Investigate the Causes of Bushfires
Build environmental understanding.
Teaching Context:
Best for Year 7 to Year 10 Geography when studying natural hazards and climate impacts in Australia.
Basic AI Prompt:
What causes bushfires in Australia?
Enhanced AI Prompt:
You are learning about natural hazards and their causes. Ask AI to list the natural and human factors that lead to bushfires in Australia. Have it explain how weather patterns (e.g. drought, wind), vegetation types, and human behaviours (e.g. campfires, arson) contribute to bushfire risk. Then, ask AI to explain how these factors can combine to make bushfires worse.
Finally, ask AI to propose three bushfire prevention strategies and explain how each addresses a specific cause. For a deeper understanding, ask AI to compare bushfires in Australia with a fire-prone region like California or Greece, identifying similarities and differences.
Spice it Up (Optional Extension):
Ask AI to write a 30-second radio public safety announcement warning about bushfire risks.
Lesson Implementation:
Start with a news clip or recent article about a major bushfire event to engage students. Brainstorm prior knowledge on bushfire causes.
Students use AI to build a detailed cause-effect diagram, mapping natural and human causes to bushfire risk factors. They work in pairs to ask AI about each factor’s role and create explanations in their own words.
Guide students to look for the interplay of factors (e.g., how drought dries out vegetation, which increases flammability, which wind can then spread).
Students present their understanding in a poster, slide deck, or class presentation. To deepen learning, have them compare Australia’s bushfires to fires elsewhere, using AI to summarise key differences in vegetation, weather, and response strategies.
Wrap up with the optional public safety announcement activity, which encourages students to communicate risk to others clearly and concisely.
Got ideas on different ways to use this prompt? Share them with the class in the comments below!
Also, if you liked this, you'll love the thousands of subject-specific AI prompts in our books section!
