Practice English Reading Exercises for A2 – Working Animals & Therapy Pets
Reading 1
For each question, choose the correct answer.
A Student’s Fight for Animal Rights
My name is Maria and I am sixteen years old. I live in a beautiful, warm city near the sea. Every summer, thousands of visitors come to see the old buildings. Many tourists like to travel around the city streets in carriages pulled by horses.
Last August, the weather was hotter than usual. One afternoon, I saw a beautiful brown horse pulling a heavy carriage full of people. The animal looked very tired and extremely thirsty. It didn’t have any water, and there was no place for it to stand out of the hot sun. I felt very sad and decided I had to do something.
The next day, I talked to my friends at high school. We started a special project to help the city’s working animals. We drew large posters and wrote a letter to the local government. In the letter, we asked the leaders to make a new rule. We wanted all working horses to get enough fresh water and long breaks during the day.
We stood in the town square and asked hundreds of people to sign our letter. Two months later, the city leaders agreed with us. Now, the horses have special quiet places with roofs to rest under, and they always have large buckets of water. I am very proud because our school project changed these animals’ lives.
1 What do visitors often do when they come to Maria’s city?
(A) take trips through the streets using horses
(B) stay in a beautiful, warm city near the sea
(C) pull a heavy carriage around the old buildings
2 When Maria saw the brown horse, she noticed that it
(A) needed something to drink and a place out of the sun.
(B) was hotter than usual that afternoon.
(C) had a place for it to stand out of the hot sun.
3 In their letter, the students wanted the leaders to
(A) ensure the animals had regular drinks and time to relax.
(B) start a special project to help the city.
(C) draw large posters for the local government.
4 What do we learn about the horses at the end of the text?
(A) They are given better care and covered spaces to stand.
(B) They have to wait in the town square with hundreds of people.
(C) They changed these animals’ lives two months later.
5 What is the best title for the article?
(A) A successful campaign to protect working animals
(B) How to make large posters for your high school
(C) The best quiet places to visit during the summer
ANSWER KEY
1 A 2 A 3 A 4 A 5 A
Reading 2
For each question, choose the correct answer.
The Ducks That Help a Farmer
Fourteen-year-old Mark visited a special farm last weekend. He had to write a story for his school newspaper about nature. He met a friendly farmer named Mr. Smith. Mr. Smith grows rice, but he does it in a very unusual way.
Mr. Smith explained that small bugs love to eat the young rice plants. Many farmers buy strong chemicals to kill these insects, but Mr. Smith doesn’t want to do that. He thinks chemicals are bad for the land. Instead, he uses ducks! He bought 100 ducks last year to help him on the farm.
Every morning, the farmer opens the gate and the ducks run into the water. They swim around the green plants all day. They are very hungry, so they eat the bugs, but they never eat the rice. The ducks also move the water with their little feet, and this actually helps the plants grow bigger and stronger.
Mark was completely amazed by this clever idea. He watched the ducks working in the water and took a lot of beautiful photos. “This natural farming is fantastic,” Mark said. “It is much better for the environment and the ducks look very happy. I cannot wait to share this great story with my classmates!”
1 Why did Mark go to Mr. Smith’s farm?
(A) to help the friendly farmer grow rice
(B) to get information for a writing project
(C) to learn about an unusual way to make a newspaper
2 Why doesn’t Mr. Smith use chemicals?
(A) He believes they are not good for the earth.
(B) He wants to buy strong chemicals for the insects.
(C) He wants the bugs to eat the young rice plants.
3 What do the ducks do in the rice fields?
(A) They open the gate and run into the water.
(B) They get very hungry and eat the rice.
(C) They catch insects and improve the plants.
4 How did Mark feel about the farmer’s idea?
(A) He thought it was an excellent way to farm.
(B) He wanted to work in the water with the ducks.
(C) He was happy to share his beautiful photos with the environment.
5 What is the best title for the article?
(A) How to take beautiful photos of nature
(B) Why strong chemicals are good for rice plants
(C) The farm birds that protect the rice plants
ANSWER KEY
1 B 2 A 3 C 4 A 5 C
Reading 3
For each question, choose the correct answer.
The Tiny Heroes Under the Ground
Thirteen-year-old Tom usually enjoys learning about sports in school. But last Tuesday, a special teacher visited his class to talk about unusual working animals. Most of the students expected to hear about police dogs or farm horses. Instead, the teacher showed them pictures of large rats, which surprised everyone.
These are not the kind of rats you see in city streets. They go to a special school in Africa to learn a very important job. They learn to find dangerous landmines, which are hidden bombs under the ground. Because the rats are so light, they can walk over the bombs safely without anything terrible happening.
During the lesson, the students watched a video of the animals at work. The rats have excellent noses and can smell the dangerous items quickly. When a rat finds a bomb, it scratches the dirt to tell the human workers. After that, the animal gets a sweet piece of banana to eat. Tom thought it was incredible.
Before this lesson, Tom was afraid of rats. Now, he thinks they are fantastic heroes. For his next science project, he isn’t going to write about football anymore. He plans to create a website about these brave animals so his friends can give money to help train more of them.
1 How did the students feel about the teacher’s lesson?
(A) They were amazed to see photographs of rats.
(B) They expected to learn about sports in school.
(C) They preferred hearing about police dogs.
2 Why don’t the hidden bombs explode when the rats step on them?
(A) They are the kind of rats from city streets.
(B) The animals do not weigh very much.
(C) They learn a very important job in Africa.
3 What does the rat do when it discovers a bomb?
(A) It quickly eats a sweet piece of banana.
(B) It watches a video of the animals at work.
(C) It uses its feet to mark the ground.
4 What is Tom planning to do next?
(A) Write about football for his science project.
(B) Build a web page to gather cash for the rats.
(C) Give his own money to his friends.
5 What is the best title for the article?
(A) How to catch rats in city streets
(B) Tom’s new pet rat from Africa
(C) The brave animals doing a dangerous job
ANSWER KEY
1 A 2 B 3 C 4 B 5 C