Test Yourself is where you can improve your reading skills. Whether it’s for tests like University Entrance Exams or IELTS and TOEFL, or even just for fun, these pages help you to read, understand and improve your English.

Kittipak Tantichot is a Thai student at Groton School in Massachusetts, the US. He recently taught students at Bangkok School for the Blind and wrote about his experience for S Weekly. Read his story, then answer the questions that follow.

MORE THAN ENGLISH

I’ve taught English every summer at Bangkok School for the Blind since I was in eighth grade. This year, myself and seven other students received a grant from Groton School to travel to Thailand and teach at the school. During this trip, we also decided to introduce skills such as problem solving and critical thinking.

When we first arrived, many of the students were extremely shy. In the past, I’ve only worked with students in the fifth and sixth grades. But for this trip, we were also teaching first graders. After chatting with them and playing introductory games, they began to smile and open up.

SCIENTISTS VERSUS ROBOTS

During the first few days, we developed the students’ logical thinking and programming skills. For example, we played a game where we taught seven words related to seven morning routines. Afterwards, we tried to trick the students by reading the words to them in the wrong order. They corrected us and then described their morning routine chronologically.

For another activity, we had the students “program” each other. We split them into two teams, the Scientists and the Robots. The Scientists directed the Robots to an objective through a set of commands - forward, backwards, left, right, diagonal and jump - in order to find a hidden object (a water bottle). After we’d explained the rules, they all jumped up from their seats in a disorderly way, excited to begin. But it was a productive kind of chaos, one of joy and happiness. The Scientist team grabbed the bottle and hid it around a corner.

Initially, I wasn’t sure if they were trying to guide their friends to the bottle or make them walk around in circles. However, the students soon learned to work together to efficiently navigate through the room and around obstacles, such as chairs, that we put in their way.

MAPPING THE SKYTRAIN

I was inspired by a conversation with some of the students on an earlier visit who wanted to know what the BTS Skytrain system looked like. Most of the students rely on an adult to guide them when they travel. So I designed a 3D printed Braille map of the BTS system. I told the students to check for accuracy to help me to improve it. When I handed out the maps, the students grabbed them enthusiastically. They loved the sound the plastic made when they ran their fingers across it.

We taught them how to use the map and how the system of the BTS trains works, dragging their fingers along the track as they read the train stations. My favourite memory was of Pong, a sixth-grade student, who would run his fingers across the Braille. Throughout the class, he’d poke me and whisper the station’s name into my ear. If he got it right, a big smile would break out across his face. It made me very happy.

UNBREAKABLE SPIRIT

Not to be clichéd, but the students at this school are the strongest kids that I’ve ever met and probably will ever meet. Their energy and ability to overcome their challenges never fail to impress me. They have an unbreakable will to fight, live and succeed.

Even in the classes we didn’t teach, the students remembered our voices. On the last day, some were yelling our names and asking us when we’d come back to teach them again. It warmed my heart and it was a pleasure to get to know every one of them.

---

Section 1

Read through the story and answer the following multiple-choice questions.

1. What is the article about?

a. A school’s English programme.
b. A summer course.
c. Teaching experience.

2. Where does Kittipak study?

a. Groton School.
b. Bangkok School for the Blind.
c. The University of Massachusetts.

3. What did Kittipak introduce to his students during the trip?

a. Problem-solving skills.
b. Critical thinking.
c. Both a and b are correct.

4. Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the article?

a. Classroom activities.
b. Learning objectives.
c. The number of students.

5. Where is Groton School located?

a. In the UK.
b. In the US.
c. In Thailand.

6. Which of the following statements is TRUE, according to the article?

a. Kittipak teaches English every summer at Groton School.
b. Kittipak taught the students how the BTS system worked.
c. Pong was a fifth-grade student.
 
7. Which of the following statements is NOT true, according to the article?

a. The Scientists and Robots activity was held on the last day.
b. Kittipak and seven of his classmates received a grant to teach English.
c. The students were very shy when they first met Kittipak and his classmates.

Section 2

Match each of the following words used in the story with the correct definitions from the choices given.

8. chaos	a. showing lack of control
9.chronologically	b. doing or achieving a lot
10. disorderly	c. to find your position or the position of your ship, plane or car and the direction you need to go in
11. productive	d. a state of complete confusion and lack of order
12. navigate	e. connected with a phrase or an idea that has been used so often that it no longer has much meaning and is not interesting
13. clichéd	f. arranged in the order in which they happened

Section 3

Read the following passage. Then, fill in the blanks with the correct words from the choices given.

On one of the last …..14….., we held an English Camp. My friends and I each hosted a station which focused …..15….. skills such as the alphabet, programming, guessing and counting. The first round was a bit hectic as we tried to make …..16….. all the stations were ready. At one of the stations, the students could give the teachers different …..17….. They instructed us to dance, sing, do push-ups and anything else they …..18….. think of. It was …..19….. wonderful experience.

14.

a. day  
b. daily   
c. days

15.

a. in  
b. on   
c. at

16.

a. sure  
b. surely  
c. sureness

17.

a. commands 
b. commanding 
c. command

18.

a. can  
b. could  
c. will

19.

a. a   
b. an   
c. the

Section 4

Write down the noun forms of the following words used in the story in the space given.

20. impress

…………………………

21. arrived

…………………………

22. efficiently

…………………………

23. enthusiastically

…………………………

24. logical

…………………………

---

Answers

Section 1

1. c.
2. a.
3. c.
4. c.
5. b.
6. b.
7. a.

Section 2

8. d.
9. f.
10. a.
11. b.
12. c.
13. e.

Section 3

14. c.
15. b.
16. a.
17. a.
18. b.
19. a.

Section 4

20. Impression.
21. Arrival.
22. Efficiency.
23. Enthusiasm.
24. Logic.

SCORE

21-24: Excellent!
17-20: Good.
13-16: Fair.
12 or fewer: You'll do better next time!