Ten per cent of the world's population live within 100Km of an active volcano.Why?

Students often struggle to comprehend why people would want to live near a volcano, particularly once they have learned the detail of the hazards they create.

As a starter to this lesson I get them to compare the maps below, of the world's volcanoes and the one hundred largest cities in the world, to show what a large number of people live in these hazardous areas.

Next I ask pupils to discuss why people might choose to live close to a volcano. To develop the learning further I show them the video below.

As a plenary and to show their understanding I get them to write some estate agents details for the farmhouse in Iceland shown in the picture, focusing on the benefits of living near a volcano. To differentiate for lower ability pupils I get them to work in pairs or simply to annotate the photo.