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A Memorable Experience – B2 English Reading Test

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
You are going to read a magazine article about a girl who took part in a TV cooking competition. For questions

1-6, choose the answer (A, B, C or D) which you think fits best according to the text.

A MEMORABLE EXPERIENCE
Sara Adelardi, 17, tells us about taking part in a TV cooking competition.

Since I was a child who stood in my grandmother’s kitchen sniffing the delicious smell of freshly baked bread and
homemade soups, I’ve known there is only one thing I want to do in life: cook. So, when I spotted an advert on a
website inviting young people to apply for a TV cooking competition, there was little doubt I’d be first in line to take
part. I thought ‘This could be the beginning of my cooking career!’ English Language Courses

The application process was far from straightforward, as I soon discovered. First, I had to fill in a lengthy form,
detailing everything from how I became interested in cooking (that was the easy part), to things like what I hoped
to get out of being part of the show (these were much trickier!). Once I’d got through that stage of the process, the
next step was to cook a test dish for the show’s judges: scary but exciting, too. If that was good enough, I’d be
invited to take part in the four-week televised competition. One person, selected by the judges, would be voted
out of the competition in each programme, until the winner was announced during the final.

Until I had to create a test dish, I’d been pretty positive about my cooking ability; I often cooked big meals for my
family at the weekends, and my friends loved the little snacks I took into school for break times. But suddenly I
found myself up against 11 other young people who’d been cooking for longer. Some of them – I’d known this
might be the case – had even had part-time jobs as waiters, surrounded by top-class food prepared by
professional chefs. Would I really be able to compete? As I stood at my counter in the test kitchen, ready to start
cooking, I remembered my grandmother’s advice: ‘Stick to what you know best’. Family games

The judges tasted each test dish, made a few notes, and sent us all home. Then the wait began. Had I made it to
the televised competition? Eventually, the phone call came. I’d be in the first live programme of the series the
following week! Our first challenge would be to make a meal with a selection of ingredients chosen by the judges.
It was impossible to know what they’d pick in advance, and I knew I’d just have to use my creativity on the day, but
I was still desperate to do some preparation, and rushed straight to my parents’ kitchen, pulling everything from
the cupboards in a panic. All day I experimented with new flavour combinations, testing them out on my parents
and sister. Most things they liked, some they didn’t. What if the judges weren’t keen on my dishes?

The day of the first programme dawned and suddenly there I was with the other competitors, waiting to be given
our instructions. The lights were hot in the TV studio, but although I’d expected to be nervous about being filmed
for a TV show, my excitement soon took over. I recognised all the ingredients spread out on the table in front of
me and I was eager to get to work. I knew exactly what I was going to cook! My grandmother’s words rang in my
ears again. ‘Keep it simple,’ I thought, as I started chopping. English Language Courses

I didn’t make it any further in the competition. The judges liked my dish and said I showed promise as a cook, but
the other competitors were better on the day. I’d learnt a lot from seeing how they worked, and how imaginative
their dishes were compared to mine, so I wasn’t too disappointed. It had been a memorable experience, and (line
70) confirmed in my mind that cooking was the career for me. Years of learning still lie ahead of me, but one day
I’d love to own my own restaurant – and help other young people fulfil their dreams too! English grammar books
 1 What is the writer’s purpose in the first paragraph?

A to highlight the writer’s relationship with her grandmother Learning Strategies Course

B to describe the kinds of meals that the writer enjoyed cooking

C to help readers identify with the writer’s ambitious character

D to explain why the competition appealed to the writer

 2 What does the writer say about applying for the competition in the second paragraph?
 A It took much longer than she had hoped it would.
 B She found it challenging to answer some of the questions.

C The process was as complicated as she had expected it to be.

D She discovered details about the competition which she did not like.

3 How did the writer feel after she met the other competitors for the first time?

A confident that she had the necessary skills to do so

B determined to use the advice that she had been given

C concerned that they would be better at cooking than she was

D surprised by how much experience some of them had

4 When it was confirmed that the writer would be taking part in the televised competition, she

A decided to practise making some of her favourite recipes.

B knew there was little point trying to guess what she’d have to do.

C asked her family to make suggestions about what she should cook. Family games

D felt she ought to find out about ingredients she didn’t ordinarily use.

5 On the first day of the competition, the writer says she felt

A keen to get on with the task before her.

B anxious about appearing on camera.

C relieved to have ideas about what to cook.

D grateful for the family support she had received.

6 What does it refer to in line 70? Family games

A the judges’ feedback

B her time at the studio

C other competitors’ food

D a feeling of disappointment

Answer 

English grammar books

Four teenage business stars – B2 English Reading Test

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You are going to read an article about four teenagers who have started their own business. For questions 1-10,

choose from the teenagers (A-D). The teenagers may be chosen more than once.

Which teenager

1 says they are highly motivated?

2 has started to feel more confident?

3 is planning to open another business?

4 says that managing time can be hard?

5 says they learn from their mistakes?

6 says that their age surprises some people?

7 tends not to tell people how old they are?

8 wanted to improve an experience for customers?

9 says their work involves something they find easy?

10 realised what they wanted to do while helping someone else?

Four teenage business stars

I suppose it was obvious I had a head for business when I was about six. I used to make my parents cups of tea in
the morning – and charge them 20p for each one. And it was another 20p if it needed reheating. And then about a
year ago I was in a chain coffee shop waiting in line to get my drink, and I just realised how dreadful the whole
experience was – dirty tables, rubbish Wifi and grumpy staff. And I thought ‘I bet I could do better than that’. So a
friend and I launched an app enabling people to access menus, order and interact with each other. Since then I
haven’t looked back. I was concerned that I wasn’t doing too well at school, which was a bit depressing, but with
the business going so well, it feels great to be where I am now.

B Jimbo, 15

When people ask what I do, I tell them I advise people about their brand on social media. They can’t believe I’m
doing this while I’m so young. But I love it. The tricky bit is getting everything done that I need to; sometimes there
aren’t enough hours in the day! I’ve been doing the job about six months, and it took quite a lot of effort at the
start to persuade my mum and dad that it wasn’t just a waste of time. But now they’re confident I’m doing OK.
Which is just as well, because now that I’ve launched an online magazine, I should have several more projects on
the way, as long as I can get the money together. One’s going to be setting up a firm with my best mate – it should
start to do quite well after about a year. So watch this space!

C Sarah McFinny, 18
 Using social media comes naturally to me, and it’s not something I’ve ever had to try to get my head around. I’m in
my first year at uni, and I was lending a hand to someone who wanted to organise a social media campaign for a
university sports club. I did lots of work for her, setting it up and publicising it, and she couldn’t believe the results I
got. It was amazing! So I thought, ‘You know what – I could make some money out of doing this sort of thing’. When
I’m talking to clients, obviously I don’t shout about my age, I mean you want to be taken seriously. When I
graduate, I want to help my parents run their business, or at least do that part-time. I’m excited about the future.

 D Duncan Jackson, 15
 Well, I’ve never liked spending money, even at a really young age. But now that I’ve worked out how to make
 money, I’m really driven to get out of bed every morning and make as much as I can. I basically run an online shop,
and I’ve had over 100 customers so far. It’s always nice when a customer visits the store and buys from you again –

you know you’re doing something right. I don’t always get things right though. In fact, there are lots of things I’ve
got very wrong, like setting my prices too high – or too low! But that can be useful, because when something
doesn’t go as planned, you can always adapt and hope you do it better next time.

Answer 

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