Reading Semester 1

Read the text below. For questions 1-5 choose the correct answer A, B, C or D

Give teens a break.

Teenagers experience all kinds of problems - lack of self-confidence, nagging parents, peer pressure, doing well in exams and getting into university. Some of their problems result from the emotional and physical changes they are going through.

Teenagers ar extremely concerned about their appearance. So, it's no wonder they spend so much much time in front of the mirror! They notice every single thing about themselves, such as their body changing shape and annoying spots breaking out.Teenagers are rarely happy about these changes, which can affect how they feel about themselves.

Sometimes, parents hurt their teenage children's feelings by making jokes about their appearance. They also tend to pay little attention to teenage worries and think of them as being silly. Your daughter may be convinced that her nose looks awful and that plastic surgery is the only solution, even though everubody else fails to notice the problem. By trying to explain that other people do not normally pay as much attention to our physical features as we do ourselves, we can help teenagers feel better about themselves and become more confident.

Teenages also tend to avoid doing things they don't likr. especially helping around the house. They are likely to try to get out of doing housework - and certainly don't respond well to others. The more you discuss the type of housework your teenage son or daughter might not mind doing, the better. He or she, for example, may be happy to go to the supermarket, but hate the idea of doing the washing-up.

It also works better if your children can, at least to some degree, do things in their own way and time. This might seem annoying, but if all you do is order them around, you can be sure that next time they will not do a thing.

Always thank your children for their effort, and if they do something that's more than just a simple job, such as decorating, you might want to pay them.

1. What does the text say about teenagers?

What does the writer advise parents to do?

When it comes to housework, what do most teenagers do?

How can parents make their teenage children help around the house?

Which of the following is NOT good advice to parents?

Read the text and choose the correct words 

One of the world’s most (1)… seriously / serious problems is the use of child labour. June 12 is the World Day Against Child Labour. All around the world people will take (2)… apart / part in activities to raise awareness of the damage child labour (3)… does / doing to children, families and societies. The day is also one on which the world (4)… promotion / promotes the human rights of children. The United Nations (5)… set / let out in its Millennium Development Goals a number of targets to help prevent child labour. By 2015, it hopes all children (6)… compete / complete their primary education and that there is (7)… equals / equality in education. To do this, governments must take steps to reduce poverty and (8)… provide / provision enough jobs for adults. These are the two main reasons why we have child labour today.

Read the text and choose the correct words 

One of the world’s most (1)… seriously / serious problems is the use of child labour. June 12 is the World Day Against Child Labour. All around the world people will take (2)… apart / part in activities to raise awareness of the damage child labour (3)… does / doing to children, families and societies. The day is also one on which the world (4)… promotion / promotes the human rights of children. The United Nations (5)… set / let out in its Millennium Development Goals a number of targets to help prevent child labour. By 2015, it hopes all children (6)… compete / complete their primary education and that there is (7)… equals / equality in education. To do this, governments must take steps to reduce poverty and (8)… provide / provision enough jobs for adults. These are the two main reasons why we have child labour today.

Read the passage and choose the proper topic

The punk subculture appeared in the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and South Africa in the mid-to-late-1970s, and has since undergone several developments.

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The punk subculture is centred around listening to recordings or live concerts of a loud, aggressive genre of rock music. Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. It is rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, usually shortened to punk. Most punk rock uses guitars and noisy drumming that are derived from 1960s garage rock.

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Punks try to shock people with the highly theatrical use of clothing: ripped clothing is held together by safety pins or wrapped with tape; ordinary clothing is decorated with marker or with paint; a black basket liner becomes a dress, shirt or skirt; safety pins and razor blades are used as jewellery.

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Some punks make their hair stand in spikes, cut it into Mohawks (a hairstyle which consists of shaving both sides of the head, leaving a strip of noticeably longer hair) or other dramatic shapes, often colouring it with vibrant, unnatural colours.

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The punk subculture has developed a variety of dancing styles, which appear chaotic and violent.