A Plastic Ocean

A Plastic Ocean

A Plastic Ocean is a new documentary that looks at the problems that are caused when plastic waste goes into the sea. 

Preparation

Match the definition with the correct vocabulary.

Multiple Choice

an area where waste is buried under the ground

• a crisis

• to degrade

• a landfill site

• to dump

• to endure

Multiple Choice

to break down into smaller substances

• a crisis

• to degrade

• a landfill site

• to dump

• to endure

Multiple Choice

a difficult or dangerous situation that needs urgent attention

• a crisis

• to degrade

• a landfill site

• to dump

• to endure

Multiple Choice

to get rid of something quickly without worrying about it

• a crisis

• to degrade

• a landfill site

• to dump

• to endure

Multiple Choice

in perfect condition

• a free diver

• a fraction of something

• pristine

Multiple Choice

a diver who holds their breath under water

• a free diver

• a fraction of something

• pristine

Multiple Choice

a small part of something

• a free diver

• a fraction of something

• pristine

1. Check your understanding: multiple choice

Check the best answer to these questions. 

Multiple Choice

When did the first narrator start following blue whales?

• a. When he was a teenager

• b. When he was a child

• c. When he was an adult

Multiple Choice

How many tons of plastic are dumped into the oceans every year?

• a. 8 million

• b. 5 million

• c. 9 million

Multiple Choice

What does the narrator do for a living?

• a. He’s a TV presenter.

• b. He’s a diver.

• c. He’s a journalist.

Multiple Choice

How does the free diver feel about her work helping to clean the oceans?

• a. That more people should do it

• b. That it’s her way to pay back the ocean for all the pleasure it has given her

• c. That it’s an impossible job

Multiple Choice

How many pieces of plastic were found in a ninety-day-old chick?

• a. 256

• b. 266

• c. 276

Multiple Choice

What has been built on the landfill sites?

• a. Beaches – including resorts for tourists

• b. Factories – including plastic bottle factories

• c. Communities – including their food production

Multiple Choice

What does the main narrator believe is possible?

• a. He believes change is possible and it starts with us.

• b. He believes change is possible if we stop buying plastic bottles.

• c. He believes change is possible if we stop throwing bottles in the ocean.

Discussion

Open Ended

Do you use a lot of plastic?

Open Ended

What do you think we can do, as individuals, to help improve the problem of having too much plastic in our oceans?