Natural disasters are constantly in the news and provide a good topic of conversation for your students, as they will all have some knowledge of the subject. Depending on where in the world you are teaching you can use events that are closer to the students’ countries as a talking point. Obviously, if you are living very close to the location of a recent natural disaster you’ll need to be extra sensitive to your students’ feelings. To connect the topic back to the UK, you could mention the flooding of the village of Boscastle in Cornwall last summer or any floods or storms you remember.
Task 1 is a drawing dictation to introduce the topic. Task 2 is a simple sentence completion activity. Task 3 is a low level reading task using the context of a website message board. Task 4 is a higher level speaking and writing task and Task 5 is a group role play based on the idea of survival.
Topic: Extreme weather and natural disasters
Aims:
• To review vocabulary related to weather and natural disasters
• To practise reading skills
• To practise question formation
• To develop process writing skills
• To develop speaking skills through a debate
Age group: 12 - adult
Level: B1+
Time: 60 – 90 minutes
Materials: Natural disasters student worksheet and lesson plan
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