In a faraway place called Ladakh, the people are having a hard time because the weather is changing. It’s getting harder for them to grow food and take care of animals because there isn’t enough water. The snow doesn’t come when it should, and the big ice on the mountains is going away. This makes bad floods happen and makes it hard for the people to live like they used to. Some people have to leave their homes to find different work.

A smart man named Sonam Wangchuk made a special way to save water when it’s cold. He makes big ice towers that look like cones. When it gets warm and there’s no rain, the ice melts and gives water to the people. These ice towers are very famous now and help people remember to take care of the Earth. But Sonam says that everyone needs to work together to fix the weather problems.

Original news source: Climate change: The villagers building 100ft ice towers (BBC)

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Group or Classroom Activities

Warm-up Activities:

– Charades
Instructions: Divide the class into two teams. Give each team a list of words related to the article (e.g. Ladakh, weather, food, water, floods, ice towers). One person from each team will come to the front of the class and act out the word without speaking. The team members will try to guess the word. The team with the most correct guesses wins.

– Vocabulary Pictionary
Instructions: Give each student a piece of paper and a pencil. Write a word from the article (e.g. Ladakh, weather, floods) on the board. The students will have one minute to draw a picture that represents the word. They can’t use any letters or symbols. After one minute, the students will show their drawings to the class. The class will try to guess the word based on the drawings.

– Two Truths and a Lie
Instructions: Each student will think of three statements about the article. Two of the statements should be true and one should be false. For example, “Sonam Wangchuk made the ice towers in Ladakh,” “The weather in Ladakh is getting colder,” “The people in Ladakh have enough water.” Each student will take turns sharing their statements with the class. The class will try to guess which statement is the lie.

– Headline Creation
Instructions: Divide the class into small groups. Give each group a piece of paper and a marker. In their groups, the students will create a headline for an article about the ice towers in Ladakh. The headline should be short and catchy. After a few minutes, each group will share their headline with the class. The class will vote on the best headline.

– Future Predictions
Instructions: In pairs, the students will discuss and write down three predictions about the future of Ladakh’s weather and the ice towers. For example, “In the future, there will be more ice towers in Ladakh,” “In the future, the weather in Ladakh will become even more extreme.” After a few minutes, the pairs will share their predictions with the class. The class will discuss and compare their predictions.

Comprehension Questions:

1. Where is the faraway place called Ladakh?
2. Why are the people in Ladakh having a hard time?
3. What happens when the snow doesn’t come when it should?
4. What did Sonam Wangchuk make to save water?
5. What do the ice towers look like?
6. What happens when the ice melts?
7. What does Sonam say everyone needs to do to fix the weather problems?
Go to answers ⇩

Listen and Fill in the Gaps:

In a faraway place called (1)______, the people are (2)______ a hard time because the weather is changing. It’s getting harder for them to grow food and take care of animals because there isn’t enough water. The snow doesn’t come when it should, and the big ice on the (3)______ is going away. This makes bad floods happen and makes it (4)______ for the people to live like they used to. Some people have to leave their homes to find different work.

A smart man named Sonam Wangchuk made a special way to save water when it’s (5)______. He makes big ice towers that look like cones. When it gets warm and there’s no (6)______, the ice melts and gives water to the (7)______. These ice towers are very (8)______ now and help people remember to take care of the Earth. But Sonam says that everyone needs to work together to fix the weather problems.
Go to answers ⇩

Discussion Questions:

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

1. What is Ladakh?
2. How do you think the people in Ladakh feel about the weather changing?
3. Do you like growing food? Why or why not?
4. How would you feel if there wasn’t enough water to take care of your animals?
5. What do you think happens when the snow doesn’t come when it should?
6. Do you know what floods are? Can you explain?
7. Would you like to live in a place where you have to leave your home to find different work? Why or why not?
8. What do the ice towers made by Sonam Wangchuk look like?
9. Do you think the ice towers are a good idea? Why or why not?
10. How do you think the ice towers help people remember to take care of the Earth?
11. What do you think it means when Sonam says that everyone needs to work together to fix the weather problems?
12. Have you ever tried to help fix a problem with other people? What was it?

Individual Activities

Vocabulary Meanings:

Match each word to its meaning.

Words:
1. Ladakh
2. weather
3. food
4. water
5. ice
6. floods
7. homes
8. Earth

Meanings:
(a) The way the sky looks and feels
(b) Frozen water that is very cold
(c) When too much water covers everything
(d) Something you drink to stay alive
(e) The planet we all live on together
(f) Something you eat to make you strong
(g) A place far away from here
(h) Where you live with your family
Go to answers ⇩

Multiple Choice Questions:

1. Where is Ladakh?
(a) Close by
(b) Far away
(c) In the mountains
(d) In the ocean

2. Why are the people in Ladakh having a hard time?
(a) They don’t have enough food
(b) They don’t have enough animals
(c) They don’t have enough money
(d) The weather is changing

3. What happens when it doesn’t snow in Ladakh?
(a) There are bad floods
(b) The ice on the mountains goes away
(c) The people can’t grow food
(d) The people can’t take care of animals

4. What does Sonam Wangchuk make to save water?
(a) Big water towers
(b) Big ice towers
(c) Big food towers
(d) Big animal towers

5. What happens when the ice towers melt?
(a) They give food to the people
(b) They give animals to the people
(c) They give water to the people
(d) They give money to the people

6. Why are the ice towers famous?
(a) They help people remember to take care of themselves
(b) They help people remember to take care of animals
(c) They help people remember to take care of money
(d) They help people remember to take care of the Earth

7. Who does Sonam Wangchuk say needs to work together to fix the weather problems?
(a) Everyone
(b) Only the smart people
(c) Only the rich people
(d) Only the old people

8. What do some people in Ladakh have to do because of the weather problems?
(a) Stay in their homes and do nothing
(b) Leave their homes and do nothing
(c) Leave their homes to find different work
(d) Stay in their homes and find different work

Go to answers ⇩

True or False Questions:

1. The snow comes when it should, and the big ice on the mountains is increasing.
2. This makes bad floods happen and makes it hard for the people to live like they used to.
3. The people in Ladakh are having a hard time because the weather is changing.
4. Some people have to leave their homes to find different work.
5. He makes small ice towers that don’t look like cones.
6. These ice towers are very famous now and help people remember to take care of the Earth.
7. A smart man named Sonam Wangchuk made a regular way to waste water when it’s cold.
8. It’s becoming easier for them to grow food and take care of animals because there is enough water.
Go to answers ⇩

Write a Summary:

Write a summary of this news article in two sentences.

Writing Questions:

Answer the following questions. Write as much as you can for each answer.

1. Why are the people in Ladakh having a hard time?
2. What happens when the snow doesn’t come and the big ice on the mountains goes away?
3. What did Sonam Wangchuk make to save water?
4. What happens when the ice towers melt?
5. What does Sonam say everyone needs to do to fix the weather problems?

Answers

Comprehension Question Answers:

1. Where is the faraway place called Ladakh?
Ladakh is a faraway place in the mountains.

2. Why are the people in Ladakh having a hard time?
The people in Ladakh are having a hard time because the weather is changing and there isn’t enough water.

3. What happens when the snow doesn’t come when it should?
When the snow doesn’t come when it should, it makes it hard for the people to grow food and take care of animals.

4. What did Sonam Wangchuk make to save water?
Sonam Wangchuk made big ice towers to save water.

5. What do the ice towers look like?
The ice towers look like big cones.

6. What happens when the ice melts?
When the ice melts, it turns into water and gives water to the people.

7. What does Sonam say everyone needs to do to fix the weather problems?
Sonam says that everyone needs to work together to fix the weather problems.
Go back to questions ⇧

Listen and Fill in the Gaps Answers:

(1) Ladakh
(2) having
(3) mountains
(4) hard
(5) cold
(6) rain
(7) people
(8) famous
Go back to questions ⇧

Vocabulary Meanings Answers:

1. Ladakh
Answer: (g) A place far away from here

2. weather
Answer: (a) The way the sky looks and feels

3. food
Answer: (f) Something you eat to make you strong

4. water
Answer: (d) Something you drink to stay alive

5. ice
Answer: (b) Frozen water that is very cold

6. floods
Answer: (c) When too much water covers everything

7. homes
Answer: (h) Where you live with your family

8. Earth
Answer: (e) The planet we all live on together
Go back to questions ⇧

Multiple Choice Answers:

1. Where is Ladakh?
Answer: (b) Far away

2. Why are the people in Ladakh having a hard time?
Answer: (d) The weather is changing

3. What happens when it doesn’t snow in Ladakh?
Answer: (a) There are bad floods

4. What does Sonam Wangchuk make to save water?
Answer: (b) Big ice towers

5. What happens when the ice towers melt?
Answer: (c) They give water to the people

6. Why are the ice towers famous?
Answer: (d) They help people remember to take care of the Earth

7. Who does Sonam Wangchuk say needs to work together to fix the weather problems?
Answer: (a) Everyone

8. What do some people in Ladakh have to do because of the weather problems?
Answer: (c) Leave their homes to find different work
Go back to questions ⇧

True or False Answers:

1. The snow comes when it should, and the big ice on the mountains is increasing. (Answer: False)
2. This makes bad floods happen and makes it hard for the people to live like they used to. (Answer: True)
3. The people in Ladakh are having a hard time because the weather is changing. (Answer: True)
4. Some people have to leave their homes to find different work. (Answer: True)
5. He makes small ice towers that don’t look like cones. (Answer: False)
6. These ice towers are very famous now and help people remember to take care of the Earth. (Answer: True)
7. A smart man named Sonam Wangchuk made a regular way to waste water when it’s cold. (Answer: False)
8. It’s becoming easier for them to grow food and take care of animals because there is enough water. (Answer: False)
Go back to questions ⇧