Examen d e A cred itació n d e N iv eles d e L en g u a I n g les a - SER EX - 201 9

Name: ___________________________
D N I _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Level: Pre - intermediate Paper: Reading

A. Read the text

The Circus
The Rodriguez Brothers Circus is in town! Every year, the circus arrives and stays for a
week. Then they go to the next town.

There are not many animals in the circus. People told the circus that they didn't like
seeing animals performing. There is an elephant called Jacob and two old lions, Hattie
and Meg.

Most of the performers are human! There is Leopold, The Strongest Man in the World.
His father also worked in the circus, but Leopold is stronger than him, he has bigger
arms and bigger legs too! Leopold performs his act every night for the town's people
who come to watch.

Another performer is Clara. She says she has the longest hair in the world. It's about 4
metres long! She also has a daughter who works in the circus. Her name is Sue-Ellen.
Her hair is a lot shorter, but she wants to grow it as long as her mother's. Sue-Ellen
helps look after the animals and she's also learning how to juggle.

The highlights of the circus are the three clowns, Pit, Pot and Pat. They all wear long red
shoes, but Pat's shoes are the longest and sometimes, he falls over because they're so
long! They perform for about twenty minutes and they are always the most popular act
with the audience, especially the children. Many people think Pit, Pot and Pat are three
brothers, but Pat is older than the other two - he's their father! He's the oldest clown in
the country, but he has a lot of energy.

Tomorrow will be the longest day because the circus is leaving town and everything
must be packed away into big trucks.

A.1- Answer True or False .

1. The circus comes to the town twice a year. True / False
2. There are not many animals in the circus. True / False
3. People don't come to the circus because of the animals. True / False
4. Leopold and his father work in the circus together. True / False
5. Leopold's father is the strongest. True / False
6. Clara's hair is longer than her daughter's hair. True / False
7. Sue-Ellen wants to be a clown in the circus. True / False
8. Pit is the father of the other two clowns. True / False
9. The three clowns wear identical shoes. True / False
10. Everyone is very tired on the day that the circus True / False
leaves town.

1
 Examen d e A cred itació n d e N iv eles d e L en g u a I n g les a - SER EX - 201 9

Name: ___________________________
D N I _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

A.2- Read the text again and finish the sentences below:

1. The Rodriguez Brothers circus _____________________________

________________________________________________________
2. There is only ___________________________________________
3. The most popular act is ___________________________________
4. Pat, one of the clowns, sometimes falls down because _______ ___
_________________________________________________________

B. Read the interview.

B.1- Put the four q uestions in the correct places. There are two extra questions.

a- Have you ever had any famous passengers? d- What´s the worst part of the job?

b-Did you earn good money? e- Have you driven a strange passenger?

c- Have passengers ever left anything in your taxi? f- When did you start?

The taxi driver

Fiona McIntyre is a taxi driver in London. She tells us about her work and some of her experience.

1 __________________________________

I´ve been a taxi driver for about five years. Before that, I was a bus driver in London and
I enjoyed it, but I wanted to be more ind ependent so I changed and started driving my
taxi.

2 __________________________________

Oh yes. I´ve had film starts, politicians, you know, lots of famous people. About a year
ago, a really famous actor got in my taxi. I took him to the airport. There was a lot of
traffic and it took a long time to get there, so he missed the plane. It wasn´t my fault but
when he got out of the taxi, he said some things that weren´t very polite! I said to him,
“Next time, take a bus!”

3 ________________________________ _

Oh yes! People have left all kinds of things in here - a suitcase, a hat, mobile phones of
course, even a dog once! Years ago, a woman left a pair of shoes on the back seat. And
one time a passenger left his teeth here! Not real teeth, of course - false teeth.
And people have asked me to do some strange jobs. Once a doctor stopped me outside a
hospital and asked me to take a skeleton to another hospital. And I did. But I asked the
doctor to pay first - the skeleton couldn´t pay, after all!

4 ______________ __________________

Good question. I´ve always enjoyed being a taxi driver and I don´t want to change. But, of
course, sometimes, it´s not great. I don´t like driving around without a passenger, but
it´s better than just waiting at the airport or at a rail way station. I think that´s the worst
part- waiting.

2
 Examen d e A cred itació n d e N iv eles d e L en g u a I n g les a - SER EX - 201 9

Name: ___________________________
D N I _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

B.2- Read the interview again and answer the questions.

1- Why did Fiona stop being a bus driver?

_________________________________________________
2- Why was the famous actor angry when he got out of the taxi?
_________________________________________________________________
3- Why did she ask the doctor to pay first when she took the skeleton?
_________________________________________________________________
4- What two things does she not like about her job?
_________________________________________________________________

C. Read the text

If statues could talk

How did the Easter Island statues move? Archaeologists are still trying to work out
how – and what their story really means.

On a winter night last June, José Antonio Tuki, a 30 -year-old artist on Easter Island,
sat on Anakena beach and stared at the enormous human statues there – the moai.
The statues are from four feet tall to 33 feet tall. Some weigh more than 80 tons. They
were carved a long time ago, with stone tools, and then they were moved up to 11
miles to the beach. Tuki stares at their faces and he feels a connection. ‘This is
something that was produced by my ancestors,’ he says. ‘How did they do it?’

The first Polynesians arrived at Rapa Nui (Easter Island), probably by canoe, hundreds
of years ago. Nowadays 12 flights arrive every week from Chile, Peru and Tahiti. In
2011, 50,000 tourists – ten times the island’s population – flew to Easter Island. Almost
all of the jobs on Easter Island depend on tourism. And the tourists go there for only
one thing: the moai.

People around the world became curious about the statues after the Norwegian
adventurer Thor Heyerdahl made Easter Island famous, an d there are different theories
about how the statues were moved to the beach. Many researchers think the statues
were pulled along the ground using ropes and wood.

Pulitzer Prize winner Jared Diamond has suggested that many people were needed to
build and move the moai. As a result, the island’s trees were cut down for wood and to
create farming land. This open land was fragile and it was soon eroded by the strong
winds, so it was very difficult to grow food. The situation was an early example of an
ecological disaster, according to Diamond.

On the other hand, archaeologists Terry Hunt of the University of Hawaii and Carl Lipo
of California State University Long Beach have a more positive view of the island’s
history. They suggest that the inhabitants actually pioneered a type of sustainable
farming – they built thousands of circular stone walls, called manavai, and grew food
inside them. And their theory about how the moai were moved is that they were ‘walked’
along using a system of only ropes and a f ew people.

As José Tuki contemplates these enormous statues, he doesn’t mind that there are no
definite answers about the history of his island. ‘I want to know the truth,’ he says, ‘but
maybe knowing everything would take its power away’.
(text adapted from nglife.com)
3
 Examen d e A cred itació n d e N iv eles d e L en g u a I n g les a - SER EX - 201 9

Name: ___________________________
D N I _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

C.1- Choose the best option.

1 The Easter Island statues … a) are new constructions to attract tourists.

b) aren’t completely understood by archaeologists.
c) were destroyed by the islanders

2 On Easter Island today, the statues … a) are very important for tourism.
b) are not important.
c) are a problem.

3 The people of Easter Island today … a) don’t have a lot of contact with the rest of the
world.
b) can’t find jobs on the island.
c) work in the tourism industry

4 Studying the moai … a) can tell us about the people who lived on the island.
b) is important to the farmers on Easter Island.
c) helps us to understand the art of José Tuki.

5 The moai … a) are statues of animals.

b) are all the same size.
c) were made by José Tuki’s ancestors.

6 Jared Diamond thinks that … a) farmers on Easter Island planted a lot of trees.
b) there were environmental problems on Easter Island.
c) the population of Easter Island was always small.

7 Hunt and Lipo think people moved the statues using … a) wood.
b) ropes.
c) both wood and ropes.

C. 2- Match words from the reading text with their correct definition:

1- carve (v) ___ A- a simple piece of equipment that you hold in your hand and
use to do a particular kind of work

2- curious (adj) ___ B- the weather, sea or wind cracks and breaks it so that it is
damaged

3- erode (v) ___ C- interested in something and wanting to know more about it

4- fragile (adj) ___ D- to make an object by cutting it out of a substance such as

wood or stone

5- stare (v) ___ E- that is how heavy you are

6- tool (n) ___ F- easily broken or damaged

7- weigh (v) ___ G- to look at someone or something for a long time

4
 Examen d e A cred itació n d e N iv eles d e L en g u a I n g les a - SER EX - 201 9

Name: ___________________________
D N I _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Level: Pre - intermediate Paper: English in Use

A. Read the following text and fill in the blanks with an appropriate word /
phrase from the box. Do not repeat them. There are two (2) extra words.

space - first - later - walked - began - scientists - paid -

rock - together - beginning - tourism - flight

Moments in space history

On October 4, 1957, the Soviet Union sent Sputnik 1 into space and a new age in history
1 ___________ – The Space Age. The Soviets launched more Sputnik satellites in the
fifties and by 1961 they had put the 2 __________ man into space.

Eight years later, an American finally 3 __________ on the moon and during the early
seventies the US led the Soviet Union in the space race. However, space travel was
expensive and they needed to co-operate more. As a result, in 1975 astronauts from both
countries flew two spacecraft and met in 4 ___________. Afterwards, one astronaut said
that the mission showed that the Soviet Union and America could work 5 __________.

Nearly two decades 6 __________, leaders from both countries said they had agreed on
plans for a new international space station (ISS) and by the turn of the century the ISS had
started orbiting the Earth. Nowadays, the ISS is used by 7 __________ from all over the
world.

At the 8 __________ of the twenty-first century, businessman Dennis Tito 9 _________

twenty million dollars and told the world he loved space as he spent eight days on the ISS.
Since then, space 10 __________ has developed with plans for regular tours and floating
hotels.

B. Underline the correct words.

At / On the morning of July 14, 1960, Jane Goodall arrived / was arriving on the east
shore of Lake Tanganyika and the Gombe National Park. She had brought a tent, a cup
without a handle, a pair of binoculars and her mother. A group of local men / mans met
the strange pair of women and helped/ helps carry their camping equipment. Then,
around 5 p.m., somebody/ somewhere reported that they had seen/ saw a chimpanzee
some minutes ago. Straight away, Jane set down / off into the forest/ desert to find her
first chimpanzee.

5
 Examen d e A cred itació n d e N iv eles d e L en g u a I n g les a - SER EX - 201 9

Name: ___________________________
D N I _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

As a young woman, Jane Goodall had no scientific qualifications but this didn’t stop her from
following her childhood sleep / dream of studying chimpanzees in Africa. She had set out
to study the animals and find out how they really lived / leaved. After many / much
months of difficult work she made three important discoveries: chimpanzees eating/ ate
meat, they used tools to get food and they also made tools.

Nowadays, she spends / passes about 300 days a year giving interviews, talks and
lectures, meeting with government officials and raising money for the Jane Goodall Institute
which / who continues her research. She has very few / little spare time left but she still
spends part of every year in the forest in Gombe, watching her chimpanzees.

C. Rewrite each sentence without changing the meaning. Begin your sentence
with the word/s given.

1- My advice to you is that you have to save more money.

You _________________________________ _________ more money.

2- Sam will go to the beach unless the weather is cold and windy.
If the weather__________ ________________________ go to the beach.

3-Carton is the new clothes shop; my brother buys his clothes there.
Carton _______________________________________ buys his clothes.

4-This film version of the book is amazing. The book is amazing , too.
The film version is _______________ _____________________ the book.

5- It´s forbidden to use the cell phone while doing an exam.

You ______________ ________________________ while doing an exam.

6- The ticket to the football match is more expensive than t he tickets for
the rest of the sports events.
The football match ticket is _____________________________________
of all the sports events.

7- Last night my sister watched her favourite TV series and my brother

practiced playing the drums.
While my sister_ ______________________________________________
playing the drums.

8- Marianne has arranged to meet her secondary school friends at 8.00 in

Lillo’s café.
Marianne _______________________________her secondary school
friends at 8.00 in Lillo´s café.

D. Circle the correct answers for each gap.

6
 Examen d e A cred itació n d e N iv eles d e L en g u a I n g les a - SER EX - 201 9

Name: ___________________________
D N I _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Grandma: Kate, what´s the matter? You´ve been here 1 ___ two days and
you look so sad.
Kate: Well, Granny, last Sunday I argued with Jane and now we aren´t
talking.
Grandma: Who´s Jane? Tell me.
Kate: She´s my best friend. I´ve known her 2 ___ she came to live near
me. You know she 3 ___ in a house at the end of the road. We don´t go to
the same school but me meet at the local youth club every afternoon. We
are both interested 4 ___ animals and music and we play volleyball
together.
Grandma: I 5___ your friendship is very important. 6___ don´t you phone
her?
Kate: I´ll phone her right now. Grandma, 7 ___ you let me use your
phone? I´ve got no credit on mine.
Grandma: Of course you can. Go ahead!

1. for since from on

2. for since when while
3. lived leave left lives
4. on an at in
5. wait guess remember hope
6. Why Who Where That
7. can will must have to

7
 Examen d e A cred itació n d e N iv eles d e L en g u a I n g les a - SER EX - 201 9

Name: ___________________________
D N I _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Level: Pre - intermediate Paper: Listening

A.1- Stephen and Janice go shopping for a new computer. Listen to the
recording, then decide which of them says the following things. Choose
"Janice" or "Stephen" for each question. Underline the correct option.

1. I don't understand very much about computers. Stephen / Janice

2. I want a computer that we can use in the sitting room. Stephen / Janice
3. W e need to make a decision today. Stephen / Janice
4. Computer terminology confuses me. Stephen / Janice
5. W e don't need a printer. Stephen / Janice
6. I would prefer not to get a webcam. Stephen / Janice

A.2- Listen again and circle True or False.

1 Stephen seems to understand more about computers than Janice . T RU E / F AL S E

2. Janice would prefer to get a desktop computer because it has more

memory. T R U E / F AL S E

3. Stephen isn't sure about buying a laptop computer because he

thinks it won't be as powerful. T R UE / F AL S E

4. Stephen has a headache and that makes it hard for him to choose . T R U E / F AL S E

5. They are using money from an uncle to buy the computer . T RU E / F AL S E

6. Janice doesn't want to buy a computer with a wide screen . T RU E / F AL S E

7. Somebody eventually comes and helps them . T R U E / F AL S E

B.1- You are going to listen to some people talking about old photos that
contain images of their relatives - parents, grandparents, etc.
Look at these questions. Read the questions first and then choose the best
answer as you listen. Circle the correct option .

1. How many people does the first speaker identify and name?
a. 2 b. 4 c. 3 d. 5

2. What did the first speaker's grandfather do in his life?

a. He worked in a cinema, then became the manager.
b. He got married to a movie star, then they bought a cinema.
c. He sold chocolate and soda drinks to silent movie actors.
d. He worked in a chocolate factory, then made movies.

3. Why do many people think the second speaker's grand aunt is actually his grandmother?
a. They were often together in photos.
b. All the children played together and it was confusing.
c. They lived in the same house.
d. They looked very similar.
8
 Examen d e A cred itació n d e N iv eles d e L en g u a I n g les a - SER EX - 201 9

Name: ___________________________
D N I _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

4. How is the house different now compared to when the photo was taken?
a. The speaker's brother bought the house.
b. It's not there anymore, it was destroyed.
c. The house was replaced with a large apartment building.
d. The area was more open and less built up.

5. What was the occasion of the photo that the third speaker talks about?
a. The girl's uncles were going to fight in the war.
b. The speaker's grandmother wanted a photo with her handbag.
c. It was the birthday of one of them.
d. Two of them were leaving the army.

6. What happened to the uncles of the third speaker's grandmother?

a. They both died in the war.
b. One died in the war, the other had seven children.
c. One died in the war, the other became an actor.
d. One became a cheese maker, the other became an actor.

B.2 For each statement below, write either 1, 2 or 3 depending on whether you heard the
statement during the description of photo 1, 2 or 3. If the statement is not made during any of
the descriptions, write N.

Write: 1 - Photo One 2 - Photo Two 3 - Photo Three N - None of the photos

1. This area has changed how it looks very much now.

2. Something tragic happened to one of the people.

3. The photo has lost its original color.

4. Nobody knew the camera was there.

5. Something from the photo is still in my family.

6. The speaker's father was born ten years after the photo.

7. The little girl was very mature for her age.

8. Two of the people had a big argument soon after the photo.

9
 Examen d e A cred itació n d e N iv eles d e L en g u a I n g les a - SER EX - 201 9

Name: ___________________________
D N I _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Level: Pre - intermediate Paper: Writing

A. Read the information below. Then write an email (100 -130 words) to your
friend. You have to include the information mentioned.

 A friend wants to stay at your home next weekend.

 You told your parents about it. You asked them to let your friend stay. They
said “Yes”!
 Explain some rules about your home (what your friend is allowed to and not
allowed to do).
 Finally, give some instructions about how to get to your home.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………… ……………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………

10
 Examen d e A cred itació n d e N iv eles d e L en g u a I n g les a - SER EX - 201 9

Name: ___________________________
D N I _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

B. Choose ONE of the follow ing beginnings and w rite a STORY in about 100 - 130
w ords

 A.
It was my eighteenth birthday. I had a party at home and invited all my
friends. I was a bit sad because my boyfriend, Jim, was away. He was
travelling in Africa. Then , there was a knock at the door. I ran and opened
the door…

OR

 B.
The day began badly. I heard a voice yelling up the stairs, “Michael! It´s
8.30! You´ve got an exam in an hour!” I jumped out of bed immediately
and…

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

11