“There is enough freshwater on the planet for seven billion
people, but it is distributed unevenly and too much of it is wasted,
polluted and unsustainably managed.”
2015 United Nations Water Annual International Conference Report
1. Water Discussion
1. How important is water? What do we use water for?
2. How much water should we drink each day? Why? Do you drink this amount?
3. Can you drink the tap water where you live? Do you drink the tap water, or do you prefer to buy
bottles of water? Why?
4. What activities or sports can you do on or in water? Have you tried any of these?
5. What are the different bodies of water that you can find in nature? Which of these places do you
like visiting? What do you like to do there?
6. Which animals live in or near water? Which of these have you seen?
7. What are the different ways water can be dangerous?
8. Why is it important to save water? How can you save water in your day-to-day life?
2. Water Vocabulary
• well (noun) – a deep hole in the ground that water, oil or gas can be extracted from.
• drought (noun) – a period of no rain causing dry conditions.
• sanitation (noun) – a system of removing dirty water from houses and buildings to protect people’s
health.
• current (noun) – the movement of water, electricity, or air, amongst other things, in a particular
direction at a particular strength.
• saltwater vs freshwater (nouns, adjectives) – saltwater contains salt and is found in the sea;
freshwater contains no salt and is found in lakes and rivers inland.
• dehydrated (adjective) – when your body suffers from a lack of water affecting health; when water is
removed from food products for preservation.
Using the vocabulary words above, complete the following sentences (remember to use the correct
form of the word, e.g. verb conjugation or plural noun):
1. A local charity raised $10,000 to build for people in Africa, who, on average, have
to walk six kilometres to collect drinking water.
2. Crops haven’t been able to grow through the current resulting in a shortage of
food.
3. If you drink too much alcohol, you run the risk of becoming .
4. salmon have a fishier, brinier taste, whereas salmon have a
milder taste similar to trout.
5. The strong down the Pacific coast of South America makes it an ideal spot for
surfing.
6. Without , people would be at risk of diseases such as typhoid and cholera.
Water vocabulary comprehension questions
1. Have you ever thrown a coin into a well and made a wish? Did it come true?
2. Which parts of the world experience droughts? Do you think droughts will become more
common? Why? What effect will this have on the world?
3. Can you explain how the sanitation system works? Why is sanitation so important? What would
happen if there were no sanitation? How would you feel about drinking treated wastewater?
4. Where can you find the strongest currents in bodies of water? What problems might this cause?
5. How could you turn saltwater into freshwater if you needed some drinking water?
6. When are people usually dehydrated? What should you do if you are dehydrated?
3. Video: Water Scarcity
You are going to watch a video by TED Ed called “Are we running out of clean water?”
Watch the video here: https://yourenglishpal.com/blog/esl-conversation-lesson-plan-water/
While you watch the video, answer the following questions:
Multiple choice
1. Why can’t Earth run out of freshwater?
a) water scarcity b) the water cycle c) it is very accessible
2. What state is 2% of all water on Earth?
a) gas b) liquid c) solid
3. Which of the following DO NOT replenish the freshwater we use?
a) drains b) rain c) snow
4. What makes transporting water difficult in some regions?
a) the infrastructure b) the economy c) the terrain
Sentence completion
5. The water sources that humans rely on are being used up at an rate.
6. Only 3.6% of the water humanity consumes is used in the .
7. Farms around the world use the equivalent of 3.3 billion swimming pools of
water every year.
8. Some farmers have begun breeding plants that are not as as regular crops.
Short answer
9. Industries have adopted production processes that do what with water?
10. What should individuals reduce as a first step towards reducing water use?
11. Adopting what kind of lifestyle could help reduce the amount of water we use?
12. What kind of solution is required to solve the water shortage problem?
4. Water Conversation Questions
1. What are the different ways we could use water to produce energy?
2. How are we polluting water? What are the consequences of this?
3. A study found that 83% of drinking water contained microplastics. How did this happen, and how
does it make you feel?
4. How is it possible in the modern day that 2 billion people don’t have access to clean drinking
water in their homes?
5. Should water be considered a human right that is free for everyone on Earth? Why or why not?
6. Can you think of any wars or conflicts that happened over access to water? Do you think these
kinds of conflicts will be more common in the future? Why or why not?
7. What will happen in the future if rising temperatures and higher water consumption mean less
access to water?
8. Is water the most precious substance on Earth? Is there anything more valuable than water?
5. Water Writing Task
Write about your opinion of water. Try to use some of the vocabulary you learned earlier in this lesson. In
your answer, you could include some of the following topics:
• The ways humans rely on water.
• What you like to do in or near water.
• What people can do to save water.
Alternative exam practice question:
The amount of water that humans rely on to meet their needs is reducing. Why is this? What solutions
can you think of to address this problem?
