The Reading / Listening - Wildfires - Level 3

Extreme heat and wildfires are becoming common across the globe. Europe is experiencing record-breaking temperatures and heatwaves. Many deadly wildfires are currently burning out of control across France and Spain. The biggest and most serious of these is getting close to the southern French city of Bordeaux. The enormous fire is just 8 km from the city's outer limits. More than 2,500 firefighters are battling to keep the fires under control. On Monday, 17,000 residents were evacuated from the city. There are fears that tens of thousands more might have to leave. The "France 24" news site said the city had an "unsettling resemblance to the darkest days of the Covid-19 pandemic" with people wearing masks.

France's National Firefighters Federation said the kind of wildfire outside of Bordeaux has never been seen in France before. A spokesperson said the intense heat has created "fire clouds". NASA dubbed these the "fire-breathing dragon of clouds". They create their own winds, which means the fires suddenly spread in different directions. The firefighters' spokesperson said the fires created by the clouds were almost impossible to put out. He said: "We don't know how the blaze will spread. It is shifting non-stop. We cannot fight it directly." He said his firefighters were in "a David-versus-Goliath scenario". Bordeaux locals are now worrying about the future of their city.

Try the same news story at these easier levels:

    Wildfires - Level 0,  Wildfires - Level 1   or  Wildfires - Level 2

Sources
  • https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20260726-french-firefighters-face-pyrocumulonimbus-for-first-time
  • https://www.france24.com/en/france/20260727-i-spent-the-night-coughing-wildfire-smoke-leaves-bordeaux-residents-struggling-to-breathe
  • https://www.euronews.com/my-europe/2026/07/26/pedro-sanchez-the-scale-of-the-disaster-we-are-living-through-is-very-hard-to-accept


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 :-)

Warm-ups

1. WILDFIRES: Students walk around the class and talk to other students about wildfires. Change partners often and share your findings.
2. CHAT: In pairs / groups, talk about these topics or words from the article. What will the article say about them? What can you say about these words and your life?
       extreme heat / wildfires / temperatures / heatwaves / residents / evacuated / masks /
       firefighters / fire clouds / NASA / dragon / winds / David versus Goliath / the future
Have a chat about the topics you liked. Change topics and partners frequently.
3. TOO LATE: Students A strongly believe it is too late to reverse climate change; Students B strongly believe the opposite. Change partners again and talk about your conversations.
4. NATURAL DISASTERS: What do you know about these natural disasters? How can we deal with them? Complete this table with your partner(s). Change partners often and share what you wrote.

 

What I Know

Dealing with Them

Wildfires

 

 

Heatwaves

 

 

Earthquakes

 

 

Hurricanes

 

 

Floods

 

 

Volcanos

 

 
MY e-BOOK
ESL resource book with copiable worksheets and handouts - 1,000 Ideas and Activities for Language Teachers / English teachers
See a sample

5. FIRE: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word "fire". Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories.
6. EVACUATE: Rank these with your partner. Put the things you would rescue first if you had to evacuate at the top. Change partners often and share your rankings.

  • Passport
  • Warm jacket
  • Short-wave radio
  • Medicine
  • Cash
  • Pets
  • Water
  • Jewellery

 

Vocabulary

    Paragraph 1

      1. extreme a. Fighting very hard against something.
      2. the globe b. Times when the weather stays very hot for several days or longer.
      3. heatwaves c. The world.
      4. burning d. A way in which two people or things look alike.
      5. battling e. Very great or very strong.
      6. evacuated f. On fire.
      7. resemblance g. Moved from a dangerous place to a safe place.

    Paragraph 2

      8. intense h. Given a name or nickname.
      9. dubbed i. Moving or changing position.
      10. put out j. People who live in a particular place.
      11. blaze (noun) k. Made a fire stop burning.
      12. shifting l. A situation that could happen or is happening.
      13. scenario m. A large, strong fire.
      14. locals n. Very strong or very great.

 

Before reading / listening

1. TRUE / FALSE: Read the headline. Guess if 1-8 below are true (T) or false (F).

  1. The article says wildfires are affecting every country around the globe.    T / F
  2. The article says all European countries have seen record-breaking heat.   T / F
  3. More than 170,000 people have evacuated from Bordeaux.     T / F
  4. The writer says Bordeaux looks like it did during the Covid-19 pandemic. T / F
  5. France has had these kinds of wildfires before.     T / F
  6. The extreme heat from the wildfire is creating fire clouds.     T / F
  7. Fire clouds can create their own winds which fan the fire.     T / F
  8. A firefighter spokesperson said it was difficult to fight the fire directly.     T / F

2. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article.

  1. extreme
  2. deadly
  3. serious
  4. enormous
  5. residents
  6. kind
  7. created
  8. dubbed
  9. blaze
  10. scenario
  1. nicknamed
  2. worrying
  3. locals
  4. made
  5. chain of events
  6. hazardous
  7. huge
  8. fire
  9. lethal
  10. type

3. PHRASE MATCH: (Sometimes more than one choice is possible.)

  1. Extreme heat and wildfires are
  2. Europe is experiencing record-
  3. deadly wildfires are currently
  4. firefighters are battling to keep
  5. 17,000 residents were
  6. the fires suddenly spread
  7. fires created by the clouds were almost
  8. It is shifting
  9. firefighters were in "a David-
  10. locals are now worrying
  1. non-stop
  2. burning out of control
  3. the fires under control
  4. impossible to put out
  5. about the future
  6. becoming common
  7. evacuated from the city
  8. versus-Goliath scenario
  9. breaking temperatures
  10. in different directions

Gap fill

Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
serious
darkest
control
common
wearing
deadly
evacuated
limits

Extreme heat and wildfires are becoming (1) ______________________________________________ across the globe. Europe is experiencing record-breaking temperatures and heatwaves. Many (2) _____________________________________________ wildfires are currently burning out of control across France and Spain. The biggest and most (3) ______________________________________________ of these is getting close to the southern French city of Bordeaux. The enormous fire is just 8 km from the city's outer (4) ______________________________________________. More than 2,500 firefighters are battling to keep the fires under (5) ______________________________________________. On Monday, 17,000 residents were (6) ______________________________________________ from the city. There are fears that tens of thousands more might have to leave. The "France 24" news site said the city had an "unsettling resemblance to the (7) ______________________________________________ days of the Covid-19 pandemic" with people (8) ______________________________________________ masks.

Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
clouds
impossible
kind
directly
directions
future
intense
blaze

France's National Firefighters Federation said the (9) ______________________________________________ of wildfire outside of Bordeaux has never been seen in France before. A spokesperson said the (10) ______________________________________________ heat has created "fire clouds". NASA dubbed these the "fire-breathing dragon of (11) ______________________________________________". They create their own winds, which means the fires suddenly spread in different (12) ______________________________________________. The firefighters' spokesperson said the fires created by the clouds were almost (13) ______________________________________________ to put out. He said: "We don't know how the (14) ______________________________________________ will spread. It is shifting non-stop. We cannot fight it (15) ______________________________________________." He said his firefighters were in "a David-versus-Goliath scenario". Bordeaux locals are now worrying about the (16) ______________________________________________ of their city.

Listening — Guess the answers. Listen to check.

1) Extreme heat and wildfires are becoming common ______
     a.  across the global
     b.  across the globes
     c.  across the globe
     d.  across a globe
2)  Many deadly wildfires are currently burning ______
     a.  outer control
     b.  out off control
     c.  out of control
     d.  out of controls
3)  More than 2,500 firefighters are battling to keep the ______
     a.  fires under control
     b.  fires upper control
     c.  fires udder control
     d.  fires ender control
4)  There are fears that tens of thousands more might ______
     a.  have to leaving
     b.  have to leaves
     c.  have to left
     d.  have to leave
5)  resemblance to the darkest days of the Covid-19 pandemic with ______
     a.  people wear ring masks
     b.  people wear in masks
     c.  people wearing mask
     d.  people wearing masks

6)  which means the fires suddenly spread ______
     a.  in different direction
     b.  in different directions
     c.  in difference directions
     d.  indifferent directions
7)  fires created by the clouds were almost impossible ______
     a.  to put out
     b.  to put tout
     c.  too put out
     d.  to putter out
8)  We don't know how the blaze will spread. It is ______.
     a.  shift in not-stop
     b.  shifting non-stops
     c.  shifting non-stop
     d.  shifts in non-stop
9)  He said his firefighters were in "a David-______"
     a.  versus-Goliath scenario
     b.  versions-Goliath scenes
     c.  verses-Goliath scenario
     d.  verse is Goliath scenario
10)  Bordeaux locals are now worrying about the future ______
     a.  off their city
     b.  of there city
     c.  of their city
     d.  offer city

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

Extreme heat and wildfires are becoming common (1) __________________________________________________. Europe is experiencing record-breaking temperatures and heatwaves. Many deadly wildfires are currently burning (2) __________________________________________________ across France and Spain. The biggest and most serious of these is (3) __________________________________________________ the southern French city of Bordeaux. The enormous fire is just 8 km from the city's outer limits. More than 2,500 firefighters are (4) __________________________________________________ the fires under control. On Monday, 17,000 residents were evacuated from the city. There are (5) __________________________________________________ of thousands more might have to leave. The "France 24" news site said the city had an "unsettling resemblance to the (6) __________________________________________________ the Covid-19 pandemic" with people wearing masks.

France's National Firefighters Federation said the kind of wildfire outside of Bordeaux has never (7) __________________________________________________ France before. A spokesperson said the intense heat has created "fire clouds". NASA dubbed these the "fire-breathing (8) __________________________________________________". They create their own winds, which means the fires (9) __________________________________________________ different directions. The firefighters' spokesperson said the fires created by the clouds were almost impossible (10) __________________________________________________. He said: "We don't know how the (11) __________________________________________________. It is shifting non-stop. We cannot fight it directly." He said his firefighters were in "a David-versus-Goliath scenario". Bordeaux locals (12) __________________________________________________ about the future of their city.

Comprehension questions

  1. What does the article say is now common worldwide besides wildfires?
  2. How does the article describe temperatures in Europe?
  3. How far from Bordeaux's outer city limits is the wildfire?
  4. How many Bordeaux residents have left the city because of the wildfire?
  5. What did the France 24 website liken Bordeaux during the wildfire to?
  6. How many times before has France seen a wildfire like this?
  7. What did NASA call clouds made from fire?
  8. What do fire clouds create?
  9. What is the wildfire doing non-stop?
  10. What are Bordeaux residents worried about?

Multiple choice quiz

1) What does the article say is now common worldwide besides wildfires?
a) drought
b) extreme heat
c) stronger hurricanes
d) more heavy rain
2) How does the article describe temperatures in Europe?
a) dangerously hot
b) scorching
c) They are up and down.
d) record breaking
3) How far from Bordeaux's outer city limits is the wildfire?
a) 8 km
b) 5 km
c) 13 km
d) 10 km
4) How many Bordeaux residents have left the city because of the wildfire?
a) 13,000
b) 15,000
c) 17,000
d) 19,000
5) What did the France 24 website liken Bordeaux during the wildfire to?
a) hell
b) the Covid-19 pandemic
c) the end of the world
d) an oven

6) How many times before has France seen a wildfire like this?
a) once
b) a few times
c) none
d) seven times
7) What did NASA call clouds made from fire?
a) fire-breathing cloud dragons
b) fire-clouding dragon breaths
c) fire dragons of breathing clouds
d) fire-breathing dragon of clouds
8) What do fire clouds create?
a) their own winds
b) furnaces
c) ovens
d) solar winds
9) What is the wildfire doing non-stop?
a) shifting
b) exploding
c) stopping
d) smouldering
10) What are Bordeaux residents worried about?
a) the price of oil
b) the future of their city
c) the price of wine
d) the future of the planet

Role play

Role  A – Passport
You think a passport is the first thing you must take if you need to evacuate. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what their things aren't as important. Also, tell the others which is the least important of these (and why): warm jacket, smartphone or pet.

Role  B – Warm Jacket
You think a warm jacket is the first thing you must take if you need to evacuate. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what their things aren't as important. Also, tell the others which is the least important of these (and why): passport, smartphone or pet.

Role  C – Smartphone
You think a smartphone is the first thing you must take if you need to evacuate. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what their things aren't as important. Also, tell the others which is the least important of these (and why): warm jacket, passport or pet.

Role  D – Your Pet
You think your pet is the first thing you must take if you need to evacuate. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what their things aren't as important. Also, tell the others which is the least important of these (and why): warm jacket, smartphone or passport.

After reading / listening

1. WORD SEARCH: Look in your dictionary / computer to find collocates, other meanings, information, synonyms … for the words...

'wild'

  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________

    • and 'fire'.

  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________

    • • Share your findings with your partners.

    • Make questions using the words you found.

    • Ask your partner / group your questions.

    2. ARTICLE QUESTIONS: Look back at the article and write down some questions you would like to ask the class about the text.

    •Share your questions with other classmates / groups. •Ask your partner / group your questions.

    3. GAP FILL: In pairs / groups, compare your answers to this exercise. Check your answers. Talk about the words from the activity. Were they new, interesting, worth learning…?

    4. VOCABULARY: Circle any words you do not understand. In groups, pool unknown words and use dictionaries to find their meanings.

    5. TEST EACH OTHER: Look at the words below. With your partner, try to recall how they were used in the text:

    • common
    • deadly
    • close
    • keep
    • fears
    • darkest
    • outside
    • NASA
    • spread
    • blaze
    • shifting
    • locals

    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 - Wildfires

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

    1. What did you think when you read the headline?
    2. What images are in your mind when you hear the word 'wildfire'?
    3. How hot is it where you are?
    4. What do you think of wildfires?
    5. What do you think of the record-breaking temperatures?
    6. How can governments stop the spread of wildfires?
    7. What would you do if wildfires were near your house?
    8. What would you take if you were evacuated?
    9. How is the changing climate affecting you?
    10. What advice do you have for people near the wildfires?

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

    1. Did you like reading this article? Why/not?
    2. What do you think of when you hear the word 'evacuation'?
    3. What do you think about what you read?
    4. What do you think of firefighting as a job?
    5. What do we need to do to live in the changing climate?
    6. What will you do if temperatures become really high?
    7. What three adjectives best describe this story?
    8. Why are firefighters facing a 'David-versus-Goliath scenario'?
    9. Have you ever faced a 'David-versus-Goliath scenario'?
    10. What questions would you like to ask the firefighters?

    Discussion — Write your own questions

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

    (a) ________________

    (b) ________________

    (c) ________________

    (d) ________________

    (e) ________________

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

    (f) ________________

    (g) ________________

    (h) ________________

    (i) ________________

    (j) ________________

    Language — Cloze (Gap-fill)

    (1) ____ heat and wildfires are becoming common across the globe. Europe is experiencing record-breaking temperatures and heatwaves. Many deadly wildfires are currently burning (2) ____ of control across France and Spain. The biggest and most serious (3) ____ these is getting close to the southern French city of Bordeaux. The enormous fire is just 8 km from the city's outer limits. More than 2,500 firefighters are battling to keep the fires (4) ____ control. On Monday, 17,000 residents were evacuated from the city. There are (5) ____ that tens of thousands more might have to leave. The "France 24" news site said the city had an "unsettling resemblance to the darkest days of the Covid-19 pandemic" with people (6) ____ masks.

    France's National Firefighters Federation said the (7) ____ of wildfire outside of Bordeaux has never been seen in France before. A spokesperson said the intense heat has created "fire clouds". NASA (8) ____ these the "fire-breathing dragon of clouds". They create their own winds, which means the fires suddenly spread (9) ____ different directions. The firefighters' spokesperson said the fires created by the clouds were almost impossible to put (10) ____. He said: "We don't know how the blaze will spread. It is (11) ____ non-stop. We cannot fight it directly." He said his firefighters were in "a David-versus-Goliath scenario". Bordeaux (12) ____ are now worrying about the future of their city.

    Which of these words go in the above text?

    1. (a)     extreme     (b)     extremes     (c)     extremely     (d)     extremity    
    2. (a)     in     (b)     out     (c)     up     (d)     down    
    3. (a)     at     (b)     to     (c)     of     (d)     as    
    4. (a)     lower     (b)     under     (c)     upper     (d)     under    
    5. (a)     frightens     (b)     scary     (c)     fears     (d)     terrifies    
    6. (a)     worn     (b)     wearing     (c)     wears     (d)     wear    
    7. (a)     kindling     (b)     kind     (c)     kinder     (d)     kindly    
    8. (a)     dibbed     (b)     dubbed     (c)     dabbed     (d)     dobbed    
    9. (a)     at     (b)     of     (c)     in     (d)     by    
    10. (a)     in     (b)     up     (c)     down     (d)     out    
    11. (a)     shift     (b)     shifted     (c)     shifts     (d)     shifting    
    12. (a)     locality     (b)     locally     (c)     local     (d)     locals

    Spelling

    Paragraph 1

    1. eextrem heat and wildfires
    2. becoming common across the geblo
    3. record-breaking tesupetamerr
    4. the nouormes fire
    5. 17,000 residents were edcaeavut
    6. the darkest days of the Covid-19 cdpinmae

    Paragraph 2

    1. the nneetsi heat
    2. the fire-breathing dragon of uodslc
    3. fires dulyndes spread in different directions
    4. We don't know how the eablz will spread
    5. We cannot fight it delciytr
    6. a David-versus-Goliath carsnieo

    Put the text back together

    (    )   "fire-breathing dragon of clouds". They create their own winds, which means the fires suddenly
    (    )   breaking temperatures and heatwaves. Many deadly wildfires are currently burning out of
    (    )   control across France and Spain. The biggest and most serious of these is getting close
    (  1  )   Extreme heat and wildfires are becoming common across the globe. Europe is experiencing record-
    (    )   firefighters are battling to keep the fires under control. On Monday, 17,000 residents were evacuated
    (    )   France's National Firefighters Federation said the kind of wildfire outside of Bordeaux has never been
    (    )   from the city. There are fears that tens of thousands more might have to leave. The "France 24" news site said the city
    (    )   had an "unsettling resemblance to the darkest days of the Covid-19 pandemic" with people wearing masks.
    (    )   put out. He said: "We don't know how the blaze will spread. It is shifting non-
    (    )   seen in France before. A spokesperson said the intense heat has created "fire clouds". NASA dubbed these the
    (    )   spread in different directions. The firefighters' spokesperson said the fires created by the clouds were almost impossible to
    (    )   stop. We cannot fight it directly." He said his firefighters were in "a David-
    (    )   to the southern French city of Bordeaux. The enormous fire is just 8 km from the city's outer limits. More than 2,500
    (    )   versus-Goliath scenario". Bordeaux locals are now worrying about the future of their city.

    Put the words in the right order

    1. and   are   becoming   common   Extreme   heat   wildfires   .
    2. are   burning   control   currently   Deadly   of   out   wildfires   .
    3. close   getting   is   most   of   serious   The   these   .
    4. are   battling   control   Firefighters   fires   keep   to   under   .
    5. have   leave   might   more   of   Tens   thousands   to   .
    6. clouds   created   fire   has   heat   intense   The   .
    7. different   directions   fires   in   spread   suddenly   The   .
    8. created   fires   impossible   out   put   The   to   were   .
    9. blaze   don't   how   know   spread   the   We   will   .
    10. about   are   future   Locals   now   the   worrying   the   .

    Circle the correct word (20 pairs)

    Extreme heat / heaters and wildfires are becoming common across the globe. Europe is experiencing record-breaking temperatures and heatwaves. Many deadly / dead wildfires are currently burning out of / to control across France and Spain. The biggest and most serious / seriously of these is getting close to the southern French city of Bordeaux. The enormous fire is just 8 km from the city's otter / outer limits. More than 2,500 firefighters are battles / battling to keep the fires under / over control. On Monday, 17,000 residents were evacuated from the city. There are fears / frightens that tens of thousands most / more might have to leave. The "France 24" news site said the city had an "unsettling resemblance to the darkest days of the Covid-19 pandemic" with people worn / wearing masks.

    France's National Firefighters Federation said the kind of wildfire outside at / of Bordeaux has never been seen in France after / before. A spokesperson said the intense heat has / have created "fire clouds". NASA dubbed these the "fire-breathing dragon of clouds". They create their own winds / windows, which means the fires suddenly spread in difference / different directions. The firefighters' spokesperson said the fires created up / by the clouds were almost impossible to put out / in. He said: "We don't know how the blaze will spread. It is shifting non-stop. We cannot fight them / it directly." He said this / his firefighters were in "a David-versus-Goliath scenario". Bordeaux locals / locally are now worrying about the future of their city.

    Talk about the connection between each pair of words in italics, and why the correct word is correct. Look up the definition of new words.

    Insert the vowels (a, e, i, o, u)

    _xtr_m_  h__t  _nd  w_ldf_r_s  _r_  b_c_m_ng  c_mm_n  _cr_ss  th_  gl_b_.  __r_p_  _s  _xp_r__nc_ng  r_c_rd-br__k_ng  t_mp_r_t_r_s  _nd  h__tw_v_s.  M_ny  d__dly  w_ldf_r_s  _r_  c_rr_ntly  b_rn_ng  __t  _f  c_ntr_l  _cr_ss  Fr_nc_  _nd  Sp__n.  Th_  b_gg_st  _nd  m_st  s_r___s  _f  th_s_  _s  g_tt_ng  cl_s_  t_  th_  s__th_rn  Fr_nch  c_ty  _f  B_rd___x.  Th_  _n_rm__s  f_r_  _s  j_st  8  km  fr_m  th_  c_ty's  __t_r  l_m_ts.  M_r_  th_n  2,500  f_r_f_ght_rs  _r_  b_ttl_ng  t_  k__p  th_  f_r_s  _nd_r  c_ntr_l.  _n  M_nd_y,  17,000  r_s_d_nts  w_r_  _v_c__t_d  fr_m  th_  c_ty.  Th_r_  _r_  f__rs  th_t  t_ns  _f  th__s_nds  m_r_  m_ght  h_v_  t_  l__v_.  Th_  "Fr_nc_  24"  n_ws  s_t_  s__d  th_  c_ty  h_d  _n  "_ns_ttl_ng  r_s_mbl_nc_  t_  th_  d_rk_st  d_ys  _f  th_  C_v_d-19  p_nd_m_c"  w_th  p__pl_  w__r_ng  m_sks.

    Fr_nc_'s  N_t__n_l  F_r_f_ght_rs  F_d_r_t__n  s__d  th_  k_nd  _f  w_ldf_r_  __ts_d_  _f  B_rd___x  h_s  n_v_r  b__n  s__n  _n  Fr_nc_  b_f_r_.  _  sp_k_sp_rs_n  s__d  th_  _nt_ns_  h__t  h_s  cr__t_d  "f_r_  cl__ds".  N_S_  d_bb_d  th_s_  th_  "f_r_-br__th_ng  dr_g_n  _f  cl__ds".  Th_y  cr__t_  th__r  _wn  w_nds,  wh_ch  m__ns  th_  f_r_s  s_dd_nly  spr__d  _n  d_ff_r_nt  d_r_ct__ns.  Th_  f_r_f_ght_rs'  sp_k_sp_rs_n  s__d  th_  f_r_s  cr__t_d  by  th_  cl__ds  w_r_  _lm_st  _mp_ss_bl_  t_  p_t  __t.  H_  s__d:  "W_  d_n't  kn_w  h_w  th_  bl_z_  w_ll  spr__d.  _t  _s  sh_ft_ng  n_n-st_p.  W_  c_nn_t  f_ght  _t  d_r_ctly."  H_  s__d  h_s  f_r_f_ght_rs  w_r_  _n  "_  D_v_d-v_rs_s-G_l__th  sc_n_r__".  B_rd___x  l_c_ls  _r_  n_w  w_rry_ng  _b__t  th_  f_t_r_  _f  th__r  c_ty.

    Punctuate the text and add capitals

    extreme heat and wildfires are becoming common across the globe europe is experiencing recordbreaking temperatures and heatwaves many deadly wildfires are currently burning out of control across france and spain the biggest and most serious of these is getting close to the southern french city of bordeaux the enormous fire is just 8 km from the citys outer limits more than 2500 firefighters are battling to keep the fires under control on monday 17000 residents were evacuated from the city there are fears that tens of thousands more might have to leave the france 24 news site said the city had an unsettling resemblance to the darkest days of the covid19 pandemic with people wearing masks

    frances national firefighters federation said the kind of wildfire outside of bordeaux has never been seen in france before a spokesperson said the intense heat has created fire clouds nasa dubbed these the firebreathing dragon of clouds they create their own winds which means the fires suddenly spread in different directions the firefighters spokesperson said the fires created by the clouds were almost impossible to put out he said we dont know how the blaze will spread it is shifting nonstop we cannot fight it directly he said his firefighters were in a davidversusgoliath scenario bordeaux locals are now worrying about the future of their city

    Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

    Extremeheatandwildfiresarebecomingcommonacrosstheglobe.Eur
    opeisexperiencingrecord-breakingtemperaturesandheatwaves.Ma
    nydeadlywildfiresarecurrentlyburningoutofcontrolacrossFranceand
    Spain.Thebiggestandmostseriousoftheseisgettingclosetothesouthe
    rnFrenchcityofBordeaux.Theenormousfireisjust8kmfromthecity'so
    uterlimits.Morethan2,500firefightersarebattlingtokeepthefiresunde
    rcontrol.OnMonday,17,000residentswereevacuatedfromthecity.Th
    erearefearsthattensofthousandsmoremighthavetoleave.The"Franc
    e24"newssitesaidthecityhadan"unsettlingresemblancetothedarkest
    daysoftheCovid-19pandemic"withpeoplewearingmasks.France'sN
    ationalFirefightersFederationsaidthekindofwildfireoutsideofBordea
    uxhasneverbeenseeninFrancebefore.Aspokespersonsaidtheintense
    heathascreated"fireclouds".NASAdubbedthesethe"fire-breathingd
    ragonofclouds".Theycreatetheirownwinds,whichmeansthefiressud
    denlyspreadindifferentdirections.Thefirefighters'spokespersonsaidt
    hefirescreatedbythecloudswerealmostimpossibletoputout.Hesaid:"
    Wedon'tknowhowtheblazewillspread.Itisshiftingnon-stop.Wecann
    otfightitdirectly."Hesaidhisfirefighterswerein"aDavid-versus-Goli
    athscenario".Bordeauxlocalsarenowworryingaboutthefutureoftheir
    city.

    Free writing

    Write about France's wildfires for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

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    Academic writing

    What can we do to reverse climate change. Discuss.

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    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 out more about this news story. Share what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.
    3. WILDFIRES: Make a poster about wildfires. Show your work to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all have similar things?
    4. CLIMATE CHANGE: Write a magazine article about all children having climate change courses from elementary school. Include imaginary interviews with people who are for and against this.
    Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Write down any new words and expressions you hear from your partner(s).
    5. 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.
    6. LETTER: Write a letter to an expert on wildfires. Ask him/her three questions about them. Give him/her three of your ideas on how to prevent them. Read your letter to your partner(s) in your next lesson. Your partner(s) will answer your questions.

    A Few Additional Activities for Students

    Ask your students what they have read, seen or heard about this news in their own language. Students are likely to / may have have encountered this news in their L1 and therefore bring a background knowledge to the classroom.

    Get students to role play different characters from this news story.

    Ask students to keep track of this news and revisit it to discuss in your next class.

    Ask students to male predictions of how this news might develop in the next few days or weeks, and then revisit and discuss in a future class.

    Ask students to write a follow-up story to this news.

    Students role play a journalist and someone who witnessed or was a part of this news. Perhaps they could make a video of the interview.

    Ask students to keep a news journal in English and add this story to their thoughts.

    Also...

    Buy my 1,000 Ideas and Activities for Language Teachers eBook. It has hundreds of ideas, activity templates, reproducible activities for:

    • News
    • Warm ups
    • Pre-reading / Post-reading
    • Using headlines
    • Working with words
    • While-reading / While-listening
    • Moving from text to speech
    • Post-reading / Post-listening
    • Discussions
    • Using opinions
    • Plans
    • Language
    • Using lists
    • Using quotes
    • Task-based activities
    • Role plays
    • Using the central characters in the article
    • Using themes from the news
    • Homework

    Buy my book

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    Answers

    (Please look at page 26 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

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