Practice Material For Igcse English

 

 

Exercise 1

Recently you witnessed a road accident involving a car, a motorbike and a pedestrian. Write a report for the police describing what you saw. Include the following:  

where you were and what you were doing   a brief description of each vehicle, as well as its it s approximate speed, direction etc.   how the accident happened   what happened afterwards Your report should be 150-200 words long.

 

  Exercise 2 Read the following article about Australian Animals and their Young ones and then answer the questions on the opposite page.

Echidna Just before egg laying, the mother echidna develops a skin pouch and with considerable considerable agility inserts inserts the egg into this snug shelter. The egg hatches hatches after ten days and the baby is fed on milk for about fifty days. The spines of the baby begin to grow just before it leaves the pouch, making it an uncomfortable  burden for the parent. ‘Worse than t han breadcrumbs in the t he bed’, said one naturalist when describing how the mother might feel having such a prickly bundle in her skin pouch! When it has grown large enough it is placed in a burrow or some other shelter. Platypus The most remarkable of the Australian mammals is this strange creature that has a bill like a duck, a tail like a beaver, webbed feet and a fur-covered body. And as if this is not eccentric enough, the mother lays eggs and feeds her young on milk. Both male and female live in short burrows but when breeding approaches, the female digs another burrow that may be from 5 to 30 metres long. At the end of iitt she makes a nest of wet leaves and grass and builds plugs to block the tunnel from the outside world. She lays one to three eggs here, which are slightly slightl y moist and stick  together. The tiny eggs are about 10 millimetres in diameter.

The mother then curls her body around this precious bundle until the babies, about 25 millimetres long, hatch ten to twelve days later. They suck milk from pores on the mother’s abdomen and during this time she devours enormous quantities of food, sometimes eating almost her own weight in a single day. The babies are blind for the first eleven weeks, but are ready to explore the outside world at the age of four months. Platypus are very difficult to observe and much of our knowledge comes from the devoted work of naturalist David Fleay, who is the only person to have bred the animal in captivity. Western Quoll In earlier times most Australian animals were called by names that were links with the more familiar creatures of Europe. We had kangaroo rats, anteaters, marsupial moles, native cats and the like. Today we call them by more suitable names, often those used by the Aborigines. Native cat has been dropped in favour of the Aboriginal word quoll. Australia has four species of quoll: the tiger, eastern, western and northern. These baby western quolls, like all marsupials, are born as tiny scraps of naked flesh. For about seven weeks they cling to the mother’s nipples. After about four months they leave the pouch or the mother’s fur to shelter in a suitable place.They spend this time in play; it is a period when they learn the skills they will need as adult hunters of live food such as small mammals, birds, reptiles and insects, although dead animals are also relished. Turtle Frog Turtle Frog is a unique looking frog which is native to the western part of  Australia. It is characterized by its peculiar body which looks like a small turtle without its shell. Mainly found in the semi-arid region, these frogs, unlike the other frogs, have short and muscular limbs. The strong limbs help them dig into the ground. One behavior which separates it from the rest of the frog is that unlike the other frogs, they dig forward like a turtle rather than backwards.

Turtle frog is not considered an endangered species and its population has remained stable. There is no threat that has been considered to this species as it occurs in an area secluded from human disturbances. The possibility of any threat of the species would be due to: Stalinization, where the soluble salts gets accumulated in the soil. Changes in the habitat like clearance of the vegetation or growth of invasive species. Direct human impact due to urbanization and water pollution.

 

 

1. What shows that the t he mother echidna is so much concerned about about breeding? Give two details. ………………………………………………………………………………..…………………. ……………………………………………………………………………….. ………………….   …………………………………………………………………………………………………. [2] 2. According to the naturalist, how much does a mother echidna has to suffer? ……………………………………………………………………………………….. ……………………………………………………………………………………… ..…………. …………. [1] 3. How a platypus is compared to other creatures? Give two details. …………………………………………………………………………………………………….   ……………………………………………………………………………………………………. ………………………………………………………………………………………..…………. ……………………………………………………………………………………….. …………. [2] breeding?   4. Give two details about the female platypus’s preparation for breeding?  ……………………………………………………………………………………………………. ……………………………………………………………………………….………… ………………………………………………………………………………. …………..………. [2]  [2]  time?   5. What is unusual about the female platypus’s feeding habit during breeding time?  ……………………………………………………………………………………….. ……………………………………………………………………………………… ..…………. …………. [1] 6. What has helped to get much information about platypus? ………………………………………………………………………………………….….……. [1]  …………………………………………………………………………………………. 7. How the Quolls were called in the past and at present? …………………………………………………………………………………………………….   ……………………………………………………………………………………………………. ………………………………………………………………………………………..…………. ……………………………………………………………………………………….. …………. [2]  [2]  8. What makes the Turtle frog unique when compared to other frogs? Give two details. ………………………………………………………………………………………….…………. ……………………………………………………………………………………………..……. …………………………………………………………………………………………….. ……. [2] 9. The Turtle frog would face some possible threats, give two details. …………………………………………………………………………………………………….   ……………………………………………………………………………………………………. ………………………………………………………………………………………..…………. ……………………………………………………………………………………….. …………. [1] [Total 14]

 

  Exercise 3 Read the following article about body piercing. Then write a summary outlining the disadvantages and dangers of body piercing . You should write no more than 100 words. You should use your own words as far as possible. You will be given up to 6 marks for relevant points that you make and up to 4 marks for the way in which you write about these points.

The down side of body piercing As body piercing grows in popularity among both teenagers and their parents, one in five piercings now leads to infection. Emergency medical technicians recently wheeled a 19 year-old woman who had stopped breathing from a drug overdose into a Westchester City hospital. Doctors tried putting a breathing tube down her throat, but their path was blocked by three 1-inch-long metal stud barbells running along the length of her tongue. One doctor got to the point where he said, ‘If you have to rip her tongue, just do it." Eventually they got the tongue out of the way, wa y, but her body piercing could have cost her life. Infections and Removal Problems   The popularity of piercing various body parts continues to increase, from mainstream thirtysomethings to rebellious teenagers, and they are piercing their bodies in stranger and stranger places -

in the mouth, on their navels, through cheeks and even in the genitals. But doctors are starting to see more of body piercing’s disadvantages: oral piercings are causing swollen tongues, excessive bleeding, infection and swallowing of small jewelry parts. In fact, infections from moist or unclean piercing sites now occur in about one out of every five piercings. Those receiving the piercings are firing back, however, saying that the majority of people know how to take care of themselves t hemselves with disinfectants. But, according to some medical practitioners, many piercers are providing their services in unsafe environments - no gloves or mask, no sterilization equipment and unsanitary surroundings. Other hazards come later –  later  – when when jewelry is removed from the piercing site. Skin dimpling may appear even though the hole has closed up. A second problem is keloids - where scar tissue extends into normal tissue. If a person receives a paper cut and develops a keloid, they may end up with a scar the thickness of a pen. A keloid the size of a pea may develop on an earlobe where an earring once hung. Unfortunately, if you cut out a keloid, another may develop at the same location. Caring For Those Little Holes  Each body part presents its own specific danger, such as bleeding, nerve damage or infection and, therefore, requires special attention. Oral piercings, for instance, require an alcohol-free, anti-microbial mouth rinse. Alcohol isn't recommended because it increases the possibility of bleeding. Topical antibiotic creams should not be used for skin piercings because they prevent oxygen from reaching the wound to help it heal. In the upper part of the ear, a serious infection could cause the cartilage to die, leaving permanent disfigurement. Oozing pus from bellybutton piercings is also quite common. Treating an infection can be difficult. For example, if someone receives an antibiotic to fight the "streptococcus" bacteria, it may be of no help because they actually need an antibiotic to fight the "gram negative" bacteria found in the mouth.

The most common piercing problem is ripped skin from the jewelry either catching on clothing or being pulled off. But maybe the most serious threat is hepatitis C. Hepatitis C is a blood borne infection that is being seen more and more in medical rooms, and doctors fear it may just be the tip of  the iceberg. It causes cirrhosis and cancer of the liver and is the most common reason for liver transplants in the U.S. There is currently no vaccine for hepatitis C. Unsterile equipment, poor followup care or the reuse of piercing needles all add to the risk of contracting hepatitis C. Only certain materials should be used in piercing, including titanium, surgical steel, 14-karat and 18-karat gold, and a plastic called Tygon or PTFE. Sterling silver should be avoided because it oxidizes.