Halloween – History of the Jack O’ Lantern (worksheet)

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Every October, carved pumpkins peer out from porches and doorsteps in the United States and other parts of the world.Gourd-like orange fruits inscribed with ghoulish faces and illuminated by candles are a sure sign of the Halloween season. The practice of decorating “jack-o’-lanterns”—the name comes from an Irish folktale about a man named Stingy Jack—originated in Ireland, where large turnips and potatoes served as an early canvas. Irish immigrants brought the tradition to America, home of the pumpkin, and it became an integral part of Halloween festivities. (SOURCE: http://www.history.com/topics/halloween/jack-olantern-history)

Here is a reading comprehension worksheet based on an article about the history of the jack-o’-lantern and the legend of “Stingy Jack”.

  Download: https://www.scribd.com/doc/244246856/Halloween-The-Legend-of-Stingy-Jack

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Passive Voice Review Jeopardy Game

Here is a game I have created using Jeopardy Style Review Game Creator.

Game Categories

  • Passive Verb Tenses
  • Active to Passive
  • Active to Passive Questions
  • Change of construction
  • Passive to Active

Click on the picture below to play the game.

http://www.superteachertools.net/jeopardyx/jeopardy-review-game.php?gamefile=1412013250
http://www.superteachertools.us/jeopardyx/jeopardy-review-game.php?gamefile=802287#.VfKz4302FIE
Posted in Games, Grammar, Jeopardy games, Tenses, The Passive | 2 Comments

Japan: 30 hikers feared dead on erupting volcano Mount Ontake

At least 30 people are believed to have died near the peak of a volcano in central Japan that erupted without warning on Saturday, trapping scores of amateur climbers and covering a wide area with thick ash. (The Guardian , Sunday 28 September)

Source: euronews

Study the vocabulary below and then watch the video.

Vocabulary

  • The peak of a mountain is the top of a mountain. e.g. snow-covered peaks
  • When a volcano erupts, it explodes inside and flames, rocks, and lava come out of the top. e.g. The volcano erupted with tremendous force.
  • authorities [plural] : people who have power to make people obey rules and laws. e.g. Local authorities are investigating the accident.
  • If you are stranded somewhere, you are left in a place without a way of leaving it. e.g. Hundreds of passengers were left stranded at the airport.
  • If you fling something, you throw it in a sudden and forceful way. (fling-flung-flung) e.g. They flung their hats into the air.
  • When you take shelter somewhere, you go to a place in which you are protected from bad weather or danger. e.g. They took shelter in a cave during the storm.
  • If you resume an activity, or if it resumes, it begins again or continues after stopping e.g. After the rain stopped, the teams resumed play.
Now watch the video again and try the following quiz.

Transcript 
At least 30 hikers are feared dead in Japan after being found at a lifeless state near the peak of a volcano that erupted a day earlier.
Japanese authorities never confirm death until after a medical examination.
Others were injured or are missing. 
This amateur video was taken inside a mountain hut as people took shelter from volcanic ash and rocks.
Hundreds of people including children were stranded on Mount Ontake, some 200 kilometres west of Tokyo, after it suddenly erupted on Saturday.
Smoke and ash was flung hundreds of metres into the sky, and several kilometres down the slope of the volcano.
More than 500 emergency staff including the military resumed their work on Sunday morning, helping stranded victims and looking for those still missing.
“The volcanic rocks fell like hailstones,” he says. “We couldn’t breathe so we covered our mouths with towels. We couldn’t open our eyes either.”
At one stage on Saturday some 250 hikers were stranded on the mountain but most managed to make it down by nightfall.
More than 30 people spent the night in mountain huts, most of whom came down on Sunday morning.
Volcanoes erupt periodically in Japan but until this weekend no one had died for more than twenty years.

In Pictures

http://www.theguardian.com/world/gallery/2014/sep/27/escape-from-mount-ontake-in-pictures?index=15

Escape from Mount Ontake (The Guardian)  

 
Posted in Japan, Natural Disasters, News stories (video listening), Videos, Volcanoes | Leave a comment

Bosnia and Serbia floods (video listening)

Residents face destroyed homes in Serbia’s waterlogged Obrenovac

May 19 – Residents in Obrenovac, Serbia, examine the damage to their homes after devastating floods in the Balkans leave tens of thousands displaced and brace for more floodwaters. Mana Rabiee reports.

 

Vocabulary

  • If an area is waterlogged, it is filled or soaked with water. e.g. They couldn’t play because the pitch was waterlogged.
  • If you are bracing for something, you are getting ready for something difficult or unpleasant. e.g. The town is bracing for a busy tourist season.
  • When people are evacuated, they are moved from a place of danger to a safer place. e.g. During World War II, children were evacuated from London to the country.
  • Displacement is the act of forcing people or animals to leave the area where they live. e.g. The war has caused the displacement of thousands of people.
  • A swollen river contains more water than normal as a result of heavy rain. 

Now you can try the following quiz:

Posted in Floods, Natural Disasters, News stories (video listening), Videos, Weather | Leave a comment

Natural Disasters (Quizlet / Word Dynamo / Worksheet)

Fun games and activities to study or revise Natural Disasters vocabulary

Click View this study set if you prefer to do the activities on Quizlet

 

 

Alternatively, you can try the activities below.

http://dynamo.dictionary.com/495174/natural-disasters

Natural Disasters | Word Dynamo

Natural Disasters Crossword Puzzle Worksheet 

To download the Natural Disasters worksheet click here .
http://www.scribd.com/doc/222337508/Natural-Disasters

Photos of Natural Disasters 

National Disasters and Weather – National Geographic
Natural Disasters Pictures – Discovery Channel
20 Amazing Photos of Natural Disasters – ODDEE

Posted in Crosswords, Natural Disasters, Vocabulary, Worksheets | 4 Comments

Natural Disasters (crossword puzzle)

Look at these photos of natural disasters and solve the crossword puzzle.

If the crossword doesn’t appear, you should configure Java to allow this application from http://icrossword.com

Posted in Crosswords, Natural Disasters | Leave a comment

Natural Disasters: Afghan Landslide (video listening)

Afghan Landslide Site Declared Mass Grave By Authorities 

May 3 – Afghan officials have declared the site where landslides buried thousands of people a mass grave, saying it’s impossible to recover those trapped.

Watch the video and answer the following questions. 

  1. When did the tragic disaster occur?
  2. What caused the landslide?
  3. What happened to the villagers who rushed to the scene to help?
  4. Why have rescuers given up hope of finding any more survivors?
  5. How many people have been displaced by the disaster?

Vocabulary

  • to pummel (v): to cause a lot of damage to a place e.g. Hurricane Mitch is pummeling the Atlantic coast. 
  • debris (n): the pieces that are left after something has been destroyed e.g. After the earthquake, rescuers began digging through the debris in search of survivors.
  • wreckage (n):  the broken parts of a vehicle, building, etc., that has been badly damaged or destroyed e.g. The pilot was trapped in the wreckage for almost seven hours. 
  • death toll (n): the number of people who die in an accident, disaster, war, etc. e.g. The death toll has now risen to 200.
  • to wreak havoc means to cause great damage e.g. The virus wreaked havoc on my computer. 
  • rubble (n): broken pieces of stone, brick, etc., from walls or buildings that have fallen e.g.
    Rescue workers managed to pull two injured people out of the rubble.
     SOURCE: http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2014/05/afghanistan_landslide_rescuers_give_up_hope_o.html

      Afghan Landslide (Vocabulary) crossword

      Solve the crossword using key words from the video.

        Related articles

        Posted in Afghan Landslide, Natural Disasters, News stories (video listening), Videos, Vocabulary | Leave a comment

        The Selfish Giant by Oscar Wilde (video)

        Here is an animated film of The Selfish Giant, the famous story written by Oscar Wilde.

        Comprehension Questions

        1. Where did the children use to play after school?
        2. How long had the Giant been away?
        3. What did he see when he came back?
        4. What did he do to keep the children out of his garden?
        5. Why didn’t the Spring come in the Giant’s garden?
        6. Who did the Snow and the Frost invite to stay with them?
        7. Where did the lovely music come from, which the Giant heard one morning?
        8. Where was the little boy standing and why was he crying?
        9. How did the tree try to help the boy?
        10. What decision did the Giant take?

          Vocabulary

        • A blossom is a flower on a tree. When a tree blossoms, it produces flowers.
        • A gruff voice has a rough low sound.
        • A trespasser is a person who goes on somebody’s land without their permission.
        • When somebody is prosecuted, they are officially charged with a crime in court.
        • A linnet is a small brown bird that makes a pleasant sound.
        • A wicked person is an evil (bad) person.
        • If you are feeble, you are very weak, especially because you are old or ill.

          Irregular Past Forms Quiz

        There is a number of irregular past forms in this story. Take the following quiz to check how well you remember them.

        Posted in Grammar, Irregular Verbs, Oscar Wilde, Past Simple, Tenses, used to, Videos | Leave a comment

        Weather Vocabulary Crossword

        If the crossword doesn’t appear, you should configure Java to allow this application from http://icrossword.com

        Related Posts 

        Weather Vocabulary (worksheet)

        Posted in Crosswords, Vocabulary, Weather | Leave a comment

        Nelson Mandela’s Life Story (video + comprehension exercises)

        Dec. 5 – South Africa’s first black president and anti-apartheid icon Nelson Mandela dies at the age of 95.

         

        Here is a short documentary about Nelson Mandela and his legacy.

        Comprehension questions

        1. Why was Nelson Mandela able to get a good education?
        2. Where did he work while he studied law in Johannesburg?
        3. When did the Nationalist Government come to power in South Africa?
        4. What was the Freedom Charter?
        5. What charge did the Freedom Charter organisers face in 1956?
        6. What happened in Sharpeville in 1960?
        7. What sentence did Mandela receive in 1964?
        8. Where was he sent as a prisoner?
        9. What event signalled the beginning of the end to apartheid?
        10. When was Mandela released from prison?

        Vocabulary

        • apartheid: a former social system in South Africa in which black people and people from other racial groups did not have the same political and economic rights as white people and were forced to live separately from white people
        • blueprint: a detailed plan of how to do something e.g.  a blueprint for reforming the public school system
        • martial law: control of an area by military forces rather than by the police e.g. The government has imposed/declared martial law throughout the city to stop the riots.  

          Now you can try the following quiz:

            Related Articles

            South Africa’s Nelson Mandela dies in Johannesburg
            Nelson Mandela death: A life in pictures
            Nelson Mandela, anti-apartheid icon and father of modern South Africa, dies 

            Related Resources

            10 Memorable Quotes spoken by Nelson Mandela – RIP Madiba
            World mourns Nelson Mandela (8th December, 2013)
            nelson-mandela-video-quiz
            Nelson Mandela free lesson plan
            http://www.henry4school.fr/History/mandela2.htm
            the-best-resources-honoring-nelson-mandela-at-his-passing

            Posted in Africa, Nelson Mandela, Racism, Videos | Leave a comment