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Variant 10.
SECTION 1. Listening (15 minutes)
Listen to five people talking about social media. Complete the sentences with
one word.
1. Amy mentions that social media is how she ____________ with her friends.
2. Brian thinks that it's a bit silly to keep on _____________more and more
pictures on social media.
3. Carol expresses uncertainty about _____________will replace social media.
4. David loves reading what his friends say about the ______________online.
5. Emma enjoys looking at photos and videos of ____________ events that her
friends have filmed and uploaded.
ANSWERS FOR THE LISTENING
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
SECTION 2. Reading (30 minutes)
Part 1.
Read a teenager called Jim’s blog about moving away from the city to live in
the countryside. Write ‘T’ for True, and ‘F’ for False.
A year ago, just before the summer holidays, my parents announced that they were
planning to move out of the city to live in the countryside. They said they were tired
of their stressful lives in the city, and the high prices. My mother’s a writer, so if
there’s
an internet connection, she can work wherever she is. My father’s a musician,
so it isn’t that simple for him, but he explained that he hoped he could find work
locally, teaching children to play the piano and the guitar.
Well, the news
was completely unexpected, and of course my sister and I weren’t
interested in hearing about all the advantages of being out of the city – the open
spaces, the wildlife, enjoying the changing seasons, no pollution, all that sort of
thing. We didn’t
want to leave our friends, or all the facilities available to us. My
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sister’s mad about skateboarding, and we both suddenly realised that our school
wasn’t too bad, despite all the homework!
Instead of listening to us and changing their minds, my parents insisted that it was a
great idea. According to them, we were young enough to handle such a big change
in
our lives fairly easily, and they said they had dreamed of doing this for years.
Even worse, they told us they had found a big house in a small village, and that they
were selling the flat we lived in so they could buy it. My sister and I imagined it
must be a ruin. After all, how could we possibly afford a big house? But actually,
we could, because houses are reasonably cheap in the countryside compared to those
in the city, and when they showed
us pictures of it online, we saw that, in fact, it
looked pretty nice.
A month later, here we all are, in a tiny village thirty kilometres from the nearest
town. We’ll have to get up early to catch a bus to school when the new term starts,
which I’m definitely not looking forward to. My sister’s taken up mountain biking
with some of the local kids, so she’s happy. I still
miss my friends, but some of them
are coming to stay next week, and I’ve made some new ones, too. One of them’s
into making animated films, and I’ve discovered that’s really interesting. Who
knows, maybe I’ll be a famous film-maker one day!
1. The narrator's parents decided to move to the countryside due to the low cost of
living and their desire for a less stressful life. ____
2. Both of the narrator's parents
work remotely, which makes it easier for them to
relocate.
____
3. Houses in the countryside are generally more expensive compared to those in the
city.
____
4. The narrator's sister has started mountain biking with some local kids and is
enjoying it.
____
5. The narrator's friends are not interested in visiting them in the countryside.
____