News English Lessons
FREE Handout, Listening & Quizzes on British Weather
(11 Pages of Materials & 8 Online Activities)

Home
Donate

COPYRIGHT:
Please write to
me for permission.

Britain Ready For Heatwave

Britain is getting ready for a heatwave. Weather forecasters say temperatures will rise to 33 degrees in the south. The hottest places will be around London. The government has made a heatwave plan. There are four different levels. This week the weather people issued a Level 3 alert. This means that it is hot for two nights. The highest level is Level 4. This is called a “red emergency”. This happens when it is so hot that fit and healthy people can get ill or die. The heatwave will only last a few days.

Advertisements

I can’t believe this. This is not a heatwave. There are hundreds of countries in the world that are hotter than Britain. Those countries don’t have different alert levels. A real heatwave is when it’s over 45, like it was in India last month. That’s a real heatwave. Lots of people die because of the heat. I think if it’s 45 degrees in England, most people will melt. Perhaps global warming will mean it will be that hot in the U.K one day. The weather all over the world is getting crazier. Maybe it will snow in the Sahara Desert.

Advertisements

PHRASE MATCH

Match the following phrases from the article.

Paragraph 1

1.	getting ready	a.	rise to 33 degrees
2	temperatures will	b.	few days
3.	four different	c.	can get ill
4.	the weather	d.	for a heatwave
5.	fit and healthy people	e.	levels
6.	last a	f.	people

Paragraph 2

1.	I can’t believe	a.	countries in the world
2	hundreds of	b.	melt
3.	die because	c.	warming
4.	most people will	d.	this
5.	global	e.	getting crazier
6.	the world is	f.	of the heat

LISTENING GAP FILL

Britain is ________________ a heatwave. Weather forecasters say temperatures ________________ degrees in the south. The hottest places will be around London. The government has made ________________. There are four different levels. This week the weather people issued a Level 3 alert. This ________________ hot for two nights. The highest level is Level 4. This is called a “red emergency”. This ________________ so hot that fit and healthy people can get ill or die. The heatwave will only ________________.

I ________________. This is not a heatwave. There are hundreds of countries in the world ________________ Britain. Those countries don’t have different alert levels. A real heatwave ________________ 45, like it was in India last month. That’s a real heatwave. Lots of people die ________________ heat. I think if it’s 45 degrees in England, most people will melt. Perhaps global warming ________________ be that hot in the U.K one day. The weather all over the world is getting crazier. Maybe it ________________ Sahara Desert.

MULTIPLE CHOICE

Britain is getting ready (1) ____ a heatwave. Weather forecasters say temperatures will rise to 33 degrees in the (2) ____. The hottest places will be around London. The government has made a heatwave (3) ____. There are four different levels. This week the weather people issued a Level 3 alert. This means that it is hot for two nights. The highest level is Level 4. This is called a “red emergency”. This (4) ____ when it is so hot that fit and healthy people can get ill or die. The heatwave will only (5) ____ a few days.

I can’t (6) ____ this. This is not a heatwave. There are hundreds of countries in the world that are hotter than Britain. (7) ____ countries don’t have different alert levels. A real heatwave is when it’s over 45, like it was in India last month. That’s a real heatwave. Lots of people die because of the (8) ____. I think if it’s 45 degrees in England, most people will (9) ____. Perhaps global warming will mean it will be that hot in the U.K one day. The weather all over the world is (10) ____ crazier. Maybe it will snow in the Sahara Desert.

Put the correct words from this table into the article.

1.	(a)	for	(b)	with	(c)	at
2.	(a)	southerly	(b)	southern	(c)	south
3.	(a)	plane	(b)	plan	(c)	planet
4.	(a)	happening	(b)	happens	(c)	happened
5.	(a)	first	(b)	final	(c)	last
6.	(a)	believe	(b)	believing	(c)	believes
7.	(a)	Those	(b)	Them	(c)	They
8.	(a)	hot	(b)	heat	(c)	heat up
9.	(a)	molt	(b)	malt	(c)	melt
10.	(a)	gets	(b)	got	(c)	getting

SPELLING

Spell the jumbled words (from the text) correctly.

Paragraph 1
1.	getting yader
2.	Weather tesroecsafr
3.	different llesev
4.	red nyeermgce
5.	fit and elyhaht
6.	lsat a few days
Paragraph 2
7.	I can’t beeveil this
8.	dhndeusr of countries
9.	because of the aeht
10.	global gawrmin
11.	getting irrzeac
12.	the Sahara esrDet

PUT THE TEXT BACK TOGETHER

Number these lines in the correct order.

( )	England, most people will melt. Perhaps global warming will mean it will be that hot in the U.K one day. The weather all
( )	it is so hot that fit and healthy people can get ill or die. The heatwave will only last a few days.
( )	degrees in the south. The hottest places will be around London. The government has made a heatwave
( )	I can’t believe this. This is not a heatwave. There are hundreds of countries in the world that are
( )	in India last month. That’s a real heatwave. Lots of people die because of the heat. I think if it’s 45 degrees in
( 1 )	Britain is getting ready for a heatwave. Weather forecasters say temperatures will rise to 33
( )	hotter than Britain. Those countries don’t have different alert levels. A real heatwave is when it’s over 45, like it was
( )	plan. There are four different levels. This week the weather people issued a Level 3
( )	over the world is getting crazier. Maybe it will snow in the Sahara Desert.
( )	alert. This means that it is hot for two nights. The highest level is Level 4. This is called a “red emergency”. This happens when

SCRAMBLED SENTENCES

With a partner, put the words back into the correct order.

1.	is Britain heatwave a for ready getting.
2.	hottest The London around be will places.
3.	Level weather 3 people alert issued a He.
4.	hot nights means is two This it for that.
5.	The a heatwave few will days only last.
6.	countries There in are the hundreds world of.
7.	over heatwave 45 is when A it’s real.
8.	die because Lots of of the people heat.
9.	The over is all world crazier weather the getting.
10.	Maybe the it Sahara will Desert snow in.

DISCUSSION (Write your own questions)

STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)
1.	________________________________________________________
2.	________________________________________________________
3.	________________________________________________________
4.	________________________________________________________
5.	________________________________________________________
6.	________________________________________________________

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)
1.	________________________________________________________
2.	________________________________________________________
3.	________________________________________________________
4.	________________________________________________________
5.	________________________________________________________
6.	________________________________________________________

WRITING

Write about the weather for 10 minutes. Show your partner your paper. Correct each other’s work.

______________________________________________________________________________

HOMEWORK

1. VOCABULARY EXTENSION: Choose several of the words from the text. Use a dictionary or Google’s search field (or another search engine) to build up more associations / collocations of each word.

2. INTERNET: Search the Internet and find more information about the weather – especially extreme weather. Talk about what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.

3. MAGAZINE ARTICLE: Write a magazine article about the weather. Include imaginary interviews with two people who love and hate hot weather. Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Give each other feedback on your articles.

4. WHAT HAPPENED NEXT? Write a newspaper article about the next stage in this news story. Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Give each other feedback on your articles.

5. LETTER: Write a letter to a weather forecaster. Ask him/her three questions about the weather. Give him/her three of your opinions on the weather. Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Your partner will answer the questions you asked.

Back to the top

News English Lessons FREE Handout, Listening & Quizzes on British Weather (11 Pages of Materials & 8 Online Activities)