UNIT 4

VOCABULARY
1 Complete the sentences with one word.
1. I’d just like to point ............................................................. that all the services are free of charge.
2. Don’t worry, it’s ............................................................. control.
3. We met ............................................................. chance at a meeting.
4. In the long ............................................................. , this is the most effective treatment.
5. Someone has to ............................................................. action to initiate change.
6. This school meets the ............................................................. of students who are weak learners.
7. We are having a lot of ............................................................. in finding housing for the refugees.
8. Immigrants often feel ............................................................. of place in their new country.

2 Complete the sentences with the correct form of the words below.
ability | count | equal | help | meaning | pain | peace | thought | annoy

1. This massage should be relaxing, not ............................................................. !

2. We believe in ............................................................. for everyone.
3. Until ............................................................. action is taken, nothing will change in our society.
4. It was very quiet and ............................................................. here until the festival started.
5. There are ............................................................. numbers of people who need more help than is available.
6. He feels ............................................................. . There’s nothing he can do about the situation.
7. Dave’s ............................................................. words really upset me.
8. Everyone here has a physical ............................................................. .
9. The loud noises are very ............................................................. .

3 Complete the text with the words below. There are three extra words.
cheered | convey | deal | devices | overcome | fulfil | mainstream | lack | request | role | struggle
1.
Children of immigrants and refugees often ............................................................. at school, especially if they don’t
2.
speak the language of their new country. Often schools ............................................................. the necessary financial
resources to provide interpreters, private teachers or special electronic 3. ............................................................. which
4.
could help. Moreover, parents, who usually play a key ............................................................. in the education of their
children, may not speak the language either. In such cases, it is essential that schools try to
5.
............................................................. a message of support, despite the language barrier. It means a great
6.
............................................................. to parents when it is made clear that the school will help their children to
7.
............................................................. obstacles, improve their language skills and 8. ............................................................. their
ambitions to become fully integrated.

1
 UNIT 4
WRITTEN COMPREHENSION
Read the magazine article and answer the questions that follow.

A GUIDE AND A FRIEND

I In the ruins of Herculaneum near Pompeii in Italy, there is a picture from 2,000 years ago of a blind
person being led by a dog. A similar picture from China dating from the 12th century indicates that a
dog’s ability to carry out this kind of task has been widely known for many years.
II However, although the idea of guide dogs was researched by scientists in the 19th century, it wasn’t until
the First World War that a training school was set up in Germany in 1916, after a doctor noticed how
injured soldiers were helped by dogs.
III But how are guide dogs trained? First of all, only some breeds are suitable. Golden retrievers, labradors
and German shepherds are the most popular, although other breeds may also have the right
temperament and level of intelligence necessary for the task. Guide dogs are scientifically bred, so that
they are more likely to possess the essential temperament and characteristics for the job. As young
puppies, the dogs spend a year or more with special trainers learning how to be obedient. Only then do
they begin the training which enables them to work with blind people, known as handlers.
IV Although it may seem that the guide dogs are leading their handlers, this isn’t quite true. The blind person
must have an idea of where they are going, while the dog’s duty is to help them to avoid obstacles and to
keep them away from danger. At traffic lights, the handler listens to the sound of traffic and gives the
order for the dog to move forward. It is the animal’s job to make sure it is safe to do this. One of the most
important parts of the guide dog’s training is to teach it “selective disobedience”. This means that if the
handler tells it to do something, the dog can refuse if it is likely to be dangerous.
V Guide dogs, though, aren’t just a tool for getting from A to B safely. They also act as an irreplaceable
companion who their handlers can totally rely on.

1 Decide if the following sentences are true (T) or false (F). Find evidence in the text to justify your answers.
1. Only three breeds of dogs can be used as guide dogs. .................

.......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... .

2. Guide dogs learn to obey orders while being trained to help blind people. .................

.......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... .

3. Blind people show the dog where to go rather than the dog showing them. .................
.......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... .

4. Guide dogs indicate to their handlers when traffic lights have changed colour. .................
.......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... .

5. Guiding is not the only important function a dog carries out for its owner. .................
.......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... .

2 Answer the questions.

1. How do we know that dogs have been helping blind people for many years?
.......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... .

2. What influenced the idea of setting up a school for training guide dogs?
.......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... .

3. What do the three breeds of dogs mentioned in the text have in common?
.......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... .

4. Why are guide dogs more likely than other dogs of the same breed to be good at their work?
.......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... .

5. What does “selective disobedience” mean?

.......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... .

2
UNIT 4
3 Find words or expressions from the text that mean:
1. a skill that someone or something has (paragraph I) ...............................................................................

2. right for a task (paragraph III) ...............................................................................

3. makes something possible (paragraph III) ...............................................................................

4. job, task (paragraph IV) ...............................................................................

5. trust (paragraph V) ...............................................................................

GRAMMAR

1 Complete the text with the modals below and the correct form of the verbs in brackets. You can use the
modals more than once.
able to | not have to | may | must | shouldn’t | would

During the summer and autumn months, millions of people are stung by bees. Although the experience
1.
............................................................. (be) painful, most people 2. ............................................................. (continue) their everyday
activities and 3. ............................................................. (receive) medical help. Others aren’t so lucky. For some people
who are allergic to bee stings, it 4. ............................................................. (be) life threatening and they
5.
............................................................. (get) immediate medical attention.
6.
You ............................................................. (think) that anyone who has a severe allergy 7. .............................................................
(know) about it. However, the problem is that you can suddenly become allergic at any time in your life.
Once this happens, it is very likely that you will remain allergic for the rest of your life, and during the
summer and autumn, you 8. ............................................................. (leave) the house without taking a bee sting kit with
you, so that you can inject yourself if you are stung.

2 Complete the sentences with a modal perfect.

1. The website says the hotel is now accessible. They ............................................................. a ramp.
2. Cindy didn’t answer her phone. She ............................................................. it.
3. We didn’t know that you wanted an interpreter. You ............................................................. us in advance.
4. The text was easy. He ............................................................. trouble reading it.
5. We didn’t know you had so much equipment. We ............................................................. you carry it.
6. The lecture hall was bigger than we thought. We ............................................................. more people.

3 Complete the sentences in a logical way.

1. I didn’t participate in the race. I wasn’t able ...................................................................................................................................................... .

2. We apologise. We shouldn’t have ............................................................................................................................................................................... .

3. Everyone’s waiting. I really must .................................................................................................................................................................................. .

4. You were lucky. You might have ................................................................................................................................................................................... .

5. Don’t touch it. It may ................................................................................................................................................................................................................ .