<p>Task 3. You are going to give a talk about household chores. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and speak for not more than 2 minutes (10–12 sentences).</p><p>Remember to say:</p><p>· why it is important to share the household chores in a family;</p><p>· how household chores are divided in your family;</p><p>· what household chores you like and dislike doing and why;</p><p>· what your attitude to ignoring household chores is.</p><p>You have to talk continuously.</p>

<p>Task 1. You are going to read the text aloud. You have 1.5 minutes to read the text silently, and then be ready to read it aloud. Remember that you will not have more than 2 minutes for reading aloud.</p><p>Our planet is the only planet in the Solar System where rainbows are possible. They are not visible in big cities, due to pollution and smog. But if you are travelling after rain has fallen in the countryside or walking on the beach, you have a good chance to see a rainbow. The rainbow is a multi-coloured arc which appears in the sky. When you see a rainbow, the sun is always behind you and it is raining in front of you. It is impossible to get to the end of the rainbow and to touch it. When you move, the rainbow moves too. We have always learned that rainbows have 7 colours. However, until the 17th century, people used to think there were only 5 colours in the rainbow.</p>

<p>Task 1. You are going to read the text aloud . You have 1.5 minutes to read the text silently, and then be ready to read it aloud. Remember that you will not have more than 2 minutes for reading aloud.</p><p>Nowadays people can’t imagine their kitchen without a refrigerator. The first refrigerators appeared at the end of the 18th century. They looked different: they were just iceboxes. The refrigerators of the past were just wooden boxes, sometimes lined inside with metal. People put ice into the box and then placed the food inside to keep it cool. The refrigerator, similar to the one that we have now, was produced by General Electric in 1911, in France. It was very expensive. In those days, with the same money you could buy two cars. Today, in developed countries almost every family has enough money to buy a refrigerator for their kitchen. It’s hard to imagine how difficult and uncomfortable our lives would be without a refrigerator.</p>

<p>Task 3. You are going to give a talk about keeping fit. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and speak for not more than 2 minutes (10 – 12 sentences). Remember to say:</p><p>· why a healthy lifestyle is popular nowadays;</p><p>· what you do to keep fit;</p><p>· what sports activities are popular with teenagers in your region;</p><p>· what your attitude to a healthy lifestyle is.</p><p>You have to talk continuously.</p>

<p>Task 1. You are going to read the text aloud. You have 1.5 minutes to read the text silently, and then be ready to read it aloud. Remember that you will not have more than 2 minutes for reading aloud.</p><p>The human brain is the most complex and remarkable organ of the body. It controls everything we do – thinking, learning, and even heart rate. Though the brain makes up only 2 percent of the body’s weight, it uses around 20 percent of its energy. It works 24 hours a day. Even when a person is sleeping, the brain is working hard to keep other organs functioning. Most people think that our brain is more active during the daytime because it needs to deal with a great amount of information. In fact, that’s not true. The brain is far more active when a person is sleeping! However, scientists don’t yet have any explanation for this fact.</p>

<p>Task 1. You are going to read the text aloud . You have 1.5 minutes to read the text silently, and then be ready to read it aloud. Remember that you will not have more than 2 minutes for reading aloud.</p><p>Recycling is a technology that helps protect the environment and cut down on usage of raw materials. The steel, paper and glass industries recycle a lot. The largest recycler is the steel industry. It recovers more than 70 percent of its original materials. For example, since 1988 they have produced the majority of new metal cans from old ones. Metal parts for cars and planes are other examples of recycling steel. Fragments of waste glass are widely used in construction. For producing writing paper and pens, used packing boxes are an ideal material. They are cheap and easy to recycle. Nowadays more and more recycling centres are appearing in our towns and cities.</p>

<p>Task 1. You are going to read the text aloud. You have 1.5 minutes to read the text silently, and then be ready to read it aloud. Remember that you will not have more than 2 minutes for reading aloud.</p><p>Oxford University is the oldest university in the English-speaking world. It is also the second oldest university in the world. The University of Oxford is believed to have started in 1133. It is located in Oxford City on the Thames River, not far from London. Oxford University is one of the world’s most impressive centres of education. There are students from different countries there. In fact, there is no building in Oxford called Oxford University. The University includes 38 colleges and related buildings. Over 22,000 students study English language and literature, geography, history, law, modern languages and other subjects there.</p>

<p>Task 1. You are going to read the text aloud . You have 1.5 minutes to read the text silently, and then be ready to read it aloud. Remember that you will not have more than 2 minutes for reading aloud.</p><p>The carrot is a root vegetable which consists mostly of water and sugar. The carrots that we eat today originated from the wild ones which grew in Europe and Asia. The vegetable tasted sweet and the people began to use it as food.</p><p>There are two main types of carrots. There are eastern carrots that have dark purple roots and western carrots with orange roots. In fact, orange carrots first appeared in Europe in 1721. Dutch farmers selected orange carrots because orange is the colour of the Dutch Royal Family. Now orange carrots are widely grown all over the world. In modern households carrots are cooked and eaten in different ways. The vegetable is boiled, fried, baked and eaten raw. People also make juice from it.</p>

<p>Task 1. You are going to read the text aloud . You have 1.5 minutes to read the text silently, and then be ready to read it aloud. Remember that you will not have more than 2 minutes for reading aloud.</p><p>One day a young man who lived near the lake in a small American town asked himself, “Why can’t people ski on water if they can ski on snow?” With his brother’s help he constructed several models of skis to test his ideas. He experimented on the local lake for a few days and created skis suitable for the water. This happened in 1922. The young man, who was only 18 at that time, didn’t patent his invention. However, he performed a lot of shows across the country that made him and the sport of water skiing popular. Later, he was recognized as the creator of a new sport – water skiing.</p><p>Water skiing equipment has been greatly improved since that time, and the number of people who enjoy this sport is growing in many countries.</p>

<p>Task 1. You are going to read the text aloud . You have 1.5 minutes to read the text silently, and then be ready to read it aloud. Remember that you will not have more than 2 minutes for reading aloud.</p><p>Wombats are exotic animals that only live in Australia. They have become an unofficial symbol of the country. In 1974 a wombat appeared on an Australian stamp for the first time. Since then it has been regularly used on different Australian stamps and coins. Wombats look like little bears and prefer grass to meat. They also love eating berries, plant roots and mushrooms. Like camels, wombats drink little water because there is enough water in fresh grass. Wombats spend most of their life in holes under the ground. With their strong arms and long nails they are able to dig very long and complex tunnels. Fortunately, wombats have few enemies in the animal world. Most wombats live around 15 years.</p>

<p>Task 1. You are going to read the text aloud . You have 1.5 minutes to read the text silently, and then be ready to read it aloud. Remember that you will not have more than 2 minutes for reading aloud.</p><p>Nowadays solar energy is widely used as an alternative form of power. Solar panels transform the energy from the sun into electricity. The first plane that does not need fuel was constructed in France in 2015. It uses only the sun’s energy. The panels are placed on the huge wings of the plane. It doesn’t fly very fast. Solar energy can make the plane move at only 140 miles an hour. However, the plane is able to travel round the world. It is safe and can successfully cross areas of bad weather. In the future, engineers hope to construct a model that people can fly in. Our dream of environmentally friendly transport may come true very soon. Would you like to take a flight on the solar plane?</p>

<p>Task 1. You are going to read the text aloud. You have 1.5 minutes to read the text silently, and then be ready to read it aloud. Remember that you will not have more than 2 minutes for reading aloud.</p><p>The Caspian Sea is one of the world’s natural wonders. It shares the characteristics of both a sea and a lake. In the past it was called a sea because of its great size and salty water. However, the Caspian Sea is listed as the largest lake in the world. There are about 130 rivers which bring their water to the Caspian Sea . But it is not a freshwater lake – its water is very salty. The Caspian Sea is famous for its wildlife. More than 850 kinds of animals can be found in this unique sea. The Caspian Sea region is also one of the oldest oil-producing areas in the world. It is also rich in other natural resources.</p>

<p>Task 3. You are going to give a talk about pocket money. You will have to start in 1.5 minutes and speak for not more than 2 minutes (10–12 sentences).</p><p>Remember to say:</p><p>· why it is important for a teenager to have pocket money;</p><p>· how much pocket money a week you usually get;</p><p>· what you spend your pocket money on and why;</p><p>· what your attitude to earning pocket money is.</p><p>You have to talk continuously.</p>

<p>Task 1. You are going to read the text aloud . You have 1.5 minutes to read the text silently, and then be ready to read it aloud. Remember that you will not have more than 2 minutes for reading aloud.</p><p>The word “ tsunami ” can be translated from Japanese as “ big wave ” . It describes a natural process that can be dangerous for people and their homes. Most of the huge waves appear after earthquakes. Most waves are born in the Indian and the Pacific Oceans where volcanoes are active. The mass of water rises from the bottom of the ocean and moves to the shore. It moves at a speed of a plane and can be up to 40 meters high. The wave is very powerful and dangerous. In 2004, a tsunami happened in the Indian Ocean. It was one of the most terrible natural disasters in history. Thousands of people were killed or went missing.</p>

<p>Task 1. You are going to read the text aloud. You have 1.5 minutes to read the text silently, and then be ready to read it aloud. Remember that you will not have more than 2 minutes for reading aloud.</p><p>The Channel Tunnel is a rail tunnel beneath the English Channel which links Great Britain and France. It is considered to be one of the most amazing engineering constructions in Europe. The second longest undersea tunnel in the world was opened in 1994. It is said that 13,000 workers and engineers participated in the construction project. The Channel Tunnel contains three tunnels. The south tunnel is for people who are travelling from France to the UK, the north tunnel takes passengers from the UK to France. Nowadays it takes 35 minutes to go from Paris to London in the Channel Tunnel. The third tunnel is a service tunnel. It is not used by passengers.</p>