Drought conversation questions
Here are 25 discussion questions about drought, another one of the earth’s major problems. These questions are useful for general English and science debate and there are also some useful drought and dry expressions to share at the bottom of this page.
Before you start your discussion, make sure the class is familiar with these terms – water restrictions, conserve, well, groundwater, water storage, livestock, manage, drought-ridden, drought prone, survive, and cloud seeding.
The drought conversation questions are –
Does your country experience droughts? When is the dry season?
Have you ever experienced water restrictions? What things couldn’t you do?
In what ways are droughts dangerous?
How do droughts affect farmers? What can they do when there is no rain?
Do you try to conserve water in your home? How do you save water?
Which countries do you think experience the worst droughts?
How many months of dry weather would cause a drought where you live?
What happens to land when rain finally comes after a drought?
Are there any wells where you live? Do farmers use groundwater?
Does your town or city have a water storage lake? Do you know where it is?
What do you think is worse, having no water or not having electricity?
Do crops or livestock ever die because of drought in your country?
How do you think people living in deserts manage their water?
Do you think there are any ways to increase rainfall in drought-ridden areas?
What would you do for water if you had no rain for over a year?
What do wild animals do in times of drought?
Can you think of 5 different things that cause droughts?
Where does all the water go when land becomes dry?
Do you think it is okay for people to have swimming pools in very dry areas?
If you were a farmer in a drought prone area, what would you try to grow?
Do you store any water in your home? How do you store it?
How many days do you think you could survive if your house had no water?
Have you heard of cloud seeding? What is it about and how is it done?
What would happen if your country had no rain for 5 years?
For more a related worksheet, check out the water conversation questions.
Drought and dry expressions
Here are some related expressions you can introduce to your students after discussing the drought conversation questions.
The proverb “You never miss the water until the well runs dry“, means that you don’t really appreciate a person or a thing until it is gone or you no longer have it.
If you hang someone out to dry, you leave them in a bad or dangerous situation. In some cases, it can also mean to punish or scold a person.
If something is very dry. often the similies “dry as a bone” or “dry as dust” are used to describe it.
If there is nothing left of something, or its supply has run out you can say it has “run dry“.
To be “home and dry” means you have safely reached your destination.
