The Reading / Listening - Solar Energy - Level 1

There is a climate crisis. We need to stop using fossil fuels, like oil and gas. The European Space Agency (ESA) has started a project to test giant solar farms in space. The ESA hopes to send energy wirelessly from space into people's homes. A spokesperson said one solar-farm satellite could make the same amount of electricity as a power station. The ESA wants to put many of these farms in orbit. They could cut our use of fossil fuels and end energy shortages.

The ESA project is called Solaris. The ESA wants "a clean and secure energy future". It said solar power from space could be very helpful. It said we needed to become carbon-neutral, and change the way we produce energy. It said we needed to cut the use of fossil fuels. It added that solar farms could "solve a lot of problems". The farms will be around 1.7 km long. This is bigger than the International Space Station, which is 110 m long.

Try the same news story at these levels:

    Solar Energy - Level 0 Solar Energy - Level 2   or  Solar Energy - Level 3

Sources
  • https://www.esa.int/Enabling_Support/Space_Engineering_Technology/SOLARIS/SOLARIS2
  • https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-62982113
  • https://scitechdaily.com/esa-solaris-wireless-power-beamed-down-from-space/


Make sure you try all of the online activities for this reading and listening - There are dictations, multiple choice activities, drag and drop activities, sentence jumbles, which word activities, text reconstructions, spelling, gap fills and a whole lot more. Please enjoy :-)

Phrase Matching

Paragraph 1

  1. There is a climate
  2. stop using fossil fuels, like
  3. send energy wirelessly from
  4. one solar-farm
  5. make the same amount
  6. a power
  7. put many of these farms
  8. end energy
  1. satellite
  2. in orbit
  3. shortages
  4. station
  5. crisis
  6. space
  7. oil and gas
  8. of electricity

Paragraph 2

  1. The ESA project is
  2. a clean and secure
  3. we needed to become carbon-
  4. change the way we
  5. cut the use
  6. solve a
  7. the farms will be around
  8. bigger than the International
  1. 1.7 km long
  2. Space Station
  3. produce energy
  4. energy future
  5. neutral
  6. called Solaris
  7. of fossil fuels
  8. lot of problems

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

There (1) ___________________ crisis. We need to stop using fossil fuels, (2) ___________________ gas. The European Space Agency (ESA) has started a (3) ___________________ giant solar farms in space. The ESA hopes to send energy wirelessly from space (4) ___________________. A spokesperson said one solar-farm satellite could make the (5) ___________________ electricity as a power station. The ESA wants to put many of these farms in orbit. They (6) ___________________ use of fossil fuels and end energy shortages.

The ESA (7) ___________________ Solaris. The ESA wants "a clean and secure energy future". It said solar power from space could (8) ___________________. It said we needed to become carbon-neutral, and (9) ___________________ we produce energy. It said we needed to (10) ___________________ of fossil fuels. It added that solar farms could "(11) ___________________ of problems". The farms will be around 1.7 km long. This is (12) ___________________ International Space Station, which is 110 m long.

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

Thereisaclimatecrisis.Weneedtostopusingfossilfuels,likeoilandgas.T
heEuropeanSpaceAgency(ESA)hasstartedaprojecttotestgiantsolarf
armsinspace.TheESAhopestosendenergywirelesslyfromspaceintop
eople'shomes.Aspokespersonsaidonesolar-farmsatellitecouldma
kethesameamountofelectricityasapowerstation.TheESAwantstoput
manyofthesefarmsinorbit.Theycouldcutouruseoffossilfuelsandende
nergyshortages.TheESAprojectiscalledSolaris.TheESAwants"aclea
nandsecureenergyfuture".Itsaidsolarpowerfromspacecouldbeveryh
elpful.Itsaidweneededtobecomecarbon-neutral,andchangethew
ayweproduceenergy.Itsaidweneededtocuttheuseoffossilfuels.Itadd
edthatsolarfarmscould"solvealotofproblems".Thefarmswillbearoun
d1.7kmlong.ThisisbiggerthantheInternationalSpaceStation,whichis
110mlong.

Student survey

Write five GOOD questions about this topic in the table. Do this in pairs. Each student must write the questions on his / her own paper. When you have finished, interview other students. Write down their answers.

(Please look at page 12 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

Discussion — Write your own questions

STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

(a) ________________

(b) ________________

(c) ________________

(d) ________________

(e) ________________

(f) ________________

(g) ________________

(h) ________________

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

(i) ________________

(j) ________________

(k) ________________

(l) ________________

(m) ________________

(n) ________________

(o) ________________

(p) ________________

Free writing

Write about this topic for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

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Answers

(Please check your answers against the article above.

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