Basic ielts listening consolidating your english ability, improving your english listening skill, providing general knowledge, developing your test taking skill

L i Ya B in Consolidating Your English Ability Improving Your English Listening Skill Providing General Knowledge Developing Your Test-^hking Skill NT V a NHA XUA’t BAN U flP THANH PHd h CHi Tai ngay!!! Ban co the xoa dong chu nay!!! COng ty JNi l 11 N han T ri Viet Basic IELTS Listening L i Ya B in SÁCH TÁI BẢN TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC QUV NHO> _ THƠ VIỆN nsai n NHÀ XUẤT BẢN TỔNG HỢP THÀNH PHỐ HỒ CHÍ MINH NTV Cơng ty TNHH Nhân Trí Việt _ _ Basic IELTS Listening Copyright © 2010-2018 by Beijing Language and Culture University P ress Vietnam’s edition © 2018 by Nhan Tri Viet Co., Ltd This edition is published in Vietnam under a license Agreement betw een Beijing Language and Culture University P ress and Nhan Tri Viet Co., Ltd All rights reserved No part ot this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system , or transmitted, in any form or by any m eans, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the copyright owner FOREWORD Exam preparation is a vital period for candidates who wish to obtain an internationally recognised certificate, specifically the IELTS one Such candidates will find it less stressful if they can have relevant and beneficial materials in hand Basic IELTS — Listening, Reading, Speaking, and Writing have, consequently, been designed to meet your demand Basic IELTS series aim at • providing IELTS candidates with a basic English language ability, © enlarging candidates1stock of vocabulary, and • giving candidates insight into the social life and culture oi the Engiisn-speaKing communities Basic IELTS series are suitable for those who want to achieve a band score of 3.5-4.5 in the IELTS test They are also practical materials for high school students, students of pre-intermediate level, and for those who want to build up a solid foundation in their English language competence The main features of this series c f books are as follows: ^ Designed in accordance with the content, format and objectives of the IELTS test ^ Reflecting the updated IELTS question types S Meeting the demand and expectations of the focused candidates ^ Containing authentic, interesting, and rewarding materials As far as Basic IELTS Listening is concerned, it is arranged into five units whose themes centre upon cultural and social issues of the English-speaking communities Especially, a variety of text types such as dialogues, news, reports, stories, and short talks, coupled with well-designed tasks are introduced so as to facilitate actual tests in the most effective way Lists of new words and their phonetic symbols are also added at the back of the book to help you not only to easily recognise the sounds on the MP3 files but to improve your pronunciation as well On completion of Basic IELTS Listening, you will be able to • • • • typical tasks in the IELTS Listening test, apply useful tips and techniques in answering questions of the IELTS test, be well prepared for gaining a higher score in your actual exam, and achieve your desired band score in the near future Hopefully, you will find Basic IELTS Listening truly helpful and rewarding, and you can even­ tually achieve your desired goal J\\‘ 'A'- i I ' 1cl; ' i i I i O j Contents IELTS Overview Names and Places Part Two O r d in a ls 25 The Letters of the Alphabet 10 Exercise Identifying the letters o f the alphabet 10 Exercise Ordinal number d ictation 25 Exercise Common abbreviations 10 Exercise Practice with ordinals 26 Exercise Names o f places 10 Part Three D ecim al F r a c tio n s 27 Exercise Part One Exercise Part Two Getting to Know EachO ther 11 Reading the ordinal num bers 25 Traffic at Britain’s main airports 27 What is his name? 11 Exercise Household expenditure 28 Exercise Where are they from ? 12 Exercise M igration 28 Exercise What is your subject? 13 Exercise Interview about the earthquake 29 Exercise Introducing yourself 13 Exercise British trade 29 M o n e y 30 Exercise Exercise Are you from Australia? 15 Exercise What’s your last name? 16 Part Four Exercise The maps of some countries 16 Exercise H ow much is this? 30 Exercise That sounds interesting 18 Exercise H ow much does this cost? 31 Exercise 3Living in London Part One Cardinals 20 Exercise Reading the nu m b ers 20 Exercise Number d icta tio n 20 Exercise Ticking the numbers you h e a r 20 Exercise W^hich number is it ? 21 Exercise Number practice 21 ( ) 31 Exercise Living in London ( ) 32 Exercise Living in London ( ) 32 Part Five T im e 33 Exercise Can you tell me the tim e? 33 Exercise WTiat time does the next train arrive? 34 Exercise Daily schedules 34 Exercise Mike, Susan, and Ellen’s d ay 35 Part Six The T e le p h o n e 36 Exercise Discriminating between teens and tens 22 Exercise Reading the nu m b ers 23 Exercise Number d ic ta tio n 23 Exercise Inquiry .36 Exercise Circulation o f British newspapers 23 Exercise Making an appointm ent 36 Exercise 10 Airports in the Southeast o f B ritain 24 Exercise Telephone message (1) 37 Exercise 11 Practical problem -solving 24 Exercise Telephone message (2) 38 Exercise Telephone message ( ) 38 '.■ Vw w nhanlriviet.com Part Seven Exercise Exercise Exercise Exercise Exercise BBSS H Exercise Exercise Exercise Exercise Exercise Exercise How crossword puzzles are created Days and months Accommodation When does school start? 40 Great names in British history 42 Find the difference 42 Exercise K oala 62 Stamp collecting 62 Survival English Exercise Exercise Exercise Exercise Exercise Exercise Exercise Exercise Exercise Exercise 10 Exercise 11 Exercise 12 Exercise 13 Exercise 14 Exercise 15 Health problems 47 In a camera shop 47 In the restaurant 47 At the reception desk uy a hotel 48 ' Christmas activities 49 Trip to Stonehenge 50 Marriage .50 University campus 51 Music in New Orleans 51 Talking to a landlady .52 The news 53 Some interesting places to g o 53 Trip to Belfast 54 TV and radio .55 Sports .56 | Popular Science 60 D ates Exercise Exercise Get the right food to stay s lim 63 Exercise 10 Our body system s 63 Exercise 11 Inventor o f the telephone ( ) 64 Exercise 12 Inventor o f the telephone ( ) 65 Exercise 13 Inventors o f the airplane ( ) 65 Exercise 14 Inventors o f the airplane ( ) Exercise 15 Invention o f the telegraph ( ) 66 66 Exercise 16 Invention o f the telegraph ( ) 67 Uni: P h r: A c a d e m ic E n g lish Exercise Exercise Exercise Exercise Exercise Exercise University’s calendar 71 About the course 71 Being involved in campus lif e 72 The first-year undergraduates .74 Be a successful student 74 Homestay programme 75 75 Exercise O xford Exercise Controlling concentration „76 Computing service „77 Exercise English letter w riting 77 Exercise 11 H ow to become a confident student 78 Exercise 12 About language learning „79 Exercise 13 How to take n o tes 79 Exercise 10 Exercise 14 The dean’s speech „81 How to grow chives 58 Exercise 15 How to write a sum mary 82 Who invented popcorn? 58 Lobsters 59 Vocabulary & Phonetic Symbols „85 Jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge 59 93 Where ants go in winter? 60 Scripts 8t Answer Key vw /w nha ii trivie i coir b IELTS OVERVIEW I The IELTS Test IELTS, the International English Language Testing System, was introduced in 1989 It is an English language proficiency test that is required to be taken by non-native students for studying in countries where the medium of instruction is English It is now used for this purpose around the globe The IELTS is managed by three main institutions: the British Council, IDP: IELTS Australia and the University of Cambridge ESOL Examinations (Cambridge ESOL) This is im portant to understand in order to prepare for what is essentially an examination of British and not American English Depending on the course of study that students plan to take, students must elect to sit either the Academic IELTS test or the General Training IELTS test This choice must be made when applying to sit the test Academic Module The Academic IELTS test is necessary for students who plan to study at university (under­ graduate or postgraduate courses), and will test students’ ability both to understand and to use complex academic language General Training Module The General Training Module of IELTS is for students seeking entry to a secondary school or to vocational training courses, and also for those who wish to apply for immigration tries such as Canada, Australia, or New Zealand IELTS is not recommended for candidates under the age of 16 II The IELTS Test Format There are four sub-tests to the IELTS test: Reading, W riting, Listening, and Sp g didates must sit all four sub-tests While all candidates take the same Listening and Speaking tests, they sit different Reading and Writing tests, depending on whether they have selected e Academic IELTS test or the General Training IELTS test These two not carry the same w eight and are not interchangeable The first three sub-tests - Listening, Reading, and W riting - must be completed in one day^ There is no break between the sub-tests The Speaking test may be taken, at the iscretio the test centre, in the period of seven days before or after the other sub-tests of the IELTS test 'Tl'.'in u'ivici.com III The IELTS Listening Format The IELTS Listening test is the same for both the Academic and General Training modules Candidates will listen to a tape/CD and answer a series of questions The tape will be played O N C E only The Listening test is in four sections with 10 questions in each (i.e a total o f 40 questions), in order of increasing difficulty The Listening test will last for about 30 minutes with an extra 10 minutes at the end to transfer answers to the answer sheet Speech styles Survival English t One and Part Two of the Listening test whereas academic English is used in Parts Three and Four Each of the four sections of the IELTS Listening test focuses on a different type of speech, as shown below: • Section 1: A social or transactional dialogue (2 speakers) • Section 2: A talk or short speech on a general topic (1 speaker) • Section 3: A conversation in an academic context ( - speakers) • Section 4: An academic lecture (1 speaker) Question types The Listening test measures how well candidates can listen for main ideas, specific informa­ tion, supporting information, facts and opinions A variety of question types are found: • Multiple choice • F orm /G a p fillin g • Short answer • Sentence completion • True/False/Not given • Notes/Diagram/Summary/Flow chart completion • Finding the location (on a map) The variety of question types means that candidates sometimes need to write the answers of their own instead of simply choosing the right answers This is important because in such cases, they also need to spell correctly or the answers will be marked wrong Even a small error can cause them to lose marks For example, if the answer is hat and they write hats, it may be marked wrong Candidates also have to make sure they include the correct information If the answer is greeti hats and they write only hats, they may also lose points :vi0LA c / IV IELTS Listening Tips • The accents of the speakers on the tape/CD are primarily British This means you m ust become accustomed to understanding the nuances of such accents If you have been watching a lot of American television, it will not really help you British accents are quite different and it is better to spend time in the months before the test listening to British radio stations and podcasts or watching the BBC, British shows and movies This is one of the major differences between the IELTS exam and the TOEFL exam, which features more American accents • Get used to the way letters and numbers are pronounced in British (and American) English Sometimes, in a listening section, you are asked to write down the spelling of a name, place, or ad­ dress If you make a mistake in the spelling while writing it down, you will get the answer wrong • The expressions used also tend to be taken from British rather than American English This means you may hear unfamiliar idioms, which can confuse you Speakers may also use British words for common items such as flat for apartment, lorry for truck, or advert for advertisement Make sure you study the most common differences in British and American vocabulary and listen to as niany IELTS exercises as possible before your exam to prepare you for the actual test experience • Learn to distinguish opinion from fact In the third and fourth listening sections, you will probably be tested on what one of the speakers thinks or what his/her view is This may or may not be stated outright, but as an underlying theme in the whole conversation or in the tone of the speakers voice, rather than the words themselves Follow instructions very carefully If the instructions state, Write no more than three words, then >ou must not write more or you will receive no marks for your answer, even if some of the words you wrote were part of the correct answer Similarly, read each instruction carefully Sometimes, you are asked to circle two answers, sometimes three, and so on You must read the instruction each time as it may differ from the previous ones Remember, the ability to follow instructions in English is a test in itself • The questions follow the oral text Remember this - it will make it easier for you to focus on the current question, or to know when you have been left behind, in case the speakers have gone on to providing the answers to the next questions • Familiarise yourself with diagrams, graphs, flow charts, bar charts and pie charts These often appear as part of the answer choices in the fourth section The more comfortable you are with interpreting the data represented in them, the easier your exam will be You will get a better sense o f how precise you need to be b y d o in g as m an y practice listen in g exams as possible before your actual test Believe it or n ot, yo u w ill im prove w ith practice, th ou gh it might seem im possible at first Your ear and your cen tration can be trained O ver tim e, you will improve - but only if you remain patient and m ove steadily towards your goal o f the highest score Unit One In the IELTS Listening test, candidates are required to write people’s names or geographical names Therefore, you should familiarise yourself with the 26 English alphabetical letters This unit will help you to practise: • listening and writing the English alphabetical letters together with some common abbreviations • listening and writing common names of people and places • listening and writing down the answers quickly and accurately It is advisable th at you practise doing all the exercises in this unit What is more, after checking with the answer key or scripts, try to repeat all the proper names so that you can improve your pronunciation and increase your knowledge of proper nouns I I I I I I E aster Eggs At Easter tim e, th e A m erica n s celebrate th e idea o f n ew birth by givin g each other ch ocolate and Easter eggs w h ic h are o p e n e d and eaten o n Easter S unday O n G o o d Friday bakers sell h ot cross buns, w h ich are toasted an d eaten w ith butter Easter M o n d a y is a holiday and a lot ot people travel to the seaside for th e day or g o and w atch o n e o f the m an y sp ortin g events such as football or horse racing T h e four changes are: A m ericans —> British _ “op en ed a n d ” lei F o n t -— a lot o f —> m an y “m an y” left o u t N ew Y ea r’s Eve N e w Year’s Eve is on the n ig h t o f st D ecem b er M a n y p eo p le stay up until at least just alter m id n igh t in order to see in the N e w Year It’s also the n igh t o f the year w h en m ost pubs, bars and restaurants forget ab ou t their usual clo sin g tim es and stay op en until after m id n igh t In L ondon, m any p eop le go to Trafalgar Square to hear B ig B en ch im e m id n ig h t, and traditionally take a shower in the fou n tain s in T rafalgar Square T h e C hristm as tree is a yearly gift from N orw ay T h e five changes are: M any —> M ost “just” left ou t “bars” left o u t m any —> th ou san d s o f a yearly —> an annual Pancake Day Ash W ed n esd ay is the day in February w h en the C hristian period o f Lent begins I his refers to the tim e w h en C h rist w ent in to the desert and fasted for fifty days A lthough not many people actually give up eatin g du rin g this period, o n Pancake Thursday, the day before Ash \ \ ednesday, they cat lots of pancakes T h e y are m ade from flour, mi lk and eggs, and fried in a hot pan M any tow ns also hold pancake races on that day P eop le run alon g the streets h old in g a trying pan and throw ing the pancakes in the air O f course if th ey drop the pancake they lose the race www.nhantriviet.com Answer Key 177 The six changes are : fifty -» forty “ actually” left out Thursday —» Tuesday They *-» These Many —> Some along —>through T ext Christmas b i f ^ ' I imP,0r'” ' fa “Val °f the « »mbines the Christian celebration of the “ h s id d " r fativitiCS 0f ™ '“ - On the Sunday before Christmas, a lot of sinemrr in the t” “ T !P' C“ l’ymns arc sun8- V" y often you can hear carol singers t v n o T ; i “ ,hCy; ° m I , ' r I “ m° nCy f0' ” “ lnd ,hey of the Z HSh,S “ d d'C° ra,'°"S- t ^ T r houses svith « Christmas tree in the corner of the I»"