Project Work Ecological problems of your town / city

Preparation:

A. Find some information about the ecological situation of your town / city. Present it in class. Choose some of the following points or add some of your own:

• the population of your town

• the main industries / polluting enterprises

• rivers or other bodies of water

• the condition of water in the river / tap water

• the amount of traffic

• air pollution

• rubbish in the streets / rubbish containers

• bottlebanks

• radioactive contamination (Chernobyl)

• …

Think of the vocabulary you will need

B. In your presentation answer the following questions:

1. Which environmental problems are the most urgent in your town?

2. Which of them worry you most and why?

3. How do the authorities try to solve them?

4. What do you do as an individual / teacher to improve the environmental situation in your town?

C. *Additional task.

1) You may conduct an opinion poll among your friends, colleagues, pupils and relatives asking them the questions above.

2) As a teacher, make a plan of a conversation with your pupils that would raise their environmental awareness.

Presentation Tips

• Before your presentation you may need to explain some new words to other students. Write them on the board or prepare hand-outs.

• Structure your presentation logically, make an introduction, draw a conclusion at the end.

• You may involve other students asking about their opinion. Thus you can make your presentation interactive and the listeners will be more interested and attentive.

• To observe the time limit of 5-7 minutes you must be fluent but try not to read it all!

• The students may vote for the best project presented in class.

Step 4. Get down to Home Test 1. After you are through with the test, check your answers with the key given below.

Step 5. Study the list of the relevant vocabulary items. Make sure you are able to explain the meaning of each item in English (consult a good English-English dictionary if necessary). Put down the definitions in English in your language learning diary.

Vocabulary Items Term 7 Environmental Issues

Extinct on the edge of extinction species to vanish to dwindle natural resources oil slicks marine pollution global warming greenhouse effect ice caps

ozone layer to deplete fossil fuels Ghetto blasters pea-souper reclamation recycling to have a design flaw conform to safety standards to contaminate aftermath

to be politically impartial to hit the headlines campaign a fund-raising event exhaust fumes deforestation noise offender sewage sludge to dump the wastes reproductive disorders GM food

Term 7 Examination Speaking Points

1. Air pollution (global warming).

2. Energy crisis.

3. The major environmental problems confronting Britain today.

4. The Green Movement.

5. Environmental problems in Belarus (Chernobyl).

NB

The language learning diary is a document to help you learn the material more effectively and focus on your objectives, and a learning style that suits your needs. It helps you to think about how you learn; it is a summary of your language learning experience; it is a record to show other people (your teacher) your language abilities and progress, to assess your overall language level.