Tet is a national and .................... festival in Vietnam

 

 

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct word or phrase that best fits each of the numbered blanks.

It's quite rare to meet teenagers who don't like sports. When you are young, you know how important (23)______ to do physical exercise if you want to be healthy and strong, and for that reason, you often concentrate on just one sport with so (24)______ enthusiasm that in the end, you can't live without it. The problem is, though, that as you grow up you have less and less spare time. At your age, you have to study harder if you want to get good marks to go to university, with perhaps only one afternoon a week to do any sport. This happens just when you are at the best (25)______ for many sports, such as gymnastics and swimming. By the time you finish all your studies you will probably be too old to be really good at sports like those, but if you spend enough time on (26)______ while you are young, then one day you will find that you are very good at your sport but too old to study, and you will find it (27)______ to get a good job. Somehow, it doesn't seem fair.

Question 23: .....................

Read the text and then choose the correct answer A, B, C, or D for each space.

No More Classes
The use of computers has meant students can study language programs (1) __ their own speed when and for how long they want and no need to worry about the teacher having a favorite or doing (2)__ another boring lesson. What’s more, in the virtual classrooms of the future the student will (3) __ on their headset, and be transported into an imaginary school, choose their class, take the books they need off the shelf, and (4) __ conversations with other computerized students. They might (5) __ choose to pay a visit to the supermarket or the train station, the bank or the restaurant. At the (6) __ of a button, they would be transported to (7) __ realistic settings where they could practice their English, maybe getting a hand from a virtual English companion. All this perhaps, at the computer, from the comfort of their home: no (8) __ to catch the bus to college, or a plane to England. Exciting? Certainly, and an interesting alternative to traditional classroom lessons. But would it ever (9) ___ the classroom? Hopefully not. Surely the need to relate to real people talking about real issues and generally learning a little more about others will always lead language learners to (10) __ at least a little of their time with real people.

10____________

Read the following passage and choose the correct answer A, B, C, or D. 
It is often said that books are always a good friend and reading is an active mental process. Unlike TV, books make you use your brain. By reading, you think more and become smarter. Reading improves concentration and focus. Reading books takes brainpower. It requires you to focus on what you are reading for long periods. Unlike magazines, Internet posts or e-emails might contain small pieces of information. Books tell the whole story. Since you must concentrate in order to read, you will get better at concentration. Many studies show if you do not use your memory, you lose it. Reading helps you stretch your memory muscles. Reading requires remembering details, facts, and figures and in literature, plot lines, themes, and characters.

Reading is a good way to improve your vocabulary. Do you remember that when you were in elementary school you learned how to infer the meaning of one word by reading the context of the other words in the sentence? While reading books, especially challenging ones, you will find yourself exposed to many new words.

Reading is a fundamental skill builder. Every good course has a matching book to go with it. Why? Because books help clarify difficult subjects. Books provide information that goes deeper than just classroom discussions. By reading more books, you become better informed and more of an expert on the topics you read about. This expertise translates into a higher self-esteem. Since you are so well-read, people look to you for answers. Your feelings about yourself can only get better.

Books give you knowledge of other cultures and places. The more information you have got, the richer your knowledge is. Books can expand your horizons by letting you see what other cities and countries have to offer before you visit them.

According to the passage, reading books cannot help you ________.

Read the text and choose the best answer to the following questions by circling the corresponding letter A, B, C or D. (2.5 marks)

After only 50 minutes flying from Ho Chi Minh City, you will set foot on the tropical paradise of Vietnam and the world: Phu Quoc Island.

The island has a roughly triangular shape with a north-south length of 50km and a west-east width of 25km. A great part of the terrain is filled with beautiful sandy beaches, but there is a mountainous region with 99 peaks, among which the Peak of Chua Mountain is the tallest one at 603 meters. Due to Phu Quoc's location in the Gulf of Thailand, its climate is sub-equatorial with a temperate weather all year round, making trips to Phu Quoc possible any time in the year. However, the best time to travel to this island is during the dry season, from November until March, when the sky is blue and clear and the rains are away.

Phu Quoc is most famous for its cuisines and a natural wonderful coastline. The most famous food of Phu Quoc is fish sauce, which has become quite popular all over Vietnam and the world. Besides, another thing worth trying there is the spicy yet interesting black pepper. However, the factor that will definitely intrigue you to visit Phu Quoc is its untouched coastline featuring several heavenly beaches. They have yet to be explored to their full ability, but this fact might be actually positive as it gives the shores a romantic beauty that you can find in nowhere else in the world.

According to the passage, Phu Quoc Island_____.

Read the following passage and decide which options A, B, c, or D best fits each space.

Have you ever stopped (1) …………….  why do people give each (2)……………. eggs at Easter? – The Christian festival of Easter celebrates the return of Christ from the dead, but the festival is actually named (3)……………………  the goddess of the sun, Eostre, whose name is taken from the East where she (4)………. In very ancient times, Easter was a celebration that winter was (5)  …….. and that a new life was about to begin. The rabbit,(6)………. to the number of young it produces, is the symbol of life. In some parts of the world, the rabbit leaves large (7) ………………  of eggs (another symbol of new life) in the garden, and children have to find as many as they can. This is very (8)……….. Christmas, when Santa Claus leaves, presents for individual children. At Easter, children have to be independent and (9)…………after themselves. In this (10)…………… the hunt for Easter eggs presents the need for young people to go out into the world and make their own fortune

1..........................

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the questions

In Britain some families feel that learning at home is better than going to school. Home schooled children can choose when they want to learn. Does this sound more enjoyable than school?

Andrian is a science prodigy and he wants to start university by the age of fourteen. He finds school lessons easier than the ones he expects but making friends is more difficult. At home he can spend more time on his favourite subjects and is preparing to take many of his exams early. Does he ever take a break? “Yes”, he says “I don’t study subjects I’m not interested in.”

Holly’s parents weren’t happy with the local school. So they made a decision to teach her at home. Her favourite is history and she often goes to the museum to study. “I couldn’t do that before”, she says. “This is more interesting than school was.” Her parents are always happy to help her.

Andrian and Holly love learning at home, but some people think that studying at school is more useful because it trains you for adult life. It teaches you to be with people you don’t like, but it can also help you to make friends. Are these things more important than lessons? What do you think?

In Britain, people can learn at home or ____________________.

Read the following passage and decide which options A, B, C, D best fits each space.  
Many countries are already using (1)_________ energy. Solar (2)_________ are placed on the roofs of a house and the Sun’s energy is used to (3)_________ water. The energy can be stored for a number of days, so on (4)_________ days you can use solar energy, too. Sweden has an advanced solar energy program. There, all buildings will be heated by solar energy and cars (5)_________ solar power instead of gas by the year 2015

Đọc kĩ đoạn văn sau và làm theo yêu cầu. 

Sydney is Australia's most exciting city, the history of Australia begins here. In 1788, Captain Arthur Phillips arrived in Sydney with 11 ships and 1624 passengers from Britain (including 770 prisoners). Today there are about 4 million people in Sydney. It’s the biggest city in Australia, the busiest port in the South Pacific, and one of the most beautiful cities in the world.

There are over twenty excellent beaches close to Sydney and its warm summer climate and cool winter have made it a favorite city for immigrants from overseas. Three things make Sydney famous: its beautiful harbor, the Sydney Harbor Bridge, which was built in 1932, and the Sydney Opera House, which was opened in 1973.

What does the “which” in line 8 refer to __________?

Read the following passage and decide which options A, B, C, D best fits each space.  
A Healthy Life?
(1) _____ health experts believe that children and young people today are more (2) _____ than they used to be. So why has this happened? One reason is bad eating habits. (3)_____ of young people don’t have a healthy diet. They eat too much fast food (4) ____ hamburgers and pizza and not enough fruit and vegetables. In the US. many children (5)_____ fast food regularly since they were very young. In fact, almost one-third of American children aged four to nineteen have been eating fast food (6) _____all the time. They also don’t (7)_______ exercise and spend too (8)______ of their time watching TV, surfing the Internet or playing computer games. So how can you change your habits if you have been following an unhealthy lifestyle for a long time? First, change your (9)________ and eat more fruit and vegetables. Next, find an activity you enjoy. Why not try something different like rock climbing, surfing or hiking? Many young people have found that (10) ______ fit and healthy can be a lot of fun

There are more nationalities in New York _________in any other places on the earth.

Read the following passage and decide which options A, B, C, D best fits each space. 
          Everyone wants to reduce pollution. But the pollution problem is as complicated _________ (41) it is serious. It is complicated because much _________ (42) is caused by things that benefit people. For example, exhaust _________ (43) automobiles causes a large percentage of all air pollution. _________ (44) the automobiles provide transportation for millions of people. Factories _________ (45) much of the material which pollutes air and water, but factories give employment to a large number of people.

        Thus, to _________ (46) or greatly reduce pollution immediately, people would have to stop using many things that benefit them. Most of the people do not want to do that, of course. But pollution can be _________ (47) reduced in several ways. _________ (48) and engineers can work to find ways to lessen the _________ (49) of pollution that such things as automobiles and factories cause. Governments can pass and enforce laws that require businesses and individuals to stop or cut _________ (50) on certain polluting activities.

43________

Read the following passage and choose the best answers.

New York – The “ Big Apple”

Our arrival in New York was spectacular. It’s skyscrapers and the Statue of Liberty make a (1)_______sight. New York has a (2) _______of over seven million and it is probably the world’s most famous city. The inhabitants of the “Big Apple” come from many (3) ______ countries. There are more nationalities in New York (4) _________in any other places on the earth. It is also has (5) _______ tourists than any other city except London, especially in the summer. (6) _______come from all (7) _________the world and have a wonderful time. There are so many (8) ________for them to get enthusiastic about – whether it’s some of the (9) _______museums in the world or the (10) _______little streets of Greenwich Village.

Question: come from all (7) _________the world and have a wonderful time.

Choose the best answer:
The paintings. . . . . Mr. Brown has in his house are worth around $ 100,000

You are going to read an extract from a writer’s journal. For Questions 1-8, choose the correct answer A, B, C, or D.

Six months ago I made a rash promise. The leader of the youth club in our village rang me in March saying, “We’re thinking of running a children’s playscheme for a day in October half-term. Would you be prepared to help?” My response was “Sure, why not?” In truth, I was a little flattered to be asked, even though working as a care assistant with old people hardly qualified me for the role. Still, I duly put the date in my diary and of course, I forgot all about it. I don’t know if you’ve noticed this but time has a habit of speeding along faster than a police car chasing a robber and, before I knew it, the day was dawning.

I arrived at the youth center that morning feeling full of trepidation. There was a gang of 12 helpers including me and each pair had been allocated a particular age group. Mine was the 10 to 11-year-olds. Even with the planning meeting I had attended the week before, I worried about whether I was up to the task. Why hadn’t I read through the copious lesson plans we were given beforehand? And wasn’t the average 10-year-old more interested in the latest Play Station game than making things with paper and glue?

All too quickly the children began arriving. The look of relief on parents’ faces as they handed their offspring over to us was quite comical. A handful of the children were already members of the club but the other forty-five or so were from the local primary schools. Again I asked myself why I had elected to spend a day with all these ‘little monsters’, especially when I have two all of my own to contend with!

I needn’t have worried of course as it turned out to be a marvelous day. We watched entertaining DVD clips, learned ‘action’ songs, made clay pyramids, decorated biscuits, played memory games, and spent some time in quiet reflection. I say ‘we’ because I rediscovered my inner child and joined in all the activities.

The particular highlight for me was the final rendition of “He’s got the whole world in his hands” in the closing part of the day. The children knew the words and actions off by heart and sang so loudly it was almost enough to bring the roof down. It’s difficult to explain those moments; only that the body tingles with the pleasure of having witnessed something so magical.

Of course, there were also moments of great poignancy. I found it difficult to stop thinking of one little girl, who mentioned oh-so-casually that her mum was in the hospital and would be there for a long time. It’s easy for us adults to idealize childhood and forget that some children have their own burden of anxieties and concerns. When I got home utterly exhausted, still with modeling clay under my fingernails, I reflected on what a privilege it had been.

There was one disappointment for the children and that was that the playscheme was only running for a day, and not the whole week. As I said farewell to my group, one of the children turned and said “Can we do it again in the next holiday, Miss?” My response was, “Sure, why not?”

When the day arrived the writer was surprised _____________.

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the questions.

MY HOME TOWN

I was born in Newcastle, a city in the North East of England. Newcastle is on the bank of the River Tyne. It is a quite big city of about 200,000 inhabit­ants. There is a cathedral and a university. There are five bridges over the River Tyne, which link Newcastle to the next town, Gateshead, where there is one of the biggest shopping centres in the world, the Metro Centre.

A few years ago, the main industries were shipbuilding and coal mining, but now the chemical and soap industries are important.

I moved from Newcastle ten years ago but I often return. I miss the people, who are so warm and friendly, and I miss the wild, beautiful countryside near the city, where there are so many hills and streams.

According to the passage, the writer………………………

Read the following passage and choose the item (A, B, C or D) that best answers each of the questions about it

Every nation and every country has its own customs and traditions. In Britain traditions play a more important part in the life of the people than in other countries. Englishmen are proud of their traditions and carefully keep them up.

It has been the law for about 300 years that all theatres are closed on Sundays. No letters are delivered; only a few Sunday papers are published. 

To this day an English family prefers a house with a garden to a flat in a modern house with central heating. English people like gardens. Sometimes the garden in front of the house is a little square covered with cement painted garden in imitation of grass and a box of flowers.

Holidays are especially rich in old traditions and are different in Scotland, Ireland, Wales and England. Christmas is a great English national holiday, and in Scotland it is not kept, except by clerks in banks, all shops and factories are working.

How important are traditions in Britain?

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the questions.

    It is often considered that the schoolyard is where bullies go to make other kids a miserable school life, but a new study suggests that classrooms are another popular place.

    The study, presented recently at the American Public Health Association’s yearly meeting in Philadelphia, is based on the results of the research from more than 10,000 middle school students who answered questions online.

    Of those researched, 43% said they’d been physically bullied within the last month. A bit more than half said they had been laughed at in an unfriendly way, and half reported being called hurtful names. About one third said groups had excluded them to hurt their feelings. 28% said their belongings had been taken or broken; 21% said someone had threatened to hurt them. According to the results, two-thirds of the students said they had been bullied in more than one way over the previous month.

 The study authors mentioned that 8% of the students who answered said they had missed school at least once during the school year because of fear of being bullied, 25% said they had taken other actions, such as missing recess, not going to the bathroom or lunch, missing classes, or staying away from some area of the school to escape from experiencing a bully. Bullies did too much to the school life.

Which of the following might some students do to protect themselves from bullies?

Read the following passage and decide which options A, B, C, D best fits each space.  
Jack London (1876 – 1916) is an American writer whose work combined powerful realism and humanitarian sentiment. He was (0) ........ in San Francisco. After finishing grammar (1) ..........., Jack London worked at various jobs and in 1897 and 1898 he participated (2)........... the Alaska Gold Rush. Upon his return to the San Francisco area, he began to (19) ............ about his experiences. A collection of his short stories, The Son of the Golf, was (3) ............ in 1900. Jack’s colourful life, during which he wrote more than 50 books and which included enormous popular successes as an (4) .........., ended in his suicide at the (5) ........... of 40. Many of his stories including his masterpiece The Call of the Wild deal with the reversion of a civilized creature to the primitive state. Jack London’s style – brutal, vivid and exciting – (5) ........... him enormously popular outside the United States; His (7) ........ were translated into many languages. Jack’s important works include People of the Abyss about the poor in London; the Sea Wolf, a novel based on the author’s experiences on a seal hunting ship; John Barleycorn , an autobiographical novel about Jack’s struggle (8)............. alcoholism.

I believe that it is .................to wear uniforms when students are at school.

Visitors come from all_________the world and have a wonderful time.