I. Từ vựng

• competition (n) [,kɔmpi'ti∫n]cuộc thi đấu
• judge (n) ['dʒʌdʒ]giám khảo
• native speaker (n) người bản xứ
• observe (v) [ə'bzə:v]quan sát

II. Cấu trúc cần lưu ý:

• congratulate … (on)(v) [kən'grætjuleit]chúc mừng
• warn … (against) (v) cảnh báo

III. Hướng dẫn cách giải bài tập

1. Before you read 

Look at the photos. Match each of them with the words in the box below. (Nhìn các bức ảnh. Ghép mỗi hình với các từ trong khung dưới đây.)

• a. Quiz "Road to mount Olympia"
• b. London marathon
• c. Sao Mai Television Singing Contest
• d. Olympic Games

Work with a partner. Answer the following questions. (Làm việc theo cặp. Trả lời những câu hỏi sau.)

• 1. Do you like taking part in competitions like these? Why/ Why not? (Bạn có thích tham gia các cuộc thi như thế này không? Tại sao có/không?)

=> No, I don't. Because I don't have the capacity for them.

=> Yes, I'd like to participate in the quiz: "Road to Mount Olympia", because it's an interesting game, which help me widen my general knowledge.

• 2. Do you hope to win a competition? If so, which competition do you like to win? (Bạn có hi vọng chiến thắng ở một cuộc thi không? Nếu có, bạn muốn chiến thắng ở cuộc thi nào?)

=> Yes. I'd like to win an English-speaking Contest.

• 3. Is winning the most important thing in a competition? Why/ Why not? (Có phải chiến thắng là điều quan trọng nhất trong một cuộc thi? Tại sao đúng/không?)

=> No, I don't think so. Winning or losing is not the most important thing in a contest or competition. The main point is our participation and the enjoyment we have from it.

2. While you read 

Read the passage and then do the tasks that follow. (Đọc đoạn văn sau đó làm các bài tập theo sau.)

Dưới đây là nội dung bài đọc:

Last Saturday the representatives of three  classes of my school took part in the annual final English Competitionorganixed by our English teachers. Its aim was to stimulate the spirit of learning English among students. The competition was sponsored by the Student’s parents Society. Mrs. Lien, our English teacher, explained the competition’s rules to the students.

“…To participate in the contest, you have to work in groups of three. Each group mut complete five activities in all. On completion of each activity, you will have to answer the question on the worksheets within two minutes. The judges will observe and score your performance. The maximum score for each activity is 15 points. At the end of the competition, the judges will announce the total score of each group. The group that gets the highest score will be the winner. The winner wil be awarded a set of CDs for studying English ad an Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary. Now, let’s start our competion.”

Hung, Thu and Nga were the members of Group A. Yhey quicklu read the questions and tried to find out the answers. At first, things went smoothly. They almost completed the five activities. But in Activities 5, Hung had difficulty in reciting the poem. He could not remember the last sentence. Time was up, anhd the judges announced the result. The winner was group B, which got 70  points. Hung’s group got 65; and Group C got 60. Thu felt a bit disapointed. Hung aologised for not being able to complete the poem. But Nga made it better by saying “For me the most important thing was our participation in the competition and enjoyment we had from it”. 

Task 1. Match the words or phrases on the left with their definitions on the right. (Ghép từ hoặc cụm từ ở bên trái với định nghĩa của chúng ở bên phải.)

Gợi ý:

Task 2. Answer the questions. (Trả lời các câu hỏi.)

• 1. Who took part in the annual final English Competition last Saturday? (Ai đã tham gia vào cuộc thi chung kết Tiếng Anh thứ Bảy tuần qua?)

=> The representatives of three classes of the (writer's) school took part in the annual final English Competition last Saturday.

• 2. What was the aim of the competition? (Mục đích của cuộc thi là gì?)

=> Its aim was to stimulate the spirit of learning English among students.

• 3. Who sponsored the competition? (Ai tài trợ cho cuộc thi?)

=> The Students' parents Society sponsored the competition.

• 4. What did each group of students have to do during the contest? (Mỗi nhóm học sinh phải làm gì trong suốt cuộc thi?)

=> They had to complete five activities in all. On completion of each activity, they had to answer the questions in the worksheets within two minutes.

• 5. What did the judges have to do to choose the winner of the competition? (Ban giám khảo đã phải làm gì để chọn ra đội thắng?)

=> They had to observe and score the students performance. The maximum score for each activity was 15. At the end of competition they would announce the total score of each group. The group that got the highest score would be winner.

• 6. What would be awarded to the winner? (Cái gì sẽ được tặng thưởng cho đội thắng?)

=> The winner would be awarded a set of CDs for studying English and an Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary.

Task 3. Read paragraph 3 again and complete the sentences. (Đọc lại đoạn 3 và hoàn thành câu.)

Gợi ý:

• 1. In Activity 5, Hung was unable to recite complete the poem (he could dot remember the last sentence).
• 2. Having achieved the highest score, Group B became the winner of the competition.
• 3. Group C lost the game because they just got 60 points.
• 4. Nga encouraged her group by saying "For me the most important thing was our participation in the competition and the enjoyment we had from it".

3. After you read 

This is the poem Hung recited at the final English competition. Read and translate it into Vietnamese. (Đây là bài thơ Hùng đã đọc trong cuộc thi Tiếng Anh. Hãy đọc và dịch sang tiếng Việt.)

Gợi ý bài dịch:

Em có thích bầu trời đêm

Khi các vì sao đang chiếu sáng?

Em có thích bầu trời vào ban ngày

Khi các đám mây đều đã bay đi?

Điều tôi thích là mặt trời ban mai

Chiếu lên tôi khi tôi thức dậy

Và tôi cũng yêu những cơn mưa 

Gõ từng nhịp bên khung cửa sổ