ORAL~ Reading Aloud ~

Taken from 2008 N’ Level Oral Examination

In this passage, a family are out on a country walk.“Look at that view!” said Dan’s mother as they reached the top

of the hill.Down below them lay green fields and a glittering lake.“It’s great to be able to get into the peace of the countryside

after all the city stress,” said Dan’s father, who had been taking deep breaths of fresh air.

Listening to his parents, Dan wasn’t sure he

agreed. Right now, there were sheep on either side of them, bleating

loudly. For a quiet place in the countryside, thought Dan, this is pretty noisy. All the walking wasn’t good

either. It was a pity his best friend Tom wasn’t

here – they’d have enjoyed racing down that

hill or catching a fish in the lake.

Rounding a bend in the lane, they came across a lamb, alone on the path. It had got out somehow, and was looking up at its mother who was still behind the fence, watching anxiously. Whenever any of them tries to approach it, the lamb made weak cries, and backed into the fence, quivering.

“We can’t give up on the poor thing!” said Dan’s mum tearfully, after several attempts to rescue the lamb had failed. “We’ve got to do something!”

The family stood around for a while, and the sun began to go down. They felt sad and useless.

“I’d better go for help,” said Dan’s father, but just then the lamb found a gap in the fence, and everyone cheered as it slipped through.

So much for escaping stress, thought Dan, pulling off his boots before getting into the car.