sea ice in the region has declined dramatically over the past 30 years. Antarctica is now losing around 190 billion tonnes of ice a year. Small island states, including 15 nations found in the Pacific, may face the most awful and immediate consequences. Eighty percent of the Maldives lies three feet or less above sea level and the predicted rise in sea level caused by global warming could lead to their eventual disappearance.

Impacts of further warming of four degrees or more are likely to include significant reductions in food production in some regions, hundreds of millions of people without enough water, mass species extinctions and sea levels rising by several metres.

In the planet, we will witness more extreme events, such as flooding, storms, sea level rise and drought as well as wetter warmer winters and hotter drier summers.

Now it is time to speak! (Part 2)

 

SPEAKING

General tips to save water

• Dripping taps can waste up to 15 litres of water a day. Replace worn tap washers for a quick and cheap way of saving water.
• Burst water pipes can cause serious damage as well as waste water. Ensure your water pipes and external taps are lagged in time for the cold winter months.

1.       Debate with your group. Do you think people follow these advice or not?

2.       The groups now will be tasked to be in favour or against these measures. Agree with your group some thoughts to defend your position.

3.       Now debate with the whole class.

 

 

* * *

PRONUNCIATION ACTIVITIES                   

Pronunciation of the ending –ed:

4.       Put the verbs in the correct column.

    based         created                                exploded            floated                 occupied             passed                 produced           

    started      stopped              used                     worked                repaired

 

/t/	/d/	/Id/
walked	planned	wanted

 

Silent letters:

 

5.       . Which letters are silent? (Silent = not pronounced)  Ex: Ready

1. Yellow             3. Write               5. Fashion

2. Talk                   4. Honour           6. Know

 

 

WARNING!!!

Tips for pronouncing difficult words   Some words are difficult to pronounce because: 1.     They have a ‘silent’ syllable or letter: vegetables/’vedзtәbәl/ comfortable/’kΛmftәbәl/ 2.     Some letters are pronounced in an unusual way: lettuce /’letәs/ saw /’sÉ:w/ 3.     Another common errors made by Spanish learners are: Pear/’peә(r)/ Orange/’a:rIndз/ Apple/’æpәl/

 

Now it is time to speak! (Part 1)

SPEAKING

Save water in your home

1.        Work together in groups of three and discuss methods to save water at home

2.       Now read the text.

Increasing water efficiency in your home reduces the amount of energy used for water treatment and can save you money and fight climate change at the same time.

•      What you can do to save water

Tips on how to avoid wasting water in the kitchen and bathroom.

In the kitchen

• Wash vegetables and fruit in a bowl rather than under a running tap, then use the leftover water for watering house plants.
• When you boil water in cookware and kettles, use the minimum amount of water - that way, you'll save energy as well as water.
• Try keeping a bottle of water in the fridge instead of running taps until the water runs cold.
• Wait until you have a full load before switching on the dishwater or washing machine. Did you know 'half-load' programmes use more than half the water and energy of a full load?

In the bathroom

• Don't leave the tap running while you brush your teeth, shave or wash your hands. This can waste up to six litres of water per minute.
• Showers use about nine litres of water per minute. A five minute shower uses about a third of the water of a bath. But remember that power showers can use more water than a bath in less than five minutes. Taking a quicker shower could give you an extra few minutes in bed or you could leave for work a bit earlier and miss the traffic.
• Old toilet cisterns can use as much as nine litres of clean water every flush. Reduce this by placing a 'save-a-flush' or 'hippo' in the cistern. These are often available free of charge from your local water company.
• Using your toilet as a bin wastes flushes - think before you flush.

Become More Active - Listening Part (Exercises)

1.      If you have a partner talk about the text, If you do not have talk to your family or just think about the text and the questions.

Suggested questions:

-          Do you practice outdoor activities?

-          If you do. Do you think they benefit you?

-          Did you know you would have lower risk of getting ill if you became physically active?

2.       Think about how important the environment is for us. How many good things it gives us and how grateful we have to be to it.

Water: using less at home Water is a precious resource that needs to be used carefully. Water taken from rivers and lakes for human use has an impact on wildlife too. Find out how to cut your water use, save money on your water bills and help the environment.

3.       Listen carefully. You will listen a listening about water.

 

AUDIO: Water use it, do not waste it!

 

4.       Listen again and fill in the gaps in the text below. You will hear several times.

It seems it never just (1) ……… in our country but it pours.

We think there’s more water than we could ever need, but we have less water available (2)……………….. than Italy or Greece.

The water use of the average household is already enough for around 2,000 (3)………………..  every day and total household demand is forecast to rise even further.

We all need to act now to stop (4)…………………….

We can’t convert (5)…………….. that surrounds us into usable water without using huge amounts of energy and increasing CO2 emissions. The more water we heat in the home the greater our carbon (6)………………. becomes.

There are actions that we can all take that save water, protect (7)……………………………… and make little difference to our daily lives, like:

• not leaving the tap running when we (8)…………..our teeth
• spending a bit less time in the (9)…………..
• waiting until we have a full load and using a (10)…………….. temperature setting

To find out how we can all do more to save water, search online for Act on CO2.

Water. Use it, don’t waste it.

5.       Read the questions and think about the answers:

-          Do you usually take a bath or a shower?

-          Do you close the tap when you clean your teeth?

-          Does your family wait until they have full load? Do they use low temperature setting?

-          Do you think this is a worrying situation?

-          Did you know about it?

6.       Talk to your partner (or family) about the answers.  Are you going to change your habits? Does your partner (or family) going to change his/her habits?