ЕГЭ, ОГЭ и ОЛИМПИАДЫ

Типичные ошибки в устной части ОГЭ по английскому языку

• Чтение текста без интонации, пауз, деления предложения на смысловые части. Неправильные ударения в словах, низкий темп речи, большие паузы

• Многочисленные фонетические ошибки
• Незнание формата заданий устной части
• Невнимательное чтение заданий
• Несоблюдение временных ограничений
• Объем высказывания не соответствует поставленной задаче
• Ограниченный словарный запас, многочисленные повторы слов
• Чрезмерное волнение
• Нечеткая и тихая речь

Методические рекомендации при подготовке школьников к сдаче ОГЭ (Английский язык)

• Изучить Контрольно-измерительные материалы по иностранным языкам - 2016 (на сайте ФИПИ), которые включают в себя демонстрационный вариант, спецификацию и кодификатор.
• Познакомить учащихся с критериями оценивания экзамена, содержанием спецификации и кодификатора.

• Начинать подготовку к ОГЭ заблаговременно, а не за 2-3 месяца до экзамена

• Механическое выполнение заданий в формате ОГЭ без анализа иобсуждений не принесет желанных результатов

• Использовать для подготовки к ОГЭ занятия по внеурочной деятельности в среднем звене, факультативы и элективные курсы в старшем звене
• Проводить на базе школы пробные ОГЭ (в каникулярное время)
• Формулировать вступительную и заключительную фразы;
• Соблюдать временные рамки;
• Использовать в речи больше синонимов, не повторять слова;

Понятийный ресурс:

• Демонстрационный вариант (ОГЭ)

по иностранному языку содержит

задания, по подобию которых будут

строиться задания настоящего экзамена.

• Спецификация – по иностранному языку

указывает, какой вид навыков

проверяется в каждом задании.

• Кодификатор – содержит требования

к знаниям, которыми необходимо

обладать для успешной сдачи (ОГЭ)

по иностранному языку.

Структура экзамена в формате ГИА по английскому языку

ГИА по английскому языку проводится в формате основного государственного экзамена (ОГЭ), который включает в себя задания стандартизированной формы.

ОГЭ по английскому языку состоит из письменной и устной частей.

Письменная часть делится на четыре раздела: «Аудирование», «Чтение», «Грамматика и лексика», «Письмо». На выполнение письменной части экзамена отводится 120 минут.

Раздел 1. Аудирование

Данный раздел включает три части (8 заданий). Время на выполнение – 30 минут.

Задание №1. Цель выполнения данного задания - определение места, в котором данный диалог может иметь место: кинотеатр, парк, отель, больница и т.п. Важно помнить, что присутствует один лишний ответ.

Задание №2. В ходе выполнения данного задания экзаменуемому необходимо сопоставить каждого говорящего с той мыслью, которую он/она выразили.

Например, он/она описывает школьную библиотеку или помещение своего класса. В этом задании также присутствует один лишний ответ.

Задания №3-8. Данные задания нацелены на понимание деталей и конкретной информации в монологе/диалоге. В этих заданиях даны три варианта ответа на вопрос. Экзаменуемый должен выбрать тот вариант, который соответствует услышанному. Например, указать с кем путешествует герой или какой сувенир он купил.

Максимальный балл -15.

Раздел 2. Чтение

Данный раздел включает две части.

Задание №9 представляет собой семь небольших текстов и восемь заголовков. Экзаменуемому необходимо сопоставить каждый текст с соответствующим заголовком, который наилучшим образом отражает основную мысль текста. 1 заголовок – лишний.

Задания №10-17 направлены на понимание текста повествовательного характера. После текста представлены 8 утверждений. Экзаменуемому необходимо установить является ли утверждение верным (True), ложным (False) или в тексте об этом ничего не сказано (Not stated).

Максимальный балл -15.

Рекомендуемое время на выполнение данного раздела ОГЭ – 30 минут.

Раздел 3. Грамматика и лексика

Данный раздел состоит из 9 заданий направленных на формирование правильной грамматической формы слова и 6 заданий на лексическую трансформацию слов.

Максимальное количество баллов за выполнение данного раздела -15 (1 балл за каждый правильный ответ).

Рекомендуемое время на выполнение данного раздела ОГЭ – 30 минут.

Раздел 4. Письменная речь

Данный раздел представлен одним заданием, в котором экзаменуемому необходимо написать письмо личного характера в ответ на предоставленное письмо «друга».

Данное задание оценивается по следующим критериям:

- решение коммуникативной задачи (полные ответы на заданные вопросы, правильность используемого обращения, завершающей фразы, подпись, благодарность, упоминание о предыдущих контактах, выражение надежда на письмо-ответ);

- организация текста (логика построения текста, разделение на абзацы, правильное использование языковых и логических средств связи, соответствие письма нормам письменного этикета);

- лексико-грамматическое оформление текста (правильное использование разнообразной лексики и грамматических конструкций (допускается не более двух языковых ошибок));

- орфография и пунктуация (отсутствие орфографических и пунктуационных ошибок (допускается не более двух ошибок)).

Письмо должно содержать от 100 до 120 слов. Рекомендуемое время на выполнение данного раздела ОГЭ – 30 минут. Максимальный балл -10.

Раздел 5. Говорение

Устная часть представлена тремя типами заданий на говорение (speaking):

Задание №1. Чтение вслух небольшого текста научно-популярного характера.

Экзаменуемому даётся 1,5 минуты на чтение текста про себя, затем необходимо прочитать текст вслух за 2 минуты. Максимальное количество баллов за это задание – 2.

Задание оценивается по следующим критериям:

- речь воспринимается легко и понятно;

- отсутствуют необоснованные паузы;

- допускается не более пяти фонетических ошибок, в том числе одна-две ошибки, искажающие смысл.

Задание №2. Участие в условном диалоге-расспросе (ответы на заданные вопросы).

В ходе этого задания экзаменуемый должен ответить на 6 услышанных в аудиозаписи вопросов по определённой тематике (спорт, школа, здоровый образ жизни и т.д.). Вопросы задаются в формате телефонного опроса общественного мнения. Ответ на каждый вопрос не должен занимать больше 40 секунд. Каждый ответ оценивается в 1 бал при условии, что:

- ответ дан;

 - ответ не является одним словом или словосочетанием;

 - содержание ответа соответствует задаваемому вопросу;

- в ответе отсутствуют ошибки, затрудняющие его понимание.

Максимальное количество баллов за это задание - 6.

Задание №3. Тематическое монологическое высказывание с вербальной опорой в тексте задания.

На подготовку к выполнению данного задания даётся 1.5 минуты. Монолог должен длиться не более 2 минут (10-12 фраз). Максимальный бал за выполнение данного задания - 7.

В данном задании экзаменуемому необходимо дать монологическое высказывания на определённую тему, учитывая критерии, представленные в задании.

Данный тип задания оценивается по следующим критериям:

- решение коммуникативной задачи (предоставлено развёрнутое высказывание, полностью раскрывающее заданную тему и точно раскрывающее три аспекта, указанных в задании);

- организация высказывания (высказывание должно иметь логичный и завершённый характер; использование средств логической связи (слов-связок); наличие вступительной и заключительной фраз);

- языковое оформление высказывания (богатый словарный запас, правильное грамматическое и фонетическое оформление высказывания).

Время устного ответа составляет 15 минут на одного отвечающего. Максимальный балл при выполнении устной части – 15. Максимальный бал при успешной сдаче ОГЭ по английскому языку составляет 70 баллов.

Шкала баллов

http://opengia.ru/subjects/english-9/topics/1 - официальный банк заданий ФИПИ
https://ege.yandex.ru/english-gia/ - онлайн тесты.
http://www.edu.ru/tests/course/testselect.php?subject=24 - онлайн тесты.
http://www.prosv.ru/umk/spotlight/info.aspx?ob_no=30507 - советы, пособия, тесты.

Устная часть ОГЭ 2016 Английский язык.

Инструкция по выполнению работы.

Устная часть КИМ ОГЭ по английскому языку включает в себя 3 задания.

Задание 1 предусматривает чтение вслух небольшого текста научно- популярного характера. Время на подготовку – 1,5 минуты.

В задании 2 предлагается принять участие в условном диалоге- расспросе: ответить на шесть услышанных в аудиозаписи вопросов телефонного опроса.

В задании 3 необходимо построить связное монологическое высказывание на определённую тему с опорой на план. Время на подготовку – 1,5 минуты.

Общее время ответа одного участника ОГЭ (включая время на подготовку) – 15 минут. Каждое последующее задание выдаётся после окончания выполнения предыдущего задания. Всё время ответа ведётся аудио- и видеозапись.

.

Задание 1 (тексты для чтения вслух)

Task 1

It was used by the Roman officials to transfer information throughout the Empire. Staging posts and a system with horses and carriages meant that messages could move quickly, by using many riders instead of one. It was very important for business and military reasons that good communication system existed. However, the Romans were not the first to realize this. The Chinese and Persian empires used systems of horses and riders more than 500 years before the Romans.

Task 2

They were invented in Great Britain. It was a British man called Rowland Hill who proposed a stamp to be stuck on the letter to identify that postage had been paid. The first stamp was issued in 1840. It was called the Penny Black and the profile of Queen Victoria’s head was depicted there. The stamp cost 1 pence and was darkly coloured. About 65 million Penny Blacks were issued, and nowadays it is not a very rare stamp.

Task 3

English is basically a Germanic language with a lot of Latin words in it. In simple terms, that means that the grammar and many of the most frequent words are Germanic, and the more formal or technical vocabulary is Latinate. The linguistic mixture is a result of historical events. But the simple historical facts appear not to explain everything about the development of the language. One interesting question is why the British did not learn Latin from the Romans.

Task 4

Billions of people speak English, two-thirds of the planet’s scientists write in English, and over 80% of the world’s electronic information is stored in English. But not all the British are really self-satisfied about the status of their language. But they are quite well aware that today it is out of their hands: the reasons for the popularity of English are either lost in history, or something to do with the superpower on the other side of the Atlantic.

Task 5

The early history of Canada is a story of fish and fur. But after the World War II, Canada began to develop its own industries, such as producing cars and airoplanes. Today, Canada is the largest producer of nickel. It supplies the world with iron and copper as well as wood, paper, oil, gold and silver. Canada now has moved swiftly with research and development in fibre optics and communications.

Task 6

Canada's two official languages are English and French. They are the mother tongue of 60% and 23% of the population respectively. You can notice the both languages on highway signs, maps, tourists' leaflets and all types of packaging. Canadian English contains elements of British English and American English in its vocabulary. The five most widely-spoken non-official languages are Chinese, Punjubi, Spanish, Italian and Arabic.

Задание 2 (участие в условном диалоге- расспросе)

Task1

Electronic assistant: Hello! It’s the electronic assistant of the Dolphin Sports Club. We kindly ask you to take part in our survey. We need to find out how people feel about doing sports in our region. Please answer six questions. Thesurvey is anonymous – you don’t have to give your name. So, let’s get started.

Electronic assistant: How old are you?

Student: ________________________

Electronic assistant: How many times a week do you do sports?

Student:_________________________

Electronic assistant: What sport is the most popular with teenagers in your

region?

Student: ________________________

Electronic assistant: What sports facilities are available in the place where you

live?

Student: _________________________

Electronic assistant: Why do you think it is important to keep fit?

Student: ________________________

Electronic assistant: What would you advise a person who wants to keep fit?

Student: ________________________

Electronic assistant: This is the end of the survey. Thank you very much for

your cooperation.

Task 2

Electronic assistant: How are you?

Student: ________________________

Electronic assistant: What foreign languages do you study?

Student:_________________________

Electronic assistant:   How is your foreign languages’ learning going?

Student: ________________________

Electronic assistant: How is your progress?

Student: _________________________

Electronic assistant: Do you take extra English lessons?

Student: ________________________

Electronic assistant: Why do you think it is important to study English?

Student: ________________________

Electronic assistant: This is the end of the survey. Thank you very much for

your cooperation.

Task3

Electronic assistant: How are you?

Student: ________________________

Electronic assistant: Do you like reading?

Student:_________________________

Electronic assistant:   What kind of books do you like reading?

Student: ________________________

Electronic assistant: How many books have you read?

Student: _________________________

Electronic assistant: And who is your favourite writer?

Student: ________________________

Electronic assistant: Can you name some of his books?

Student: ________________________

Electronic assistant: This is the end of the survey. Thank you very much for

your cooperation.

Task 4

Electronic assistant: How are you?

Student: ________________________

Electronic assistant:  How is your school? Do you like it?

Student:_________________________

Electronic assistant:   How many floors are there?

Student: ________________________

Electronic assistant: Is the school well-equipped?

Student: _________________________

Electronic assistant: What is your favourite place at school?

Student: ________________________

Electronic assistant: Does your school have a large library?

Student: ________________________

Electronic assistant: This is the end of the survey. Thank you very much for

your cooperation.

Task 5

Electronic assistant: How are you?

Student: ________________________

Electronic assistant:  Do you like summer holidays?

Student:_________________________

Electronic assistant:   What are you going to do during the next summer? Do you have any plans?

Student: ________________________

Electronic assistant: Are there any beaches?

Student: _________________________

Electronic assistant:  How are you going to spend June and August?

Student: ________________________

Electronic assistant: What kind of summer homework do you have?

Student: ________________________

Electronic assistant: This is the end of the survey. Thank you very much for

your cooperation.

Task 6

Electronic assistant: How are you?

Student: ________________________

Electronic assistant:  Can you tell a little bit about yourself, Linda?

Student:_________________________

Electronic assistant:    What about your parents? What do they do?

Student: ________________________

Electronic assistant: Do you have any brothers or sisters? What do they do?

Student: _________________________

Electronic assistant:  Do you often get together?

Student: ________________________

Electronic assistant: Can you say that your family is typically Russian?

Student: ________________________

Electronic assistant: This is the end of the survey. Thank you very much for

your cooperation.

Задание 3(связное монологическое высказывание на определённую тему с опорой на план)

Task 1

Student Card

Give a talk about learning foreign languages. You will have to talk for 1.5–2 minutes.

Remember to say:

·    whether it is useful to speak foreign languages, why

·    what foreign languages you learn at school

·    how people learn foreign languages

You have to talk continuously

Task 2

Student Card

Give a talk about sport. You will have to talk for 1.5–2 minutes.

Remember to say:

·    whether teenagers should do sports, why

·    whether you prefer doing or watching sports

·    what you do to keep fit

You have to talk continuously

Task 3

Student Card

Give a talk about holidays. You will have to talk for 1.5–2 minutes.

Remember to say:

·    what holidays your family celebrate

·    what your favourite holiday is, why

·    what you like more: giving presents or getting presents

You have to talk continuously

Task 4

Student Card

Give a talk about mobile phones. You will have to talk for 1.5–2 minutes.

Remember to say:

·    whether you use a mobile phone

·    what the advantages of using mobile phones are

·    what the disadvantages of using mobile phones are

You have to talk continuously.

Task 5

Student Card

Give a talk about your school uniform. Youwill have to talk for 1.5–2 minutes.

Remember to say:

·     whether you wear school uniform in school or not

·     what the advantages of wearing school uniform are

·     what the disadvantages of wearing school uniform are

You have to talk continuously

Task 6

Student Card

Give a talk about TV. You will have to talk for 1.5–2 minutes.

Remember to say:

·    why TV is important in modern society

·    what your favourite TV programme is

·    what you prefer: watching TV or reading a book, why

You have to talk continuously

Критерии оценивания выполнения заданий устной части (максимум 15 баллов за весь раздел)

Задание 1 (чтение текста вслух). 

Фонетическая сторона речи – max 2 баллa, если:

Речь воспринимается легко:

• необоснованные паузы отсутствуют;
• фразовое ударение и интонационные контуры, произношение слов практически без нарушений нормы;
• допускается не более пяти фонетических ошибок, в том числе одна-две ошибки, искажающие смысл.

Задание 2 (участие в условном диалоге-расспросе). Оценивается отдельно каждый из шести ответов – max 6 баллов.

Ответ на вопросы 1–6 можно получить 1 балл за каждый, если:

• дан полный ответ на поставленный вопрос;
• допущенные отдельные фонетические, лексические и грамматические погрешности не затрудняют понимания

Задание 3 (тематическое монологическое высказывание) – max 7 баллов.

 Решение коммуникативной задачи  – max 3 балла если:

Задание выполнено полностью:

• цель общения достигнута;
• тема раскрыта в полном объёме (полно, точно и развернуто раскрыты все аспекты, указанные в задании)

Организация высказывания  – max 2 балла, если:

• высказывание логично и имеет завершённый характер;
• имеются вступительная и заключительная фразы, соответствующие теме.
• средства логической связи используются правильно.

Языковое оформление высказывания – max 2 баллa, если:

Использованный словарный запас, грамматические структуры, фонетическое оформление высказывания соответствуют поставленной задаче (допускается не более четырёх негрубых лексико-грамматических ошибок И/ИЛИ не более трёх негрубых фонетических ошибок).

Test 1 FAMILY LIFE

You are going to read the text aloud. You have 1.5 minutes to read the text silently, and then be ready to read it aloud. Remember that you will not have more than 2 minutes for reading aloud.

A British family has recently celebrated the birth of their 18th child. It was a girl and her brothers and sisters have welcomed their new sister. Her eldest brother is 26 and the parents already have two grandchildren. The family announced the birth of the child on their family website. They described the girl as “beautiful”. The family owns a bakery and hopes the children will take over the family business. It looks as if the era when the average British family would have only two or three children is over. In Britain there are more families with four children than anywhere else in Europe. Social scientists say that this is the result of immigration into the country of families from Asia and Africa.

Remember to say:

• how people choose friends
• why friends quarrel sometimes
• what makes friendship so necessary to everybody

You have to talk continuously.

Audioscript for Task 1.2

Electronic assistant: Hello! This is the electronic assistant of the Dolphin Sports Club. We kindly ask you to take part in our survey. We need to find out how people feel about doing household chores. Please answer six questions. The survey is anonymous — you don’t have to give your name. So, let’s get started.

Electronic assistant: How old are you?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: What family member are you?

Student:        

Electroniс assistant: What household chores do you do regularly?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: What technological devices do you use to help you with the household chores?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: Why do you think it is important to share household chores among family members?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: How would you advise to divide household chores among family members?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: This is the end of the survey. Thank you very much for your cooperation

Test 2 APPEARANCE AND LOOKS

 You are going to read the text aloud. You have 1.5 minutes to read the text silently, and then be ready to read it aloud. Remember that you will not have more than 2 minutes for reading aloud.

Everybody knows that our appearance matters in what people think about us. Appearance is important not only in a romantic relationship but also in politics. Appearance is not all about beauty. The moment we see a person our mind starts evaluating their personality according to their looks. What especially matters is the persons face. This means that the impression somebody’s face makes on others can cost the person his or her political career. When we vote for a candidate we think that we are weighing his or her personal qualities. In fact, we are examining their face. Research has shown that if a candidate’s appearance displays competence, power and leadership, but not beauty or good looks, it can cause a political victory or defeat. These findings are really important.

Remember to say:

• what appearance of models you like
• what makes some models more successful than others
• why models can be a bad example for young people’s lifestyle

You have to talk continuously.

Audioscript for Task 2.2

Electronic assistant: Hello! This is the electronic assistant of the Dolphin Sports Club. We kindly ask you to take part in our survey. We need to find out what kind of appearance is popular among young people nowadays. Please answer six questions. The survey is anonymous — you don’t have to give your name. So, lets get started.

Electronic assistant: How old are you?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: Are you male or female?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: What is your favourite item of clothing?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: What kind of shoes do you prefer?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: What do you think about using perfume every day?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: How do you feel about the choice of jewellery among young people?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: This is the end of the survey. Thank you very much for your cooperation.

Test 3 OCCUPATIONS AND HOBBIES

 You are going to read the text aloud. You have 1.5 minutes to read the text silently, and then be ready to read it aloud. Remember that you will not have more than 2 minutes for reading aloud.

There are some very rare occupations that may seem strange to somebody while in reality they are interesting and even tasty. One such profession is a chocolate engineer. When you hear the word “engineer” what comes up in your mind is perhaps heavy machinery. A chocolate engineer does not have anything to do with either machinery or the heavy equipment industry. Chocolate engineers design chocolates. This profession is chosen by those who love designing things, have a good imagination and a good sense of taste. The job of a chocolate engineer is to create an assortment of delicious chocolate recipes. They taste their products first. Another tasty occupation is a tea taster. Such specialists are very important in the tea industry because tea must be examined for quality.

Remember to say:

• what this hobby is
• whether this hobby is popular with people in other countries
• whether you would like to take up this hobby and why

You have to talk continuously.

Audioscript for Task 3.2

Electronic assistant: Hello! This is the electronic assistant of the Dolphin Sports Club. We kindly ask you to take part in our survey We need to find out popular hobbies among young people. Please answer six questions. The survey is anonymous — you don’t have to give your name. So, let’s get started.

Electronic assistant: What professions do you find interesting?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: What school subjects meet your own life interests?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: What hobbies do your friends have?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: What hobbies appeal to you most of all?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: What is your own favourite hobby?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: Why do you enjoy the hobby of your choice?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: This is the end of the survey. Thank you very much for your cooperation.

Test 4 PURCHASES AND POCKET MONEY

You are going to read the text aloud. You have 1.5 minutes to read the text silently, and then be ready to read it aloud. Remember that you will not have more than 2 minutes for reading aloud.

Small children can understand money. They get the idea that in order to buy something you have to pay for it. Also, they know that in order to have money you have to earn it. Of course, kids can’t earn their own money yet and that is why parents start giving pocket money to their children at a certain age. Apart from fun, pocket money can be a great tool for teaching children the art of budgeting, saving money and setting goals. Besides, children can be taught how to donate small sums to charity. In other words, pocket money can be used to teach small children decision-making but children should not be paid for obeying their parents or for helping them about the house.

Remember to say:

• why managing your money is important
• where your own money comes from
• what goals of spending your money you set for yourself

You have to talk continuously.

Audioscript for Task 4.2

Electronic assistant: Hello! This is the electronic assistant of the Dolphin Sports Club. We kindly ask you to take part in our survey. We need to find out how internet shops are being used. Please answer six questions. The survey is anonymous — you don’t have to give your name. So, let’s get started.

Electronic assistant: Are you male or female?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: What do you know about buying things on the internet?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: Why do you think people use internet shops for purchasing food and goods?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: What do you think are the drawbacks of buying on the internet?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: What do people you know buy on the internet?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: If you had the chance to buy something on the internet, what would it be?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: This is the end of the survey. Thank you very much for your cooperation.

Test 5 EMAILING, TEXTING AND CHATTING

You are going to read the text aloud. You have 1.5 minutes to read the text silently, and then be ready to read it aloud. Remember that you will not have more than 2 minutes for reading aloud.

Mobile phones have become very popular and texting is taking the lead. In many situations sending text messages called SMS via the telephone is more preferable than emailing somebody. Unlike emails, SMS texts are delivered alerting the telephone  owner to the arrival of a new message. Not many of us check their email on a regular basis while SMS texts have a sense of urgency and we must answer them at once. Besides, texting is used for personal contacts while emails are often the channel of business communication. A great advantage of SMS texts is that they can be sent from any location thanks to the mobile device in your pocket. You do not have to sit in front of a computer or carry a heavy laptop with you.

Remember to say:

• how you got your mobile phone
• what you find to be very useful in your mobile phone
• what you like and don’t like about your mobile phone

You have to talk continuously.

Audioscript for Task 5.2

Electronic assistant: Hello! This is the electronic assistant of the Dolphin Sports Club. We kindly ask you to take part in our survey. We need to find out how you use internet social networks. Please answer six questions. The survey is anonymous — you don’t have to give your name. So, let’s get started.

Electronic assistant: How much time on average do you spend online?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: What social networks are your favourite?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: What makes the social network of your choice attractive to you?

 Student:                 

Electronic assistant: How does your social network fit in with your daily routine?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: How do you find friends in your social network?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: What functions of your social network do you use more than others?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: This is the end of the survey. Thank you very much for your cooperation.

Task 6

You are going to read the text aloud. You have 1.5 minutes to read the text silently, and then be ready to read it aloud. Remember that you will not have more than 2 minutes for reading aloud.

One of the oldest schools in the world is a school in China. It was organized in the year 143 BC and it was the first Chinese public school. Soon after that the building of the school was destroyed in a fire but the school was rebuilt a couple of years later. This was not the end for the tests of life for this school. The school was destroyed by wars many times and only ruins remained but each time it was rebuilt again and again. It survived hurricanes and earthquakes, blizzards and storms. In the twentieth century it was called a model for secondary schools nationwide. For many Chinese students it is a great honour to study at that school. Would you like to study in such a school?

Remember to say:

• why you like your holiday time
• what the holiday of your dream is
• what good holiday experience you have already had. You have to talk continuously.

Audioscript for Task 6.2

Electronic assistant: Hello! This is the electronic assistant of the Dolphin Sports Club. We kindly ask you to take part in our survey. We need to find out how to make your school life more interesting for you. Please answer six questions. The survey is anonymous — you don’t have to give your name. So, let’s get started.

Electronic assistant: What grade are you in?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: How often do you come to school for extra-curricular activities?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: What kind of activities are available for students at school after the lessons?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: What activities offered by your school after the lessons do you find most interesting and useful?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: What activities offered by your school after the lessons are not to your liking?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: What can be done to make your school life after the lessons even better?

Student:        

Electronic assistant: This is the end of the survey. Thank you very much for your cooperation.

Чтение вслух

Computers have been around for over sixty years and they have changed our lives. It is a well-known fact that the first modern computer began operating in the USA in 1945. This huge machine was the size of a large room. It was also very slow and so complicated to use that only an expert could operate it. That’s very different from modern PCs which are so user-friendly that anyone can use them.

During the 1970s, tiny electronic microchips became more common. By the 1980s and 90s, home computers were becoming smaller, faster and cheaper. As a result, more people bought them, so computers became more wide-spread.

Как готовиться к устной части ОГЭ по английскому языку?

Я бы советовала не только прорешивать такие варианты заданий, но и зазубрить несколько клише, которые помогут оформить речь при ответе на заковыристые вопросы:

• Personally I think …
• I prefer …
• I’m not very keen on …
• In my opinion/view …
• My advice would be …
• You should/could …
• You’d better …

А также при ответе внимательно слушать вопрос и повторять слова и структуру, чтобы не запутаться в грамматике.

Ну и будет просто волшебно, если ученик вспомнит какие-то тематические слова и выражения, поэтому их желательно подучить (в кодификаторе есть список тем, которые должен знать 9-классник).

А также постоянно напоминать ему, что нельзя отвечать односложно и начинать предложение со слова because, а также обращать внимание, что в одном вопросе может содержаться два вопросительных слова, и отвечать в этом случае нужно на оба вопроса (как в вопросе 2 в примере ниже).

А теперь рассмотрим на примере, как делать задание 2.
В задании подчеркнуты вопросительные слова, повторяющиеся почти во всех заданиях этого типа.

Task 2. You are going to take part in a telephone survey. You have to answer six questions. Give full answers to the questions.
Remember that you have 60 seconds to answer each question.

Tapescript for Task 2

Electronic assistant: Hello! It’s the electronic assistant of the Hobby Center. We kindly ask you to take part in our survey. We need to find out how
people feel about taking up hobbies in your region. Please answer six questions. The survey is anonymous – you don’t have to give your name. So, let’s get started.
Electronic assistant: How old are you?
Student: I’m fourteen years old.
Electronic assistant: What is your hobby and why are you interested in it?
Student: My hobby is swimming and I’m interested in it because I like water and can’t imagine my life without swimming.
Electronic assistant: How much time a week do you spend on your hobby?
Student: I go to the swimming pool twice a week, on Mondays and Thursdays.
Electronic assistant: What hobbies are the most popular with teenagers nowadays?
Student: Usually teenagers take up dancing, blogging or start playing computer games.
Electronic assistant: Why do you think people take up hobbies?
Student: Personally I think that people take up hobbies to develop physically and emotionally and to meet new people.
Electronic assistant: What would you advise a person who wants to start a hobby?
Student: I would advise a person who wants to start a hobby to be patient and hard-working because you must be serious about everything you do to achieve the best results in it.
Electronic assistant: This is the end of the survey. Thank you very much for
your cooperation.

Как видите, все ответы повторяют слова вопроса, чтобы ученику было легче не запутаться в грамматике при ответе на вопрос. Также в ответах присутствуют клише I would advise, Personally I think, и тематические выражения to take up a hobby, to start a hobby, I’m interested in.

Для наглядности хочу привести пример, как бы я ответила на задание 3 устной части ОГЭ.

Task 3. You are going to give a talk about photography. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and speak for not more than 2 minutes.
Remember to say:
why people like taking pictures∙
why taking photos is more popular today than it was in the past∙
what the best photo you have ever taken is∙
You have to talk continuously.

Ответ:

Now I’m going to give a talk about photography.

1. In my opinion, taking pictures is really popular now. Many of my friends and classmates have cameras in their mobiles which they use to take photos of everything they like.

1. Today taking photos is more popular than it was in the past because cameras are less expensive and many people can afford them. You can even take pictures using camera in your mobile! Also, there are a lot of social networks, for example Facebook or Vkontakte where people post photos and share them with friends.
2. Personally I have one really great photo. It was taken last year in Rome. You can see my mother and me on it. We are standing near a beautiful fountain in the center of the city. The sun is shining and we are smiling.

In the end  I would like to say that taking photos helps us save one of the most precious things in life — our memories, which can always be with us when we look at this or that picture.

А теперь разберем ответ.

Коммуникативная задача: на все три вопроса дан ответ.

Организация высказывания: слова-связки присутствуют, есть вступительная и финальная фразы (выделены курсивом).

Языковое оформление: лексика — использованы тематические слова и выражения — take pictures, photos, photography, post photos.

Грамматика — употреблены три времени — Present Simple, Present Continuous (при описании фото) и Past Simple, сравнительная степень (less expensive), превосходная степень (the most precious), пассивный залог (was taken), модальный глагол can.

Разнообразные грамматические структуры добавляют привлекательности ответу, и после того, как само задание будет оттренировано, надо заставлять ученика разнообразить оформление своего ответа.

Task 2. You are going to take part in a telephone survey. You have to answer six questions. Give full answers to the questions.
Remember that you have 60 seconds to answer each question.

Tapescript for Task 2

Electronic assistant: Hello! It’s the electronic assistant of the Hobby Center. We kindly ask you to take part in our survey. We need to find out how
people feel about taking up hobbies in your region. Please answer six questions. The survey is anonymous – you don’t have to give your name. So, let’s get started.
Electronic assistant: How old are you?
Student: I’m fourteen years old.
Electronic assistant: What is your hobby and why are you interested in it?
Student: My hobby is swimming and I’m interested in it because I like water and can’t imagine my life without swimming.
Electronic assistant: How much time a week do you spend on your hobby?
Student: I go to the swimming pool twice a week, on Mondays and Thursdays.
Electronic assistant: What hobbies are the most popular with teenagers nowadays?
Student: Usually teenagers take up dancing, blogging or start playing computer games.
Electronic assistant: Why do you think people take up hobbies?
Student: Personally I think that people take up hobbies to develop physically and emotionally and to meet new people.
Electronic assistant: What would you advise a person who wants to start a hobby?
Student: I would advise a person who wants to start a hobby to be patient and hard-working because you must be serious about everything you do to achieve the best results in it.
Electronic assistant: This is the end of the survey. Thank you very much for
your cooperation.

Как видите, все ответы повторяют слова вопроса, чтобы ученику было легче не запутаться в грамматике при ответе на вопрос. Также в ответах присутствуют клише I would advise, Personally I think, и тематические выражения to take up a hobby, to start a hobby, I’m interested in.

Task 2. You are going to take part in a telephone survey. You have to answer six questions. Give full answers to the questions.
Remember that you have 60 seconds to answer each question.

Tapescript for Task 2

Electronic assistant: Hello! It’s the electronic assistant of the Hobby Center. We kindly ask you to take part in our survey. We need to find out how
people feel about taking up hobbies in your region. Please answer six questions. The survey is anonymous – you don’t have to give your name. So, let’s get started.
Electronic assistant: How old are you?
Student: I’m fourteen years old.
Electronic assistant: What is your hobby and why are you interested in it?
Student: My hobby is swimming and I’m interested in it because I like water and can’t imagine my life without swimming.
Electronic assistant: How much time a week do you spend on your hobby?
Student: I go to the swimming pool twice a week, on Mondays and Thursdays.
Electronic assistant: What hobbies are the most popular with teenagers nowadays?
Student: Usually teenagers take up dancing, blogging or start playing computer games.
Electronic assistant: Why do you think people take up hobbies?
Student: Personally I think that people take up hobbies to develop physically and emotionally and to meet new people.
Electronic assistant: What would you advise a person who wants to start a hobby?
Student: I would advise a person who wants to start a hobby to be patient and hard-working because you must be serious about everything you do to achieve the best results in it.
Electronic assistant: This is the end of the survey. Thank you very much for
your cooperation.

Как видите, все ответы повторяют слова вопроса, чтобы ученику было легче не запутаться в грамматике при ответе на вопрос. Также в ответах присутствуют клише I would advise, Personally I think, и тематические выражения to take up a hobby, to start a hobby, I’m interested in.

Task 3. You are going to give a talk about photography. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and speak for not more than 2 minutes.
Remember to say:
∙ why people like taking pictures
∙ why taking photos is more popular today than it was in the past
∙ what the best photo you have ever taken is
You have to talk continuously.

Ответ:

Now I’m going to give a talk about photography.

In my opinion, taking pictures is really popular now. Many of my friends and classmates have cameras on their mobiles which they use to take photos of everything they like.

Today taking photos is more popular than it was in the past because cameras are less expensive and many people can afford them. You can even take pictures using camera on your mobile phone! Also, there are a lot of social networks, for example Facebook or Vkontakte where people post photos and share them with friends.

Personally I have one really great photo. It was taken last year in Rome. You can see my mother and me in it. We are standing near a beautiful fountain in the center of the city. The sun is shining and we are smiling.

In the end I would like to say that taking photos helps us save one of the most precious things in life — our memories, which can always be with us when we look at this or that picture.

ТЕКСТ ЗАДАНИЯ:  You are going to give a talk about shopping. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and speak for not more than 2 minutes.

Remember to say:

• whether you like shopping, why/why not
• how often you go shopping and what kind of things you buy
• what you prefer: going to shops or shopping online, why

ОТВЕТ №1

I’m going to talk about shopping.

For me shopping is an interesting way of entertainment and I like shopping.

I usually go shopping every weekend with my mum, we visit some shopping centers to buy food, clothes and some electronical devices. Sometimes my grandmother go shopping with us and we have a good time together.

I like shopping online.  For me it’s better way not to go to shops and waste my time, also I can’t sometimes find everything I want in the shops in my city, so I have to go shopping online.

I think shopping can be interesting for different people.

That’s all I wanted to say about shopping.

пример:Modern Technology
~how new electronic gadgets have changed our life;
~what the most useful gadget is in your view,and why;
~whether there are any drawbacks to using modern gadgets;

Now I am going to give a talk about modern technology. First of all,I would like to say that modern technology have become very popular nowadays especially among teenagers.
New electronic gadgets have changed our life by increasing level of social mobility.
In my point of view,the most useful gadget is mobile phone because it is very comfortable and small.I really like it. Of course,there are many drawbacks to using modern gadgets which are frequent breakdowns and electromagnetic radiation. Finally,I’d like to say that modern technology is very comfortable. That is all I wanted to say about modern technology

Монолог “Keeping fit”

Задание
You are going to give a talk about keeping fit. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and will speak for not more than 2 minutes. Remember to say:
· why a healthy lifestyle is more popular nowadays;
· what you do to keep fit;
· what sports activities are popular with teenagers in your region.
You have to talk continuously.

Примерный ответ
Well, now I’m going to give a talk about keeping fit and healthy lifestyle.

Healthy lifestyle is becoming more and more popular nowadays. There is a number of reasons for that but the most important reason is that people live under the press of different problems, such as social, ecological, economic and others. A person should be strong and healthy in order to overcome all difficulties. Healthy lifestyle helps people do that.

As for me, I try to keep fit in different ways. First of all, I do my morning exercises every day. In addition to it, I go to the swimming pool once or sometimes twice a week. Also, I stay away from bad habits, because I’m convinced that cigarettes, alcohol and drugs destroy both body and brain.

Well, as to other teenagers of my region, I should say that they are interested in different sports activities. They often play football and other active games on sports grounds, go to gyms and swimming pools. Besides, more and more young men become interested in martial arts, such as karate, boxing, kickboxing, judo and so on.

In conclusion, I’d like to emphasise the fact that healthy lifestyle is a “must” for modern people.

Монолог “My school”

Задание
You are going to give a talk about your school. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and will speak for not more than 2 minutes. Remember to say:
· what you like most about your school;
· what weekday you find the most difficult, and why;
· what you would like to change in your school life.
You have to talk continuously.

Примерный ответ
Well, now I’m going to give a talk about my school.

To begin with, I’d like to say that my shool is one of the biggest schools in my city, where more than one thousand pupils get their education.

I like my school very much, but it is my classmates that I like best of all. We are all good friends and get on well with each other. We spend much time together doing sports, playing active games and so on.

As for weekdays, I find Monday the most difficult one because we have six lessons on this day, including Mathematics and Physics. Frankly speaking, I’m not good at these subjects, and I don’t enjoy these lessons.

In my opinion, much can be changed and improved in my school. For example, PE lessons. I’d like them to be more diverse. As a rule, we play volleyball and basketball at the lessons, or simply run on the stadium. It would be better if we had a chance to work out with weights and play games that are more interesting .

In conclusion, I’d like to emphasise the fact that school education is very important for teenagers and should help them build character and develop mind.

Задание (вариант 2)
You are going to give a talk about your school. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and will speak for not more than 2 minutes.
Remember to say:
· what your typical school day is like;
· what your favourite subject is, and why;
· what you like most about your school.
You have to talk continuously.

Примерный ответ
Well, now I’m going to give a talk about my school.

To begin with, I’d like to say that my shool is one of the biggest schools in my city, where more than one thousand pupils get their education.

As far as my typical school day concerned, I should say it is very busy. It usually starts at 8 o’clock in the morning and comes to an end at 2 or 3 o’clock in the afternoon. Every day we have 6 and sometimes 7 lessons. We also have breaks, but they are not very long.

As I have just mentioned, my typical school day involves a number of lessons. Russian, Literature, and Mathematics are the most frequent ones. As a rule, we do a lot of work at these lessons: learn rules, do exercises and tests, write essays, make reports, and so on.

My favourite subject is English. I have been learning it since the 2nd form and I hope to relate my life to it. Chances are good that I will be an interpreter. If not, I can always go to school and be an English teacher.

I like a lot in my school but it is my classmates that I like most. We are all good friends and get on well with each other. We spend much time together doing sports, playing active games, going to the cinema.

In conclusion, I’d like to emphasis the fact that school education is very important for teenagers and should help them build character and develop mind.

Монолог “The place where I live”

Задание
You are going to give a talk about the place where you live. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and will speak for not more than 2 minutes.
Remember to say:
· what your city, town or village is famous for;
· what your favourite place in your city, town or village is, and why you like it;
· whether you are going to stay in your city, town or village after leaving school or move to another place, and why.
You have to talk continuously.

Примерный ответ (на примере г. Кемерово)
Well, I am going to give a talk about my city.

To begin with, I’d like to say that the name of my city is Kemerovo. This is the capital of Kuzbass, the main coal region of Siberia.

In the first place, Kemerovo is famous for its coal producers and chemical industry. Coal mined here is consumed in this country and exported abroad. In addition to coal, different chemicals are produced here. The products of a gigantic plant Azot are in great demand all over the country.

As to me, I like my city very much, because it has lots of beautiful places where you can rest and relax. The embankment of the river Tom is my favourite place in Kemerovo. Here you can sit quietly on the banks and admire wonderful nature. The embankment is also a good place where you can walk alone or with your friends.

Frankly speaking, I haven’t yet decided what to do after leaving school. It depends on many factors. More likely than not, I will stay in my city, because I have all the opportunities to get good education here. I just have no reason of moving to another region. But as the saying is, time will tell.

In conclusion, I’d like to invite everyone to visit Kemerovo and enjoy this city.

Монолог “Foreign languages”

Задание
You are going to give a talk about foreign languages. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and will speak for not more than 2 minutes.
Remember to say:
· why lots of people learn foreign languages nowadays;
· why you have chosen to do the English exam this year;
· what you did to prepare for your English exam.
You have to talk continuously.

Примерный ответ

To begin with, I’d like to say that more and more people learn foreign languages nowadays. They do it for a number of reasons. In the first place, people want to understand citizens of other countries and to be understood by them. In addition to it, travelling has become easier, and the Russians have a variety of opportunities for going abroad. If you are fluent in a foreign language, you feel more confident.

It goes without saying that English is established as the most important and popular language. As for me, I have been learning English for 5 years. And this year I have chosen to do the English exam. I regard this exam as a chance to test my language skills. I have always wanted to know my real speaking skills and find out my strengths and weaknesses.

I did much work to prepare for my English exam. First of all, I revised grammar. I learned a lot of rules and consolidated them in doing exercises. In addition to it, I read texts of various genres to enlarge my vocabulary. I also listened to a number of radio programmes and podcasts to make my listening better. And I also made efforts to improve my speaking. I used every chance to speak English at the lessons and at home.

In conclusion, I’d like to emphasize the fact that English is in great demand these days, so I recommend everybody to start learning it as soon as possible and commit to it.

Монолог “Pets”

Задание
You are going to give a talk about pets. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and will speak for not more than 2 minutes.
Remember to say:
· why people keep pets;
· what pets are most popular in big cities;
· whether having pets is a big responsibility, and why.
You have to talk continuously.

Примерный ответ
Well, I am going to give a talk about pets.

To begin with, I’d like to say that nowadays more and more people keep pets in their houses: cats, dogs, parrots, hamsters, guinea pigs, and so on. They do it for a number of reasons. In the first place, people seek to make friends, and pets are a kind of friends they can make fast and easily. Besides, pets give positive emotions, that’s why people like to keep them. If you are under stress, you can just stroke your cat and feel somewhat relieved.

As to the most popular pets in big cities, I should say it depends. If you live in a big city, a cat or a small dog would be the best option. Firstly, they don’t need extensive space to live on. Secondly, you don’t have to spend a lot of money on buying pet food. If you live in the country, you can choose whatever you want. There is always plenty of room and food for any pet here.

Anyway, having pets is a big responsibility. Pets are animate objects, and if you don’t take good care of them, they may fall sick and even die.

In conclusion, I’d like to emphasise the fact that pets play an important part in our life and we should be aware of both pluses and minuses of keeping them.

Монолог “The Internet”

Задание
You are going to give a talk about the Internet. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and will speak for not more than 2 minutes.
Remember to say:
· why today’s teenagers use the Internet so much;
· how the Internet makes long-distance communication easier;
· what dangers teenagers can face when they use the Internet.
You have to talk continuously.

Задание (вариант 2)
You are going to give a talk about the Internet. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and will speak for not more than 2 minutes.
Remember to say:
· why using the Internet is so popular;
· how the Internet can help students in their studies;
· whether the Internet can be dangerous, and why.
You have to talk continuously.

Примерный ответ

To begin with, I’d like to say that we live in the world of modern technologies. We are surrounded by lots of sophisticated gadgets: smartphones, iPhones, notebooks, netbooks, laptops. They are very useful because they have practically unlimited functionality. But it is the connection to the Internet that makes them useful to the max.

Today the Internet is exceedingly popular and used very much, especially by teenagers. They do it for a number of reasons. Firsty, they create their profiles on different social nets such as vkontakte, odnoklassniki, facebook, instagram and others. Young people like communicating with each other, and the social nets give them this opportunity. Secondly, the Internet is a depot of innumerable information, so teenagers use the internet as a source of answers for various questions. So, the Internet helps students in their studies. Whether they need to make a report or prepare for a test, they launch a browser, type in the request and get lots of pages according to the request.

Besides, the Internet makes long-distance communication easier. There are special programs for communcation of this kind. One of them is Skype, which is sure to be the most popular programm. You can see and hear the person whom you are talking to.

Frankly speaking, the Internet is not as safe as you wish it were. Firstly, the spread of information is uncontrolled on the Internet, so teenagers often run into dangerous pages containing information about selling drugs or committing a suicide. I strongly believe that this information must be banned.

In conlcusion I’d like to say that if you follow the safety rules when using the Internet you are not endangered, and you can use the Internet to your advantage as much as possible.

Монолог “Holidays”

Задание
You are going to give a talk about holidays. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and will speak for not more than 2 minutes.
Remember to say:
· what holidays are most popular in your country;
· what your favourite holiday is and how you celebrate it;
· if you prefer to give presents or to get presents, and why.
You have to talk continuously.

Задание (вариант 2)
You are going to give a talk about public holidays in Russia. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and will speak for not more than 2 minutes.
Remember to say:
· what public holidays are celebrated in Russia;
· what your favourite public holiday is, and why you like it;
· how your favourite public holiday is celebrated in your city, town or village.
You have to talk continuously.

Примерный ответ
Well, now I’m going to talk about holidays.

To begin with, holidays play an important part in our life. Holidays give us an opportunity to rest and relax, they also improve our mood and make us happier.

Our country has a number of (public) holidays. The most popular are New Year, the 8th of March (the women’s day), Spring and Labour Day, Victory Day, Russia Day, and others. All these holidays are very important for every citizen of the Russian Federation.

My favorite (public) holiday is New Year because this is a special occasion. It is not only an opportunity to relax but also to think about how you lived the past year and make plans for the next one. In addition to it, New Year is a reunion for the whole family of ours, so we always look forward to it.

My family established its own way of celebrating New Year. In the evening we visit our best friends who live next door and have some time together. Then, at midnight, we come back home and have our celebratory meal. We usually watch TV shows, listen to music, fool around, and, of course, give each other presents.

As for me, I like both giving presents and getting them. Both actions are very enjoying. But honestly speaking, I like getting presents more because now I don’t have enough money for giving them.

Staying at home with your family is not the only way to celebrate New Year. You can visit city celebrations which include fairs, contests, concerts, and fireworks. The culmination of the New Year celebration in our city is setting up fireworks. It is just awesome!

In conclusion, I’d like to emphasise the fact that every holiday is a great time, and I wish there were as many holidays as possible.

Монолог “Travelling”

Задание
You are going to give a talk about travelling. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and will speak for not more than 2 minutes.
Remember to say:
· why most people like travelling;
· which season is the best for travelling in your opinion;
· what means of transport is the best, and why.
You have to talk continuously.

Задание (вариант 2)
You are going to give a talk about travelling. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and will speak for not more than 2 minutes.
Remember to say:
· why most people enjoy travelling;
· what people like doing while travelling;
· what place you would like to go to, and why.
You have to talk continuously.

Примерный ответ
Nowadays, people have a great variety to rest and relax: going to the cinema, playing sports, and so on. But the most popular option remains travelling.

People like travelling for a number of reasons. Firstly, travelling is a good way to focus away from work and study and, so to say, to recharge batteries. I mean people can replenish their inner supplies of energy and refresh emotions. Secondly, travelling is a good way to broaden the mind and gain knowledge. If you go to a foreign country, you can learn its customs and traditions, see the sights, make friends with local citizens.

While travelling, people like to do different things. It depends upon the place and purpose of your visit. If you travel to a resort town, you usually swim in the sea and bake in the sun. If you travel on business, you’re supposed to establish contacts, carry on talks, making contracts, and so on. If you travel for educational reasons, you attend lessons, go on excursions, gain knowledge and develop your skills.

In my opinion, summer is the best season for travelling. Most adults are on leave in this period and children have holidays, that’s why summer is the optimal time when you can start on a journey.

As to means of transport, each one has its pluses and minuses. If you travel by train, you can admire beautiful landscapes and you feel safe. But it takes more time to get to the destination. Travelling by plane saves time but deprives you the chance to enjoy the nature outside, and what is more, fills you with misgivings about the flight.

As to me, I have already travelled to many places, but my dream is to visit Tokyo. This is the place I would like to go to because it is one of the world leaders in business, culture, science and technology. Besides, I plan to learn Japanese in the future, so, visiting Japan can help me to do that.

In conclusion, I’d like to emphasize the fact that travelling plays an important part in our life and everybody should travel as much as possible.

Монолог “Career plans”

Задание
You are going to give a talk about your career plans. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and will speak for not more than 2 minutes.
Remember to say:
· what job you want to do in the future;
· what two subjects you think are the most important for your future job, and why;
· whether your family approve of your career choice or not.
You have to talk continuously.

Примерный ответ

All people have to work in order to make a living. It is very important that a person has a job according to his or her abilities and wishes.

As for me, I’d like to be an interpreter in the future. I like foreign languages very much, and, frankly speaking, I’m very good at them. Nowadays, I do my best to learn English and Spanish because they are the languages that are widely spoken and popular with lots of people.

I think that English and Geography are the most important subjects for my future job. They are two subjects that help me learn much about other countries, their customs and traditions. English and Geography also help me understand native people of other countries, respect their culture and communicate with them in the most effective way.

All the members of my family approve my career choice because they strongly believe that interpreting is an exciting and well-paid job. Frankly speaking, my family just want me to be happy and they support any decision of mine.

In conclusion, I’d like to emphasize the fact that every teenager shouldn’t procrastinate in deciding about his or her job because a successful career requires much time and efforts.

Монолог “Books”

Задание
You are going to give a talk about books. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and will speak for not more than 2 minutes.
Remember to say:
· whether reading is still popular with teenagers, and why, or why not;
· what kind of books you like reading;
· why many people prefer e-books to paper books.
You have to talk continuously.

Примерный ответ

Well, I am going to give a talk about books.

To begin with, I’d like to say that there are a lot of ways to spend free time: doing sports, watching TV, going to the cinema, playing games, and so on. And, of course, you can just read a book.

Frankly speaking, reading books is losing its popularity with teenagers making way for more exciting activities, such as watching blockbasters in 3-D, playing computer games, social networking, arranging parties. If a teenager has to choose between reading a book and playing a brand new computer game, he or she will definitly show preference for the game. Modern games excel books in all aspects. Firstly, modern games make a tremendous visual impact. The game world looks extremely realistic. Secondly, when playing a game, you are not an outsider. You are an active insider participating in everything that happens in the game world.

As for me, I have to confess that I am not only a gamer, but also a regular reader. Yes, I like reading very much! Science fiction is my favourite kind of literature because it gives a different view of our reality. It doesn’t present our world as it is but as it could be. I think that science fiction is much deeper than, say, detective stories. The problems science fiction deals with are more global and serious.

If you take a more closer look at reading people, you will notice that they usualy read e-books. There is a number of reasons why many people prefer e-books to paper books. The main reason is that you can download unlimited e-books for free from the Internet. In addition to it, e-books are much comfortable to read. There is a variety of devices that can open e-books: computers, tablets, smartphones.

In conclusion, I’d like to say that modern world is full of exciting things like sports, TV, parties and so on. Nevertheless, books shouldn’t be forgotten.

Монолог “School homework”

Задание
You are going to give a talk about your school homework. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and will speak for not more than 2 minutes.
Remember to say:
· how long it takes you to do your homework;
· what subject you usually start with, and why;
· whether schoolchildren should be given more or less homework, and why.
You have to talk continuously.

Примерный ответ

Well, I am going to give a talk about my school homework.

To begin with, I’d like to say that school homework is an essential part of school education. Almost everyone who goes to school is given hometasks.

As for me, duration of doing my homework depends on many factors. For example, our teachers of Literature and History are in the habit of giving a lot of homework, which involves reading many pages of textbooks, writing synopses, making presentations, and so on. If you are not ready with all this stuff, you get a bad mark. As I don’t want to get bad marks, I have to spend long hours to prepare for the lessons. It may take me 3 or even 4 hours to finish the school homework. But to tell the truth, there are teachers who spare pupils’ time and don’t give much work. They organize their lessons so that there is little left for home.

As to sequence of subjects, I usualy start with Literature because this is the most voluminous subject including many works of fiction, critique, philosophy, and the like. I prefer to get rid of the most boring subject in the first place and then start doing something that is more interesting.

I strongly believe that schoolchildren should be given less homework. I don’t understand teachers who give their pupils too much homework and are sure that they do them good. Teachers should know that our brain can effectively process a limited amount of information. The rest of information vanishes into thin air. If you keep trying to remember everything you are given by teachers, you will most likely go crazy.

In conclusion, I’d like to appeal to teachers and make them remember their own school life. Teachers schould never forget that they were pupils in the past and, like today’s young people, had difficulties with the homework.

Монолог “TV”

Задание
You are going to give a talk about TV. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and will speak for not more than 2 minutes.
Remember to say:
· whether watching TV is still a popular pastime with teenagers, and why, or why not;
· how many hours a week you watch TV;
· what you dislike most about TV.
You have to talk continuously.

Примерный ответ
Well, I am going to give a talk about TV.

To begin with, I’d like to say that TV is one of the greatest enventions of all times. It is impossible to imagine days when people lived without TV.

In my opinion, watching TV is losing its popularity with teenagers. The reason is that teenagers prefer the Internet to TV. Not long ago, TV used to be the main source of information and entertainment. It is no longer the case. Now, if you want to know what is happening in the world, you launch a browser, do some clicks and get innumerable quantity of information. If you want to watch something entertaining, you don’t need TV. There are lots of youtube channels providing clips, shows, interviews with celebrities, and the like. You can start watching a video, pause it for any time and then start again. You can’t do the same trick with television.

As for me, I don’t watch TV very often. I usually do it when new episodes of my favourite serials appear. So, I watch TV approximately 3 of 4 hours a week. Sometimes it happens that there are no new episodes of my favourite serials, so I spend no time at all.

There are a lot of things I dislike about TV. But endless blocks of commercials drive me really crazy! It goes without saying that advertising gives money for producing new content, but there should be some limits to advertising.

In conclusion, I’d like to acknowledge great importance of television, but at the same time, I’d like to state the fact that TV gradually abandons its absolute position making way for the Internet.

Монолог “Free time”

Задание
You are going to give a talk about your free time. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and will speak for not more than 2 minutes.
Remember to say:
· whether you have a lot of free time, and why, or why not;
· what you enjoy doing in your free time;
· what your Sunday afternoons are like.
You have to talk continuously.

Примерный ответ
Well, I am going to give a talk about my free time.

To begin with, I’d like to say that people have to work more and more in the modern world to make a career, earn a living, and become succesful. This also holds true for teenagers, beacause they have to study a lot. So, both adults and teenagers don’t have much free time.

As for me, I don’t have much free time either, because I am faced with a number of important exams this year. As I don’t want to fail them, I make every effort to learn the necessary material. I read a lot of textbooks and additional articles, do innumerable exercises, attend preparation courses, and so on.

In spite of the fact that I have to work a lot, I try to find some time for recreation and fun. Frankly speaking, I enjoy doing many things in my free time. I like to take walks, come to see my friends, watch TV, surf the Internet, and so on. My favourite pastime is going to a swimming pool. I am keen on having a healthy lifestyle, and swimming helps me to keep fit.

As to my Sunday afternoons, I should confess that they are just for doing nothing active. I usually take my tablet, sink into the sofa, and watch videos on youtube or communicate in social nets. Sunday afternoons are the period when I don’t overload myself with activities, because I need to collect my strength for Monday, which is my busiest weekday.

In conclusion, I’d like to say that it is very important to not only have free time but also give it to your hobbies and interests.

Монолог “Weather and seasons”

Задание
You are going to give a talk about weather and seasons. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and will speak for not more than 2 minutes.
Remember to say:
· which of the four seasons you like most, and why;
· how the Earth’s climate has changed recently;
· whether you trust the weather forecast, and why.
You have to talk continuously.

Примерный ответ
Well, I am going to give a talk about weather and seasons.

To begin with, I’d like to say that there are four seasons in a year: winter, spring, summer, and autumn.

As for me, I like summer most of all, because this is the period when we have vacations. And vacations mean freedom. Absolutely! We have no need to get up early and be in a hurry to leave for school. It is not necessary to spend long hours doing school homework. The only thing we have to do in summer is relaxing to the max. In addition to it, the weather is awesome in summer! As a rule, it is warm and sunny.

By the way, the Earth’s climate has changed recently. If you take a closer look at what’s happening in the world, you see natural phenomena that never took place before. Melting arctic ice is one of numerous examples. It gradually fills the ocean with huge amounts of additional water that makes the water level higher and causes ecological disasters. In addition to it, mass media often give information about disastrous hurricanes and severe droughts that occur in unexpected time and place.

As to the weather forecast, I don’t trust it if it is given for the longer period of time. I don’t believe that man can predict what is going to be in a week or fortnight. Nevertheless, I think that the weather forecast for one or two days is most likely to be correct, and you should trust it.

In conclusion, I’d like to say that weather is an interesting subject, which is worth studying and paying attention to.

Монолог “Photography”

Задание
You are going to give a talk about photography. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and speak for not more than 2 minutes.
Remember to say:
· why people like taking pictures
· why taking photos is more popular today than it was in the past
· what the best photo you have ever taken is
You have to talk continuously.

Примерный ответ

Well, I am going to give a talk about photography.

To begin with, I’d like to say that people have always wanted beautiful moments of life to last forever. Photography helps them to make it happen.

People like taking pictures for a number of reasons. As I have just mentioned, people want to save beautiful moments of life forever. For example, while visiting an exotic country, you see lots of things that don’t exist in your own area. You never see a coconut tree in Siberia and heaps of snow somewhere in the south. Why not to take a picture? In addition to it, people take pictures not only for fun but also for fixing details of an occurrence. It is often the case when pictures help to investigate a crime.

It is really a fact that taking photos is more popular today than it was in the past. The main reason is that taking photos has become much easier today. You just take a smartphone, do a click and that’s it. It has also become easier to share photos with friends. You can upload it
on your profile in a social net and let everyone see it.

As for me, I like taking photos very much. Frankly speaking, I have many good photos, but the best one was taken last year in the Altai Mountains. My friends and I effected an ascent of a mountain and took a picture on the very top of it. The picture is just awesome! When I look at it, I admire wonderful nature and remember my friends.

In conclusion, I’d like to say that taking pictures is a never-ending hobby, which will carry away more and more people.

Task 3. You are going to give a talk about keeping fit. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and will speak for not more than 2 minutes.

Remember to say:

• ·         why a healthy lifestyle is more popular nowadays;
• ·         what you do to keep fit;
• ·         what sports activities are popular with teenagers in your region.

You have to talk continuously.

Now I am going to give a talk about a healthy lifestyle.

1. In my opinion a healthy lifestyle is more popular nowadays than some years before. Many people have to work hard at offices sitting at the computers all days long. It’s rather harm for their health. So people try to find time for doing sport, walking, gardening and spending weekends outside. There are lots of sports clubs and gyms where people can train to keep fit.
2. As for me I try to do morning exercises every day to keep fit. I also walk with my friends and swim in the swimming pool not far from my house. Sometimes I jog in the nearest park. At weekends I usually visit my grandparents who live in the country. There is a big farm where I help my grandpa. Fresh air and activities make me feel much better than in town.
3. There are lots of sports activities popular with teenagers in our region. Boys prefer playing football and wrestling. As for girls they are fond of dancing and running. Both girls and boys from our school take part in skiing competitions.

In the end I’d like to say that a healthy lifestyle is the best choice for young people.

Task 3. You are going to give a talk about your school. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and will speak for not more than 2 minutes.

Remember to say:

·         what you like most about your school;

·         what weekday you find the most difficult, and why;

·         what you would like to change in your school life.

You have to talk continuously.

Now I am going to give a talk about my school.

1. I’m finishing the 9th form and I’m going to continue my studying in the 10th form because I like my school. Most of all I love my school friends and teachers. I also appreciate that my teachers are ready to help me with advice and they are very skillful. I am happy to meet my friends at school. We have lots in common and spend almost the whole day together.
2. We are very busy at school. As for me I find Monday the most difficult weekday because it’s the first day after a weekend and we have 7 lessons. Two of them are Physics. It isn’t my favorite subject. I can’t understand it. And after school I have an extra Russian lesson because we prepare for our final exam. I’m very tired on Monday.
3. Personally I would like to change a timetable because we have to do much homework every day.  Most of my classmates have after school activities and very little time for relax.

In the end I’d like to say that despite of being very busy I love my school  and I’m happy in it.

Task 3. You are going to give a talk about the place where you live. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and will speak for not more than 2 minutes.

Remember to say:

·         what your city, town or village is famous for;

·         what your favourite place in your city, town or village is, and why you like it;

·         whether you are going to stay in your city, town or village after leaving school or move to another place, and why.

You have to talk continuously.

Now I am going to give a talk about my hometown.

1. I live in Samara.  It’s the 9th biggest city in Russia. It’s famous for its space industry and the largest railway station in Europe and the longest embankment. Samara is situated on the left bank of the Volga River. Our city will be the host of The Football Championship in 2018. And tourists can admire very beautiful nature: the river and the mountains, lakes and fields.
2. There lots of interesting places to visit in Samara. The city center is a mixture of old and modern buildings. But my favorite place is the embankment. It’s very long with comfortable cafes and playgrounds. There is a nice park where I like relaxing in hot weather. In summer my friends and I prefer to go to the beach and play volleyball there. The water is rather cool but I am always glad to spend a day near the Volga River. The most important city events such as Victory Day and Day of  Russia take place at the embankment. It’s also very popular for cycling and roller-skating.
3. As for me I’d like to stay in Samara. I’m going to enter the university and work in my hometown because I want to be useful in a place where I was born.

In the end I’d like to say I’m proud of my city and its people. The English proverb says “There is no place like home” and I agree with it.

Task 3. You are going to give a talk about foreign languages. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and will speak for not more than 2 minutes.

Remember to say:

·         why lots of people learn foreign languages nowadays;        

·         why you have chosen to do the English exam this year;

·         what you did to prepare for your English exam.

You have to talk continuously.

Now I am going to give a talk aboutwhy lots of people learn foreign languages nowadays.

1. The first reason is travelling, I think. It’s much more interesting to live in apartments among the local people by your own, meet and speak with them and learn another culture from inside. Also knowledge of foreign languages can help to find a well-paid job and gives an opportunity to study abroad. Some people learn foreign languages just for a hobby because it improves memory and helps to make friends all round the world.
2. As for me I need English for my future career that’ why I’ve chosen the English exam this year. I want to try myself, to check my knowledge of English and take an attempt to pass the exam.
3. Of course, it’s impossible to get ready for the exam for a short time. I like English and I always do my homework. I am active in the lessons. I took part in Olympiads at school and won them several times. In my spare time I enjoy listening to English songs and watching films with subtitles. Sometimes I do tests on-line to check myself. So I’m not nervous before the exam. I’m sure I’ll pass it successfully.

In the end I’d like to say every educated person should know a foreign language.

Task 3. You are going to give a talk about weather and seasons. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and will speak for not more than 2 minutes.

Remembertosay:

• which of the four seasons you like most, and why;
• how the Earth’s climate has changed recently;
• whether you trust the weather forecast, and why.

You have to talk continuously.

Now I am going to give a talk about weather and seasons.

1. All 4 seasons are beautiful but most of all I like summer because it’s the warmest time of the year. The weather is usually fine, it’s sunny and hot. And I love summer because I have the longest holidays. I can walk all day long, swim, ride a bike and have picnics with my parents.
2. But the Earth’s climate has changed recently and we often have very hot and dry summer. It’s bad for plants, animals and people. Scientists say about environmental problems and global warming. People try to get everything from the Earth and they forget about consequences. As a result we have polluted air, water and soil and the climate changing. People face to ecological problems and if we don’t start  solving them, the Earth will be in great danger.
3. Personally I trust the weather forecast because scientists can predict the weather very clear and accurate with a help of modern techniques. And it’s very useful to know the weather when you are going to have a picnic or plan to go to the country. Nowadays the weather forecast can say the weather for the next 10 days.

In the end I’d like to say that every season is special and nature doesn’t have bad weather.

Task 3. You are going to give a talk about public holidays in Russia. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and will speak for not more than 2 minutes.

Remember to say:

• what public holidays are celebrated in Russia;

• what your favourite public holiday is, and why you like it;
• how your favourite public holiday is celebrated in your city, town or village.

You have to talk continuously.

Now I am going to give a talk about  public holidays in Russia.

1. There are many public holidays in Russia. They are New Year’s Day, Christmas, Women’s Day, May Day, Victory Day, Dayof Russia.

I think the most popular of them isNew Year’s Day because people have a week of holidays and can spend a good time with their families and friends. As for children they like winter and New Year’s presents. Another popular public holiday is Victory Day. It’s the most important day for our country because lots of our people fought in the Word War 2 and defended our Motherland andhad a great victory. There are always parades, meetings and fireworks in all parts of Russia this day.

2. As for me my favourite public holiday is Women’s Day because it’s the first spring holiday. We celebrate it at school and of course at home. Children make crafts at school and give small gifts to their mums and grandmothers, men give flowers to their wives. There are lots of flowers and smiles this day.

3. We always celebrate Women’s Day. At school we prepare a concert for our teachers. We perform dances and songs, small kids recite poems. Every class has a party where boys congratulate girls. We usually have funny contests and competitions this day. I always take part in a school concert. I’m fond of dancing and my friends and I prepare a dance for our teachers.

In the end I’d like to say that  like holidays. It’s an opportunity to follow our traditions and have a nice time with relatives and friends.

Tim woke up later than usual. It was Sunday and he _________HAVE_________ lots of plans for the day. He was in the bathroom cleaning his _________TOOTH_________ when he heard some unfamiliar voices from the veranda.  “Who could they be?” Tim _________THINK_________. When he came into the room, his mum and two other women ________CHAT__________ happily and didn’t notice him. Tim coughed to attract _________THEY_________ attention. “Oh, Tim, you’re up already!” his mother sounded excited. “Meet my school friends, Linda and Emma.” Linda shook his hand, Emma smiled and said: “We _________BE_________ happy to meet you, Tim.” Your mum showed us your photo, but you are much _________YOUNG_________ there. Join us for tea. I wish we _________CAN_________ talk about our school days for ages, but we have some other business to discuss with your mother. It’s going to be interesting for you, too.” Tim sat at the table. Emma had some papers in her hands but Tim couldn’t read what _________PRINT_________ there –  the letters were too small. 

It was about 6pm when I heard a knock on the door. It _________BE_________ Jason, my teenage neighbour. He looked cold and upset.  
“What’s wrong, Jason?”
“I _________LOSE_________ my key and I can’t get into my house.”
“Come in. Today’s not a day for long walks, or long waits,” I looked out the window. It _______SNOW_________ hard and it was windy. The weather was getting ________BAD__________ every hour. 
Jason _________TAKE_________ off his coat and boots. His ________FOOT__________ were wet and I gave him a pair of socks to change into. A cup of hot tea and some biscuits soon made the boy feel warm.
“Where are your parents, Jason?”
“I _________NOT/KNOW_________. I can’t call them because of this,” he pulled his phone out of his pocket and showed it to me – the screen _________BREAK_________ and the phone was obviously dead.
Jason focused on the food again. He took his _________FOUR_________ biscuit and said: “I wish my mum could make biscuits like this.”
 

We arrived at the lake very early. It was cold but in spite of that there were several _______MAN_____ there. Dad pulled our fishing rods out of the rucksack and we joined the others. 
“Hey, look what I_______CATCH____!” a man sitting several metres upstream proudly showed us his bag. There was a large fish in it.
“Good job,” Dad _______SAY_____ and everyone became quiet again. 
“How long do we have to wait? When will they bite?” I whispered. 
“I _____NOT/KNOW______,” Dad whispered back and a moment later he was holding a little, silver fish.
“See?” he turned to me. “But this one is too small. We’d better let it go and wait for the next one.” And he let ______HE______ fish go.
The second fish was _____BIG_______ than the first one and soon Dad caught a few more. 
“If it goes on like this, mum ______COOK_______ us a great dinner,” he said.
We kept fishing till noon but I didn’t catch anything ______I_____ and got really bored with it. To me, it _____BE______ a stupid waste of time but I certainly wasn’t going to tell Dad that. He wouldn’t have liked it. 

When I came into the room, my computer was on. It worried me since I _____NOT/REMEMBER_____ switching it on. I looked around –  there ______BE_____ nobody in my room and everything was in its usual place.  Suddenly I ______UNDERSTAND_____ –  the book had gone! I had left it on the table but it wasn’t there any more. I checked the window –  it ______CLOSE______. That meant that someone had come into the room through the door. My _____ONE______ impulse was to call the police but I called Jim instead. “What _____HAPPEN_____?” Jim sounded sleepy. I explained that someone _____TAKE_______ the book. “Oh, no!” Jim sounded unhappy. “Have you any idea how valuable it is?” “There’s another thing I _____NOT/CAN_____ understand,” I interrupted Jim. “My computer’s on but I always switch it off before leaving home.” “Ok, stay at home. I’ll be at _____YOU____ place in half an hour,” he said and the phone went dead. 

Michael could not imagine his life without computers. His parents _____BUY_____ him his first computer at the age of seven. It took ______HE_______ several days to learn how to use it. His mum said that the younger people were, the ______FAST_____ they could learn computer skills. That was probably true – most _____CHILD_______ in Michael’s class were very competent computer users. Michael was really surprised to find out that the first personal computer ______INVENT_____ in the 70’s of the last century. 
“And how did you chat or send your e-mails without computers?” he asked his mother. 
She smiled: “We ______NOT/SEND_______ each other e-mails. And there were no networks.”
She also said that it ______BE_______ fun to communicate face-to-face, to play out-of-doors and to visit friends’ homes.
“But if there ____BE_____ no computers, I wouldn’t be able to communicate with my friends who live far away from me,” Michael replied.
“True. Technological progress is a great thing,” his mother said “And I think people ____CREATE_____ even more amazing communication devices in the near future.” 

Kitty lived next door to me and we’d been friends since childhood. We learnt at the same school and _________WALK_________ there together. I was sixteen and she was four years _________YOUNG_________ than me. But we had a lot in common and enjoyed chatting on ________WE__________ way to school. Every morning Kitty knocked on my door and I had to be ready by that time – she _________NOT/LIKE_________ waiting for me. One day she didn’t knock. When I caught up with her at the bus stop, she _________READ_________ a magazine and didn’t even look at me. I _________NOT/CAN_________ understand what was going on.
“Hey, Kitty, what’s wrong? Why aren’t you talking to ________I__________?”
“You yourself know why,” Kitty said angrily.
“No, I don’t. I wouldn’t ask you if I ________KNOW__________.”
“You went to the cinema with Lisa Parker yesterday,” Kitty was almost crying.
I felt puzzled and didn’t know what to say. The two _________WOMAN_________ at the bus stop looked amused at our conversation and didn’t hide their smiles.

The phone woke Kim up. She answered the call almost immediately, after the _______THREE_______ beep, because she was expected her mother to call. But it wasn’t her. The voice on the other end of the line sounded familiar but Kim _____NOT/CAN______ remember who it belonged to.
“Hello,” the lady said. 
“Can I speak to Mrs. Len?” 
“I’m sorry but she’s not at home. She’s out. She _______WALK_____ in the park.”
It was very cold out-of-doors and everything _______COVER______ in snow but Kim’s mother walked in all weathers. She believed that it _______HELP______ her keep fit and gave her extra energy. She actually looked younger than other ______WOMAN_______ of her age and that was probably because of her walking.
“Can I take a message?” Kim asked politely.
“No. I _____CALL_______ her later. When is she going to be back?”
“She normally ______COME____ home at five.” 
“Fine,” came the answer and the phone went dead. 
Kim felt a bit hurt. “It’s not polite to break off a conversation like that,” she thought to herself. If I _____BE_____ older, I would explain to that lady how to talk to people politely.” 

Anna was glad that the academic year was about to finish. Like most _________CHILD_________ she was looking forward to the summer but not because she wanted to relax. Her plans _________BE_________ ambitious. Anna wanted to buy a professional digital camera and it wasn’t easy to save enough money.  Anna had already chosen the model she wanted. Her dad said that he _________GIVE_________ her the camera in a couple of years. But Anna _________NOT/CAN________ wait so long, she needed it right then. “If I _________HAVE_________ it now, I would be able to take part in the Professional Photograph Competition. Everyone says I’ve got talent,” she said to herself, looking at the magazine where an article about the competition _________PUBLISH_________. While she was reading the article for the _________TWO_________ time, a brilliant idea came to her –  why not take up a summer job as a photographer? She reached for the phone and dialed the number of the _________LARGE_________ photography agency in the town. “Hello, can I help you?” the woman’s voice sounded encouraging and Anna _________THINK_________ that she probably had a chance. 

Bella was a good student. She _______ENJOY_____ learning but she always started to feel very nervous when she had to write tests. That Monday ____NOT/BE____ a lucky day for her and she realised it as soon as she came into the classroom. 
“Oh, no! I ______LEAVE______ all my pens at home.” She turned to Jenny: “Have you got a spare pen?”
“Let ______I______ see,” Jenny opened her bag and pulled out a pen. “I’ve got this one. But it’s green.”
“Give it to me anyway,” Bella said. “If I don’t find a proper pen, I _____WRITE_____ in green ink. I hope it won’t affect my grades.”
When the teacher handed out the tests, Bella felt even ______BAD_____ than she had felt before. The test was really long – the tasks _____PRINT_____ on both sides of the page! Bella did the first task quickly, but the ______TWO_____ one was a real problem. Bella got panicky. Time ticked on but she _____NOT/CAN_____ concentrate on the tasks. 

Linda was looking forward to her holidays. First of all, she _________FEEL_________ really tired from school and wanted to have a break. The _________TWO_________reason was that they were going to take a trip to the mountains. Linda enjoyed it very much when they went somewhere all together as a family. They _________NOT/DO_________ it very often since her parents were very busy people. Linda ________NOT/CAN__________ ski but the prospect didn’t scare her. She learnt everything very quickly, especially when her father taught ________SHE__________. He was the ________GOOD__________teacher in the world!
“I _________BUY_________ special sunglasses for skiing,” Linda boasted to her father. “Have a look! Nice, aren’t they?”
“They are,” he gave Linda a quick look and turned back to his computer. He ________PREPARE__________ a presentation or something else very important.
Linda could see diagrams on the screen. They _________DRAW_________ in different colours which made them look complicated. 

Paul was going to be late for his morning class again. He ______NOT/UNDERSTAND_____ why it happened to him so often. This was going to be the ______THREE_____ time in one week and that was too much even for Mrs Pitt. She was the ______KIND______ teacher in the world but Paul wasn’t sure that she would forgive him again.
“If I don’t invent a very good excuse, she _____CALL_____ my parents.” Paul thought.
His parents ______NOT/BE_____ very strict people but they didn’t approve of Paul’s habit of playing computer games till late at night. As a result, he couldn’t make ______HE_______ get up in the morning and was regularly late for school. Paul quietly opened the door and ______GO____ into the classroom. His classmates _____WRITE_____ something in their notepads and didn’t pay any attention to him. 
Mrs Pitt looked at him and said in a flat voice: “You are late again, Paul. What _________HAPPEN_________?” 
Paul was not ready with an answer. 

It was late at night but the light was on in Ted’s room. When I _________COME_________ in, he didn’t even turn to me. I looked at his monitor and realized that he ________SURF__________ the Internet for job vacancies.
“Why do you need a job?” I asked. “You _________EMPLOY_________ by Mr. Green only a week ago as far as I remember.”
“Yes, I was. I got a job of a waiter in his restaurant. But I _________LOSE_________ that job already. They said I was rude to a client.”
“Were you?” I was surprised since Ted was the _________PATIENT_________ and tolerant person I’d ever met.
“Yes, it was probably rude of ________I__________ to tell those ladies that I wouldn’t bring them anything else. Just imagine – they had changed their order three times! Each time they tried a dish, they _________NOT/LIKE_________ it. When they said that for the _________FOUR_________ time, I lost control. One of the _________WOMAN_________ called for the manager and complained.” Ted nervously turned back to his computer. “I didn’t like that job anyway.” 

Emma lived in a big city and worked for a large company. Her days were usually very busy –  she _________CAN_________ hardly find half an hour for lunch.  However, at weekends she ________FEEL__________ bored and lonely. Emma had moved to the city because of her job. Only two months before she had thought she was the _________LUCKY_________ girl in the world. She had got a job most of her friends could only dream about. It was her _______ONE_______ full-time job. The company ________CALL__________ ‘Imagination’. They focused on Internet technologies. Emma _________NOT/KNOW_________ much about the Internet but her boss said that it didn’t matter. He also said that she _________BE_________ creative and had imagination and that was why she had a good chance of succeeding in the job. When Emma told her friend, Lucy Pitt, about the new job, Lucy said:
“I’m very happy that you _________FIND_________ a good job. But I also feel very sad about it because you’ll go to the city and will forget about your friends.”
“I wish we could always be together but it’s impossible,” Emma said. “I promise that I _________COME_________ to visit you as soon as I can.”

Kate called me early in the morning. It was the _________TWO_________ day of holidays; I felt angry with her for waking me up. 
“What ________HAPPEN__________?” I didn’t sound very polite, but she paid no attention to that.
“Oh, nothing! I want to go shopping today and wondered if you wanted to go with _________I_________.”
“No, I don’t want to.” 
“But it _________NOT/TAKE_________ you long! I promise.”
My first impulse was to say “no”-unlike most ________WOMAN__________ I hated shopping. But Kate sounded so unhappy that I felt sorry for her. 
“Ok, what do you need to buy?”
Kate’s voice _________BECOME_________ cheerful again. She excitedly explained to me that she _________WANT_________ to buy a pair of hiking boots and a raincoat. That _________BE_________ strange as Kate had never been fond of hiking. 
“I want to take up hiking as a new hobby,” went on Kate. “Bob Smith says that it’s very exciting.”
Now I knew what was going on. Bob Smith, the captain of the school baseball team, was the _________POPULAR_________ boy in our school. All the girls wanted to attract his attention. 

When you look at this lovely house in the Welsh countryside, you may think it's a picture from J.R.R. Tolkien's book ‘The Hobbit’. In fact it's a real house designed by a real person. When ____THEY_______ first son was born, Simon Dale’s wife, Jasmine, said: “I wish we ____LIVE_______ in the country. It would be so good for the baby”. However, they ____NOT/HAVE_____ enough money to buy or rent a house in the country so they decided to take matters into their own hands. The house ___BUILD____ by Simon himself, with a bit of help from his friends. The result is impressive. The home is made of natural materials, such as wood, stone and mud. It uses solar panels for energy and its water ___COME_____ from a nearby spring. It took Simon four months to complete his fairytale home. He managed to create a modern wooden eco-home –  one of the ___WONDERFUL_____ houses you can imagine. Simon Dale said, “I ____START___ working on a new house of the same eco-style. My ____TWO_____ house will be smarter than the first one. My son ____BE______ five now and I hope to celebrate his tenth birthday in a new house.”

Stonehenge is an ancient monument in south-west England. For me, it’s the ______INTERESTING____ place I’ve ever visited. I clearly remember my ______ONE_______ visit to Stonehenge with my aunt and uncle. They lived nearby and I often _______GO______ to stay with them in my summer holidays. On the day of ______WE_____ trip the weather was fine. There ______BE______ a cool wind blowing, the sun was bright in the sky and Stonehenge looked calm and magical. In those days it was possible to walk among the stones and even touch them. It's very different now. Stonehenge _____BECOME_______ more crowded than it was. As a result, now people _____ALLOW____ to walk around the monument but they can’t come up very close to it. Today I wish I ____HAVE____ an opportunity to get inside the circle again but unfortunately it is not possible any more. The Stonehenge mystery is still unexplained but I believe scientists _____SOLVE_______ it in the near future. 

Mr. and Mrs. Wormwood were our neighbours. They had two _____CHILD_____. Their son Michael ______NOT/DIFFER____ from the other children very much, but their daughter Matilda was a brilliant child. 
 By the time she was five, Matilda was able to read very well. She studied every magazine and newspaper that she _____CAN_____ find around the house. Actually, she read _____WELL_____ than most school pupils. One afternoon when the parents were out of the house, Matilda put on _____SHE____ dress and shoes and went to the library. The librarian was surprised to see such a small child. 
"Are you here for the ____ONE____ time? Would you like me to find a nice book with lots of pictures for you?" she asked. 
"No, thank you, I _________FIND_________ what I need," answered Matilda and pointed to a thick book of fairy tales. Then she added, “I ________COME__________ for a new book as soon as I finish this one”.
The librarian was really shocked when she saw Matilda only two days later. 
“I wish all children _________LIKE_________ reading so much,” the librarian said. From that day on Matilda went to the library every afternoon. 

Dana Miller was a bus driver in the city of Philadelphia. Her working hours _______BE______ from 10.00 pm till 6:00 am. It was a hard job and very few _____WOMAN_____ worked as bus drivers in those days but Dana loved her job very much. One of her regular passengers was a guitar player. Every Friday night he got on the bus carrying his guitar. The guitar _____MAKE______ of wood, not plastic and Dana liked the way it sounded. 
“You should come to see our show,” the guitarist kept saying to Dana.
“I ______SEE______ it one day,” Dana promised each time, but she never said when exactly she ____GO______.
Another passenger who often used Dana’s bus was a Biscuit Lady. She worked at the biscuit factory and often ______GIVE______ Dana a small bag of biscuits. Dana _____NOT/LIKE______ sweets and pastries very much, but she could never resist those biscuits – they were so fresh and tasty.
“How was ______YOU_____ night?” Dana’s husband liked to ask her when she came home.
“Good music, good food and a great view of the city,” she cheerfully answered.
“I wish I ______ENJOY____ my work as much as you enjoy yours,” her husband said, “ but I’m going to have just another boring day at the office.” 

Most adults miss their childhood. “Your school years are the _________GOOD_________ years of your life,” –  have you ever heard that phrase?  Just recently, while I was on my way to work, I started thinking back to my own school years. They probably were not trouble-free but there _________BE_________ many reasons for us to feel happy at school. One of them was spending every single day with friends. We ________NOT/GET__________ tired of being together.  The ________TWO__________ one was uniform. Yes, in my opinion, the school uniform had more advantages than disadvantages. _________I_________ was dark green. It was unfashionable but comfortable. It _________MAKE_________ of natural materials. Besides, the uniform saved a lot of time in the mornings.  Now it _________TAKE_________ me hours to decide what to wear. Another thing is that I don’t really like sport. But at school we _________PLAY_________ football, netball, hockey and so on. Sport was compulsory. Now I realise that this was a good thing! And of course there were… holidays! Christmas, Easter, half-term, and the jackpot – the summer holidays. I wish I ________HAVE__________ as much free time now.  

Dad usually comes up with original ideas. Last Sunday Dad _________DECIDE_________ that we should all go on a camping trip. The idea came to him while he _________READ_________ an article about camping. The article said that camping brings families together.
“Not true”, I smiled. “What about television? It usually _________HELP_________ families to feel a lot more united.”
“If the weather is fine, we _________GO_________ on a trip next weekend,” Dad said and put his magazine on the coffee table.
I quickly looked over at my _________YOUNG_________ brother, Paul. He gave me a knowing smile, “Do you remember _________WE_________ last trip?” I certainly did. Last summer Dad told us that fishing would be a great family activity. We bought four expensive fishing rods and drove for three long hours to a big lake in Virginia. When we got there, we discovered that we ________FORGET__________ to take the fishing rods. Ten minutes later we made another unpleasant discovery: we _________NOT/HAVE_________ the tent which meant we couldn’t stay overnight and we had to drive all the way back home again. We _________BE_________ tired and disappointed with the trip. 

It was Friday evening. Liz was looking forward to Saturday because it was her husband’s birthday. She had been preparing for this event for a long time. She had invited ________THEY__________ college friends and they were all coming from different cities. The best part was that Carlos, her husband, _________NOT/KNOW_________ anything about the arrangements. It was going to be a surprise. Liz _________MAKE_________ sandwiches when Carlos came into the kitchen. 
“Look, darling,” he said, “I know it’s my birthday tomorrow but I don’t want to do anything special for it.”
Liz thought, “I wish I _________CAN_________ cancel the party but I can’t –  it’s too late. The party will take place anyway and it will be the _________GOOD_________ party ever”.
When Carlos came home on Saturday, there ________BE__________ lots of people there. Carlos _________TELL________ them that he felt very happy to see them all and it was true! The guests enjoyed the dinner and then Liz brought in a cake. The cake __________DECORATE________ with chocolates and jellies, and it had as many candles as the number of years Carlos had reached that day. Carlos couldn’t blow them out on the _________ONE_________ try and his friends were delighted to help him.  

After school, I decided to go to university. I ________CHOOSE__________ St Andrews University in Scotland. At that time I ________NOT/KNOW__________ much about the University but when I arrived there, I liked it at once. Now I'm in my last year and I wish I _________CAN_________ stay here forever! St Andrews University is a truly special place. It _________BUILD_________ 600 years ago and it is one of the oldest universities in the English-speaking world. It has many traditions – for example, the ‘May Dip’. It is held on the ________ONE__________ of May every year. All the students run into the North Sea at sunrise to celebrate the coming of spring and for good luck! One of my classmates said that the tradition ________HELP__________ him to pass his exams last summer. For me the ‘May Dip’ was the _________COLD_________ experience of my life! Because the weather is famously cold, St Andrews students designed _________THEY_________ own uniform which consists of a warm jacket, jeans and boat shoes. The uniform _________MAKE_________ us all look the same, but it is the only way to keep warm!

It was a cold January day in York, Pennsylvania. Dr. James turned on the television to check on the weather. The weatherman said that it was going to stay cold for several days. According to him, the roads _________BE_________ very dangerous because of the snow and ice and he strongly recommended staying at home if at all possible. Dr. James _________NOT/CAN_________ stay at home. He worked in a hospital and there were patients waiting for him there. He put on a sweater, jacket, gloves, boots and a hat, and opened his front door. Everything ________COVER__________ with snow. A cold wind blew inside. “Wow,” Dr. James said. “The weatherman was right! I wish I ________HAVE__________ a reindeer instead of my old car.” When Dr. James ________DRIVE__________ slowly to work, he saw an accident. He stopped and ________RUN__________ to the damaged car. There was a man and two ________CHILD__________ inside. “Is everyone okay?” Dr. James asked. “Yes, yes, we are fine,” answered the man. “I ________CALL__________ 911 already. They are coming to help ________WE__________. It looks like we won’t get to school today.”

Martin was in a hurry as he had to be in the office as soon as possible. His boss _________NOT/LIKE_________ it when anyone missed the morning meetings and Martin had already been late several times that week. His boss had warned him: “If you are late again, you _________LOSE_________ your job.” Martin was afraid of losing his job. His colleagues were nice to him, the salary was good and he sometimes ________GO__________ on business trips abroad. It was actually the _________GOOD_________ job he had ever had. He ran out of the house, jumped into his car and backed up without looking. BOOM! There _________BE_________ a sound like someone hitting a drum. Martin had hit the car behind him. 
“Oh, no!” Martin exclaimed. 
Martin glanced at his watch. It was 7:18. He looked around. There were no _________POLICEMAN_________ on the street and he decided to drive off quickly.  It took _________HE_________ 20 minutes to get to work. The boss was not around. “Thank goodness,” Martin said to himself and sat down at his desk to work. The boss arrived an hour later. 
“Somebody hit my car and left without leaving a note,” he said angrily. “I wish I ________KNOW__________ who he was. My car was absolutely new! It _________BUY_________ only a week ago.”
Martin went up to the window, saw the car and understood that he would lose his job anyway. 

Tracey was very unhappy and scared. She was starting a new school.
“I _________NOT/WANT_________ to go to school today,” Tracey told her father.
“I understand, Tracey,” he said. “Starting a new school can be very difficult. But you have to.”
A month before _________THEY_________ family had moved to a new town and everything was still new and strange for Tracey. Dad smoothed Tracey’s hair down and _________GIVE_________ her a little hug,
“When your classes _________BE_________ over, I’ll pick you up, ok?”
When Tracey got to school and looked at the big building, she thought, “I wish I _________CAN_________ run away,” but she knew it was impossible. She took a deep breath and walked up the steps to school. She went straight into her _________FIVE_________ grade classroom.
“That must be Tracey,” “Hello, Tracey!”, “Welcome, Tracey!” the _________CHILD_________ in the room welcomed her.
Everyone seemed friendly and Tracey felt a little _________GOOD_________.
The father picked her up after school. 
“How was your day?” he asked. To his surprise Tracey answered that she _________LIKE_________ her new school.
“You are a brave girl,” her father said. “I’m proud of you.” 

Jane liked going to the park with her mum. One day when they were there, she said, “There is so much rubbish on the ground.” They looked around. There were old ____BOX______, waste paper and cans on the ground. Several benches _____BREAK_______. “You are right,” her mum said. “I wish people ___CARE_____ about the environment more.” “I do care about it but I ______NOT/KNOW______ what I can do to help the park,” said Jane. Jane and her mum went home. In the evening she painted a picture of the park. At the top of the picture she _____WRITE______ “PLEASE KEEP ME CLEAN”. The next day Jane and her mum went to the park ______EARLY______ than usual. Jane taped her picture onto a big rubbish bin and started picking up rubbish. Some children ran over to see what was going on. They decided to help Jane. Soon all the rubbish was in the bags. “Good job,” Jane said, “We _____CLEAN______ half of the park. If we come and complete the other part tomorrow, the whole park ______BE_______ clean and tidy. I hope people won’t throw _____THEY____ rubbish here any more.” 

It was an early morning. Ben jumped out of his bed as soon as the ______ONE_____ rays of sun came into the room. He grabbed his backpack and started to pack. Ben put in some of his favourite things to take with _____HE______ on the trip to Grandpa’s. He put in his favourite book, his kite and his teddy bear. Soon everything ______PACK_______ and he started to get dressed. Visiting Grandpa had always been the ______GOOD_______ part of his summer vacation. Together, they went fishing and watched football matches. Ben’s granddad ___TEACH____ him how to repair bikes and other things. Ben’s mum entered his room. 
“Grandpa’s here,” she said with a smile. Ben told her that he ______BE_______ ready to go. He grabbed his backpack and ran into the kitchen where Grandpa ______DRINK______ his tea. 
“Ready, big guy?” asked Grandpa. “Will you have breakfast before we leave?” 
“No, I _____NOT/BE_____ hungry”, Ben answered, “I’ll have breakfast at your place. Grandma ______COOK______ something nice for me, hasn’t she?” 

I was sitting in an arm-chair and watching my sister Alison. She was getting ready for a party. Alison was 15 years _____OLD_____ than me and she always treated me like a child. Alison took her jewellery box from the table. The box ______MAKE_____ of wood and had colourful stones on the top. 
“You know you must never touch it, right?” Alison said.
“If the box was mine, I _____ALLOW_____ you to touch it whenever you wanted,” I answered. Alison said nothing to that. 
When she put on her jewelry, she looked like a princess. She moved gracefully as if her ____FOOT______ didn’t touch the ground. Alison kissed me goodnight and left. I tried to resist my curiosity but I ____NOT/CAN______. I opened the box. There ______BE_____ lots of rings, ear-rings, bracelets and necklaces inside. I got them all out. The ____ONE______ piece of jewelry I tried on was a silver necklace. After that I lost track of time. Suddenly I _____SEE_____ Alison. She was standing at the doorway and looking at me angrily. I _____NOT/KNOW____ what to say. Many years have passed since that night. Now I am a designer – I create clothes and accessories. My sister likes my work very much. 

The phone rang in Clark Taylor’s house at nearly three in the morning. He answered it only after the ______FIVE____ ring. 
“Hello,” Clark said in a sleepy voice.
“Mr. Taylor. Thank goodness. I need your help.”
Clark definitely _____KNOW____ the voice. However, he was sleepy and ____NOT/CAN____ remember who it was.
“Mr. Taylor!” the man said. “I am in trouble. The police allowed me only one phone call. And I am calling you.”
Then, the fog cleared. Although nearly ten years had passed since ____THEY_____ last meeting, Clark was able to recognise the voice. It belonged to Martin Hall, one of the _____BRIGHT____ math students he had ever had.
“Martin, what’s happened? Where are you? ” Clark asked.
“In the police station. I ____ARREST____ at the railway station two hours ago. I was going to a conference. The police mistook me for another person. The irony is that I really do look like the criminal that they are looking for. Besides that, I _____LOSE_____ my ID card and I can’t prove who I am. You are the only person in this town who knows me. Can you help me?” Martin Hall asked.
“If you give me the address, I _____COME_____ at once,” Clark said, jumping up of the bed. It was not difficult for him to prove that Martin Hall was his former student. Clark brought a scientific journal with Martin’s article and a photo of him. The _____POLICEMAN____ were surprised to find out that their prisoner was a capable young scientist.

By today’s standards, my mobile phone is pretty basic. It’s a Nokia. It’s a small device that receives telephone calls and sends text messages. Other than that, my phone _________NOT/DO_________ much. Most of my friends wish they _________HAVE_________ smartphones because they are cool and trendy. They say the _________GOOD_________ thing about a smartphone is that you ‘can do everything with it!’ That’s right, smartphones have many more functions than a simple phone, however, not all of them are needed. In everyday life, smartphones _________USE_________ mainly for checking social networking sites, replying to emails, and playing games. Grown-ups as well as ________CHILD__________ like playing games. Anyway, I prefer my good old Nokia. It’s my ________ONE__________ mobile phone. When I bought it, it didn’t cost _________I_________ very much. And I am not afraid anyone will ever steal it.  It’s also very reliable. Yesterday I dropped it. It _________FLY_________ down the staircase and hit the wall. I thought that _________BE_________ the end of it and I would have to buy a new one. But nothing of the kind – it still works properly! 

Once there were four children whose names were Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy. This story happened to _________THEY_________ when they had to leave their home city, London, during the war. They _________SEND_________ to the house of an old Professor who lived in the country, ten miles from the nearest railway station. He _________NOT/HAVE_________ a wife and he lived in a very large house with a housekeeper. He himself was a very old man with white hair which grew over most of his face as well as on his head. The children liked him almost at once. Only Lucy, who was the _________YOUNG_________ of them, felt a little afraid of him.  On their _________ONE_________ evening, after dinner, they said good night to the Professor and went upstairs. It was the largest house they had ever seen, so Peter suggested exploring it in the morning. When the next morning came, there was a steady rain falling.
"I wish the weather _________BE_________ more cheerful!" said Edmund.
"Stop complaining, Ed," said Susan. "I think the weather _________IMPROVE_________ soon."
"We were going to explore the house," Peter reminded them. He _________EAT_________ a sandwich at the moment and was absolutely happy with the whole situation. Everyone nodded and at that point their amazing adventures ________BEGIN__________. 

I come from England but now I live permanently in Québec, Canada. When my parents ____BRING_____ me to Canada, I was fifteen. It was the winter and I ___IMPRESS_____ by the amount of snow there. I asked my new friends what they usually _____DO______ for entertainment in such a cold climate. Their answer was simple, “In winter ___CHILD____ and adults go skiing and skating.”

Before arriving in Canada I had never tried skating and my Canadian ice experience was really painful. To start with, it took ____I____ half an hour to put on the skates. I ___NOT/KNOW_____ how to move so my new friends showed me some basic techniques. However, when I was left alone on the ice, I ____FALL____ over immediately. When I opened my eyes, my new friends were standing around. They weren’t laughing, they looked worried. “Are you OK?” they asked.

“Fine,” I said, “I wish I ___CAN____ skate as easily as you do.”  “You definitely will,” they smiled. And they were right. By the end of my ____ONE____ winter in Canada, I felt confident on the ice. More than that, I found out that skating was a really exciting activity!

School was finally over and I was about to enjoy my holidays. I was going to stay with my Aunt Helen, who lived in California. I thought that visiting ____SHE___ would be great fun, but I felt nervous and scared. When my mum ____DRIVE___ me to the airport, she noticed that something was wrong with me. “Are you all right?’ she asked. “You’re afraid of flying, aren’t you?”

“I ___NOT/WANT____ you to notice. Yes, I’m a bit scared. Sorry.” “There ___BE___ nothing to be sorry about! It’s natural to feel nervous before your first flight. I wish I _____CAN_____ go with you, but you know that I can’t.” It was true. My mum was the ___BUSY_____ woman in the world. “I’m fine, Mum. Don’t worry.” I tried to sound calm. “I ___CALL___  you as soon as we land.” The plane ____TAKE____ off smoothly. The pilot informed the passengers about the details of the flight. Then we ___OFFER____ refreshing drinks.  I had some orange juice and closed my eyes.

Harry’s class was going on an excursion to the firehouse. Harry ___FEEL_________ proud because his Uncle Jim, a fireman, was going to show the children around the place. Naturally, the first thing Harry’s classmates wanted to see was the huge fire truck. There ____BE_______ eight vehicles at the firehouse at that moment. Uncle Jim explained how the trucks got water and even let the kids get inside the truck. “Have you ever fought a fire ____YOU______?” a red-haired boy asked. “Yes, many times, unfortunately,” Uncle Jim answered. “I wish people ___BEHAVE____ more responsibly when they used electrical devices at home or had picnics outdoors.  But they often ____NOT/THINK______ anything can happen to them. Please remember that you ____NOT/MUST_______ make fires in the woods. There is dry grass and dry _____LEAF___ on the ground.  They start to burn very easily. And there is nothing ____DANGEROUS______ than forest fires!” The children promised not to make any fires in the woods and Uncle Jim went on with the tour. He ____SHOW_______ them the fire alarm equipment, when a siren started wailing...

Judy was afraid of the dark. At night she always ___LEAVE______ the lights on.  Judy couldn’t explain what exactly she was afraid of. She ____NOT/BELIEVE_____ in monsters or in ghosts. She was one of those rare girls who never screamed when she saw spiders, ____MOUSE_____ and frogs. But everyone in her family knew that a dark room was the ____BAD________ of her fears. One day, when Judy ___DRAW_______ something in her room, her mother came in holding a big shopping bag. “Guess what I____BUY_______,” she said to Judy.  “I have no idea. Is it for ___I______?” Judy felt very curious about the bag. Her mother pulled two packages from her shopping bag. In the first package there were some very nice slippers. They ___MAKE______ from soft, pink fabric and had bright flashing lights. Inside the second package were glow-in-the-dark pyjamas! Judy said she ___WANT______ to try them on immediately. Amazingly, she felt safe all through the night. In a few days the lights stopped flashing but Judy realised she didn’t feel afraid of the dark any more.

Kathy looked at her new room’s white walls.

“They’re so plain.”

“Don’t worry,” Dad said, “If you don’t like them, we ____MAKE________ the walls any colour you like.”
“Do you want pink?” Mum suggested. Kathy _____SHAKE________ her head. 
“No, pink is either for ____BABY________ or for silly girls who like Barbie dolls. I’m neither of those.”
Her parents smiled but ____NOT/SAY________ anything.
“But what colour to choose?  I wish we ____CAN________  ask a designer for professional advice,” said Kathy.
“Oh, no! It’s out of the question!” said Kathy’s mother, firmly. A designer’s advice is much ___EXPENSIVE_____ than we can afford.”
“Ok. It was just an idea.”

“Getting back to the wall colour, why not make your room yellow or orange?” Dad suggested. “When the walls _____PAINT_______ in those colours, the room will look cheerful.”
“Yes!” Kathy definitely liked the idea. “We’ll make three walls yellow, but the ____FOUR______ one will be orange.”
The next day, when Kathy came back from school, her Dad said: “Look what I____BUY______.” There were paints and brushes on the floor.

“Everything’s ready for us to start.” He smiled and handed Kathy the brush.

It was the middle of November and Tina felt down and depressed. Late autumn was the ____BAD________ season of the year.
It often ____RAIN______, and Tina had to spend most of her time indoors. Because of this, she really welcomed the changes in her school routine. The school administration introduced a new class - a dance class. But not everyone was happy! The boys said that it ____BE_______ a waste of time. They often missed the class and, when they attended, they ____NOT/LISTEN______ to the teacher’s instructions but tried to make fun of everything. “I wish we _____HAVE_______ a class for girls only,” Tina thought. The Junior Dance Competition ____HOLD______ in their town every year. It was a spectacular show. “Your dancing ____IMPROVE____ every day,” the teacher said one day. “If you go on like this, you ____HAVE________ a chance to take part in the Dance Competition next month.” Tina imagined herself wearing a beautiful dress and elegant shoes on her ____FOOT________. She decided it was something she’d like to try.

Veronica loved autumn. It was her favourite season. There were many good things about it. She loved the smells, the changing ____LEAF_______, and the cool breezes. There ____BE_______ also apple pies, apple doughnuts and pumpkin pies. For Veronica, pumpkin pies were the ____GOOD________, especially when her mother cooked them. Veronica had never tried to make a pie ___SHE________, but she knew how, as she had seen how her mother made it many times. One day, on her way from school, Veronica _____BUY_______ a pumpkin and decided to cook it. She tried to do everything the same way her mother usually did. Veronica was in the kitchen and _____NOT/HEAR_______ the door bell. Her mother had to use her key to enter the house. “Who ___MAKE______ a pie?” her mother asked. “I can smell it. How soon is it going to be ready? I’m very hungry.” When the pie was ready, Veronica put it on the table. The pie looked nice: it ___DECORATE____ with nuts and coloured sugar. Veronica’s mother had a large piece. She smiled and said that she ____LIKE_____ it very much.

When I was at school, I spent two summers at my grandfather’s. They were the ___GOOD____ holidays I’ve ever had. Grandpa lived alone in a country cottage near a small river. Grandpa’s hobby was making birdhouses. He always said that he ___NEED_____ a hobby to fill his free time. Grandpa’s workshop was full of all kinds of tools. There ____BE_______ a big table, hammers, nails, paints, and what not. And all the tools ___KEEP_____ carefully in their places. That was Grandpa’s number one rule. The ______TWO_____ rule was, “Never buy a new tool if the old one still works.” In the workshop, when he ___MAKE_____ the birdhouses, I asked him lots of questions about birds. He ___KNOW____ a lot about them!  He could tell one bird from another by their songs and footprints. I was surprised that Grandpa _____NOT/PAINT______ the birdhouses in bright colours. He explained to ___I___ that birds prefer natural colours that make their houses more difficult to notice and, for that reason, safer.

Susan’s father often had to go to different countries on business. That evening, he came home ____LATE_____ than usual. He looked tired. Susan ____KNOW_______ that the next week her father was going to China to discuss a new project. At dinner, her father asked Susan if she ___WANT____ to go with him. It was a bit unexpected but Susan liked the idea at once. It was her ___SIXTEEN___ birthday in a few days. And Susan thought it ____BE_____ fun to celebrate it abroad. However, there was one thing she wanted to clear up before the trip: “Are you going to be busy from morning till night? I ___NOT/WANT___ to sit in the hotel all the time alone.”

“You won’t have to,” her father reassured Susan. “I ____PREPARE____ all the project papers already. So, while our partners are studying them, we’ll have plenty of time for sightseeing.”

“Great!” Susan ran up to her room to pack.

“Remember to take some comfortable shoes. Otherwise your ___FOOT____ will hurt after the long excursions.” Her father’s advice was always practical. Half an hour later everything ___PACK_ in a suitcase and Susan called her best friend to tell her the news.

Tim liked going to the zoo. One day his mother said:
“We’re going to a different place today, Tim. It’s an animal shelter. I’m sure you ______LIKE______ it.”
The place was much _____SMALL_____ than a zoo, but clean and well kept. There were volunteers in special uniforms. One of them showed Tim and his mum round the shelter. Lots of animals _____KEEP_____ there. Cats and dogs made up most of the population, but there were also horses, monkeys, _______FOX_____ and other animals. Each of the animals had its own story written on a sign next to its cage or enclosure. All the stories were sad –  the animals had either been abandoned by ____THEY______ owners or saved by the animal police from cruel treatment. 
‘If people ______BE______ more responsible for their pets, we wouldn’t have so much work here,” the volunteer remarked.
“But unfortunately some people _____NOT/UNDERSTAND____ that animals are not toys.” 
Tim’s mother thanked the volunteer and ______MAKE______ a donation. Shelters always needed money to pay for the animals’ food and medical care. On the way home Tim told his mother that he ____WANT____ to go to the shelter again, not only to watch but also to help the volunteers. 

July 17th was coming. It would be Mark’s ___THIRTEEN______ birthday. His Mum asked him what he ___WANT________ as a gift. Mark answered at once that his dream was to have a telescope to watch the stars. Mum ____SHAKE________ her head doubtfully. She knew that Mark enjoyed learning about space but a telescope was a ____EXPENSIVE_____ present than they had planned. 
After dinner the parents had a discussion about the present. 
 
“I think we should give Mark the telescope,” Dad said.

“But we ___SPEND_______ all our savings already,” Mum responded.
“We bought some new furniture and paid for our holidays. I wish we ____CAN______ buy him this present but we really can’t.”
“I think, we can,” Dad smiled. “Look, I’ve got an old friend, Nick, whose father was interested in astronomy. His father died many years ago, and Nick keeps all his things in the attic. I think he ___AGREE______ to sell us his telescope at half price.”
Nick ____PLANT_______ roses in the garden when Mum and Dad arrived at his house.
“Yes, sure,” he said. “There are lots of ___BOX______ in the attic. You can take whatever you want for Mark for free. I’m glad he’s taking up my father’s  hobby.”

It was a hot summer day. Tom and his mum were heading to the beach. Tom was only wearing shorts and a pair of sandals on his ____FOOT___ but he felt hot anyway. When they came to the beach, they found out that the sea ____NOT/BE____ calm –  powerful waves were breaking on the shore. Mum ____STOP____ in hesitation. “It’s fine. I can easily swim in these waves,” Tom wanted to demonstrate his swimming skills. But his mother said that they ____STAY____ out of the water till the sea calmed down.  Sitting close to ____THEY___ was a boy about Tom’s age. He was alone because his parents ____LEAVE____ to buy some sandwiches. He came over and said his name was Gary. His shoulders ____COVER_____ with protective suntan lotion, but they looked red anyway. “It’s getting ____HOT_____ every minute,” said Gary. “How about a swim?” 

“No way,” Tom’s mother was definitely against the idea and Tom had to obey. “As you like,” Gary said and headed to the water.

The _____THREE___ wave hit him hard and he lost his balance. Everything was happening very fast –  Gary fell down and went under the water. Fortunately, Tom and his mother were close enough to get him out in time. 

A few years ago I was on a camping holiday in Bristol. There ____BE________ lots of other girls from around the UK, but I was the only one from Scotland. The camp ____LOCATE______ in the woods, not far from the river. The camp life was even _____INTERESTING______ than I had expected. We enjoyed all kinds of camping activities –  sports and games, different shows and contests. Everything was fine apart from one incident that took me aback. 
Once, at lunchtime, when I ____EAT____ ice cream, one of the girls asked:
“So, do you have ice cream in Scotland?” 
I ___NOT/KNOW_______ how to react. My neighbour repeated her question.
I nodded, “Yes.”
My answer provoked a wave of absurd questions about my country: 
“Have you ever seen a ghost in your castle?” 
“Do all Scottish ___MAN_______ wear checked skirts?”
I ___FIND_____ out that some people believe silly stereotypes about Scotland.
They believe that Scots really carry bagpipes in ___THEY_______ bags to play the instrument on the streets, and that Scots practise magic. At last, the girls said that they ___COME_____ to Scotland one day to see it with their own eyes and to separate the truth from the myths.

The academic term was coming to its end and Kate decided to arrange a party to celebrate the coming holidays. To be frank, there ____BE_____ one more reason for the party. Kate wanted her classmates to meet someone from her family.  She was sure it would impress ___THEY____ and would help her popularity. Kate ___MAKE____ sandwiches in the kitchen when Hugo came in. “It looks like I’m the ___ONE____ guest, doesn’t it?” Hugo looked embarrassed. “Sorry for coming so early.” “Oh, it’s ok,” said Kate, “Come in! You ____HELP____ me in the kitchen, won’t you?” “Sure,” Hugo entered the room and ____STOP____ in surprise. “Are you saying you made all this yourself?” On the table there was a huge pie. It ____DECORATE____ with different fruit and looked fantastic. “No,” Kate looked pleased with his reaction. “My cousin helped me. She____LEAVE____ for the shop. She’ll be back any minute. The front door opened and a girl entered. Hugo understood that he ___SEE____ her many times in different TV programmes for teenagers.

“A TV star?” Hugo sounded so silly that both girls burst out laughing.

Cindy liked parks. She took long walks in the nearby park almost every day. Her classmates, however, ___NOT/SHARE______ her interest and Cindy usually walked alone. Cindy’s parents worried that she ___HAVE_______ no friends. 
“I wish you _____SPEND_______ more time with your classmates. Don’t you feel bored in the park?”
“It’s ok, Mum, I just feel much ____GOOD_______ alone than with people who can’t understand me,” Cindy usually answered. “Parks are a lot more fun to spend time in than hanging out in a shopping centre.” And her mother didn’t  know what to say.
One day, Cindy returned from the park very excited.  
“Guess, who I met in the park!” she said, and she told her parents the whole story. 
“I ____WALK______ along the central avenue when I saw a group of people.  
They _____BE______ students of the Biology faculty of the university. 
They told _____I______ about the plan to rearrange the park.
A large lake is going to be made in the centre. There will be wild animals there like hares, squirrels and even ______FOX______.
Yesterday, the plan ____APPROVE_____ by the City Council and work starts tomorrow.  I want to join the volunteer team!”

As a child, Steven lived in a village. Outside the village there was a house where a strange old woman and her granddaughter Eliza lived. The ___CHILD____ often played together. One day, Eliza ___BE____ unusually sad. When Steven was about to leave, the old woman said, “I know you are friends. But never come to our house again. Never ever!” 
The girl took the boy to the gate.  “Will you miss me?” she asked. The boy said, “Yes, I will!” To his surprise, the girl said, “But I won’t! I ___NOT/WANT_____ to see you anymore!” She closed the gate. The next day the girl ____LEAVE_____ for the city. Steven was upset but he hoped that one day he ____SEE_____  Eliza again. 
Five years later Steven became a student and moved to the city. He rented a small apartment on the __ONE___ floor.
One day, when he ____WALK_____ to the university, he saw Eliza. She was sitting on the bench in the park with an ice-cream in her hand. He ran up to her and said “Hello! It’s nice to see you again!” But Eliza looked up at ____HE________, stood up and walked away. “I wish I ___KNOW______ what is going on,” Steven said to himself, and decided to start his own investigation.

Dylan had a very old car. It was 20 years old.  But the faded paint made it look even ____OLD______ than that. It ____BE_________ a shame to drive a car that looked like that and Dylan took it to a paint shop. There the car ___PAINT_______ dark blue for $200. 
Dylan was very pleased with the new look. The only problem was that the car stereo ___NOT/WORK______ properly. Dylan managed to fix it himself. Then one day Dylan had a new problem –  petrol. He could smell it while he ___DRIVE_______ his car. Dylan asked himself “Am I driving a bomb? Could the car explode at any minute?” He knew the car manual by heart. He had car problems at least once a month, and he always found a way to fix ___THEY______ himself. However, this time, it was a job for a mechanic. So he _____TAKE_______ his car to the closest service station. The mechanic said they ____TEST_______ the car to find out what the problem was. He told Dylan to come back in an hour. When Dylan came back, the mechanic said, "The problem is with the fuel pump. You need a new one. It costs $400." "Let me think about it.  I ____GIVE________ you a call when I decide what to do."  But Dylan had already decided what to do.

Annie was waiting for her guests. Her birthday was on 25th December and she felt this was both lucky and unlucky. It ____BE______ great to have her birthday on a special day like Christmas. But, on the other hand, very few of Annie’s friends came to her party. Most of them had family plans for that day.  The doorbell ____RING______ and her classmate, Brian, appeared. He had a plastic bag in his hand. “Happy birthday, Annie!” Brain said and got an old oil lamp out of his bag. Annie ___NOT/CAN______ hide her surprise: “What’s this? And where did you buy it?” “A magic lamp. And I didn’t buy it. It ___FIND______ in the attic of an old country house a year ago. My friend found it when they ______REPAIR______ the house. He says if you light the lamp and make a wish, the wish ____COME______ true. It works particularly well with reasonable wishes that are not too big for the lamp. Its magic is not very strong.” Annie laughed aloud. “I’ve never got a present ____ORIGINAL_______ than this. Ok, let’s test your lamp.” Annie lit it and said: “I wish the whole class would come to _____I_______ party today”. As soon as she ____SAY_______ it, the doorbell rang impatiently.

Martin and Jane were shopping. They were in the _____LARGE______ shopping centre in their city. In fact, it was their favourite place because it was nice and not very expensive. The centre ______CALL_______ Dress for Less. Unlike most ____MAN______, Martin liked shopping. Today he felt really happy because he _____BUY_______ a shirt and a pair of jeans. Jane was still in the changing room so Martin had time for a cup of coffee in the lobby. It was the first time Martin had had a good look at the building itself. The shopping centre building _____BE______ impressive. The engineers had used advanced technologies to make it light, warm and spacious. “Hi!” Martin _____HEAR______ Jane’s voice. “What are you having? Coffee? No, I _____NOT/DRINK_____ coffee. Never. It’s not good for your health.” “Look, Jane, do you know the name of the architect of this building?”  Martin interrupted her. Jane looked puzzled. “I wish we ____CAN_____ change our life a bit,” went on Martin. “We probably spend too much time on things like shopping and miss more important things. When was the last time we visited a museum?” Jane quietly sat down on the chair beside ____HE_______.
 

Tom woke up relatively early. But he ____UNDERSTAND____ at once that he was not the first awake. There was somebody in the kitchen already. Tom went out to inspect, and found that his dad was there –  he ______CUT_____ vegetables. It was rather strange –  everyone knew that dad ____NOT/LIKE_____ cooking. “I wish I ____KNOW____ what you are doing,” he said. Dad gave ______HE____ a smile and answered “Wait and see.” He pulled out a juicing machine from the cupboard. Nobody had used it for ages and the machine ____COVER____ with a thin layer of dust. Tom’s dad washed it and turned it on. Then he put a handful of carrots inside. Next he added cucumbers and ___TOMATO____. Dad made three large cups of the stuff. He took one and drank it. He handed the ___TWO____ cup to Tom. To his surprise the juice tasted really good. “You don’t eat enough vegetables,” his dad said. “If you don’t like eating them, you’ll probably like drinking them.” Tom nodded. It was definitely _____GOOD____ than the stewed vegetables his mum cooked almost every day. 

The camel was very thirsty. His last drink had been weeks ago. His feet sank in the hot sand and he _________CAN_________ hardly move. "When will I reach water?" he thought. "And I _________NOT/EAT_________ for ages." It was obvious that if the camel didn’t find any water and food soon, he _________DIE_________. He made a few steps toward another dune. It was ________EASY__________ to walk along the top of a hill, than along the bottom.  At last he _________SEE_________ something green in the distance. Was it a mirage or an oasis? He hoped for the best and the hope helped _________HE_________ move faster. Soon, that distant green colour turned into real trees and grass. There _________BE_________ a small stream of water and some palm trees that gave shade. Their wide _________LEAF_________ could protect the camel from the sun's rays. Though the sun __________SHINE________, it didn’t burn anymore. Unfortunately, it was impossible to stay there forever. A short rest and the camel had to move on towards his destination. 

Robbie's dog Roxy was smart. At least Robbie _________THINK_________ so. Robbie had found him on a street. The puppy looked cold and unhappy. Robbie took the puppy home and fortunately his mum _________NOT/MIND_________ it. One day Robbie saw the ‘Dogs' contest’ advert. According to it, all dogs that were able to perform tricks could participate.
"I wish Roxy ________KNOW__________ some tricks”, Robbie thought. “But Roxy can’t perform any.” 
He decided to take Roxy to the contest anyway, not as a participant but as a viewer. There _________BE_________ lots dogs on the contest ground. The collars of some dogs ________DECORATE__________ with medals. The contest started, and the judge threw a ball. Roxy suddenly pulled away from Robbie and began running fast. He was the _________ONE_________ dog to catch the ball and he didn’t forget to bring it back to the judge! 
“The winner is the dog with no entry name on my list. Whose dog is this?” asked the judge. 
“It’s _________I_________ dog." said Robbie. The judge handed Robbie a small symbolic medal and a certificate for free dog food.
“Congratulations! You ________WIN__________!” said Robbie to Roxy and gave him a big hug. 
“Let’s go home and celebrate. Mum will be surprised when she ________LEARN__________ the news.”

Most people love jokes. A good joke can break the ice and make the conversation enjoyable. My friend’s hobby is collecting jokes. When he _________HEAR_________ a good joke, he writes it down on a special card. The cards _________KEEP_________ in a box in his room. When I visit _________HE_________, I never miss a chance to read a joke from his collection. Yesterday’s joke was about famous detectives. Here it is. 
One day Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson went camping. They put up a tent, made a fire and had a good dinner of meat and _________POTATO_________. That night, Holmes _________WAKE_________ up and asked: "Watson, look up and tell me what you see." Watson said that he __________SEE________ millions of stars. "And what does it tell you?" Holmes went on his interrogation. 
"Well, if we apply our deductive method, we’ll come to several conclusions. Astronomically, there are billions of planets. My ________TWO__________ conclusion is astrological – I observe Saturn in Leo. And, meteorologically, it’ll be a beautiful day tomorrow. I wish we _________HAVE_________ this kind of weather more often in this country. And what does the sky tell you, Holmes?"
Holmes was silent for a moment and then said, "Someone _________STEAL_________ our tent!" 

TIME is a weekly magazine published in New York. In 2010 the magazine ____CHOOSE____ Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg as Person of the Year. Everything began in February 2004, when Zuckerberg was still a student at Harvard. He made an online platform to connect college students. It helped ____THEY_____ to learn and socialise. Soon, other _____UNIVERSITY____ joined Facebook and then it became popular with a much wider audience. Today Facebook _____USE_____ by over a billion people. They play games, find friends, learn the news, and share photos there. Not everyone, however, _____THINK____ Facebook is a good thing. My _____GOOD_____ friend, Nicky, believes that I spend too much time online, on social networks. “I wish you ____SPEND____ more time with your real friends,” he keeps saying. Last Saturday when Nicky came to my place to discuss a school problem, I ____CHAT____ online. He waited for a while but then left without saying a word.  And he ____NOT/CALL_____ since then. I feel I’ll probably have to change my habits if I want to have real friends, not only virtual ones. 

This story happened long ago. My son was six and we lived in an old house near a large park. There ____BE_____ lots of people in the park at weekends and we enjoyed walking and playing there too. One day, my son _____BRING____ an injured bird from the park. It was a crow. Its wing ____BREAK____ and the bird could not fly. I didn’t know what to do with the crow, but my son said that he _____TAKE_____ care of it.
“If you were a couple of years ___OLD_____, you could manage it. But I doubt you can do it now,” I tried to talk him out of keeping the crow but finally agreed to take the bird home.
The next day we took the crow to the vet. The vet fixed and bandaged the wing and explained to ____WE_____ what medicines we should give to the bird. 
“Ok,” he said, as we left, “I ____DO______ everything I can. There’s no need to bring this crow here any more. The bird is young and strong, and I think it ____RECOVER____ soon. This is the good news. The bad news is that it will never be able to fly again.”
“We’ll see,” my son ____NOT/WANT___ to agree with this fact too easily. 

I remember my uncle Thomas very well. My mum says I can’t because I was a little girl, only three at the time. But my memories of him are still very vivid. Uncle Thomas was a sailor. When he returned from his last trip, he brought several large ____BOX___ with him. Inside there ____BE____ bits of wood, metal, and painted cloth. “What is it for?” I asked my uncle. He ______GIVE_____ me a broad smile and said: “Have your breakfast first and then come to the backyard. You _____SEE____ everything with your own eyes.” When I came to the backyard, Uncle Thomas ___READ____ an instruction manual. It took all his attention because the manual ____WRITE____ in Spanish, a language my uncle didn’t know very well.  All in all, it took _____HE_____ a couple of weeks to assemble the object from the parts. To all my questions he said that it was a machine that _____CAN_____ fly like a bird. I was probably the only one in the family who took his words seriously. They could never believe that soon we were going to see one of the ____ONE____ airplane flights in the country. 

English, Welsh, Scottish… all these languages sound familiar. But I'm sure you ___NOT/HEAR__ of Cornish. I wish I ____KNOW____ it, like my Granny does. Cornish is a Celtic language, used in Cornwall, a county in south-eastern England. ____CENTURY____ ago, when the Anglo-Saxons invaded Britain, many Celts moved to the mountain areas. Some Celts even _____LEAVE___ the country completely and settled in France. Speakers of Cornish stayed in the south-west. There the language _____SPEAK_____ until the late 1700s. But the number of speakers got smaller and the language almost disappeared. At the beginning of the ____TWENTY____ century, academics became interested in Cornish and started to study the ancient texts. From those old documents they managed to restore the language! Nowadays, if you visit Cornwall, you will hear a lot of it. The language is offered as an option in many universities, and students ____THEY____ choose to learn it.  Like I did. I think it’s the ____DIFFICULT____ language I have ever learnt, but it’s interesting and it sounds very nice. I believe the Cornish language ____SURVIVE___. 

In 2010, a terrible earthquake hit the Haitian city of Léogâne. It was the ___TWELVE_____ of January, my birthday. It was a normal day in the morning. I _____PREPARE_____ for my party when the earthquake hit. My first thought was that everybody was going to die. I ____NOT/UNDERSTAND_____ what was happening. It was the _____BAD____ day of my life so far – I have never felt that scared!
After the earthquake I asked my wife: 
"How are we going to go on living?"
"I have no idea", she said. "But we're lucky. Our house is still standing, and thousands of people lost everything, even their ______LIFE______". 
She was right. We had to help the others, so we decided to start a charitable fund. At first we _____GIVE_____ it the name of ‘Hope’ but then changed it.
Now our fund _____CALL_____ 'Seeds for Change'.
We work with small farmers and provide people from rural areas with everything necessary for farming. They say it helps them a lot. Their gratitude is the best award for _____WE_____. If we manage to involve more people in our fund, we ___GET___ more impressive results in the future. 

Jenny loved climbing. It was a strange hobby for a girl and her family wanted her to stop it, but Jenny ___NOT/LISTEN_____ to anybody. "There are still several trees in the garden I haven’t climbed yet," Jenny said. One day, she ___CLIMB____ the apple tree in the yard, when she suddenly slipped and fell down. Jenny ____FEEL_____ a terrible pain and started to cry. Her mum came outside and saw that her hand was swollen and looked dark.  "I wish you ____HAVE____ some other hobby!" she said. "Jenny, please, promise _____I_____ that you'll never do this silly climbing again!" Jenny nodded. Her mother took Jenny to the doctor. It turned out that two of the bones ____BREAK____. For the____ONE____ time Jenny had a cast on her arm, from her fingers down to her elbow. For several weeks, Jenny had to have the cast on. It was a huge relief to get it off, finally. At last she could get back to her favourite ____ACTIVITY_____ which were running, swimming, and climbing. But now climbing was out – Jenny was determined to stick to her promise. “If I break my promise, mum ____GET____ upset. And I don’t want her to feel like this.” 

When I was little, I loved reading books written by Roald Dahl. They were my favourite choice of bedtime story. When Mum asked me what book I wanted, I always ____CHOOSE_____ a book by Dahl. Mum readily agreed. She said she _____ENJOY_____ reading him too in spite of the fact that she was an adult and had a very serious job. In those years there _____BE_____ lots of Dahl's books in our home library. Then, unfortunately, some of them disappeared but to me he is still the best children's author of the ____TWENTY_____ century. Roald Dahl started as an adult writer. His first book ___PUBLISH___ in 1942. Later he began writing children's books. Many of the ___STORY___ are based on Dahl's own childhood memories. Several of his books are now successful films, for example ‘Matilda’, ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ and ‘Fantastic Mr Fox’. I'm sure you ___SEE____ at least one of them! When you shop for children's books, Dahl is the _____EASY____ choice. His books are entertaining and full of jokes. Roald Dahl is an author that you can never grow tired of. Now I read his books to my son. He is too small yet and cannot read ____HE____.

I'm studying Italian in a summer school in Tuscany. I arrived a few days ago. It’s my _____ONE_____ trip to Italy. I like this country very much though I _____NOT/SEE_____ its main tourist attractions yet. Actually it was my mum's idea to send me here. In her opinion Italy is the ____INTERESTING____ country in the world. And she also said that it _____HELP_____ me improve my Italian in real-life communication. Yesterday, while I _____HAVE______ dinner in the cafeteria, four other students sat at the same table. We got acquainted. Two of them were Argentines, then a Russian and a Greek. A mix of cultures! We started chatting in Italian, laughing, telling jokes and sharing our life _____STORY____. It was lots of fun. I even started to speak Spanish with the Argentines, and our sentences became a mixture of both Italian and Spanish. But it did not matter at all! No problem. We easily ____UNDERSTAND_____ each other. I wish all people _____SPEAK___ foreign languages. The more languages you know – the better. Languages help ______WE______ understand the culture and mentality of other people. And they help us make friends.

Mike Fay is a famous biologist. He is well-known for his 2,000-mile walk across Africa. It ____TAKE_____ him 455 days. His expedition started in 2001. It ____ORGANIZE_____ to draw attention to the African forests. During his expedition Mike Fay made several films about the beauty of the forests. He said they were the _____WONDERFUL____ natural sights he had ever seen. His films _____BE____ a success. Thanks to them the governments of several African countries agreed to create 13 national parks. Mike commented that 26,000 square kilometres of the forest were saved for the future and for our ____CHILD____. At the moment Mike works for the National Geographic. Recently he ____COMPLETE_____ several projects for the magazine. His job involves lots of travelling, which is sometimes not very safe. Not long ago, Mike came face to face with an elephant which attacked ______HE_____. Mike was injured but luckily not seriously. But danger could never stop Mike.

“I wish everyone _____UNDERSTAND_____ that life is a very delicate thing.

If we go on in the same irresponsible way, we ____KILL_____ all life on the planet, and ourselves too”.

A robot is a special kind of machine that follows the instructions coming from a computer. A robot ___NOT/MAKE______ mistakes and it never gets tired. Robots are all around ___WE_____. Robots make cars, explore dangerous places, clean things, answer telephone calls. Some of them can even take care of _____CHILD____ and elderly people. If we didn’t have robots, our life _______BE______ less comfortable and more dangerous. According to the dictionary, the word ‘robot’ _____MEAN_______ ‘compulsory labour’. The word ‘robot’ ____USE________ for the first time in a science fiction play in 1920. The robot from that play was a destructive machine that finally_____DESTROY_____ the human race. However, in real life, robots are still obedient to people. As for robots, the most enthusiastic nation is the Japanese. By now they ____CREATE____ a quarter of the world's robots. And they have very ambitious plans for the future. The Japanese engineers think that soon robots ___REPLACE_______ 3,5 million workers in their country. 

Lucky, a big black cat, went missing shortly after our family moved to a new house. He was curious and enjoyed exploring the environment. It often made us worry about ____HE______. 
Mum often said “I wish our Lucky ______BE______ less curious. I feel better when he is in the house, safe and lazy.”
As we ______NOT/CAN_____ keep him at home, we made him wear a special tag. Our address ____WRITE_____ on it in large printed letters.
Mum said: “If one day Lucky gets missing, the tag ____HELP____ us find him”. 
Lucky disappeared on the ____THREE____ day after moving house. We looked for the cat everywhere. We asked all our new neighbours about him. We even asked all the _____POLICEMAN____ in our district if they had seen him. But nobody had seen a cat that looked like our Lucky. In the end, we ______LOSE_____ hope. Two weeks later I was passing by our old house. On the porch there was a cat that looked strikingly like Lucky. And it was Lucky!
I grabbed him and brought him home.
“Mum, look who I _____FIND____!” I cried to mum. “The new owner told me the cat had been waiting for us in our old house. Nobody could inform us about him because the address on the cat’s tag is our old address.”

A few days ago Kim’s family moved house. Kim had very mixed feelings about it. On the one hand, she _____FEEL_____ happy with her new room. It was larger than the room she used to live in. Everything in this room __ARRANGE_____ in Kim’s favourite colours and according to her taste. The flat was on the _____FIVE_____ floor in an old brick building. From her window Kim could see the large garden, which now was covered with bright yellow ______LEAF____, and the tiled roofs at a distance.
“I’d be very happy if I ____LIVE_____ here,” Kim’s friend, Jessica, said when she visited her for the first time. 
“And how is your new school?” she asked, still admiring the fresh wallpapered walls with a few framed photos on _____THEY______. 
“You ______MAKE_____ new friends there, right?”
These words made Kim feel nervous. 
“No, not yet.” she answered.
Then she said that she ____GO_____ to her new school only the next Monday and that the school looked nice and modern and there was a swimming pool in it.
What Kim ___NOT/TELL____ her friend was that she was awfully afraid of going there and meeting her new classmates and teachers. 

Jeff woke up late. The house was very quiet and Jeff _____UNDERSTAND_____ that he was alone there. He got up and headed to the kitchen. There ___BE_____ nobody in it but he felt the delicious aroma of fresh baking. A large bowl of doughnuts was on the table. It ____COVER_____ with a white kitchen towel but Jeff could not resist it and pulled out a doughnut. When he was consuming his ____FIVE____ one, his grandmother appeared at the doorway. She _____WEAR_____ light working trousers, a T-shirt, and an old straw hat. Jeff guessed that she had been working on ____SHE_____ roses, in the front garden. “Fine, you ____WAKE____ up at last!” said Granny, “But why are you still undressed? Go and wash and get dressed immediately!” Jeff remembered that Granny had always been very strict about the morning routine. She never allowed her grandchildren to look untidy or avoid brushing their ____TOOTH______.   “Ok-ok, just a second,” laughed Jeff picking up another doughnut and retreating through the other door. “I ____COME____ back as soon as I am ready.”

My mum calls me Snow White. It was my ____ONE_____  nickname but it stuck to me forever. And it’s not because I love the fairy tale about the princess and the seven dwarfs. It’s because my skin is very sensitive and intolerant to the sun. Every time it is exposed to the sun's rays, it _____GET____ red and swollen. I can’t really recognize _____I______ in the mirror. Mum says that from my very early days I differed from all the other _____BABY____ around and needed special care. Whenever we went for a walk, she _____HAVE____ to apply sun protective lotion all over my face and the parts of the body that were not covered with clothes. I grew older but the situation didn’t get any ____GOOD____. Until now I ___NOT/FIND___ a medicine to cure my strange illness. My skin problem is not a serious thing of course, but it doesn’t allow me to do everything I want. I wish I ____CAN_____ sunbathe, windsurf and play beach volleyball with my friends. But all I can do is watch them from the shade. According to our family legend, it ____RAIN____ hard at the moment when I was born. Since that time, rainy days have always been my luckiest.

I play the violin in the college orchestra. Last month we ____TAKE_______ part in a music festival in France. I worried a lot before we left for France as I had never been away from home for so long. Mum tried to encourage ___I____. She said that we ____PERFORM___ well. And she was right. We performed very successfully. It was a great journey though there _____BE_________ some things I missed very much while being in France. One of them was my favourite mug. Without it, neither tea nor soup tasted like at home. Another thing was the warmth. The floor in my room at home ___COVER___ with a thick carpet. In our place in France the floor was icy cold with no carpet at all. My _FOOT___ were always cold. “If it goes on like this, I __CATCH___ a cold,” I told my roommate, Cathy. “I wish I __HAVE____ a pair of woolen socks. But I left them at home.” “You can take mine if you want,” said Cathy. I thanked her but her socks were two sizes ___SMALL__ than I needed!

I was happy to take part in the exchange programme and to go to college in Britain. An opportunity to spend two ____MONTH_______ in London sounded fantastic. Our teacher told us that we ____LIVE____ in a student hostel. It was going to be ___CONVENIENT____ than staying with a host family as the hostel was very close to the college. When we arrived in London, the ___ONE__ thing we had was a bus excursion round the British capital. Unfortunately, when we ___PASS____ Westminster Abbey, it started to rain hard. We had to go down to the lower level of our double-decker and we ____NOT/MANAGE____ to enjoy the wonderful sights. Anyway, London is very impressive. People from all over the world live there. Some of __THEY____ come as tourists, others choose this place to study or to work in. It is a dynamic multicultural city, though there ___BE____ so many historical buildings in it. Amazingly, many of the houses __BUILD____ centuries ago!

It was a great day yesterday. My friends and I ___GO____ to see a performance at the Bolshoi Theatre. You certainly know that the Bolshoi Theatre is the ___FAMOUS____ theatre in Russia and probably in the world. But not everyone ___KNOW____ the history of the Bolshoi Theatre. According to historical documents, it __BEGIN____ in March 1776 when Prince Pyotr Urusov was granted Royal permission to build a public theatre in Moscow. Catherine II, Empress of Russia, was fond of arts. She ____NOT/MIND______ having a new theatre in her country. The original building of the theatre had a hall with almost 1,000 seats, a stage and an orchestra pit. Directly over the stage there ___BE____ boxes where the most noble fans of the theatre had their seats. The theatre has changed several times during __IT____ history. The building we can see today opened in 1825. It ___DESIGN____ by architect Andrei Mikhailov who was also the architect of the Maly Theatre. Since that time, the building has been rebuilt and renovated several times. Now it looks beautiful from the inside and outside. If I ___HAVE_______ the opportunity to go there more often, I would do it every week.

When my brother and I were small, our parents spent a lot of time with us. They believed that ___CHILD____ should learn something new every day and every hour. A weekend in our family meant that our parents ____WAKE____ us up even earlier than on weekdays. We had breakfast and set off to see some place of interest, or museum, or exhibition. Usually they ___NOT/ASK_____ us where we wanted to go. It was __THEY____ decision. One day they told us that we were going to visit a historical museum which was a good distance away from the city. The day __BE____ cold and gloomy. The sky ____COVER_____ with heavy dark clouds. But the weather didn’t make our parents change their plan. “Are you ready to go?” Dad asked. “Mum __PACK_____ the sandwiches for us already. In case we get hungry and there’s no cafe nearby.” “And what will we do if it __RAIN_____?” my brother asked quietly. “Getting wet is not a problem,” Dad replied. “I’m sure you understand that visiting a museum is much ____GOOD____ for you than watching TV at home.” My brother and I sighed. The film we wanted to see so much was on TV on that very day. We looked at each other and decided that we needed a plan...

Mary’s birthday was on Saturday and she decided to arrange the party all by herself. At first, making a party to celebrate her ___FIFTEEN_____ birthday looked like an easy thing to do. But when Mary started planning the event, a lot of questions came up. And the main problem was that she ___NOT/KNOW____ what to start with! Mary called her cousin Vicki and asked if she ___CAN____ help with the arrangements. Vicki was a year ___OLD____ and more experienced in arranging parties. Vicki agreed and went to Mary’s house at once. When Vicki arrived, Mary ____DESIGN_______ a menu for the party. Vicki looked at the draft of the menu and ___TELL___ Mary that her approach was totally wrong. “We shouldn’t start with the menu,” she said, “We should start with the list of guests and with the programme for the event. You ____DECIDE________ who you want to invite to your party, haven’t you?”

“No,” answered Mary, “I haven’t.” It took the girls half an hour to make a list of guests. Each name __WRITE_____ carefully on glossy paper.  “It looks fine,” said Vicki, “But there are too many of ___THEY____. Don’t you think so?”

It was a nice sunny day and mum decided to take us to the zoo. My younger sister, Wendy, was delighted. She enjoyed books and films about animals but she had never been to the zoo.

“How many animals live in the zoo? Can we give ____THEY___ some food? Are there any crocodiles? Who __TAKE_____ care of the lions?” my sister was very excited and asked a lot of questions. She kept talking all the time and ___NOT/MIND___ that nobody was answering her questions. When we __ARRIVE____ at the zoo, it was midday. There ___BE_____ a lot of people everywhere. The territory of the zoo was large, and the animals ___KEEP____ in large enclosures that imitated their natural environment. When we went up to the enclosure that had a family of Indian elephants, they ____HAVE________ their lunch. They were focused on their food and didn’t pay much attention to the visitors. “They are the __LARGE____ animals I’ve ever seen” said Wendy in an impressed voice.  “I wish we ___CAN________ keep a baby elephant as a pet.”

Mum said nothing and we proceeded to the pool that had the seals and penguins.

Jane was not an ordinary girl. She was an extremely popular person due to ___SHE_____ unusual gift. She was very good at arranging all sorts of ___PARTY___ and events.  In fact, all the scripts and programmes for our school events _____WRITE________ by Jane. We helped her as much as we could but she always did most of the work. Once I asked Jane if she could help me to make a surprise for my mum. Jane ____AGREE____ at once. “I ___HELP____ you, no problem,” she said, “But I need to know some details about your mum.” Jane asked me about what time my mum usually got up and when she went to bed, what food she liked and hated, what her favourite films, colours, and flowers ___BE____. She asked me a lot of questions and I ___NOT/CAN_____ answer most of them. I felt uneasy but Jane laughed, “It’s a common thing. Unfortunately, we often do not notice even our own family – our parents, sisters and brothers.  If we ___KNOW____ other people better, we would understand them better.  And we would be much ___KIND_____ to them, wouldn’t we?”

“What would you like me to bring you from London?” Dad often asked me this question when he was going somewhere on business. He worked a lot and ___NOT/SPEND___ a lot of time with the family. We knew that he loved ___WE___ a lot but he was really a very busy person. And it was his ___THREE_____ business trip that month. I thought for a moment and said: “I want a Paddington Bear.”

My dad ___PACK____ his suitcase but he looked up at me at once when he heard that. He was surprised and asked me why I __WANT____ a Paddington Bear. I didn’t know what to answer.  

My dad __STOP_____ packing and sat down beside me. “You know, when I was small,” dad said quietly, “that bear was my favourite fictional character.” I read the book too and I also saw a film about that character.  He was a very polite bear who travelled to London from some exotic country. He ______DISCOVER_____ in Paddington Station by the Brown family, who adopted him. The soft toy changed their life and made it much __GOOD___.

“Ok. I _____BRING____ you the bear if you want”, said Dad. “And we’ll also see the film about him as soon as I come back. Agreed?”

“Sure.” I was delighted with his plan.

Have you heard of Band Aid 30? Probably not. Then let me explain what ‘Band Aid’ is. In 1984, Bob Geldof and Midge Ure ___BRING____ together a group of British and Irish singers and musicians and produced a song, called ‘Do They Know It’s Christmas?’. The song was a charity single. The musicians said that the money from the sales ___GO____ to help poor people in Ethiopia, who were suffering from a famine. The group ___CALL____ Band Aid. Over forty singers were involved in the project, including Paul McCartney, Bono, David Bowie and Sting. In 2014, the group changed its name to ‘Band Aid 30’ because it was the ____THIRTY____ time the song was recorded. That year, the song aimed to help those who were suffering from the Ebola virus. Since the time of its birth, the song ____MAKE____ a lot of money. The money is still used only for charity. Although the song has sometimes been criticised, over 312,000 ___COPY____ of the song have been sold. Usually, I __NOT/LISTEN___ to music a lot, I have other hobbies. But one of my friends, who is a _____GREAT____ music expert than I am, says that, if the song helps people in need –  it can never be a bad thing! I agree with __HE_____.

It started as a normal Monday morning. My alarm clock woke ___I___ up early in the morning. I had breakfast, brushed my teeth and ___RUN___ outside to catch the bus. At school I noticed that something was different. I came up to my friend Laura and asked her: “What’s going on? Why ____BE____ everyone so excited?” “Don’t you know?” she said. “All the teachers ____LEAVE___ for a conference. Only the headteacher and a few of the school staff are here. The senior students will be teaching us today. They are only two or three years ___OLD_____ than us. How can they possibly teach us?” However, she was wrong. Our substitute teacher, a student two grades above, was very serious. He said that he ____EXPLAIN___ some French poetry to us. It was an unusual, but interesting French class. The poem ___WRITE___ on the board, our new teacher read it and then we discussed the poet’s message, choice of words and other poetical things. Probably because the teacher was almost the same age as us, we felt relaxed and spoke freely. He also told us several amusing ____STORY___ about the poet and his time. When the class was almost over, our substitute teacher invited us to attend the next session of the school literary society. “I’m the Chairman of the society,” he added, “If you come, we ____HAVE____ a special welcome party for new members.”

Thousands of tourists visit Edinburgh every year. The capital of Scotland is ________FAME__________ for its history and architecture. It’s one of the ________CULTURE__________ centres of the country. The main _________ATTRACT_________ of the city is Edinburgh Castle. It was built in the 12th century but it still looks magnificent and very _________IMPRESS_________.  There are many historic monuments in Edinburgh. One of them is an unusual monument to Walter Scott, a well-known _________WRITE_________. The city streets are usually full of noisy tourists with cameras but if you want a quiet holiday, you can have it too - the beautiful and ________PEACE__________ countryside is just round the corner.

There are pills for everything. If you can't sleep you take a pill. If you're depressed or just _____HAPPY_____, you also can take a pill. These days scientists are developing a new pill that you can use for improving your ____FIT______. It will have the same effect on people’s bodies as doing sports. The _____SCIENCE_______ experiments on mice have given wonderful results. The animals got stronger and healthier without any exercise. However, some doctors think that such pills can be ______DANGER______ for health, especially in certain situations. The problem is that there will be people who may use the pill unwisely. For example, young girls who want to lose weight and get slim may take several pills at once. It will be very _____HARM_____ for their health. That’s why our government should think a lot before making the _____DECIDE______ that allows the medicine to be produced.

People spend hours talking on their mobile phones. There is an opinion that it may be _____HARM_____ to their health, but it is difficult to know for sure. Some research shows that mobile phones may cause brain problems. On the other hand, some doctors say mobiles are not ____DANGER____ at all.  No matter what doctors say, it’s just _____POSSIBLE____ to live without a mobile phone today. It has become a very _____USE_____ device and people can’t do without it. It makes our life _____COMFORT_____ and saves time. People can get in touch with each other quickly. Mobile phones make ______COMMUNICATE____ easier.

Learning languages is becoming a popular hobby with children and adults. It’s not only interesting but very ______USE____, too. Foreign languages improve memory and develop _____IMAGINE____. People who are able to speak two or more languages ______FLUENT____ are usually more successful than their monolingual colleagues. They are better in making business and ____PERSON___ contacts. They are more _____CREATE______ and they are better in solving conflicts as they are able to accept new ideas and different points of view. Foreign languages make life more _____INTEREST_____ and colourful.

British cuisine is simple. Puddings, stews, pies and breads are _____TRADITION___ British dishes. Many of them are cooked and eaten on holidays. The choice of dishes has been influenced by the climate, history and ____GEOGRAPHY____ position of the country. England is ____FAME_____ for its butter and cheese. The most popular of them is, of course, cheddar. Scotland is known for its _____TASTE_____ meat dishes and cakes. Wales has a strong fishing culture. As a result, Welsh cookery includes a lot of seafood, such as shrimps and crabs. However, nowadays most British restaurants offer food from ______DIFFER____ parts of the world. The choice depends only on your pocketbook and your _____IMAGINE______.

How do people learn the news? About a century ago people got _____INFORM___ from newspapers since they were the only mass media that existed in those times. Radio and television seemed ____WONDER____ inventions as they broadcasted audio and visual images. The Internet has changed the situation dramatically.  Now the audience has an opportunity to create the news, share their ____PERSON____ knowledge and express their opinions. The Internet supposes interaction, which makes it very ____ATTRACT_____ to people. And what about the newspapers? Will they _____APPEAR____ in the near future? I wish they wouldn’t as I like starting my day with a cup of coffee and a ____TRADITION____ newspaper.

Ratatouille is an American cartoon. The name of the cartoon comes from a  ____TRADITION____ French dish made of vegetables. The main character is a rat Remy, who is interested in cooking and dreams of becoming a ____SUCCESS___ chef. Remy is separated from his family at the _____BEGIN____ of the movie. So he finds himself in Paris, France. There his unusual ___FRIEND____ with a poor boy begins. They both don’t care that most people hate rats and try to get rid of them. Remy wants to help the boy. He tries to teach him how to cook _____TASTE____ dishes.  The story ends ___HAPPY___ and the friends start a new restaurant.

Dublin is the capital city of the Republic of Ireland. It has an ____NATIONAL____  airport with flights from London and European capitals. Dublin is a _____BEAUTY____ and cosmopolitan city. If you walk along its different central streets, you will find a wide range of _____DIFFER____ shops, bars and restaurants. If you like sightseeing, you can also visit the famous Dublin castle, one of the most _____IMPRESS_____ buildings in the city. Dublin is a green city. It is such a pleasure to walk there on a hot ______SUN____ day. In the evening you can listen to ____TRADITION_____ Irish music played in the streets and in the pubs.

What do you think is the most stressful and ___DANGER_____ job in Britain? Is it a police officer, a detective or a news ____REPORT____? Well, statistics say it is a London taxi driver. It is a ____REAL_____ hard job as traffic is getting worse. If we sit in a traffic jam for a few minutes, we start feeling ____NERVE_____ and irritated. But imagine you had to do that every day as your job! And you have to remain ____CARE_____ and attentive in spite of everything. London taxi drivers have to have a good memory to be able to take a _____TRAVEL___ from A to B without looking at the map or asking for directions.

My first job was working at a bakery. When I walked from my house to the bakery I could smell the ____WONDER___ fresh bread. I loved it. I worked ____DAY___ after school and at weekends. It made about twenty hours a week. One of the most _____FANTASY___ things about the bakery was that I could eat all I wanted there. I couldn't stop eating the fresh buns, rolls and cakes. They were so ___TASTE____. Mrs. Bradley, the _____OWN____ of the bakery, was a very nice woman. She had no children and she treated me like her own granddaughter. I liked her too and did my best to be as ___HELP____as possible. 

In Andorra people live longer than in any other European country. It seems they have discovered the secret of a long and ____HEALTH______ life. People in Andorra stay active and __ENERGY___ at old age. They attend gyms and public _____SWIM______ pools for free. Exercise is one reason, the others are clean air and a diet based on vegetables and olive oil. People of all ages in Andorra are cheerful and ____FRIEND______. They think that life is ____FANTASY______ and they do their best to enjoy it. Andorra is the most ____PEACE______ country in Europe – they haven’t had a war for 700 years.

Ballroom dancing in the UK is making a comeback. For the past five years the popularity of ballroom dancing has grown thanks to the TV show 'Strictly Come Dancing'. In the show a professional ballroom ____DANCE____ has a celebrity for a partner. They learn ___DIFFER____ ballroom dances and perform them live on TV. Four judges and the public decide who stays in the ____COMPETE___ and who leaves. The show demonstrates how glamorous ballroom dancing is. The celebrities wear ____COLOUR____ dresses and suits and the show looks very ____IMPRESS____. According to the ratings, the ___PERFORM_____ is becoming more and more popular with TV audiences.

The best thing about shopping in London is that there really are hundreds of cool shops selling ____FASHION____ clothes. Only here you can find a wide choice of _____ORIGIN____ and unique shops. Sometimes you can buy _____FANTASY____ things there. You can spend a whole day in a shopping centre, have lunch in one of the European or ____ENGLAND____ restaurants, see a new film in the cinema and even enjoy a ___PERFORM____. But be ___СARE____ – London shops are expensive! Don’t leave all your money in the shopping centre.

London is famous for its history and its sights. It is also a wonderful place for shopaholics. There are lots of _____DIFFER_____ places to go. For example, you can go to Oxford Street. Sometimes it gets too ___CROWD_____ and noisy, especially during the sales. If you don’t like it, go to Covent Garden. There you can have a _____LOVE_____ cup of tea or a cappuccino in a quiet coffee house. You can also watch a street _____PERFORM___. Portobello Road is the right place to go if you want to buy unique and ____USUAL_____ things. Shopping in London is always an ___EXCITE___ experience and it’s worth trying.

Every year the world goes dark for one hour, the Earth Hour. The event is organised by the ___NATION____ World Wildlife Fund. At tourist destinations, in offices and private homes, lights are switched off for one hour at ____EXACT____ 8:00 pm. The idea is to show that our planet is in danger and it needs care and ____PROTECT____. It's ____POSSIBLE____ to remain indifferent to changes in the climate which go on and on. The Earth Hour is not about saving an hour’s electricity. It’s about realising that we live on a ____WONDER____ planet and need to look after it –  not just for an hour a year but every day. The Earth Hour is a part of an ____ECOLOGY___ education whose aim is to make people understand their responsibility to the planet.

The Turners were not used to snow. The most they ever got in Birmingham was an inch or so each winter. Even that happened quite _____RARE_____. The _____FUN_____ thing was that a tiny bit of snow was enough to cancel school and even to close some businesses. One night, in March of 1993, something very ___EXCITE_____ happened. Very cold air from Canada created the "Storm of the Century". When the Turner kids woke up on Saturday morning, there were 17 inches of ____WONDER_____ snow as far as the eye could see. The Turners were in shock. They had no idea what to do. Though Mr. Turner was an experienced ____DRIVE____ he chose to leave his car in the garage. He wanted the whole family to stay at home but it was natural for the kids to ______AGREE____ with him. They put on the warmest clothes they had and ran outside to enjoy the snow.

Dr Michael Werner says that he has eaten nothing for four years. The German ____SCIENCE______ explains that he gets all his energy from sunlight. He says he drinks only water and ____DIFFER______ fruit juices. Dr Werner has written an ____EXCITE______ book about his experiences. In it he says that when he started the experiment he even put on weight.

He says: "I can't really give an _____EXPLAIN_____ of what’s happening to me; perhaps I just believe in my theory."

Dr Werner’s colleagues say that only plants can produce energy from the sun, and they cannot explain how he is able to stay _____HEALTH_____.

“This case ,____PROBABLE____, needs a lot more research before we will be able to explain it,” they say.

Many tourists find they don't like staying in city hotels. They prefer to avoid _____NOISE____ cities completely. They are attracted instead to dramatic views of mountains and _____PEACE____ valleys. If you like this sort of tourism, Mountain View Camp is for you. You’ll have an ____FORGETTABLE___ vacation there. The Camp has a view over the ____IMPRESS____ Hampson Valley. In the camp, tourists can rent either tents or bungalows. All the guests have free access to different facilities such as kitchens, bathrooms and playgrounds for children. The camp is a successful ____COMBINE____ of both comfort and a green environment.  The tourists can also have lunch in one of the many restaurants and try European or ____NATION_____ cuisine.

Millions of people want to learn English. There are lots of ____DIFFER___ methods and the main problem is how to choose the best one. Some people believe that the most ____EFFECT____ way is to study English in Britain or in any other English-speaking country. The advantage of going to Britain seems obvious. Everyone around you speaks English. It’s practically ____POSSIBLE____ to avoid communication, so you’ll learn English ____QUICK____. On the other hand, one can learn English at home. There are lots of possibilities there too: a good _____TEACH_____, a language school or an on-line course. There are many ways to get a good language ____EDUCATE___ now.

If someone asks what your nationality is, how do you answer? For British people _____NATION_____ identity is a complex issue. Take me for example. I carry a passport issued by the British ____GOVERN____. I was born in England, but my Mum is Scottish and my Granny is from Northern Ireland. So what am I? ____ACTUAL____, I am really all of them: English, Irish, Scottish and British. Each of the “nations” has a lot in common but they also have their own unique culture and ___TRADITION____ lifestyle. They ___LIKE_____ it when people call them English. And perhaps the most important ____DIFFER____ of all – each nation has its own football team!

The city of St Davids is situated on the south-west coast of Wales. If you're looking for an ____USUAL_____ place to go, this is your destination. It was granted city status by Queen Elizabeth II but in reality St Davids looks like an ____ATTRACT______ small village. It is actually the smallest city in Britain with a ______POPULATE____ of just over 1,600. St Davids has a ______BEAUTY_____ medieval cathedral which dates back to the 12th century. Today it is a _____CHARM_____ place with narrow streets filled with cafes, hotels and art galleries – but only one pub! St Davids is famous for its sandy beaches and clear water. Whitesands Bay is a regular ____WIN_____ of the prestigious European Blue Flag award.

Reading is one of the most popular pastimes and books are one of the main sources of knowledge. Everyone knows this but, _____FORTUNATELY____, there are many young people who don’t like to read. They say it is not cool but I firmly _____AGREE_____ with them. Books have the ability to take you to another world, to wake up your _____IMAGINE____ and transport you to places you’ve never been to. Books can be ____DIFFER_____ in size and content. Their stories can be ____EXCITE____, scary, romantic or funny but above all, books are just interesting. I'm absolutely sure that books by a good ____WRITE____ will always be popular.

Russia is a large country with great diversity in flora and fauna. There are several large ____NATION_________ parks in Russia. A lot of different animals live there. Wolves are probably the best known, and are very well studied animals, so we have enough ______INFORM________ about their diet and behaviour. The wolf is a good ______HUNT_________. They usually hunt wild animals like deer and hares, but sometimes they can attack sheep, goats, and cows. The wolf tries to avoid people and only goes into villages when he is _______REAL______ hungry. In some ______RUSSIA________ tales, the wolf is often represented as a clever animal that helps the main character, Ivan. The wolf is usually direct and _____CREATE________ and helps Ivan to cope with many difficult problems.

Learning languages is important nowadays. It is interesting and ___USE____. Language skills help people to travel, study, and establish ___PROFESSION____ links with colleagues from other countries.  Some people say that learning languages is easy but others strongly ___AGREE____. They say that learning languages takes a lot of time and they are not happy with their progress anyway. Meanwhile, there are some strategies that can make you a successful language _____LEARN____ and save your time. The first idea is watching films in the original. If the films are ____INTEREST____, learning is just fun, not hard work. Online and live ___COMMUNICATE____ with people in the language you are learning also helps a lot.

I’m not a child but I still like cartoons and animated films. ___RECENT____, I enrolled in an animation course in our university. The ____TEACH_____ of the course explained to us how animated films are made. Basically, animation is just a series of pictures with a character. Each picture is a little ____DIFFER_______. When you show the pictures really fast, it looks like they are moving. Some people say animation is not a serious thing. I strongly ___AGREE_____. Animated films may be ___FUN_____ but clever and useful to learn new skills. I believe they can be used in many spheres, and most importantly of all in ___EDUCATE_____.

Not everyone likes street art. ____USUAL________ nobody asks owners’ permission before drawing graffiti on their houses. Sometimes the drawings may be ___INTEREST_____ and nice but sometimes messy and ugly. What is graffiti –  a form of art or vandalism? It depends on the drawing, I think. A friend of mine, John, is a street __ART____. He says that street art is a form of ____COMMUNICATE____. A person can tell you nice or rude things, can’t he? As for John, he is a really nice and ___CREATE_____ person. He enjoys drawing _____VARY_______ characters from animated films. When my neighbours saw his drawings, they asked him to paint some pictures on the wall of their house. Just to make it look brighter and more positive.

What is the most eco-friendly transport? I believe it’s the bicycle. There are a lot of bicycles on the streets of our town and that is probably why it looks so green and ____BEAUTY___. There are cycle lanes all over the town so using your bike to get to school or to the office is safe and convenient. ___FORTUNATELY____, some people still prefer driving cars even for short distances. They make the environment less _____HEALTH_____. As for me, I enjoy riding my bike very much and all my friends say that I’m a good ____RIDE____. Next month I’m going to take part in a regional cycling _____COMPETE_____ and I hope to win it. I don't think I will stop riding my bicycle till I’m ____REAL____ old.

Koalas are cute animals. _____FORTUNATELY_______, it causes them lots of problems. There are people who want to keep the cute exotic animal as a pet which may put the koala in a really ____DANGER_____ situation. The problem is that the koala’s diet is very specific. To stay ______HEALTH______ they should only eat eucalyptus leaves. The leaves need to be young and fresh, which means a person who keeps a koala should also have a lot of eucalyptus trees. Andrew Page, a ___SCIENCE_______ who has been studying koalas for years, says that it’s a bad idea to keep this animal as a pet. According to him, people who try to do it usually have very little _____INFORM________ about koala’s lifestyle. And their ignorance can often cost the ___BEAUTY______ animal its life.

In Moscow, there are approximately 35,000 dogs living on the streets. Some of these ____HOME____ animals were born there. Others are just _____LUCKY____ pets that have been abandoned by their owners. For many dogs the city may be a ____DANGER___ place to live in. However, scientists were surprised to find out how ____EASY____ some animals can adapt to urban life. Some dogs have even learnt to use the city’s metro system! We still don't know how the dogs find out when to get off the train. One ___SUGGEST___ is that they use their excellent sense of smell to recognise the scents of their favourite destinations. Another idea is that they are able to remember the design of ___DIFFER___ stations and find the station they need.

Most graffiti street artists are anonymous. However there are some artists who have become globally ___FAME___. Like the twin brothers from Brazil who call themselves Os Gemeos. They paint everything from small images to huge, ___COLOUR___ pictures of people on buildings. Another celebrity among graffiti artists is Blek le Rat from Paris. He paints pictures of ___HOME___ people. In this way he hopes to encourage residents to think ____SERIOUS___ about the problems of these people. Another well-known artist is Faith 47 from Cape Town. She paints big bright pictures of people and animals. The works of this ___PAINT____ can be found on pavements, empty factory buildings, and abandoned cars. It is ____POSSIBLE____ to predict how street art will develop in the future but we can be sure that it is here to stay!

Kelly's family loved to watch football together. Sometimes they watched college games, but normally they watched ____PROFESSION_____ teams play. This evening was special. Two teams were playing in the final match of the ___CHAMPION____. Kelly's favourite team had actually got to the final this year, which ____RARE_____ happened. "They're going to win for sure! It will be ___FAIR_____ if they lose!" Kelly thought. Watching the football game needed the presence of the whole family and lots of tasty food. So Kelly's mum had made barbecue meatballs. Uncle Jolyon had brought a ____SPICE___ cheese sauce and chips. Aunt Katie brought some cakes.  When the game started, everyone cheered. It seemed to Kelly that every ____PLAY_____ of her team was doing their best to win-win-win! And they did!  

The Nobel Prize is a very prestigious award. Alfred Nobel, a successful businessman and the _____INVENT_____ of explosives, established prizes for achievements in science, literature and economics. Another award, the Oscar, is ____PROBABLE____ the most famous prize in the film industry. The ceremony is an ____IMPRESS____ event with lots of film stars. There are lots of musical awards – Grammies, Brits, and the MTV awards for music, the list is ____END_____. In Britain, a writer who wins the Booker prize can expect to see their novel at the top of the bestseller lists and compete with ‘The Da Vinci Code’ for _____POPULAR____. The Turner Prize is an award for British contemporary artists, and each year it causes heated discussions. Artists get lots of money for their ____USUAL____ and sometimes even strange works.