A2 Key for Schools (KET) Reading & Writing Part 3 Test – Eco-Earners 4
Reading » A2 Reading Tests » A2 Key for Schools (KET) Reading & Writing Part 3 Test – Eco-Earners
Test 1
Questions 14-18
For each question, choose the correct answer.
Yara's autumn job
Thirteen-year-old Yara writes about her weekend job in the autumn.
Thirteen-year-old Yara loves nature and being outside. In the autumn, she has a great weekend job in her town. She goes to her neighbours' houses and sweeps all the orange and brown leaves from their gardens. The neighbours pay her a little pocket money for this helpful work. But Yara doesn't put the leaves in the bin. She takes them all home to make rich, dark compost for her family's vegetable garden.
Last Saturday morning, Yara worked at a very large house on her street. Because there were tall trees, there were a lot of leaves on the ground. She worked hard for two hours with her broom. Finally, she made one huge pile of leaves in the middle of the grass. She felt quite tired after doing this, but she was very pleased with her good work.
Suddenly, a small, friendly dog ran into the garden from the street. Before Yara could stop it, the dog jumped right into the middle of her beautiful pile! It played and rolled around happily. Because of this, the leaves flew everywhere across the grass again. Yara was very surprised and a bit sad. She knew she had to do her job all over again.
The second time, Yara changed how she worked. She didn't make a big pile on the grass. Instead, she swept the leaves and put them straight into heavy black bags. When she finally finished, she carried the bags home, and now her compost pile is huge. Yara still enjoys her weekend job, but next Saturday, she plans to shut the garden gate before she begins sweeping!
14 What does Yara do with the leaves she collects?
A She puts them in her family's garden.
B She sells them to her neighbours for money.
C She leaves them in the street bins.
15 How did Yara feel when she finished making the large pile?
A angry because it took two hours
B happy about what she had achieved
C worried about the tall trees in the garden
16 What was the problem with the dog?
A It wanted to play with Yara's broom.
B It made a mess of the leaves.
C It chased her out of the garden.
17 What did Yara do differently the second time?
A She asked someone to help her carry the bags.
B She left the leaves on the grass for a while.
C She put the leaves directly into bags.
18 What is Yara going to do next Saturday?
A stop sweeping leaves for her neighbours
B make sure animals can't get into the garden
C buy some heavier black bags for the leaves
Answer Key & Explanations
14 A - Explanation: In paragraph 1, the text says Yara takes the leaves home to make compost "for her family's vegetable garden," which matches putting them in her family's garden. Option B is wrong logic; the neighbours pay her to sweep the leaves, she doesn't sell the leaves to them. Option C is the opposite of the truth; the text explicitly says she "doesn't put the leaves in the bin".
15 B - Explanation: In paragraph 2, the text states she was "very pleased with her good work," which is a synonym for being happy about what she had achieved. Option A is wrong logic; she worked for two hours and felt tired, but she wasn't angry. Option C is a partial truth trap; the garden had tall trees, but she wasn't worried about them.
16 B - Explanation: Paragraph 3 explains that the dog jumped into the pile and "the leaves flew everywhere across the grass again." This matches making a mess of the leaves. Option A is a wrong reference trap; the text mentions Yara's broom earlier, but the dog didn't play with it. Option C uses wrong logic; Yara was surprised, but the friendly dog didn't chase her anywhere.
17 C - Explanation: In paragraph 4, it says that the second time, Yara swept the leaves "and put them straight into heavy black bags," which is the same as directly into bags. Option A is a wrong person trap; she carried the bags home herself. Option B is wrong logic; leaving the leaves on the grass is what caused the problem the first time.
18 B - Explanation: In the final paragraph, Yara plans to "shut the garden gate before she begins sweeping," which will stop dogs and other animals from getting in. Option A is wrong logic because the text says she "still enjoys her weekend job". Option C is a partial truth trap; she used heavy black bags, but she isn't planning to buy heavier ones next week.
Test 2
Questions 14-18
For each question, choose the correct answer.
Giving old toys a new life
14-year-old Zack writes about his interesting weekend hobby.
Hi, my name is Zack and I'm 14 years old. Welcome to my blog! Today, I want to talk about my unusual weekend hobby. Every Saturday, I buy broken plastic toys, fix them at home, and then sell them on the internet. I started doing this because I want to earn some pocket money, but also because I want to help the planet. It is terrible when people throw plastic toys in the bin.
I think that learning to fix things is a fantastic skill. When I first started, I didn't know what to do. But I watched a lot of easy videos online and slowly learned. Now, I feel very proud when I make an old, broken toy look completely new again. My friends think repairing things is very difficult, but it is actually quite easy when you practise.
However, you have to be careful, because you can make mistakes. When I began my business, I used very cheap glue from the supermarket to join the plastic pieces together. This was a terrible idea. When I put the toys in a box and posted them to the customers, the cheap glue often broke during the journey. The customers were annoyed when they opened the box, and I had to give their money back.
If you want to try fixing toys, I have one very important piece of advice for you. You must spend a bit more money and buy high-quality, strong glue. You can even find special glue that is good for the environment. If you use the best glue, the toys will not break again for many years, and your customers will be very happy!
14 Why does Zack buy and fix old toys?
A He wants to stop people throwing plastic away.
B He wants to give them to his friends at school.
C He wants to have a cheap weekend hobby.
15 What does Zack say about repairing toys?
A It is a very difficult skill to learn.
B It makes him feel very good about himself.
C It is best to watch his friends do it first.
16 What problem did Zack have with his business?
A The supermarket didn't have enough glue.
B The toys broke when they were travelling to the buyers.
C The customers asked for too much money for the toys.
17 What is Zack's advice to other people?
A Only buy broken toys that will last for many years.
B Use excellent glue to put the toys back together.
C Ask the customers what kind of glue they like.
18 What is Zack's main purpose in writing this blog?
A to explain how to make new plastic toys at home
B to share his experience of fixing and selling old toys
C to describe the best places to buy glue on the internet
Answer Key & Explanations
14 A - Explanation: The text states Zack does this because he wants to "help the planet" and thinks it is terrible "when people throw plastic toys in the bin." Option B is a wrong reference trap: he sells the toys to customers on the internet, he doesn't give them to friends. Option C is a partial truth trap: it is a weekend hobby, but he does it to earn money and help the environment, not because the hobby itself is cheap.
15 B - Explanation: Zack says "I feel very proud when I make an old, broken toy look completely new again" (feel very good about himself). Option A is a wrong logic trap: his friends think it's difficult, but Zack says it is actually quite easy. Option C is a wrong reference trap: Zack watched videos online to learn, he didn't watch his friends do it.
16 B - Explanation: The text explains that because he used cheap glue, the glue often "broke during the journey" after he "posted them to the customers" (travelling to the buyers). Option A is a wrong logic trap: he bought cheap glue at the supermarket, but the text never says they didn't have enough. Option C is a wrong logic trap: Zack had to give money back because the customers were annoyed, not because the customers asked for too much money.
17 B - Explanation: Zack advises people to spend a bit more money and "buy high-quality, strong glue" (excellent glue). Option A is a wrong logic trap: he says the toys will not break again for many years if you use good glue, he doesn't tell people to only buy certain toys. Option C is a wrong logic trap: the text says customers will be happy with the good glue, but it doesn't tell you to ask them what they like.
18 B - Explanation: This is a global question. The entire blog is about Zack's hobby of buying, repairing, and selling broken plastic toys, including the mistakes he made and his advice. Option A is a wrong logic trap: he fixes broken toys, he doesn't make new toys. Option C is a partial truth trap: he talks about buying glue and the internet, but he doesn't tell the reader where to buy glue online.
Test 3
Questions 14-18
For each question, choose the correct answer.
A summer job in the garden
Twelve-year-old Amy writes about helping her neighbours.
Twelve-year-old Amy loves nature and likes helping people. This summer, the weather in her town was extremely hot. Three of her neighbours went away on holiday for two weeks. They asked Amy to water the plants in their gardens every day. She felt very proud to get this serious responsibility. Her parents were pleased, and the neighbours promised to give her some pocket money when they returned.
Every morning, Amy got up early to visit the three gardens before it got too hot. She carried a large watering can with her. Two of the gardens only had some small plants and a few vegetables, so they were quite easy to finish. But her older neighbour, Mr. Smith, had a very large garden with lots of beautiful, expensive rose bushes. These special flowers needed a lot of water to stay healthy in the sun.
Everything went well until Tuesday. That morning, Amy was watching a really exciting film on TV. She completely forgot to go to Mr. Smith's house. At five o'clock in the afternoon, the film finished, and she suddenly remembered the roses. She felt terrible because the sun was very hot all day. She was sure the expensive flowers were going to die because of her mistake.
Amy quickly ran to Mr. Smith's garden with her water. Luckily, the evening air was much cooler now. She carefully gave the rose bushes a lot of water and hoped for the best. When she went back the next morning, she was very happy. The beautiful roses survived the heat and looked completely fine. After this experience, Amy decided something important. She is never going to watch TV until all her summer jobs are finished.
14 Why was Amy pleased at the beginning of the summer?
A People trusted her to do an important job.
B She was going away on holiday for two weeks.
C Her parents gave her some extra pocket money.
15 What does Amy say about Mr. Smith's garden?
A The vegetables in it were very small.
B The plants in it needed a big drink.
C Mr. Smith left a new watering can in it.
16 Why did Amy forget to go to the garden on Tuesday morning?
A She thought the weather was too hot to go out.
B She was asleep until five o'clock in the afternoon.
C She was busy looking at a programme on the television.
17 What did Amy do on Tuesday evening?
A She put a lot of water on the flowers.
B She ran to Mr. Smith's house to get some water.
C She went back to check if the roses were dead.
18 What is Amy planning to do in the future?
A complete her work before she turns on the television
B stop working in gardens when the summer is hot
C plant some beautiful flowers in her own garden
Answer Key & Explanations
14 A - Explanation: In paragraph 1, the text says Amy felt "very proud to get this serious responsibility" after her neighbours asked her to water their plants. A paraphrases this correctly. B is a wrong reference trap; her neighbours went on holiday, not Amy. C is a partial truth trap; the neighbours promised to give her pocket money, not her parents.
15 B - Explanation: In paragraph 2, the text states that Mr. Smith's garden had rose bushes and "These special flowers needed a lot of water." B matches this meaning. A is a wrong reference trap; the other two gardens had small vegetables, not Mr. Smith's. C is wrong logic; Amy carried her own watering can, Mr. Smith didn't leave one for her.
16 C - Explanation: In paragraph 3, Amy forgot to go to the house because she "was watching a really exciting film on TV." C is the correct answer. A is wrong logic; she felt terrible about the hot weather after she remembered, it wasn't the reason she stayed inside. B is a partial truth trap; the film finished at five o'clock, she wasn't asleep.
17 A - Explanation: In paragraph 4, the text explains that in the evening, Amy "carefully gave the rose bushes a lot of water." A matches this. B is a partial truth trap; she ran to the garden with her water, she didn't go there to get water. C is wrong logic; she went back to check the roses "the next morning," not in the evening.
18 A - Explanation: In the final paragraph, Amy decides "She is never going to watch TV until all her summer jobs are finished." A correctly paraphrases this decision. B is wrong logic; she is going to do her jobs first, not stop doing them. C is a partial truth trap; roses are mentioned in the text, but she has no plans to plant flowers in her own garden.