Mardi Gras remains one of the most quintessential celebrations associated with New Orleans culture. However, Mardi Gras (also referred to as Carnival) has evolved significantly over the years, both in New Orleans and other destinations across the globe that celebrate their own version of the holiday. This Reading Comprehension handout explores the history of Mardi Gras. This activity is suitable for advanced to proficient ESL learners or native English speakers. After carefully reading the text, students are required to complete some comprehension exercises including: comprehension questions a multiple choice exercise a crossword a definitions match This resource can be used as a mini-lesson, assigned for homework or used to for vocabulary building purposes. Total number of pages: 5 Answer key included

Extreme weather events - including powerful heat waves and devastating floods - are now sadly our new normal. In fact, the World Meteorological Organisation has repeatedly warned that due to climate change, extreme weather events are not only here to stay, but they will also become increasingly worse. This Reading Comprehension / Informational Text explores the top causes of climate change and why extreme weather events are now the new normal. This activity is suitable for advanced to proficient ESL learners or native English speakers. After carefully reading the text, students are required to complete some comprehension exercises including: comprehension questions a multiple choice exercise a crossword a definitions match This resource can be used as a mini-lesson, assigned for homework or used to for vocabulary building purposes. Total number of pages: 7 Answer key included

Humans have always been drawn to the stars and the unknown. From the dawn of our species, we have looked up to the stars and wondered. What is up there? Are there other planets like ours? Where did we come from? This Reading Comprehension / Informational Text goes through the history of space exploration is suitable for advanced to proficient ESL learners or native English speakers. After carefully reading the text, students are required to complete some comprehension exercises including: -comprehension questions a multiple choice exercise a fun crossword a fill in the gaps text on the Golden Records The text can also be used for vocabulary building purposes. Total number of pages: 6 Answer key included

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to rage on, new variants of the SARS- CoV-2 virus pop up every 3-4 months, with most being more infectious than the last and resulting in rapid spreads. This Reading Comprehension worksheet explores how viruses mutate and spread. Suitable for intermediate to proficient ESL learners or native English speakers. After carefully reading the text, students are required to complete some comprehension exercises including: -12 comprehension questions a definitions match exercise -a multiple choice exercise -a crossword based on the text The text can be used for vocabulary building purposes. This handout can be completed in class or assigned for homework. A full answer key is included. Total number of pages: 5

Climate change destabilizes the Earth’s temperature equilibrium and has far-reaching effects on human beings and the environment. During the course of global warming and due to the increased concentration of greenhouse gases, the energy balance and thus the temperature of the earth change, which in turn has a significant impact on humans and the environment. This Reading Comprehension / Informational Text explores the top causes of climate change as well as possible solutions that can help us reduce our carbon footprint. This activity is suitable for advanced to proficient ESL learners or native English speakers. After carefully reading the text, students are required to complete some comprehension exercises including: a multiple choice exercise a crossword a fill in the gaps independent text exercise entitled “Climate Change Spells a Grim Future for Humanity" This resource can be used as a mini-lesson, assigned for homework or used to for vocabulary building purposes. Total number of pages: 6 Answer key included

Following 20 years of war, the Taliban completed a shockingly rapid advance across Afghanistan by capturing Kabul on August 15, 2021. The capture came after foreign forces announced their withdrawal following a deal between the US and the Taliban, two decades after US forces removed the militants from power in 2001. The 20-year war has killed tens of thousands of people and displaced millions. This Reading Comprehension / Informational Text focuses on the history of Taliban - the ultraconservative political and religious faction that emerged in Afghanistan in the mid-1990s. This activity is suitable for advanced to proficient ESL learners or native English speakers. After carefully reading the text, students are required to complete some comprehension exercises including: comprehension questions a multiple choice exercise a crossword This resource can be used as a mini-lesson, assigned for homework or used to for vocabulary building purposes. Total number of pages: 6 Answer key included

One of the greatest ecological, manmade threats now wreaking havoc on our ecosystem is overfishing. In fact, overfishing takes the greatest toll on sea life — and people. This Reading Comprehension / Informational Text explores the top causes of overfishing as well as possible solutions that can help restore marine biodiversity and sustain our oceans. This activity is suitable for advanced to proficient ESL learners or native English speakers. After carefully reading the text, students are required to complete some comprehension exercises including: comprehension questions a definitions match a multiple choice exercise a crossword a fill in the gaps independent text exercise entitled “SIX COLD HARD FACTS ABOUT OVERFISHING” This resource can be used as a mini-lesson, assigned for homework or used to for vocabulary building purposes. Total number of pages: 6 Answer key included

Worldwide bee colony collapse is not as big a mystery as the chemical industry claims. Scientists know that bees are dying from a variety of factors—pesticides, drought, habitat destruction, nutrition deficit, air pollution, global warming and more. Many of these causes are interrelated. This Reading Comprehension / Informational Text explores the top causes of bee colony decline as well as possible solutions that can help support the dwindling bee populations. This activity is suitable for advanced to proficient ESL learners or native English speakers. After carefully reading the text, students are required to complete some comprehension exercises including: comprehension questions a multiple choice exercise a crossword a fill in the gaps independent text exercise entitled “5 Simple Ways You Can Help Save The Bees From Extinction" This can be used as a mini-lesson, assigned for homework or used to for vocabulary building purposes. Total number of pages: 6 Answer key included

Few names have cast more terror into the human imagination than Dracula. The legendary vampire, created by author Bram Stoker in his 1897 novel of the same name, has inspired countless horror movies, television shows and other bloodcurdling tales of vampires. While Dracula is a purely fictional creation however, few people know that Stoker named his infamous character after a real person who happened to also have a horrid taste for blood: Vlad III, Prince of Wallachia or — as he is better known — Vlad the Impaler. This Reading Comprehension mini lesson recounts the story of Vlad III of Wallachia or Vlad the Impaler, the real life character that inspired Bram Stoker’s novel “Dracula”. This activity can also be used during Halloween and is suitable for advanced to proficient ESL learners or native English speakers. After carefully reading the text, students are required to complete some comprehension exercises including: comprehension questions a definitions match exercise a multiple choice exercise a crossword This handout can be used as a mini-lesson, assigned for homework or used to for vocabulary building purposes. Total number of pages: 7 A full answer key is included

Gaining popularity in the 20th century, boosted by neoliberal policies particularly in countries like the United States, intensive agriculture has been gradually overtaking more traditional farming methods. Intensive agriculture produces much higher yields per unit of land, requiring land modifications such as clearing forests and relying on huge amounts of inputs, which can include things like fertilizers, chemical pesticides and some might say a great deal of cruelty, particularly when it comes to animal operations. This Reading Comprehension / Informational Text explores the money driven practices of Intensive Farming and how they contribute to environmental problems such as deforestation, water pollution and chemical pollution as well as how they normalize extreme animal cruelty. The text also explores possible solutions and alternative to Intensive Farming. This activity is suitable for advanced to proficient ESL learners or native English speakers. After carefully reading the text, students are required to complete some comprehension exercises including: comprehension questions a multiple choice exercise a crossword a fill in the gaps text on “Animal Factory Farms” *a definitions match exercise This can be used as a mini-lesson, assigned for homework or used to for vocabulary building purposes. Total number of pages: 6 Answer key included Tes paid licence

This Reading Comprehension / Informational Text explores the overpopulation problem and its effects on the economy and the environment. The text analyses the effects of overpopulation, future projections and possible solutions and is suitable for advanced to proficient ESL learners or native English speakers. After carefully reading the text, students are required to complete some comprehension exercises including: comprehension questions a multiple choice exercise a crossword a fill in the gaps text on “Intensive Farming” This can be used as a mini-lesson, assigned for homework or used to for vocabulary building purposes. Total number of pages: 6 Answer key included

This Reading Comprehension / Informational Text is suitable for advanced to proficient ESL learners or native English speakers. The text explores the origins of the Israel-Palestine conflict, it’s 100 year old history, the latest escalations and the possibility of holding successful peace talks After carefully reading the text, students are required to complete some comprehension exercises including: -comprehension questions a definition match a true or false exercise a multiple choice exercise a fill in the gaps text on the Hamas The text can also be used for vocabulary building purposes. Total number of pages: 6 Answer key included

This Reading Comprehension worksheet is suitable for higher intermediate to proficient ESL learners or native English speakers. The text explores inequality in its various forms and how it creates a complex mix of internal and external challenges that will continue to grow over the next twenty-five years. After carefully reading the text, students are required to complete some comprehension exercises including: -comprehension questions -a definitions match -a multiple choice exercise -a crossword -a fill-in-the gaps exercise This worksheet can also be used for vocabulary building purposes. The handout can be completed in class or assigned for homework. A full answer key is included. Total number of pages: 7

This Reading Comprehension worksheet is suitable for higher intermediate to proficient ESL learners or native English speakers. The text explores what is the effects of consumerism on our environment, health and happiness. After carefully reading the text, students are required to complete some comprehension exercises including: -True and False Exercises -comprehension questions -a definitions match -a multiple choice exercise -a crossword This worksheet can also be used for vocabulary building purposes. The handout can be completed in class or assigned for homework. A full answer key is included. Total number of pages: 7

This Reading Comprehension / Informational Text is suitable for advanced to proficient ESL learners or native English speakers. The text focuses on the effect of social media on body image and mental health and explores ways of using social media responsibly. After carefully reading the text, students are required to complete some comprehension exercises including: -comprehension questions -multiple choice exercises -a crossword -a fill in the blanks exercise The text can also be used for vocabulary building purposes. Total number of pages: 8 Answer key included

This Reading Comprehension / Informational Text is suitable for advanced to proficient ESL learners or native English speakers. The text explores the history of censorship and freedom of speech from ancient Athen’s parrhesia to the Catholic Church’s Inquisition trials, Britain’s Licensing Acts, France’s National Assembly, Germany’s Nazi Movement, South Africa’s Apartheid all the way up to modern-day censorship examples. After carefully reading the text, students are required to complete some comprehension exercises including: comprehension questions a definition match multiple choice exercises a crossword a fill in the blanks exercise on modern-day censorship and propaganda in North Korea The text can also be used for vocabulary building purposes. Total number of pages: 8 Answer key included

This Reading Comprehension worksheet is suitable for higher intermediate to proficient ESL learners or native English speakers. The text explores what is the confirmation bias and gives lists debiasing techniques that can be used to make better informed decisions. After carefully reading the text, students are required to complete some comprehension exercises including: -comprehension questions -a multiple choice exercise -a crossword This worksheet can also be used for vocabulary building purposes. The handout can be completed in class or assigned for homework. A full answer key is included. Total number of pages: 6

This Reading Comprehension worksheet is suitable for intermediate to proficient ESL learners or native speakers. The text explores how and why hurricanes are formed. After carefully reading the text, students are required to complete some comprehension exercises including: -comprehension questions -a word search a multiple choice exercise a fun crossword This worksheet can also be used for vocabulary building purposes. The handout can be completed in class or assigned for homework. A full answer key is included. Total number of pages: 7

This Reading Comprehension worksheet is suitable for intermediate to proficient ESL learners or native English speakers. The text explores the effects that Covid-19 and lockdowns can have on mental health and lays out different ways of coping with anxiety and stress while in quarantine. After carefully reading the text, students are required to complete some comprehension exercises including: -7 comprehension questions -a multiple choice exercise -a crossword based on the text The text can be used for vocabulary building purposes. This handout can be completed in class or assigned for homework. A full answer key is included. Total number of pages: 6