Fiche de révision : Environmental Disaster Prevention and Response

📋 Course Outline

1. Natural disasters and human causes
2. Environmental problems and matching definitions
3. How to save Earth collocations
4. Synonyms practice from word list
5. Antonyms practice from word list
6. Must have for logical past deduction
7. Listening comprehension: articles and deadlines
8. Listening comprehension: Diana and practice test
9. Spelling and missing words in dialogue
10. Communicative function: offering help
11. Pronunciation: similar underlined sounds
12. Grammar and vocabulary: mobile addiction and disability

📖 1. Natural disasters and human causes

🔑 Key Concepts & Definitions

• Natural disaster : A natural disaster is an event mainly caused by natural forces rather than human activity.
• Human-caused disaster : A human-caused disaster is an environmental or hazard event mainly caused by human activities.
• Air pollution : Air pollution is contamination of the air by harmful substances released into the atmosphere.
• Deforestation : Deforestation is the destruction or removal of forests, reducing habitats and increasing environmental damage.
• Chemical leak : A chemical leak is the release of harmful chemicals into the environment, often polluting land or water.

📝 Essential Points

• Earthquake, volcanic eruption, nuclear explosion, flood, drought, tsunami are classified as natural or human causes by the given list.
• Air pollution, deforestation, wildfire, chemical leak are classified as human-caused hazards in the given list.
• Global warming is linked to rising planet temperature due to pollution and greenhouse effects.
• Most rubbish comes from the land, so waste management is a key environmental issue.
• Sea levels rise because of melting ice, which is connected to global warming.
• Dropping rubbish on the ground is called littering, and forests are destroyed by deforestation.

💡 Memory Hook

Classify fast: Nature = Earth/Water extremes (earthquake, flood, tsunami, drought, volcano); Humans = Smoke/Waste/Fire/Chemicals (air pollution, deforestation, wildfire, chemical leak).

📖 2. Environmental problems and matching definitions

🔑 Key Concepts & Definitions

• Be going to future : A future form used for plans or decisions made before speaking and for predictions that seem certain from evidence.
• Will future : A future form used for quick decisions made at the moment of speaking and for predictions without relying on prior planning.
• Greenpeace : An environmental organization that campaigns for protecting nature and against harmful practices.
• Global warming : A major environmental challenge involving long-term heating of the Earth’s climate system.

📝 Essential Points

• Use be going to for planned events and for evidence-based predictions like “She is yawning a lot.”
• Use will for spontaneous decisions made right now, such as “I will call you back in a minute.”
• In questions, choose between “Are you going to…?” (future plan) and “Will you…?” (request/promise) based on context.
• In “I haven’t got my phone. That’s OK, I will lend mine,” the choice signals a decision made at the moment.
• Greenpeace was founded in Vancouver, Canada, in 1971 by a small group.
• Greenpeace campaigns against nuclear weapons testing and destructive practices in fishing and logging.

💡 Memory Hook

Plan = be going to; Spontaneous = will; Evidence-based prediction = be going to.

📖 3. How to save Earth collocations

🔑 Key Concepts & Definitions

• deforestation : Deforestation is the removal of forests, which harms habitats and reduces biodiversity.
• biodiversity reduction : Biodiversity reduction is the decline in the variety of living species in an area.
• climate change : Climate change is long-term shifts in weather patterns caused by factors such as greenhouse gases.
• ozone layer damage : Ozone layer damage is the weakening of the protective ozone in the stratosphere, increasing harmful UV exposure.
• acid rain : Acid rain is precipitation made acidic by air pollution, which can damage ecosystems and buildings.

📝 Essential Points

• Environmental problems affect land, water, and air, including deforestation, ecosystem damage, biodiversity loss, and pollution.
• Natural disasters are becoming more frequent and more destructive than in recorded history.
• The number of people vulnerable to disasters increased by 50,000 to 60,000 per decade since the early 1970s.
• At least half of disaster casualties are children.
• A major 2004 tsunami affected Sri Lanka, showing links between natural and man-made disaster impacts.
• Common collocation pattern: adjective + noun (e.g., devastating effects, global warming, dry climate, little protection).

💡 Memory Hook

Think: D-B-C-O-A = Deforestation, Biodiversity loss, Climate change, Ozone damage, Acid rain.

📖 4. Synonyms practice from word list

🔑 Key Concepts & Definitions

• Frightening : Adjective describing something that causes strong fear or alarm.
• Wandering : Verb describing moving around without a clear plan or direction.
• Blood-curdling scream : Phrase for an extremely terrifying shout or cry.
• Traumatized people : Phrase for people who feel shocked and deeply distressed after an event.

📝 Essential Points

• The text asks for a synonym of Frightening from paragraph 1.
• The text asks for a synonym meaning Walking around without any clear purpose or direction from paragraph 3.
• “Blood-curdling scream” functions as a synonym-like description of an extremely frightening sound.
• “People were wandering around traumatized” links wandering with being deeply distressed.
• Synonym tasks require matching meaning, not copying the same word form.
• Use context: fear words cluster with scream; movement words cluster with wandering.

💡 Memory Hook

Frightening → fear; Wandering → aimless moving.

📖 5. Antonyms practice from word list

🔑 Key Concepts & Definitions

• fearful : Adjective describing a state of being afraid or worried about something happening.
• mystery : Noun for something difficult to explain or understand.
• pollute : Verb meaning to make something dirty or harmful, especially by adding substances.
• existence : Noun for the fact of being alive or being present in the world.

📝 Essential Points

• Use the correct verb form in context: past perfect for an event that never happened before, then present/past for causes.
• Choose the right tense for questions about causes (e.g., what is causing…?) and for general scientific statements.
• When a verb is given in brackets, convert it to the tense that matches the surrounding timeline and subject.
• For the word-list cloze, use exactly 6 words from the list and leave out the 2 extra words.
• In the cloze about online learning, fit words to meaning: preference for cyber/e-learning, attending classes, logging in, and having a uniform.
• In the cloze about studying, use the word that matches “devoting enough time” (time requirement) rather than a clothing or access word.

💡 Memory Hook

Timeline cue: past perfect = “never happened before”; present simple = “what causes/what scientists say”.

📖 6. Must have for logical past deduction

🔑 Key Concepts & Definitions

• Online articles and video : A delivery mode where course materials are accessible through the internet.
• Homework deadline : A fixed day by which students must submit their homework.
• Practice test : A classroom assessment used to help students prepare before a real evaluation.
• False statement correction : A task where you rewrite a wrong sentence so it becomes true.
• Spelling completion : An exercise where you listen and fill missing words in a short text.

📝 Essential Points

• Course materials can be available online, via email, or in the library.
• The homework deadline is on Wednesday, Friday, or Sunday (choose the correct one from the listening).
• Diana is absent next Wednesday for a specific reason asked in the listening questions.
• The teacher gives a practice test to prepare students for an upcoming assessment.
• The false statement is corrected by changing the part about what the office needs from Diana.
• In the spelling task, you complete the phrase about checking your notebook and the phrase about reading chapters and accessing articles/video.

💡 Memory Hook

Deduction = Listen → pick the correct option → then correct the statement (wrong → true).

📖 7. Listening comprehension: articles and deadlines

🔑 Key Concepts & Definitions

• Tense and form : Tense and form are the grammatical choices that show when an action happens and how it relates to other actions in a sentence.
• Non-drug addictions : Non-drug addictions are compulsive behaviors that harm people without involving taking illegal or harmful substances.
• Prepaid method : The prepaid method is a mobile-phone payment system where users load credit in advance rather than paying later.
• Special education laws : Special education laws are legal rules that set rights and obligations for improving schooling for children with disabilities.
• Articles and prepositions : Articles and prepositions are small grammar words that control meaning, especially with nouns and fixed expressions like rights to/from.

📝 Essential Points

• Detention can be an effective punishment because it stops misbehavior and encourages students to think about their actions.
• Time management matters in secondary school, so removing time helps students value obeying instructions and trying to do well.
• Students who are often late should be detained after classes end.
• Detention may help with rude behavior, skipping classes, or cheating on assignments.
• Detention is unlikely to work for students who do not do homework or come unprepared because they are mature enough to understand the mistake.
• Mobile phone addiction is described as becoming one of the biggest non-drug addictions in the 21st century.

💡 Memory Hook

Detention targets behavior + reflection; mobile addiction targets time + constant use; laws target rights + equal access.

📖 8. Listening comprehension: Diana and practice test

🔑 Key Concepts & Definitions

• Listening comprehension : Listening comprehension is the skill of understanding spoken information to answer questions accurately.
• Practice test : A practice test is an extra exam-like activity given to help students prepare and improve performance.
• Homework deadline : A homework deadline is the specific day by which students must submit their assigned work.
• False statement correction : False statement correction is the task of rewriting a wrong sentence so it becomes true.

📝 Essential Points

• The articles and video are available online, not by email or in the library.
• Diana will be absent next Wednesday, so she cannot submit or attend as usual.
• The teacher gives a practice test to prepare students for upcoming work or assessment.
• The false statement says the office needs an email from Diana, but the correct idea must replace it.
• In the spelling task, Diana’s line includes “Let me just … my notebook” and “to …” the articles and video.
• The communicative function “How can I help you?” is used to offer assistance to someone.

💡 Memory Hook

Absence → practice test: when Diana can’t come, the teacher prepares everyone with extra practice.

📖 9. Spelling and missing words in dialogue

🔑 Key Concepts & Definitions

• Relative pronouns who whose whom : Relative pronouns who, whose, and whom link a clause to a person and change the grammatical role of the person in the sentence.
• Conjunctions moreover although despite : Conjunctions moreover, although, and despite connect ideas by adding information, showing contrast, or expressing concession.
• Verb forms in brackets tense choice : Bracketed verbs must match the sentence meaning and grammar, choosing the correct tense and form (e.g., passive vs active, infinitive vs finite).
• Gerund and infinitive after verbs : After certain verbs, English uses either a gerund (-ing) or an infinitive (to + verb) depending on the verb and meaning.
• Prepositions in phrasal verbs get rid of : Prepositions in fixed phrases like get rid of determine the correct meaning and must not be replaced by similar ones.

📝 Essential Points

• Use who for subject position in a relative clause (e.g., the person who does the action).
• Use whom for object position in a relative clause (e.g., the person whom you met).
• Use whose to show possession in a relative clause (e.g., the person whose book I read).
• Choose moreover for addition, although for contrast with a clause, and despite for contrast with a noun/gerund.
• In bracketed verb sets like considered, pick the form that matches the time reference and whether the clause is active or passive.
• After verbs like stop, use the correct form for the next action (e.g., stop + object + -ing) rather than an incorrect tense.

💡 Memory Hook

who = subject, whom = object, whose = possession; moreover = add, although = contrast-clause, despite = contrast-noun/gerund.

📖 10. Communicative function: offering help

🔑 Key Concepts & Definitions

• Special education laws : Special education laws are legal frameworks that set rights and protections for individuals with disabilities in education.
• Human rights of disabled individuals : Human rights of disabled individuals are guaranteed rights that protect people with disabilities from discrimination and support education access.
• Equal opportunities for education : Equal opportunities for education are conditions ensured by education systems so disabled students can study with the same rights as others.
• Must + perfect infinitive : Must + perfect infinitive is a grammar form used to make a logical inference about a past action.

📝 Essential Points

• UNICEF reports about 93 million children worldwide have some form of disability.
• Over 50% of children with disabilities do not attend school, which deprives them of the right to a better life.
• In the United States, the significance of special education is defined primarily by laws.
• These laws define disability rights and protect individuals from discrimination in everyday life.
• However/In addition/Despite: use However for contrast with the guarantee of human rights and education-system changes.
• Education laws aim to motivate and ensure equal opportunities for education for disabled students.

💡 Memory Hook

Must + perfect infinitive = “must have” = logical conclusion about what already happened.

📖 11. Pronunciation: similar underlined sounds

🔑 Key Concepts & Definitions

• Must have : Modal structure used to express a strong logical conclusion about a past action or situation.
• Perfect infinitive : Infinitive form used after modals like must to refer to completed past actions.
• Will-future : Future form used for predictions and for quick decisions made at the moment of speaking.
• Be going to : Future form used for plans made before speaking and for predictions based on evidence.
• Past participle : Verb form used with perfect structures like must have to describe completed actions.

📝 Essential Points

• Must + perfect infinitive has the pattern must + have + past participle.
• Use must have + past participle to infer what likely happened in the past.
• Will is used for predictions and for decisions made right now while speaking.
• Be going to is used for planned intentions and for predictions that seem certain from evidence.
• In exercises, choose between will and be going to based on whether the idea is planned or decided at the moment, or supported by evidence.
• Must have + past participle fits negatives and questions as well, but the meaning stays a logical past conclusion.

💡 Memory Hook

Must have = “must have happened”: logical past conclusion; Will = “right now/guess”; Going to = “plan/evidence”.

📖 12. Grammar and vocabulary: mobile addiction and disability

🔑 Key Concepts & Definitions

• Prepositions in descriptions : Prepositions are small words that show relationships like position, direction, time, or cause in a sentence.
• Tsunami event linking : Event sentences use connectors to show sequence, cause, and result when describing what happened during a disaster.
• Tense choice in disaster narratives : Past simple, past progressive, and past perfect are selected to show completed actions, ongoing actions, and earlier actions in the past.
• Disaster vocabulary : Disaster-related vocabulary includes words for environmental threats, natural disasters, and their impacts on people and ecosystems.

📝 Essential Points

• Use the correct preposition after verbs like be away from and when describing distance from the sun.
• Use prepositions to complete phrases such as seen in space and threatened by a challenge.
• In matching tasks, choose connectors that fit meaning: expectation, shock, danger, and helpful information.
• Past simple is used for a completed action at a specific past time (e.g., when the earthquake struck).
• Past progressive describes an action in progress at a past moment (e.g., people were sleeping).
• Past perfect marks an action completed before another past action (e.g., by the time firefighters arrived, the fire had already spread).

💡 Memory Hook

Past simple = finished; past progressive = ongoing; past perfect = earlier-before.

📅 Key Dates

📊 Synthesis Tables

Will vs be going to

⚠️ Common Pitfalls & Confusions

1. Mix up natural vs human causes: e.g., air pollution, deforestation, wildfire, and chemical leak are human-caused, while earthquake, flood, drought, tsunami, and volcanic eruption are natural.
2. Use will vs be going to incorrectly: will is for quick decisions or your own prediction, while be going to is for plans or evidence-based certainty.
3. Forget the must + perfect infinitive pattern: it must be must + have + past participle (e.g., She must have forgotten).
4. Choose the wrong relative pronoun: who = subject, whom = object, whose = possession.
5. Confuse past tenses in disaster narratives: past simple = completed action, past progressive = action in progress, past perfect = earlier-before another past action.
6. In “despite/although/moreover” tasks, use the right connector type: although contrasts clauses, despite contrasts nouns/gerunds, moreover adds information.
7. In cloze tasks, don’t copy the same word form blindly: synonym/antonym questions require meaning matching, not identical wording.

✅ Exam Checklist

1. Classify each disaster as (N) nature or (H) human activities using the given list (earthquake, air pollution, volcanic eruption, nuclear explosion, flood, drought, tsunami, deforestation, wildfire, chemical leak).
2. Complete the environmental-problem sentences with the correct options: global warming, melting ice, littering, deforestation, air pollution, chemical waste, rubbish in seas, polluted rivers, and the correct “in ____ can”
3. Match the Earth-saving collocations correctly: Recycle/Use/Reduce/Protect/Follow/Save/Raise with the correct B items (awareness, water and electricity, plastic and paper, clean energy, animals and plants, air pollution,
4. Find 6 synonym pairs from the word list by meaning (e.g., Frightening and the walking/aimless meaning) rather than copying forms.
5. Find 5 antonym pairs from the word list by meaning (e.g., deep/shallow, flood/drought) and apply them in context.
6. Use must + perfect infinitive to express logical inference about a past action, then complete sentences with must have + the correct past participle from the given verbs.
7. Choose between will-future and be going to in multiple-choice items based on whether it is a plan/decision before speaking or a rapid decision/evidence-based prediction at the moment.
8. Complete the will vs be going to cloze items using the correct tense for promises, plans, and immediate decisions (e.g., lend/give, buy now, study, look).
9. Select the correct grammar/vocabulary options in the Greenpeace paragraph (environmental terms, campaigns against, and the correct founded/created forms).
10. Add missing prepositions in the Earth paragraph (away from the sun; seen in space; threatened by; greatest challenge of our time).
11. Match sentences to form a coherent tsunami paragraph using the correct connectors/sequence (shock, what to expect, what to do, and safety).
12. Put bracketed words and verbs into the correct tense/form across the course: adjective forms (dry/global/devastating), rise by 50,000–60,000, and past simple vs past progressive vs past perfect in disaster narratives.