Đề thi tổng ôn tốt nghiệp THPT Tiếng Anh (Đề số 6)

London’s Tropical Carnival

1. Dates & Location: This annual three-day festival, (1) ______ on the last weekend of August, celebrates Caribbean cultural diversity in the UK. Our (2) ______ carnival takes place down the streets of the Notting Hill area, in West London, and is a great way to learn about one of London’s (3) ______ communities.

2. Activities: There are such a lot of cultural activities to do at the festival that you feel as though you were (4) ______ the Caribbean! Take part in the parade, (5) ______ eye-catching dance performances, and listen to live traditional music at UK’s biggest steelpan band competition!

3. Prices: The carnival is free to attend although you may need tickets for some popular shows. Expect (6) ______ £20 for adults and £7 for children to watch the steelpan competition.

(Adapted from Bright)

A step-by-step guide to doing laundry

1. Sort your clothes by colour: Separate them into whites and colours, and wash (7) ______ group separately.

2. Add (8) ______: Follow the instructions on the packet to measure the correct amount of washing powder or liquid.

3. Load the washing machine and (9) ______: Avoid overloading items as they need room to move about in the water.

4. Remove the wet clothes when the cycle ends: You can either hang them up to dry or put them in the dryer. (10) ______ energy and cost savings, air-drying is (11) ______.

5. Hang or fold the clothes: If needed, iron them before (12) ______ them in the wardrobe or drawer.

(Adapted from Global Success)

THE URBAN CROWD: CAUSES AND EFFECT

The suburbs are now spreading onto the smaller provinces, making land that was in the country become residential areas for city people, thus causing urbanisation. Although urbanisation is not new, (18) ______. But have you thought about what can cause such development? And how does it affect society?

(19) ______ and better living conditions that some companies offer. First, more people have cars. So this has encouraged people to move to the suburbs and not have to worry about the long commute to work. Second, (20) ______. For example, homes in cities are often too small and the roads are too narrow for people to drive through. However, in the suburbs, not only can people have a bigger living space, but suburban apartment owners can also find their way into beautiful parks and pools.

As for what urbanisation can have on society, there are two main worries: environmental pollution and land waste. One big consequence is that people (21) ______ can cause air pollution. For instance, in contrast to 30 years ago, when cars haven’t been popularised, air quality in Hà Nội was one of the healthiest in Asia; now, it is placed among the worst in the world. Another effect is wasted land. (22) ______, companies are chopping down trees for apartment buildings near the countryside.

Sad as it sounds, urbanisation is hardly avoidable. Therefore, we must consider what house we are buying and its impact on the environment.

(Adapted from THiNK)

I am 16 and live alone in the wilderness

I live alone on the Isle of Skye in a tipi almost impossible to find without detailed directions. Mum, a cookbook writer, taught us about possible dangers and how to cope with them, then let us run wild from an early age. We also travelled abroad regularly, visiting remote tribes and cultures, where we lived for weeks as Mum studied food and recipes to write about. I spent so much time with tribes who rely on the land that this became second nature to me. When I gained a place at the School of Adventure Studies on the Isle of Skye last year, I decided to live in a tipi, practising what I preach.

I wake up at 6.00 a.m. and get the fire on straight away using flints and steel. There’s usually some fire left from the previous day, so the fire is soon blazing while I have cereal for breakfast. I collect wood for later in the day, then I wash at the river. Sometimes I just jump in, especially when there’s frost on the ground. When I rush back to the tipi, it’s like a sauna. I get my backpack organised, including any food and kit I need for the day, cover the fire to keep it low but alive and walk thirty minutes to school. There are twelve of us on the course, of all ages, and we’ve just finished mountaineering. We’re about to start whitewater kayaking.

I’ve had a few hairy moments. Once I was on the hills when the weather turned bad and I became disoriented, but thanks to Mum’s training, I knew I had to keep a cool head. My classmates and I recently had a two-day test in horrible weather. A few people were exhausted and had to be taken off the mountain by the leaders, but I feel comfortable in the mountains and enjoyed the challenge. However, I’m aware that I need to keep my wits about me and be prepared.

My friends used to love coming to our home and running wild with me, so they are used to the way I live. I hope some of them will visit me soon. People ask if I miss the Internet, but I never used to use it much, or watch television. I am sociable, but I have always enjoyed my own company. I use my mobile every few weeks to catch up with friends and my mum, who I usually see once a month.

What I’m doing isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but it makes me happy. I’d like to see more people look after the land and not be scared of getting outside, getting wet, learning how to survive. When my studies are over, I’ll move the tent back to Mum’s house. Until then, I’m happiest sitting by the flickering fire, carving a spoon in perfect silence and watching the stars through the open tipi door.

(Adapted from English Discovery)

STARS OF THE VLOGOSPHERE

Helicopters circled the sky above Piccadilly Circus as the police officers below struggled to control the thousands of fans on the streets outside the bookstore. Who were these crazy people waiting for? That latest pop sensation? No, a ‘vlogger’ – a video blogger.

What makes vloggers so popular? [I] They are outgoing, quick-witted and spontaneous in front of their webcams. [II] There is also a lot of interaction with the audience and feedback on their videos. [III] This means vloggers can adapt the content of their videos to keep their viewers happy. [IV] It is material that is made by young people for young people without any intrusion from media corporations. What is more, thanks to the accessibility of modern technology, the vlogs can be watched anywhere at any time. All these ingredients have created a two-way relationship between vloggers and their subscribers, based on shared interests and trust that cannot be found between the providers and users of other media.

However, it appears that those shared interests and that trust might become negatively affected by money. Some of the big-name vloggers can earn up to £20,000 for displaying an advertisement on their channel. They also earn a lot for mentioning or reviewing a product in a vlog. About 1,000 vloggers around the world earn at least £100,000 a year from their YouTube income. And profits are sometimes earned at the expense of honesty.

So, will vlogs go the way of many TV programmes and films? Not according to the vloggers, who emphasise their creative independence over making money. However, Zoella, one of the few vloggers in the public eye in Britain, caused a scandal after publishing a book and claiming that it had always been her dream to write a novel. Shortly later, she had to admit that she had not written it alone and her name was just being used to sell it. Many experts saw it as a sign that vlogging had lost its innocence and that large media corporations were taking control.

(Adapted from Friends Global)