TRƯỜNG THPT THĂNG LONG REVISION – ENGLISH 12
UNIT 1 Life stories (week 1)
A. PHONETICS
I. Fill in the blanks, using the right choice given in the box.
meet/meat road/rode here/hear made/maid read/red week/weak
1. Nobody can ………………….. what I tell …………………
2. I have to …………………… the ………………… cover book till now.
3. Last …………………, she was ………………….
4. They …………………. at the market where they buy ………………….
5. The house …………………. was ……………….. to work for many hours without rest.
6. She ……………………. on a ………………… which was paved with flowers.
II. Complete the (a) sentences with the words in the box. Then write the corresponding homophones to
complete the (b) sentences.
pair aloud meat dear blew
hare die sealing altar flour
1. (a) That poem is very ………………….. to me.
(b) There were seven …………………… grazing in our pasture.
2. (a) I hope my plants don’t ………………….. in this heat.
(b) Rebecca wants to ………………….. her hair purple.
3. (a) The recipe calls for two cups of ……………………….
(b) She put a single …………………… in the vase.
4. (a) Have you read the stories about the tortoise and the ………………….?
(b) My ………………… is a mess!
5. (a) Vegetarians do not eat …………………….
(b) Where shall we …………………. for lunch?
6. (a) Let’s go buy a new …………………. of shoes.
(b) The fruit contained a banana, an apple, and a ………………..
7. (a) Sacrifices were offered on the …………………..
(b) She had to ………………….. her clothes after losing weight.
8. (a) Do not talk …………………...
(b) They were …………………… to go out.
9. (a) The policeman ……………………. the whistle to stop the car.
(b) I wear the ……………………… trousers.
10. (a) We used a kind of wax for ……………………. letters.
(b) The …………………. of the room must be high.
B. VOCABULARY & GRAMMAR
I. Fill in each blank in the sentences with the correct word from the box.
achievement reputation distinguished historical figure
generosity strategy dedication politician talented
1. Dang Tien Dong was General Muu, who won the famous ………………….. battle of Dong Da.
2. Marie is an extremely …………………… piano player.
3. What I admire most about him is his …………………… to the poor and the deprived.
4. To be successful takes hard work and ……………………
5. They awarded her a gold medal for her …………………… in sports.
6. Ly Thuong Kiet had the …………………… of attacking first to dominate enemies, and employing the swift
attacking to break the enemies’ plan at the beginning.
7. In 1980, on the occasion of his 600th birthday, Nguyen Trai was recognized by UNESCO as a World Cultural
Celebrity, and a talented ……………………
8. Bui Thi Xuan, a first female general in Vietnamese history, became a historical ……………….. in the Tay
Son Dynasty.
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9. There is a Vietnamese proverb that states that of a dead tiger we keep the skin, of man his ………………..
10. Clive has had a fantastic and ………………….. career so we listen to what he has to say.
II. Fill in each blank in the text with the correct verb from the box, using the past simple or the past
continuous.
hurt travel not know come
stay not break walk see
Last summer, I went on a fantastic adventure holiday for teenagers in the Rocky Mountains in Canada. First,
we (1) …………………. by coach from the airport to our hotel. We (2)………………… there for one night,
then we went by helicopter to our base camp at Mount Robson, which is the highest mountain in the Canadian
Rockies. I was quite nervousbecause I (3)…………………. anyone in the group, but I soon made friends with
everyone. We hiked in the mountains for four days and (4)…………………. a lot of wildlife. One day, we (5)
………………...
near a lake when we met a deer. After that we went rock climbing for two days. It was really hard work and
while I (6)………………… down the mountain on the second day, I (7)…………………. my leg. Luckily, I (8)
…………………. it. On our last day we went white-water rafting. What an exciting sport!
III. Put the verbs in brackets in the past simple or the past continuous.
Steve Jobs
1. Steve Jobs is famous for being a businessman, designer and inventor. He (be)………………… the co-founder
and chief executive at Apple.
2. He (be)……………….. born on 24th February 1955 in California, USA.
3. He was adopted because his parents (be)…………………. students and couldn’t look after him.
4. As a child, he (love)……………………. electronics and making things with his hands.
5. While he (study)…………………… at high school, he met Steve Wozniak, who also loves electronics.
6. He (start)………………….. university in 1972, but he (not finish)………………….. the course.
7. While he (travel)………………….. around India, he (become)………………….. a Buddhist. He was 24 then.
8. After that, he (get)……………….. a job at Atari as a computer technician, with Wozniak.
9. In 1976, Jobs and Wozniak (start)……………………. their own company called the Apple Computer
Company.
10. He (die)………………….. in 2011, aged 56.
IV. Choose the phrase from each column to make a complete answer for the questions below.
I was peeling some onions and got very wet
She was travelling home from school and she stayed out too long
We were sunbathing at the weekend and we the knife slipped
They were staying in HaiPhong when left it on the bus
He was walking in the rain and he fell over
He was playing football and he there was a terrible storm
1. How did you cut your finger?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
2. How did Nick hurt his knee?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
3. How did you all get sunburnt?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
4. How did Martin catch a cold?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
5. How did a tree fall on the Simpson’s car?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
6. How did Lan lose her bag?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
V. Complete the sentences with a/an, the or zero article (Ø).
1. I live in ………………….. beautiful country. …………………. capital city is very old.
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2. My father is …………………. teacher in ………………… very big school. ………………… students in his
class work very hard.
3. My family live in ………………… small house. There is no dining room so we have ……………….. dinner
in …………………. kitchen.
4. There’s ………………… art gallery, ………………… theatre and there are two cinemas in my town.
…………………. theatre and ………………… art gallery are very modern, but ………………. cinemas are old.
5. She saw ……………….. skirt and blouse in ……………….. shop in ……………… town centre.
………………… skirt was cheap but …………………. blouse was very expensive.
6. I went to see ………………. film last night. ………………. acting was very good.
7. I go to school by ……………….. bus. ………………… bus is often late.
8. I’m going to have ………………... party next Saturday. It’s going to be ……………….. best party ever!
VI. Fill in each blank in the text with a/an, the or the zero article (Ø).
The Sensational Schumachers
Most people have heard of Michael Schumacher. He’s one of (1)………………… most famous sportspeople
in the world. He’s also (2)……………….. highest paid in history. However, Michael isn’t (3)………………..
only successful child in (4)…………………. Schumacher family. His younger brother Ralf is also (5)
………………… amazing Formula One driver.
Many people confuse (6)…………………. two brothers, but in fact they are very different. Michael is (7)
…………………. confident man, while Ralf is quite shy. Michael is very experienced. Ralf is newer to (8)
…………………. sport. What the brothers have in (9)……………. common, however, is they are both (10)
……………… talented drivers!
VII. Choose the word or phrase among A, B, C, or D that best fits the blank space in the following passage.
You have heard of Britney Spears, but have you heard of her little sister, Jamie Lynn? She’s ten years old
younger than her super-famous sister, but Jamie Lynn Spears (1)……………… a sensation already!
Jamie was born on April 4th, 1991. She (2)……………… one sister, Britney, and a brother, Brian. When she
was a child, Jamie always got on (3)………………. her big sister, and wanted to be just (4)………………. her.
So, she started singing and acting. She (5)………………. in adverts and a film and sang Britney on “The Oprah
Winfrey Show”.
But Jamie doesn’t need to (6)……………….. her big sister. She already appears in her own TV show called
Zoey 101. (7)………………….. show highlights her (8)…………………. and has been a big success.
When Jamie (9)…………………. her latest TV shows, she lives in Louisiana with her parents. She loves
sports and is very good at gymnastics. She goes to school, hangs out with her friends, goes shopping and lives
(10)……………….. ordinary teenager’s life.
1. A. become B. is becoming C. becomes D. became
2. A. has B. had C. was having D. has had
3. A. at B. in C. from D. with
4. A. alike B. like C. same D. the same
5. A. performed B. played C. starred D. entertained
6. A. base on B. help C. depend D. rely on
7. A. A B. The C. Those D. Ø
8. A. talent B. dedication C. inspiration D. generosity
9. A. isn’t filming B. wasn’t filming C. films D. doesn’t film
10. A. the B. a C. an D. Ø
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TRƯỜNG THPT THĂNG LONG REVISION – ENGLISH 12
UNIT 1 Life stories (week 2)
C. READING
I. Read the passage, and decide whether the statements are true (T), or false (F), or not given (NG).
An ordinary man… an extraordinary business
Ben Silbermann was an ordinary boy. He was born in 1982 in Iowa in the USA and he loved collecting
things: stamps, leaves, and especially insects. As a young man in his 20s, his love for collecting became big
business.
He went to Yale University and studied chemistry and political science. In 2006, when he graduated from
university, he moved to the state of California and got a job at Google. Silbermann met a lot of people there who
were very interested in technology, and he decided two things: he wanted to start a business and he wanted to do
something he loved.
HE worked at Google for two years. Then, in 2008, Silbermann left his job and he started his own business
with two friends: Paul Sciarra and Even Sharp. In November 2009, they got an apartment together in Palo Alto,
California and started work in Pinterest. Silbermann and Sharp realized they both loved collecting, and they
made a “virtual pinboard” – pages online where you “pin” pictures of things you like and things you “collect”.
Their idea was to connect everyone in the world through the things they find interesting.
And it seemed that a lot of people liked their idea. When Pinterest started in March 2010, it grew quickly and
had 10 million users after the first year. This was an amazing number compared with Twitter and Facebook:
Twitter took two years to reach 10 million users and Facebook took over five years. Just a year after starting,
Pinterest was worth $200 million and had over 421 million page views. Silbermann’s ordinary interest as a boy
certainly became an extraordinary business.
T F NG
1. Silbermann loved collecting when he was boy.
2. He moved to California when he went to university.
3. He got a job as a chemist at Google.
4. Silbermann and his friends started their business in an apartment in
California.
5. Pinterest helped them to pin online the things they collected or the things
they liked.
6. The three friends all shared the hobby of collecting.
7. Started in March 2010, Pinterest made an immediate success.
8. Nowadays Pinterest has more users than Twitter or Facebook.
9. Pinterest is a business that is worth $200 million.
10. Silbermann is a young millionaire in the USA.
II. Read the passage, and do the tasks that follow.
Han Mac Tu, whose real name was Nguyen Trong Tri, was born in Le My village, Dong Hoi district, in the
central province of QuangBinh and lived in QuyNhon, NinhBinh, during the last days of his life.
Dying at the age of 28, he had his only work “Countryside Girl” – 34 poem anthology – published before his
death. He is considered a pioneer of romantic poetry in Viet Nam. Han Mac Tu was part of the new poetic
movement in Viet Nam at the beginning of the 20th century. He was a pioneer who laid the foundation for
surrealist elements in Vietnamese poetry. Moon, water and air are the main components that make up the
universe of his poems.
Han Mac Tu, who never married but dated several beautiful women, is also one of the few modern
Vietnamese poets to have detailed biographies written about him, including “Han Mac Tu” in 1942 by author
Tran Thanh Mai.
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The house where the poet lived out his final days, in QuyNhon City in the central province of BinhDinh, now
serves as a popular memorabilia, in which all of his belongings remain intact. Respectfully, the clock has been
stopped at the moment the poet passed away.
Task 1. Read the statements and decide whether they are true (T), or false (F), or not given (NG).
T F NG
1. He wrote about religious matter.
2. He got married to one of his beautiful lovers.
3. He wrote many poems about love.
4. The elements he used to describe the universe are unusual.
5. His famous work “Countryside Girl” was published when he passed away.
6. He died in QuyNhon City.
Task 2. Find a word in the passage that means:
1. a collection of artistic work which have a similar subject (paragraph 2) …………………………..
2. a person who is the first to do something (paragraph 2) …………………………..
3. unusual, strange or impossible (paragraph 2) …………………………..
4. the stories of a person’s life written by someone else (paragraph 3) …………………………..
5. things that people collect because they once belong to a famous …………………………..
person (paragraph 4)
6. complete and not damaged (paragraph 4) …………………………..
II. Read the text, and do the tasks that follow.
Programming Prodigy and Social Network
Mark Zuckerberg was born on May 14th, 1984, and he was brought up in the state of New York, with his three
sisters.
(1)……………………………………………………..
At his first school, he excelled in all subjects and worked hard throughout his classes. In his late high school
years, he was considered one of his school’s top students. His incredible performance during high school earned
him admission to Harvard University.
(2)……………………………………………………..
He created a website called Facemash during his second year at college – at instantly controversial website that
encouraged students to rate each other based on appearance. The site was an immediate source of controversy at
the university for several reasons. The first was its illegal use of photographs. The second was its controversial
nature – not every student like being ranked based on their appearance. The third was its massive resource use
while it was hosted on Harvard servers.
(3)………………………………………………………
Zuckerberg was soon forced to shut the website down, but its immense popularity and controversy had made him
consider its future potential. It was then, together with his friends, Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin
Moskovitz and Chris Hughes that they launched “The Facebook”. It grew phenomenally, and within the next
year it immediately spread to other colleges in the United States.
(4)………………………………………………………
Eventually, Facebook grew into a public service that anyone could access, whether to network with friends and
family, to play games, or to meet past colleagues. Facebook now has over one billion and seven hundred million
users and makes up a huge portion of overall web traffic.
(5)……………………………………………………….
He has turned down opportunities to sell the site, often for multi-billion dollar sums. He has even turned down
chances to increase the sites income from advertisement revenue, instead preferring to keep the users’ experience
clean and pure. The end result is one of the world’s biggest online businesses.
(6)……………………………………………………….
Mark Zuckerberg married Melissa Chen in 2012. On 31 July 2015, Mark Zuckerberg announced to the world that
they had had a baby girl, Maxima Chan Zuckerberg.
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Task 1. Match the headings with the paragraphs.
A. Zuckerberg’s Success and Growth of Facebook
B. Personal Life
C. College Study and Dropout
D. Early Life
E. Education
F. Career
G. Facebook Success
Task 2. Read the statements and decide whether they are true (T), or false (F).
T F
1. Facemassh received an immediate success.
2. His friends at Harvard didn’t want so many people in the world to know their
ranking.
3. Zuckerberg got permission to upload the photos but later it caused controversy.
4. He could learn from his failure with Facemash.
5. Facebook was phenomenally successful when it started.
6. Zuckerberg and his friends started Facemash but he established Facebook alone.
7. The success of Facebook is part of his respect for the users’ opinions.
8. Facebook is the world’s biggest search engine.
Task 3. Read the passage again, and answer the questions.
1. Where was Mark Zuckerberg brought up?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
2. How could he go to Harvard University?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
3. What were the reasons why Facemash caused controversy?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
4. How did we know that Facebook was greatly successful at first?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
5. How many users does Facebook have now?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
6. What offers did Zuckerberg get for Facebook?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
7. What is the role of Facebook in business?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
8. When did Zuckerberg get married?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
IV. Read the passage, and choose the correct answer A, B, C, or D for each question.
The Magical Mind of Leonardo Da Vinci
When someone shows great skills in a certain field, we call them a genius. In particular, the term is
associated with two people. One is the famed scientist Albert Einstein, and the other is Leonardo Da Vinci.
However, unlike Einstein, whose achievements were essentially all related to science, Leonardo Da Vinci was a
master at art, architecture, invention, and several other areas.
Da Vinci was born in Italy in 1452. He took to art at an early age and at age 14, he went to study as an
apprentice in Florence under the artist Verrocchio. For the next six years, Da Vinci picked up drawing, carpentry,
sculpting, and many other techniques from his master and his talent was evident. In fact, Da Vinci was such a
good painter that his talent frustrated his master. Eventually, Verrocchio was so frustrated by his student’s genius
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that he stopped painting altogether. By the age of 20, Da Vinci was considered a master artist and set up his own
workshop. It was there that Da Vinci was approached to create a painting for the Duke of Milan. The Duke was
so impressed by his work that he would bring him under his service. In addition to creating paintings and
sculptures, the Duke also had him design innovative buildings, machines, and weapons. Da Vinci would draw up
plans for several futuristic inventions including tanks, submarines, and flying machines. He also mastered the art
of drawing every muscle and detail of the human body. The only criticism one could make of Da Vinci is that his
brilliant mind jumped so quickly from subject to subject that he rarely completed the works he started. The ones
he did finish were often spectacular masterpieces, such as his paintings The Last Supper and the timeless Mona
Lisa. The latter, which is on display at the Louvre in Paris, is arguably the most famous painting of all times
because of its incredible detail and realism.
Although Da Vinci died in 1519, his effect on the art world has never waned. He helped coin the term
“Renaissance man” which is refers to someone who excels in many different areas. Perhaps the greatest present
Da Vinci left behind was his journals. Admirers and students of his work can examine 13,000 pages of his notes,
drawings, and ideas to better understand what made this genius tick.
1. How is Einstein different from Da Vinci?
A. He was much more intelligent B. He was slightly better painter
C. He lived many years before Da Vinci D. He mainly specialized in one subject
2. Why did Verrocchio retire from painting?
A. He found another way to make money
B. He needed to spend more time instructing Da Vinci
C. He knew that he would never be as talented as Da Vinci
D. He was offered a job working for the Duke Milan
3. Which of the following best describes Da Vinci’s plans while working for the Duke of Milan?
A. They were ahead of their time B. They were common and predictable
C. They were all related to paintings D. They were easily put into action
4. What could replace the word “waned” in the third paragraph?
A. increased B. decreased C. stayed the same D. made people angry
5. In the second paragraph, what does the phrase “The latter” refer to?
A. Da Vinci’s paintings B. Mona Lisa
C. The Last Supper D. The final years of Da Vinci’s career
6. The word “coin” in the third paragraph is closest meaning to …………………….
A. invent a new phrase B. makes coins out of metal
C. introduce new ideas D. describe the ideas
7. The only weak point of Da Vinci might be that ……………………….
A. he made his master, Verrocchio, stop painting
B. he excelled in many subjects of arts
C. his journals were too difficult for people to understand
D. he covered too many fields during his lifetime
8. All of the following are what Da Vinci did in his life EXCEPT that ……………………..
A. he painted some masterpieces
B. he put most of his plans into practice
C. he drew up plans for futuristic inventions
D. he was a master at architecture
9. What does the passage say about Da Vinci’s journals in the third paragraph?
A. Only thirteen of them still exist today
B. They prove that anyone can be artist if they don’t give up
C. People can read them to try to understand how he thought
D. They probably won’t teach his fans anything they don’t already know
10. The paragraph that follows the passage may most probably deal with ……………………..
A. other master pieces that Da Vinci painted during his life
B. the history of the Renaissance period
C. other journals kept at the library of the Duke of Milan
D. some of Da Vinci’s plans people considered and tried to put into practice
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