[IELTS 5.] Unit 9.2 - Reading & Listening

Complete the form below. Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.

Request for brochure

First name: Alex

Last name: 1.1

Address: Flat 4A, 396 1.2 Road

Town/City: Preston

Postcode: 1.3

Phone number: 1.4

Email address: alex7@ptu.com

Message box: deliver brochure 1.5.

Listen to the conversation and choose the correct answers.

Alex's first assignment will be about his _____.

You are going to hear a man on the telephone booking some tickets for a book fair.

Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.

International Book Fair

Ticket Booking Form

First name: Angus

Last name: 7.1

Address: 7.2, Wallington, Oxford

Postcode: 7.3

Phone number:

• Home: 7.4
• 7.5: 0872 298 1191 (Between 9 a.m. and 7.6 p.m.

Date of visit: 7.7 7th

Listen to the conversation and choose the correct answers.

The author Sandra Harrington will _____

To go to one of the author talks, the man must _____

The woman says that the cafés and restaurants at the Book Fair are _____

Reading the following passage.

Graphic novels

People who think graphic novels are just comics with a different name should think again

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.

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.

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.

However, many quality graphic novels are now being seen as a method of storytelling on the same level as novels, films or audiobooks. 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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Adapted from Complete IELTS Band 4-5 WB

Complete the table below.

Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage for each answer.

Reading the following passage.

Children in Crisis

Growing up in America is different for most young people today than it was for their parents. Fear of violence and crime seems to be everywhere, from the streets of large cities to the halls of suburban and rural schools. Teenage boys, who once fought over their places in the drug markets, now shoot so readily that the reasons may be only sneakers, leather jackets, or insults. Bystanders are caught in the crossfire of drug wars and people can be shot just because a young person feels like killing someone. Some kids have become so desensitized to shooting that they laugh about it. On the streets in many cities, robbing the others is considered a symbol of honour.

There seem to be more senseless crimes done by juveniles that appear to lack a motive. For example, young people tried to set fire to homeless men sleeping in subway stations as many as twenty times in 1992. In these crimes, no one takes anything of value; there is nothing to take. The victims all appeared to be strangers to their torturers. One fire setter explained that he and his friends were playing near a man who was sleeping in the subway and they accidentally spilled some of their beer on him. Then they threw matches at him and when his blanket caught fire, they ran. Two other homeless men, who happened to come along soon after the fire started, threw themselves on the man and put the flames out. They called the police and ran after the boys. At the police station, the boys were charged with assault and attempted murder. They gave no good reasons for the attempts, although the fun of it was suggested as a motive.

Almost everyone agrees that many young criminals are becoming more violent. The number of murders under the age of eighteen has climbed 93 percent since the 1980s. Murder is more common among today’s children, many of whom are in trouble because of the violence around them. The Children's Defense Fund, a non-profit organization, reports that two children under the age of five are murdered in America each day. In the same short period of time, about 7,000 children are reported abused or neglected. Many more cases are not reported.

Many adults are not, or do not want to be, aware of what is happening to today's children. They move farther from the cities, believing they can escape the problems of children in trouble. But even conservative magazines that usually devote their pages more to business than social problems are printing articles about today's "children in crisis". For example, in one issue of Forbes magazine, boys and girls from different cities talk about violence, hopes, cops, racism, drugs, school, and family. Others talk about suicide and abuse.

The Committee for Economic Development states publicly that it is concerned about whether or not children of today will have sufficient education, motivations, and undamaged brains to provide the needs of tomorrow’s labour force.

Adapted from Basic IELTS Reading

Complete the summary below by choosing NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the passage for each answer.

It seems that many senseless crimes done by juveniles do not have a 14.1. For example, victims even include those people who sleep 14.2. For as many as 14.3 in 1992, young people tried to 14.4 to them. As one 14.5 described while playing he and his friends 14.6 spilled some beer on a homeless man in the subway and later they set his 14.7 on fire by throwing matches at him. The boys caught by the police could not explain why they did that except that 14.8 of it could be a possible reason.