ISE

I - Reading and Writing Exam

Sample paper
TASK 1 – Long Reading with 15 questions
Read the following text about junk food and answer the 15 questions that follow.

Paragraph 1
Steven Witherly is a food scientist who has spent the last 20 years studying what makes certain foods
more addictive than others. According to Witherly, when you eat good food, there are two factors that
make the experience pleasurable. First, there is the sensation of eating the food. This includes what it
tastes like, what it smells like, and how it feels in your mouth. This last quality — how it feels — can be
particularly important. Food companies will spend millions of dollars to discover the most satisfying level
of crunch in a potato chip. Their scientists will test for the perfect amount of Hizz in a soda. These factors all
combine to create the sensation that your brain associates with a particular food or drink. The second
factor is the actual makeup of the food — the combination of proteins, fats, and carbohydrates that it
contains. In the case of junk food, food manufacturers are looking for a perfect combination of salt, sugar,
and fat that excites your brain and makes you want more.

Paragraph 2
Foods that rapidly disappear or “melt in your mouth” signal to your brain that you’re not eating as much as
you actually are. In other words, these foods literally tell your brain that you’re not full, even though you’re
eating a lot of calories. The result: you tend to overeat.

Paragraph 3
Your brain likes variety. When it comes to food, if you experience the same taste over and over again, then
you start to get less pleasure from it. This can happen in just minutes. Junk foods, however, are designed
to avoid this sensory speciHic response. They provide enough taste to be interesting (your brain doesn’t get
tired of eating them), but it’s not so stimulating that your sensory response is dulled. This is why you can
swallow an entire bag of potato chips and still be ready to eat another. To your brain, the crunch and
sensation of eating Doritos is novel and interesting every time.

Paragraph 4
This is where the psychobiology of junk food really works against you. When you eat something tasty (say,
a bag of potato chips), your brain registers that feeling. The next time you see that food, smell that food, or
even read about that food, your brain starts to trigger the memories and responses that came when you
ate it. These memories can actually cause physical responses like salivation and create the “mouth-
watering” craving that you get when thinking about your favorite foods.

Paragraph 5
All of this brings us to the most important question of all. Food companies are spending millions of dollars
to design foods with addictive sensations. What can you and I do about it? Is there any way to counteract
the money, the science, and the advertising behind the junk food industry?
QUESTIONS 1-5:
The text has Hive paragraphs (1-5). Choose the best title for the paragraph from A-F
below and write the letter (A-F) on the lines below. There is one title you don´t need.

1. Paragraph 1 _________________________
2. Paragraph 2 _________________________ A Why we love junk food
3. Paragraph 3 _________________________ B Unhappy memories happy mouth
4. Paragraph 4 _________________________ C A parting thought
5. Paragraph 5 _________________________ D We get bored easily
E Junk foods trick your brain
F Memories of past eating experiences

QUESTIONS 6-10:
Choose the Hive statements from A-H below that are TRUE according to the information
given in the text. Write the letters of the TRUE statements on the lines below (in
any order).

6. _________________________
7. _________________________ A Food companies spend millions on junk food.
8. _________________________ B People don´t like junk food in the morning
9. _________________________ C Your brain gets bored of the same food
10. ________________________ D How the food feels in your mouth is important
E Memories of good food cause a physical response
F To your brain, every Dorito you eat is new
G Junk food Hills your stomach with empty calories
H Cheetos are scientiHically proven to be the best
junk food

QUESTIONS 11-15:
Complete sentences 11-15 with a word, phrase or number from the text (maximum
three words). Write the word, phrase or number on the lines below.

11. Two factors make the experience of eating food __________________________________.

12. Foods that rapidly _____________________ signal to your brain that you’re eating less than
you actually are.
13. The second time you eat a food your brain starts to _____________________ the memories
and responses that came when you Hirst ate it.
14. One factor that contributes to the sensation your brain associates with a food is the
actual ______________________ of the food.
15. Junk food provides enough _____________________ to be interesting but is not so
stimulating to your senses that you get bored with it.
TASK 2 – Multi-text Reading
In this section there are four short texts for you to read and some questions for you to
answer.

QUESTIONS 16-20:
Read questions 16-20 Hirst and then read texts A, B, C and D below the questions.

As you read each text, decide which text each question refers to. Choose one letter – A,
B, C or D and write it on the lines below. You can use any letter more than once.

Which text:
16. Talks about a couple’s accomplishment _____________
17. Suggests that holidays can be expensive. _____________
18. Explains the history of a popular holiday. _____________
19. Informs the reader on how much a holiday tends to cost. _____________
20. Shows the average amount of money spent on parts of a wedding. _____________

Text A:

THE COMMERCE OF CHRISTMAS: What does the typical shopper spend, when do
they spend it, and on what?
How much are we spending?
Shoppers plan to spend an average of $704.18 on gifts and holiday things this year.
➢ $403.26 will be spent on kids.
➢ $68.23 will be spent on friends.
➢ $21.06 will be spent on co-workers.
➢ $23.39 will be spent on other gifts.
When are they spending it?
➢ 38.9% of shoppers starting shopping before Halloween.
➢ 51.4% of Americans had already begun holiday shopping by mid-
November.
➢ 152 million Americans planned to shop on Black Friday weekend
2011 (the weekend after Thanksgiving)
What are we spending on?
➢ $26.52 per person will be spent on cards.
➢ $96.75 per person will be spent on food and candy.
➢ $18.23 per person will be spent on Hlowers.
➢ The average Christmas tree costs around $42.00

http://www.businessinsider.com/what-americans-spend-on-christmas-2011-12
 Text B:
HALLOWEEN

Halloween has evolved and changed throughout history. Over 2,000 years ago, people believed that
October 31 was a time when the living and the dead came together. Then, the Christian church named
November 1 All Hallows. The night before All Hallows was called Hallows Eve. Later, the name was
changed to Halloween.

People believed that the spirits of the dead would visit the earth on Halloween. So, on that night, people
wore costumes that looked like ghosts or other evil creatures. They thought that if they dressed like
that, the spirits would think they were also dead and not harm them.

The tradition of Halloween was carried to the United States by the immigrating Europeans, and, these
days, Halloween is not considered a religious holiday. It is primarily a fun day for children. Children
dress up in costumes like people did a thousand years ago. But instead of worrying about evil spirits,
they go from house to house. They knock on doors and say "trick or treat." The owner of each house
gives candy or something special to each child.

http://www.5minuteenglish.com/oct29.htm

Text C:

http://weddingphotography.com.ph/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/0-bridal-budget.jpg
Text D:

Dear Mom and Dad,

Congratulations on your 30th wedding anniversary! Being together as

long as you have been is quite an accomplishment, 30 years is longer than I have
been alive...
I just have a little advice for you, now that your only child is away at
college. Don’t forget about all our family traditions even though it is only the two
of you now. Continue having Friday night pizza, and always make Saturday night
date night, and never stop asking each other “How was your day?” its all these
little things that make our family so much fun and that keep your relationship
strong!

Much love,
Your favorite (only) daughter,
Sarah

QUESTIONS 21-25:
Choose the _ive statements from A-H below that are TRUE according to the information
given in the texts above. Write the letters of the TRUE statements on the lines below
(in any order).

A The majority of families do not participate in Trick-

or-Treating.
21. _________________________ B There are many different costs that make a
wedding expensive.
22. _________________________
C Family traditions are a very important and fun way
23. _________________________ to keep you family together.
24. _________________________ D People spend the most on children during the
holiday season.
25. _________________________
E It is an achievement to stay married to someone for
many years.
F No traditional holidays are still considered to be
religious.
G This traditional holiday has evolved and changed
into something new over time.
QUESTIONS 26-30:
The summary notes below contain information from the texts on pages 4 and 5. Find a
word or phrase (maximum three words) from texts A-D to complete the missing
information in gaps 26-30.
Write your answers on the lines below.

Summary notes

How holidays and special occasions are celebrated:

• Occasion – something special, an event or celebration.

• On Halloween children say (26.)________________________.
• On the anniversary of a wedding you say (27.) ________________________.
• Use family traditions to keep your family relationship strong.
• On this holiday children (28.)________________________ in costumes.

Costs and spending patterns for holidays and special occasions:

• Budget – an estimate amount of money that you can afford to spend on
something.
• The (29.)________________________ spends a lot of money on Christmas presents.
• Special occasions can be quite expensive because of the many different items
needed to complete the occasion.
• The person who is in charge of photographing an event is called the (30.)
______________________.
TASK 3 – Reading Into Writing
Write an article

Use the information you read in Task 2 to:

• Describe how a typical holiday or special occasion is celebrated in your
family and
• Explain how it is different from one of the four occasions mentioned in
Task 2.
• Suggest ways that you and your family could spend less money on this
holiday. (How can you cut costs?)

You should plan your article before you start writing. Think about what you want to say
and write some notes to help you in this box:

Planning notes

(no marks are given for these planning notes)

Now write your article of 100-130 words in the space below. Try to use your own
words as much as possible – don´t just copy sentences from the reading texts.

When you have Hinished your article, spend 2-3 minutes reading through what you have
written. Make sure you have answered the task completely. Remember to check how
you made use of the reading texts, as well as the language and organization of your
writing.
TASK 4 – Extended Writing
Write an article (100-130 words) for your school newspaper about your experience
learning English. You should:
• Explain why learning English is important and what beneHits will it have in
the future.
• Describe your personal experience and the different methods you use to
learn English.

You should plan your essay before you start writing. Think about what you want to say
and write some notes to help you in this box:

Planning notes

(no marks are given for these planning notes)

Now write your essay of 100-130 words on the lines below.

When you have Hinished your article, spend 2-3 minutes reading through what you have
written. Make sure you have answered the task completely. Remember to check how
you made use of the reading texts, as well as the language and organization of your
writing.