LISTENING B1 “CELEBRATIONS”

ACTIVITY 1

a party to celebrate the anniversary of someone's birth: Birthday party

a West Indian carnival held in London every August: Notting Hill Carnival

the marriage of a king, queen, prince or princess: Royal wedding

a celebration of 50 years of marriage: Golden wedding anniversary

a party normally organised by students to celebrate finishing the school year and completing their exams: End of exams party

SCORE: 5/5=100%

ACTIVITY 2

Speaker A: End of term party at school

Speaker B: Notting Hill Carnival

Speaker C: Golden wedding anniversary

Speaker D: Surprise birthday party

Speaker E: Royal wedding

SCORE: 5/5=100%

ACTIVITY 3

Speaker B will see people dressed in amazing costumes.

Speaker A is going to decorate the venue with Chinese lanterns and have projections on the wall.

Speaker D is worried about someone on Facebook spoiling the surprise.

Speaker B is going to be careful of people stealing things.

Speaker C is going to listen to old-fashioned music played on an old-fashioned machine.

Speaker A is in one of the bands that are playing.

Speaker E is going to taste food from all over the world.

Speaker C is going to celebrate with the whole family.

Speaker D is organising a party for her two best friends.

Speaker E is going to make sure there is no traffic on her street.

SCORE: 10/10=100%

LISTENING B2 “ HOW TO IMPROVE YOUR MEMORY”

ACTIVITY 1

to be coming quickly, to seem very close: to be looming

to listen to a live radio programme: to tune in

necessary, of extreme importance: vital

a small change: an adjustment

the last exams in a university course: finals

well known or easily recognised: familiar

to form a mental picture of something: to visualise

something that happens as a result of something else happening: a knock-on effect

SCORE: 8/8=100%

ACTIVITY 2

We all use memory in the same way.

There are two different forms of memorisation.

Teaching helps us to memorise.

We can train our brains to be more effective.

SCORE: 2/4=50%

ACTIVITY 3

The speaker explains how to make our memory function better. (memorise)

We can make improvements in our ability to memorise. (improve)

We use a combination of long-term and short-term memory. (combine)

There are several things we can do to recall information. (inform)

We can use word association to remember a concept. (associate)

The term visualisation means imagining a picture. (visualise)

You can use different formulas/formulae to remember historical facts. (formulate)

Following these tips will improve your ability to remember. (be able to)

SCORE: 5/8=63%