Reading Skill

Understanding difficult vocabulary

You can often find out the meaning of difficult words or phrases, such as scientific names, by looking
for explanations the writer might have included.
Reading
Global Warming So what is the problem?
Human activity
Scientists are
(the things
saying that the
people do) is
earth is getting
warmer. making levels
of greenhouse
The earth´s gases in the atmosphere rise. Burning
temperature– fossil fuels (like coal and oil) and
how hot or cold it is – has been rising, cutting down trees are examples of
and the problem is getting worse. This this. It is making the earth warmer
is known as global warming. than it should be.
The Greenhouse Effect What could happen?
When sunlight reaches the earth, the In the next hundred years, the earth
atmosphere (which is the mix of could become a lot warmer the ice at
gases around the earth) stop some of the poles, or the most northern and
the heat from going back out into southern points of the earth, could
space. This is called the greenhouse melt. This will make the sea level rise
effect. It is important for maintaining – and many cities could be flooded.
carrying on – life on earth. Many kinds of
animals and
What are greenhouse gases?
plants could
Greenhouse gases are the gases in become
the atmosphere that actually trap the extinct –
heat we get from sunlight. Carbon meaning they
dioxide is one of the most important die out forever.
greenhouse gases.

Answer the questions.

A

1. Why is the greenhouse effect important?

2. Which human activities cause levels of greenhouse gases to rise?
3. What could happen if the sea level rise?
Practice

Write what the word or phrase from the passage means.

B

1. temperature
_________________________________________
_________________________________________
2. atmosphere
_________________________________________
_________________________________________
4. poles
_________________________________________
_________________________________________
5. become extinct
_________________________________________

3. maintaining _________________________________________
_________________________________________
_________________________________________

C Match the word with its definition.

1 burn a. n high temperature

2 level b. n the place beyond the earth

3 flood c. n the amount of something

compared to another amount

4 global d. adj about the whole world

5 heat e. v to destroy something with fire

6 melt f. v to keep something from getting

out

7 space g. v to become covered in water

8 trap h. v to change into liquid form

Practice

Circle the correct letter based on what the word or phrase from the passage
B means.

1. temperature

a) How hot and cold

something is 4. poles
b) It´s hard work
c) Use less electricity a) an area of ground next to a
house, often with grass,
2. atmosphere flowers, or trees
b) either of the opposite
a) soil or ground terminals of an electric
b) a situation that causes battery
difficulties c) the most northern and
c) gases around the earth southern points of the earth

5. become extinct
3. maintaining a) to die out
a) carrying on b) a floor in a building
b) weather being too hot c) having success
c) start recycling

C Match the word with its definition.

1 burn a. n high temperature

2 level b. n the place beyond the earth

3 flood c. n the amount of something

compared to another amount

4 global d. adj about the whole world

5 heat e. v to destroy something with fire

6 melt f. v to keep something from getting

out

7 space g. v to become covered in water

8 trap h. v to change into liquid form