READING COMPREHENSION

A. Match the parts of the sentences.

1. Chelsea has always had the wish…

2. She had the chance to study abroad
3. In order to get her parents’ approval
4. Despite her initial fears
Growing up in suburbia U.S.A., I always wanted to experience another 5. She had lots of fun
culture. The opportunity came when I was 15. After a few months of
planning and preparing, I was ready to spend the second semester of my 6. To deal with the separation better
first year of high school as an exchange student in Australia. 7. She confessed to her family
I knew it would be a challenge to convince my parents that it was a good 8. In the end Chelsea encourages other
idea to send their 15-year-old daughter across the world, so I figured the people
best thing to do would be to plan out piece by piece every element that
would go into this experience. How much would it cost? How long would I
be abroad? When would I go? I took all the facts to my parents and told
them, "I won't take no for an answer." And they did not say no. a) everything went well in her new school.
As a team, my parents and I then went to my school's counsellor to seek
b) the students shared their travel stories
help on which organization might be best suited for me. It boiled down to
Youth For Understanding, which offered a wonderful scholarship that paid with each other.
for half of my program. c) to go abroad.
Landing in Perth was one of the most exciting moments of my life. I realized d) that she had been homesick.
then that there was no turning back. The family I would live with was e) to go on an exchange programme as well.
waiting for me, and the new school year would start in only five days. The
Catholic school I attended was also very different from my public school f) when she was still in high school.
back in the States. The uniforms code was very strict. We were only g) with the other exchange students.
allowed to wear one bracelet, which had to be a watch, and one necklace, h) she planned her trip carefully.
which had to have a Holy Cross. I was quite intimidated at first, especially
never having been to a new school—even in the U.S. Everything went
smoothly, though. The teachers were welcoming and the students were
B. TRUE (T) or FALSE (F)? Quote from the
friendly.
The most memorable time of my semester abroad was with 41 other text to justify all your answers.
international exchange students travelling around Australia during our
semester break. The few weeks we spent together were jam-packed with
1. Chelsea’s parents had to support all the
amazing activities.
At the end of our stay in Australia, we had three weeks of travelling time to expenses of the exchange programme.
share our stories and help each other cope with leaving. It was only natural 2. Chelsea didn’t like her new school at all.
that our last day together was filled with tears. We packed our camp, 3. She had a hard time saying good-bye to
exchanged e-mail addresses, and gathered together for a final good-bye. her new friends.
Upon coming home, an open mind and flexibility were again important.
The transition was at times trying, since it was difficult to convey the 4. Although it wasn’t easy, Chelsea managed
magnitude of my experience and for others to understand it. Resettling to re-adapt to her life in the US.
home took time and effort, but eventually I made the adjustment. All the 5. Chelsea quickly forgot everything about
while, I was attentive to letting my family and friends know how happy I her life as an exchange student.
was to be home and how much I had missed them—though the experience
is still vividly with me. So, if you have the opportunity to study abroad you
most certainly should.
by Chelsea Fosse in
http://www.transitionsabroad.com/publications/magazine/0503/australian_youth_ex C. Match the words from the text with
change.shtml (adapted)
their equivalent.
D. Complete the blanks with ideas from the 1. abroad (paragraph 2) a) scared
text. 2. seek (paragraph 3) b) difficult to deal with
3. intimidated (paragraph 4) c) clearly, intensely
1. Chelsea stayed for ... in Australia with ...
4. smoothly (paragraph 4) d) look for
2. Chelsea planned everything very careful
5. memorable (paragraph 5) e) full of
because she thought ........
6. jam-packed (paragraph 5) f) without difficulties
3. At first she felt intimidated not only
7. gathered (paragraph 6) g) thoughtful
because the school had ........ but also
8. trying (paragraph 7) h) got together
because she ........ before.
9. attentive (paragraph 7) i) in a foreign country
4. What Chelsea liked best about her stay
10. vividly (paragraph 7) j) unforgettable
was being able to ...

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 GRAMMAR
A. Insert the following phrasal verbs in the sentences below.
 COME ABOUT  COME ACROSS  COME DOWN  COME OUT  COME UP WITH
1. He’s ..... a brilliant idea of how to finance his exchange programme.
2. How did this problem with your host family .....
3. They’ve ..... some interesting leaflets on exchange programmes.
4. A new guide on summer languages courses ..... last month.
5. Don’t ..... too hard on her – it wasn’t really her fault.

B. Choose the right tense.

Hi there. Sorry I (1) haven’t written / didn’t write for such a long time but I (2) have been / am really busy
lately. As you know I’m on an exchange programme in the US and I (3) write / am writing you this letter to tell
you all about it.
I (4) arrived / have arrived three days ago and have already met another Portuguese girl. She (5) is speaking /
speaks English quite well. But that’s no surprise - she (6) has been learning / is learning it for eight years now.
And guess what! We (7) stayed / are staying at the same youth hostel and that makes things a lot easier for
me. Yesterday, for example, while we (8) were going / went home, someone (9) was asking / asked us for
directions. Imagine I (10) am / was so nervous that I (11) don’t know / didn’t know what to say. Since then my
friend (12) did / has been doing all the talking, lol. Bye.

C. PARTS OF SPEECH - Change the words in brackets meaningfully by adding a suffix.

Because I speak French, Dutch and English (1. fluent) I have decided to study abroad this summer. I made this
(2. decide) a few months ago and since then I have been planning this short experience well, so that every day
will be a (3. wonder) adventure – of new foods, new friends, and (4. travel).
I have been in France for two weeks now and my language skills have seen great (5. improve). Studying here
has also taught me a lot about (6. independent), understanding and the (7.important) of friendships. So I (8.
strong) encourage other students to embark on this great learning opportunity – it’s really a (9. price)
experience and I hope you will be just as (10. excite) to be part of it as I was.

D. DOUBLE COMPARATIVES - Complete / rephrase the following sentences.

1. She feels confident because she practises the language more. The …
2. Studying abroad isn’t so expensive anymore. Studying abroad is getting … and ... .
3. It’s very easy to find a place to study abroad nowadays. It’s getting … and ... .
4. She stayed in England for a long time and her English got better. The ...

VOCABULARY
Complete the following text on the Socrates Programme with the words below.
MOBILITY IN EUROPE - More and more (1) are choosing to study (2) in the European Union (EU). To enable EU
citizens to benefit from the single market, the EU (3) programmes to expand job opportunities through
educational (4), training programmes and youth exchanges. The (5) programme not only encourages co-
operation and the (6) of ideas among scientists and other academic staff, but also provides grants for (7) to
develop joint courses and allow students to (8) in universities in EU partner countries.
universities ● offers ● abroad ● study ● Socrates II ● students ● mobility ● exchange

WRITING
A friend of yours wants to study abroad but is still unsure. He/she knows you went last year and now wants
your advice. In about 180 words write an e-mail to your friend telling him/her about the advantages and
disadvantages of studying abroad.

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Key
READING COMPREHENSION
A.
1- c 2- f 3- h 4- a 5- g 6- b 7-d 8- e
B.
1. F - ...Youth For Understanding, … offered a wonderful scholarship that paid for half of my program.
2. F - Everything went smoothly, though. The teachers were welcoming and the students were friendly.
3. T - It was only natural that our last day together was filled with tears.
4. T - Resettling home took time and effort, but eventually I made the adjustment.
5. F - … the experience is still vividly with me.
C.
1i 2d 3a 4f 5j 6e 7h 8b 9g 10c
D.
1. one semester (six months) / a host family.
2…. it would be easier/difficult to convince her parents to let her go abroad/her parents wouldn’t let her go
abroad
3.... had a strict dress/uniform code ....had never been to a new school/ had never changed schools
4. travel around Australia with the other exchange students.
GRAMMAR
A.
1) come up with 2) come about 3) come across 4) come out 5) come down
B.
(1) haven’t written (2) have been (3) am writing (4) arrived (5) is speaking (6) has been learning (7) are staying
(8) were going (9) asked (10) was (11) didn’t know (12) has been doing
C.
1. fluently 2. decision 3. wonderful 4. travelling 5. improvement 6. independence 7.importance
8. strongly 9. priceless 10. excited
D.
1. The more she practises the language, the more confident she feels.
2. Studying abroad is getting cheaper and cheaper/ less and less expensive.
3. It’s getting easier and easier to find a place to study abroad nowadays
4. The longer she stayed in England, the better her English got.
VOCABULARY
1) students 2) abroad 3) offers 4) mobility 5) Socrates II 6) exchange 7) universities 8) study

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