Frightening nature（The Second Period）

sd: i think the first picture shows us a terrible scene after the volcano erupted. it is said that the whole city was buried under the metres of hot ash and mud, and 3000 people were killed. but since 1914, there has not been any damage.
se: in the third picture, we can see the relics of that city. if was excavated a
    long time ago and now it is a natural cultural relics. people can go to see
    the relics of the towns. pompeii and herculaneum, and even go to the top of the volcano to visit it.
t: do you know which country has the most volcanoes?
sf: perhaps japan.
t: do you know what makes volcano?
   who can tell us something about it?
sg: i'll try. as we know, the inside of the earth is very, very hot. there, the rock
   has become liquid, and it is always boiling. the hot melted rock always tries to get out, like the boiling water and the steam. in some places the hard shell of the earth is weak and thin. it will burst through. some volcanoes can be quiet for some years, even hundreds of years.
step iii reading
t: quite right. some of the students know quite a lot. we should learn from them. now read the text fast and find the answers to the questions on the screen. write your answers on a piece of paper and i'll collect the first five pieces.
   (teacher shows the following on the screen.)
scan the text and answer the following questions.
   1. what is described in the following passage?
      what happened?
   2. when and where did it happen?
   3. who is the writer of the letter
t: (a few minutes later.) have you finished? those who have finished, hand in your answer pieces, please. (teacher collects the first five pieces.) who will answer the questions? volunteers?
sa: i'11 answer question 1. in the passage, the writer describes how his uncle died. when the volcano was erupting.
sb: question 2. it happened near the mount veruvins on the 24th of august in 79 ad.
sc: question 3. the writer of the letter is pliny's nephew.
t: (show the screen.) very good. please read the text again and discuss the questions on the screen with your partner. a few minutes later, i'll ask some students to give us their answers.
answer the following questions:
1. for what reason did the writer write the letter?
2. why did the writer's uncle go to see the sight?
3. what did he do in order to help the other calm down?
4. what did they do in order to be against the shower of rock?
5. why did they carry torches?