Reading Comprehension: 1

Proverbs in English

A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush - Más vale pájaro en mano que ciento volando.
A stitch in time saves nine - Más vale prevenir que curar.
A word is enough to the wise - A buen entendedor, pocas palabras bastan.
Actions speak louder than words - Los hechos valen más que las palabras.
All cats are grey in the dark - Por la noche todos los gatos son pardos.
All roads lead to Rome - Todos los caminos llevan a Roma.
All that glitters is not gold - No es oro todo lo que reluce.
An apple a day keeps the doctor away - Una manzana al día, el médico te ahorraría.
Appearances are deceptive - Las apariencias engañan.
Barking dogs never bite - Perro ladrador, poco mordedor.
Better the devil you know than the devil you don't know - Más vale malo conocido que bueno por conocer.
Better late than never - Más vale tarde que nunca.
Birds of a feather flock together - Dios los cría y ellos se juntan.
Blood is thicker than water - La sangre es mas espesa que el agua.
Cheap is dear - Lo barato sale caro.
Do what is right, come what may - Haz siempre lo correcto.
Don't look a gift-horse in the mouth - A caballo regalado no le mires los dientes.
Don't pull all your eggs in one basket - No te lo jueges todo a una carta.
Early to bed, early to rise, makes the man healthy, wealthy and wise - A quien madruga Dios le ayuda.
Every cloud has a silver lining - No hay mal que por bien no venga.
Every law has its loophole - Hecha la ley, hecha la trampa.
Experience is the mother os knowledge - La experiencia es la madre de la ciencia.
Give a dog a bad name and hang it - Hazte fama y échate a dormir.
Half a loaf is better than none - A falta de pan, buenas son tortas.
Hunt with cats and you catch only rats - Dime con quién andas y te diré quién eres.
In for a penny, in for a pound - De perdidos al río.
It never rains, but it pours - Las desgracias nunca vienen solas.
Let bygones be bygones - Lo pasado, pisado.
Many hands make light work - Muchas manos hacen el trabajo ligero.
More haste, less speed - Vísteme despacio que tengo prisa.
Nothing ventured, nothing gained - Quien no arriesga, no gana.
One man's meat is another man's poison - Para gustos, los colores.
People who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones - No hagas a los demás lo que no quieres que te hagan a ti.
Politeness costs nothing - Lo cortés no quita lo valiente.
Rome wasn't built in a day - Roma no se construyó en un día.
Silence gives consent - Quien calla otorga.
The apple doesn't fall far from the tree - De tal palo, tal astilla.
The die is cast - La suerte está echada.
The early bird catches the worm - A quien madruga Dios le ayuda.
The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence - Lo mejor siempre lo tiene el otro.
The shoemaker's son goes always barefoot - En casa del herrero, cuchillo de palo.
The straw that broke the camel's back - La gota que colmó el vaso.
There is no use crying over spilt milk -  A lo hecho, pecho.
To an unrequited love, absence and oblivion - A mal amor correspondido, ausencia y olvido.
To call a spade, a spade - Al pan, pan y al vino, vino.
To error is human - Errar es de humanos.
Too many cooks spoil the broth - Muchas manos en un plato hacen un garabato.
Two in distress makes sorrow less - Mal de muchos , consuelo de tontos.
When in Rome, do as the Romans do - Donde fueres, haz lo que vieres.
When one is tired, all beds are good - A buen sueño, no hay mala cama.
When there is a will, there is a way - Querer es poder.
You can't have your cake and eat it too - No se puede tener todo en esta vida.
You scratch my back, I'll scratch yours - Hoy por ti y mañana por mí.

Topics for an oral exam: DAILY LIFE

TOPIC: DAILY LIFE

1. What are some things you do every day?

2. What are some good habits you have?

3. Do you have any bad habits?

4. Can your group give you any advice for your bad habits?

5. What is something you should do every day but you don't?

6. What are some activities you like to do?

7. How much do you exercise every week?

8. What is a successful life? What habits should you have to have a successful life?

9. What three habits will improve your life?

10. What are some habits that can improve your English ability?

11. What is something you do about once a week, month or year?

12. How life-style has changed in the recent days?

13. If you could live anyone's life, which person would you choose?

14. What things would you change in your life to make it better?

15. Can you think of any differences between daily life in your country and another one?

Topics for an oral exam: THE MEDIA

TOPIC: THE MEDIA

1. Where do you get your news from?

2. How important is it for people to follow the news?

3. Do you think that news agencies sometimes tell lies to make a story more popular?

4. How much do you trust newspapers, tv or news from the internet?

5. Which is the most reliable source of information?

6. What kind of news interest you the most?

7. Do you think the news is too depressing?

8. How has techonology changed the way we consume news?

9. What is the purpose of news companies in society?

10. Should news be more entertaining or informative?

11. Would you ever consider getting a job in the news industry?

12. What do you think about how the news is reported in your country?

13. Are people nowadays more interested in gossip or global news?

14. Do you think it is important to be updated?

15. How the media has changed in the recent years?

Topics for an oral exam: SPORTS

TOPIC: SPORTS

1. What are some sports you like watching?

2. What are some sports you dislike? Why?

3. Would you like to learn how to play a particular sport or activity? Which one?

4. Do you play any sports?

5. Why are sports so popular?

6. Do you know of any interesting or strange sport or activity?

7. What two sports would you like to mix?

8. Do you prefer to watch sports or play them?

9. What do you think is the most dangerous sport?

10. What do you think of athletes making so much money?

11. Do you think there are differences between women and men in sports?

12. Why football is the most famous sport in the world?

13. Do you like winter sports?

14. Would you like to try extreme sports?

15. Do you prefer being part of a team or playing alone?

Topics for an oral exam: SCIENCE & TECH

TOPIC: SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

1. Talk about how technology has changed in your lifetime.
2. What do you think has been the most important invention in the last 100 years?
3. Are there any new gadgets that you really want to get?
4. What do you think will be the next biggest techonological advance?
5. How can countries help to create more inventors?
6. What is your favourite piece of technology you own?
7. How will computers change in the future?
8. Do you think that there will be more or less new innovation in the future?
9. Is there a piece of technology that you really want that doesn't exist?
10. Give some examples of technology that have made the world worse.
11. What do you think is the most important thing that humans have created?
12. Do you think that people will travel outside of our solar system? How will they get there?
13. What are the possibilities of technology in clothing?
14. Is science always a good thing?
15. Do you trust science?
16. What has science done for humankind?
17. What is the future of transportation?
18. Do you like new gadgets or do you prefer to use technology you are confortable with?
19. Do really techonology help people in their lives?
20. Do you think people are addicted to techonology?

Topics for an oral exam: HOUSE

TOPIC: HOUSE

1. Are you a "house and home" person?

2. What is your favourite thing about your home?

3. What is your dream house?

4. What home improvements would you like to make to your home?

5. Do you like being at home alone?

6. Do you like the houses in other countries?

7. What comes to mind when you hear the word "home"?

8. Are you a stay-at-home person or a going-out person?

9. Do/would you like to own your own house?

10. Do you like the location of your home?

11. Do you get jealous of other people's homes?

12. Is there anything you hate about your home?

13. Would you like to work at home?

14. Do you agree that "home is where the heart is"?

15. Would you rather live in a house or an apartment?

16. Would you participate in a tv show to redecorate your house?

17. What makes a house feel like home?

18. Would you like to live in the countryside?

19. What about those "new-age" houses?

20. Describe your house.