B1 Preliminary Practice Exam (PET) READING Name: .............................. Mark: ............ Part 1 Questions 1-5 Look at the text in each question. What does it say? Choose the correct letter A, B or C. Example: 0 Please purchase tickets at the office before boarding the ferry. A Remember to buy your ticket when you get on the ferry. B You should buy your ticket before getting on the ferry. C The ferry won’t leave if you haven’t got a ticket. A Rob is enjoying his holiday. B Rob loves rainy weather. C The weather has spoiled Rob’s holiday. 1 2 EXPERIENCED SALESPERSON NEEDED TO SELL EXCLUSIVE MEN’S CLOTHING – AFTERNOONS ONLY The shop needs: A full-time salespeople to sell men’s clothing. B salespeople with experience to work part-time. C a young salesperson to start work immediately. A The swimming pool will be heated on Tuesday afternoons. B Swimmers may use the other pool on Tuesday afternoons. 3 4 5 C On Tuesday afternoons, swimmers can’t use the heated pool. CLOSED BETWEEN Saturday 5 pm and Monday 9 am. Please return library books through the letterbox. Andrew, Please take my books back to the library before you go to your basketball practice. Thanks, Mum Advanced Think Ahead 3 Photocopiable © A Library books may be returned through the letterbox over the weekend. B The library is closed from Saturday morning until Monday evening. C Return library books before 9 am on Monday. A Mum wants Andrew to take his books back to the library. B Mum asks Andrew to return her books to the library. C Mum tells Andrew to go to basketball practice before he goes to the library. Burlington Books 1 B1 Preliminary Practice Exam (PET) READING Part 2 Questions 6-10 The people below are looking for houses to buy. On the next page, there are descriptions of eight houses. Decide which house is the most suitable for the buyers. For questions 6-10, mark the correct letter (A-H). 6 Monica is looking for a house in the country. Her hobbies are painting and cooking. She wants a place where she can take her dogs for long walks. She enjoys entertaining and having visitors to stay. 7 Dave and Sue are a young couple who are planning to have a baby. Sue wants a house near some shops. Dave works in the city and he loves building and repairing things. They have just bought their first car. 8 Alice manages a large computer company and she also works on the Internet at home. Alice works long hours and doesn’t have time for housework. She likes eating out and often goes to the theatre or cinema. 9 Mandy and Alan are looking for a house out of town. Mandy’s a translator and she works from home. Alan is a travelling salesman. They both love sailing and spend their weekends on their sailing boat. 10 Tom, a widower and a pensioner, is a very keen gardener. He doesn’t want to live in town any more. Tom is looking for a small house in the countryside so that his grandchildren can visit in the holidays. Advanced Think Ahead 3 Photocopiable © Burlington Books 2 B1 Preliminary Practice Exam (PET) READING HOUSES FOR SALE A SUNLIGHT Designed and built by an architect, this ultra-modern home in the countryside has got walls made entirely of glass. The indoor courtyard is home to many exotic plants that need light and protection from the elements. Its location makes it suitable for people who work from home. B TOP VIEW Situated on the top of a hill, this three-bedroomed cottage in the countryside overlooks beautiful scenery. Top View is a 20-minute walk from the sea through woods and over natural grassland. The old farm kitchen has recently been modernised and is fully equipped for entertaining. C SAFE HARBOUR A delightful old fisherman’s cottage, Safe Harbour overlooks a sandy beach. This three-bedroomed house has recently been renovated and all modern conveniences were added. It has a study and a sun porch and is two kilometres from the motorway and ten minutes from the marina. D GARDENSIDE This pretty two-bedroomed cottage is half an hour out of town. It is surrounded by a well-cared-for garden with lots of fruit trees. It has got a large lounge with the original fireplace. Gardenside is a fifteen-minute walk from the Manor Horse Riding School, which caters for adults and children. E 29 FINCH ROAD Near restaurants, shops and cinemas, this first-floor flat has got a balcony that overlooks the beach and the marina. There are two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a large lounge and a well-equipped kitchen. There is underground parking for cars and a roof garden for entertaining. F 17 CRANBERRY DRIVE This pleasant semi-detached house has got two bedrooms, a kitchen and a living room. It’s in the suburbs, close to bus lines, a tube station and the new shopping complex. A separate storeroom, which has been used as a workshop, is attached to the garage. G MAGNOLIA This is a pretty semi-detached home with a well-developed garden. Magnolia is close to the main shopping road and on the bus route into the city centre. There are four bedrooms with a large kitchen and dining area. There is a school and a church around the corner. H 76 ABBEY COURT Centrally located, this modern flat is ideal for a single person or a working young couple. It overlooks the city’s entertainment district. One bedroom has been converted into a study with Internet and cable TV facilities. A service company provides cleaning on a daily basis. Advanced Think Ahead 3 Photocopiable © Burlington Books 3 B1 Preliminary Practice Exam (PET) READING Part 3 Questions 11-15 Read the text and questions below. For each question, mark the correct letter A, B, C or D. WINDY SPIRIT My name is Selwyn Dobkins and I crossed the Pacific Ocean, solo! I was still recuperating after my motorcycle accident when saw Windy Spirit for the first time. I knew little about boats, but I liked what I saw. In January 2000, I bought the 27-foot yacht, not realising that sailing would change my life. I had a feeling that Windy Spirit and sailing would help me recuperate, because sailing was the therapy I needed. I took Windy Spirit out on the water almost every day, but sailing up and down the coast of California wasn’t enough. In my heart I knew that we’d go on a long journey one day. In April 2004, we sailed out of San Diego into the Pacific Ocean. Windy Spirit and I were on our way to Hawaii, a distance of 2,168 nautical miles. Alone on the water for 20 days, where the only signs of life were fish, dolphins and birds, I learned that the journey is more important than the destination. It wasn’t easy and there were times when I was lonely, but in the end, Windy and I did it! Windy Spirit and I were a wonderful team. We looked after each other all the way. In Hawaii, I sold my boat to a man and his wife, who was recovering from an injury. It was the right thing to do. I was sure that sailing in Windy Spirit would help her heal, just as it healed me. 11 Why has the writer written this article? A to explain about long distance sailing and yachts B to describe the trip from California to Hawaii C to give us an idea of what it is like to own a boat D to tell us how important sailing became in his life Advanced Think Ahead 3 Photocopiable © Burlington Books 4 B1 Preliminary Practice Exam (PET) READING 12 What can you learn about the writer from the text? A He is still recuperating from the accident. B He always wanted to go to Hawaii. C He was determined to get better. D He has always been an experienced sailor. 13 The writer’s main belief is that: A sailing was the best therapy for him. B everyone needs to sail in order to recuperate. C sailing is only for people who know about boats. D a long journey is better than a short one. 14 How did Selwyn feel at the end of the trip? A that he didn’t want to be alone any more B proud to have completed the journey on his own C that Hawaii is a long way from California D that he was tired of sailing 15 What might Selwyn say to other sailors about a long journey? A Don’t try to cross the ocean alone. It’s dangerous. B Sail every day so that you have enough experience for a long journey. C When you are sailing, the destination is less important than the journey. D Travel with friends so that you won’t be lonely. Advanced Think Ahead 3 Photocopiable © Burlington Books 5 B1 Preliminary Practice Exam (PET) READING Part 4 Questions 16-20 Read an article about an environmental project. Five sentences have been removed from the article. Choose from the sentences A-H the one which best fits each gap. There are three extra sentences which you do not need to use. The Environment Club: Our First Project by Stephanie Shaw I had always cared about the environment, so when my biology teacher suggested creating an environment club, I was the first to join. Every Wednesday afternoon, we spent hours thinking about ways to protect the environment. I had seen videos of people walking along beaches with bags full of rubbish on the Internet. I wanted to do something similar. Next to our school, there is a garden. According to my biology teacher, the school’s students used to use it in summer. Unfortunately, now it is full of litter. 16 1 However, we also wanted other students to participate. That’s why we made posters encouraging them to volunteer for the clean-up. 17 One student even said that his dad could provide the equipment. This was wonderful, because in order to clean up areas safely, you need to wear 1 special gloves and use special bags which won’t tear. We nearly had everything organised when we realised that we didn’t know if the garden was open to the public. 18 Luckily, our school organised this by contacting the mayor’s office. The council were pleased that we wanted to help. 1 The clean-up day arrived quickly. I was nervous that people wouldn’t come, but over 70 students participated in the event. 19 The clean-up ended only a couple of hours later, after we had collected around 50 bags of 1 litter. We found lots of plastic wrappers and bags, empty bottles and even old clothing. There were also some building materials which someone had thrown there. Soon after, the council would come to remove them. After we had finished, the garden 20 looked like I’d imagined it to be in the past. We were proud of our work, and it’s given us the confidence to start planning an even bigger project. A This meant we were much quicker than I had imagined. B Surprisingly, after just one day, we received lots of offers to help. C But we couldn’t think of anything which could work. D I suggested cleaning it up as our first project, and the club members agreed. E We thought it could be a beautiful place. F We avoided these, because we knew they might be dangerous. G In addition, there wasn’t much to do. H Maybe we needed special permission. Advanced Think Ahead 3 Photocopiable © Burlington Books 6 B1 Preliminary Practice Exam (PET) READING Part 5 Questions 21-26 Read the text and choose the correct word for each space. For each question, mark the correct letter A, B, C or D. Example: 0 A know B think C believe D wonder Gretna Green Every year, more than 4,000 couples come to the Scottish village of Gretna Green to get married. Why do you (0) ............... this village is so special? In 1754, England (21) ............... a law that changed this sleepy Scottish village forever. The law stated that people (22) ............... the age of 21 couldn’t marry without the permission of their parents. But this law didn’t apply to Scotland, where (23) ............... people could get married at 16. So what did couples do if they were in love and not yet 21? They ran away to Scotland, (24) ............... ! Gretna Green became a very popular place for (25) ............... . Stories tell us of lovers who travelled many days and in difficult conditions to get there. Today’s laws are different, but the (26) ............... of “running away” to Gretna Green is still popular for young couples who want a romantic wedding with a difference. 21 A received B passed C accepted D decided 22 A under B at C over D by 23 A middle-aged B young C old D adult 24 A in fact B really C of course D actually 25 A celebrations B events C occasions D weddings 26 A thing B thought C idea D plan Advanced Think Ahead 3 Photocopiable © Burlington Books 7 B1 Preliminary Practice Exam (PET) READING Part 6 Questions 27-32 Read the text. For each question, write the correct answer. Write one word for each gap. Smart Cities by Janet Watson I (27) ............... just finished working (28) ............... a really interesting school project about the future. According to experts, in 30 years’ time, two thirds of the population will live in cities, and the cities of the future will be a lot more advanced than cities are today. Future cities, which (29) ............... actually called ‘smart cities’, will think and react like a human brain. For example, they’ll use biotechnology and robotics (30) ............... build homes, offices and shops without help from people. These buildings will operate more efficiently (31) ............... today’s buildings do. They’ll produce their own energy using solar windows. (32) ............... the buildings have extra energy, they’ll transfer it to other buildings and even to vehicles in the area. Smart cities sound amazing, don’t they? Advanced Think Ahead 3 Photocopiable © Burlington Books 8