English Conversation Questions

Trees

Questions

1. Have you ever climbed a tree?
2. What kind of trees are there where you live?
3. How far back do you know your family tree?
4. What would life be like if money grew on trees?
5. Do you have a Christmas tree during Christmas?
6. Are there many trees in your city?
7. Are your legs like tree trunks?
8. “The tree is known by its fruit” – Do you agree?

Videos

What makes a tree grow tall? And do trees ever stop growing? Explore how photosynthesis and gravity can affect and limit the height of trees.

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Reaching heights of over 100 meters, Californian sequoias tower over Earth’s other 60,000 tree species. But even these behemoths seem to have their limits: no sequoia on record has been able to grow taller than 130 meters. So what exactly is stopping these trees from growing taller, forever? Valentin Hammoudi investigates why trees have limited heights.

Lesson by Valentin Hammoudi, directed by Doug Alberts.

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Keywords: Growth | Height | Trees
As professional arborists, brothers-in-law Tom Otto and Shaun Sears are quite adept at climbing trees. The cats that they rescue are not. And with a plethora of trees—and cats—around Seattle, they decided to put their off

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hours to good use and return scared, stuck kitties to their worried owners. Working completely off donations, these two cat lovers are helping keep Seattle’s free-climbing felines grounded.

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Category:  Nature & Environment
Keywords: Cats | Pets | Trees
Tucked away in a corner of London’s Royal Botanic Gardens, there is a very peculiar plant. At first glance, it resembles a stumpy palm tree, but this ancient specimen is incredibly rare. It is, in fact,

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the very last of its kind on Earth. Encephalartos woodii is a cycad, a type of plant that once dominated the planet during the Jurassic Period. Over the millennia, the age of the cycad came to an end. And in the case of Encephalartos Woodii, we may have been left with only one—a single male specimen. This tree is the loneliest bachelor on Earth.

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Category:  Nature & Environment
Keywords: Friends | Plants | Trees
Explore what makes trees a vital part of cities, and how urban spaces throughout history have embraced the importance of trees. —

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By 2050, it’s estimated that over 65% of the world will be living in cities. We may think of nature as being unconnected to our urban spaces, but trees have always been an essential part of successful cities. Humanity has been uncovering these arboreal benefits since the creation of our first cities thousands of years ago. So what makes trees so important to a city’s survival? Stefan Al explains.

Lesson by Stefan Al, directed by Mette Ilene Holmriis.

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Keywords: Cities | Trees

Vocabulary:
cove
secluded
float
shore
anchor
lighthouse
greenhouse
handsaw
hammer
power tool
nail
board (noun)
ton
land sick
biomass
canoe
paddle
real estate
prosper
fulfilled

Expressions:
subsistence living
hon

Vocabulary:
word
word
word
word
word
word
word
word
word

Expressions:
expression
expression
expression
expression

Vocabulary:
prestigious
involuntary
swindler
fraudulence
unwarranted
concern
unfounded
impostor
syndrome
faculty
pervasive
prevalent
disproportionately
underrepresented
downplay
abnormality
self-esteem
spiral
accolade
threshold
susceptible
voice (verb)
peer
dismiss
excel
ease
mentor
competence
banish
frank

Expressions:
nagging doubt
shake a feeling
put something to rest
surefire way

Vocabulary:
filmmaker
principle
handcuff
clown
distill
underdog
aspect
familiar
unfamiliar
chopsticks
keyboard
organic
grounded
clarity
stuntman
steady
gag
perfectionist
rhythm
distinct
continuity
elbow
bunch
flail around
unlike
invincible
impressive
humanize
asset
payoff
relentlessness
finale

Expressions:
kick ass
going above and beyond
get smacked in the face
sell a joke

Vocabulary:
explosion
smoke (noun)
engine
unique
pilot
route
unemotional
terror
instant
reach out (to someone)
postpone
urgency
purpose
regret
humanity
ego
reflect
eliminate
frame (verb)
artistic
talent
bawl
miracle

Expressions:
bucket list
brace for impact
mend fences
make sense
connecting dots