ICFE Reading Paper Part 1– teacher’s notes

Description
This activity familiarises students with the ICFE Reading Part 1 task and the steps they
should take to deal with it successfully. It also gives them the opportunity to practise Part 1,
as well as introducing some common collocations which usually appear in this task.

Time required: 60 minutes

Materials  Student Worksheet 1
required:
 Student Worksheet 2
 Sample Tasks 1A and 1B
Aims:  to introduce Part 1 of the Reading Paper
 to raise awareness of the question focus and the types of
vocabulary required to complete the task successfully (i.e.
conjunctions, prepositions, pronouns, auxiliaries, quantifiers,
collocations)
 to practise Reading Part 1 and build students’ vocabulary.

Procedure
1. As a warm up, refer students to Sample Task 1B and elicit what this task is about by
asking questions such as:
 What do you have to do in this part of the exam? (choose the most
appropriate option to complete each gap)
 How many options are there per gap? (four – A, B, C and D)
 How many of these options do you think are correct? (only one)
2. Ask students to look at Student Worksheet 1 – Exercise 1 and read the first
sentence of the passage (taken from Sample Task 1A). Give them a minute to try to
complete the sentence individually. Then ask them to discuss their ideas in pairs.
When they have finished, check answers with the whole class.
3. Write the four options provided in the Sample Task on the whiteboard (hold, have,
grant, keep). If they have already decided that have is the correct option, go through
the other words eliciting why they are not appropriate. If students did not think of
have in the previous step, ask them to look at the four words on the whiteboard and
in pairs decide on the best option to complete the gap before analysing each one
(see key below).

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4. Point out that a good strategy for this task is to try to find word which will go in the
gap before looking at the alternatives A, B, C and D, and then to check if the word
they thought of is one of the options provided.
5. Now refer to Student Worksheet 1 – Exercise 2. Ask students to read one tip at a
time, followed by the relevant example and subsequent questions. They should
answer the questions in pairs. At the end, check answers with the whole class (see
key below).
6. Refer students to Sample Task 1A and Sample Task 1B. Point out that Part 1 of the
Reading paper always has two short texts with six gaps in each text. Explain that it
should take them approximately eight minutes to complete the task, if they are going
to be able to complete all the tasks in the exam without running out of time. Students
work individually to complete the gaps by choosing the correct option for each space.
You may want to set a time limit of 8 minutes for this, so students can get a feel for
the time they should spend on this task. Once they have finished, elicit answers and
check with the whole class (see key below). You may need to analyse the reasons
why some options are incorrect, focussing on meaning, collocation and grammar.
7. Refer students to Student Worksheet 2. In pairs, they should write Do or Don’t to
complete each sentence. Elicit answers and feed back (see key below).

Suggested follow-up activities

1. Encourage students to spend time practising linking words and phrases and to keep
a record of phrasal verbs and collocations as they learn them.
2. Do activities in class which focus on collocations, linking words and phrasal verbs,
and also multiple-choice activities where students have to pay attention to the shades
of meaning differentiating sets of similar words.

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information see our Terms and Conditions.
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ICFE Reading Paper Part 1– answer keys

Key to Procedure Step 3

Hold means to maintain in one’s possession. It is followed by a direct object.
Grant means to give permission. It is usually followed by a direct object and an indirect
object.
Keep means to retain possession. It is followed by a direct object.
Have means possess and is the only possible option in this case due to the context and
collocation patterns.
Key to Student’s Worksheet 1 Exercise 2
a. Manipulate means to achieve the result that you want by working skilfully with
something or influencing someone.
Control means to make someone or something do what you want.
b. Both although and however are linkers of contrast. Although is correct because of the
position in the sentence. In order to be able to use however the sentence should go
as follows:
‘Qualifications certainly help in finance. However, you can learn a lot more through
experience than you can from a book’.
c. opposed to
compared with
assurance of
confidence in
rely on

Key to Student’s Worksheet 2

1. Do 2. Do 3. Don’t 4. Do
5. Do 6. Do 7. Do 8. Don’t

Key to Sample Task 1A

1. D 2. A 3. D 4. C 5. A 6. B

Key to Sample Task 1B

7. A 8. D 9. B 10. A 11. C 12. B

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ICFE Reading Paper Part 1– Student’s Worksheet 1

Exercise 1
Look at the first sentence of the passage. Can you complete it with only one word?

‘The financial statements of a business provide important information for people

outside the business who do not (0)……………access to the internal accounts.’

Exercise 2
Always remember to:
a. think of small differences in meaning.
For example: manipulate and control. Their meanings are very similar, but not exactly
the same. What is the difference?
b. consider the grammar as well as the vocabulary. A word may have the correct
meaning but not fit the grammatical structure of the sentence.
For example: ‘_____________ qualifications certainly help in finance, you can learn a
lot more through experience than you can from a book.’
• Which word would you choose to complete this sentence: although or
however?
• How can you change this sentence for the other option to fit?
c. think about patterns. For example: as soon as you see the word deal you should
think about what usually follows this, e.g. deal with something, or deal in something,
and the differences in meaning.
Work with some other examples and match one word from column A with one word
from column B to make common collocations.
A B
opposed of
compared on
assurance to
confidence in
rely with
d. read the complete sentence carefully in order to know if a word fits or not, paying
special attention to linkers, such as although and however.

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ICFE Reading Paper Part 1– Student’s Worksheet 2

Which of these should you do when dealing with Reading Part 1?

Write Do or Don’t at the beginning of each sentence.

1. …………….think about small differences in meaning between words which are

similar, collocations and complementation.

2. …………….consider all the options carefully before making a decision.

3. …………….start by reading the options provided.

4. …………….answer the questions you are sure of before attempting the ones you
are unsure of.

5. ……………make a decision based on the words directly next to the gap.

6. ……………read the whole passage first to understand what it is about.

7. ……………make an educated guess if you are unsure.

8. ……………leave items blank on your answer sheet.

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ICFE Reading Paper Part 1– Sample Task 1A
Questions 1 - 6

Read the following extract from an article about accounting ratios.

Choose the best word to fill each gap from A, B, C or D below.
For each question 1 – 6, mark one letter (A, B, C or D) on your answer sheet.
There is an example at the beginning (0)

FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND PROFITABILITY RATIOS

The financial statements of business provide important information for people outside the business
who do not (0)…………… access to the internal accounts. For example, existing and (1)
…………… shareholders can see how much profit a business made, the value of its assets and the
level of cash (2) …………… . Although these figures are useful, they do not mean a great deal by
themselves. In order to (3) …………… any real sense of the figures in the final accounts, they
need to be properly analysed using accounting ratios and then (4) …………… with the either
previous year’s ratios or against averages for the industry.

The profitability of a company is important and a key (5) …………… of its success. In the profit and
loss account the figures shown for gross profit and net profit mean very little by themselves.
However, by (6) …………… them as a percentage of sales they become much more useful. The
figures can then be evaluated against those of previous years, or with those of similar companies

Example:
0 A hold B have C grant D keep

0 A B C D

7 A components B factors C constituents D facets

8 A conclude B distinguish C declare D appreciate

9 A transformatio B variables C permutations D varieties

ns
10 A manipulated B influenced C controlled D operated

11 A entitled B rated C warranted D earned

12 A assurance B confidence C belief D conviction

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information see our Terms and Conditions.
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ICFE Reading Paper Part 1– Sample Task 1B
Questions 7 – 12

Read the following article about the use of graphs in annual reports.
Choose the best word to fill each gap from A, B, C or D below.
For each question 7 – 12, mark one letter (A, B, C or D) on your answer sheet.

GRAPHS IN ANNUAL REPORTS

Increasing attention is being paid to the visual (7) .......... of corporate annual reports – the
charts, photographs and graphs. Academics and practitioners alike (8) .......... the
immense power of good visuals in the communication process – a well-designed graph is
worth a thousand words.

The existence of graphs of key financial (9) .......... in corporate annual reports is a critical
element of communication with stakeholders, especially non-experts. But graphs are not
formally audited and there is the potential for graphs to be (10) .......... so that they give too
positive a picture of a company’s fortunes.

A recent study has provided evidence that those responsible for annual reports
consciously or unconsciously do indeed select graphical designs that tend to convey a
more favourable impression than is (11) .......... . We, therefore, urge those who prepare
reports to pay close attention to the basic principles of graph design and to seek clarity of
meaning, before users lose (12) .......... in the graphs displayed.

7 A components B factors C constituents D facets

8 A conclude B distinguish C declare D appreciate

9 A transformatio B variables C permutations D varieties

ns
10 A manipulated B influenced C controlled D operated

11 A entitled B rated C warranted D earned

12 A assurance B confidence C belief D conviction

© UCLES 2009. This material may be photocopied (without alteration) and distributed for classroom use provided no charge is made. For further
information see our Terms and Conditions.
www.cambridgeenglish.org

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