ROUND I. Listening
Comprehension Text for 8th form
His name was Fleming, and he was a poor Scottish
farmer. One day, while trying to make a living for his family, he heard a cry
for help coming from a nearby boy. He dropped his tools and ran to the boy.
There, mired to his waist in black muck, was a terrified boy, screaming and
struggling to free himself. Farmer Fleming saved the boy from what could have
been a slow and terrifying death.
The next day, a fancy carriage pulled up to the Scotsman’s place. An
elegantly dressed nobleman stepped out and introduced
himself as the father of the boy farmer
Fleming had saved.
„I want to repay you”, said the nobleman. „You saved my
son’s life”. „No, I can’t accept payment for
what I did”, the Scottish farmer replied, waving off the offer. At that moment,
the farmer’s son came to the door of the family hovel. „Is that your son?” the
nobleman asked. „Yes”, the farmer replied proudly. „I’ll make you a deal. Let
me take him and give him a good education. If the fellow
is anything like his father, he’ll grow to a
man you can be proud of”.
And that he did. In time, farmer Fleming’s son graduated from
St. Mary’s Hospital Medical School in London, and went on to become known
throughout the world as the noted Sir Alexander Fleming, the discoverer of penicillin.
Years afterward, the nobleman’s son was close to death from pneumonia.
What saved him?
Penicillin. The name of the nobleman? Lord Randolph Churchill. His son’s
name?
Sir Winston
Churchill
ROUND
I Listening
Comprehension Test For 8th form Students
Directions:
In this Test you will carefully listen to a
text read aloud twice. The text is followed by 20 tasks. You should do tasks 1
through 10 following the first reading of the text on the basis of what is stated or implied in the text. The text
will be read a second time, and you should do tasks 11 through
20 following the second reading of the text on the basis of what is stated or implied in the text. For each
task you will choose from four possible answers (A, B, C, or D), or two symbols
(+ or -) as specified prior to each task. Choose the best answer and mark the
letter or symbol of your choice on the Answer Sheet.
Glossary
kingfisher – a small brightly-coloured bird with a blue body
that catches fish in rivers
Questions 1 through 10 (on your answer sheet circle + if the statement
is true, - if it is false).
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1.
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The text
mainly tells about ordinary events in history.
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+
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2.
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At the
beginning of the story, the farmer was bathing in a river.
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+
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3.
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There must
have been an accident with a little boy.
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+
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4.
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The action
takes place nowadays.
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5.
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The farmer’s
children were all girls.
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+
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6.
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The little
boy’s father wanted to give the farmer a sum of money.
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+
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7.
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The farmer
seemed to know the importance of knowledge.
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+
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8.
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The
nobleman’s prediction did not come true.
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+
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9.
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The boy
glorified his family name.
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+
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10.
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Sometimes
wonderful coincidences happen in life.
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+
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STOP. WAIT FOR THE SECOND
Text 1
Questions (on your answer sheet circle + if the statement is true, - if it is false)
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18
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The author
was born in a city.
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+
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19
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The reason
the author’s parents didn’t like the rented flat was because it wasn’t
spacious enough.
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20
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The author has been keeping in touch with many of his
classmates.
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+
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21
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The
author finds it awful that in his university years he had to do the housework
by himself.
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+
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22
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The
author liked big parties very much.
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+
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23
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+
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24
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The geese stay all winter in northern
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25
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Unfortunately,
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26
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+
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27
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Female geese produce many young over their
lifetimes.
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28
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29
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Because they avoid places populated by
humans,
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30
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Questions 11 through
20 (choose the correct letter A, B, C or D)
11. It
may be inferred from the text that the Fleming family lived:
a) in the south of Great Britain b)
in the north of Great
Britain
c) in the centre of Great
Britain d)
outside Great Britain
12. The
farmer must have been...
a) kind and wealthy b)
noble and proud
c) hardly able to make ends meet d) idle and suspicious
13. One
can make a conclusion that the saved boy’s father was:
a) a successful farmer b)
a good hunter
c) an aristocrat d)
a beggar
14. The
farmer’s son must have been...
a) worth pride b) a wonder kid c) a nobleman d) from Ireland
15. The nobleman’s offer was:
a) rather stupid b) just and generous c) not worth considering d) never accepted
16. After
receiving his education, young Fleming was supposed to:
a) work with customers b) sell medicines c) look for criminals d) treat patients
17. Alexander
Fleming discovered:
a) a penny ceiling b) a pan sealing
c) penicillin d) pennies
while pealing
18. Fleming’s
discovery made him:
a) cruel and dangerous b) famous worldwide
c) thrilling and exciting
d) quite boring
19. The
word „sir” before Fleming’s name may mean that he:
a) became as noble as Churchill b)
came from Syracuse
c) performed in a circus d)
was a sergeant in the British Army
20. One can infer from the text that:
a) the Flemings and the Churchills
were close friends
b) Alexander Fleming may not
necessarily have seen Winston Churchill after the childhood accident
c) Winston
Churchill almost died from the medicines given by Fleming
d) Alexander
Fleming was Winston Churchill’s personal doctor
ROUND II. Reading Comprehension Test For 8th form
Students
Directions:
In this Test you will read four texts. Each text is followed by 5-8
tasks. You should do the tasks following the text on the basis of what is
stated or implied in that text. For each task you will choose the best possible
answer from four possible answers (A, B, C, or D) or two symbols (+ or -) as
specified prior to each task. Choose the best answer and write down the letter
or symbol of your choice on the answer sheet.
Questions 1 through 6 refer to Text 1.
Swift and his servant
Jonathan
Swift, a famous English writer, was one day travelling on horseback with a
servant. The weather was bad; it was raining and the roads were muddy. In the
evening the two men came to an inn. Before going to bed, Swift told his servant to
clean his boots as they were dirty. But the servant was very lazy and did not
do what his master had said.
The
next morning when Swift saw the dirty boots, he asked the servant why he had
not executed the order. ”The roads are muddy. What is the use of cleaning the
boots now? They will soon be dirty again,” the servant answered.
Swift
didn’t say anything and soon told the servant to get ready because they would
start at once. But the servant looked very displeased and said that he had not
eaten his breakfast yet.
Swift
answered that they would go without any breakfast.
”What
is the use of eating now? You will be hungry again”, he said.
Questions (on your answer sheet
choose the correct letter A, B, C or D)
1.
The writer and his servant were most
likely travelling somewhere ....
A. in the wood
B. in the countryside
C. in the city
D. in the space
2.
The servant seemed to dislike ...
A. his master
B. work
C. cleaning shoes
D. bad weather
3.
Swift seemed to ...
A. be very angry
B. be quite indifferent
C. be pleased
D. be relaxed
4.
The travel was to resume ...
A. shortly
B. after breakfast
C. after the rain stopped
D. after the shoes had been polished
5.
The servant was possibly very ...
A. happy
B. quiet
C. hungry
D. cheerful
6.
Swift was not going to _____.
A. have his shoes cleaned
B. keep the servant any longer
C. have any meal
D. leave the inn that day
Questions 7 through 17 refer to Text 2.
Text 2
A SAD STORY
Three
men came to New York
In
the evening the three men went to the theatre and came back to the hotel very
late.
‘I
am very sorry,’ said the hotel clerk, ‘but our lifts are not working. If you do
not want to walk up to your room, you will have to sleep in the hall.’
‘No, no,’ said one of the three men, ‘no, thank you.
We do not want to sleep in the hall. We shall walk up to our room.’
Then
he turned to his two friends and said: ‘It is not easy to walk up to the
forty-fifth floor, but I think I know how to make it easier. I shall tell you
some jokes. Then you, Andy, will sing us some songs. Then you, Peter, will tell
us some interesting stories. That will pass the time.’
So
they began to walk up to their room. Tom told them many jokes. Andy sang some
songs. At last they came to the thirty-fourth floor. They were very tired.
‘Well,’
said Tom, ‘now it is your turn, Peter. Tell us a long and interesting story with a sad
ending.’
‘I shall tell you a story’, said Peter. ‘It is not
long, but it is sad enough: we left the key to our room in the hall.’
Questions (on your answer sheet
choose the correct letter A, B, C or D)
7.
______ men came to New York
A. 2
B. 3
C. 4
D. 5
8.
Their room was on the __________ floor.
A. 54th
B. 45th
C. 55th
D. 15th
9.
The three men enjoyed a _______ in the evening.
A. piece of artwork
B. performance
C. match
D. race
10.
When they came back ____.
A. the hotel door was locked
B. the hotel door was broken
C. they found out they had left the key
D. they
found out they had to walk for a long time
11.
The man decided to____.
A. go back to the theatre
B. sleep in the hall
12.
On the way to their room one of them __.
C. sleep in their room
D. give a hard time to the hotel
clerk
A. told stories C.
cried
B. fell down D.
fell asleep
13. Another man ____.
A. danced C.
sang
B. laughed D.
played a ball
14. It was a(n) ____ walk up.
A. hard C.
easy
B. simple D.
effortless
15. Peter was asked to
tell them a story with a _____ end.
A. cheerless C.
cheery
B. positive D.
joyful
16. The main idea of
Peter’s story was:
A. ‘I don’t want to go with you’ C. ‘The lifts are
not working’
C. ‘My story is not very long’ D. ‘We won’t be
able to open our room’
17. Peter would tell a
different story if ____.
A. the men were four B. the lifts
were working that evening
C. the clerk had an extra key D.
the men’s room was on the forty-fourth floor
Questions 18 through 22 refer to Text 3.
Text 3
When I was born, my parents were
living in a house in a small village about 20 kilometres from the capital. I
was three years old when my brother was born and my parents decided that we
needed a larger home. We first moved into a rented flat for fifteen months
while the new block of flats we were going to move to was being completed. I
don’t think my parents liked the rented flat because it was smaller than our
old house.
We finally moved into the capital at
the beginning of 1988. Our flat wasn’t really large, only 68 square metres, but
there was enough room for two adults and two small boys. There were two
bedrooms, a cosy living-room with a balcony, a small bathroom and a kitchen,
where we used to have the family meals, as well.
I started school the following
September, and my brother went to kindergarten. I still remember my first day
at school. I even remember that there were 38 students in my class – but of
course I’ve long forgotten most of their names by now.
We lived in the same flat all the
time I was at school. I only moved house again when I started university in
2003. I decided to study forestry so I had to move to a town near the border.
Rents were quite expensive, so I decided to move into a shared flat. Five of us
rented a large flat in the city centre, and shared all the housework. I had the
time of my life! I’m still living in the same town, but I’m sharing with just
one person now. It’s more comfortable but I often miss the big parties we used
to have at the other place.
Questions 23 through 30 refer to Text 4.
Text 4
CANADA GEESE
ROUND
II Writing Comprehension Test For 8th form Students
Directions:
In this test you will select from
the three tasks written on the board one which you feel you are most capable to
write about. You will then begin writing your essay on the pages provided. When
you are finished, close your papers, lay down your pen and wait. Your test
materials will be collected.
1.
Write advice for a
foreigner visiting your country. Discuss when to come, what to bring, where to
go and what to expect upon arrival.
2.
Describe your ideal
living situation, including a
flat or a house, alone or with family. Don’t forget to include the reasons for
each of your choices.
3. Your teacher has asked you to
write a composition describing a famous person from
history whom you admire. Write your composition.
ROUND III Speaking Comprehension Test for 8th Form
Students
Directions:
In this test you will choose from 20
topics to speak about. Each number corresponds to one topic. The number of your
choice is the theme of your oral presentation. Take about a minute to collect
your thoughts before you begin to speak on the topic.
1.
Imagine that you are a
famous writer who has just completed your best novel. What does this novel tell
others about you? What is the main idea of this novel? What problems are
discussed in this novel?
2.
Which of the members of
your family do you appreciate most and why?
3.
If you had a chance,
what would you change in the place you live?
4.
What do you like/dislike
in people? Which of those qualities does your best
friend have?
5.
What day of your life
brings you the sweetest memories? Why?
6.
Do you have any special
holidays in your family? What’s special about them?
7.
If you had a chance to
decide where to spend your summer break, where would you go?
8.
What TV program would you like to take part in?
Why?
9.
What would you say to persuade your parents that
the music you listen to is worth listening to?
10.
You would like to keep a pet, but you don’t know
what pet is best. What information would you ask of your friends about pets
from their own experience? What pet would you
choose? Try to come up with some rules for pet keeping.
11.
On Friday night you are
worried about the weather for the coming weekend. Where can you find
information about the weather? What will be the weather at the weekend? Taking
into consideration the weather forecast, what will you plan to do?
12.
What do you think about
teachers of English? Do you think their work is important? Would you like to
become a teacher of a foreign language? Why? Why not?
13.
Which of the school
subjects will be most useful in your future career? Give comments on your
decision.
14.
Describe how the weather
can influence your mood. What do you like to do when the weather is nasty? Does
weather influence your performance?
15. What pictures of interesting places in Kyiv would you recommend to your English
friend to take if you friend were to visit there?
16. Your English
friend is going to come to Ukraine
17. You are going
on a picnic on Sunday. Tell your invited friends the time, the food, the place.
Bring up the subject of appropriate clothes to wear and necessary equipment
needed for comfort and recreation.
18. What sport
events would you like to talk about as a TV sports journalist?
19. If you were
to make a list of the most outstanding Ukrainians, what names would you include
in it?
20. Where in your town/village would you take your guest from another country?
