5th Year Youngsters

Mid-Term Exam

Apellido: ..................................... Nombres: .................................................... A

B
E-mail: ................................................... Teléfono: ….......................................
C
July 2018
D
E
F
Total

PART I: LANGUAGE
A. Rewrite the sentences without changing their meaning. (10)

1. I can’t join the circus because I’m not old enough.

If ____________________________________________________________ the circus.

2. You can’t play football here.

You aren’t _________________________________________________________ here.

3. He started taking exercise last year.

He _______________________________________________________ since last year.

4. The trapeze show looks dangerous and scary but we work together and we’re a good

team.

Although ____________________________________________________ a good team.

5. Professor Peter Axt co-wrote the book On the Joy of Laziness with his daughter. His

daughter is also a doctor.

Professor Peter Axt ______________________________________________________ .

B. Complete the text with the correct form of the verbs in brackets. Use modals, if necessary.
(10)
HOW I JOINED THE CIRCUS

I 1_______________ (always / be) fit. My parents say that

when I was young, they had to take me out every day so that I
could have lots of exercise. I was always running and climbing and
would rather 2_______________ (kick) a ball around the park than
watch TV. Sport at school was fun and I 3_______________ (not /
wait) to get out of the classroom and into the gym. I was in the football and basketball
 5th Year Exam
July 2018

teams and loved sporting events, but that 4______________ (not / be) enough for me. I
wanted to try something new. Then one day, I went to see a circus that
5
_______________ (perform) in our town. That’s when I knew what I wanted to do with
my life. I wanted to work in the circus.

I loved gymnastics and, in the past, I 6_______________ (train) with a local gym,
but I knew that circus skills needed strength and stamina. So, I decided to go to a special
circus school first. At circus school, I 7_______________ (teach) to combine a healthy
diet with regular exercise, and I learnt different circus skills. But as
soon as I tried the trapeze, I was addicted to it.

I’m in the trapeze team now, and at the moment, we

8
______________ (train) really hard for a live show. If everything
9
_______________ (go) well, we’ll do shows in other countries
10
too. I think being away from my family _______________
(probably / be) tough but I don’t think I could be doing anything
else. I love the circus!

C. Fill in the blanks with words from the box. There are four extra words which you do not
need to use. (10)

ACCORDING ALTHOUGH FAST FAVOUR

HOWEVER OF ONLY QUICKLY
SHOULD SUCH THAN TO
WHERE WHICH

TAKING THINGS EASY

They say that a healthy body is a healthy mind,

1
but __________ to a German expert, it is lazy people
who lead longer and healthier lives. Professor Peter
Axt recommends avoiding strenuous activity
2
__________ as aerobics or working out in a gym.
‘People who prefer to take a midday nap instead
3
__________ playing squash have a better chance of living into old age,’ says this
scientist. They are also less likely 4__________ suffer from professional stress.

He wrote the book On the Joy of Laziness, in 5_________ he advises people to

‘waste half your time’ and ‘just enjoy lazing around.’ 6__________, Professor Axt stresses
that laziness is only one of the keys to a longer life. He is also in 7__________ of
moderate exercise like ‘meditative’ jogging or brisk walks to ‘relax body and spirit at the
same time’.

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July 2018

On the other hand, any excessive effort is not recommended. Middle-aged people
in particular 8__________ be careful about doing too much sport. Professor Axt believes
we have 9__________ a limited amount of energy, and people who use up their supply
10
more __________ live shorter lives. ‘Research shows that people who run long
distances into their 50s are using up energy they need for other purposes’.

D. Complete the conversation. (15)

THE CAR PARK

Tom: (1) Hey, Matt, ______________________________________________________ ?

Matt: No, I haven’t. Which news?
Tom: They are going to turn the park into a car park.
Matt: They can’t do that! We play football there every day. It’s not fair!
Tom: (2) That’s ____________________________________________________ too, but
apparently, it’s a commercial opportunity offered by the City Council.
Matt: But people need green areas for recreation. (3) I definitely think we ____________
__________________________________ about it.
Tom: Something like what? What do you have in mind?
Matt: How about this? (4) Why _______________________________________ for a
petition and present it to the City Council? Do you think it could work?
Tom: Actually, (5) __________________________________________ so. Collecting
signatures would take too long and there isn’t enough time. We’ll have to think of
something else, I’m afraid.

PART II: READING

E. Read the passage and answer the questions in your own words. (25)

THE GAME BEFORE THE GAME

In the 1998 World Cup, the French team had a

strange habit. The defender Laurent Blanc kissed the
goalkeeper’s head at the start of every match!
Sometimes other players joined in. But that wasn’t the
only superstition the team had. Every time the team got
on a bus to go to a match all the players sat in the same
places. And in the changing room just before the match, they always listened to the same
song, I Will Survive. Irrational? Yes. But France did win the World Cup that year – thanks
to superstition. Or maybe, it also helped that 1998 was the year when France hosted the
World Cup.
After one great match, the Brazilian footballer, Pelé, gave away his favourite shirt to
a fan. But then he started playing badly. He stopped scoring and started losing matches.

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Pelé could think of only one reason to explain this – he needed the “lucky” shirt which he
had given away. He told a friend to find the fan and bring back the shirt. A week later, the
friend gave Pelé his shirt and he started to score again! Pelé’s friend thought it was better
not to tell him that he had never found where the fan lived and that the shirt was a
completely different one!
For some strange reason, Spanish goalkeeper Pepe Reina has to fill his car with
petrol on his way to each match. He does this even when the tank is almost full and there
are lots of other cars in front of him! The night before a match he always eats the same
cheese sandwich, too. His other superstition was always touching the pitch and both goal
posts at the start of each match.
So, when does a routine become a silly superstition, and why? For example, always
eating the same food before a match is quite sensible. If you know that the food doesn’t
cause you any stomach problems, why change? But some routines are less logical. The
Scottish footballer Kim Little, who is a leading scorer on the Scotland’s women national
football team, always puts on her left sock and boot before her right…every match!
Psychologists believe that following a “lucky” routine can make a player feel good,
relaxed and in control. And not following the routine can have the opposite effect. So,
maybe “the game before the game” is important after all.

1. Why did France win the World Cup in 1998?

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

2. How did Pelé’s friend resolve the ‘shirt’ problem?

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

3. What did Pepe Raina use to do before each game?

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

4. Does eating the same food before each match make sense? Explain.
_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

5. Why do psychologists believe that ‘the game before the game’ is important?
_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

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F. Composition. (30)

Choose ONE of the following subjects and write about 120 words:

1) ‘Is playing video games a real sport?’ An online magazine wants to know what its
teenage readers think. Write an article in which you explain why gaming should or
shouldn’t be considered a sport. The best article will be published in the next issue
of the magazine.

Write your article.

2) A friend has sent you the email below. Write your reply, giving your opinion and

suggestions:

I’m really angry with my parents. I want to join the football team but they say that I
could get hurt and that if I joined I wouldn’t pay attention to my school work. I’ve
tried to talk to them but they won’t listen. Can you help me? Can you give me some
advice of how I can convince them that I can play and study at the same time?
Thanks.
Simon

Write your email.

For examiners’ use only / Assessment

Task achievement & readability _________ /10 Comments:

 Format
 Language
 Content
Accuracy & range _________/10
 Grammatical
 Lexical
Organization & cohesion _________/5
 Staging and sequencing
 Referencing
 Punctuation
Spelling and editing _________/5
 Mechanics: punctuation and
spelling
 Handwriting
Final Mark: _________/30