ISTANBUL 29 MAYIS UNIVERSITY

ENGLISH PREPARATION PROGRAMME

SKILLS HOMEWORK – PRE-INTERMEDIATE

Week 6

Name: Class:

TEXT 1

A. Extreme Weather
Extreme weather is when the weather is very different from normal. Extreme weather can take place over an hour,
a day or a long period of time. It can be dangerous and, in some cases, it can cause natural disasters.
B. Hurricane
A hurricane is a type of storm. These storms are also called cyclones or typhoons. In north and central America,
they are called hurricanes, in the north Pacific they are called typhoons, and in the Indian ocean and South Pacific
they are called cyclones. These storms are huge: they can be over 500 kilometers wide. They start at sea and move
towards land. When they come to land, they bring thunder, lightning, strong winds and very heavy rain. They can
be very dangerous and destroy buildings and even kill people.
C. Heat Waves and droughts
A heat wave is when there are high temperatures and it is much hotter than normal. In many areas, heat waves are
not a problem. In the UK, temperatures only reach around 30 °c in a heat wave, and many people enjoy the hot
weather. however, in some places, heat waves can cause droughts. In a drought, there is not enough water for
farmers to grow food. In some cases, people die because they don’t have enough water to drink. droughts are
common in many countries in Africa, but in the last ten years, droughts also happened in Afghanistan, China and
Iran.
D. Rain Storm
Too much rain can cause floods. Floods can destroy buildings and kill people. They can also destroy plants and
food, which can mean that there is not enough food for people to eat. In 1999, there were very bad floods in India,
Nepal, and other parts of Asia. In Bangladesh, almost half the country was covered in water. Thousands of homes
were damaged and hundreds of people died.
E. Sandstorms
A sandstorm is a large storm of dust and sand with strong winds. They can be very dangerous. It is difficult to
travel by car because people can’t see anything. even walking can be difficult. Sandstorms are common in the
Middle east and China. one of the worst sandstorms was in Iraq in 2011 when a storm lasted a whole week, causing
many people to have breathing problems.

A. Circle the statement that gives the most important idea in each paragraph.
1- Paragraph A
a. extreme weather is unusual and can cause natural disasters.
b. extreme weather can take place over an hour.
2- Paragraph B
a. hurricanes are sometimes called cyclones.
b. hurricanes are huge, dangerous storms.
3- Paragraph C
a. In a heat wave, temperatures are hotter than normal.
b. Some people in the UK like heat waves.
4- Paragraph D
a. In 1999, there were floods in Nepal.
 b Floods happen when there is too much rain.
5- Paragraph E
a. A sandstorm is a storm with a lot of wind and dust.
b. It is difficult to drive a car in a sandstorm.

B. Choose the correct ending for each sentence (1–4).

1- Hurricanes move from … 5- What type of text is this?

a. land to sea. a. an extract from a newspaper
b. sea to land. b. an extract from a textbook
2- Heatwaves are … c. an extract from a novel
a. sometimes a problem. 6- Who would be interested in reading this text?
b. always a problem. a. a biology student
3- Bangladesh had a … b. a history student
a. very big flood in 1999. c. a geography student
b. no floods in 1999. 7- What kind of information is included in the
4- The Middle East and China … text?
a. are the only places with sandstorms. a. facts
b. have a lot of sandstorms. b. opinions

TEXT 2

Extreme Ironing

What activities are sports? Running and football? Sure.

Synchronized swimming? Probably. Ballroom dancing? Maybe.
Playing cards? Probably not. Gardening? Definitely not. Most
people believe that sports must combine physical activity and
competition. If we use this definition, then extreme ironing is a
sport.

What is extreme ironing? Extreme ironing is pressing clothes in

very difficult places. Ironists must carry their irons, ironing
boards, and wrinkled laundry with them to the competition site. Some ironists take electric generators. Others
heat their irons on gas stoves. The competitors get more points for the difficulty of the location. However, the
quality of the ironing is important, too. Each item must be well pressed.

Extreme ironists compete in some amazing places. Contestants iron while they are climbing rocks, climbing
mountains, and climbing trees. They iron in canoes, on the backs of cows, and even underwater. One team
ironed while on a kayak in the Atlantic Ocean.

This sport is not a joke. Teams from 30 countries competed in the first world championships in Germany in
2002. Phil Shaw is the inventor of extreme ironing. He says that there are about 1,500 ironists worldwide. Some
teams have corporate sponsors. The German corporation Rowenta, an iron maker, pays for Shaw's team. The
goal of extreme ironists is to have their sport included in the Olympics. Maybe then they can start using their
real names. At the moment, contestants use names such as Steam, Cool Silk, and Iron Man. Why? Shaw admits,
"Most competitors don't want people to know that they are ironists."

A. Read the statements and write True (T) or False (F).

F _____1. Extreme ironing is a very old sport.

T _____2. Some companies sponsor extreme ironing teams.

_____3. Extreme ironists don't like people to know their names.
T

B. Answer the questions.

1. Check the items that ironists must carry with them.

__ iron __ laundry
__ ironing board __ gas stove
__electric generator __ food
__clothes

2. What do ironists get points for? 3. What else do they get points for?
a. how much laundry they iron a. when they iron

b. how fast they iron b. where they iron

c. how well they iron c. what they iron

d. how long they iron d. why they iron

Listening Homework Week 6

Question 1: Watch the video Stormchasers. Circle the correct words to complete the sentences.
1- Tornadoes only / mostly happen in the USA.
2- Some / All large tornadoes are dangerous.
3- Tornadoes never / sometimes kill people.
4- Stormchasers follow tornadoes for different / the same reasons.
5- Stormchasers’ work is / is not important.
6- Stormchasers can help us to get energy from tornadoes / save lives in the future.

Question 2: Watch again. Why do stormchasers do their job?

a. They want to study tornadoes and get more information.

b. They want to test their cars.
c. They want to take pictures and videos.
d. They think tornadoes aren’t dangerous.

Question 3: Are the statements below about Josh Wurman or Reed Timmer? Write J (Josh) or R (Reed) next to the
statements.

1- He is a scientist ____________________
J
2- He works with a large team of helpers. ____________________
J
3- He works with a few friends. ____________________
R
4- He uses advanced technology, like radar, to find tornadoes. ____________________
R
 5- He uses the internet and an ordinary 4x4 car to follow the tornadoes. ____________________
J
6- He has a special truck. ____________________
J
7- He makes videos and sells them to TV companies. ____________________
R
Question 4: If you won the lottery, what would you do? Use 100 - 120 words.

E.g., Think about…

…….. what would you do with the money.

……… what would you buy for you and family and friends.

● Make at least 3 sentences using second conditionals.

● Use defining relative clauses twice at least.

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