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Achievement test 1 – Reading

1

Units 1–4 You are going to read a magazine article about child prodigies (children who are very clever). Nine sentences have been removed from the article. Choose from the sentences A–I the one which fits each gap. Example: 0 F

Child Prodigies Over the last few decades, there have been many accounts of child prodigies who, because of their brilliance, become famous at a young age. Some continue to achieve as they grow older, but others suffer due to the pressure that has been put upon them. Ainan Celeste Cawley, the son of Irish/Malay parents, was able to construct complex sentences by his first birthday. Aged six, he became the youngest person ever to pass O-level* Chemistry. Following this success, he started an A-level** in the same subject and when he was seven, his parents started looking for a university that would offer their son a place. 0  . Many professors drew their attention to the obvious practical issues, not to mention the possible long-term psychological damage someone of that age might suffer. However, Ainan isn’t the only gifted child in . They are all the family. 1 still too young for anyone to be able to assess how they will grow up, but there is a lot of documentary evidence to suggest that the story might not have such a happy ending. . When the police finally 2 found her, she blamed her parents for putting too much pressure on her. She didn’t return to finish her course and went on to work for a while as an administrative assistant for a construction firm. Then there was Bobby Fischer, an international chess grandmaster at 15 and youngest-ever US chess champion. With such success, however, . came personal problems. 3

He joined a religious group and finally gave up chess and withdrew from everyday life. 4 . Jennifer Capriati (born 1976) also suffered a period of great psychological stress. She became a tennis professional at the age of 13, and at 14 was the youngest-ever semi-finalist at the French Open, finishing the year ranked 8th in the . After a few years, world. 5 she returned to tennis and subsequently became the world number one again. While many prodigies are haunted by their success, there are also those who seem to cope with the fame and go on to lead fulfilling . She graduated lives. 6 from Oxford University in 1985 at the age of 13 with a first-class degree in Mathematics. After completing her doctorate at Oxford, she went to Harvard and subsequently emigrated to Israel, where she now lives and works with her husband, a fellow mathematician, and their four children. . She was the youngest 7 soloist to record both the Beethoven and Tchaikovsky violin concertos at the age of 13 and was soon making regular TV appearances. In April 2006, she was the wealthiest young entertainer under the age of 30 in the UK and continues to perform all over the world. . Perhaps they should all 8 be allowed to find their own way through life rather than being put in the spotlight by eager parents and the media.

* the old name for GCSE, an exam normally taken by 16-year-olds ** an exam normally taken by 18-year-olds English Unlimited Upper Intermediate Teacher’s Pack 

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Achievement test 1 – Reading

2

A His two younger siblings, Fintan and Tiarnan, are also making their mark. B An Olympic gold medallist, winner of three Grand Slams and countless other tournaments, she gave up the game in 1993 due to the extreme pressure. C One such is Ruth Lawrence, a Maths genius whose upbringing caused a lot of media interest at the time. D World-famous violinist Vanessa Mae began playing at the age of five. E His behaviour became more erratic and extreme. F Clearly there is much to consider when sending a child so young into further education. G As we can see, some prodigies are able to handle the pressures of their brilliance, but there are just as many who aren’t. H Take, for example, the case of 15-year-old Maths prodigy Sufiah Yusof who ran away from Oxford University in 2000 after her third-year exams. I He died in 2008 after a long illness. /8

English Unlimited Upper Intermediate Teacher’s Pack 

Photocopiable © Cambridge University Press 2011