INSTRUCTIONS TO WORK ON THE VIDEO :

Narrator:I remember the first time I saw a blue whale.

Man on boat:Look, look! (… Wow!)

Narrator:I’d followed them since childhood.

Diver:Where do you think it’s from? Is it from a ship?Narrator:I could see plastic everywhere. Every year 8 million tons of plastic are dumped into our oceans

Presenter:We were in what we thought was a relatively pristine environment. I started to wonder what was happening in oceans elsewhere on the planet. A journalist who loves the ocean

Narrator:Growing up, my world was the ocean. It’s where I feel the most spiritual. And a champion who dives below

Diver:As a free diver, it was a place where I proved myself to myself. Finally have the opportunity to pay the sea back. A crisis with global stakes

Narrator:Only a fraction of the plastic that we produce is recycled.

Man 2 on boat:This is never going to degrade. It’s got nowhere to go.

Narrator:It’s something that these animals are forced to endure because it was man-made and we put it into their environment.

Diver:The record is two hundred and seventy-six pieces of plastic inside one ninety-day-old chick. If the plastics are in the food chain for the dolphin, then they're also in our food chain.

Lady on boat:Exactly!

Narrator:Communities are built on these landfill sites … So sweet potatoes, corn, sugar cane, all growing on forty years of garbage.Do you have anything not wrapped in plastic?… No!… No! To save our future

Narrator:We have to make our life better for our kids' children. We need a wave of change

Narrator:Change is possible! It starts with us! 

Read the following article on a similar subject about plastic for reading comprehsion: 

First here's some vocabulary to help you:

shrubs + bushes = buissons, flummoxed = confused, to take something for granted = considerer comment acquis, litter = dechets, contact lenses = des lentilles, a curtain = un rideau, to threaten = menacer, groundwater= nappe phréatique, stockings = des bas, scarce = rare, an eyesore = moche, flimsy = peu solide, a ban = une interdiction.

Article: 

At the end of one holiday, driving through a flat rocky land of small shrubs and yellowing grasses, my friends and I decided to play a mock game of ‘I-Spy’. After S for sky, and R for rocks I said: I spy with my little eye something beginning with PB. PB? My friends were flummoxed. Look carefully I told them, it’s everywhere. Then they saw: PB in the trees, caught in the bushes, around the rocks and being blown about in the wind. Sometimes there were just small coloured pieces, sometimes whole pieces but certainly everywhere. Yes, the landscape was full of plastic bags.

It’s not just the omnipresent plastic bag, plastic itself is now everywhere and in more places than you might imagine. Of all the different material in the world plastic is perhaps the one we take most for granted, you may even be wearing plastic and not realise it. Are you wearing contact lenses? Then you’re wearing plastic. Is that shirt 100% cotton, that sweater 100% wool? Are they not 10% rayon, viscose or polyester? Have a close look at the label – you’re probably wearing plastic. So what exactly is plastic, and where does it come from?

Plastics are polymers: long chains of atoms bonded to one another. They can be developed from natural materials, from chemically modified natural materials or from completely man-made molecules. Plastic bags are usually manufactured from polyethylene resin pellets made from ethylene gas, a by-product of oil. They were first introduced in 1977 and now account for 80% of the shopping bags handed out in grocery stores in the US. Each year, an estimated 500 billion to 1 trillion plastic bags are consumed worldwide – that’s a million a minute. Most of it ends up as litter; only 0.5% of polythene bags are recycled in the UK and only between 1 – 3% in the US.

 However, polyethylene, or more commonly polythene, used for plastic bags is just one of many plastics used. The plastic used for adhesive tape, shower curtains and some clothing is PVC. It can also be a hard plastic, and over 50% of PVC is used in construction because it’s so cheap and easy to assemble. The gramophone records that were popular before CDs came along are often called vinyl records because they are made from PVC: Polyvinyl chloride. The disposal of PVC causes problems because if burned it releases toxic fumes and if land filled it releases additives which can threaten groundwater supplies. PVC cannot be recycled to the same quality and most is ‘downcycled’ to make inferior products such as garden furniture.

Nylon was first used commercially in 1938 for nylon-bristled toothbrushes. It was intended to be a synthetic replacement for silk and it became more famous when it was used for nylon stockings in 1940. Women preferred them to silk stockings because they were just as attractive but lasted longer and dried more quickly. Despite their popularity nylon stockings soon became scarce because all available nylon was needed during the Second World War, this time to replace silk parachutes. Nylon can be found in many things including fabrics and carpets, guitar strings and fishing lines, while solid nylon is used for mechanical parts and engineering material. While nylon was intended to replace silk it is thought that celluloid was created in 1856 to replace ivory in items such as billiard balls. Celluloid became famous as the first flexible photographic film used for still photography and motion pictures which is why ‘movies’ are sometimes called ‘films’. Apart from making table tennis balls it’s no longer widely used.

In the kitchen you’ll find Formica on the tables, Teflon on non-stick frying pans and perhaps acrylic paint on the walls. Bowls, bottles, containers, and cutlery - it’s all made from different kinds of plastic.

Meanwhile the landscape is covered in plastic bags. In South Africa the plastic blossom is known as the ‘national flower’, in Ireland it’s called the ‘national flag’. Tanzania’s Director of Environment said the bags were an eyesore. So these countries, and others, have decided enough is enough. In South Africa the bags are now made more durable and therefore more expensive, and therefore reused rather than thrown away. In 2002 Ireland imposed a plastic bag tax, known as PlasTax, which in the first year reduced consumption by 90% and resulted in approximately 1 billion fewer bags being consumed annually. The tax also raised almost $10,000 for an environmental fund. Tanzania, along with Zanzibar, has now banned flimsy plastic bags and anyone caught importing or selling a bag thinner than 30 microns could face six months in jail or a $2,000 fine. The ban is also a result of the damage the bags do to animals and marine life. Thousands of sea turtles, for example, die every year from eating discarded plastic bags mistaken for food. To them the bags look like tasty jellyfish.

So plastic is the good, the bad and the ugly. It’s practical and cheap - but we might end up counting the cost later.

Video questions: 

1. when did the narator start following blue whales? 

2. How many tons of plastic are dumped into the ocean every year? 

3. What does the narrator do for a living? 

4. How does the free diver feel about her work trying to clean the oceans? 

5. Why is the plastic in the ocean never going to degrade? 

6. How many peices od plastic were found in a ninety-day-old chick? 

7. What has been built on the landfill sites? 

8. What does the main narrator believe is possible?

Article questions: 

Paragraph 1:

• In the game of “I spy” what does PB stand for?
• True or false? It’s difficult to see the PB in the countryside.

Paragraph 2:

• List 4 things that contain plastic.

Paragraph 3.

• When did people start using plastic bags?
• True or false? 80 % of shopping bags are now made in the US.

• True or false? More plastic shopping bags are thrown away than recycled in the UK and US.

Paragraph 4:

• What is half of the plastic PVC used for and why?

• What are two of the problems of throwing away PVC?

Paragraph 5:

• What was the plastic Nylon used for during The War and why?

• True or false? These days, we don’t use Nylon for anything.

Video answers: 

1. When he was a child. 

2. 8 million 

3. He's a journalist 

4. That it's her way to pay back the ocean for the pleasure it has given her. 

5. because it has nowhere to go

6. 276 

7. communities -including their food production 

8. He believes change is possible and it starts with us 

Reading article asnwers:  

• Plastic bag
• False – you can see it everywhere.
• Viscose, rayon, polyester and contact lenses
• 1977
• False – 80% of shopping bags used in grocery stores in the US are made of plastic
• True
• In construction because it’s easy and cheap to assemble
• They are polluting – produce toxic waste and additives that pollute groundwater. They cannot be recycled to the same quality.
• Nylon stockings as a replacement for silk. Nylon was also used for parachutes.
• False – fabrics, carpets, guitar strings etc.

Here is another text about ocean pollution.

The name of the causes are missing. Can you put them in the correct place ?

Ocean Pollution: Causes, Effects and Prevention

Oceans, which account for 70 percent of the surface of our planet, play a pivotal role in the health of our planet and those who inhabit it. Unfortunately, our oceans are polluted. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, billions of pounds of trash and other pollutants enter our oceans every year.

The monumental impacts of this are far-reaching. In this post, we’re taking a closer look at the various causes of ocean pollution, its effects and the steps we can take to combat it. 

Causes of Ocean Pollution

There are many causes of ocean pollution. Of all the facts, there is one constant: most pollution in our oceans begins on land and is caused by humans. Here are some of the major causes of marine pollution:

1)...........................

Nonpoint source pollution comes from a variety of different locations and sources. The result of this is runoff, which occurs when rain or snow moves pollutants from the ground into the ocean. For instance, after a heavy rainstorm, water flows off roads into the ocean, taking oil left on streets from cars with it.

2)...........................

Manufacturing plants in some areas of the world release toxic waste into the ocean, including mercury. While it’s intentionally being released into the sea, sewage also contributes to ocean pollution, as well as plastic products. According to Ocean Conservancy, eight million metric tons of plastic goes into our oceans every year.

3)........................

Ships are major contributors to ocean pollution, especially when crude oil spills occur. Crude oil lasts for years in the ocean and is difficult to clean up.

4)........................

Atmospheric pollution, which refers to objects carried by the wind to the ocean, is a big problem. Items such as plastic bags and styrofoam containers become suspended in the water and don’t decompose.

5)........................

Deep-sea ocean mining causes pollution and disruption at the lowest levels of the ocean. Drilling for substances such as cobalt, zinc, silver, gold and copper creates harmful sulfide deposits deep in the ocean.

Effects of Ocean Pollution

Ocean pollution has many consequences that directly and indirectly affect marine life, as well as humans. Here are some of the most common effects of ocean pollution:

Harmful to marine animals

Sea animals are common victims of ocean pollution. Oil spills, for instance, will ensnare and suffocate marine animals by permeating their gills. When the oil gets into seabird feathers, they may not be able to fly or feed their young. Animals that aren’t killed by crude oil may suffer from cancer, behavioral changes and become unable to reproduce.

Marine animals also mistake small plastic debris for food or become entangled in or strangled by plastic bags and discarded fishing nets. Animals most vulnerable to harm from plastic debris in the ocean include dolphins, fish, sharks, turtles, seabirds and crabs.

Depletion of oxygen in seawater

As excess debris in the ocean slowly degrades over many years it uses oxygen to do so, resulting in less 02 in the ocean. Low levels of oxygen in the ocean lead to the death of ocean animals such as penguins, dolphins, whales and sharks.

Excess nitrogen and phosphorus in seawater also cause oxygen depletion. When a great deal of oxygen depletion occurs in an area of the ocean, it can become a dead zone where no marine life can survive.

A threat to human health

Pollutants in the ocean make their way back to humans. Small organisms ingest toxins and are eaten by larger predators, many of which are seafood that we eventually eat. When the toxins in contaminated animals get deposited in human tissue, it can lead to long-term health conditions, cancer and birth defects.

Ocean Pollution Solutions

Given the long-term, disastrous effects of ocean pollution, anything we can do to avoid contaminating our seas is a good idea. Here are some ocean pollution solutions that can make a big difference.

Reduce chemical fertilizer use

Excess chemical fertilizer eventually makes its way into the oceans. Choose organic fertilizers, which tend to be lower in nutrients, and use them at half strength or half as often as suggested.

Opt for reusable bottles and utensils

Throw-away plastic bottles and utensils, including straws, are massive ocean polluters. Rather than contributing to the threat to marine life, opt for reusable bottles and utensils.

Hold a cleanup

Organize a social distancing cleanup at the beach or a nearby park. The more trash you pick up and properly dispose of, the less waste goes into our oceans.

Properly dispose of plastics and trash

One of the simplest ways to reduce ocean pollution is to properly dispose of plastics and other recyclable materials, so they don’t end up in the ocean. In outdoor spaces, such as beaches and parks, dispose of trash in a secure receptacle or take it home with you.

To help encourage proper disposal, we recommend downloading our Waste Wizard App which allows you to input common waste items and see how to properly dispose of them. With a few small changes to our daily routines, we can all do our part to help reduce the amount of pollution going into our oceans. 

Find out what also contributes to land pollution.

 

 

A) Intentional discharge

B) Littering

C) Nonpoint source pollution (Runoff)

D) Oil spills

E) Ocean mining

Answers

 

1 C  2 A  3 D  4 B  5 E

Lire les phrases suivantes du texte de l'article en francais. Il faut les traduire vers l'anglais sans regarder le texte d;abord et puis vous les trouverez dans les paragraphes 6 et 7 

1. Dans la cuisine, on trouve Formica sur les tables, sur les poeles antiadhesives Teflon et meme dans la painture acrylique sur les murs. 

2. En 2002, Ireland a imposé un impot sur les sacs plastiques qui s'appellle PlasTax. Dans la premiere année, la consommation a été reduit par 90% et le resultat est que actuellement, environ 1 billion de sacs plastiques de moins sont consommés chaque année. 

3. L'interdiction est aussi un resultat de la destruction subi par les animaux et la vie marine. Des miliers de tortues de mer meurent chaque année apres avoir mangé des sacs plastiques car ils croient que ils sont du nourriture. 

The passive…

We make the passive by putting the verb 'to be' into whatever tense we need and then adding the past participle. For regular verbs, we make the past participle by adding 'ed' to the infinitive.

 Present simple:   I make a cake  -  a cake is made

 Past simple:  I made a cake   - a cake was made 

When should we use the Passive?

• When we want to change the focus of the sentence:
  • The Mona Lisa was painted by Leonardo Da Vinci. (We are more interested in the painting than the artist in this sentence)

• When who or what causes the action is unknown or unimportant or obvious or 'people in general':
  • He was arrested (obvious agent, the police)
  • My bike has been stolen (unknown agent).
  • The road is being repaired (unimportant agent).
  • The form can be obtained from the post office (people in general).

• In factual or scientific writing:
• The chemical is placed in a test tube and the data entered into the computer.
• When the subject is very long:
• I was surprised by how well the students did in the test. (More natural than: 'how well the students did in the test surprised me')

Questions:

Practice 1: Make the sentences passive (present simple passive):

1. Somebody cleans the office every day. _The office is cleaned every day ________________________________

2. Somebody sends emails. _______________________________________________________________

3. Somebody cuts the grass. _______________________________________________________________

4. Somebody prefers chocolate. _______________________________________________________________

5. Somebody often steals cars. _______________________________________________________________

6. Somebody plays loud music. _______________________________________________________________

7. Somebody speaks English here. _______________________________________________________________

8. Somebody loves the London parks. _______________________________________________________________

9. Somebody wants staff. _______________________________________________________________

10. Somebody writes articles. _______________________________________________________________

 11. Somebody loves Julie. _______________________________________________________________

12. Somebody reads a lot of books. _______________________________________________________________

13. Somebody cooks dinner everyday. _______________________________________________________________

14. Somebody delivers milk in the mornings. _______________________________________________________________

15. Somebody buys flowers for the flat. ___________________________________

 

Practice 2: Make the sentences passive (past simple passive)

1. Somebody lost the letter. __The letter was lost __________________________________________

2. Somebody found the key. _______________________________________________________________

3. Somebody made mistakes. _______________________________________________________________

4. Somebody loved that woman. _______________________________________________________________

5. Somebody cleaned the rooms. _______________________________________________________________

6. Somebody fixed the computer. _______________________________________________________________

7. Somebody built that house. _______________________________________________________________

8. Somebody wrote ‘War and Peace’. _______________________________________________________________

9. Somebody painted The Mona Lisa. _______________________________________________________________

10. Somebody stole my wallet. _______________________________________________________________.

11. Somebody prepared lunch. _______________________________________________________________

12. Somebody drank a lot of coffee. _______________________________________________________________

13. Somebody forgot the papers. _______________________________________________________________

14. Somebody closed the windows. _______________________________________________________________

15. Somebody invited Julie and Luke to a party.

Answers:

Practice 1:

1. The office is cleaned every day.

2. Emails are sent.

3. The grass is cut.

4. Chocolate is preferred.

5. Cars are often stolen.

6. Loud music is played.

7. English is spoken here.

8. The London parks are loved.

9. Staff are wanted.

10. Articles are written.

11. Julie is loved.

12. A lot of books are read.

13. Dinner is cooked every day.

14. Milk is delivered in the mornings.

15. Flowers are bought for the flat.

Practice 2:

1. The letter was lost.

2. The key was found.

3. Mistakes were made.

4. That woman was loved.

5. The rooms were cleaned.

6. The computer was fixed.

7. That house was built.

8. ‘War and Peace’ was written.

9. The Mona Lisa was painted.

10. My wallet was stolen.

11. Lunch was prepared.

To outline : souligner, mettre en évidence

Supplies : approvisionnements

Injury : une blessure

Sting : une piqûre

Spell : un sort

To be pregnant : tomber enceinte

Politely : gentiment

Record : un registre

To oversee : surveiller

Thin : maigre

To beg : supplier

Advice : conseil

Peseshet is a doctor and a teacher. The video describes a typical day of her life.

Now it is you turn. Write a text :

- Present yourself.

- Describe your profession.

- Tell what you did to get this job.

- Describe a typical day of your life : what usually happens when you are at work?

 

You can book a one to one class with a teacher who will correct your writing exercise.  One to one classes can be online, with a video call, anytime of the day. 

This gives you full flexibility for your timetable.

Please send us an email at afterschool at afterschoollyon.com.