General Tips for Reading B1 & B2

📖 Reading Strategy Guide (B1 & B2)

🟢 Section 1:

Part 1: Multiple Choice Cloze (Vocabulary)

The "Context" Rule: Look at the words before and after the gap. Often, the answer depends on a preposition.
- Example: "He is interested ______ art." (A. at / B. in / C. on). Only B works with "interested."
Collocations: Some words just go together naturally.
- Example: We say "make a mistake," not "do a mistake."

Part 2: Open Cloze (Grammar)

Think small: The missing word is almost always a "grammar word."
- Relative pronouns: who, which, where, that.
- Prepositions: in, on, at, for, with.
- Articles: a, an, the.
- Auxiliary verbs: is, was, have, do.

Part 3: Word Formation (Changing the word)

Identify the Part of Speech: Look at the gap. Do you need a Noun, Verb, Adjective, or Adverb?
- Example: "The sun was ______." (BRIGHT). You need an adjective: BRIGHT.
- Example: "The sun was shining ______." (BRIGHT). You need an adverb: BRIGHTLY.
The "Negative" Trap: Does the sentence mean the opposite? You might need to add a prefix like un-, dis-, or im-. (e.g., happy → unhappy).

Part 4: Key Word Transformation (B2 Only)

Don't change the word: You must use the word given in capital letters exactly as it is.
Count your words: You must use between 2 and 5 words (B2). Remember, contractions like "don't" count as two words.

🟣 Section 2:

Multiple Choice (Long Text)

Read the question first: Don't read the whole text yet. Read the first question, then find the answer in the first paragraph. The questions follow the order of the text.
Watch for "Distractors": The text might mention words from Option A, but the meaning of the whole sentence might be Option C.

Gapped Text (B2 Only)

Look for Clues: This is like a puzzle. Look for:
- Pronouns: If the missing sentence starts with "He," look for a man's name in the previous paragraph.
- Linking words: Words like However, Therefore, or But show how the ideas connect.

Multiple Matching (Scanning)

Scan for Synonyms: You will not find the same words in the question and the text.
- Question: "Who was surprised by the news?"
- Text: "I didn't expect to hear that at all."
Underline keywords: Underline the most important words in the questions before you start looking at the texts.

💡 Final Exam Tip: The "Final Review"

Before you finish, read through your Use of English parts one last time. Sometimes your "ear" will catch a mistake that your "brain" missed. Does the sentence sound like correct English?

Would you like me to... ...give you a Word Formation Practice (Part 3) with some common B1/B2 words so you can practice changing verbs into nouns and adjectives?