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SỞ GIÁO DỤC VÀ ĐÀO TẠO
NINH THUẬN
(Đề chính thức)
KỲ THI CHỌN HỌC SINH GIỎI CẤP TỈNH
NĂM HỌC 2011 – 2012
Khóa ngày: 17 / 11 / 2011
Môn thi: TIẾNG ANH - Cấp THPT
Thời gian làm bài: 180 phút
(Không kể thời gian phát đề)
ĐỀ:
(Đề thi gồm 08 trang)
I. LEXICO- GRAMMAR (6/20 points)
Part 1: Choose the word or phrase which best completes each sentence:
1. What Father said was brief and _____.
A. to the point B. on the point C. up to a point D. in point
2. The illness spread _____ all our attempts at keeping it in check.
A. regardless B. despite C. contrary D. against
3. Do you think I have any chance of ge tting _____ my driving test?
A. over B. through C. off D. with
4. Freda: Do you know our city at all?
Barry: No, it’s the first time I _____ here.
A. have been B. was C. had been D. am coming
5. One of the engineers who _____ over there _____ my uncle.
A. is standing / is B. are standing / is C. are standing / was D. is standing / was
6. He wants a job in _____ he can apply his foreign languages.
A. where B. that C. which D. what
7. Because of the poor harvest, wheat price have _____ in the last six months.

(0) has been done as an example.
(0). marvel marvelous
THE ABC OF COOKING
It’s a marvel idea for children to do some cooking at an early age. Generally
spoken, most children can’t wait to help in the kitchen and love getting
involved on the preparation of their meals. They should be encouraged to do
so, and care should be taken to ensure they enjoy the experience. It was
important to show them how to do thing correctly but they shouldn’t be
criticized too many. Although the finished result may not be quite to your
liking, the young cook will undoubtedly find it quiet the tastiest food he or
she has never eaten.
Kitchens can, of course, be dangerous place and so the absolute importance
of keep an eye on children at all times cannot be emphasized too heavily.
Sharp knives, for example, should be avoided until children are enough old to
handle them safely.
(0) marvelous
(1) _____
(2) _____
(3) _____
(4) _____
(5) _____
(6) _____
(7) _____
(8) _____
(9) _____
(10) _____
Part 3: Write the correct FORM of e ach bracketed word to fit each space. (0) has been done as an
example.
(0) EXTREME extremely
THE LONDON UNDERGROUND MAP

6. A. growing B. miserable C. poverty D. developing
7. A. discharged B. recharged C. charged D. discharging
8. A. farming B. planting C. agriculture D. growing
9. A. reservation B. conservation C. preservation D. retention
10. A. ineffective B. illogical C. irrational D. inefficient
Part 2: Fill in the blanks with ONE missing word: (10 words / 1 point)
Shades of Meaning
When we decide to choose a colour for anythin g - whether it's a T-shirt or a cover for a mobile
phone - our brains have to work very hard. In order for us to (1) _____ a choice that feels right, the
brain has to process various bit of information.
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There are various (2 ) _____ which make each of us lik e or dislike certain colours. Firstly, our
brains consider (3 ) _____ associations. These are completely personal and are a (4) _____ of our
individual experience s. Particular colours call to mind certain memories which may be connected to a
place, a (5) _____ or an experience. For example, we may associate red with the warmth of a fire or a
(6) _____ childhood sweater. Blue and green may remind us of holidays and (7) _____ weekends in
the country.
Secondly, there is evidence to show that di fferent colours (8) _____ our nervous system in
different way. Red can actually raise the level of adrenaline in our body. This is why energetic people
are drawn to red and also (9) _____sports cars are traditionally this colour. On the other hand, blue
and green are passi ve colours which have a relaxing (10 ) _____ on the nervous system and attract
people who like to feel completely at ease.
Part 3: Read the following passage and do the tasks that follow by choosing A, B, C, or D to indicate
your answer which you think fits best.
Constellations
Look at the stars in the night sky. Do some of them seem to form patterns or
designs? Can you see animals, people, or objects? These patterns are called
constellations.
 A) Constellations are not real animals, people, or objects. W e imagine them
to help us make a map of the sky. On a dark night, you can see almost 1,500 stars.

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1. According to the passage, about how many constellations exist today?
A. 90 B. 100 C. 1,500 D. 6,000
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2. All of the following are true EXCEPT that _____.
A. constellations have a long history B. scientists agree on constellation boundaries
C. constellations are groups of stars D. constellations never change
3. This passage mainly discusses _____.
A. the names of constellations B. the history of constellations
C. how to see constellations C. Greek and Roman myths
4. What does the word "which" in paragraph 2 refer to?
A. Constellations B. Maps C. People D. Stars
5. In paragraph 3, the word "one" in the last sentence refers to a _____.

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Paragraph 2: __________
Striving to become better educated is hardly a new concept. Wealthy parents have always been willing
to spend the vast amounts of extra money necessary to send their children to schools with a perceived
educational edge. Working adults have long attend ed night schools and refresher courses. Competition
for employment has been around since the curse of working for a living began. Is the present situation
so very different to that of the past?
Paragraph 3: __________
The difference now is that the push is universal and from without as well as within. A student at a
comprehensive school receiving low grades is no longer as easily accepted by his or her peers as was
once the case. Similarly, in the workplace, unless employees are engaged in part -time study, they may
be frowned upon by their employers and peers and have difficulty even standing still. In fact, in these
cases, the expectation is for careers to go backwards and earning capacit y to take a noticeably large
drop.
Paragraph 4: __________
At first glance, the situation would seem to be laudable; a positive response to the encouragement of
politicians for us all to raise our intellectual standards and help improve the level of intelligence
within the community. Yet there are serious consequences according to at least one educational
psychologist. Dr. Brendan Gatsby has caused some controversy in academic circles by suggesting that
a bias towards what he terms 'paper excellence' might cause more p roblems than it is supposed to
solve. Gatsby raises a number of issues that affect the individual as well as society in general.
Paragraph 5: __________
He believes the extra workload involved is resulting in abnormally high stress levels in both students
at comprehensive schools and adults studying after working hours. Secondly, skills which might be
more relevant to the undertaking of a sought -after job are being overlooked by employers not
interviewing candidates without qualifications on paper. These tw o areas of concern for the individual
are causing physical as well as emotional stress.
Paragraph 6: __________
Naturally, although there is agreement that learning can cause stress, Gatsby's comments regarding
university standards have been roundly critic ised as alarmist by most educationists who point out that,

Example: Immediately after winning the race, Sandy began training for the next one. ( HAD)
- No sooner had Sandy won the race than she began training for the next one.
1. Susan regrets not buying that house. (WISHES)

2. There is no ice-cream left. (RUN)

3. Everyone thought the book was written by the prin cess herself. (HAVE)

4. You are not to leave the hospital under any circumstances. (NO)

5. I can't lift this table on my own. (UNLESS)

B. Finish each of the sentences in such a way that it means exactly the same as the sentence
printed before it.
1. “Please don’t drive too fast!” Kathleen told her boyfriend.
- Kathleen begged
2. How long has this roof been leaking ?
- When ?
3. Provided your handwriting is legible, the examiners will accept your paper.
- So long as the examiners
4. As one grows older one becomes more intolerant.
- The older
5. Although his mother advised him, he didn’t give up gambling.
- Despite his
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Part 2:
A. Describing graphs:
The bar chart below presents some information about visitor arrivals in Singapore from USA,
France and Australia in 2009 and 2010 . Write a report describ ing the information shown below .
(You should write about 120 words )

119.7
130.5
Australia
830.3
880.6
2009
2010