Listen to News with Tara Benwell - Instructions:
1. Preview the vocabulary and read the gapfill text.
2. Play the news report and try to fill in the blanks.
3. Answer the comprehension questions by writing full sentences.
4. Use the discussion question to write an essay or discuss the story with other students.
5. Click "show Answers" to see the full text.
6. Pretend to be a news anchor by reading each story out loud.
dateline: 30 October 2012
NB! For WEEKLY audio stories check out LISTEN & LEARN π
Americans Brace For Hurricane Sandy
Pre-Listening Vocabulary
- meteorologist: a person who studies and forecasts the weather
- category 1 hurricane: a storm with winds from 120-152 km/hour
- hybrid: made up of two elements
- collide: to crash into something
- rally: an event where people come together to show support
- brace: to prepare for something major or powerful
- catastrophic: terrible; causing much damage
Comprehension Questions
- Why is Hurricane Sandy expected to develop into a superstorm?
- Why does the report mention the presidential campaign?
- What is Hurricane Sandy’s nickname, and why has it been dubbed this?
Discussion Question: Many fear that flooding from this hurricane could disable the New York subway system. How would The Big Apple function without its mass transit service?
show Answershide Answers
Americans Brace For Hurricane Sandy
Approximately 60 million people were put on alert this weekend as Hurricane Sandy approached the Eastern Seaboard. Meteorologists expect the category 1 hurricane to collide with a cold front to create a hybrid superstorm. Many coastal communities were evacuated in the north east, including low-lying areas of New York City. Subway service, schools, and even presidential campaign rallies were shut down as Americans braced for catastrophic flooding and dangerously high winds. The pre-Halloween hybrid storm has been nicknamed “Frankenstorm”.
- Hurricane Sandy is expected to develop into a superstorm because it will likely collide with a cold front.
- The report mentions presidential campaigns because political rallies have been cancelled due to the storm. (The election is on November 6th.)
- Hurricane Sandy’s nickname is “Frankenstorm”. It has been called this because of the timing (near Halloween) and the fact that it is expected to be a hybrid storm.
Written and recorded by Tara Benwell for EnglishClub
Tara Benwell is a Canadian freelance writer and editor who specializes in materials and articles for the ELT industry.
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