OLIMPIADA DE LIMBA ENGLEZĂ - ETAPA LOCALĂ

Baia Mare, 17 februarie 2018

SECTIUNEA B (4-6 ore/săptămână) - CLASA a IX-a

SUBIECTUL A – USE OF ENGLISH

I. Read the paragraph below and do the tasks (10 x 2p= 20p).

My mum always wanted me to do well at school and to have a high-status job, but that sort of thing isn’t
a big priority for me. I did have the potential to do well and go to university, but I was just too busy
having a good time. My relationships have always been far more important to me than academic or
career success. ‘My present job basically involves working as an assistant, and friends still insist I could
have achieved more in my working life. When I was younger, I did feel I had to set myself goals and
attain them within a certain period. I successfully ran my own business for a while, but having kids put
life back into perspective. ‘There have been times when I could have taken on a lot more responsibility
at work, but I imagine that if I had a more senior role at work, another part of my life would have to
suffer, and I’m not prepared to risk that. I’m just not the sort of person who can trample on others to get
to the top. I find it satisfying to do a productive job because I like to feel I’m doing something useful, but
I’m not into climbing the career ladder now. ‘The biggest priorities in my life are my husband, David,
and our young children – son Greg and daughter Fleur. If I’m ever fed up after a day at work, I just spend
some time playing with the children, and the enjoyment I get from them makes me realise how
insignificant and trivial my worries at work can be. ‘Occasionally, I’m reminded of how tied down I am
– if a friend goes off travelling, for example. But I suppose an important part of contentment is to accept
life’s limitations, and to learn to enjoy the things that you can do.’

A. Answer the following questions:

1. Why do Tina’s friends think her job isn’t good enough for her?
2. What does Tina think is the most important part of her life?
3. Describe Tina’s attitude to life.
4. What does “trample on others to get to the top” mean to you?

B. Choose the right synonym:

1. perspective: a. standpoint b. landmark c. venue d. scenery
2. trample: a. stumble on b. stamp on c. rumble on d. spur on
3. insignificant: a. elusive b. unassuming c. petty d. scanty

C. Rephrase the following sentences so as to preserve the meaning:

1. My relationships have always been far more important to me than academic success.
Academic success ……. …………………………. relationships.
2. Her friends say that she doesn’t have a serious enough attitude to her work.
She doesn’t…………………………………………………. according to her friends.
3. I have no intention of doing another kind of job.
I …………………………………………………………. other kind of job.

II. Use the word given in brackets to form a word that fits in each sentence. (10 x 1p = 10 p)

Beavers
After the recent floods, (1) _____ (CONSERVE) are calling for beavers to be reintroduced to Britain. You
may wonder how animals that build dams prevent floods when (2) _____ (SURE) the opposite is true.

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However, beavers construct dams in upland areas, creating small pools and (3) _____ (DIVERT) that
retain water and release water to lowland areas much more (4) _____ (GRADUAL).
Until the 16th century, Beavers lived wild in parts of Britain, but they were hunted to (5) _____
(EXTINCT) for their fur. However, recently (6) _____ (VARY) British wildlife organizations have applied
to reintroduce beavers to the countryside. Along with their potential value in flood (7) _____ (PREVENT),
they would create wetland habitats and promote tourism. But such measures are (8) _____
(CONTROVERSY). Beavers recently reintroduced to Estonia have flooded large areas of forest and (9)
_____ (AGRICULTURE) land, and this, in turn, has damaged crops. As a result, it has been necessary to
cull beavers when the population becomes too large. Many people think it is (10) _____ (ETHIC) to
reintroduce a species which will then be killed.

III. Fill in the blanks with ONE suitable word (10 p)

This diet is the most effective way of losing body fat. Remember, if we go (1) _____ a starvation
diet, we lose weight but not much fat. In starvation mode, we use up our energy stores of carbohydrate
first (in the form of a substance called glycogen). However, the body (2) _____ store only a little glycogen,
and this is used up within two days. Then we start breaking down fat and protein. But we can’t afford to
lose body proteins: our muscle mass decreases, (3) _____ become noticeably weaker, and our immunity
is compromised because the lack of protective immunoglobulin proteins means we are subject (4) _____
an increased risk of infection. Not good!
Sure, we look slimmer, and we certainly weigh (5) _____, but we are weaker and becoming
unhealthy. There is no (6) _____ in dieting if it’s going to make us ill. And, of course, because we need our
muscles, when we (7) _____ slightly stray from the diet, our bodies immediately rebuild muscle and we
regain all of the ‘lost’ weight very quickly. Yet another diet fails – because it was (8) _____ going to work
in the first place. And we have succeeded in making ourselves considerably less healthy in the process.
Not only have we (9) _____ through a period of reduced immunity and a lack (10) _____ proteins, minerals,
vitamins, antioxidants and other essential nutrients, there is evidence that so-called ‘yo-yo’ dieting of
this nature is detrimental to health in the longer term.

SUBIECTUL B – INTEGRATED SKILLS

Read the text below and do the tasks that follow.

I shifted uncomfortably inside my best suit and eased a finger inside the tight white collar. It was
hot in the little bus and I had taken a seat on the wrong side where the summer sun beat on the windows.
It was a strange outfit for the weather, but a few miles ahead my future employer might be waiting for
me and I had to make a good impression.
There was a lot depending on this interview. Many friends who had qualified with me were
unemployed or working in shops or as labourers in the shipyards. So many that I had almost given up
hope of any future for myself as a veterinary surgeon.
There were usually two or three jobs advertised in the Veterinary Record each week and an
average of eighty applicants for each one. It hadn’t seemed possible when the letter came from
Darrowby in Yorkshire. Mr S. Farnon would like to see me on the Friday afternoon; I was to come to tea
and, if we were suited to each other, I could stay on as his assistant. Most young people emerging from
the colleges after five years of hard work were faced by a world unimpressed by their enthusiasm and
bursting knowledge. So I had grabbed the lifeline unbelievingly.
The driver crashed his gears again as we went into another steep bend. I had never been in
Yorkshire before. I was prepared for solid respectability, dullness and a total lack of charm. But as the
bus made its way higher, I began to wonder. There were high grassy hills and wide valleys; rivers
twisted among the trees and solid grey stone farmhouses lay among islands of cultivated land.
Suddenly, I realised the bus was clattering along a narrow street which opened onto a square
where we stopped. Above the window of a small grocer’s shop I read ‘Darrowby Co-operative Society’.
We had arrived. I got out and stood beside my battered suitcase, looking about me. There was something
unusual and I didn’t know what it was at first. Then it came to me. The other passengers had dispersed,
the driver had switched off the engine and there was not a sound or a movement anywhere. The only
visible sign of life was a group of old men sitting round the clock tower in the centre of the square, but
they might have been carved of stone.
Darrowby didn’t get much space in the guidebooks, but where it was mentioned it was described
as a grey little town on the River Arrow with a market place and little of interest except its two ancient
bridges. But when you looked at it, its setting was beautiful. Everywhere from the windows of houses in
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Darrowby you could see the hills. There was a clearness in the air, a sense of space and airiness that
made me feel I had left something behind. The pressure of the city, the noise, the smoke – already
seemed to be falling away from me.
Trengate Street was a quiet road leading off the square and from there I had my first sight of
Skeldale House. I knew it was the right place before I was near enough to read S. Farnon, Veterinary
Surgeon on the old-fashioned brass nameplate. I knew by the ivy which grew untidily over the red brick,
climbing up to the topmost windows. It was what the letter had said – the only house with ivy; and this
could be where I would work for the first time as a veterinary surgeon. I rang the doorbell.

I. For each question choose the correct letter A, B, C or D (5 x 2p= 10p)

1. What had surprised the writer about the job?

A There had been no advertisement.
B He had been contacted by letter.
C There was an invitation to tea.
D He had been selected for interview.

2. The writer uses the phrase ‘I had grabbed the lifeline’ to show that he felt
A confident of his ability.
B ready to consider any offer.
C cautious about accepting the invitation.
D forced to make a decision unwillingly.

3 What did the writer find unusual about Darrowby?

A the location of the bus stop
B the small number of shops
C the design of the square
D the lack of activity

4 What did the writer feel the guidebooks had missed about Darrowby?
A the beauty of the houses
B the importance of the bridges
C the lovely views from the town
D the impressive public spaces

5 How did the writer’s attitude change during the passage?

A He began to feel he might like living in Darrowby.
B He became less enthusiastic about the job.
C He realised his journey was likely to have been a waste of time.
D He started to look forward to having the interview.

II. Read the text again and write a narrative essay (200-220 words) continuing the story.(50p)

TOATE SUBIECTELE SUNT OBLIGATORII.

TIMPUL DE LUCRU ESTE DE 3 ORE.

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