Lately, there have been lots of small earthquakes near the Fagradalsfjall volcano in Iceland's Reykjanes Peninsula. This volcano was dormant for 800 years until it erupted in 2021. The IMO said there's a tunnel of magma going through Grindavรญk and it's not very deep, less than 800 meters. Because of all the earthquakes, the famous Blue Lagoon had to close, and there have been over 20,000 earthquakes in southwest Iceland since October.
The decision to evacuate Grindavรญk was made because the IMO couldn't say for sure if the tunnel of magma would reach the town. But the authorities want everyone to stay calm and know that it's not an emergency evacuation. They've closed all the roads going into the town, except for emergencies. People can go back quickly to get important things and their pets. A journalist named Alda Sigmundsdottir said the people in Grindavรญk are waiting for the eruption to start.
Iceland is a place with a lot of volcanic activity. There are about 30 active volcanoes there. Volcanic eruptions happen when hot liquid rock called magma comes up from deep inside the Earth. In July, the Fagradalsfjall volcano erupted, and lots of people went to see the "world's newest baby volcano." It had been quiet for 800 years before it erupted in 2021, 2022, and 2023.
Original news source: Iceland volcano: Emergency declared over volcano Fagradalsfjall eruption concerns (BBC)
๐ Vocabulary:
Group or Classroom Activities
Warm-up Activities:
– News Summary
Instructions: Students will be divided into small groups. Each group will be responsible for summarizing a different paragraph from the article, capturing the main points in a few sentences. Afterward, they will present their summaries to the class in a news brief format.
– Opinion Spectrum
Instructions: Write a series of statements about the volcanic eruption on the board (e.g., "The government is handling the situation well," "Evacuating Grindavรญk is an overreaction," "Volcanic eruptions are exciting natural events to witness"). Have students stand in a line according to their opinion on the spectrum from "strongly agree" to "strongly disagree." Allow students to discuss their positions with classmates standing near them.
– Word Association
Instructions: Write the word "volcano" on the board. Students will take turns saying a word that they associate with "volcano," which can be anything related to the article, such as "eruption," "magma," "earthquake," etc. If a student repeats a word or cannot think of one, they sit down. The last student standing wins.
– Sketch It
Instructions: In pairs, one student will have a copy of a paragraph from the article without showing it to their partner. The first student will describe the paragraph while the second student attempts to sketch the scenario based on the description. Afterward, they can compare the sketch to the actual content of the paragraph to see how accurately it was portrayed.
– Future Predictions
Instructions: Ask students to write a short paragraph predicting the future implications of the volcanic eruption in Iceland, considering the impact on the town of Grindavรญk, tourism, the environment, and the Icelandic people. They should use the present perfect tense to describe the ongoing situation and future modal verbs for their predictions. Share and discuss the predictions as a class.
๐ค Comprehension Questions:
The Icelandic Meteorological Office has declared a state of emergency because there's a big chance of an eruption happening soon.
Professor Thor Thordason is an expert on volcanoes. He said there's a river of hot liquid rock, or magma, under the Reykjanes peninsula, and he thinks the eruption will probably happen in Grindavรญk.
There have been a lot of small earthquakes near the Fagradalsfjall volcano, which suggests an eruption might happen.
According to the IMO, the tunnel of magma that runs beneath Grindavรญk is less than 800 meters deep.
The famous Blue Lagoon had to close because of all the earthquakes happening in the area.
To prepare for the potential eruption, authorities have closed all roads going into Grindavรญk except for emergencies, and people can return quickly to get important things and their pets.
Journalist Alda Sigmundsdottir said the people in Grindavรญk are waiting for the eruption to start.
The Fagradalsfjall volcano was dormant for 800 years before it erupted in 2021, 2022, and 2023.
๐งโ๏ธ Listen and Fill in the Gaps:
There might be a volcanic eruption in Iceland soon, and it could be for the town of Grindavรญk. The Icelandic Meteorological (IMO) has declared a state of emergency and said there's a big chance of an eruption happening. Experts think it could happen in the next few days. Professor Thor Thordason, who knows a lot about volcanoes, said there's a long river of hot liquid rock magma under the peninsula, and the eruption will probably happen in Grindavรญk. Lately, there have been lots of small earthquakes near the Fagradalsfjall volcano in Iceland's Reykjanes Peninsula. This volcano was for 800 years until it erupted in 2021. The IMO said there's a of magma going through Grindavรญk and it's not very deep, less than 800 . Because of all the earthquakes, the famous Blue Lagoon had to , and there have been over 20,000 earthquakes in Iceland since October. The decision to evacuate was made because the IMO couldn't say for sure if the tunnel of magma would reach the town. But the authorities want everyone to stay calm and know that it's not an evacuation. They've closed all the roads going into the town, except for emergencies. People can go back quickly to get important things and their pets. A named Alda Sigmundsdottir said the people in Grindavรญk are waiting for the eruption to start. Iceland is a place with a lot of activity. There are about 30 active volcanoes there. Volcanic eruptions happen when hot liquid rock called magma comes up from deep inside the . In July, the volcano erupted, and lots of people went to see the "world's baby volcano." It had been quiet for 800 years before it erupted in 2021, 2022, and 2023.
๐ฌ Discussion Questions:
1. What is a volcanic eruption, and how would you feel if there was one happening near your town?
2. Do you think living near a volcano is dangerous? Why or why not?
3. How do you think the people of Grindavรญk should prepare for a possible volcanic eruption?
4. Have you ever experienced an earthquake or any other natural disaster? What was it like?
5. Why do you think people are interested in visiting places like the "world's newest baby volcano"?
6. Do you think it's a good idea to evacuate a town before a natural disaster? Why or why not?
7. What kind of things would you take with you if you had to quickly leave your home because of an emergency?
8. How important do you think it is for towns to have emergency plans for natural disasters?
9. What is your opinion on closing public places like the Blue Lagoon during natural threats?
10. Do you like the idea of having pets? How would you feel about having to evacuate them in an emergency?
11. How do you think the authorities should keep people calm during a natural disaster?
12. What is a state of emergency, and when do you think it should be declared?
13. Do you believe that scientists can predict natural disasters accurately? Why or why not?
14. Would you like to visit Iceland and see its volcanoes? Why or why not?
15. What do you think makes a volcano like Fagradalsfjall become active after being dormant for 800 years?
Individual Activities
๐๐ญ Vocabulary Meanings:
Click a dot next to a word, then click the dot next to its meaning to draw a line connecting them.
Words
Meanings
๐ก Multiple Choice Questions:
๐ต๏ธ True or False Questions:
๐ Write a Summary:
Write a summary of this news article in two sentences.
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