Natural
Disasters
Subject: English
Grade: 10**
Topic: Natural
Disasters
Type of
lesson: Integrated (Reading, Speaking,
Writing, Listening)
Duration: 80
minutes
Teacher: Ezbayeva Ranagul
Rozakhunovna, teacher of AUES College
Learning
objectives
By the end of the lesson,
students will be able to:
-
Identify and describe
different types of natural disasters and their
consequences.
-
Expand vocabulary related to
the topic “Natural Disasters”.
-
Understand and use the Past
Simple and Past Continuous tenses to describe past
events.
-
Express opinions and discuss
ways to prevent or minimize the impact of natural
disasters.
-
Develop teamwork, critical
thinking, and problem-solving skills.
Expected
outcomes
Students
will:
-
Know basic terminology
connected with natural disasters;
-
Be able to discuss causes,
effects, and safety rules;
-
Demonstrate speaking and
writing fluency on the topic;
-
Collaborate effectively in
pairs and groups;
-
Reflect on environmental and
social responsibility.
Vocabulary
|
Type
|
Words
|
|
Natural disasters
|
earthquake, flood, drought,
tsunami, tornado, avalanche, hurricane, wildfire, landslide,
volcanic eruption
|
|
Useful verbs
|
destroy, damage, rescue,
survive, collapse, shake, rise, protect, evacuate,
warn
|
|
Adjectives
|
powerful, dangerous, sudden,
unpredictable, terrible, natural
|
|
Safety actions
|
take cover, move to higher
ground, stay calm, call for help, listen to emergency
alerts
|
Warm-up (5–7
min)
Teacher’s
activity:
-
Greet students, introduce the
topic.
-
Show pictures or short video
clips of different disasters (earthquake, flood, tornado,
etc.).
-
Ask
guiding questions:
-
What can you see in the
picture?
-
What do you think
happened?
-
What types of disasters are
common in Kazakhstan?
Activity: “Guess the
Disaster” — students match images to the
names of disasters.
Aim: Activate prior knowledge and
vocabulary.
Reading Activity (10–15
min)
Text:
In 2011, Japan experienced one
of the most powerful earthquakes in history.
The earthquake caused a huge tsunami that destroyed many towns and
villages.
Thousands of people lost their homes. After the disaster, people
all over the world sent help to Japan.
Tasks:
-
Read the text and underline
the natural disasters mentioned.
-
Answer the questions:
Post-reading discussion:
Speaking Activity (15
min)
Pair work / group
discussion:
-
Which natural disaster do you
think is the most dangerous? Why?
-
How can people prepare for
such disasters?
-
What should we do during an
earthquake or flood?
Useful phrases:
-
I think the most dangerous
disaster is...
-
People should... / shouldn’t...
-
In case of a flood, we
must...
-
It’s important to stay calm
and help others.
Extension:
Students create a Safety
Poster in pairs — “What to do during
a natural disaster.”
Writing Task (15–20
min)
Task:
Write a short report (100–120 words) about a natural disaster that
happened in the world or in your region.
Structure:
-
Introduction (What happened?
Where? When?)
-
Main part (What were the
consequences?)
-
Conclusion (What lessons can
we learn?)
Example:
Last summer, there was a big
flood in my region. The river rose after several days of heavy
rain. Many houses were damaged, and people had to leave their
homes. Volunteers and rescue teams helped to evacuate families to
safe places. This disaster showed how important it is to be ready
and help each other in difficult times.
Grammar Focus (10–12
min)
Topic: Past Simple vs. Past
Continuous
|
Rule
|
Example
|
|
We use
Past
Simple for completed actions in the
past.
|
The flood destroyed the
village.
|
|
We use
Past
Continuous for actions in progress at a
specific time in the past.
|
People were sleeping when the
earthquake started.
|
|
We use both to show
interrupted actions.
|
It was raining when the
tornado began.
|
Exercise:
Complete the sentences with the correct
tense.
-
The ground ______ (shake) when
people ______ (run) out of the buildings.
-
Many houses ______ (be)
destroyed by the hurricane.
-
It ______ (snow) heavily when
the avalanche ______ (start).
Listening (Optional, 10
min)
Play a short BBC Learning
English video “Natural Disasters”.
Task:
Assessment Criteria
|
Skills
|
Excellent
|
Good
|
Needs
Improvement
|
|
Vocabulary use
|
Uses 10+ topic words correctly
|
Uses 6–9 words
|
Uses fewer than 5 words
|
|
Speaking
|
Expresses ideas clearly and
confidently
|
Makes minor errors
|
Needs support and prompting
|
|
Writing
|
Logical, well-structured text
|
Some grammar errors
|
Poor structure or limited
vocabulary
|
|
Grammar
|
Uses Past Simple & Continuous
correctly
|
Minor mistakes
|
Frequent errors
|
|
Collaboration
|
Works actively in group
|
Participates partially
|
Passive participation
|
Reflection (3–5
min)
Students
answer:
-
What new words did you learn
today?
-
What did you find the most
interesting?
-
How can we help people during
a natural disaster?
Teacher summarizes and gives
feedback.
Conclusion
Developing students’ awareness
of natural disasters not only improves their language competence
but also strengthens their civic and social responsibility. The
topic motivates learners to think globally and act locally —
understanding how human actions affect the environment and how to
behave in emergency situations.