June 20-26, 2013, Current Events Lesson Plan
Current Event:
A combination of steady, heavy rain and spring snowmelt off the Canadian Rockies caused massive flooding in southern Alberta. Downtown Calgary, Alberta’s largest city, was severely flooded from the Bow River. Tens of thousands of Calgary’s residents were forced to evacuate. Thousands of others in towns across southern Alberta were also evacuated because of flash flooding. Provincial officials said that rivers ran higher than they have ever seen, and whole houses were swept off their foundations. Banff National Park was temporarily closed as water blocked several of the park’s roads. The Calgary Zoo was flooded, and the zoo‘s staff risked their lives to evacuate animals and stop a hippo from escaping. The flood is estimated to have cost billions of dollars worth of damage.
Objective:
Alberta is the westernmost Prairie Province of Canada. The Canadian government established the province in 1905. Most of Alberta’s people live in the southern part of the province. Calgary is Alberta’s largest city, and Edmonton is its capital. The province is known for its mining and agriculture. About two-thirds of Canada’s petroleum and three-fourths of its natural gas comes from Alberta. The province also has more than half of Canada’s known coal deposits. Alberta is a leading producer of canola, cattle, and wheat. Millions of tourists visit the province yearly. Banff National Park, which lies on the eastern side of the Rocky Mountains, is the oldest national park in Canada. The Behind the Headlines news stories and related World Book articles explore Alberta and also weather related topics.
Words to know:
- Alberta
- Banff National Park
- Calgary
- Canada
- Edmonton
- Flash flood
- Flooding
- Lake Louise
- Prairie Provinces
- Rocky Mountains
- Trans-Canada Highway
- Zoo
Discussion Topics:
1. Ask your students what they know about Canada. (Students might say that it is the second-largest country in the world; Canada is a union of 10 provinces and 3 territories; Ottawa is the country’s capital and Toronto is its largest city; both Ottawa and Toronto are in Ontario, Canada’s most populous province; the northern part of the country is uninhabited or thinly populated.)
2. Earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, and other natural disasters are common throughout the world. Ask your students which natural disaster they think is the most dangerous.
3. The Alberta flood killed some of the animals in Calgary’s zoo. Ask your students to debate, “Animals should not be kept in captivity.”
4. Ask your students to use World Book’s Timelines feature to create a timeline of famous floods. (Students may wish to use World Book’s Flood article for help.)