Heavy rain in Alexandria
Alexandria is a city on the Mediterranean coast, and sometimes it has very heavy rain. When it rains very hard, a flood can happen. A flood happens in different ways. Sometimes the sea water comes up onto the land. Sometimes the streets and drains cannot carry away so much rain. In the past, heavy rain flooded some streets in Alexandria, and people helped one another. The impacts of a flood are the ways it changes things. For people: it can be unsafe to leave buildings, shops and schools may close, people cannot get to work, and homes can be damaged. For the environment: flood water can wash away soil and sand, spread rubbish and cover plants. To understand a text, find its main topic, which is what it is mostly about, and its key details, which are facts that support it. Stay safe: never walk or play in flood water, because it can be deep, fast and dirty. Stay with a grown-up and follow their advice.
| Impacts on people | Impacts on the environment |
|---|---|
| unsafe to go out | soil and sand washed away |
| shops and schools close | rubbish spread around |
| homes damaged | plants covered by water |
| Main topic | Key details |
|---|---|
| a flood changes a city and people help | water covered streets and shops |
| families stayed at home | |
| neighbours shared bread and water |
Make an impact chart with two columns, People and Environment. Add the impacts you read about and any others you can think of. Next, a grown-up reads a short story about a flood. Write its main topic in one sentence and two key details. Last, draw a safety poster with one rule for staying safe in a flood, such as “Never play in flood water.”