Vocabulary
Please match the word to its meaning. Then make a few sentences of your own.
1. anthropologist a. width, distance, length
2. circumference b. molten rock or magma
3. diameter c. to be at the center of attention
4. volcano d. to protect, look after
5. lava e. to consume , burn up, use
6. to be in the spotlight f. a scientist who studies the behavior
and development of humans
7. to collaborate g. opening in earth’s crust that
ejects gasses and molten rock
8. to guzzle h. with great impact, vigor or zeal
9. to safeguard i. boundary, edge, outer limits
10. like gangbusters j. to work together
EARTH DAY
Earth Day 2014 is right around the corner and
this year the theme is “Green Cities.”
What do you know about its history?
On April 22, 1970, anthropologist and environmentalist Margaret Mead started
the first Earth Day, an event to increase public awareness of the world’s
environmental problems.
Watch this video of Margaret Mead: http://www.history.com/topics/holidays/earth-
day/videos/margaret-mead-speaks-at-first-earth-day
Earth Day created an environmental movement. It began on April 22 and raised
public awareness of air and water pollution, Senator Gaylord Nelson, a Democrat
from Wisconsin, brought environmental issues into the national spotlight.
By the early 1960s Americans were becoming aware of the effects of pollution
on the environment. Rachel Carson’s 1962 bestseller “Silent Spring” highlighted
the dangerous effects of
pesticides on America’s
countrysides. Later in 1969,
a fire on Cleveland’s
Cuyahoga River focused on
the problem of chemical
waste disposal. Until that
time, protecting the planet’s
natural resources was not
part of the national political
agenda. Factories pumped
pollutants into the air, lakes,
and rivers with few legal
penalties. Big, gas-guzzling
cars were a sign of prosperity. Only a small portion of the American population
were recycling.
U.S. Senator Nelson was determined to convince the federal government that
the planet was at risk. In 1969, Nelson developed the idea for Earth Day after
he dreamed about a large-scale, environmental demonstration “to force this
issue onto the national agenda.”
Nelson announced the Earth Day concept at a meeting in Seattle in the fall of
1969 and invited the entire nation to get involved. He later remembered, “The
wire services carried the story from coast to coast. The response was electric.
It took off like gangbusters. Telegrams, letters and telephone inquiries poured
in from all across the country. The American people finally had an opportunity to
express its concern about what was happening to the land, rivers, lakes and air.”
According to Nelson, “Earth Day worked because of the response at the
grassroots level. We didn’t have the time to organize 20 million demonstrators
and thousands of schools and local communities. That was the remarkable thing
about Earth Day. It organized itself.”
On April 22, rallies were held in Philadelphia, Chicago, Los
Angeles and most other American cities, according to the
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). In New York City,
Mayor John Lindsay closed off 5th Avenue to traffic for
several hours and spoke at a rally in Union Square with
actors Paul Newman and Ali McGraw. In Washington, D.C.,
thousands of people listened to speeches and
performances by singer Pete Seeger and others, and
Congress went into recess so its members could speak at
Earth Day events.
The first Earth Day was effective at raising awareness about environmental
issues and changing public attitudes. According to the EPA, “Public opinion polls
showed a change in priorities after Earth Day 1970. When asked in May 1971,
25% of the U.S. public said that protecting the environment was an important
goal, a 2,500% increase over 1969.” During the 1970s, a number of important
pieces of environmental legislation were passed, among them the Clean Air Act,
the Water Quality Improvement Act, the Endangered Species Act, and the
Toxic Substances Control Act. Another key development was the establishment
in December 1970 of the EPA, which protects human health and safeguards the
natural environment—air, water and land.
Since 1970, Earth Day celebrations have grown.
In 1990, Earth Day went global, with 200 million
people in over 140 nations participating,
according to the Earth Day Network (EDN), a
nonprofit organization that coordinates Earth
Day activities. In 2000, Earth Day focused on
clean energy and involved hundreds of millions of
people in 184 countries and 5,000 environmental
groups, according to EDN. Activities ranged from
a traveling, talking drum chain in Gabon, Africa, to a gathering of hundreds of
thousands of people at the National Mall in Washington, D.C. Today, the Earth
Day Network collaborates with more than 17,000 partners and organizations in
174 countries. According to EDN, more than 1 billion people are involved in Earth
Day activities, making it “the largest secular civic event in the world.”
What do you know about Global Warming?
Watch this video to learn how global warming has changed the face of the
earth: http://www.history.com/topics/holidays/earth-day/videos
Do you know 20 fun
Earth facts?
Fill in the blanks.
1. The Nile River is the ______
river on Earth. It measures 6,650
kilometers in length.
2. Mt. Everest is the _______
mountain on Earth. Its peak measures 8848 meters above sea level.
3. The _______ point on Earth is the Dead Sea measuring 377
meters below sea level.
4. The Amazon Rainforest is the _______ tropical rainforest on
Earth.
5. The Sahara Desert is the _______ desert on Earth, covering
approximately 1/3 of Africa.
6. The Atlantic Ocean is the ______ ocean of the major oceans.
7. Earth is approximately 70% _____. Of that, 97% is salt water
and remaining is fresh water.
8. Is the Earth _____? Almost! It’s slightly flattened at the
North and South poles.
9. Earth is the ____ planet from the sun.
10. Earth is 150 million kilometers away from the _____.
11. It takes 8 minutes for the energy from the sun to reach ____.
12. Earth rotates around the sun at about 1,000 miles per ____.
13. Earth is the ___ largest planet in
diameter.
14. Earth is referred to as the ____ planet.
Earth looks blue because from outer space the
oceans and atmosphere combine to make our
planet look blue.
15. Earth’s ___________ measure is
almost 40,233 kilometers.
16. Earth’s ________ is 12,875 kilometers.
17. 80% of all life on Earth lives under the surface of the _____.
18. Most ________ take place under the water.
19. Magma is the hot liquid rock under the surface of the Earth.
When magma comes out of a volcano it is known as _____.
20. If an _________ occurs from under the sea it can cause a
tsunami.
What can I do to help?
One way to help the environment is recycling, but
more specifically, there are three factors that help
us focus our efforts: reduce, reuse and recycle.
To reduce something. If you eat 3 sweets instead of 10 per day, you are
reducing the number of sweets you eat, and therefore reducing the amount of
sugar you consume. In this case, the concept of reducing is linked to making
less garbage.
For example: If you buy lots of small juice boxes they make a lot of garbage. If
you buy one big juice box and refill washable bottles, you’re making less
garbage. Give 2 more examples of ways to reduce garbage.
To reuse something. If you fill a plastic bottle with water instead of throwing
it away, you are reusing it. The concept of reusing is linked to using an item
more than once.
For example: If the supermarket gives you your groceries in a plastic bag, you
can keep the bag and use it the next time you go to the market.
Give 2 more examples of reusing.
To recycle something. The concept of recycling is linked to turning something
that was once useful into another useful item.
For example: Materials that can be recycled are paper and glass.
What other materials may be recycled?
Earth Idioms:
Read each idiom, its meaning and example.
Then make sentences of your own.
1. How on earth...? How in the world...?
When asking a question, "How on earth..." and "How in the
world..." emphasize the fact that something incredible or
very hard to believe happened.
"How on earth did you get that job? (it was very hard to get)";
"How on earth did you fix that car!? (it was impossible to fix)".
2. down-to-earth – someone who is practical and realistic. It can also be
used for things or ideas.
Steven is a dreamer, but luckily his wife Sarah is down-to- earth, so she takes
care of their day-to-day lives.
We need someone with practical, down-to-earth ideas that work in the real world.
3. heaven on earth – something extremely good
Brian's parties are heaven on earth - the food and the music are marvelous!
4. like nothing on earth – very untidy, unusual or strange
Alice was like nothing on earth in that electric yellow dress!
5. hell on earth – an extremely unpleasant situation
Soldiers who survived the war in the jungle described it as hell on earth.
Discussion Questions:
1. Do you think Earth Day is important?
Why or why not?
2. Do you recycle? Why or why not?
3. What is one thing you can do on Earth Day to help the planet?
4. List five ways you can keep the planet clean.
