Practice English Reading Exercises for A2 – Software Development & App Design

Exercises:   12345

Reading 1

For each question, choose the correct answer.

Tom’s Path to Programming

Fifteen-year-old Tom is different from his classmates. While his friends spend their time playing football or watching videos on the internet, Tom loves working on his computer. He has a big dream. He wants to become a software programmer and make popular apps when he leaves school.

Last year, Tom read an interesting article about programming. He learned that the best computer programmers are also excellent at mathematics. Tom usually got good marks in math, but he wanted to be the best. So, he decided to start taking advanced math classes at his high school.

At first, the new math lessons were quite difficult. However, Tom didn’t stop trying. Now, he spends most of his evenings doing hard math exercises instead of watching television. When he doesn’t understand a problem, he always asks his teacher for help after the lesson. His teacher is very kind and explains everything clearly.

Because of all his hard work, Tom now feels much more confident with numbers. This new knowledge is already helping him with his computer skills. Next month, he is going to write his very first simple computer game. He knows he has to study for many more years, but he is ready for his future career.

1   What does Tom want to do in the future?

     (A) create software for people to use

     (B) spend his time playing football

     (C) watch videos on the internet

2   Why did Tom begin advanced math classes?

     (A) He understood it would help him as a programmer.

     (B) He wanted to write an interesting article about programming.

     (C) He needed to get good marks in math.

3   What does Tom usually do in the evenings?

     (A) He practices difficult number problems.

     (B) He spends most of his time watching television.

     (C) He asks his teacher for help after the lesson.

4   How is the math class helping Tom right now?

     (A) He is better at working with his computer.

     (B) He is going to write his very first simple computer game.

     (C) He has to study for many more years.

5   What is the best title for the article?

     (A) A teenager’s hard work for his dream job

     (B) How to get good marks in mathematics

     (C) The best computer games for high school students

Reading 2

For each question, choose the correct answer.

Chloe’s Learning Game

Fifteen-year-old Chloe loves computers, but she doesn’t spend her time just playing games. She has a seven-year-old brother, Max, who often gets bad marks in his spelling tests. Chloe wanted to find a fun way to help him and other primary school children learn. So, she decided to design her own educational game.

To start, Chloe joined an after-school coding club to learn how to write software. Her computer teacher, Mr Harris, gave her some excellent advice. He told her that games for young children must be easy to use and full of bright colours. Chloe listened to him and began drawing some funny animal characters for her project.

Making the game actually took a very long time. Chloe spent most of her weekends working on her laptop in her bedroom. Sometimes, the program stopped working, and she felt quite angry. But she didn’t give up. After two months, the game was finally ready, and she asked Max to try it.

Max played the game every evening and really enjoyed it. Soon, his spelling improved a lot, and his teacher started using Chloe’s game with the whole class. Chloe is very proud of her work. She is now planning a new maths game and hopes to become a professional game designer in the future.

1   Why did Chloe decide to design a game?

     (A) to make studying more enjoyable for young students

     (B) because she often gets bad marks in spelling tests

     (C) because she doesn’t spend her time playing games

2   What advice did Mr Harris give Chloe?

     (A) to join an after-school coding club

     (B) to draw some funny animal characters

     (C) to make sure the software is simple to play

3   How did Chloe feel while she was making the game?

     (A) happy to spend her weekends in her bedroom

     (B) annoyed when she had problems with the computer program

     (C) ready to give up after two months

4   What happened after Max played the game?

     (A) Other children at his school played it too.

     (B) He started a new maths game.

     (C) He became a professional game designer.

5   What is the best title for the article?

     (A) How to get good marks in spelling

     (B) The best after-school coding club

     (C) A teenager’s first educational game

Reading 3

For each question, choose the correct answer.

Getting Ideas for the Future

Mark is fifteen years old and he is thinking about his future. His friends already know what jobs they want to do. His best friend wants to be a doctor, and his sister wants to teach maths. Mark loves using his smartphone, but he doesn’t know how to write computer programs. He feels a bit worried about his career.

Last week, Mark went to the town library to get some ideas. He found a very interesting book about famous app developers. He read a story about a woman who created a very popular language app. The book said she started her business with no money. She just had a great idea and worked hard every day.

In the same book, he read about a teenage boy who made a successful mobile game. This boy didn’t know much about computers at first. He just loved drawing funny monsters. He asked a friend to help him turn his monster drawings into a game. Mark smiled because drawing is his favourite hobby, too.

Now, Mark knows what he wants to do. He doesn’t want to write the code for apps. He wants to design them and make them look beautiful. He is going to start a special art class next month. He hopes that one day, millions of people will download an app with his pictures.

1   How does Mark feel at the beginning of the story?

     (A) He is unhappy because he isn’t sure what job to do.

     (B) He wants to teach maths when he finishes school.

     (C) He is worried because he has to write computer programs.

2   What did Mark learn about the woman in the book?

     (A) She went to the town library to get some ideas.

     (B) She was not rich when she began her company.

     (C) She needed a lot of money to make her language app.

3   The teenage boy made a mobile game because

     (A) he knew a lot about computers at first.

     (B) he asked a friend to draw monsters for him.

     (C) he really enjoyed making pictures of strange things.

4   What is Mark’s plan now?

     (A) He wants to decide how mobile programs look.

     (B) He wants to learn how to write the code for apps.

     (C) He is going to download an app with pictures next month.

5 What is the best title for the article?

     (A) How to write computer programs

     (B) The boy who loves playing mobile games

     (C) Finding a great idea for a future career

Exercises:   12345