Module 1: Family

READING

PASSAGE 1
A
Blood is thicker than water. This means that family is more important than anyone else. Many young
people, though, spend more time with their friends than with their family. They value their friends' opinions more
and enjoy their company. When it's time to visit grandma or go to a cousin's wedding, teenagers often prefer to be
left at home. But are they missing out?

B
In Asia, the Middle East, South America and Sub-Saharan Africa over 40% of children live in families with other
adults such as aunts, uncles and grandparents in addition to their parents. In South Africa, it is almost 70%. On
the other hand, in Europe, Australia and North America, less than 25% of children live in extended families. Is the
lack of close contact with relatives putting some children at a disadvantage?

C
The people they live with have a great influence on the way children grow up. Those who live with their extended
family have many advantages. They usually get lots of love and attention. Grandparents often have more time to
read to children and play with them. As they are often retired, they are not always busy and stressed as many
parents are. They have learnt to be patient and they have already handled most of the
problems children and young people face.

D
It is good for children to grow up to understand the needs of older people: they may become more caring and less
selfish if they spend time helping their grandparents. Children learn about the past from grandparents' stories.
Sometimes they feel closer to their grandparents than to their parents.

E
Young adults often feel that living alone will be exciting, but they forget that it can also be lonely. By remaining
with the family during this stage of their \ives, they can avoid this. They can also save money for their education
and future.

F
Young people whose grandparents live far away can gain some of these advantages by keeping in close contact
by phone, email, letters and visits. It is nice to know there is someone you can go to if you have
a problem. As the Italian proverb says, 'Se non sto ondondo bene chiomore lo nonna.' - 'If things aren't going well,
call your grandmother.'

G
Friends are important to young people, but friends come and go. Your family is always on your side. Grandparents
won't be there forever. Appreciate them while you can.

TASK 1: Match the highlighted words from the text with their meanings.
1. value a. worried; not able to relax
2. (have an) influence b. dealt with, had experience of
3. stressed c. get (something positive)
4. handled d. be grateful for
5. selfish e. a well-known phrase giving advice
6. gain f. caring only about yourself and not other people
 7. proverb g. (have an) effect (on)
8. appreciate h. believe something is important

TASK 2: Use the words in the box to complete the following sentences:
value influence stressed handle
selfish gain proverb appreciate

1. He doesn’t want to share his toys with others. He’s _________.

2. She is under great pressure while preparing for the exam. She’s __________.
3. Most people ____________ the gifts from their beloved ones. They consider them invaluable pieces of
reminders.
4. Parents normally have a great ___________ on children, so they need to behave properly and adopt good
habits.
5. He knows how to __________ the problem. He has talked about it with his parents.
6. In order to ___________ high grades, he has to study hard.
7. As a Chinese ___________ has it: ‘The fish will be the last to discover the water.’
8. During my illness I learned to _________ the ordinary things in life.

TASK 3: Read the note about paraphrasing and do the task below

Paraphrasing means expressing the same idea using different words or sentence structures.
Why Paraphrasing in IELTS is important?

Different types of paraphrasing:

● Synonyms
● Antonyms
● Different word form
● Different structures

Identify the types of paraphrasing in the following examples

Original Paraphrase Type

Children learn languages easily. Young learners pick up languages
quickly.
Caused by pollution Resulting from environmental
damage
The research was conducted in A 2020 study found...
2020.
High levels of sugar A large amount of sugar
This seems to be usual This seems to be abnormal
Adults need to be fully responsible Adults need to take full
for… responsibility for…

Strategies
1. Read the instruction - Pay attention to the WORD LIMIT
2. Underline keywords (Nouns, Verbs, Adjectives, Adverbs, Time / Number, Question word)
3. Locate the information - Looking for the paraphrase
4. Read the information in the passage and answer the questions. The order of the information in the
passage is the same as the order of the information in the questions
TASK 4: Answer these questions. Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the
passage for each answer.
Question 1: What percentage of children live in extended families in Asia, the Middle East, South America and
Sub-Saharan Africa?
Question 2: What percentage of children in South Africa live with their extended family?
Question 3: Why are grandparents often less busy and stressed than parents?
Question 4: What helps children in extended families learn about the past?
Question 5: What do young people often think living alone will be like?
Question 6: What negative word can describe how it sometimes feels to live alone?
Question 7: According to the Italian proverb, who should you phone when you have a problem?

TASK 5: Complete the following Keyword Table

Keyword Paraphrase
1 their extended family
5 young people
6 phone

TASK 6: Read Passage 2, answer the questions with NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage and
complete the keyword table
PASSAGE 2
The History of Painted Eggs
Easter eggs, aka Paschal eggs in some parts of the world, are special eggs that are often given to celebrate
Easter or springtime. The practice of decorating eggshell dates back thousands of years. Ostrich eggs with
engraved decoration that are 60,000 years old have been found in Africa. As far as historians know, the act of egg
decoration did not have any religious origin and was just decorative. In Persian culture, eggs were sometimes
painted by the whole family as they sat together preparing for the arrival of Spring and their New Year. And even
today, people enjoy painting eggs without being at all religious.

Eventually, eggs which often symbolised Spring become connected to the celebration of Easter. In Europe, it was
traditional to use dyed and painted chicken eggs at Easter, but a modern custom is to substitute chocolate eggs,
or plastic eggs filled with confectionery such as jelly beans. Easter eggs are a widely popular symbol of new life in
Bulgaria, Poland, Romania, Russia, Ukraine, and other Central European countries where they are concealed in
the garden for children to find.

1. What is another name for an Easter Egg?

2. What type of egg was used for decoration in the ancient world?
3. What type of sweets were artificial eggs sometimes filled with?
4. Where are egg hunts often conducted as part of a hide and seek game in some countries?

Keyword table
Keyword Paraphrase
1 another
2 used for decoration
3 artificial eggs
4 hide and seek