Listening and vocabulary优质课教案

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Module 3 The violence of nature 教学设计

CULTURAL CORNER ■Goals ●To read about earthquakes ■Procedures Step 1: Before you read Please go over the word list for this module, paying attention to the pronunciation of the word, the relationship between its pronunciation and its spelling. Step 2: While you read Cut/ the sentences into thought groups, blacken the predicates, underline the useful expressions and darken the connectives. Step 3: After you read Copy all the useful expressions into your Expression Book. You may make sentences with these expressions. Useful expressions from Earthquakes Around the Pacific earthquakes around the Pacific, occur worldwide every day, more than a hundred thousand in a year, be situated in one of the most active earthquake regions, in the world, terrible earthquakes, the most serious of these, affect eight provinces, in Central China, cover an area of 800 square kilometers, 60 percent of the population, in all, lose one’s lives, the California Earthquake of the 18th of April 1906, take place at 5:15am, last for only a minute, cause the worst natural disaster, in the nation’s history, be caused by…, do the most damage, destroy a total of 25,000 buildings, be made homeless, cause about 3,000 deaths, one hundred years later, continue to cause problems for the whole of…

Introduction Step 1 Presentation

As you know, nature plays an important part in our daily life. We sometimes meet the violence of nature by accident. The terrible weather has a bad effect on our daily life. Because of the destruction by human beings, this kind of weather occurs often.

Step 2 The teacher says, can you know the names of nature disasters The teacher shows pictures of flood, hurricane lightening thunderstorm tornado . The purpose of the pictures is to lead in the five important words and know the names of the violence .

Step 3 Match the words in the box with their definition.

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Flood hurricane lightening thunderstorm

tornado.

1.

a lot of water in an area which is usually dry.

2.

a very strong wind or storm

3.

a lot of rain falling quickly, with loud noises and flashes of light.

4.

the flash of light which happens during a thunderstorm. 5.

a column of air that turns very quickly.

Step 3 Role-playing

The situation: The teacher let the partners carry on a conservation. One of them plays a part of reporter from the newspaper. And the other plays the interviewee. They can ask questions as following.

1.

Have you ever experienced a thunderstorm ? a flood? A hurricane? A tornado? 2.

Do you know anyone who has experienced one of the events? 3.

Have you ever read a news story about one of the events? Can you describe it?

4.

Do you know anything about the evens? For example, what causes them?

Step 4 After that, the teacher asks the students to read about the Gulf Stream and check the meaning of the words. After some several minutes, let some of the students to answer the questions.

Step 5 language points.

1.

on the same latitude 在同样的纬度

altitude: 海拔高度

At high altitudes of Tibet it is difficult to breathe.

attitude：态度。

What is your attitude towards the questions?

2. experience

n.

1）经验

Experience is their preparation for giving advice.

经验为她们进行咨询作了准备。

Experience teaches.; Experience does it.

经验给人教训。;经验给人智慧。

gain experience in ...

获得...经验

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learn by [from, through] experience

从经验中学到[懂得] man of experience

有阅历[见识]的人

2）经历，阅历

Please tell us your experiences in America.

请你告诉我们你在美洲的经历。

Yesterday afternoon Frank Hawkins was telling me about his experiences as a young man.

"昨天下午,弗兰克.霍金斯给我讲述他年轻时的经历。" vt.体验；感受

to experience fear

经历恐惧

Some of the students had experienced what hardships meant before they entered the university.

有些大学生在进入大学之前体验过艰苦的生活。

3. cause

n. 1)原因；导致某事发生的人、事等

The heavy rain was the cause of the flood.

大雨是导致洪水产生的原因。

2)动机；理由；根据

There is no cause for anxiety.

不必焦虑。

There is no cause for concern, for the windstorm was not too serious.

那场风暴不太厉害,没必要担心。

3)目标；理想；主义

fight for the cause of world peace

为世界和平而战

She has made up her mind to fight for the cause of peace all her life.

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她已下定决心为和平事业奋斗终身。

vt.引起；使；促成

The heavy rain caused the flood.

大雨引起了洪水。

The wound isn't serious, but may cause some discomfort.

伤口并不严重,但可能会引起一些不舒适。

Step 6 Homework.

Preview the texts on page 23.

Reading—What Is a Tornado? ■Goals To learn to read passages with the past perfect passive and indirect speech about tornadoes To learn to read with strategies ■Procedures Step 1: Warming up by reviewing 21st century disasters Hi, class. Nice to see you safe and sound.

Today we take up Module 3 The Violence of Nature.

Throughout history there have been sudden, terrible events that have shaken the world. Sometimes they are man-made, ranging from the infamous sinking of the Titanic to the deadly Chernobyl meltdown of 1986, while others are natural disasters, such as the catastrophic eruption of the island of Krakatau or the devastating Tokyo earthquake of 1923.

Before we read What Is a Tornado?…

let’s have a brief review of the 21st century disasters we have experienced so far. 2001 Gujarat Earthquake, Bhuj, India (January 26, 2001)

European Heat Wave of 2003, Europe

Bam Earthquake, Iran (December 26, 2003)

Hurricane Ivan, Caribbean Sea, Southeastern United States (September, 2004)

2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami（海啸）, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, Thailand, and elsewhere (December 26, 2004) 186,983 killed, 42,883 missing

2005 Sumatran earthquake, Indonesia (March 28, 2005), at least 1,000 killed

2005 Maharashtra floods, Mumbai, Maharashtra, Western India (July 2005)

Hurricane Katrina, United States (August 2005), toll varies, 2,000 killed

2005 Kashmir earthquake, Kashmir, Pakistan, (October 8, 2005), death toll is currently 87,350 but some estimate it to rise over 100,000

2006 Southern Leyte mudslide（泥流）, Philippines, (17 February 2006) 950 killed.

May 2006 Java earthquake, Yogyakarta, Java, Indonesia (May 27, 2006), 6,200 killed

July 2006 Java earthquake, Java, Indonesia (July 17, 2006), 550 killed

Typhoon Saomai (2006), Zhejiang, China, (August, 2006), 250 killed

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Warming up by defining tornado

A violent weather phenomenon in which a rotating column of air forms into a funnel cloud, often reaching the ground, causing severe damage. The following are facts about tornadoes: 1) They may strike quickly, with little or no warning.

2) They may appear nearly transparent until dust and debris are picked up or a cloud forms in the funnel.

3) The average tornado moves Southwest to Northeast, but tornadoes have been known to move in any direction.

4) The average forward speed of a tornado is 30 MPH, but may vary from stationary to 70 MPH.

5) Tornadoes can accompany tropical storms and hurricanes as they move onto land.

6) Waterspouts are tornadoes that form over water.

7) Tornadoes are most frequently reported east of the Rocky Mountains during spring and summer months.

8) Peak tornado season in the southern states is March through May; in the northern states, it is late spring through early summer.

9) Tornadoes are most likely to occur between 3 p.m. and 9 p.m., but can occur at any time.

Step 2: Before you read Please go over the word list for this module, paying attention to the pronunciation of the word, the relationship between its pronunciation and its spelling. Step 3: While you read 1. Type of writing and summaries of What Is a Tornado Type of writing Summaries of 1st part Summaries of 2nd part Summaries of 3rd part Part 1 and 2: An exposition; Part 3: An narration A tornado is a rotating column of air/ from a thunderstorm/ to the ground. Hurricanes are strong tropical storms, and they usually occur/ in the southern Atlantic Ocean, the Caribbean Sea/ and the Gulf of Mexico. This is a story/ about the 1900 Galveston hurricane. 2. A diagram of What Is a Tornado

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What Is a Tornado? A tornado: a rotating column of air from a thunderstorm to the ground Part 1 Hurricanes: strong tropical storms, usually occurring in the southern Atlantic Ocean, the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico

Part 2 a story about the 1900 Galveston hurricane Part 3

3. Complete the article with one word in each blank What Is a Tornado? Being a rotating _1_ of air from a thunderstorm to the ground tornados almost occur in the US, in the _2_from Texas in the southeast to South Dakota in the north.

What Is a Hurricane? Being strong _3_ storms, hurricanes usually occur in the southern Atlantic Ocean, the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico. There are _4_ winds of 120 kilometers per hour or more, which _5_ huge waves, heavy rain and floods.

Here is an Extraordinary Event. This is a story _6_ the 1900 Galveston hurricane.Charles Coghlan, a nineteenth-century Irish actor. He died in 1899. _7_ years later, his coffin was found by fishermen in the sea near his home. The Gulf Stream had _8_ it 3,000 kilometers up the eastern US coast to Prince Edward Island.

Keys: 1 column

2 area

3 tropical

4 violent

5 cause

6 about

7 Eight

8 carried 4. Answer the reading comprehension questions according to the text 1. On average, there are ____tornadoes in the US each year, causing about _____deaths and _____ injuries. A. 700, 70, 1400

B. 800, 80, 1500

C. 600, 60, 1300

D. 800, 85, 1550 2. The most violent tornados have winds of more than _____ kilometers per hour. A. 400

B. 500

C. 600

D. 700 3. There are on average _____ Atlantic hurricanes each year and they usually affect the east coast of the _____ from Texas to Maine. A. five, Britain

B. six, US

C. seven, China

D. eight, Japan 4. The cemetery _____ Coghlan was buried was destroyed by the hurricane and Coghlan’s coffin ______ up in the sea. A. which, cost

B. when, lost

C. where, ended

D. that, came Keys: 1-4 BABC Step 4: After you read 1. Copy all the useful expressions into your Expression Book. If possible, make your own

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sentences with these expressions. Useful expressions from The Violence of Nature a rotating column of air, pick up, put…down in…, take… off…, leave …inside exactly where it is, on average, cause deaths and injuries, affect three US states, by the time…,strong tropical storms, violent winds of 120 kilometers per hour or more, the worst hurricane disaster of all time, five-meter high waves, hit the city, an extraordinary event, in a population of, a nineteenth-century Irish actor, by the late 1890s, move to…, end up, on Prince Edward Island, in the east of…, carry… 3,000 kilometers up the eastern US coast to Prince Edward Island, travel back to…, be buried in …

Sentences made with useful expressions from Module 3 A rotating column of air was seen rising from the mountain. In the southeast of the country houses have been picked up by the wind. Even high buildings have been put down in large numbers. Take your clothes off and put on your cap. My books are left inside exactly where they were.

On average five deaths have been caused. About five deaths and seven injuries

have been brought by the worst tornado of all time which occurred in 1925. The earthquake affected three US states. By the time strong tropical storms had already destroyed most of the houses. Violent winds of 120 kilometers per hour or more can cause huge waves.

The epidemic is affecting the east coast of the US from New York to my hometown. The worst hurricane disaster of all time is certain to occur on the 8th September 2007. Winds of 200 kilometers per hour and five-meter high waves

have hit the city, killing 6,000 people in a population of 37,000. The fire destroyed 3,600 buildings, an extraordinary event in the world history. It's a matter of inculcating true values in the youngest segment of the population.

He was a nineteenth-century Irish actor.

By the late 1890s, people had moved to the west. After working her way around the world, she ended up teaching English as a foreign language.

On Prince Edward Island, in the east of the sea, winds are the strongest. Winds carry cars and houses 3,000 kilometers up the eastern US coast to Prince Edward Island. He traveled back to his birthplace only to be buried in the cave. 2. Read to transfer information What is a Tornado?

A tornado is a rotating column of air from a thunderstorm to the ground. Where does a tornado What is a Hurricane? occur?

Almost all of them occur in the US, in the area from Texas in the southeast to South Dakota in the north.

Hurricanes are strong tropical storms, and they usually occur in the southern Atlantic Ocean, the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico. Which coast does it usually affect? It usually affects the east coast of the US from Texas to Maine.

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Grammar—The past perfect passive and Indirect speech ■Goals ●To learn about the past perfect passive and indirect speech ■Procedures Step 1: Learning about the past perfect passive Active Passive They had given us visas for three months. We had been given visas for three months. Step 2: Making sentences with the past perfect passive 1.

A rotating column of air from a thunderstorm to the ground had been discovered before the fireman arrived. 2.

The most violent tornado had been observed then.

3.

The wallet had been picked up and handed in before the owner found it missing.

4.

By the time the fire engines arrived the fire had been put down.

5.

By the time he returned home the house had been destroyed.

6.

The map had been left inside exactly where it was when we came into the room.

7.

The east coast of the US had been affected greatly before the rescue arrived.

8.

The city had been hit three times by the earthquake before the people moved out of it.

9.

The man had been buried for five days when he was located. 10.

He had been killed before we found him in the room. Step 3: Learning about indirect speech When using indirect or reported speech, the form changes. Usually indirect speech is introduced by the verb said, as in I said,

Bill said, or they said.

Direct Speech

simple present

Indirect Speech

simple past

He said, “I go

to school every day.” He said (that) he went

to school every day. simple past

past perfect

He said, “I went

to school every day.” present perfect

He said (that) he had gone to school every day.

past perfect

He said, “I have gone

to school every day.” He said (that) he had gone to school every day.

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present progressive

past progressive

He said, “I am going

to school every day.” past progressive

He said (that) he was going

to school every day.

perfect progressive

He said, “I was going

to school every day.” future (will)

He said (that) he had been going to school every day,

would + verb name

He said, “I will go to school every day.” future (going to)

He said (that) he would go to school every day.

present progressive

He said, “I am going

to school every day.” He said (that) he is going to school every day.

past progressive

He said (that) he was going

to school every day Direct Speech

auxiliary + verb name

Indirect Speech

simple past

He said, “Do you go to school every day?”

He said, “Where do you go

to school?” imperative

He asked me if I went

to school every day.* He asked me where I went to school.

infinitive

He said, “Go to school every day.” He said to go to school every day. Direct Speech

simple present + simple present

Indirect Speech

simple present + simple present

He says, “I go

to school every day.” He says

(that) he goes

to school every day. present perfect + simple present

present perfect + simple present

He has said, “I go to school every day.” past progressive + simple past

He has said (that) he goes to school every day.

past progressive + simple past

He was saying, “I went to school every day.” He was saying

(that) he went

to school every day.

past progressive + past perfect

He was saying (that) he had gone to school every day. future + simple present

future + simple present

He will say, “I go to school every He will say (that) he goes to school every

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day.” Direct Speech

can

day.

Indirect Speech

could

He said, “I can

go to school every day.” may

He said (that) he could

go to school every day.

might

He said, “I may go to school every day.” have to

He said (that) he might go to school every day.

had to

He said, “I have to go to school every day.” should

He said (that) he had to go

to school every day.

should

He said, “I should go

to school every day.” ought to

He said (that) he should

go to school every day.

ought to

He said, “I ought to go to school every day.” He said (that) he ought to go to school every day.

Step 4 Absorb information concerning National College Entrance Examination 高考链接

动词时态题在高考单项填空题中一般占2至4分。高考时态题常考一般现在时、一般过去时、现在进行时、过去进行时、现在完成时、过去完成时、一般将来时与过去将来时等。高考时态题大致有以下特点：

一、某些题无明确时间状语

考生必须从已知条件中推出其时间状语。这样的考题很多,如：

1. ---You’ve left the light on.

---Oh, so I have. ______ and turn it off. (2000全国) A. I’ll go B. I’ve gone C. I go D. I’m going

此题没有明确的时间状语提示，但从已知条件中我们可以知道去关灯这一动作应是将来的事。选项D在形式上有误，因此答案为A。

2. ---We could have walked to the station, it was so near. ---Yes. A taxi _____ at all necessary. (1992全国) A. wasn’t

B. hadn’t been

C. wouldn’t be

D. won’t be

从已知条件“We could have walked to the station, it was so near.”可知“我们没有走路而是坐出租车”的动作发生在过去。因此出租车没有必要应是过去（当时）的事，而不可能是过去之前，更不可能是现在或将来的事。答案为A。

二、某些题虽有时间状语，但极具干扰性

考生应排除干扰。如：

3. ---How are you today? ---Oh, I ______ as ill as I do now for a very long time. (2000全国) A. didn’t feel

B. wasn’t feeling

C. don’t feel

D. haven’t felt

此题虽然有时间状语now和for a very long time，

但学生会误把该题看成是过去和现在的对比而选A。其实该题是最近一段时间的情况与现在的情况作对比：我身体最近很长一段时间都没有现在这样差。答案为D。

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4. ---Can I help you, sir? ---Yes. I bought this radio here yesterday, but it ______. (1996全国) A. didn’t work

B. won’t work

C. can’t work

D. doesn’t work

表面上看起来，此题好像讲的是昨天的事，但信息词but表明收音机不work应是现在的情况。所以答案应选D。

三、瞬时过去的动作

这种情况在英语里很多，在汉语里不多，因此不大为学生所理解。近年来这类考题很常见，应引起特别注意。如：

5. ---Hey, look where you are going? ---Oh, I’m terribly sorry. ______. (1999全国) A. I’m not noticing B. I wasn’t noticing C. I haven’t noticed D. I don’t notice 此题中“我没有注意到”应是过去的事。当对方提醒后，“我”又道歉了，这表明“我”不可能到现在还没注意到。因此只能是刚才没注意到，属瞬间的过去。故选B。

6. ---Your phone number again? I_____ quite catch it. ---It’s 9568442. (1995全国) A.didn't

B.couldn't

C.don't

D.can't 这里“我”没听清电话号码，应是没听清刚才对方说的，而不可能是没听清现在对方说的。选项B虽是过去，但它表示没有这种可能性，不符题意，故选A。

7. ---Oh, it’s you! I ________ you.

---I’ve just had my hair cut and I’m wearing new glasses. (1997全国) A. didn’t recognize B. hadn’t recognized C. haven’t recognized D. don’t recognize

已知条件Oh, it’s you!表明“我”现在已认出“你”了。因此“我”没认出“你”只能是刚才（瞬时过去）的事。不会是过去之前的事（B）；也不是到现在为止的事（C）；更不能是现在的事（D）。故答案为A。

1. The house belongs to my aunt but she ____ here any more. (2006全国I) A. hasn’t lived B. didn’t live C. hadn’t lived D. doesn’t live

2. John, a friend of mine, who got married only last week, spent $3,000 more than he ____ for the wedding. (2006全国II) A. will plan B. has planned C. would plan D. had planned 3. ---____ leave at the end of this month. ---I don’t think you should do that until ____ another job. (2006北京) A. I’m going to; you’d found B. I’m going to; you’ve found

C. I’ll; you’ll find D. I’ll; you’d find

4. What we used to think ____ impossible now does seem possible. (2006天津) A. is B. was C. has been D. will be 5. Look at the timetable. Hurry up! Flight 4026 ____ off at 18:20. (2006四川) A. takes B. took C. will be taken D. has taken 6. The young girl sitting next to me on the plane was very nervous. She ____ before. (2006广东) A. hasn’t flown B. didn’t fly C. hadn’t flown D. wasn’t flying

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7. Send my regards to your lovely wife when you ____ home. (2006上海) A. wrote B. will write C. have written D. write 8. Although medical science ____ control over several dangerous diseases, what worries us is that some of them are returning. (2006江苏) A. achieved B. has achieved C. will achieve D. had achieved 9. I ____ along the street looking for a place to park when the accident ____. (2006安徽) A. went; was occurring B. went; occurred C. was going; occurred D. was going; had occurred 10. Ladies and gentlemen, please fasten your seat belts. The plane ____. (2006福建) A. takes off B. is taking off C. has taken off D. took off Keys: 1-5 DDBBA 6-10 CDBCB

FUNCTION—Giving a definition ■Goals

●

To learn to give a definition ■Procedures Step 1: Defining a definition A definition may be a statement of the essential properties of a certain thing, or a statement of equivalence between a term and that term's meaning. The two are not mutually exclusive, nor are they equivalent. A concise explanation of the meaning of a word or phrase or symbol. A statement that gives the meaning of a word or symbol in terms that has been previously defined or are accepted as undefined Step 2: Giving a definition An earthquake

is a trembling or a shaking movement of the Earth's surface. Earthquakes typically result from the movement of faults, quasi-planar zones of deformation within its uppermost layers. The word earthquake is also widely used to indicate the source region itself. The solid earth is in slow but constant motion (see plate tectonics) and earthquakes occur where the resulting stress exceeds the capacity of Earth materials to support it. ... A volcano is a geological landform (usually a mountain) where magma (rock of the earth's interior made molten or liquid by high pressure and temperature) erupts through the surface of the planet. Although there are numerous volcanoes (some very active) on the solar system's rocky planets and moons, on Earth at least, this phenomenon tends to occur near the boundaries of the continental plates. However, important exceptions exist in hotspot volcanoes. A tornado is a violent windstorm characterized by a twisting, funnel-shaped cloud. The word "tornado" comes from the Spanish or Portuguese verb tornar, meaning "to turn." Tornadoes form in storms all around the world, most famously in a broad

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area of the American Midwest and South known as Tornado Alley. Although in pure number of incidences, the United States experiences more tornadoes than any other country, the United Kingdom is the most proportionally tornado-prone country for its size. ... A hurricane is a severe tropical cyclone usually with heavy rains and winds moving a 73-136 knots (12 on the Beaufort scale)

Writing about a violent natural event ■Goals

●

To learn to write about natural events ■Procedures Step 1: Talking about the worst natural disasters since 2000 Gujarat, India, 2001: earthquake (20,000 dead) El Salvador, 2001: earthquake (850 dead) Afghanistan, 2002: earthquake (2,500 dead) Algeria, 2003: earthquake (2,266 dead) Asia, 2003: SARS (744 dead, mostly in China) Andhra Pradesh, India, 2003: Heat wave (1,300 dead) France, Spain and Italy, 2003: Heat wave (50,000 dead) Bam, Iran, 2003: earthquake (26,300 dead) Al-Hoceima, Morocco, 2004: earthquake (571 dead) Haiti and Dominican Republic, 2004: rains (2,400 dead) Philippines, 2004: typhoon (1,000 dead) China, 2004: floods (1,300 dead) Southeast Asia, 2004: tsunamis caused by 9.0 earthquake (111,000 dead in Indonesia, 31,000 in Sri Lanka, 10,700 in India, 5,400 in Thailand, 68 in Malaysia, 82 in the Maldives, 300 in Myanmar and 150 in Somalia, including 1,500 Scandinavian tourists, and dozens of Germans, Italians, Dutch, etc) Zarand, Iran, 2005: earthquake (500 dead) Nias, Indonesia, 2005: 8.7 earthquake (1000 dead) Mumbai, India, 2005: monsoon (1,000 dead) China, 2005: floods (567 dead) Louisiana and Mississippi, USA, 2005: hurricane (1,069 dead) Niger, 2005: famine (10,000? dead) Kashmir, 2005: earthquake (80,500 dead, of which 79,000 in Pakistan and 1,350 in India) Central America, 2005: floods (1,400 dead, of which 1,200 in Guatemala)

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Step 2: Writing about violent natural events I Met "Mr. Flood" Yi Xie (Amy) from China I used to think people are very clever, but we can't do anything when natural disasters happen. We can't prevent them, control them, or stop them. The only thing we can do is clean up after the disasters. It's very sad. When I was in high school, I met Mr. Flood. It started raining and kept raining almost a month; the water on the streets got higher and higher every day. We used boats instead of cars. We lost lots of things, including our businesses, our jobs, and our homes. Schools closed and farms were destroyed. We ran out of food and electricity. In some places the water was higher than the buildings. I felt like we lived in a water world. Because of the flood, lots of illnesses broke out. Because of dead animals, people died. The soil and other things made the water become very, very dirty. That was in summer time, so even though it was raining, the temperature was still high. The hot weather and really dirty water caused the air to be very bad. Hospitals had no extra rooms for patients. When the flood was over, I looked around my city. One word can describe the situation--sad. Everything was destroyed and lots of people were sick, but we were very strong, I think. We rebuilt our city, took care of the sick people, and started our businesses again. I just hope that one day people can stop the natural disasters whenever they happen. We really need to take care of our lovely world. The Hurricane was a Nightmare Kevin Parfait from Martinique This story took place about seven years ago. At that time I was only eleven years old, but images of that week are still as clear as it all happened yesterday. During that week, we had to face up to the most powerful hurricane Martinique has even seen. The fact that I was little increased the effects of such an experience. I can still hear the noise of the wind blowing on the taped windows that were shaking. Outside, everything was flying or moving...trees, papers, plastics. But the nightmare was not that phase, when we were just afraid without any other possibilities. The real one was after it hit. In fact, the hurricane did not cross the island only once, but three times, causing at each crossing more and more damage. During the entire week following that event, we were not able to go out of the house. All the roads were cut off, and we did not have running water or phones. Under those conditions, the hardest part was having no contact with the rest of my family living around the island. The feeling of presuming the death of your close friends and relatives was hard to endure. We stayed like that for one horrible week before everything was fixed. For me, those seven days, almost eight, were a real nightmare. It Really was an Earthquake

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An earthquake in Venezuela One day my friends and I were celebrating our last day in high school at one of our houses which had a pool. We had a big party which we enjoyed very much. When we were all in the pool, I asked my best friend, “Don't you think we are having too much fun in this party?” She asked me why I said that, and I really didn’t know, but I felt dizzy. A few minutes later, my friend said, “It’s an earthquake.”

It really was an earthquake. It was strange because we actually enjoyed it. We had no idea that in some parts of the country many people were scared and most of them lost their houses. For example, in Puerto La Cruz there are many house boats. Also, there are too many houses built on the mountains, and most of those houses were destroyed, so many people lost their homes. That earthquake wasn’t strong, but the weather report hadn’t said anything about it so no one knew it was coming or had time to prepare for the consequences. After the earthquake, people didn’t have food or bottled water and many of them died. A Flood Hit Our District Anotai Udomwittayakra from Thailand When I was about 14 years old, I lived in Surathanee, which is in the South of Thailand. A flood hit our district because of a rain storm. The roads were flooded with a lot of water. My family and I worked to find things--brick, stone, and sand bags--in order to dam the water that flooded our house. Also, other people did like our family. The people who lived next to the river had to climb up the roofs of their houses because water from the river flooded their houses very quickly. They had to sit on the roofs with their families and some of their things that they had been able to bring with them until a rescue party came to help them. There were many consequences of this flood. For example, my father's rubber business was damaged because his rubber got wet and he couldn't use it in his business anymore. In addition, people who had to go out had to use boats instead of cars or walking. Many houses were damaged. People had to stay at the places that the rescue parties prepared for them. Some merchants chose this chance to make more money. They hoarded the food and products in order to see them to people expensively.