). Use the word in brackets, complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first one. DO NOT change the word given.

1. I didn’t understand Maths when I was at school.                            used

à I ________________________________ Maths when I was at school.

2. You’d better not touch that switch.                                                  wouldn’t

à If ________________________________ that switch.

3. The time of departure for your flight to Rio is six o’clock.                 takes

à The plane ________________________________ six o’clock.  

4. A famous architect designed Dr Schneider’s house for her.          had

à Dr Schneider ________________________________ a famous architect.

5. He described the hotel to us in detail.                                                 detailed

à He ________________________________ of the hotel.       

The Rocky Mountains run almost the length of North America. They start in the North West, but lie only a (1) ____________ hundred miles from the centre in the more southern areas. Although the Rockies are smaller (2) ____________ the Alps, they are no less beautiful.

There  are  many  roads  across  the  Rockies,  (3) ____________ the best way to see them is to

(4) _____________ by train. You start from Vancouver, (5) ____________ most attractive of Canada’s  big  cities. Standing  with  its  feet  in  the water and its head in the mountains, this city

(6) ____________ its residents to ski on slopes just 15 minutes by car from the city centre.

Thirty passenger trains a day used to (8) ____________ off from Vancouver on the cross-continent railway. Now there are just three a week, but the ride is still a great adventure. You sleep on board,(9) ____________ is fun, but travel through some of the best (10) ____________ at night.

Your answers:

Each line in the passage below has ONE mistake. FIND and CORRECT them. Write the answers in the numbered blanks provided.

Your answers:

1. You should have a/an ___________ check your motorbike regularly.

2. I asked two people the way to the police station but ___________ of them knew.

3. Mr David is 58. He will be retiring from his job ___________ two years’ time.

4. Mr. Jones has ___________ painting since he retired.

5. Jack: “Mary, remember to send my regards to your great-grandmother.”

    Mary: “___________.”

6. Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the word or phrase that is CLOSEST in meaning to the underlined part in each of the following questions.

On the night of September 2, 1666, a fire broke out, London was reduced by ashes.

A. destroyed by fire         B. discolored by fire         C. covered with ashes     D. got flammable

7. We spent the ___________days on the beach.

A. few last sunny           B. last sunny few               C. last few sunny             D. few sunny last

8. He was ___________ that we turned off the TV set immediately.

A. so bad singer             B. such bad singer            C. such bad a singer       D. so bad a singer

Your answers:

IV. Fill ONE suitable word into each numbered blank. Write your answers in ‘Your answers’ part.

Puzzles can increase intelligence

Brain training puzzles really can boost intelligence, a study shows for the first time. While previous studies have suggested that number puzzles can improve memory and crosswords
can expand vocabulary, scientists (1)­­_______ now proved that mental exercise really does (2)

 ­­_______ us more quick-witted. A Swiss-American team reports in a leading scientific journal

how computer-based mental exercises were used (3) ­­______improve          overall problem-solving

ability.

(4) ­­_______ team gave 35 volunteers a series of mental exercises designed to improve their memory. A control group of 35 subjects did not take these tests. Members of the first group were shown a different type (5) ­­_______ square every three seconds and asked if a certain square matched (6) ­­_______ shown earlier. Participants also heard a series of spoken letters and had to decide (7) ­­_______ each was the same as one presented two or three steps earlier in the sequence. If they did well, the task became harder and if they did badly, (8) ­­_______became easier. They repeated the exercises for between eight (9) ­­_______  nineteen   days.

Their problem-solving ability was then compared with the group who (10) __________ not done the exercises.

The results of the studies, published in The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, showed that the group who took part (11) ­­_______ the brain training exercises had a significantly better problem-solving ability than the other group. Moreover, the more the participants trained, the more problems (12) _____________ could solve.

Your answers:

. Use the word in brackets, complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first one. You must use between two and five words, including the word given. DO NOT change the word given.

1. I have never seen such an exciting film before. (first)

It's the  _______________­­­­­­­__________________________seen such an exciting film.

2. We hadn’t expected the weather to be so bad. (worse)

The weather _________________________________________expected.

    3. It's very easy to maintain contact with friends nowadays. (touch)

It's very easy __________________________________________ with friends nowadays.

    4. They had to cancel the game because of the rain. (off)

The game _______________________________________ because of the rain.

     5. You have to decide whether to accept the job. (up)

    It's ______________________________________________ accept the job.

III. You are going to read a magazine article about children performing in musical shows in theatres. For questions  1-15, choose from the people (A – D). The people may be chosen more than once. Write your answers in ‘Your answers’ part.

Kids on stage

Children are performing in popular musicals in many London theatres. We talked to
various people about the phenomenon of children on stage.

­­­­­

A. THE DIRECTOR

Andrew Tyler chooses children to appear in stage musicals

I’m not only looking for children who can sing, dance and act, they also have to have lively
personalities and a lot of confidence - it’s essential that they grab the audience’s attention and if they can’t do that, I don’t choose them. When I’m working on a show, I start by contacting agents and telling them what I need, and then I hold auditions for as many children as I can. When the children have been chosen, I draw up the contracts for them and the schedule for performances - there are usually three teams of children for each show and they perform according to a rota system. No child is in a show for more than six months. Being in a show is tiring for the children because they have to combine it with going to school, but they have a great time and they learn an enormous amount about discipline, teamwork and concentration, as well as special skills such as choreography and singing.

B. THE YOUNG PERFORMER

Emily Gould is currently appearing in a popular London show

I love musicals and I’m thrilled to be in this one. I’ve got quite a big part and have to sing a song all by myself in one scene. I’m always pretty nervous during each performance because I’m worried that I might make a mistake. But at the same time I’m excited about doing it and I feel quite proud of myself when I’m on the stage. I’m one of the youngest children in the show - the age range is five to thirteen. The older children are good to me - they remind me about what I have to do next and encourage me a lot. I don’t have time to be in any of the sports teams at school, which is a shame because I’d like to do that too, but acting and singing are great. I want to keep on performing in musicals for the next few years at least, though I’m not sure I want it to be my career.

C. THE STAGE MOTHER

Anita Benfield’s son Tom is currently appearing in a popular musical in London

Tom started going to a local drama school when he was five. Last year, the head of the school suggested that he was good enough to audition for this musical. I took him to a series of four auditions and he got the part. We’d had no experience of the audition process and although he got the part, I thought it was horrible. The vast majority of the children get rejected. At the end of each audition, dozens of children burst into tears when they were told that they hadn’t been successful - they were absolutely devastated. When Tom got chosen, we were given the schedule for the ten weeks of rehearsals - I hadn’t realized how much time would be taken up. It’s all rather exhausting - for the parents as much as the children. When the performances start, you get a timetable of the performances the child will be appearing in. But he also has to be available at short notice to replace a child who is ill, and this makes it hard to plan anything. Because of that, we can't book a holiday and recently we weren’t able to attend a family wedding.

D. THE EX-CHILD STAR

Ian Miller was a child star in the 1980s

My parents were very keen for me to be on the stage and I showed a lot of talent for it when I was a child. By the time I was ten, I’d been in a number of stage musicals and also appeared in various TV series. When I went to secondary school, I stopped performing because I developed other interests and lost my enthusiasm for it - I didn’t want to give up so much time to do it, I wanted to do what my friends were doing. I enjoyed my time as a child performer but I didn’t miss it when I stopped. Lots of child performers don’t go on to become successful adult performers even if they want to. People in the business tend to think that they aren’t capable of developing into good adult performers and they aren’t taken seriously when they’re older. I don’t want my own children to do it - I think performing can be very stressful for children and I think it’s much better for children to concentrate on getting a good education and then train to be a performer when they’re older, if they want to.