Lesson Plan: The Killer Smog

Essential Questions

• What is the role of government in keeping individuals safe?
• Why is it important to learn from history?

Literature Connection

• Novel: Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse

Preview Text Features (15 minutes)

Guide students to locate the article. Preview the text features by asking the following questions:

• Read the title and the subtitle, and look at the images at the beginning of the story. What do you think was the “deadly disaster” mentioned in the subtitle? What do you think caused it? Make a prediction.  Answers will vary.  Sample answer: The subtitle states that the deadly disaster changed our ideas about the air we breathe, so it probably had to do with air pollution. The image supports this idea. It shows silhouettes of people on a dark background, with smoke floating through the air. The air pollution might have been caused by a fire or by nearby factories giving off smoke.
• Read the sidebar “All About Air Pollution.” How do you think the facts in the sidebar will help you understand the article? The article is about a disaster that was caused by air pollution. Knowing the causes and effects of air pollution, how many people it affects today, and how it can be stopped will help the reader understand the problem in more detail.
• Find the map. Which city is called out on it? In what country is this city located? On what continent is this country located?  The city called out on the map is London, which is in England. (The United Kingdom, or U.K., is also an acceptable answer for the second question).  England is a country in Europe.

Preview Vocabulary (10 minutes)

• Point out the vocabulary box. Read the words (smog, environmental, microscopic, particulates, wheeze) aloud and discuss their definitions.
• Play the Vocabulary Slideshow.

Make a Plan for Reading 

Before students start to read, walk them through a reading plan:

• Set a purpose for reading by explaining to students that they will find text evidence in “The Killer Smog” that supports important ideas about the smog disaster that occurred in London in 1952. 
• Point out the Pause and Think boxes. Tell students they can check their understanding of what they’ve read by answering these questions.
• Point out the activity at the end of the story and tell students they will complete it after reading. Tell them to keep the Think About It! question in mind as they read.
• Tell students that as they finish each section, they should think about how the text features on the page (e.g., photos, captions, and section headings) relate to what they’ve just read.

Guide students to read the article. Once they understand it well, discuss the following close-reading and critical-thinking questions.

Close-Reading Questions (15 minutes)

• In the beginning of the article, why do you think the author brings up a “monster from a nightmare,” “a tornado,” and “an alien spaceship”? (author’s craft) The author brings up these examples as things one might think of as “killers.” When we find out in the next sentence that the killer in London was actually plain old air, the reader is probably surprised. Most people don’t think of air as dangerous, let alone capable of bringing about fear and death. But of course, that is exactly what makes this story worth telling.
• Before the Killer Smog of 1952, why did most people in London think of smog as a regular part of city life? Why didn’t they think of it as a problem? (cause and effect) Most people, including scientists, didn’t fully understand the serious health consequences of air pollution. Also, people didn’t realize there could be an alternative to coal, which was causing the pollution. According to the article, most Londoners could afford to heat their homes only with coal, and factory owners worried that reducing pollution would be too costly.
• Identify a central idea of the section “New Laws.” List two details from the section that support that idea. (central idea and details) A central idea of the section is that after the Killer Smog of 1952, governments tried to reduce air pollution. Details that support this idea: The British and American governments passed laws to make air cleaner, pollution-producing factories were moved outside of London, and the British government began helping people pay for cleaner heating systems.

Critical-Thinking Questions (10 minutes)

• Why do you think air pollution is still a problem today even though we know about its dangers? What needs to change in order to fix the problem? (critical thinking) Air pollution is caused mainly by factories, cars, and burning fuel, all of which are big parts of our lives. Governments, businesses, and individuals depend on factories and cars to keep things running, and burning fuel provides us with energy. Even though these things seem essential, there are other ways to produce goods, move goods, and create energy that don’t require polluting the air we breathe. The challenge is to pass new laws and change our behavior to favor those ways over more harmful options.
• At the end of the article, the author states that Brian understood what a gift it was to take a deep breath of fresh air. Why do you think she uses the word gift? (figurative language) A gift is something special that you value. The word gift shows that Brian learned to appreciate something most of us take for granted—breathing clean air. We go through life assuming that the air we breathe will be clean and safe, but Brian’s experience showed him that this isn’t a given. 

• Have students work in pairs to complete the Spotlight Skill Workout: Text Evidence activity. As a class, discuss students’ answers and the Think About It! question.
• Have students work independently to complete our Central Idea and Details Skill Builder, available in higher- and lower-level versions. (Click here to view all your Skill Builders for this article.)
• Writing prompt: Write a paragraph about the 1952 smog event from the point of view of Tarzan the dog. Imagine what Tarzan saw, heard, and smelled while he was missing from home and after he returned. Include details from the article, but use your imagination too.