The Himalayas are big, beautiful mountains. But now, they are hard to see because of dirty air. In Nepal, the air is full of dust and smoke. This makes it hard to see the mountains, even in spring and autumn. Sometimes, planes can’t land because they can’t see well.

This dirty air is bad for people who visit Nepal. Tourists come to see the big mountains, but now they see only haze. This makes people sad and businesses lose money. Some people who help tourists are thinking about changing jobs. Everyone wants the clear views back.

The dirty air comes from cars, factories, and farms. Climate change makes it worse. The air stays dirty longer and there are more dust storms. The beautiful mountains might only be in pictures soon. We need to fix the air so people can see the mountains again.

Original news source: Why the mighty Himalayas are getting harder and harder to see (BBC)

🎧 Listen:

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📖 Vocabulary:

Group or Classroom Activities

Warm-up Activities:

– CHARADES
Instructions: Divide the class into small groups. Each group will take turns acting out different words or phrases related to the article, such as “Himalayas,” “tourist,” or “dirty air.” The other groups will guess what they are acting out.

– VOCABULARY PICTIONARY
Instructions: Write key vocabulary words from the article on the board, such as “mountains,” “dust,” “smoke,” and “climate change.” Students will take turns drawing a word while their classmates guess what it is.

– OPINION POLL
Instructions: Ask students if they think dirty air is a problem in their country. Each student will share their opinion with a partner, and then a few pairs will share their thoughts with the whole class.

– SKETCH IT
Instructions: Students will draw a picture of the Himalayas and then add elements that represent dirty air, such as smoke or haze. After finishing their drawings, they will share their artwork with the class and explain what they drew.

– THINK-PAIR-SHARE
Instructions: Pose the question, “Why are clean views of the Himalayas important?” Students will think about their answer individually, then discuss their thoughts with a partner. Finally, a few pairs will share their ideas with the entire class.

🤔 Comprehension Questions:

1. What are the big mountains called in the article?
2. Why is it hard to see the mountains in Nepal?
3. What do tourists want to see when they visit Nepal?
4. How does dirty air make people feel?
5. What are some things that make the air dirty?
6. What happens to planes sometimes because of the dirty air?
7. What do people want to happen to the air so they can see the mountains again?
Go to answers ⇩

🎧✍️ Listen and Fill in the Gaps:

The Himalayas are big, beautiful (1)______. But now, they are hard to see because of dirty air. In (2)______, the air is full of dust and smoke. This makes it hard to see the mountains, even in spring and autumn. Sometimes, planes can’t land because they can’t see well.

This dirty air is bad for people who visit Nepal. Tourists (3)______ to see the big mountains, but now they see only (4)______. This makes people sad and businesses lose (5)______. Some people who help tourists are thinking about changing jobs. Everyone wants the clear views back.

The dirty air (6)______ from cars, factories, and farms. Climate change makes it worse. The air stays dirty longer and there are (7)______ dust storms. The beautiful mountains might only be in (8)______ soon. We need to fix the air so people can see the mountains again.
Go to answers ⇩

💬 Discussion Questions:

Students can ask a partner these questions, or discuss them as a group.

1. What is your favorite mountain?
2. How would you feel if you could not see the mountains?
3. Do you like to visit places with clean air? Why?
4. What is a tourist?
5. Do you think it is important to keep the air clean? Why or why not?
6. How do you feel when you see beautiful things in nature?
7. Do you like to take pictures of mountains? Why?
8. What is a factory?
9. How would you feel if the air was dirty where you live?
10. Do you think people should help to clean the air? Why?
11. What do you do when you see dirty air?
12. Do you think the mountains will always be there? Why or why not?

Individual Activities

📖💭 Vocabulary Meanings:

Match each word to its meaning.

Words:
1. Himalayas
2. dirty
3. tourists
4. haze
5. businesses
6. factories
7. climate
8. storms
9. pictures
10. fix

Meanings:
(A) To make something better or right again
(B) Very big mountains
(C) Weather over a long time
(D) Places where people work to make things
(E) Bad weather with lots of wind and rain
(F) Foggy air that makes it hard to see
(G) Not clean
(H) Images you take with a camera
(I) Places that sell things or services
(J) People who visit places for fun
Go to answers ⇩

🔡 Multiple Choice Questions:

1. What are the big mountains called in Nepal?
(a) Rockies
(b) Andes
(c) Alps
(d) Himalayas

2. What is making it hard to see the mountains?
(a) Rain
(b) Dirty air
(c) Snow
(d) Wind

3. What is in the air that makes it dirty?
(a) Water
(b) Dust and smoke
(c) Flowers
(d) Food

4. Who comes to see the big mountains?
(a) Farmers
(b) Teachers
(c) Tourists
(d) Doctors

5. What do tourists see instead of clear mountains?
(a) Rainbows
(b) Stars
(c) Haze
(d) Clouds

6. What do some people want to change?
(a) Their clothes
(b) Their food
(c) Their homes
(d) Their jobs

7. What makes the dirty air worse?
(a) Climate change
(b) Sunshine
(c) Cold weather
(d) Happy people

8. What do we need to fix?
(a) The air
(b) The water
(c) The trees
(d) The roads

Go to answers ⇩

🕵️ True or False Questions:

1. The Himalayas are big mountains.
2. We need to make the air clean again.
3. People can see the mountains well.
4. The air in Nepal is dirty.
5. Clean air makes people happy.
6. Tourists come to see the mountains.
7. Climate change improves the air.
8. Cars and factories make the air clean.
Go to answers ⇩

📝 Write a Summary:

Write a summary of this news article in two sentences.
Check your writing now with the best free AI for English writing!

Writing Questions:

Answer the following questions. Write as much as you can for each answer.
Check your answers with our free English writing assistant!

1. What are the big, beautiful mountains called?
2. Why is it hard to see the mountains in Nepal?
3. How do dirty air and haze make people feel?
4. What do people want to see again?
5. What makes the air dirty in Nepal?

✅ Answers

🤔✅ Comprehension Question Answers:

1. What are the big mountains called in the article?
The big mountains are called the Himalayas.

2. Why is it hard to see the mountains in Nepal?
It is hard to see the mountains because the air is dirty with dust and smoke.

3. What do tourists want to see when they visit Nepal?
Tourists want to see the big mountains.

4. How does dirty air make people feel?
Dirty air makes people feel sad.

5. What are some things that make the air dirty?
Cars, factories, and farms make the air dirty.

6. What happens to planes sometimes because of the dirty air?
Sometimes, planes can’t land because they can’t see well.

7. What do people want to happen to the air so they can see the mountains again?
People want the air to be clean so they can see the mountains again.
Go back to questions ⇧

🎧✍️✅ Listen and Fill in the Gaps Answers:

(1) mountains
(2) Nepal
(3) come
(4) haze
(5) money
(6) comes
(7) more
(8) pictures
Go back to questions ⇧

📖💭✅ Vocabulary Meanings Answers:

1. Himalayas
Answer: (B) Very big mountains

2. dirty
Answer: (G) Not clean

3. tourists
Answer: (J) People who visit places for fun

4. haze
Answer: (F) Foggy air that makes it hard to see

5. businesses
Answer: (D) Places where people work to make things

6. factories
Answer: (I) Places that sell things or services

7. climate
Answer: (C) Weather over a long time

8. storms
Answer: (E) Bad weather with lots of wind and rain

9. pictures
Answer: (H) Images you take with a camera

10. fix
Answer: (A) To make something better or right again
Go back to questions ⇧

🔡✅ Multiple Choice Answers:

1. What are the big mountains called in Nepal?
Answer: (d) Himalayas

2. What is making it hard to see the mountains?
Answer: (b) Dirty air

3. What is in the air that makes it dirty?
Answer: (b) Dust and smoke

4. Who comes to see the big mountains?
Answer: (c) Tourists

5. What do tourists see instead of clear mountains?
Answer: (c) Haze

6. What do some people want to change?
Answer: (d) Their jobs

7. What makes the dirty air worse?
Answer: (a) Climate change

8. What do we need to fix?
Answer: (a) The air
Go back to questions ⇧

🕵️✅ True or False Answers:

1. The Himalayas are big mountains. (Answer: True)
2. We need to make the air clean again. (Answer: True)
3. People can see the mountains well. (Answer: False)
4. The air in Nepal is dirty. (Answer: True)
5. Clean air makes people happy. (Answer: False)
6. Tourists come to see the mountains. (Answer: True)
7. Climate change improves the air. (Answer: False)
8. Cars and factories make the air clean. (Answer: False)
Go back to questions ⇧