Review the words, meanings, and examples below before starting the activities. Click the speaker icon to hear the pronunciation. Click any example sentence to hear it read aloud.
Canyon
Noun
A deep valley with very steep sides.
The Colorado River formed the Grand Canyon over millions of years.
We hiked along the edge of the canyon and looked down at the river below.
The walls of the canyon showed different layers of red and orange rock.
These are common word partners—words that often appear with your unit vocabulary. Tap the speaker to hear each English phrase.
Canyon
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Form
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Cavern
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Spectacular
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Glacier
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Ecosystems
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Climate
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Threaten
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Fossil fuels
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Greenhouse gas
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Atmosphere
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Global warming
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Cause
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Activity 3: Short story
A simple story is easier to remember than separate facts. Follow Sam through one research journey. Highlighted phrases are collocations (same phrases as in the list above). Audio reads the English only. Use the speakers for each part, or play the whole story.
The Valley of Change
Part 1 — Sam and the canyon
Sam and two colleagues decided to form a group to study how natural landscapes are changing. Their first stop was a national park centred on a deep canyon carved by an ancient river. The spectacular scenery was breathtaking — the canyon walls showed millions of years of rock history in layers of red and gold. Near the canyon floor, they entered a dark cavern with glittering crystal cavern walls. These ancient rocks form part of one of the oldest geological records on the continent.
Part 2 — The glacier retreats
The next morning, the team climbed to a melting glacier high above the tree line. The glacier retreat was obvious from old photographs — the ice had pulled back by hundreds of metres in only thirty years. Blocks of glacier ice still floated in a cold lake below. Sam's sensors recorded rising greenhouse gas levels in the air. He knew that continuing to burn fossil fuels was driving a changing climate, and that the world needed to act quickly to reduce greenhouse gas output.
Part 3 — Fragile ecosystems under threat
Below the glacier, the fragile ecosystems of rare plants and cold-water fish were struggling. The marine ecosystems in the mountain streams were warming, pushing species away. Scientists warned that higher temperatures could threaten wildlife and would seriously threaten the clean water supply for towns below. They argued that governments must act now to protect ecosystems before the damage became permanent. Sam also recorded a troubling sign: a tropical climate was slowly arriving at this altitude for the very first time.
Part 4 — Finding the root cause
In his final report, Sam explained the cause and effect of burning carbon. The root cause of glacier loss was relying on fossil fuel energy for too long. The main cause for concern was the speed of change. Fossil fuel emissions were filling the Earth's atmosphere and the upper atmosphere with heat-trapping gases. These greenhouse gas emissions would cause global warming to accelerate unless nations united to fight global warming. Choosing to protect the atmosphere today could still reverse the worst global warming effects on valleys like this.
Activity 4: Multiple Choice Quiz
Choose the correct definition for each word.
Activity 5: Fill in the Blanks
Fill in the blanks with the correct vocabulary words.
1. The around the Earth protects us from harmful solar radiation.
Hint: the layer of gases around the Earth
2. Water and wind can unusual rock shapes over millions of years.
Hint: to create or make something take a shape
3. The river carved a deep through the desert over thousands of years.
Hint: a deep valley with very steep sides
4. The warm in this region makes it perfect for growing tropical fruit.
Hint: the general weather conditions in a place
5. Scientists found that the had lost more than half its ice in sixty years.
Hint: a large slow-moving river of ice
6. Pollution and habitat loss the survival of many bird species.
Hint: to be likely to damage or harm something
7. The view from the top of the waterfall was absolutely .
Hint: extremely good, exciting or beautiful
8. Scientists studied every possible of the sudden rise in sea temperature.
Hint: something that makes something else happen
9. The government plans to phase out and switch to cleaner energy.
Hint: coal, gas or petroleum formed inside the Earth long ago (two words)
10. Forests and oceans are two of the most important on our planet.
Hint: all the living things in an area and their effect on each other
11. Carbon dioxide is the most common released by cars and factories.
Hint: a gas that makes the air around the Earth warmer (two words)
12. The explorers entered a dark deep inside the mountain.
Hint: a large cave
13. is causing more frequent floods, droughts and storms worldwide.
Hint: an increase in the Earth's temperature because of pollution (two words)
Activity 6: Sentence Builder
Write sentences using each vocabulary word. Click 'Check Sentence' for writing analysis.
For more accuracy in writing and to find additional mistakes, use this
Writing Assessment Tool.
Writing Analysis: This tool uses academic correction symbols (agr, sp, cap, etc.) to provide feedback on grammar, spelling, and style.