By Xu Weiliang
Teaching aims:
(1) Make students pay attention to the environment around them and do their best to protect the environment.
(2) Get the Ss to improve oral English by talking.
Important points & difficult points:
(1) Students are expected to express their own opinions on protecting the environment.
(2) Encourage students to speak freely.
Teaching methods
(1) Discussion
(2) Ask and answer
Teaching aids
1) A tape recorder
2) A computer
Procedure:
Step 1 Lead-in
Today, we’ll learn something about the environment. First, let’s enjoy a song called Earth song by Michael Jackson.
Do you like the music?
Do you think the environment in the earth is important for us?
What is your picture of earth in your mind ?
(Then show the students a picture ) Look at the picture and answer my question .
Why is the earth crying ?
(The earth is facing serious problems)
What are the problems?
Step 2 Discussion
Then ask students to look at the pictures in the book.
Now let’s discuss the pictures then answer some questions.
Look at the picture above and discuss which ones are caused by nature and which ones are caused by man?
Then show some pictures of the city of Pompei. Ask the students some questions.
What city is in the picture?
What caused the destroy of the city of Pompeii?
(Mount Vesuvius erupted and lava, ash and rocks poured out of it onto the surrounding countryside. All the people in Pompeii were buried alive, and so was the city.)
Can you think of other natural disasters that damage the environment?
Step 3 Talk about natural disaster
Ok. Please look at the screen.
The picture is about some kinds of natural disasters. Then let’s talk about these disasters one by one.
Reference (Something about Tang Shan earthquake:
On July 28th, 1976, at 3:42 a.m. local time, a powerful earthquake recording M8.2 took place in northeastern China about 95 miles east of Beijing near Tang Shan, an industrial city of about 1 million people. Many eye witnesses said they saw a bright flashed across the sky which was followed by a deafening roar just before the shaking began.)
Then show some pictures of the city of Loulan. Ask the students some questions.
What city is in the picture?
What caused the city of loulan to disappear ?
(It was gradually covered over by sandstorms from AD 200 to AD 500.)
What caused the sandstorms ?
Can you think of other ways in which people damage the environment?
Step 4 Talk about problems of the earth
Besides natural disasters. the earth is now facing other problems .Lets try to find some of them and the effects, the causes and the solutions to them.
Water pollution
Effects
Many people don’t have enough clean drinking water. Make people get sick.
Causes
Factories pour waste into rivers/lakes/seas. People throw rubbish into rivers/lakes.
Solutions
Use new technology to make sure that factories are green and clean. Clean the water in the rivers/lakes. Save water in our daily life.
Air pollution
Effects
Make people get sick or even die. Make the environment dirty.
Cause acid rain(酸雨).
Causes Factories, power stations, cars, air conditioners give off waste gas. Burn coal and oil.
Solutions
The harmful smoke should be made harmless before it goes into the air. Ride bikes more. Limit the number of cars./Make cars that don’t pollute the air.
Rubbish/waste pollution
Effects
Make the environment ugly, dirty and even dangerous. Cause diseases.
Causes
Throw rubbish in the streets or in nature. Buy products that use too much packaging.
Solutions
Throw waste in rubbish bins.
Buy products that use less packaging. Recycle as much as possible.
Deforestation Desertification
Effects
Cause bad weather (sandstorm).
Lands or mountains turn into desert. Cause starvation.
Causes Cut too much wood. Rich surface soil will be blown away by wind or washed by rain down to hills and into rivers.
Solutions
Use less wood . Plant more new trees. Try to make desert areas become green land.
starvation
Effects
Cause society problems: violence, crime…
Many people die.
Causes
Wars
Uneven distributions of wealth
Lack of education
Solutions
No wars; Rich countries should help people who can’t get enough food or education.
Step 5.Competition
As a student, what can you do to reduce waste pollution and protect our environment? Discuss with your partners and write down the things you can do.
Divide the class into two groups. The group which has more ideas will be the winner.
GROUP A:
GROUP B:
Step 6 Summary and Homework
Today we have talked about the environment of the earth and the ways to solve the earth’s problems. After class, please think more ways to protect environment. And preview next period.