7th INTENSIVE-CRASH 7 - PRE- MID YEAR EXAM- - 2015.

ASOCIACION CULTURAL ARGENTINO-BRITANICA DE SALTA

COURSE: SENIOR - LEVEL: UPPER-INTERMEDIATE B1.2

NAME: _________________________________________________________ DATE: ____________________

TEACHER: ______________________________________________________ CITY: _____________________

A.- READING COMPREHENSION (30)

A1.- TRUE / FALSE (2x5=10)

Read the following text about fish farming in Tobago and decide if the statements below are TRUE or
FALSE. TICK your answer in the appropriate box on the right.

FISH FARMING FOR THE FUTURE

by Aimswell, 14, Tobago

I’m Aimswell and I live on the island of Tobago in the West Indies. Like lots of people here, my
father is a fisherman and he taught me to fish when I was about five. I love it and have even won
some prizes in fishing competitions. Local people here fish for themselves and some of them
even supply fish to the big hotels. Recently everyone has started to notice that there are not as
many fish in the sea as there used to be and the fish that we are catching now are really small,
still young. If everyone keeps catching all the fish when they are so young, we may soon run out.

I am involved in a programme at my school to find a way for people in Tobago to be able to

continue eating fish without making the ones in the sea rare. My teacher, Mr Peters, started it a
little while ago with help from a holiday company and a UK charity that cares for places where
people go on holiday.

The project is teaching all the kids in my school about fishing sustainably. This means learning
about ways that we can eat fish without running out in the future. We are farming a freshwater fish
called tilapia which people can grow in their homes and gardens in tanks, instead of catching lots
of fish out of the seas.

We look after the fish during our agricultural science lessons. It’s my favourite lesson because we
get to go outside and work in our school vegetable garden and look after the fish. I am in charge
of the fish at the moment. They will grow big enough to eat in about four months.

We have two different types of tilapia and they will each taste different when we eat them at last.
They are really easy to look after as all they need to eat is water plants which we grow here too.
Mr. Peters hopes that when all the kids at my school go home and show their parents how we
have grown fish at school, they can do the same at home. He hopes that one day everyone in
Tobago will be able to do it.

I love working on the project because it is fun but also because it teaches us business skills and
ways to help protect the environment. For example, none of the water we use for the fish is
wasted as we use it to water our vegetables.

It won’t be long until our fish are big enough to eat and then we will learn some nice recipes so
we can cook and enjoy them at last.

STATEMENTS True False

1 Some of the fish caught by local fishermen is sold. 1
2 Local fishermen avoid catching young fish. 2
3 The school programme aims to encourage more local people to eat fish. 3
4 Mr. Peters runs a holiday company as well as working as a teacher. 4
5 The children are learning about a fish which lives in fresh water. 5
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A2.- MULTIPLE CHOICE (2x5=10)

Read the passage below and for each question (1-5) tick the correct answer A, B, C or D.-

The Hockey Dad – one to watch ?

There is an old saying in the theatre world “Never work with children or animals”.
It’s a great pity that Harol Greymont has never heard this piece of advice, or if he
has come across it, that he didn’t pay more attention to it. It’s not so much that
“The Hockey Dad” is a bad film, although I can’t find many reasons for saying it’s
a good one.It’s more that it makes me angry.The thing that annoys me is that
Greymont is a brilliant actor. Anyone who saw him in “Romeo and Juliet” on the
stage in New York knows that. So what’s he doing in this kind of nonsense?

It’s a story about a shy, small-town bank clerk who is temporarily mistaken for the manager of the
unsuccessful hockey team at his son’s primary school. He has to find a way to encourage the players
when they are about to play the regional champions, who haven’t been beaten for three seasons. His
unusual methods are surprisingly successful and by the middle of the season the team has done
much better than anyone expected.

Unfortunately, there’s trouble waiting because the real team manager (who is an unpopular local
businessman) is very jealous of him.But, surprise, surprise, the team’s school friends find a way to
solve his problems.I won’t say how, as it’s the only part of the film that’s even slightly original or
amusing.If you see it, you’ll be annoyed with me for telling you. But my advice is, when it comes to a
cinema near you – go and play hockey instead.

Tick your
1 What is the writer trying to do in the text?
choice
A compare the attractions of the theatre and the cinema A

B compare Harold Greymont with another actor B

C give an opinion about working with children in films C

D give an opinion about “The Hockey Dad” D

Tick your
2 The writer suggests that in this film Harold Greymont
choice
A is wasting his talent A

B doesn’t understand how to talk to children B

C isn’t good at comedy C

D gives a susprisingly good performance D

Tick your
3 Why did the writer mention Romeo and Juliet ?
choice
A It’s an example of a really good play. A

B Greymont proved that he was a good actor in it. B

C It was produced in New York. C

D The central characters are very young. D

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Tick your
4 What caused problems for Harold Greymont’s character in this film?
choice
A the age of the members of the team A

B his lack of experience in hockey B

C the attitude of the champion team’s manager C

D the feelings of the businessman who usually manages the team D

Tick your
5 Which one of these DVD guides is describing “The Hockey Dad” ?
choice

“A quiet man discovers an unexpected talent for hockey and is surprised when
A A
he becomes a star player.”

“A father succeeds in earning his son’s respect in spite of the fact that he’s no
B B
good at sport.”

“A bank clerk finds a way to help a school sports team improve their
C C
performance.”

“A businessman realises that spending money doesn’t always bring success in

D D
the world of sport.”

A3.- MULTIPLE MATCHING (2x5=10)

The customers in (1-5) are all choosing bestsellers to buy. Read the information about the bestsellers
(A-H) and decide which would be the most suitable for each customer (1-5).

CUSTOMER BESTSELLER

JOANNA BROWN does not like novels.She prefers reading about people's real-life
1
experiences. She is interested in reading about far-away places and animals.

ERIC MACADAM likes adventure stories, but he does not like stories about the past.
2 He read one of E.L. Thornaway's books last year, but thought it was rather boring. He
hates love stories.

CAROLINE MARTIN likes stories about women, although she does not care for love
3 stories. She prefers to read about strong successful women, whose lives are rather
like her own. She is a businesswoman who lives in London.

JONATHAN CUTHBERT is nineteen. He is interested in transport, and although he

4
likes excitement, he does not like war stories. In fact, he prefers non-fiction to fiction.

GERALD DONALDSON is a politician, but he wants to relax on his holiday by reading

5 something completely different from his own life. He thinks he would like to try a love
story. A novel set in the world of entertainment would be ideal.

BESTSELLERS
The Wild Wood by Rex Dobson

A A band of robbers break into a house and kidnap a rich girl. Fortunately, there is one man who can find their
secret hiding place and rescue her. The cruel leader of the band wants to murder the girl. There is a scream
... then ...

Behind the Wheel by Bert Dixon

B Bert Dixon started to keep a diary as soon as he got his driving licence. Now a well-known professional
racing driver, he tells a story full of race tracks, sharp bends, cars on fire, burst tyres and more than a few
crashes.

C Vote for Hannah Harvey by E.L. Thornaway

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Hannah Harvey, a close relation of the Prime Minister, wins an election. Hannah is hard-working and plans
to become a great woman politician. Then she agrees to help a friend who is in trouble and suddenly things
start to go wrong ...

A Man at War by Henry Martin

D The true story of a soldier who joined the army at nineteen. Henry Martin tells of battles, of helicopters
exploding, of bombs dropping, of bullets flying. Taken prisoner by the enemy, he manages to escape from
prison by night and get away over the mountains.

Singing on the Shore by Margery Pleasant

E Another romantic novel from Margery Pleasant. The heroine, Maria, is a poor girl who goes to the seaside
to work as a waitress. She falls in love with a famous singer, but he is engaged to a beautiful blonde
dancer. Maria is desperately unhappy.

Elephant Morning by Esther Motsumi

F The author was the first woman from her village to qualify as a doctor. This is the true story of her life
running a clinic in southern Africa. She writes beautifully about the people she met and their relationship
with the animals in Africa.

Steam and Smoke by Mark O'Brien

G This novel is set in the 19th century, in the early days of railway transport. It tells of the battle between two
men; a young engineer, Joshua Dobson and his enemy, the rich landowner, Jasper March.

Home Decoration by Alice and Peter Saunders

H This book gives step-by-step instructions for painting and decorating all kinds of houses. It is full of useful
ideas, with lots of pictures in colour.

B.- VERB TENSES (1x15=15)

Read the following sentences and use the verbs in brackets in the appropriate tense.

a.- Could you turn down the volume of that radio? I ______________________ (1.try) to take a short nap right now.

b.- I__________________________ (2.allow) you to hang out with your friends until you get better marks at school !

c.- A: What time __________________________________________ (3.the taxi – pick you up) tomorrow morning?

B: At 6:00am. Consequently, I _______________________________________ (4.go) to bed quite early tonight.

d.- We _________________________________ (5.just – inform) by our boss that the contract has been cancelled.

e.- By the time I woke up in my seat, the film at the cinema _____________________________ (6.already - finish).

f.- They ________________________________ (7.have) lunch when the terrorist attack was reported on the radio.

g.- My Aunt Mary ______________________________ (8.make) delicious cakes for me ever since I was a little kid.

h.- No doubt I would lend you the money if I ___________________________ (9.know) it would solve your problem,

i.- A: Have you got the letters I sent you yesterday morning ?

B: I'm afraid not, as our mail ____________________________________ (10.not deliver) by the post office yet.

j.- Despìte ______________ (11.use) advanced technology, the doctors could not find out what caused the disease.

k.- If only I ____________________________________ (12.can) talk to her just once, I would beg her to forgive me.

l.- This kind of amoeba ______________ (13.die) when it ___________________________ (14.attack) by an acid.

m.- The politician was accused of __________________________ (15.lie) to the members of the jury during the trial.
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C.- USE OF ENGLISH (15)

C1.- OPEN CLOZE (1x5=5)

Fill in the gaps in the following text with ONLY ONE WORD.

WHAT IS SKI TOURING ?

Ski touring is exactly that – touring on skis. It combines the best bits of skiing and mountaineering and provides the
perfect way (1)____________ explore the mountains (2)____________ winter. The advantages (3)____________
ski touring are that you can really escape the crowds, enjoy the solitude of the mountains and be rewarded with
breathtaking views and exhilarating descents.

Ski touring involves both going up (4)____________ going down the mountain; they present challenges, and new
skills have to (5)____________ acquired. You should always ski within the limits of your ability, and make sure you
know how to navigate properly with map and compass.

C2.- WORD FORMATION (1x10=10)

Read the following text and use the correct form of the words given in (BOLD CAPITALS) to fill in the
numbered gaps.

PERSONALITY TYPES

It’s often said that no two people are exactly alike, but according to one (1)____________________
(PSYCHOLOGY) theory, we all share one of sixteen distinct personality types, which are formed by
different (2)____________________ (COMBINE) of personality traits.

(3)____________________ (COMPARE) can be made between personality and left- or right-

handedness. Most people are born with a (4)____________________ (PREFER) for one hand, and
all of us are born with a personality type. Experts say that we (5)____________________ (TYPICAL)
develop our personality type through the course of our lives in (6)____________________
(RESPOND) to our (7)____________________ (SURROUND) and experiences – school or work, for
example.

However, psychologists (8)____________________ (EMPHASIS) that personality type doesn’t

explain everything about us and that the (9)____________________ (BEHAVE) of people with the
same personality type is often (10)____________________ (DIFFER). They also stress that no
personality type is better than another.

D.- LISTENING COMPREHENSION (2x5=10)

You will hear part of a radio interview with Barry Helman, a cave-diving expert. For questions (1-5)
complete the following notes with just one or two words.


 Barry says the incredible beauty and size of the caves attract him to diving.
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 He compares himself to an (1)____________________

 Some divers say that the danger of cave-diving is a challenge.

 However, Barry says what’s most frightening is the complete (2) ____________________

 Getting to the surface is not easy so good problem-solving skills are essential for survival.

 Most accidents involve people who take (3) ____________________ when diving.

 (4) ____________________ is a potentially dangerous problem.

 You need to have proper training to do cave diving.

 A good cave diver should never (5) ____________________ when facing a serious problem.

 Barry thinks that being a good diver increases your confidence in normal life.

E.- WRITING (30)

E1.- KEY WORD TRANSFORMATIONS (2x5 =10)

Using the word provided in parentheses, complete the second sentence with no more than five words
so that it has a similar meaning to the first sentence.

1.- Sylvia was so tired she couldn’t study properly. (TOO)

Sylvia ___________________________________________________________________________ study properly.

2.- “I will give you a check-up next week,” warned Amy’s doctor. (TOLD)

The doctor _________________________________________________ give her a check-up the following week.

3.- “Why don’t we go for a jog?” Mike said. (SUGGESTED)

Mike __________________________________________________________________________________for a jog.

4.- Parents with overweight children should be given special help. (WHOSE)

Parents ____________________________________________________________ should be given special help.

5.- You won’t lose weight if you don’t stop eating junk food. (UNLESS)

You won’t lose weight _______________________________________________________________ junk food.

E2.- NOTE (8)

Last week your classmate Alexander lent you his dictionary. You promised to return it by yesterday but you
didn’t. Write an email 35-40 words long (about 5 lines) to Alexander in which you will:

a) Apologise for not returning the dictionary

b) Explain why you couldn’t see him yesterday
c) Offer to bring it to his house today.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________
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E3.- SHORT- STORY (12)

You have decided to enter a short-story competition whose rules say that:

a) Your story must be 120-150 words long (about 15 lines).

b) It should begin with the following words:

"Although my intuition had warned me that something

incredibly wonderful was going to happen that day, my
logical mind simply refused to believe it.”

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Writing 1 Maximum Score Total Achieved Writing 2 Maximum Score Total Achieved

Layout & 3 Layout & 4

Task Task
Accomplishment Accomplishment

Coherence & 3 Coherence & 4

Content Content

Grammar & 2 Grammar & 4

Vocabulary Vocabulary

Total 8 Total 12
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KEY TO THE EXERCISES

KEY A1.- READING COMPREHENSION: TRUE / FALSE (2x5=10)

1 2 3 4 5

T F F F T

KEY A2.- READING COMPREHENSION: MULTIPLE CHOICE (2x5=10)

1 2 3 4 5

D A B D C

KEY A3.- READING COMPREHENSION: MULTIPLE MATCHING (2x5=10)

1 2 3 4 5

F A C B E

KEY B.- VERB TENSES (1x15=15)

1 2 3 4 5

am trying will not allow does the taxi pick you up am going have just been informed

6 7 8 9 10

had already finished were having has been making knew has not been delivered

11 12 13 14 15

using could Dies is attacked lying

KEY C1.- USE OF ENGLISH - OPEN CLOZE (1x5=5)

1 2 3 4 5

to in Of and be

KEY C2.- USE OF ENGLISH - WORD FORMATION (1x10=10)

1 2 3 4 5

psychological combinations comparisons preference typically

6 7 8 9 10

response surroundings Emphasise behaviour different

KEY D.- LISTENING COMPREHENSION (2x5=10)

COMPLETE FCE WORKBOOK - UNIT 8 - PAGE 33 - LISTENING PART 2 - CD TRACK 9

1 2 3 4 5

explorer darkness Risks getting lost panic

KEY E1.- WRITING: KEY WORD TRANSFORMATIONS (2x5 =10)

1 2 3 4 5

told Amy (that) he whose children are

was too tired to suggested going unless you stop eating
would overweight