Englisch. READING COMPREHENSION (18 marks) Quelle: Theresianum Ingenbohl, Spain s third city sees winter off with a bang

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1 Kantonsschule Ausserschwyz Quelle: Theresianum Ingenbohl, 2012 Fachmittelschule Aufnahmeprüfung 2012 Englisch Name, Vorname:.... Wohnort: READING COMPREHENSION (18 marks) Read the text and answer the questions below. Spain s third city sees winter off with a bang It s March and I m in Valencia, Spain s third largest city, with my new friend, Jose. It s 1am. All around us, fireworks are going off and the streets are full of noisy revellers. Welcome to Las Fallas, Jose grins. Here you re going to see how Valencians party! Seven hours later I understood what he meant. Las Fallas (the bonfire) explodes over Valencia every March from 12 th to the 19 th. It takes the whole of the previous year to get organised and everybody joins in the preparations. The city buzzes with a festive vibe all week, but like all parties, it is at night when people really get down to some serious celebrating. The tradition of Las Fallas began in the 18 th century. At that time, craftsmen used special candles to light up the dark evenings while they were working. At the end of the winter they celebrated by burning all their waste material in a ceremony that brought people together from all the neighbouring communities. Before burning the waste material, they made it into lifelike statues, and then dressed them up to look like well-known but unpopular local characters. Nowadays the statues, some of them over 30 metres tall, are made of cardboard and represent different aspects of Spanish society. The whole of the previous year is spent fund-raising, planning and constructing the monuments, some of which are worth over $200,000. But they all go up in flames with the maximum amount of fire and noise before the end of the festival. The festival reaches its climax on 19 th March, a public holiday and St Joseph s day. This is the night when the cardboard statues are burnt. As midnight approaches, a feeling of anticipation rises up from the streets and hangs over the city. Firecrackers go off every second or two and midnight passes in a shower of explosions. The last statue burns down and ends Las Fallas. It is a sad moment, but the Valencians don t have time to mourn the end of this year s festival. After all, they re too busy planning for the next one. Abteilung Dokument Datum Rektoratssekretariat S:\SEK\Verwaltung\FMS\2012 Aufnahmeprüfung English.docx 24. Februar 2014 GeL

2 Questions 8 1 What is the English name of the festival and how long does it go on for? (2 marks) 2 When and why did it first begin? (3 marks) 3 What is the most important day of the festival and what happens on it? (2 marks) 4 How does the festival end? (1 mark) True or False? 4 Read the sentences below and decide whether they are true of false according to the text. Mark the true sentences with a T and the false sentences with an F. 1 The Valencians spend a few months preparing for Las Fallas. 2 Today the statues are made of the same material as they were in the past. 3 Today some of the statues are worth a lot of money. 4 Nobody has to work on the last day of the festival. Synonyms and opposites 6 Find synonyms IN THE TEXT for the words below: 1 partygoers - 2 atmosphere - 3 building - Find opposites IN THE TEXT for the following: 1 next - 2 happy - 3 celebrate - Datum 24. Februar 2014 GeL Seite 2/7

3 GRAMMAR SECTION (22 marks) 1. Complete with the correct preposition. 4 Bob got lost Wednesday the morning. He walked the park and then the high street his little dog he found himself outside the town hall. He decided to ask directions in a shop. The shop assistant looked a map to help him. 2. Each of these sentences has an extra word or a wrong word. Correct the mistake by crossing out the extra word or writing the right word(s) above the wrong words. 4 1 She feels himself very happy at the moment. 2 Last year I had a really important exam, so I must work hard for it. 3 She heard me talking about her. It was very embarrassed. My face went red. 4 How much squirrels are there in your garden? 3. Complete Make the correct word for each sentence by adding dis-, un-, im-, -ship, or -al. 5 person appear friendly champion polite 1 He tried so hard to win the. 2 She arrived early then I didn t see her again. She. 3 They asked me lots of information, like my name, my age and my likes and dislikes. 4 She s really quite, as she never smiles at people. 5 You are so! Don t talk to me like that, young man! Datum 24. Februar 2014 GeL Seite 3/7

4 4. Look at the following story about Barney and Moe s wedding anniversary. After the gaps there is a verb in brackets. Put the verb in the correct tense. 9 Example: Last Tuesday Barney bought (buy) lots of snacks for the party. Last week Barney and Moe (celebrate) their 50 th anniversary at the Cosy Lounge Restaurant in Brunnen. All their friends and family arrived on time except cousin Robert. Barney (talk) to cousin Chloe when suddenly his phone (ring). Hi Barney, it is Robbie. I (be) really sorry but I have got a problem with my car. I just (phone) the mechanic but he (not answer). I (ask) my friend Nick to drive me over. Anyway, congratulations! What you all (drink)? Save some for me. I (be) there as soon as I can. Bye! WRITING (20 marks: 10 for content, 10 for language) Your penfriend would like to know more about your holiday experiences. Write a LETTER to your penfriend including the following: - a description of what you normally do in the school holidays (include 3 details). - a description of the last holiday you went on (include 4 details). - a description of the next holiday you are going to go on/ would like to go on in the future (include 3 details). You should write about 150 words. Datum 24. Februar 2014 GeL Seite 4/7

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6 Kantonsschule Ausserschwyz Fachmittelschule Aufnahmeprüfung 2012 Englisch Lösungen READING COMPREHENSION 1. The Bonfire. 1 Week 2. In the 18 th Century. Craftsmen burned all the candle wax/waste material left over from the winter in a big ceremony th March. Cardboard statues are burnt and a big celebration takes place. 4. When the last statue burns down. True or False? 1. F 2. F 3. T 4. T Synonyms and opposites 1. revellers 2. vibe 3. constructing 1. previous 2. sad 3. mourn GRAMMAR SECTION - (22 marks) 1. Complete with the correct preposition (4 marks) Bob got lost on Wednesday in the morning. He walked through/to the park and then along / down/up/to the high street with his little dog until he found himself outside the town hall. He decided to ask for directions in a shop. The shop assistant looked at/for a map to help him. 2. Each of these sentences has an extra word or a wrong word. Correct the mistake by crossing out the extra word or writing the right word(s) above the wrong words. (4 marks) 1 She feels himself very happy at the moment. (himself) Datum 24. Februar 2014 GeL Seite 6/7

7 2 Last year I had a really important exam, so I must work hard for it. (had to) 3 She heard me talking about her. It was very embarrassed. My face went red. (embarrassing) 4 How much squirrels are there in your garden? (many) 3. Complete Make the correct word for each sentence by adding dis-, un-, im-, -ship, or -al. (5 marks) person appear friendly champion polite 1 He tried so hard to win the. championship 2 She arrived early then I didn t see her again. She. disappeared 3 They asked me lots of information, like my name, my age and my likes and dislikes. personal 4 She s really quite, as she never smiles at people. unfriendly 5 You are so! Don t talk to me like that, young man! Impolite 4. Look at the following story about Barney and Moe s wedding anniversary. After the gaps there is a verb in brackets. Put the verb in the correct tense. (9 marks) Example: Last Tuesday Barney bought (buy) lots of snacks for the party. Last week Barney and Moe celebrated/were celebrating their 50 th anniversary at the Cosy Lounge Restaurant in Brunnen. All their friends and family arrived on time except cousin Robert. Barney was talking to cousin Chloe when suddenly his phone rang. Hi Barney, it is Robbie. I am really sorry but I have got a problem with my car. I have just phoned the mechanic but he didn t answer. I am going to ask my friend Nick to drive me over. Anyway, congratulations! What are you all drinking? Save some for me. I will be there as soon as I can. Bye! Datum 24. Februar 2014 GeL Seite 7/7