IELTS BASIC 2

UNIT 1
RELATIONSHIPS
C. READING
How our sweet tooth is hurting us

Over the last three centuries, the amount of sugar in the Western diet has continued to rise.
Back at the start of the 18th century, a typical English family consumed less than 2 kg of
sugar per year. By the end of that century, that amount had risen 400%. Compare that to the
40 kg that people now consume annually in the USA. In Germany, the second-most sugar-
loving nation in the world, people eat roughly 103 grams on average per day. In the
Netherlands, the country with the third-biggest sweet tooth, people eat 102.5 grams. Of
course, there are some countries in the world where sweet food is less popular: in India,
people eat only about 5 grams per day on average; in Indonesia, it’s 14.5 grams; and in
China, it’s just under 16 grams. If you’re not sure what 40 kg looks like, it means that the
average person in the USA now eats approximately 22 teaspoons of sugar a day. The
recommended limit, suggested by researchers from the World Health Organization, is no
more than 8 if you want to stay healthy, but just one can of soda contains around 10.

It is common knowledge that many drinks, in bottles or canned, contain a lot of sugar.
Although advertisements say that they are ‘energy-giving’, professional athletes and
sportsmen and women usually stay away from them. It is teenagers that are their greatest
consumers. And – although advertisers promise that these drinks will make people feel
energetic and active – because of the type of chemicals they have, once a person has drunk
all the soda, they simply feel hungry instead. However, sugar is also in products that many
shoppers find surprising, for example, cereal, which actually has a lot. Because they believe
it is a healthy kind of food, parents buy it for their children’s breakfast.

A large part of the problem, according to nutritionists, is that people find it hard to
understand the labels on the back of food products. Nutritionists think this should be a lot
easier for them. But at the moment, manufacturers don’t have to write ‘sugar’ on them, but
can use words like ‘corn syrup’ or ‘dextran’, which can result in confusion for consumers.
But why should we be worried about our sugar consumption? Firstly, it is harmful to young
children because it causes tooth decay; the pain from this can mean that children don’t get
the amount of sleep they need. As a result, they can’t concentrate when they are in class. In
this case, schools and governments have a duty to educate them about good and bad food
choices. For adults, the problems increase. Eating too much sugar makes people quickly gain
weight, it affects the heart and liver, and can lead to diabetes.

Exercise 1: Quickly read the passage. Which of the ideas in sentences 1–5 are mentioned in the
text on page 1? Choose Yes or No.

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1. The increase in the amount of sugar we eat.

o Yes
o No
2. The places in the supermarket where you can find sugary products.
o Yes
o No
3. The way that advertising sugary products has changed.
o Yes
o No
4. The health problems that sugar causes in children.
o Yes
o No
5. The health problems that sugar causes in adults.
o Yes
o No

Exercise 2: Match the people with the definitions

advertiser consumer manufacturer nutritionist researcher

1. a person or company that makes a product:

2. a person who buys or uses a product:
3. a person who studies a subject carefully:
4. a person who gives advice about healthy eating:
5. a person who makes commercials to sell a product:

Exercise 3: Who do you think might say the following things? Match the people with the
statements.

advertiser consumer manufacturer nutritionist researcher

1. ‘My report studies the effects of sugar on the health of people aged 15–24 in the USA.’
2. ‘Feeling tired? New Choco-nut breakfast cereal will give you all the energy you need!’
3. ‘There are ten sugar cubes in every can of soda so you shouldn’t drink soda every day.’
4. ‘Our factory sells 50% more sugar today than 50 years ago.’
5. ‘I know sugar is bad for me, but I usually eat two bars of chocolate every day.’

Exercise 3: Synonyms and paraphrasing. Read the information. Then match the words in bold
with the phrases that have a similar meaning. Use the phrases in the box.

recommend that you stay away from not clear consume

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harmful to was unexpected

1. Sugar can be very bad for children.

2. My doctor said I was eating the wrong foods, which

surprised me.
3. We should buy and eat healthier food that doesn’t
have a lot of sugar.
4. I try to avoid chocolate when I’m hungry because it’s
not very healthy.
5. I think you should go on a diet.
6. A lot of information about good sugar and bad sugar is
hard to understand.

Exercise 4: Read the information. Then match the paraphrases and synonyms in the box with
the phrases. The first one has been done for you.
this can mean that greatest consumers recommended limit which actually has a
lot
think this should be a lot easier for them soda

1. the least sugar sweet food is less popular

2. maximum recommended number
3. group of people drink more
4. sugary drink(s)
5. unexpected amount of sugar
6. want to be clearer for consumers
7. as a result of

Exercise 5: Read the passage “How our sweet tooth is hurting us” again and answer the
questions.
1. Which country consumes the least sugar per person? __________________
2. What is the maximum recommended number of teaspoons of sugar that a person should
consume a day? ________________
3. Which group of people drink more sugary drinks than anyone else? ________________
4. How do people really feel after finishing sugary drinks? ________________
5. Which food product has an unexpected amount of sugar? ________________
6. What do nutritionists want to be clearer for consumers? ___________________

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7. What may decrease as a result of tooth decay in children? __________________

E. LISTENING
Exercise 1: Match the numbers (1-5) with the definitions (A-E)

1. 68% A. a ratio (e.g. 5:2)

2. 5.5 B. a temperature
3. 8: 1 C. a percentage
4. ¾ D. a decimal number
5. 34 E. a fraction
(degrees)

Exercise 2: Listen and write down the missing numbers (Track 1.1)

1. 13% - 84% - 60% _________ __________ ___________

2. 8.25 – 2.1 – 18.7 _________ __________ ___________
3. 9:6 – 10:1 – 20:3 _________ __________ ___________
4. 2/3 – 4/5 – 1/2 _________ __________ ___________
5. 24 (degrees) – 41 (degrees) – 10 (degrees) ________ _________ _________

Exercise 3: Listen to how we say these long numbers (Track 1.2)

a. 570 b. 908 c. 4,731 d. 1,430 e. 77,009
f. 18,091 g. 907,790 h. 665,925 i. 2,840,000 j. 68,036,876

Exercise 4: Listen carefully and underline the numbers you hear on the recording. (Track 1.3)

1. a. 512 2. a. 115 3. a. 745

b. 520 b. 116 b. 743
c. 521 c. 160 c. 735
4. a. 8,950 5. a. 4,682 6. a. 5,700
b. 8,590 b. 4,692 b. 5,070
c. 9,850 c. 4,629 c. 5,770
7. a. 20,101 8. a. 64,234 9. a. 19,409
b. 21, 201 b. 64,324 b. 90,490
c. 21, 110 c. 60,434 c. 90,409
10. a. 305,350 11. a. 894,278 12. a. 570,367
b. 350,305 b. 809,428 b. 517,367
c. 300,530 c. 849,478 c. 570,357
13. a. 1,100,573 14. a. 5,690,000 15. a. 7,542,104
b. 1,010,573 b. 5,619,000 b. 7,524,140
c. 1,001,573 c. 5,609,000 c. 7,949,104
16. a. 3,420,022 17. a. 45,689,607 18. a. 12,000,500
b. 3,412,002 b. 4,568,967 b. 12,050,503
c. 3,422,202 c. 40,568,607 c. 11,050,503

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Exercise 5: In this section, you will have to circle the letter of the answer that you hear and
then fill in a table.
5A. Look at questions 1-7. (Track 1.4)
1. How many students have an account with the bank? (The proportion of students in in the
darker shade)
a b c

2. The maximum amount the student can borrow without paying interest is
a. £250
b. £215
c. £520
3. There is a minimum yearly interest payment of
a. 5%
b. 0.9%
c. 0.5%
4. If the student borrows more than £1,000 the interest rises to
a. 5%
b. 1.6%
c. 0.6%

Saver accounts
Annual Percentage Duration
Short Term Saver
2.75% (5) _________
Medium Term Saver
(6) _________ 2 years
Long Term Saver
(7) _________ 5 years

5B. Now look at the following section and fill in the missing information as you listen. Write
NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer. (Track 1.5)
Background Information

National Insurance Number : (8) ____________

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Driver’s License: NA

Passport Number: (9) ____________

Deposit:
(10) ____________
Other Account Number:
(11) ____________
Phone Number:
(12) ____________

Exercise 6: Complete the definitions. Use the words in the box.

behavior coast dangerous marine rare sociable wild
1. Animals that live in forests, the jungle and mountains, and do not live at home as pets are
_____________ animals. (adj.)
2. We say that an animal is ________________ when there are only a few still alive in the
world. (adj.)
3. A _______________ animal lives only in the sea, for example, a dolphin or a shark. (adj.)
4. A _______________ person or animal likes being with others, rather than being alone. (adj.)
5. Lions, tigers or sharks can harm you, so these animals are ______________ , not safe. (adj.)
6. The __________________ is the area of land next to the sea. (noun)
7. When scientists study the _________________ of animals, they find out what they eat, when
they sleep and how they communicate. (noun)
Exercise 7: Listen to two students talking about an ecology project on Maui dolphins.
(Track 1.6)
1. Anne has asked Tom to help her with her dolphin project because
o he is in the same class as Anne.
o he is an expert on dolphins.
o he once did a similar project to Anne.

2. How long is an adult male Maui dolphin?

o 1.5 meters
o 1 meter
o 1.7 meters

3. Where are Maui dolphins found in New Zealand?

o around most of the coast of the North Island
o around the west coast of the North Island
o around the whole coast of the South Island

4. The population of Maui dolphins is now likely to be

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o around 100
o well over 500
o less than 50

5. What do Anne and Tom agree is typical behavior for Maui dolphins?
o They prefer to live with many other Maui dolphins.
o They often choose to follow boats to catch fish more easily.
o They are friendly towards people who swim near them.

6. How far along the coastline do Maui dolphins swim?

o 40 kilometers
o 50 kilometers
o 30 kilometers

UNIT 2
PLACES AND BUILDINGS
READING:
In this unit, you will answer IELTS Reading sentence completion questions and read a text about
mammoths.
Exercise 1: In this text, there is a range of vocabulary about the natural world and the
conservation of animals. Match the words with the definitions.

a population a skeleton an ecosystem to become extinct to decrease

to hunt to preserve

1. This happens when a type of bird, animal or plant doesn’t exist anymore:
2. to become smaller in size or number:
3. to follow and kill an animal for food or for sport:
4. to put something (e.g. food) in ice, salt, sugar or chemicals, so it can stay
in good condition:
5. all the people or animals that live in one place or area:
6. all the living things in an area and the way they affect each other and the
environment:
7. the frame of bones supporting a human or animal body:

Exercise 2: Complete the sentences about the natural world. Use the words in the box.
decrease ecosystem extinct hunt population preserve skeleton

1. Pollution harms all the plants, fish and animals in the ________________ .

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2. The tutor showed the ________________ to the medical students and asked which small
bones were missing.
3. We expect the number of people living in the countryside will ________________ as
families move to the cities.
4. There are so few polar bears left that it is possible they will soon become
_________________ .
5. The ________________ of my city has risen to 8 million people.
6. Lions often ________________ other animals at night.
7. Nowadays, most people use fridges to _______________ their food.

Exercise 3: Match the words and phrases with the correct synonyms and paraphrases.
get smaller make a possibility both some lower (than) the contents of

1. build or create
2. inside of or within
3. a pair of
4. not as high as
5. a little or an amount of
6. decrease or fall
7. might or may

Exercise 4: Complete the sentences below. Write ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each
answer.
Bringing the mammoth back to life

Mammoths once lived in large numbers across Asia, Africa, North America and Europe.
However, over time, their numbers fell until the mammoth became extinct. Scientists think
this happened for two reasons. Firstly, the mammoths’ natural habitat decreased in size
because of climate change. Secondly, many mammoths were killed by people who hunted
them. The last population of mammoths lived on Wrangel Island, off north-east Siberia in the
Chukchi Sea. These were woolly mammoths that could survive in very cold conditions, but
they also died out around 4,000 years ago.

Prehistoric cave paintings show us that people ate the woolly mammoths they killed, but also
used their bones and tusks. They used these to make simple animal and human figures, an
early kind of art, and also to create some basic tools. We also know a lot about the woolly
mammoth because the freezing conditions in Alaska and Siberia have preserved them.
Researchers have studied their skeletons, their teeth and even the grass and plants that were
still inside their stomachs. We know that their fur was an orange-brown colour, they had a

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thick layer of fat, and they had long, curved tusks. Their ears were short compared to an
African or Asian elephant’s we might see today, so they would not lose so much heat or get
frostbite.

In recent years, some researchers have suggested that we could bring woolly mammoths back
to life. Interestingly, not all scientists believe that bringing the mammoth back to life would
be a good thing. They think it would be unfair to create a ‘new’ mammoth and then keep it in
a small space. They think the right thing to do would be to give it a certain amount of
freedom, perhaps in a wildlife park. But where would this be? And the mammoth would also
be alone, and like elephants, mammoths were probably social in the way they behaved. This
does seem to be a strong reason against bringing the mammoth back to life. Perhaps the
‘new’ mammoth might also develop an ‘old’ disease – and this might have an effect on the
ecosystem that scientists cannot predict. Although the idea of bringing the mammoth back
seems like an exciting one at first, there are many issues that we need to consider

1. The number of mammoths started to fall when their __________________ got smaller.
2. Humans used mammoths for food, and to make art and ____________________ .
3. Scientists have examined the contents of mammoths’ __________________ .
4. Mammoths had smaller _____________________ than modern elephants.
5. Some scientists think that a ‘new’ mammoth should have some ____________________ .
6. Both elephants and mammoths are ___________________ animals.
7. There is a possibility that a ‘new’ mammoth could get a ____________________ .

Exercise 5: EXAM PRACTICE

Complete questions 1-8.
The honey badger
It looks harmless and vulnerable. But the honey badger is afraid of nothing…and will
attack and eat almost anything.
The honey badger (Melivora capensis) is an African and south-Asian mammal that has a
reputation for being one of the world’s most fearless animals, despite its small size. And in spite of
its gentle-sounding name, it is also one of its most aggressive. Honey badgers have been known to
attack lions, buffalo, and snakes three times their size. Even humans are not safe from a honey
badger if it thinks the human will attack or harm it. They are also extremely tough creatures and
can recover quickly from injuries that would kill most other animals.
At first glance, honey badgers look like the common European badger. They are usually
between 75cm and 1 meter long, although males are about twice the size of females. They are
instantly recognizable by grey and white stripes that extend from the top of the head to the tail.
Closer inspection, which is probably not a wise thing to do, reveals pointed teeth, and sharp front

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claws which can be four centimeters in length.

Honey badgers are meat-eating animals with an extremely varied diet. They mainly eat a
range of small creatures like beetles, lizards and birds, but will also catch larger reptiles like
snakes and small crocodiles. Some mammals, such as foxes, antelope and wild cats also form part
of their diet.
The badgers locate their prey mainly using their excellent sense of smell, and catch most of
their prey through digging. During a 24-hour period, they may dig as many as fifty holes, and
travel more than 40 kilometers. They are also good climbers, and can easily climb very tall trees to
steal eggs from birds’ nests, or catch other tree-dwelling creatures.
As their name suggests, honey badgers have always been associated with honey, although
they do not actually eat it. It is the highly nutritious bee eggs (called “brood”) that they prefer, and
they will do anything to find it. They usually cause a lot of damage to the hive in the process, and
for this reason, humans are one of their main predators. Bee-keepers will often set special traps for
honey badgers, to protect their hives.
One of the most fascinating aspects of the honey badger is its working relationship with a
bird called the greater honeyguide (Indicator indicator). This bird deliberately guides the badger to
beehives, then waits while the badger breaks into the hive and extracts the brood. The two
creatures, bird and mammal, then share the brood between them.

1. Although they are not big animals, honey badgers are fearless, _______________and tough.
2. Honey badgers will attack ________________if they need to protect themselves.
3. The pattern and colors on the honey badger’s back make it _______________.
4. The food they eat is meat-based and _________________.
5. _______________form the biggest part of a honey badger’s diet.
6. Honey badgers find the creatures they eat by their____________________.
7. ________________are often used to catch honey badgers which attack beehives.
8. For one particular type of food, the honey badger has a ____________with another creature.

LISTENING
Exercise 1: Listening for sound differences. The sentences below contain sounds which students
often find hard to pick out. Put a tick next to the sentence that you hear. You will have to listen
very carefully as the difference is very slight. (Track 2.1)
1. a. My name is Steve Newly.
b. My name is Steve Mewly.
a. I live at 10, Thanes Close.
b. I live at 10, Staines Close.
2. a. That’s Mrs. Melanie Ridgely.
b. That’s Mrs. Melanie Bridgely.
a. And the address is Charwood Crescent.
b. And the address is Sharwood Crescent.
3. a. You’ll need to speak to Jane Price.
b. You’ll need to speak to Joan Price.

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a. You can find us at the end of Beachcroft Road.

b. You can find us at the end of Beachcross Road.
4. a. It’s Catherine – Catherine Millwell.
b. It’s Catherine – Catherine Meilwell.
a. My address is Ditchfield Way.
b. My address is Tichfield Way.
5. a. The name is Darren Knight.
b. The name is Daryl Knight.
a. This is it – 102, Pine Court Place.
b. This is it – 102, Vine Court Place.

Exercise 2: Listen to these dialogues and write the spellings in the blanks. Write NO MORE
THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.
A (Track 2.2)

Name: Martin (1) ______________________________

Address: 263 (2) _______________________________Avenue,

Newington, Edinburgh
Postcode: (3) ________________

B (Track 2.3)

Address: Preston Technical College

(4) ________________________ Road, Preston

Postcode: (5) ___________

Head of the Admissions Department:
(6) ____________________________Winters

C (Track 2.4)

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Address: (7)__________________ Lodge

(8) _______________________ Drive, Stepton, Brisbance

Postcode: (9)_______________
Exercise 3: Listen to eight speakers spelling out names and numbers. Listen carefully and
decide which names and numbers have been written down correctly. Choose the correct
answers. (Track 2.5)

CORRECT INCORRECT
1 HEBBURN
○ ○
2 EASTWOOD
○ ○
3 BRAMPTON
○ ○
4 WORROW
○ ○
5 MIDDLEDOM
○ ○
6 KIMBERLEY
○ ○
7 0141 768 112
○ ○
8 £ 948.75
○ ○
Exercise 4: The conversation in this unit is about food and drink. This is a common topic in
IELTS, so it is a good idea to think about some vocabulary you might hear. Match the words in
the box with the definitions.

diet eat in eat out habit prepare ready-made meal takeaway unhealthy

8. the food and drink usually eaten or drunk by a person or group: _________________
9. to have a meal at home rather than in a restaurant: ________________
10. food that has already been prepared and can be eaten after it has been heated in an oven or
microwave: ________________
11. a meal cooked and bought at a shop or restaurant but eaten somewhere else, often at home:
________________

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12. a type of food or drink that isn’t good for you: ________________
13. to have a meal in a restaurant rather than at home: ________________
14. to get something ready, for example to cut vegetables, before you cook: ________________
15. something that you do often and regularly: ________________

Exercise 5: Read the information. Then listen to part of a conversation about how the diet and
eating habits of people in the UK have changed over time. Choose the correct decades for the
food eating habits. (Track 2.6)

1960s 1970s 1990s Now

1. Watching cooking on TV
and rarely cooking at home ○ ○ ○ ○
2. Staying at home and eating
the same food every week ○ ○ ○ ○
3. Buying more frozen foods
such as fish and vegetable ○ ○ ○ ○
4. Eating out in restaurants
○ ○ ○ ○
5. Sitting at home and eating
takeaway food ○ ○ ○ ○
Exercise 6: Read the information. Then choose the one word in each list that does not have the
same meaning as the others.
Example
takeaway
fast-food
ready-made meal
unhealthy

1 ○ fall ○ go down ○ decrease ○ rise

2 ○ increase ○ drop ○ grow ○ go up

3 ○ sugar ○ water v ○ fizzy drink ○ fruit juice

at the present
4 ○ nowadays ○ time ○ these days ○ previously

5 ○ development ○ introduction ○ change ○ trend

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Exercise 7: Choose the correct words to complete the sentences.

1. The number of customers decreased/ dropped/ increased from 45 people a day in 2011 to
105 in 2016.
2. Fizzy drinks are unhealthy because of the very large amount/data/ figure of sugar in every
bottle.

3. Nowadays/ Previously/ These days you could only buy British food at this café, but now the
food is more international.
4. There was a big change/ introduction/trend in the way people shopped for food in the 1980s.
5. Although the number of burgers we sold last year dropped/ went up/ will decrease , sales of
sandwiches rose.
6. Eating sushi became popular in Britain in the 1990s and this figure/trend/rise continues
today.

Exercise 8: Listen to the recording. Choose the correct answers to complete the sentences.
(Track 2.7)
1. The problem is that many people ... have an unhealthy diet.
o Nowadays
o these days
2. The trend for buying Indian takeaways has risen by … since 2016.
o 16%
o 6%
3. Doctors are worried about the increase in heart disease among … and over.
o men aged 35
o men aged 45
4. Good-quality food can be found in many of the city’s ...
o fine hotel restaurants.
o five hotel restaurants.
5. Sales of our … pies have fallen over the last three months.
o ready-made fish
o already-made fish

Exercise 9: Questions 1–7 (Track 2.8)

Answer the questions.
Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS for each answer

1. What is the surname of the writer that Sarah likes? ________________

2. What is the password for the university library website? ________________
3. Which drink does Joe say people should stop drinking? ________________

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4. Where are many families getting their meals from? ________________

5. What problem does Sarah say is increasing because of unhealthy eating? ________________
6. Which kind of fast food is most popular with other university students? ________________
7. In which street is the sushi café? ________________

UNIT 3
EDUCATION AND EMPLOYMENT
READING:
Exercise 1: You will read a text called ‘Cities of the future’. In the text, there are some opinions
given about problems our societies may face.
Match the topics with the correct pictures.
population pollution building materials new technology traffic jam

Exercise 2: Read the text “Cities of the future” and choose the correct answers.

CITIES OF THE FUTURE

Paragraph A

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Researchers recently gave 1,000 people a questionnaire about ‘Cities of The Future’. To answer the
questions, the people had to imagine and describe what they thought our cities might look like in the
year 2050. Interestingly, a large number of people were anxious that they would become ‘dark,
dangerous places’, which had endless traffic jams and very few green spaces. This group also
predicted an increase in the level of pollution and thought people would always need to wear
facemasks in order to breathe. They also believed that it would be less safe to walk on the street as
there would be ‘more stealing’ and other criminal behavior. A smaller number thought cities might
become a lot cleaner and might be built from more interesting materials. They were also looking
forward to new technology such as flying cars and moving pavements. In general, they believed that
the cities of the future would offer a much more convenient way of living. A few people were
uncertain; for example, they thought the size of apartments might reduce as the population of the city
grew, but they also thought that public transport would become better.

Paragraph B

What do the results from this questionnaire tell us? In a way, we shouldn’t be amazed by the
descriptions of the largest group. So many Hollywood films show cities of the future as frightening
places. Online newspapers are also responsible for spreading this same belief. Headlines such as
‘Global population rises – cities become crowded’ are becoming more frequent. Journalists rarely
discuss how future cities might be a good place to live.

Paragraph C

The facts are these: 50% of people now live in cities, even though cities only occupy 2% of the
world’s land. By 2050, it is predicted that the number of people living there will rise to 70%. Some
people are worried that villages in the countryside will become empty as everyone leaves for the city,
and so traditional ways of life will be lost. This may be true, but we have to accept changes like this
as part of human development. Rather than being negative, we should be hopeful that we can
improve people’s lives as they move to cities. The way to do this is through intelligent planning.

Paragraph D

Architects have a big role to play in our future cities. In the past, the architects who were responsible
for planning our cities often designed buildings that they were interested in; but now it is time for
them to listen carefully to what people living in cities are asking for. In many countries around the
world, people are choosing to have smaller families or to wait longer before they start a family. For
this reason, not everyone needs a large house. Smaller and cheaper houses are what they need. But
‘small’ doesn’t have to be the same as ‘ugly’ or ‘boring’. Western architects could perhaps look at
some of the architecture in Japanese cities, where very stylish houses are built on small pieces of
unused land.

Paragraph E

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And what might cities of the future be made from? Engineering companies have produced some
interesting new products, for example, wood-like material made from recycled newspapers or old
drink cartons. One engineering team are even working on a project that uses mushrooms to create a
hard building material. These new materials may seem strange, but we should remember that plastic
was only invented in 1907 – at the time people thought that this was an unusual product, but now it
is something we cannot manage without. Building a city of the future requires imagination and an
open mind.

1. Paragraph A: What do the results of the questionnaire show?

A. Most people feel worried rather than pleased about the way that cities will develop.
B. People imagined that no one would use their own vehicles anymore.
C. People think that crime will be the worst problem that future cities will have.
D. Some people believe that there will not be enough houses in the city for everyone.

2. What is the writer doing in Paragraph B?

A. Explaining why many people will probably prefer to live in cities in the future.
B. Giving a reason why many people feel negative about cities of the future.
C. Suggesting that newspapers show a more realistic view of future cities than films.

3. What point does the writer make in Paragraph C?

A. It is important to encourage some people to stay in their villages.
B. It is possible to maintain traditional village customs after moving to cities.
C. It is necessary to think in a creative way about city design.

4. Paragraph D: In the writer’s opinion, architects who are responsible for planning cities
A. often make houses that are unattractive.
B. must make buildings based on people’s needs.
C. should get experience by working in foreign cities.

5. Paragraph E: The writer refers to the invention of plastic to make the point that
A. we can expect building materials to be very different in the future.
B. we must accept that good-quality materials take a long time to create.
C. we should use a variety of building materials to make our cities interesting.

Exercise 3: In an IELTS Reading text about the future, you are likely to see words and phrases
that are used to make predictions.
Match the meanings with the underlined words and phrases. Use the words in the box.
certain impossible possible probable uncertain

1. We could see more robots in people's homes by 2050.

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2. There is a very good chance that there will be no more oil by 2050.
3. Driverless cars will be very popular – but not with taxi drivers!
4. There is no possibility of people living on Mars by 2050.
5. It is not clear whether in the future people would consider going back to
the countryside from cities.

Exercise 4: EXAM PRACTICE. Read the passage carefully and choose the correct option.

The ballpoint pen

Most of us have at least one, but how did this popular item evolve?

One morning in 1945, a crowd of 5,000 people jammed the entrance of Gimbels Department Store
in New York. The day before, Gimbels had placed a full-page advertisement in the New York
Times for a wonderful new invention, the ballpoint pen. The advertisement described the pen as
“fantastic” and “miraculous”. Although they were expensive, $12.50 each, all 10,000 pens in stock
were sold on the first day.

In fact, this “new” pen was not new at all. In 1888, John Loud, a leather manufacturer, had
invented a pen with a reservoir of ink and a rolling ball. However, his pen was never produced,
and efforts by other people to produce a commercially successful one failed too. The main
problem was with the ink. If it was too thin, the ink leaked out of the pen. If it was too thick, it
didn’t come out of the pen at all.

Almost fifty years later, in 1935, a newspaper editor in Hungary thought he spent too much time
filling his pens with ink. He decided to invent a better kind of pen. With the help of his brother,
who was a chemist, he produced a ballpoint pen that didn’t leak when the pen wasn’t being used.
The editor was called Ladislad Biro, and it was his name that people would associate more than
any other with the ballpoint pen.
By chance, Biro met Augustine Justo, the Argentinian president. Justo was so impressed with
Biro’s invention that he invited him to set up a factory in Argentina. In 1943, the first Biro pens
were produced.
Unfortunately, they were not popular, since the pen needed to be held in a vertical position for the
ink to come out. Biro redesigned the pen with a better ball, and in 1944 the new product was on
sale throughout Argentina.

It was a North American, Milton Reynolds, who introduced the ballpoint pen to the USA. Copying
Biro’s design, he produced the version that sold so well at Gimbels. Another American, Patrick
Frawley, improved the design and in 1950 began producing a pen he called the Papermate. It was
an immediate success, and within a few years, Papermate were selling in their millions around the

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world.

1. People went to Gimbels to buy a ballpoint pen because

A. they couldn’t get them anywhere else.
B. they had been told how good the pens were.
C. they had never seen a ballpoint pen before.
D. they thought the price was good.
2. Why were early ballpoint pens not produced commercially?
A. Nobody wanted to buy one
B. It cost too much to produce them.
C. They used too much ink.
D. They didn’t work properly.
3. Why was Ladislas Biro’s pen better than earlier models?
A. It didn’t need to be filled with ink as often.
B. It was designed by a chemist.
C. The ink stayed in the pen until it was needed.
D. It was easier to use.

4. Biro’s first commercially-produced pen

A. was produced in a factory owned by the Argentinian president.
B. only worked if used in a certain way.
C. was a major success.
D. went on sale in 1944.
5. Patrick Frawley’s pen
A. was a better version of an earlier model.
B. took time to become successful.
C. was the USA’s first commercially successful ballpoint pen.
D. was only successful in the USA.
LISTENING
Exercise 1: The exam task in this unit is about money. This is a common topic in IELTS, so it is
a good idea to think about some vocabulary you might hear.
Match the words in the box with the definitions.

cash trade coin financial valuable exchange payment worth

1. to give something to someone and receive something else from that person: __________
2. a small, round piece of metal that is used as money: _________
3. relating to money or how money is managed: ___________
4. having a particular value, especially in money: __________
5. an amount of money you give to someone, often for a product or service: __________
6. the activity of buying and selling products or services between people or countries:
____________

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7. to be worth a lot of money: _____________

8. money in the form of notes and coins, rather than a credit card: _____________

Exercise 2: Complete the sentences. Use the words in the box.

cash coin exchange financial payments trade valuable worth

1. Historians believe that the first ___________ was invented over 2,800 years ago and was
made of bronze.
2. The Mona Lisa painting is believed to be _______________ over $780 million.
3. Fewer people carry ________________ nowadays as more payments are being made
electronically.
4. Before money, many people used to ________________ food, like fruits and vegetables, for
tools.
5. A lot of antiques, like paintings and furniture, are extremely ________________ nowadays.
6. Many students receive ______________ support from their families while studying at
university.
7. The number of people making ________________ online is increasing every year.
8. In the past, as groups of people began to explore new areas, ________________ between
different cultures became more common.

Exercise 3: In this example of an IELTS Listening sentence completion task, you will listen to
two students talking about the topic of finance in preparation for a lecture.
Write ONE WORD to complete each sentence. (Track 3.1)

1. Greg and Penny agree to do some background reading on the history of ___________ .
2. Greg says that before money, _____________ was very common.
3. Greg says that in the past, bronze was probably used to make ____________ .
4. The book Greg and Penny should read is called ‘The ____________ World’.
Exercise 4: Match the words and phrases in the box with the correct synonyms.
began to use circle were made for mostly
had the idea produce very small images
introduced ___________
mainly ___________
make ___________
pictures ___________
round ___________

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thought ___________
tiny ___________
were designed for ___________

Exercise 5: Read the sentences. Choose the correct synonym for the words and phrases in bold.
1. The UK introduced the two-pound coin in 1998.
o began to use
o created
o made
2. Before money, it was common for people to use food, such as rice, in exchange for tools.
o Easy
o Difficult
o normal
3. The line graph shows the number of people who worked in finance in the years between 1990
and 2015.
o Displays
o Explains
o includes
4. According to recent figures, the company was valued at £25 million in 2015.
o sold for
o offered
o worth
5. Many countries in Europe started to produce paper money in the 17th century.
o began to make
o changed to
o decided to use
6. The five-yen coin, used in Japan, is round with a very small hole in the middle.
o square
o tiny
o very big

Exercise 6: Read the information. Then read the extracts from a lecture on the history of
money and choose the five phrases that signal the introduction of a new topic.

Cues help you find the part of the recording you need to answer the questions and complete
sentences, but you also need to follow the ideas the speakers talk about.

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You can do this by listening for signaling phrases. These are phrases that a speaker can use
to:

 introduce a new point or topic (e.g. We’ll start by …, But that wasn’t the only…)
 make a point about the current topic (e.g. It should be noted that …)
 give a definition or an explanation (e.g. In other words, …).

 Well, we’ll start by thinking about the situation in prehistoric times.

 It was in western Turkey, however, that the system of producing coins became more
organized.
 The only problem with these little tools is that they looked just like the real ones.
 Now, about 3,000 years ago, there was an interesting development, and this happened in
China.
 This is a metal which is quite easy to use and to make large tools from.
 It’s something that’s so easy to buy in the supermarket nowadays.
 But that wasn’t the only big development in China.
 What else was used instead of money in the distant past?
Exercise 7: Listen to a lecture on the history of money. Complete the sentences. Write ONE
WORD ONLY in each gap. (Track 3.2)
1. People often exchanged vegetables for ______________ in prehistoric times
2. In Ancient European cultures, tools that were used for ______________ were most
important.
3. Around 3,000 years ago, the Chinese began to make tiny _______________ of tools from
bronze.
4. China introduced coins that were round with a _______________ hole in the middle 2,800
years ago.
5. Coins were made mostly from ______________ in western Turkey.
6. King Alyattes had the idea of putting pictures of birds and _______________ on coins.

Exercise 8: EXAM PRACTICE.

Listen and complete Questions 1-6. Write ONE WORD for each answer. (Track 3.3)
1. Joe’s low_______________ doesn’t allow him to buy many electronic goods.
2. He’s often influenced by his____________________ when he buys electronic items.
3. Advertisements featuring somebody_______________ sometimes help him decide which
product to buy.
4. Joe prefers to get new products from _____________________.
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5. He doesn’t like waiting for a long time after _________________ something.

6. He finds it hard to resist buying electronic products if they are new and _________________.

UNIT 4
FOOD AND DRINK
READING:
Exercise 1: In this unit, you will answer IELTS Reading matching information questions and
read a text called ‘How technology has changed the way we communicate’.
What words and phrases do you already know for describing communication? Match the
words and phrases with the definitions.
formal interaction online forum relationship social media
social network to get in touch to keep in touch to respond update

1. to begin communicating with someone, for example, by email or telephone: ______________

2. to continue communicating with someone, for example, by email or
telephone:__________________
3. new information on a particular topic: _______________
4. the different groups of people that you know: _________________
5. websites and computer programs that allow people to communicate on the
internet:_________________
6. a time when two or more people communicate with or react to each other: __________
7. to say or do something in reply to something that has been said or done earlier: _________
8. describes language, clothes and behavior which is used in important and serious events, for
example a job interview: _________________

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9. a place on the internet where people can leave messages or discuss particular topics:
________________
10. the way in which two or more people feel and behave towards each other: _____________

Exercise 3: Read the information. Then match the phrases describing types of information
with the words in bold in the statements.

In an IELTS Reading matching information task, you will read a text and some statements
about it.

It is important to understand what types of information the statements need you to find. The
types of information might be:

 an example of / some examples of …

 a comparison between …
 a description of …
 a reference to …
 a prediction about …

a comparison between a description of a prediction about

a reference to an example of

1. Young students use Instagram far more than they use SnapChat. ___________
2. Digital devices will probably replace books in all UK schools by 2030. ___________
3. The new phone has a great camera and a clever feature which makes apps easy to use.
_____________
4. The first email message was sent in 1971. ______________________
5. There are many reasons why I stopped using social media, such as the huge amount of time it
took up. ______________________

Exercise 4: Read this paragraph from the text. What information does it contain? Choose the
correct answer.
How technology has changed the way we communicate
Paragraph A
It’s often impossible for teenagers to imagine that in the past we all had to make our social
arrangements either face-to-face or using a telephone landline. Just 20 years ago, trying to organize a
visit to the cinema meant that you had to call your friends at least a day in advance and hope they’d
be home when you rang. If someone didn’t turn up, you could try to call them from a public
telephone box. If their parents were home, you could leave a message, but your plans for the evening
would probably be ruined.

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The information in Paragraph A is:

o a comparison between the advantages of old and new technology.
o a description of the difficulties people used to have before they had mobile phones.
o a reference to the way technology can make relationships better or worse.

Exercise 5: Read the information. Then match the types of information with the sentences.
When reading an IELTS Reading text, it is important to think about what type of information
it covers. Other types of information could be:

 a reason for ...

 details of ...
 a description of ...
 a suggestion ..

a description of a reason for a suggestion details of

1. Perhaps we should focus more on face-to-face communication than digital communication?

_____________________
2. Fewer people are sending letters by post because stamps are very expensive nowadays.
________________________
3. Mervyn's YouTube channel had a huge number of followers. His videos were about his daily
life in New York and where people could go to find the best R’n’B music in Manhattan.
________________________
4. 75% of teens in the 12–17 age group own mobile phones. Every month, girls send out
approximately 3,952 messages, and boys send about 2,815. _______________________

Exercise 6: Read the next paragraph. Then match the information statements (A–D) with the
numbered parts of the paragraph (1–3). There is one information statement that you do not
need.
Paragraph B
Nowadays, getting in touch is a lot easier. Almost every aspect of human communication has
changed: we have email, text, Skype, Facebook and Instagram, and we are certainly busy using them
to build and maintain our relationships. According to recent reports, the top social networks now

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each have more than a billion monthly active users. And keeping in touch isn’t just something we do
in class or at work any more: we continue to communicate with friends, strangers, family and
colleagues (1) while we’re on the train, in the living room and at the dinner table, for instance.
One recent British study indicated that (2) 79% of teens even put their phone under their pillow
so they can keep up-to-date with whatever is happening on social media day and night, and not
miss out on updates. As for adults, a recent survey showed that (3) they now spend 20 to 28 hours
a week on social media and have on average 275 personal connections. However, in contrast,
only 11% of these same people actually meet their social connections in an actual physical
environment on a regular basis.

A. a comparison between the time spent online with friends and time spent in real places
B. some examples of typical locations in which digital technology may be found
C. the reason why some young people feel the need to keep a digital device with them at all times
D. the suggestion that adults could learn about digital communication from their children

1.
2.
3.

Exercise 7: Read the next paragraph. Then complete the matching information statements for
the numbered parts of the paragraph. Use the words in the box.
Paragraph C
Email is now one of the most common means of communication. At the moment, over 100 billion
emails are sent and received per day for business purposes. (1) This trend is expected to continue,
and business email will account for over 132 billion emails sent and received per day two years
from now. The number of letters which are sent through the post, however, has decreased
dramatically. (2) A consequence of this is that many town and village post offices have closed.
These were once places where a great deal of social interaction used to take place between local
people. Now it is no longer possible for neighbors or workers in the area to meet up with each
other like this, and older people in particular are often unhappy about this development. But
certainly the advantages of email cannot be ignored: in the past, the post would only be delivered
once or twice a day. If a letter was sent to an overseas destination, it could take months. Without
doubt, email has made it easier to do business.

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a description a prediction community form of communication

1. ______________________ of how a particular _____________________

2. ______________________ of how the loss of a public service has affected the
______________________

Exercise 8: Quickly skim read the next paragraphs. Then do the exercise.

Paragraph D
However, there are several downsides to this form of technology. Firstly, no one would disagree that
email puts pressure on people to respond immediately as soon as they find a new message in their
inbox. A recent French report says that anxiety and general tiredness has risen dramatically amongst
office workers, largely because they carry their digital devices with them, feeling obliged to
constantly check for new mail from clients. A further problem is how to write an email, especially
when communicating with people we don’t know well. In the past, everyone knew that it was
‘correct’ to begin a letter ‘Dear Sir/Madam’ and end with ‘Yours faithfully’. Nowadays, these
phrases often feel too formal. No one wants to give the wrong impression when writing an email, but
without ‘rules’, this can easily happen.
Paragraph E
Another significant impact technology has had on methods of communication is in the field of
education. Traditionally, if someone wanted to take a higher education course, they would have to
travel to attend lessons on a university campus. Nowadays, it is possible to take a range of courses
through distance learning, and the number of these is likely to rise in the next few years. What is the
appeal of studying this way? Many online courses encourage students to take part in online forums
and post comments about their learning experiences, reading assignments and projects. They must
also comment on their classmates’ posts. In one way, this approach certainly appears to encourage
communication.

Paragraph F
However, some surveys have found the opposite to be true. Because online students are physically
separated, and indeed may never have met, they do not have the opportunity to build a good
relationship. Students who come to campus regularly have the chance to get to know and support
each other, and feel part of a community, so when they are asked to comment on the other person’s
work, they can do this in ways they know the other person will appreciate. For example, some
students prefer their peers to be direct in their criticism, whereas others might prefer a more sensitive
approach. But when students are asked to comment on the work or opinions of people they have
never met, they are often reluctant to do so. Interestingly, one of the main reasons why people give
up studying on their online courses is that they miss the face-to-face interaction with others.
Certainly technology has made our lives more ‘convenient’ but perhaps also more complicated.
There are many questions still to be answered about how we can and should use our modern digital
tools to enable effective communication, an evolutionary skill that has been centuries in
development.

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Match the paragraphs with the general topics.

1. the advantages of studying online
o D
o E
o F
2. problems that occur at work and in formal situations because of digital communication
o D
o E
o F

3. the disadvantages of studying online

o D
o E
o F

Exercise 9: Read paragraphs D-F again, this time more carefully. Which paragraph contains
the following information? You may use any letter more than once.
1. a reason why some learners do not complete an academic program
o D
o E
o F
2. a reason for an increase in levels of stress in employees
o D
o E
o F
3. a prediction about the way that an academic service might develop in the future
o D
o E
o F

4. an example of a traditional practice in writing that people used to use more often
o D
o E
o F
5. a comparison between the ways that different people like to be given feedback on their
work
o D
o E
o F

EXAM PRACTICE:

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Passage 1:
GRAPHIC NOVELS
People who think graphic novels are just comics with a different name should think again

A. Graphic novels, as the name suggests, are books written and illustrated in the style of a comic
book. The term graphic novel was first used in 1978 by author and artist Will Eisner to distinguish
a comic novel he had written and illustrated from newspaper comic strips. He described graphic
novels as consisting of 'sequential art' — a series of illustrations which, when viewed in order, tell
a story.

B. Although today's graphic novels are a recent phenomenon, this basic way of telling stories has
been used in various forms for centuries. Early cave drawings, hieroglyphics and medieval
tapestries are examples of this. The term graphic novel is now generally used to describe any book
in a comic format that resembles a novel in length and narrative development.

C. Many adults feel that graphic novels are not the type of reading material that will help young
people become good readers. They believe that graphic novels are somehow a bad influence that
prevent 'real' reading. In other words, they think that they are not 'real' books.

D. However, many quality graphic novels are now being seen as a method of storytelling on the
same level as novels, films or audio books. From originally appealing to a small following of
enthusiasts, they are now being accepted by librarians and teachers as proper literature for children
and young adults. The main advantages are that they promote literacy, and attract and motivate
young people to read.

E. How do we know this? In the last few years, teachers and school libraries have reported
outstanding success getting children to read with graphic novels. Many have mentioned the
motivational factor of the graphic novel. This has been especially true with children who are
usually reluctant to read, especially boys. The colorful pictures attract them, and then encourage
them to find out what the story is about. Providing young people of all abilities with a wide range
of reading materials, including graphic novels, can help them become lifelong readers.

F. Furthermore, one of the main benefits of a graphic novel is that it can help students who are
learning a foreign language, and who are having problems improving their reading skills. This is
because the pictures provide clues to the meaning of the words. Language learners are therefore
more motivated by graphic novels, and will acquire new vocabulary more quickly.

G. Many teachers have reported great success when they have used graphic novels with their
students, especially in the areas of English, social studies and art. They have discovered that, just
like traditional forms of literature, they can be useful tools for helping students examine aspects of
history, science, literature and art.

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H. The idea that graphic novels are too simple to be regarded as serious reading is no longer valid.
The excellent graphic novels available today demand many of the same skills that are needed to
understand traditional works of fiction. Often they actually contain more sophisticated vocabulary
than traditional books. Reading them can help students develop the skills that are necessary to read
more challenging works.

Questions 1 -7:
The Reading passage has eight paragraphs, A-H.
Which paragraph contains the following information?
Write the correct letter, A-H.
NB You may use any letter more than once.

1. people with negative attitudes towards graphic novels __________

2. a variety of school subjects where graphic novels can play an important role __________
3. why a graphic novel's visual element speeds up learning __________
4. a modern definition of graphic novels __________
5. graphic novels are as good as any other method of telling a story __________
6. graphic novels sometimes use advanced words __________
7. the historical use of pictures as a method of storytelling __________
Passage 2:

The rain makers

Science and technology work with nature to bring rain when and where it is needed.

A. Wheat farmer Gang Liu is a worried man. The annual rains have not arrived, and there is a
danger that unless there is substantial rainfall soon, his annual wheat crop will fail. As he looks
anxiously at the clouds which promise rain but are failing to deliver it, there is a sudden loud roar,
and from fields for miles around, hundreds of small rockets are fired into the clouds. Within
twenty minutes, the farms around the eastern Chinese city of Luohe are experiencing their first
rain for many weeks. Gang Liu's valuable wheat has been saved, thanks to a technique known as
'cloud seeding', in which the chemical silver iodide (Agl) is introduced into clouds. This causes
the tiny drops of moisture in the clouds to turn to ice. These tiny ice particles join until they
become heavy enough to fall from the sky, turning into rain as they melt.

B. But did cloud seeding really cause the rain in Luohe to fall, or was it just a coincidence?
Experts often question whether cloud seeding actually works. It is hard to tell how effective cloud
seeding actually is, they say, as it might have rained anyway, without human intervention. But
this has not stopped many governments and organisations from trying. There are currently 150
weather-modifying projects taking place in more than 40 countries. Not all of them are aimed at
creating rain. The Eastlund Scientific Enterprises Corporation in the USA, for example, is

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experimenting with firing microwaves into clouds to prevent the tornadoes which cause enormous
damage to the country every year. In Russia, experiments have been carried out to make sure the
sun shines during important national events.

C. However, it is rainmaking that dominates the research programmes. In many of these,

researchers are using trials in which some clouds are 'seeded' while others are not, and both
groups are monitored. Arlen Huggins of the Desert Research Institute is leading a research project
in Australia. Weather-monitoring technology is so good nowadays, he says, that we can measure
clouds much more effectively, even from the inside. As a result, we now know much more about
the effect humans can have on the weather. What Huggins' team has discovered so far is
promising. They believe that cloud seeding does work, although there are still two years of the
six-year project left to go.

D. In China, where the majority of cloud-seeding operations take place, weather-modification

authorities use army rockets to fire silver-iodide particles into the clouds. 39,000 staff working
for the China Meteorological Administration (CMA) are equipped with 7,113 army cannons
which, in 2006, were used to fire a million silver-iodide rockets into the atmosphere. This costs
over $100 million a year, although the CMA claims the results are worth the expense. Between
1999 and 2006, they say, cloud seeding produced 250 billion metric tonnes of rain and prevented
thousands of farmers from losing their crops.

E. "We want to understand what makes clouds rain," says Philip Brown of the UK
Meteorological office, explaining why so much time, effort and money are being invested. "But
there is a more powerful economic reason. A lot of countries around the world are at risk from
drought, and governments will try anything to make sure that doesn't happen, even if the
scientific evidence is weak. The potential economic value is greater than the scientific value.
Making it rain might allow you to keep agriculture going where, without human intervention, it
might fail."

F. Some people are concerned, however, that altering the weather can have negative
consequences. Leonard Barrie, director of the research department at the World Meteorological
Organisation in Geneva, explains why. "All areas of weather modification are still very
controversial. Some people think that diverting water for irrigation benefits some people, but is a
disadvantage to others. Someone in one area will get more water, but as a result, someone
somewhere else could get less." His fears may be justified. Recently, the town of Zhoukou in
China's Henan province accused neighbouring town Pingdingshang of 'stealing' rain from clouds
that were due to pass over its own farms, prompting what may be the world's very first
documented incident of 'rain rage'.

Questions 1-6
Complete the sentences below.
Choose NO MORE THAN ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage for each
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answer.

1. Experts are unsure if cloud seeding is __________ or not.

2. At the moment, there are over __________ where projects are being carried out to modify the
weather.
3. Thanks to modern __________, it is now possible to get better results when clouds are monitored.
4. The Desert Research Institute project will finish in a couple of __________
5. The CMA gets the equipment they need from the __________
6. A large number of __________benefited from cloud seeding carried out by the CMA.

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UNIT 5
CONSUMERISM
READING
Exercise 1. In this unit, you will do IELTS Reading matching heading tasks and read a text on
the topic of family history (also called ancestry).
What vocabulary do you already know on the topic of ancestry? Match the words with their
definitions.
a descendant a generation a record a relative a will an ancestor
birth certificate family background great - + noun run in the family

1. a member of your extended family, for example, your aunt or uncle:

__________________________

2. a person who is related to you but lived and died before you were born:
_______________________

3. a person who is related to you and who will live after you in the future (e.g. your
grandchildren’s children): _________________________________

4. a group of people who are all about the same age: _________________________________

5. the history of your family, for example, where they came from, what jobs they had:
_____________________________

6. used with a word for a family member from an older generation (e.g. your mother’s
grandmother): ___________________________________

7. a piece of important information you write on paper or store on a computer:

_________________________________
8. a legal document that explains what a person has decided should be done with their money
and property after they die: ___________________________________
9. a phrase that describes a feature, quality, ability or disease that people from the same family
share: ________________________________
10. a legal document that contains information about a new baby such as its name, the names of
its parents and the time and place it was born: _____________________________________

Exercise 2. Read the information, then read the sentences from Paragraphs A–H. Match the
main ideas with the sentences from Paragraphs A–H.

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 IELTS BASIC 2

Final sentence of Paragraph A: ‘… It was also necessary for landowners to know their family
background – so they could prove that a large castle or manor house really belonged to them, and
not to another person further along a branch of the family tree who wanted it for themselves.’

First sentence of Paragraph B: ‘An interest in knowing who your ancestors were and what they did
is, of course, something which is common in all cultures.’

First sentence of Paragraph C: ‘While some people are still interested in family trees as a way of
making sure they can receive money or valuable items from a great-uncle or great-great
grandparent, others have different motivations.’

First sentence of Paragraph D: ‘Part of what makes family-tree research so fascinating is the
sense of uncovering a mystery as you find more clues – just like a detective would.’

First sentence of Paragraph E: ‘Before the age of the internet, if you wanted to find out about your
family history, you would have needed to travel to different locations.’

First sentence of Paragraph F: ‘Researching your family tree has now become an ever more
popular activity, partly for the reason that it has become much easier, faster and more convenient.’

First sentence of Paragraph G: ‘Despite the advances of modern technology, it can still be a
challenge to find your distant ancestors.’

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 IELTS BASIC 2

Final sentence of Paragraph H: ‘… Rather than writing out the family tree in a book in the
traditional way, they record stories, images and voices using audio and video recordings for their
descendants to see one day.’

A description of how people feel about ancestry

A method of learning about ancestry
A method of storing information about ancestry
A reason why people enjoy researching their family history
A reason why people needed to know their ancestry in the past
Different reasons why people might be interested in ancestry
Problems in learning about ancestry
Reasons why more people are learning about ancestry now

Paragraph A
Paragraph B
Paragraph C
Paragraph D
Paragraph E
Paragraph F
Paragraph G
Paragraph H

E
xercise 3. Read the information. Then skim read the paragraph and choose the correct
heading.

Ancestry in the UK

Paragraph A

Up until relatively recently, English school children were often obliged to learn the names of the
kings and queens that ruled the country from the 8th century to the 18th, and understand how
they were related. This was no easy task. Sometimes a king would pass his kingdom to his son,
but very often would be a much more distant relative that took over. To become king, you would
have to show you had royal blood in the family tree, and to do this, you would need to know
exactly who all your ancestors were. It was also necessary for landowners to know their family

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 IELTS BASIC 2

background – so they could prove that a large castle or manor house really belonged to them, and
not to another person further along a branch of the family tree who wanted it for themselves.

The correct heading for Paragraph A is:

o How knowing your family tree could bring power and property
o The kind of buildings that wealthy relatives used to live in
o Which academic subjects most students would prefer not to study

Exercise 4. Read the information. Then skim read the next paragraphs and answer the
question.

Ancestry in the UK

Paragraph B

An interest in knowing who your ancestors were and what they did is, of course, something which is
common in all cultures. Not all cultures, however, have a phrase which translates as family tree for
when they want to describe earlier generations of the same family. We use this particular phrase
because it was traditional in the past in some countries to put the oldest generations at the top of a
drawing and the youngest generation at the top and narrower at the bottom – just like a tree.

Paragraph C

While some people are still interested in family trees as a way of making sure they can receive
money or valuable items from a great – uncle or great – great grandparent, others have different
motivations. Some people choose to research their family tree because they are simply curious about
their origins. Or perhaps they have heard an unusual story about an ancestor and wish to discover the

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 IELTS BASIC 2

truth. They may even have a more serious and useful purpose, for example wanting to find out about
a medical condition which runs in the family.

Choose the correct headings for the paragraphs. Look at the text again if you need to.

1. The correct heading for Paragraph B is:

o Practical and personal reasons for finding out about ancestors
o The appeal of making unexpected discoveries
o The problems people face in carrying out family-tree research
o Why we use ‘family tree’ to refer to our family background
o Traditional ways of researching family trees
2. The correct heading for Paragraph C is:
o The appeal of making unexpected discoveries
o Practical and personal reasons for finding out about ancestors
o The problems people face in carrying out family-tree research
o Traditional ways of researching family trees
o Why we use ‘family tree’ to refer to our family background
Exercise 5. Read the information. Then read the paragraphs again, this time with their
headings. The key words in the headings have been underlined. Then do the exercise.

Paragraph B
Why we say ‘family tree’ to refer to our family background

An interest in knowing who your ancestors were and what they did is, of course, something which is
common in all cultures. Not all cultures, however, have a phrase which translates as family tree for
when they want to describe earlier generations of the same family. We use this particular phrase
because it was traditional in the past in some countries to put the oldest generations at the top of a
drawing and the youngest generation at the top and narrower at the bottom – just like a tree.

Paragraph C
Practical and personal reasons for finding out about ancestors
While some people are still interested in family trees as a way of making sure they can receive
money or valuable items from a great – uncle or great – great grandparent, others have different
motivations. Some people choose to research their family tree because they are simply curious about
their origins. Or perhaps they have heard an unusual story about an ancestor and wish to discover the

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 IELTS BASIC 2

truth. They may even have a more serious and useful purpose, for example wanting to find out about
a medical condition which runs in the family.

a more serious and useful purpose motivations origins

perhaps they have heard an unusual story about an ancestor and wish to discover the truth

to research we use this particular phrase

who your ancestors were and what they did

1. we say ‘family tree’

__________________________________________
2. our family background
__________________________________________
3. practical (reasons)
__________________________________________
4. personal (reasons)
__________________________________________
5. reasons
__________________________________________
6. finding out about
__________________________________________
7. ancestors
__________________________________________
Exercise 6. Choose the correct headings for the paragraphs.
i The problems people face in carrying out family-tree research
ii How technology has helped people research their ancestors
iii How businesses benefit from the growing interest in family trees
iv Practical and personal reasons for finding out about ancestors
v How ancestors are remembered and celebrated in different
countries
vi Traditional ways of researching family trees
vii Creating family trees for future generations
vii How knowing your family tree could lead to power and property
i
ix Why we say ‘family tree’ to refer to our family background
x What people enjoy about making unexpected discoveries

Paragraph D

Part of what makes family-tree research so fascinating is the sense of uncovering a mystery as you
find more clues – just like a detective would. This kind of process was shown in the hugely popular
program ‘Who Do You Think You Are?’, which featured well-known TV personalities exploring
their family origins. The show’s researchers often found surprising information. One person,
interviewer Jeremy Paxman, was disinterested at first. He believed it was more important to be

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 IELTS BASIC 2

‘forward-looking’ – and think about the future rather than the past. Then he learnt that his great-
grandmother had managed to raise nine children by herself after her husband died, even though she
was extremely poor. He soon wanted to know more. Certainly this kind of program has encouraged
people to look for their own ancestors.

Paragraph E

Before the age of the internet, if you wanted to find out about your family history, you would have
needed to travel to different locations. People used to visit churches to look at their records, for
example of the names of people who were born and died in the area. Another way to investigate
family history would be to look through old newspapers that were stored in the basements of
libraries, or to search through birth and marriage certificates at the local town-council building. Not
all of these visits, of course, would be successful. You needed to be very patient and have a lot of
spare time to find out about your past.

Paragraph F

Researching your family tree has now become an ever more popular activity, partly for the reason
that it has become much easier, faster and more convenient. Councils have uploaded many public
records to their websites, including details of marriages, names of taxpayers and property owners,
and the wills of people who have died. Many museums and libraries have also become involved and
offer guidance about the best tools and apps to use when searching for ancestors. One online
company which helps people trace their ancestors was recently bought for over £2.4 billion –
showing just how popular this method of research has become.

Paragraph G

Despite the advances of modern technology, it can still be a challenge to find your distant ancestors.
Before the 11th century, a person would only sometimes share their parents’ surname. This was
because a surname usually showed the town or region where you came from, e.g. John of Kent, or
your occupation, e.g. John (the) Baker. So, if a child was born in a different place to a parent or had a
different job, they might have had different surnames. This system also meant that thousands of
people had exactly the same surnames even when they were not related. For wealthy people, it would
also have been possible to have two different surnames if they owned land or property in two
different locations. Of course, many old records have also been lost or destroyed, too.

Paragraph H

Many people who are keen on producing a family tree are interested in looking forwards rather than
back. They recognize their role as an ancestor of people who haven’t even been born yet, and who
may live in many different parts of the world. They want to create records for them – showing the
different branches of the family today. Rather than writing out the family tree in a book in the
traditional way, they record stories, images and voices using audio and video recordings for their
descendants to see one day.

Exercise 7. Read the passage and answer questions 1-13

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 IELTS BASIC 2

The burden of thirst

Millions of women carry water long distances. If they had a tap by their door, whole societies would
be transformed.

A
Aylito Binayo’s feet know the mountain. Even at four in the morning, she can run down the rocks to
the river by starlight alone and climb the steep mountain back up to her village with a container of
water on her back. She has made this journey three times a day since she was a small child.
So has every other woman in her village of Foro, in the Konso district of south-western Ethiopia in
Africa. Binayo left school when she was eight years old, in part because she had to help her mother
fetch water from the Toiro River. The water is unsafe to drink; every year that the drought continues,
the river carries less water, and its flow is reduced. But it is the only water Foro has ever had.

B
In developed parts of the world, people turn on a tap and out pours abundant, clean water. Yet nearly
900 million people in the world have no access to clean water. Furthermore, 2.5 billion people have
no safe way to get rid of human waste. Polluted water and lack of proper hygiene cause disease and
kill 3.3 million people around the world annually, most of them children. In southern Ethiopia and in
northern Kenya, a lack of rain over the past few years has made even dirty water hard to find. But
soon, for the first time, things are going to change.

C
Bringing clean water close to villagers’ homes is the key to the problem. Communities where clean
water becomes accessible and plentiful are transformed. All the hours previously spent hauling water
can be used to cultivate more crops, raise more animals or even start a business. Families spend less
time sick or caring for family members who are unwell. Most important, not having to collect water
means girls can go to school and get jobs. The need to fetch water for the family, or to take care of
younger siblings while their mother goes, usually prevents them ever having this experience.

D
But the challenges of bringing water to remote villages like those in Konso are overwhelming.
Locating water underground and then reaching it by means of deep wells requires geological
expertise and expensive, heavy machines. Abandoned wells and water projects litter the villages of
Konso. In similar villages around the developing world, the biggest problem with water schemes is
that about half of them break down soon after the groups that built them move on. Sometimes
technology is used that can’t be repaired locally, or spare parts are available only in the capital.

E
Today, a UK-based international non-profit organisation called WaterAid is tackling the job of
bringing water to the most remote villages of Konso. Their approach combines technologies proven
to last - such as building a sand dam to capture and filter rainwater that would otherwise drain away.
But the real innovation is that WaterAid believes technology is only part of the solution. Just as
important is involving the local community in designing, building and maintaining new water
projects. Before beginning any project, WaterAid asks the community to create a WASH (water,

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sanitation, hygiene) committee of seven people. The committee works with WaterAid to plan
projects and involve the village in construction. Then it maintains and runs the project.

F
The people of Konso, who grow their crops on terraces they have dug into the sides of mountains,
are famous for hard work. In the village of Orbesho, residents even constructed a road themselves so
that drilling machinery could come in. Last summer, their pump, installed by the river, was being
motorised to push its water to a newly built reservoir on top of a nearby mountain. From there,
gravity will carry it down in pipes to villages on the other side of the mountain. Residents of those
villages have each given some money to help fund the project. They have made concrete and
collected stones for the structures. Now they are digging trenches to lay pipes. If all goes well, Aylito
Binayo will have a tap with safe water just a three-minute walk from her front door.

adapted from National Geographic magazine

Questions 1-6
The reading passage has six paragraphs, A-F.
Choose the correct heading for each paragraph from the list of headings below.
List of Headings
i Why some plans have failed
ii A rural and urban problem
iii A possible success
iv Explaining a new management style
v Some relevant statistics
vi A regular trip for some people
vii Treating people for disease
viii How water can change people’s lives
1. Paragraph A__________
2. Paragraph B__________
3. Paragraph C__________
4. Paragraph D__________
5. Paragraph E__________
6. Paragraph F__________

Questions 7-11
Complete the sentences below.
Choose NO MORE THAN ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage for each answer.

7. The water levels in the Toiro River are falling because of ……………….
8. Globally, the number of people who die each year as a result of using dirty water is ……………
9. When families have clean water, they can spend more time growing ……………….
10. Specialist knowledge and equipment are needed to dig ……………….
11. WaterAid uses a dam made of………………. to capture rainwater.
Questions 12-13

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Choose TWO letters, A-E.

Which TWO of these activities were performed by the villagers of Orbesho?

A building a transport route

B digging a reservoir
C gathering building materials
D making pipes
E fitting taps

D. LISTENING
Exercise 1. In this unit, you will learn about Section 1 of the IELTS Listening test and practise
the skills you need to answer five-option multiple-choice questions. The topic of this unit is
libraries. Read the information. Then read the sentences from different conversations and
decide who is speaking. Choose the correct answers.

A an architect
B a library assistant
C a member of the library
D a computer specialist
E a local journalist

1. I’m writing an article about the library for the local newspaper. __________

2. I’ve got my library card with me. I’m interested in science fiction, mainly. __________
3. What I like best is ordering new books and recommending them to people. __________
4. I designed the new library. __________
5. I’m working on a new piece of software for the library. __________

Exercise 2. Read the information. Then listen to the recording and answer the question. Choose
two letters, A–E. (Track 5.1)

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 IELTS BASIC 2

Which TWO people are taking part in the conversation about the new library?
 A an architect
 B a member of the library
 C a library assistant
 D a computer specialist
 E a local journalist

Exercise 3. Listen to the recording and answer the question. Choose the correct letters, A–E
(Track 5.2)

Which TWO services does the library currently offer?

 A a language-learning class for adults

 B an after-school club for teenagers
 C an evening art class
 D a morning book-discussion group
 E a story-reading session for young children

Exercise 4. Listen to the recording. Choose TWO correct answers (Track 5.3)

Which TWO things can library users do on the library website?

 A pay fines for books which are returned late

 B apply to renew a library membership card if one gets lost
 C do searches for books which have become bestsellers
 D comment on books and authors they’ve read
 E update details of their home address if they want to

Exercise 5. Listen to the conversation and choose TWO letters A-E for each question (1-4).
(Track 5.4)

1. Which TWO reasons does Irina give for visiting the exhibition?

A to meet a friend

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B to improve her knowledge

C to buy something
D to check prices
E to entertain her child

2. Which TWO devices has Irina bought recently?

A a calculator
B a computer
C a camera
D a phone
E a digital recorder

3. What TWO things does Irina like about the building?

A the electric lights

B the space
C the activity
D the ceiling
E the entrance

4. Which TWO problems did Irina have coming to the exhibition?

A driving in heavy traffic

B finding the car park
C parking the car
D waiting to enter the exhibition
E standing outside in the rain

Exercise 6. Listen to the conversation and answer questions 1-6. Choose TWO letters, A-E.
(Track 5.5)

Questions 1-2
Which TWO criteria will the students use to choose a successful person?
A. age
B. gender
C. individual talent
D. fame
E. global importance

Questions 3-4
Which TWO things do the students agree to do before they meet again?
A. write a biography
B. conduct more research
C. find photographs
D. write a talk
E. plan a seminar

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 IELTS BASIC 2

Questions 5-6
Which TWO things do the students agree are linked to success?
A. wealth
B. experience
C. talent
D. effort
E. location

UNIT 6
LEISURE TIME
READING
Exercise 1. In this unit, you will look at Yes / No / Not Given questions and summary
completion. You will read a text about travel photography. Read the information. Then read
the sentences about photography and decide if they are the writer’s views or claims.
For IELTS Reading Yes / No / Not Given questions, you need to recognize and understand
the views and claims that a writer expresses in a text:

 a view is the writer's opinion about something.

Example:
The best way for students to spend their free time is in travelling and taking photos.

 a claim is something that the writer believes is a fact – information they understand
to be true.
Example:
The first modern photograph was taken in France in 1826 or 1827.

1. I was delighted with the way my photographs turned out.

o View
o Claim
2. One of the world’s first travel shoots took place in 1849.
o View
o Claim

3. Photographers now need to be more flexible about the kind of projects they work on.
o View
o Claim
4. Some groups of native Americans strongly dislike photographs.
o View
o Claim

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5. The festival is held in November.

o View
o Claim
6. This festival should be included in any photographer’s diary.
o View
o Claim
Exercise 2. Read the information. Then read the first paragraph of an article on travel
photography and the statement which follows. Decide if the statement agrees with a view or
claim of the writer. Choose the correct answer.
In an IELTS Reading Yes / No / Not Given task, you read a text in which the writer expresses
some views or makes some claims. Then you decide if a set of statements agree with the
writer’s views or claims in the text.

 If the statement expresses the same idea as the writer, the answer is Yes.
 If the statement expresses the opposite idea to the writer’s, the answer is No.
 If the statement expresses an idea that the writer does not express any views or
claims about, the answer is Not Given.

‘Eyes on the World’: Travel photography in the 21st century

One of the world’s first travel shoots took place in 1849 when two young Frenchmen, Gustave
Flaubert and Maxime Du Camp, decided they would set out on a great adventure and travel to Egypt.
Du Camp took hundreds of photographs of the Pyramids and the Sphinx, and when he returned home
and published his travel album, the images amazed the European public and turned Du Camp into a
celebrity overnight.

Maxime Du Camp became famous because of the photos in his travel album.

o Yes
o No
o Not Given

Exercise 3. In the IELTS Reading task, choosing No or Not Given can sometimes be more
difficult than choosing Yes. Read the paragraph again. Then choose the correct answers.

1. The European public was disappointed with the photos in Maxime Du Camp’s travel album.

o No
o Not Given

2. The European public saw photos of Egypt for the first time when they looked at Du Camp’s
travel album.

o No
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 IELTS BASIC 2

o Not Given

3. Maxime Du Camp was surprised by the amount of attention he received after publishing his
book.

o No
o Not Given

4. It took a long time for Maxime Du Camp to become famous after he published his travel
album.

o No
o Not Given

Exercise 4. Read the information. Then read the statements 1–7. Match the synonyms and
paraphrases in the box with the bold words and phrases in the statements.

In an IELTS Reading Yes / No / Not Given task, it is important to look for paraphrases of the
statements in the text. This will make it easier to decide the correct answer.

dangerous event great is now acceptable outsiders

realize what the challenges were work hard for

1. Most photographers understand how hard it was to take photographs in the 19th century.
_________________________________
2. Some of the chemicals that Du Camp used for his photography were unsafe .
___________________________________
3. There is a lot of luck involved in taking really good photographs.
__________________________________
4. It’s usually photographs that require a lot of effort that professional photographers are most
pleased with. _______________________________________
5. All Souls Day in the Philippines is an older festival than the Day of the Dead in Mexico.
________________________________________
6. Mexican locals are happy for foreigners to attend Day of the Dead celebrations.
____________________________________
7. It has become common for some native American groups to photograph important
ceremonies. __________________________________

Exercise 5. Read the information. Then read the next four paragraphs of the ‘Eyes on the
World’ article. Answer the questions.
While Du Camp’s photographs may appear simple in comparison to modern photographs with their
special effects, it seems to me that nowadays the majority of photographers fail to realise what the
challenges were in taking photographs in the 19th century. To begin with, foreign travel was
expensive and difficult to organise. Fortunately, Du Camp had money of his own and he was also

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able to get additional funding for the journey from the French government. Another issue was the
size and weight of 19th-century cameras – they were very large and heavy. Finally, not only was
there a great deal of equipment and chemicals to transport, but travelling itself could be highly
dangerous. Of course, travel photographers do still take risks as part of their job, but the level of
danger is hardly the same as when Du Camp was travelling across continents.

Nevertheless, as any professional photographer knows, to be good at the job still requires hard work
and dedication. The popular idea that great photographs are often the result of a photographer being
in exactly the right place at exactly the right time, just by chance, does not reflect reality. Last year,
for example, on a visit to Reykjavik, Iceland, I met several photographers I knew. We were all there
for the annual Winter Lights festival, involving works by many artists and musicians. One shot we
all wanted was the perfect image of the aurora borealis – the strange green lights that sometimes
appear briefly in the sky as the sun is going down. It took hours for everyone to decide how best to
catch this moment and to work out where to place themselves to get the best result. In the end, I was
delighted with the way my photographs turned out. In general, professional photographers share the
feeling that the most rewarding photographs are the ones you’ve worked hard for.

Events like this attract photographers because the atmosphere can help create some wonderful photo
opportunities. The Day of the Dead in Mexico is a perfect example. Although other countries have a
similar event, for example, All Souls Day in the Philippines, the Mexican event is a photographer’s
dream. It’s a time of celebration, when people remember relatives who have already passed away.
Good photographs will capture that sense of joy in the bright and colourful decorations on the
gravestones and in the faces of the families who are using humour and art to remember their dead.
What’s more, the local people are usually happy to share this experience with outsiders so visitors
can participate if they wish. The festival is held in November, and should be included in any
photographer’s diary.

Travelling as a photographer has encouraged me to question some ideas I previously believed to be

true. An example of this is the popular belief that some groups of native Americans strongly dislike
photographs and will turn away from cameras. This, however, is not the case. From talking to native
Americans I’ve met on my journeys, it seems that it is now acceptable to regard photographs as
valuable connections to ancestors and even include them in important ceremonies, some of which I
have been lucky to observe and record.

Read the statements and choose the correct answers. Note that the words and phrases for
expressing views and claims have been underlined here for reference.

1. Most photographers understand how hard it was to take photographs in the 19th century.
o Yes
o No
o Not Given

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2. Some of the chemicals that Du Camp used for his photography were unsafe.
o Yes
o No
o Not Given
3. There is a lot of luck involved in taking really good photographs.
o Yes
o No
o Not Given
4. It’s usually photographs that require a lot of effort that professional photographers are most
pleased with.
o Yes
o No
o Not Given
5. All Souls Day in the Philippines is an older festival than the Day of the Dead in Mexico.
o Yes
o No
o Not Given
6. Mexican locals are happy for foreigners to attend Day of the Dead celebrations.
o Yes
o No
o Not Given
7. It has become common for some native American groups to photograph important
ceremonies.
o Yes
o No
o Not Given

Exercise 6. Read the final paragraph of the ‘Eyes on the World’ article carefully. Then choose
the four ideas which are found in the text.

One question that people often ask is whether it’s possible to make a reasonable living in the travel
photography industry today. Gone are the easy days when photographers simply shot photos for
magazines and newspapers, sent them to an editor and got paid at the end of every month: these
forms of media now usually buy photos for their stories directly from companies that store millions
of them. As a result, photographers now need to be more flexible about the kind of projects they
work on. One way to do this is by working for big businesses. In the past, photographers often
decided where they would like to go, and could perhaps experiment more with the kinds of
photographs they took. However, working for a big business often means that you are sent where the
company wants you to go; perhaps to a beach or a mountain if they want to promote these as tourist
destinations. The desert is another popular place: many car companies like to shoot this kind of
background to advertise their new vehicles. Of course, nowadays this kind of well-paid work
opportunity is very popular, so a huge number of photographers will all apply for the same job; a
situation which you didn’t see so much in the past. Nevertheless, in my experience, whether
photographers are amateurs or professionals, there is a generally positive feeling between them: they
are supportive of each other and willing to share advice about work opportunities and the risks that
travelling to foreign destinations sometimes involves.

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 IELTS BASIC 2

□ Some photographers like to take photographs of serious subjects while others like to
take amusing ones.
□ The typical career of a photographer is not the same today as it was in the past.
□ Newspapers no longer buy so many photographs from individual photographers.
□ Big businesses sometimes use photographers to take pictures of their products or
services.
□ The internet has made it much easier to see the work of many photographers.
□ There are a huge number of training courses if people want to study photography.
□ Photographers talk to each other about their experiences and provide useful
information.

Exercise 7. Match the paraphrases and synonyms in the box with the ideas in the sentences.

Good relationships great competition international exhibitions

marketing purposes new ideas public interest regular income

work experience
1. The photographs are displayed in a gallery. _____________________________
2. Each month, the photographers get money for their work.
_______________________________
3. People really enjoy looking at their photographs. _____________________________
4. The photographers make suggestions and plans about what to do next.
____________________________
5. The photographers do the job to improve their skills but they don’t get paid anything.
______________________________
6. The photographers get on well with each other. _________________________
7. Some people use photographs to persuade other people to buy things.
_________________________________
8. A lot of photographers are all trying to get the same job. _____________________________

Exercise 8.
Making a chance
How easy is it for us to change our lives – and why?

In 1990, a young American named Christopher McCandless gave up his career plans, left behind
everyone he knew, including his family, and went off on an adventure. He was 22 at the time. In an
act of kindness, he donated all his savings to the famous charity, Oxfam International, and hitchhiked
his way through America to Alaska. His decisions were so unusual for his age that Jon

Krakauer wrote a book about them called Into the Wild, and Sean Penn directed a film that had the
same title.

Of course, this is an unusual story. Most college graduates would not do quiet the same thing.
However, studies do show that in teenage years., people are more likely to try out new experiences.
Instead of following the family career path, for example, and working his way up the same
organization like his grandfather did, a 15-year-old may dream about becoming a traveler – only to
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 IELTS BASIC 2

find in his early 20s that this fascination with new places is declining and change is less attractive.
This age-related trend can be observed in all cultures.

The reason why people all over the world become less keen to change as they get older may be
because people’s lives generally follow similar patterns and involve similar demands. Most people,
wherever they are, aim to find a job and a partner. As they get older, they may have young children
to look after and possibly elderly family members. These responsibilities cannot be achieved without
some degree of consistency, which means that new experiences and ideas may not have a place in the
person’s life. New experiences may bring excitement but also insecurity, and so most people prefer
to stay with the familiar.

However, not every individual is the same. One toddler may want
to play a different game every day and get fed up if nothing
changes at the nursery. Another may seek out and play with the
same children and toys on every visit. Young children who avoid
new experiences will grow up to be more conventional than
others. Psychologists argue that those who have more open
personalities as children are more open than others might be
when they are older. They also suggest that young men have a
greater interest in novelty than women, although, as they age, this
desire for new experiences fades more quickly than it does in
women.

The truth is that, as we get older, we prefer the things we know. We tend to order the same meals in
restaurants, sit on the same side of the train when we commute to work, go on holiday to the same
places and construct our day in the same way. If you are older than 20, remember that your openness
to new experiences is slowly declining. So you are better off making a new start today than
postponing it until later.

Questions 1-6: Do the following statements agree with the claims of the writer in the reading
passage? Write

YES if the statement agrees with the claims of the writer

NO if the statement contradicts the claims of the writer

NOT GIVEN if it is impossible to say what the writer thinks about this

1. Teenagers are more ready to have new experiences than young adults.
2. Grandparents usually encourage their grandchildren to get a well-paid job.
3. Life demands are different depending on which country you live in.
4. Some toddlers find repetitive activities boring.
5. Children who dislike new experiences become more adventurous than others as adults.
6. If you want to change something in your life, you should avoid delay.

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 IELTS BASIC 2

LISTENING.
Exercise 1. In this unit, you will learn about IELTS Listening Sections 3 and 4 and practise the
skills you need to answer three-option multiple choice questions and a map labelling task. The
topic of this unit is university life. Complete the table with the words and phrases in the box.

A lecturer a campus a tutor an accommodation officer

An administration block a seminar an interview a lecture

Hall of residence

People Places Events

Exercise 2. Read the information. Then look at the plan of a university campus and label the features
1–5 with the words in the box.

In the IELTS Listening test, you may have to label a pl

of the following:

 places that are already labeled, e.g. café, recep

 features that are not labeled but can be seen in
etc.
 buildings or other places that are a particular
 round, square)
 compass directions, i.e. some plans and maps
Before you listen, it is a good idea to look carefully at
can already see.

bridg
e
fence
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 IELTS BASIC 2

lake
river small park

1. ______________

2. ______________

3. ______________

4. ______________

5. ______________

Exercise 3. Listen to a guide describe where different places are on a university campus plan.
Write the correct letters next to the locations. (Track 6.1)

1. the Browning Lecture Hall___

2. the Dining Hall ___

Exercise 4. For an IELTS Listening labelling task, it’s a good idea to learn adjectives that
describe shapes. Label the shapes with the correct adjectives in the box.
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 IELTS BASIC 2

L-shaped circular rectangular semi- circular square

Exercise 5. Listen to the recording. Write the correct letters next to the locations. (Track 6.2)

1. Halls of Residence ________

2. Seminar Rooms ________
3. Art Society ________

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 IELTS BASIC 2

Exercise 6. Read the information. Then listen to a conversation between two students on a
university campus. Choose the correct answers. (Track 6.3)

1. Why is the woman at the university?

o A to borrow some books

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o B to start a new job

o C to have an interview
2. According to the woman, 19th-century paintings
o A developed in an interesting way.
o B were as popular as photographs.
o C became an affordable hobby for the average person

Exercise 7. Listen and answer questions 1–2 (Track 6.4)

University Life
1. How long is the man’s course?
o A one year
o B three years
o C four years
2. How did the man feel about his first week at university?
o A He was confused by all the information he was given.
o B He was impressed by the friendliness of other people.
o C He was worried about the amount of work he had to do.
Exercise 8. Follow the instructions and answer questions 1 – 10: (Track 6.5)
Questions 1 – 3: Multiple choice
Choose the correct letter, A, B or C.
1. Dr Deacon’s talk is on
A. The newest London street markets.
B. Current changes in London street markets.
C. The history of London street markets.
2. Dr Deacon aims to show
A. The benefits of street markets.
B. The dangers of street markets.
C. The differences between street markets.
3. Dr Deacon conducted a survey of
A. One hundred people.
B. Under one hundred people.
C. More than a hundred people.
Question 4 – 6: Completing notes
Complete the notes below. Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS for each answer.
Survey results
Advantages
Beneficial for the __________
Helped the local community by creating work and encouraging __________
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 IELTS BASIC 2

Fresh produce
A reduction in waste and packing
Cultural benefits
Main disadvantage
Fewer people as a result of __________

Question 7 – 10: Map labelling

Label the map below. Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS for each answer.

UNIT 7
FAME AND THE MEDIA
READING

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Exercise 1. In this unit, you will look at an IELTS Reading matching features task and read a
text on the topic of work and jobs. What vocabulary from the topic of work and jobs do you
already know? Match the words with the definitions.

automation employee employer flexibility manufacturing

opportunity organization profit self-employed workforce.

1. A person or company that employs people: ______________

2. All the people who work in a company, industry, country, etc.: ______________
3. Another name for a company (often one that is very big): ______________
4. Money that a business earns after it has paid for everything it needs (e.g. offices, factories,
workers, etc.): ______________
5. Someone who is paid to work for someone else: ______________
6. The ability to change or be changed easily according to the situation: ______________
7. The business of producing things (e.g. cars) in large numbers: ______________
8. The chance to get a job or do something that you want to do: ______________
9. The use of machine or robots to do the work in a factory: ______________
10. Working for yourself or having your own business: ______________

Exercise 2. Read the information. Then skim read the title and the first paragraph of the text
below. Choose three statements from the list which express the main ideas of the paragraph.

In the IELTS Reading matching feature task you read an article which contains the
opinions of different people who have knowledge or experience of the topic of the text.
For example, they may be academics or researchers.
The first paragraph of the article introduces the main ideas or topic that the people discuss.
Remember that you can predict the topic of the article from the title and that you can
usually find the main ideas at the end of the instruction.

The Change Face of Work

Until the 19th century, there was a fairly good chance that a young man would follow in his father’s
footsteps and work in the same profession or trade. If the plan was to become a doctor, lawyer or
engineer, he would simply take the necessary subject at university. If he was planning to do manual
work, as a builder, miner or factory worker for example, he would learn through practical
experience. As the 20th century progressed, both men and women moved to cities to find work, in
industries such as advertising, banking and retail. They may have started at a company at age 17 and
probably wouldn’t have left until they retired at 60 or 65. Now, in the 21st century, new technology is
being developed all the time, and it is having a dramatic effect on the kind of jobs people do and they

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ways in which they work. The speed of change is so great that it is almost impossible to predict how
people’s careers may develop 20 years from now.

○ Women now work in all the same professions that men do.
○ In the area of work, things change more quickly now than they used to.
○ Technology has a big influence on how people do their jobs.
○ People don’t have enough free time because they work too much
○It’s unclear what type of jobs people might do in the future.
○ Some industries have not been affected by new technology.
Exercise 3. Read the second paragraph of the text and the four statements. Choose
the two statements that best match the opinions of Patrick Carter and Adrian Gates.

For an IELTS Reading matching features task, you need to match a set of statements or
pieces of information to list of options, so it is important to be able to locate specific
information in the text.

Statements
1. An increasing number of employers will want employees to have the right personality.
2. It is normal for companies to reduce the number of employees so that they can increase their
profits.
3. Some jobs that people did in the past were boring and led to health problems.
4. Companies will increasingly appreciate the abilities of young people.

Many people are optimistic about these changes. Patrick Carter, educational consultant at City
University, looks forward to a world where the types of jobs people will be more rewarding
than ever before: ’Think of the jobs many people have been forced to do throughout history that
were poorly paid and caused illness or injury’, he says. ‘People look back and say “the old day”
were great, but they forget how difficult life was for many employees in factories, who often
had to do the same task again and again, for ten or more hours a day’. Carter feels that the use
of robots to build and make products can only bring positive change. However, not everyone
shares this kind of optimism. Adrian Gates, a human resources consultant at Pro-Corn
Enterprises, points out that, as new technologies replace humans, there will be a huge decrease
in the demand for employees: ‘Jobs for accountants and retail workers, for example, will
disappear. History proves that employees will find it very difficult to retrain for a completely
different career.’

1 2 3 4
Patrick Carter
○ ○ ○ ○
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 IELTS BASIC 2

Adrian Gates ○ ○ ○ ○
Exercise 4. Read the information. Then complete the table with the words and phrases in the
box. The words and phrases are all taken from the Reading text ‘The Changing Face of Work’.

the better option may not be very useful to invest in further learning and training

be forced to do (something) people can qualify for jobs they really want to do

welcome and value (somebody) cause (something to happen, e.g. illness)

huge decrease in the demand for employees

Positive meaning Negative meaning

Exercise 5. Read the numbered quotes in bold (1–6) from the third paragraph of the article. Is
each person expressing a positive view, a negative view or are they making a claim? Choose the
correct answers.
Carter thinks differently: (1) ‘If we introduce more automation, we don’t have to pay wages to so
many emplyees’, he explains, (2) ‘and then we will have more money to invest in further
learning and training for more people, so that they can qualify for jobs they really want to do.’
So will there still be enough jobs for people if robots replace human workers? Joanna Hardinf, a
lecturer in music technology at Mapplethorpe University, makes an interesting point about job
creation and loss: (3) ‘Recent developments in technology mean we can all listen to music when
and where we want. Certainly, these develops have created jobs for people in the digital music
industry, especially in engineering and in factories,’ she says. (4) ‘However, those same
developments have unfortunately caused huge job losses in the traditional music industry. It’s
this kind of dramatic change we often find hard to imagine’ . Harding explains that because of
the digital music industry and the fact that milions of people download music illegally, many record
companies can no longer afford to pay songwriters, producers, technicians and marketing teams. (5) ‘
A large number of people download music illegally just because everyone else seems to be doing
it – but really, (6) they ought to consider what consequences their selfish actions could have on
other people, in this case, loss of employment.’

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a positive view a negative view a claim

1
2
3
4
5
6

Exercise 6. Look at the statements and read the third paragraph of the text again. Who said
what? Match the statements with the correct person.

Statements
1. If more robots do manufacturing jobs, it will create opportunities for people to get a better
education.
2. People should think more carefully about how their behaviour might affect others.
3. Some traditional jobs will continue to exist but in a different location.
4. We cannot always predict how new technology will affect jobs in a particular industry.

Carter thinks differently: ‘If we introduce more automation, we don’t have to pay wages to so many
emplyees’, he explains, ‘and then we will have more money to invest in further learning and training
for more people, so that they can qualify for jobs they really want to do.’ So will there still be enough
jobs for people if robots replace human workers? Joanna Hardinf, a lecturer in music technology at
Mapplethorpe University, makes an interesting point about job creation and loss: ‘Recent
developments in technology mean we can all listen to music when and where we want. Certainly,
these develops have created jobs for people in the digital music industry, especially in engineering
and in factories,’ she says. ‘However, those same developments have unfortunately caused huge job
losses in the traditional music industry. It’s this kind of dramatic change we often find hard to
imagine’ . Harding explains that because of the digital music industry and the fact that milions of
people download music illegally, many record companies can no longer afford to pay songwriters,
producers, technicians and marketing teams. ‘ A large number of people download music illegally
just because everyone else seems to be doing it – but really, they ought to consider what
consequences their selfish actions could have on other people, in this case, loss of employment.’

Patrick Joanna Neither

Carter Harding person
1. If more robots do manufacturing jobs, it will create
opportunities for people to get a better education.
○ ○ ○
2. people should think more carefully about how their behavior
might affect others.
○ ○ ○
3. Some traditional jobs will continue to exist but in a different
location.
○ ○ ○
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4. We cannot always predict how new technology will effect jobs

in a particular industry.
○ ○ ○
Exercise 7. In an IELTS Reading matching features task, you will need to use your knowledge
of synonyms and paraphrases. Match the words on the left with the synonyms and paraphrases
on the right. The synonyms and paraphrases are all taken from the text ‘The Changing Face of
Work’.

Choose
● ● the next few generations
Self- empoyed
● ● new enviroments
Empoyers
● ● companies
Traditional
● ● knowledge and skills
Personality
● ● welcome and value
Different location
● ● decide
Young people
● ● working for themselves
Abilities
● ● the kind of character
Appreciate
● ● older

Exercise 8. Read the final three paragraphs of the text. Look at the statements and the list of
researchers. Match each statement with the correct researcher, A–D.

However, many large corporations have been created in the last 20 years because of the existence of
the internet. It is the internet that allows them to sell their apps or online services as downloads.
Professor of Sociology, Sara Milington, researches employment at these massive internet- based
companies. ‘They make enormous profits but employ few people, and thousands of applicants hope
to get the same few jobs,’ she says. ‘ If you decide to apply, you need to have the right skills and
qualifications, but you also need to have exact qualities they are looking for,’ she says. ‘More and
more companies are interviewing people to find out if they have the kind of character that fit in with
their company culture – and this trend is going to continue.’
The way that people work is also likely to change. Nadia Campbell, who works for the Independent
Professionals Group, can see this trend already developing. ‘Many people no longer want to do a
nine – to – five job every day. And in this future they will want even more flexibility in regards to
the hours they work, and with the place they choose to work from,’ she says. ‘The idea of working
for one boss will become less option. ‘New technology might mean new types of jobs, but it is also
likely that certain ‘older’ jobs will have to evolve to suit future needs. A recent study from
researchers in Finland concluded that ‘many of these jobs won’t disappear completely… they will
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move into new environments, such as into outer space – work.’ Although change in the types of
work we will do is causing anxiety for many, it must be remembered that the generation that controls
much of the workforce, people now in their fifties and sixties, may retire in the next ten to fifteen
years.
Jack McCaw, a researcher for Career magazine suggests that the next few generations will have a
completely different experience of work: ‘in the year 2020, 50 % of the US workforce will be people
born after the year 2000. These people know how to connect to others, learn and work together in a
digital way, organizations today will welcome and value them as they have the knowledge and skills
they need. ‘These are exactly the kind of people now taking Joanna Harding’s music technology
course. She knows that some of the things she is teaching them now may not be very useful in ten
years’ time, as the technology will completely different.

List of researchers

Sara Millington
A
Nadia Campbell
B
Researchers in Finland
C
Jack McCaw
D

A B C D
1. An increasing number of employers will want employees to
have the right personality ○ ○ ○ ○
2. Some traditional jobs will continue to exist but in a different
location. ○ ○ ○ ○
3. More and more people will choose to become to become self-
employed. ○ ○ ○ ○
4. companies will increasingly appreciate the abilities of young
people. ○ ○ ○ ○
C. LISTENING
Exercise 1. In this unit, you will practise the skills you need to answer a diagram labelling task
in IELTS Listening Section 4. The topic of this unit is survival and the environment. Read the
information. Then choose the correct words to form collocations about the environment.

When you learn a new word, try to learn some collocations. Collocation are words that
are commonly used together. For example, here are some typical collocations using the
word environment:
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Noun+ noun:
environment agency, environment policy
Adjective + noun:
 new environment, safe environment

IELTS BASIC 2

1. noun + noun
weather branches/forecast/storm
2. noun + noun
snow slope/ storm/ weather
3. adjective + noun
survival branches/wall/ situation
4. noun + noun
body situation/ slope/ temperature
5. noun + noun
cave forecast/ slope/wall
6. noun + noun
mountain forecast/ slope/ temperature
7. noun + noun
tree branches/ slope/wall

Exercise 2. Look at the diagram of a snow cave. Complete the descriptions of the diagram with
the words in the box.

In the IELTS Listening test, you may have to label a diagram. Before you listen, it’s
a good idea to think about the words the speaker may use to describe the direction
(e.g. away from), the position (e.g. on the bottom) or the location (e.g. the roof) of
different parts of diagram.

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 IELTS BASIC 2

Away from back bottom entrance inside on the left

on the right on top of outside roof towards tunnel

1. Number 1 is _______________ of the diagram.

2. Number 2 is _______________the cave.
3. Number 3 is _______________of the diagram.
4. Number 4 is _______________the cave.
5. Number 5 is the _______________ of cave
6. Number 6 is at the _______________ of the cave.
7. Number 7 is _______________the middle of the cave.
8. Number 8 is the _______________ to the cave.
9. Number 9 is moving _______________the entrance.
10. Number 10 is moving _______________ the entrance.
11. Number 11 is the _______________.
12. Numeber 12 is the _______________ of the entrance to the cave.

Exercise 3. Listen to the first part of a survival expert’s talk about snow caves. Write the
correct letters (A–H) next to the descriptions (1–2) (Track 7.1)

In an IELTS labeling a diagram task, you match the letters on the diagram to the correct
descriptions in the questions. In order to do this, you need to:
 Listen carefully to descriptions of direction, position and location.
 Listen for the same information you see in the questions.
You do not need to use all the letters (i.e. there are more letters than questions).

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 IELTS BASIC 2

1. reduces the chance of accidents ______

2. soft branches are best ______

Exercise 4. listen to the second part of the survival expert’s talk about snow caves. Write the
correct letters (A–H) next to the descriptions (3–4) (Track 7.2)
3. piled-up snow adds strength ______
4. allows air in and smoke out ______

Exercise 5. Read and listen to the extracts from the recording. Complete the extracts with
between one and three words for each gap. (Track 7.3)

1. Reduces the chance of accidents – B

That could be a rock or a large stone or even just a large snowball – and you put it there to remind
yourself where ______________ is. This is so you don’t walk on it and ______________ when
you’re outside.

2. Soft branches are best – H

Um, before you shut yourself inside the ________________ for the night, do go out and collect
some tree branches – branches from fir trees are the best type – as they’re ________________ . You

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can then place these inside the cave, on top of the flat shelf – the one ___________________ of the
cave and away from the entrance.

3. Piled-up snow adds strength – C

It’s a good idea to __________________ as much snow as possible over the top of your cave – on
the outside, I mean, so it’s good and thick. And you can see from the diagram that the pile has
formed into a __________________ shape. When the snow ___________________ and becomes
really hard, your cave will be less likely to fall in.

4. Allows air in and smoke out – D

If your cave is big and wide enough for you to have a small fire inside, of course you’ll need to
__________________ out. And if you’re inside for the whole night, you’ll need to let some air in,
too. To do this, you’ll need to make some __________________ .

Exercise 6. It is common in IELTS Listening tasks that you will not hear the same words in the
recording as you read in the questions. Match the possible paraphrases with the words in
bold from the descriptions (5–7).
5. cold air gets trapped …
6. a thick jacket or backpack work best …
7. melting is reduced by keeping smooth walls …

1. cold heavy coat

● ●
2. trapped no pieces of ice or snow that stick out
● ●
3. thick jacket freezing
● ●
4. backpack there aren’t so many
● ●
5. Work best won’t be able to escape
● ●
6. is reduced these would be ideal
● ●
7. smooth rucksack
● ●
Exercise 7.
Listen to the recording. Write the correct letters (A–H) next to the descriptions (5–7)
(Track 7.4)

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 IELTS BASIC 2

5. cold air get trapped ______

6. a thick jacket or backpack work best
______
7. melting is reduced y keeping smooth
walls ______

Exercise 8. When you are preparing for the IELTS Listening test, it is a good idea to make
notes of useful collocations. Match the words on the left to the words and phrases on the right
to form collocations.

1. reduce clothes
● ●
2. dry melts more slowly
● ●
3. snow as warm as possible
● ●
4. whole space
● ●
5. keep that possibility
● ●
6. narrow night
● ●

UNIT 8
NATURAL WORLD
READING

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 IELTS BASIC 2

Exercise 1. In this unit, you will look at IELTS Reading four-option multiple choice questions
and a diagram label completion task. You will read a text on the topic of survival techniques.
What vocabulary do you already know on the topic of survival techniques? Choose the correct
words to complete the definitions.
1. When levels of water in your body become lower than normal: container/ evaporation/
dehydration
2. To become smaller in size, amount, degree, importance, etc.: consume/ trap/ reduce
3. To eat, drink or use something, especially in large amounts: consume/ trap/ reduce
4. When a liquid changes into a gas (e.g. water turning into steam): container/ evaporation/
dehydration
5. An object, such as a box or a bottle, that can be used for holding something: container/
evaporation/ dehydration
6. Successful or achieving the results that you want: effective/ consume/ container
7. To keep something such as heat or water in one place, especially because it is useful (verb):
reduce/ dehydrate/ trap
Exercise 2. Read the information. Then read the first paragraph. Choose the correct option to
answer the question.

Dealing with survival situations in the wild

Over the last few years, there has been an increase in the number of television program that show
experts explaining how to survive in the wild. They use their experience to create fires, build
shelters, find water and decide which plants are safe to eat and which might kill you. While these
programs are no doubt highly entertaining, what is less certain is how successful they are at really
educating viewers at home. Last year, over 2,300 hikers were reported lost in the wild in the USA.
While most of them were eventually rescued, not all were so lucky. Some of the survivors told their
rescuers that they had been these kinds of television program, and had believed they had learnt some
useful skills. It turned out, however, that building a fire from wet wood and finding a source of clean
water was a lot harder than they had imagined.
1. What does the writer say about television programs on the subject of surviving in the wild?

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 IELTS BASIC 2

○A. The people who make the programs know little about of surviving in the wild?
○B. The people who appear on the programs are never in real danger themselves.
○C. The programs fail to make ordinary people aware of how difficult it is to survive.
○D. The programs should not discuss the stories of people who have not survived.
Exercise 3. Read the second and third paragraphs of the text. Then choose the correct options
to answer the questions.
The human body is approximately 75% water – and this water has several important functions,
including keeping the body at the right temperature. If a peron doesn’t drink water, it will take only
two or three days for them to become dehydrated, and their body temperature may either drop or rise
to dangerous levels. Often it is the case that hikers or campers who are lost in the wild don’t start
thinking about how they can find a new source of water untill they run out of it, by which time it may
be too late. They haven’t thought about the consequences of dehydration, and neither do they
recognise the warning signs. An ache in the kidneys, a headache, general confusion – all of these can
tell someone that they are in need of water.
The average person loses 2 -3 litres of water every day just through normal activities such as
breathing. It’s impossible to avoid losing water form body, but there are ways to slow it down. For
example, when it may be necessary to build a shelter in the wild to sleep in, this should be carried out
in the shade rather than in full sun. This reduces the amount of sweat which is produced when body
temperature rises, which is, of course, water leaving the body. Some people may find it surprising
that eating may increase chances of dehydration, but digestion does require water, so eating should
be avoided if water is short. Hiking at night when the temperature drops is also option, but only if
hikers have a good torch or there is a full moon.
1. In the second paragraph, the writer makes the point that

○A. The speed at which dehydration occurs in people depends on the enviroment.
○B. People use all the water they have and only then start thinking how to get more.
○C. Most people know when they are beginning to suffer from dehydration.
○D. Peple should find out where water is located before they go hiking?

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2. What recommendation does the writer make for reducing water loss?

○A. It’s never a good idea to travel fater the sun has gone down.
○B. It’s best to consume food in small amounts and regularly.
○C. Hiker shoulf not waste their time making a basic place to stay in.
○D. It’s a good idea to keep cool while dong any activity.
Exercise 4. Read the information. Then look at the diagram of the process involved in a solar
still. Put the sentences in the correct order to complete the description of the process.

So how does a solar still work?

Even though the salt content in this kind of water is great, the processes of evaporation and
condensation will remote it, and then the water can be drunk.
The hole is then covered with a plastic sheet, as this kind of material will trap rising water as it
evaporates.
Once the gas cools and turns back into water, it can fall into the container below.
If people are near an ocean, water from here can be added to a second, larger container, and
placed beneath the narrow one.
A deep hole is dug into the ground and a narrow container is placed at the bottom of it.
To ensure that the maximum amount of water possible is collected, a heavy object such as a

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small rock should be placed in a central position above the container so that the water drops
can fall directly into it.

Exercise 5. Read the text and look carefully at the diagram. Then label the diagram with the
bold words from the text.

So how does a solar still work? A deep hole is dug into the ground and a narrow container is placed
at the bottom of it. The hole is then covered with a plastic sheet, as this kind of material will trap
rising water as it evaporates. Once the gas cools and turns back into water, it can fall into the
container below. To ensure that he maximum amount of water possible is collected, a heavy object
such as a small rock should be placed in a central position above the container so that the water
drops can fall directly into it. If people are near an ocean, water from here can be added to a second,
larger container, and placed beneath the narrow one. Even though the salt content in this kind of
water is great, the processes of evaporation and condensation will remote it, and then the water can
be drunk.

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Exercise 6. Read the complete description of a solar still and label the diagram. Write NO
MORE THAN TWO WORDS for each question.

A solar still
In situations when people are unable to locate a stream or river, there are certain ways they can get
water which are less difficult than others. Building a simple structure called a solar still is one of
these methods, but it will be most effective in regions which have dramatic temperature change. This
is because, in very hot environments, lots of water is taken up into the air and turns into gas, a
process called evaporation. At night time, however, when it is far cooler, the air releases the water
again – the process of condensation.
So how does a solar still work? A deep hole is dug into the ground and a narrow container is placed
at the bottom of it. The hole is then covered with a plastic sheet, as this kind of material will trap
rising water as it evaporates. Once the gas cools and turns back into water, it can fall into the
container below. To ensure that the maximum amount of water possible is collected, a heavy object
such as a small rock should be placed in a central position above the container so that the water drops
can fall directly into it. If people are near an ocean, water from here can be added to a second, larger
container, and placed beneath the narrow one. Even though the salt content in this kind of water is
great, the processes of evaporation and condensation will remove it, and then the water can be drunk.
Using the solar-still method will not produce enough water for people to collect and travel with, but
it can ensure survival while people are waiting for rescue.

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C. LISTENING
Exercise 1. In this unit, you will practise the skills you need to complete an IELTS Listening
note completion task. You will also hear a talk connected with the topic of transport. This is a
common topic in IELTS, so it is a good idea to think about some vocabulary you might hear.
Match the words in the box with the correct definitions.
Destination elevator fare hire lane route sign
traffic underground vehicle

1. a railway system in which trains travel through tunnels below a city: ______________
2. something that gives travel information to drivers and other road users:
______________
3. a particular way or direction from one place to another: ______________
4. a special part of a road that can only be used by certain kinds of transport (e.g. buses or taxis):
______________
5. car, buses and other kinds of transport moving along a road: ______________
6. a machine, usually with wheels and an engine, used for transporting people or things, especially on
roads: ______________
7. to pay use something for a short period of time (e.g. a car): ______________
8. The money that you pay for a journey (e.g. on a bus or a train): ______________
9. the place where someone is going or where something is being sent or taken: ______________
10. something that moves up and down, carrying people or things to different floors of a building:
______________
Exercise 2. Read the information. Then listen to the recording and answer the questions.
Choose the correct answers. (Track 8.1)

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1. Where is the speaker talking?

○at a university
○at a community centre
○at a train station
2. who is the speaker talking to?

○some people who have lived in the area for a long time
○some peope from another country
○some people who have recently moved to the area
3. what is the purpose of the speaker’s talk?

○to give advice for travelling in a city

○to describe plans for the future of transport in the city
○to offer free travel around a city.
Exercise 3. Before you listen, it is a good idea to guess what kind of words you need to listen for
(e.g. nouns, adjectives, verbs, etc.) and what kind of information is missing. Read the
information. Then read the descriptions and the notes. Write the correct description (A–H) for
the missing words (1–10) in the notes. One letter is used three times.

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Descriptions
A a plural noun or an uncountable noun for an area where people can ride a bikes
B a plural noun for something you find in a train station
C a singular or plural noun for part of a city (e.g. a building)
D an adjective for describing a group of people
E a plural noun for describing a group of people
F a singular noun for something you can collect when you buy a ticket
G a singular noun for
H an adjective for describing a kind of ticket
NOTES
City- centre travel
Cycling  (1) ______ lanes in centre are only for cycling – use these.
 A new (2) ______ makes cycling over busiest roads very safe.
 Buying a bike that is good for riding in an area that has (3) ______ is
recommended.
 You can hire bikes from a place near the (4) ______
Buses  Buy a (5) ______travel card if travelling by bus every day.
 Take a ‘D’ bus to get to the city’s central (6) ______.
 Discount for elderly people and some (7) ______.
Underground  Trains best for visiting (8) ______
 Check if station has any (9) ______or not before you take trains.
 A (10) ______can be picked up from ticket offices.

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Exercise 4. Read the notes on city-centre travel. Then listen to the next part of the recording.
Write one word in each gap (1–4) to complete the notes (Track 8.2)
NOTES
City-centre travel
Cycling  (1) Green lanes in center are only for cycling – use these.
 A new (2) bridge makes cycling over busiest roads very safe.
 Buying a bike that is good for riding in an area that has (3) ______ is
recommended.
 You can hire bikes from a place near the (4) ______

Exercise 5. Listen to the next part of the talk about transport in the city centre. Complete the
section about buses in the notes below. Remember that the underlined words are key words
that can help you find the answers. Write one word in each gap. (Track 8.3)
NOTES
City-centre travel
Buses Buy a (5) ______ travel card if travelling by bus every day.
Take a ‘D’ bus to get to the city’s central (6) ______.
Discounts for elderly people and some (7) ______.

Exercise 6. Match the words and phrases on the left to the correct synonyms and paraphrases
on the right.
1. ask for one helpful
● ●
2. best for come out of
● ●
3. check recommend
● ●
4. exit (verb) go and see
● ●
5. planning to perfect method
● ●
6. suggest make sure
● ●
7. useful thinking about
● ●
8. visit pick one up
● ●
Exercise 7. Listen to the last part of the recording. Write the correct words in the gaps 8–10.
Write one word in each gap. (Track 8.4)
NOTES

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City-centre travel
Underground  Trains best for visiting (8) ________.
 Check if station has any (9) ________ or not before you take trains.
 A (10) ________ can be picked up from ticket offices.

UNIT 9
LANGUAGE
Reading

Exercise 1: Match the sentence halves.

1 I practice speaking Spanish every day
● ●
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2 I think that I made a lot of mistakes in my French

● ● essay.
3 Writing to a penfriend an online English course?
● ●
4 I am meeting abroad to learn French.
● ●
5 Have you ever taken a new language app on her phone.
● ●
6 Yesterday my sister is useful for practicing language.
downloaded ● ●
7 I often use a webcam to talk to my Italian
● ● friends.
8 I want to travel my language exchange partner
● ● today.

Exercise 2. Read the leaflet about a language school for children. Choose True, False or Not
Given.
Would you like your son or daughter to speak another language? At Languages for Kids we offer
classes on Saturday mornings in French and Spanish, and in Chinese and Japanese on Saturday
afternoons. The classes are taught by qualified teachers who are first language speakers. The
lessons are fun and enjoyable for children. There are no grammar exercises, but there are a lot of
chances for children to speak the language. They play games, sing songs and even try food from
the country of the language they are learning.

We have classes for children between the ages of 4 and 11. The morning classes start at 10:00
a.m. and finish at 1:00 p.m., and the afternoon classes start at 1:00 p.m. and finish at 5:00 p.m.
Every week the children will do some homework to help them to practise the language they are
learning. It is not difficult and it will not take more than half an hour. At the end of the year, we
will write a report for each child to let you know how much they have improved in their
language. If you would like to find out more information, please go to our website.

True False Not Given

1 The language classes take place at the weekend. ○ ○ ○
2 there are Spanish classes in the afternoons. ○ ○ ○

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3 The children study a lot of grammar in the language classes. ○ ○ ○

4 The children often play games outside. ○ ○ ○
5 Some classes finish at 1: 00 p.m. ○ ○ ○
6 The children have to do homework every week. ○ ○ ○
7 The classes are too difficult for some children. ○ ○ ○
8 Parents can find out more about the classes online. ○ ○ ○
Exercise 3. Read an advertisement for a language exchange partner. Write one
word from the text in each gap.
Wanted: Italian language exchange partner!

Hello, my name is John Armstrong. I am a second-year student studying Law and Italian here in London. Next
year, I am going to study at university in Rome for one year. I am looking for an Italian student who would
like to meet me for a language exchange to help me improve my Italian. I have been to Italy many times with
my family on holiday, so I know quite a lot of Italian, but I would like to practise speaking with an Italian
person. Also, I think that I am going to make a lot of mistakes in Italian when I study abroad, so I would like
somebody to help me to study Italian grammar. I am also not good at writing in Italian, so I would like
somebody to look at my essays.

At the moment I take Italian classes on Thursday evenings. I am going to download an app for learning Italian,
but I think that I need some more help. I am free on Monday or Wednesday afternoons. We could either meet
at my house, or in the café next to the library. If you would like to meet me, please send me an email.

Thank you,
John

1 John is now studying in ______.

2 John is going to spend a year at university in ______.

3 He wants to meet someone to practice ______ in Italian with.

4 He thinks that he is going make a lot of mistakes with Italian ______.

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5 he wants somebody to help him to write better ______.

6 He is taking classes and is going to use an_________to help him study Italian.

7 He can meet his language exchange partner in the____________on Monday or

Wednesday.

8 He wants to meet his language exchange partner at a ______ or at his house.

Exercise 4. Read a review of a new app for learning a language. Complete the
summary with the correct answers.

Language Master is the lastest mobile phone app to help you learn a new language. When you
download the app, you can learn new words in the language, do quizzes, play games and translate
words. Language Master is available in 20 different languages, and 30 countries. I am studying French
at school, and have an important exam at the end of this term, so I decided to try Language Master for
one month to see if I would help me to improve French.

I found the app very useful for learning about grammar rules. The quizzes helped me to use grammar
correctly, and if I made a mistake, it told me why it was wrong and what I needed to do correct it. I
also leant a lot of new words in French. The games were very good for practicing new vocabulary, and
they stopped me from getting bored.

The app was very easy to use and I enjoyed using new phone to practice French. I used it a lot on the
bus on my way home, and in the library at school. It was much better than studying with a book,
because I didn’t need to take a lot of books to school every day. The only bad thing about the app is
that it is quite expensive. It costs, £ 7.00, which might be difficult for some people to spend. I think
that it í a very useful way to learn languages, and I have told my friends to download it.

Laura, 16, London.

The Language Master app

1 A mobile phone app to help people learn a game/ language/ quiz.

2 Available in 2/ 20/ 30 different languages.

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3 Can be used to get bored/ practice vocabulary/ stop mistakes do quizzes and play
games.

4 Advantages: Good for learning practice/ quizzes/ rules for grammar. Don’t have
to carry a lot of

apps/ books/ bus tickets.

5 Disadvantages: It’s difficult/ expensive/ slow to download – costs £7.00.

Exercise 5. Read the article about learning languages. Choose the correct
answers.

Today, there are so many ways to learn a new language. People can take language courses at school or
college, in the evenings, in another country, online, or even using apps on their phone. However, many
adults still find it difficult and so there are advantages to learning a new language as a young child.

Young children learn new languages faster than teenagers and adults. This is because they haven’t spoken
their first language for a very long time, so their brains are still ‘ready’ to learn languages. If children hear
people speaking another language, they will quickly learn how to speak it. Of course, the best way for
children to learn a new language is to move to a country where people speak the language. If this is not
possible, parents could send their children to a school that teaches some lessons in another language.
Younger children may also enjoy watching cartoons or reading storybooks with pictures. This will help
them to learn new words.

Teenagers can learn new languages easily if they are interested in the language and the country where it is
from. However, not all teenagers enjoy learning languages at school, so it is important that they learn
languages in interesting ways. For example, they might enjoy watching films and television programmes, or
reading books and magazines. A new way to learn languages is through mobile phone apps, which
teenagers often enjoy, especially if they have a lot of games. Also, having a penfriend helps teenagers to
improve their writing, and going on a language exchange with their school helps them to improve their
speaking.

In conclusion, children, teenagers and adults learn languages differently, so they need different ways to
practise. It’s a good thing for people to learn to speak another language when they are young. It can help
them to get better grades at school and it can be useful when they visit another country. However, the most
important advantage is that it is easier to learn a language as a child than it is as an adult.

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2 Adults/ Children/ Teenagers learn new languages more quickly than other people.

3 For children to learn a language, the best thing is go online/ to school/ to the country.

4 Cartoons and books will help children to learn new pictures/ stories/ words.

5 Some teenagers need easy/ interesting/ new ways to learn languages.

6 One way for teenagers to help their writing in a new language is to download apps/
have a penfriend/ read magazines.

7 Younger and older people don’t learn languages in different/ fun/ the same ways.

8 It is an advantage/ easier/ more difficult to learn a new language as an adult than as

a child.

Exercise 7. Put the sentences in the correct order to make a paragraph.

Firstly, young children can pick up new languages very easily.

For example, people who learn a second language well, often find it easier to learn a third language.

Secondly, if children learn a second when they are very young for three reasons.

It is a good idea for children to learn a language when they are very young for three reasons.

Finally, children who can speak two or more languages often have good communication skills and make
friends easily.

For example, if they hear people speaking another language, they are quick to repeat the words that they
hear.

Exercise 8. Complete the text with the correct linking word or phrase from the
box.

Firstly For example Furthermore However Secondly To sum up

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There are many advantages of leaning a new language. ____________, it is useful to

speak another language if you enjoy travelling to other countries. If you can speak the
language of that country, it will be easier for you to do simple tasks. ____________,
you can ask for directions, order food and go shopping.

____________, you may not always understand what people are saying to you.
____________, speaking another language could help you get a job in the future.
There are many international companies which want to hire staff who can speak
different languages. ____________, if you speak another language, you may have the
chance to travel to other countries for your work, or even to move to a different
country. ____________, learning another language can help you to have fun when you
are travelling and too get a good job in the future.

Listening
Exercise 1. Listen and match the speakers with the activities. (Tracks 9.1 – 9.8)

1 Track 9.1 ● ● writing emails to friends in English.

2 Track 9.2 ● ● talking to people whose first language is English

3 Track 9.3 ● ● going to English classes

4 Track 9.4 ● ● watching TV in English

5 Track 9.5 ● ● reading books, newspapers and magazines

6 Track 9.6 ● ● listening to the radio in English

7 Track 9.7 ● ● keeping a vocabulary notebook

8 Track 9.8 ● ● using a dictionary

Exercise 2. Listen to people talking about the advantages and disadvantages of
taking language classes. Write the opinions in the correct columns. (Tracks 9.9
– 9.16)
Advantages Disadvantages
do pair and group work too expensive
The class is too large. The teacher can’t give everybody the help they
make new friends
need.

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IELTS BASIC 2

really good fun not making progress

interesting teachers too tired to learn

Exercise 3. Listen and choose the correct answers. (Tracks 9.17 – 9.22)
1 Mark is learning/ is going to learn Arabic.
2 Jane is studying/ is going to study Turkish.
3 Peter is having/ is going to have judo classes.
4 Maria is teaching/ is going to teach maths.
5 Jack is learning/ is going to learn to cook.
6 Susan is playing/ is going to play the violin.

Exercise 4. Listen to the conversation and match the two parts of the sentences.
(Track 9.23)

1 David’s going to take a Spanish exam ● ● tomorrow.

2 David’s going to visit his uncle ● ● later today.

3 Sara’s going to study for her German exam ● ● this afternoon after class.

4 Sara’s going to study for her German exam ● ● next summer.

5 Sara’s going to study Italian ● ● at the weekend.

6 David’s going to work in his parents’ shop ● ● on Friday.

Exercise 5. Listen to two students, Tony and Christine, talking about learning
languages. Complete the sentences with one word from the conversation.
(Track 9.24)
1 Tom says he is going to learn another ___________.

2 He’s going to learn ___________.

3 He’s going to ___________ in Germany.

4 He’s going to need the language to go ___________ or to eat out in a ___________.

5 He’s going to start ___________ on Monday.

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6 He’s going to watch a lot of German ___________.

7 He thinks language lessons are good because you learn something

___________every day.

8 Learning ___________ can be free so that’s a big advantage for him.

9 Tony thinks you can read interesting things about the lives of ___________ people
in magazines.

UNIT 10
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Reading
Exercise 1. Match the sentence halves.

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IELTS BASIC 2

1 I often send ● ● a lot of games on her phone.

2 I am going to make ● ● text messages to my friends.

3 I usually watch ● ● some new software and apps.

4 My father listens to ● ● the radio every morning.

5 Yesterday I downloaded ● ● a phone call to my cousin today.

6 I use my smartphone to surf ● ● my phone and send them to you/.

7 My sister plays ● ● TV or videos on my laptop.

8 I will take some photos on ● ● the internet.

Exercise 2. Read an email from Mustafa to his friend, Tom. Then complete the
exercise.

Hi Tom,

I hope you’re well. I’m writitng this email on my new tablet. I ordered it online last
Friday and it arrived on Wednesday. I’m very happy with it. I can use to surf the
Internet and send emails from anywhere. I can also watch videos and play games on it.
I use it to watch videos when I travel to and from college on the bus, and I play games
online with my friends evry night.

It is not only good for entertainment, though. I also use it to help me with my
homework. The online dictionary helps me when I’m writing essays, and I have
downloaded some useful apps to help me to
study better. I have even downloaded an app to help me study French. It includes
games for leaning new words in French, which I think will really help me, as I have a
French exam next month. After that I think I might download the app to learn Spanish.

My favorite thing about my new tablet is that I can make video calls to my friends and
family. Last night I talked to my cousins in Dubai for one hour. It is so much better

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than talking on the phone, because I can see them and their house. Maybe I can make a
video call to you one day this week.

Look forward to seeing you soon.

Best whishes,

Mustafa

Choose True, False or Not Given

Not
True False
Given
1 Mustafa got his new tablet computer last Friday. ○ ○ ○
2 He watches videos with his friends very night. ○ ○ ○
3 He only uses his tablet for entertainment. ○ ○ ○
4 At the moment, he is using an app to help him learn French. ○ ○ ○
5 The app Mustafa downloads cost a lot of money. ○ ○ ○
6 Mustafa talked in the phone to his cousins for an hour last night. ○ ○ ○
7 Mustafa want s to have a video call with Tom. ○ ○ ○
Exercise 3. Read the text and complete the summary. Use one word or a
number from the text in each gap.

A new study has found that young people are reading less than they did in the past. The study asked
young people to say how long they spend doing different activities, such as reading books, watching
television, playing computer games and surfing the internet. Of these activities, playing computer games
and surfing the internet were the most popular. In contrast, the number of young people who said they

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like to read books fell by nearly 50% between 2007 and 2017.

Some people are worried about the results of this study. They think that if young people do not read
books often, they will not be able to learn good reading and writing skills. However, other people think
that young people can use the internet to find out new information on websites. They think that the
internet can help them to improve their reading skills, and to teach themselves new information.

Summary

The study found that young people are not __________ as much as they did before.
They prefer to spend time on other __________, such as surfing the internet. In fact,
the number of young people who said they enjoy reading books fell by almost
__________ percent between 2007 and 2017. Some people worry that young people
will not be good at __________ and __________ in the future. However, others
think that they can __________ out new information from reading things on
__________.

Exercise 4. Read a review of a new mobile phone. Then complete the exercise.

The new Dragon 5 smartphone is going to be in the shops next week. It’s already for sale online. It is
much bigger than the Dragon 4. It has a 15 cm screen, so it better for surfing the internet and watching
videos than the Dragon 4. It is made of metal and plastic, and the screen is made of extra strong glass, so
it will not break easily. Furthermore, you can still buy the Dragon 5, including the same games and maps
as the Dragon 4 and some new apps including study tools.. There are a lot of useful apps on the Dragon 5,
including the same games and maps as the Dragon 4 and some new apps including study tools. You can
take great photos with the new camera, and you can make video calls to your friends and family. There is
a lot more space to store photos, music and videos than there was on the Dragon 4. However, there are
two possible problems with the Dragon 5. Firstly, some people think that it is a bit too heavy bit I don’t
think so. Secondly, it is more expensive than the Dragon 4, but again I think the price will go down soon.
To sum up, the Dragon 5 is a great new phone which is going to be very popular. Make sure you buy one
quickly before they sell out!

Choose the correct answers to complete the sentences.

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 IELTS BASIC 2

1 You can buy a Dragon 5 Smartphone in shops now/ online now/ online from next
week.

2 The Dragon 5 is bigger than/ smaller than/ the same size as the Dragon 4.

3 You can buy a Dragon 5 Smartphone in 2/ 3/ 5 different colors.

4 A new app for the Dragon 5 is games/ maps/ study tools.

5 The price of the Dragon 5 will go up/ go down/ stay the same.

6 In general, the writer thinks that the Dragon 5 is great/ too heavy/ too expensive.

Exercise 5. Read a report about how people keep in touch with their friends and
family. Then complete the exercise.

A These days, just as in the past, it is important for people to stay in contact with each
other. Nowadays, however, more young people are travelling to other countries to go
on holiday or to work or study and, of course, they want to keep in contact with their
friends and family. In this study, we spoke to three different groups of people. The
first group was aged 18–24, the second group was aged 25–39 and the third group
was aged 40–60. We asked the three age groups how they prefer to stay in contact
with people. We asked if they preferred to write letters, talk on the telephone, use
email, send messages on social networks or make video calls.

B The study showed that people in all three groups preferred to use the internet to stay
in contact with their friends and families. 70% of the 18–24 age group preferred to use
text messages to contact their friends and family, and 65% preferred to make video
calls. Similarly, 68% of the 25–39 age group preferred to send messages on social
media and 62% preferred to send email. For the 40–60 age group, 72% preferred to
send email, and 58% sent messages on social media. For many people the internet
makes keeping in contact much quicker and easier. It is also popular because it is even
possible to see the person you are talking to on a video call and to share photos and
video files in just a few seconds.

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C The study also showed that making telephone calls and writing letters were less
popular with all age groups. Only 32% of all of the people in the study preferred to
make telephone calls and only 16% preferred to write letters. There are several
possible reasons why telephone calls and letters are less popular today than they were
in the past. Firstly, letters can take a long time to arrive, especially if you send them
from abroad. Many people want to communicate with their friends and family much
more quickly than this. Secondly, telephone calls can be expensive, especially if you
make them to someone in another country.

D In conclusion, the study showed that people of all ages prefer to use the internet or
their smartphones to keep in contact with their friends and families. Younger people
prefer to send messages using social networks, while older people prefer to use email.
In contrast making telephone calls and writing letters are now less popular for all age
groups. In the future, it is likely that people will continue to keep in contact with each
other online.

Match the information to the correct paragraph.

A B C D
1 Which paragraph gives a number for the least popular way to stay in contact? ○ ○ ○ ○
2 Which paragraph gives reasons why the internet is popular with all ages? ○ ○ ○ ○
3 Which paragraph sums up the main ideas in the study? ○ ○ ○ ○
4 Which paragraph introduces the people in the study? ○ ○ ○ ○
5 Which paragraph talks about the most popular way for the youngest age group
to stay in contact? ○ ○ ○ ○
6 Which paragraph talks about the different questions that the study asked
people? ○ ○ ○ ○
7 Which paragraph talks about how people will stay in contact in the future? ○ ○ ○ ○
8 Which paragraph gives reasons why letters and hone calls are now less
popular? ○ ○ ○ ○
Exercise 6. Look at the chart below. Complete the sentences with the correct
answers.

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IELTS BASIC 2

The most popular entertainment devices for teenagers, 2002 -

2015
100

80

60

40

20

0
2000 2005 2010 2015

Radio Televison
Computer Mobile phone

1 The number of teenagers who watched television fell/ went up between 2000 and
2010.

2 There was a big decrease/ big increase in the number of teenagers who used mobile
phones for entertainment between 2005 and 2010.

3 The number of teenagers who used computers for entertainment decreased/ grew a
little between 2010 and 2015.

4 There was a fall/ rise in the number of teenagers who listened to the radio between
2000 and 2015.

5 In 2000, the most popular devices for entertainment were television and radio.
However, these numbers rose/ went down between 2000 and 2015.

6 The use of mobile phones for entertainment by teenagers fell/ went up a lot between
2000 and 2015.

Exercise 7. Read the description of the chart. Then answer the questions.

A This line chart shows the devices that teenagers used for entertainment between
2000 and 2015. It shows the use of radio, television, computers, and mobile phones.

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IELTS BASIC 2

From the chart, we can see that the devices teenagers used for entertainment changed a
lot between 2000 and 2015.

B In 2000, most teenagers used the television and the radio for entertainment.
However, the number of teenagers who watched television and listened to the radio
fell between 2000 and 2015. In contrast, the number of teenagers who used computers
for entertainment increased a little between these years.

C The biggest change in teenagers’ entertainment was the use of mobile phones. In
2000, only a small number of teenagers used their mobile phones for entertainment.
However, this number increased a lot between 2005 and 2010, and a little between
2010 and 2015. In 2015, the most popular devices that teenagers’ used for
entertainment were computers and mobile phones and this is the same today.

A B C
1 Which paragraph says what the most popular devices for entertainment are now? ○ ○ ○
2 Which paragraph talks about devices that were used in the past? ○ ○ ○
3 Which paragraph introduces what the chart shows? ○ ○ ○
4 Which paragraph talks about the device used for entertainment a little more 2015
than in 2000? ○ ○ ○
5 Which paragraph tells us what the most important change was over the period of
time? ○ ○ ○
6 Which paragraph talks about the general change of people who watches television
and listened to the radio? ○ ○ ○

Exercise 8. Read the paragraph describing the chart. Choose the correct form of
the verbs to complete the sentences.

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 IELTS BASIC 2

The most popular entertainment devices for teenagers, 2002 - 2015

100

80

60

40

20

0
2000 2005 2010 2015

Radio Televison Computer Mobile phone

The chart shows/ is going to show/ will show the changing ways that adults will get
news between 2015 and 2030. The results are for radio, newspapers, television and the
internet. The way that people get their news are going to/ going to/ is going to change
a lot in the future.

In 2015, most adults prefer/ preferred/ will prefer watching the news on television and
reading newspapers. However, we can see from the chart that these ways of getting the
news are going to become/ becoming/ became less popular in the future. Furthermore,
the chart suggests that the number of adults who listen to the news on the radio
falling/ fell/ will fall between now and 2030. By 2030, listening to the radio will be/
being/ is the least popular way for adults to get the news.

The biggest change that we can see in the chart is online news becoming a lot more
popular in the future. Firstly, we can see that in 2015, online news is/ was/ will be less
popular than radio, newspapers and television. We can also see that only 50% of
adults uses/ used/ will use the internet for their news at that time. However, the
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IELTS BASIC 2

number of adults who read the news online increase/ increased/ is going to increase a
lot between now and 2030. By 2030, 90% of adults will get their news online and this
will be the most popular way for adults to get their news.

Listening
Exercise 1. Match the speakers with the pictures. (Tracks 10.1 – 10.6)

1 _________________ 2 _________________ 3 _________________

4 _________________ 5 _________________ 6 _________________

Exercise 2. Listen and choose the correct information on the graphs, A, B or C

1

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IELTS BASIC 2

Sales (millions)
3

2.5

1.5

0.5

0
May Jun Jul Aug Sep

A B C

(Track 10.7)
2

Quarterly sales
16000
14000
12000
10000
8000
6000
4000
2000
0
Quarter 1 Quarter 2 Quarter 3 Quarter 4

A B C

Track 10.8)
3

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IELTS BASIC 2

Monthly sales
160%
140%
120%
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

A B C

(Track 10.9)
4

Sales
300

250

200

150

100

50

0
Quarter 1 Quarter 2 Quarter 3

A B C

(Track 10.10)

5
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IELTS BASIC 2

Annual sales
160
140
120
100
80
60
40
20
0
Jan - Mar April - Jun Jul - Sep Oct - Dec

A B C

(Track 10.11)
6

Sales
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4

A B C

(Track 10.12)
Exercise 3. Listen to two students, Angela and Ben, talking about technology
devices. Choose the correct answers, True or False. (Track 10.13)
True False

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IELTS BASIC 2

1 Angela’s favorite device is her tablet. ○ ○

2 Ben’s favorite device is his smartphone. ○ ○
3 Ben says that sales of smartphones went up last year. ○ ○
4 Angela thinks that there might not be any tablets in the future. ○ ○
5 Ben agrees that soon people won’t be able to buy desktops. ○ ○
6 Angela thinks people are working to make a new device. ○ ○
Exercise 5. Listen to a phone conversation between Ben and Mona. Choose
True or False. (Track 10.14)
True False
1 Ben’s at the airport. ○ ○
2 He’s catching a plane today. ○ ○
3 The sun’s shinning in Málaga. ○ ○
4 It isn’t raining in Bristol. ○ ○
5 Mona’s wearing warm clothes. ○ ○
6 She’s using her umbrella. ○ ○
7 Ben’s staying in a hotel near the sea. ○ ○
Exercise 6. Listen to the two answerphone messages. Choose the correct words to
complete the sentences. Message 1 (Track 10.15)
1 Rachel’s ringing about Isabelle’s visit at nine o’clock/ today/ tomorrow.
2 Rachel’s waiting in a café/ shop/ swimming pool.
3 Rachel’s brother is drinking mango juice/ running/ walking.
4 Rachel and her friends are wearing boots/ gloves/ summer clothes.
Message 2 (Track 10.16)
1 Ton’s working at home/ in a village/ in college.
2 Ton says it’s hot/ raining/ sunny today.
3 Ton says everybody’s wearing raincoats/ shorts/ sunglasses.
4 Ton’s friend lives in France/ the Philippines/ the UK.

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