Unit 9. Deserts

Fill in each blank with one suitable word from the box.
crest

dune

desert

stretches

after corridors

1. The desert was named …..... a famous writer.
2. A …….. is a low hill of sand formed by a wind in a desert.
3. You can see hummock grasses on the ……. of dunes
in the Simpson Desert.
4. Spenifex grows in the ……….… between dunes and on the
more stable slopes.
5. The great Victoria Desert ………….. to the North of Nullabor.



1. What is a desert?
2. How is a desert formed?
3. Can human beings make a desert?
Why/ Why not?


* Vocabulary
1. cool (a)  cool (v)

làm cho mát, nguội

2. canal (n)

[kə'næl]

kênh, sông đào

3. needle (n)

['ni:dl]

Kim, lá kim

4. colony (n)

['kɔləni]

Thuộc địa

5. firewood (n)

['faiəwud]

Củi

6. edge (n)

[edʒ]

Rìa, cạnh

7. petroleum (n)

[pə'trouliəm] Dầu lửa


edge

Rìa, cạnh

firewood

Củi

petroleum

Dầu lửa

needle

Kim, lá kim

colony

Thuộc, địa

canal

kênh, sông đào

Frightening speed

Firewood

Australia

Petroleum

Sahara

Mauritania


Task1. Listen to the talk then decide the following
statements true (T) or false (F)?
T

1. In a desert, everything is hard.



2. Only trees with hard needles can grow in desert.
3. Space seems to have no limit in the desert.




4.Nature causes the change in the size and

location of the world’s desert.
5.Rabbits are one of the agents that help make
deserts in Australia.

F





Task2. Answer the following questions.
1. What central theme does the talk examine?
2. What is a desert?
3. What causes the growing of the world’s deserts?
4. In what way do rabbits contribute to the growing
of deserts in Australia?



Task2. Answer the following questions.
1. What central theme does the talk examine?
It examines deserts, what they are and how they are formed.
2. What is a desert?
It is a hot, dry, sandy place. It is also a beautiful land of
silence and space. The sun shines, the wind blows, and
time and space seem endless.
3. What causes the growing of the world’s deserts?
Nature and humans.
4. In what way do rabbits contribute to the growing of
deserts in Australia?

They contribute by eating every plant they can find.
This makes the land become desert.


Task3. Fill in the missing word(s)
In the developing countries, (1) ……………
90 percent of the
people use wood for cooking and heat. They cut down
trees for firewood. But trees are important. They cool the
plants
land under them and keep the sun off (2) smaller
…………………
When leaves fall from a tree, they make the land richer.
When trees are gone, the small plants die and the land
becomes desert.
Humans can make deserts, but humans can also
prevent their growth. Algeria planted a green wall of
(3)….……
trees across the edge of the Sahara to stop the desert
spreading Mauritania planted a similar
and sand from (4) ……………
wall around its (5) capital
……… Iran puts a thin covering of
petroleum on sandy areas and plant trees. Other
countries build long (6) canals
……… to bring water to the
desert areas.


At home: Summarize the main ideas

of the expert’s Talk. Use the following
suggestions:
 What is desert?
 What causes the growth of a desert?
 What should humans do to prevent the
growth of deserts?


 Summarize the main ideas
of the expert’s talk.
 Prepare writing lesson



:2
You’ve just lost
half of your
points!

You are unlucky!


What central theme does the talk examine?
A
A. It examines deserts, what they are and how
they are formed.
B. It examines plants and animals.
C. It examines sand in deserts.
D. B & C are correct.

X

2

Lucky
number!


What is a desert?
A. It is a hot, dry, sandy place.
B. It is also a beautiful land of silence and space.
C. The sun shines, the wind blows, and time and
space seem endless.
D
D. A, B, and C are correct.


What causes the growing of
the world’s deserts?
A. Sand.
B. Nature.
CC. Nature and humans.
D. Humans.


In what way do rabbits contribute to
the growing of deserts in Australia?
A. They contribute by cutting every plant they can find.
B. They contribute by eating every plant they can find.

B
This makes the land become desert.
C. They contribute by planting every plant they can find.
D. They destroy every plant they can find.