Intermediate

Pre-reading questions: Have you ever experienced a disaster? What are some kinds of disasters? What kind of disasters are common in your country? Areas in the southern part of the United States were hit by tornadoes causing 18 people to die while leaving 50 people wounded. The strong tornadoes and storms were brought by the severe weather in states of Georgia and Mississippi. These calamities caused casualties and damages in homes, roofs, cars, and trees. Some people shielded themselves in buildings which were left standing after the tornado. Georgia was declared under state of emergency in the badly affected area to give support to the residents and to evaluate the…
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  Pre-reading questions: Do you know what a tsunami is? Do you know someone who has been affected by a tsunami? Can a tsunami be prevented? How?   A school in Miyagi prefecture was hit by the 2011 tsunami attack. The school opened to the public for the very first time. Vehicles swept in the 14-meter waves remain on the grounds of Miyagi Kesennuma Koyo High School. Debris are scattered all around the building. I thought I had known what the disaster was like from news, but seeing a car sitting on the third floor taught me how powerful the tsunami was, said Satoshi Tanaka, a Kanagawa prefectural government official….
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  Pre-reading questions: What is climate change? What do you think causes climate change? How does climate change affect our way of living?   The Paris Agreement gains approval to prevent climate change. It aims to limit the global temperatures to 2°C or possibly to 1.5°C. However, the steps to accomplish the agreement are yet to be figured out. Fatih Birol, the executive director of the International Energy Agency in Paris, said that temperatures will still be up to 2.7°C even if the countries that signed the agreement fully achieve their primary promises. Some companies are still thinking of ways to address climate change. The agreement also made the market…
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