Reading 2026-07 Test 3 — IELTS Academic Reading Practice Test with Answers

基于考生回忆重建 — 非官方 IELTS 资料。音频和原文均为练习用途的重现版本。

Reading Passage 1 — Buried cities of the amazon rainforest

In a letter to his wife sent on 29 May 1925, Percy Fawcett, an English adventurer, reported that he was about to depart without the assistance of guides on an expedition into previously unexplored areas of the Amazon rainforest in central Brazil. His goal was to find a hidden city that he referred to as 'Z'. It was Fawcett's last contact with the outside world - he disappeared without a trace - and how he died is still unknown.

Now, more than 80 years later, anthropologist Michael Heckenberger of the University of Florida in the US and his team, in collaboration with local indigenous people called the Kuikuro, Brazilian scholars, and a group of archaeologists, have discovered the remains of 28 settlements in the Upper Xingu region of the Amazon rainforest in Brazil's Mato Grosso state, the same area where Fawcett disappeared. Fawcett may not have been right about the existence of a city, but the recent discovery of these settlements is helping to overturn the long-held theory that the Amazon rainforest is unsuited to human habitation.

The Amazon rainforest is home to the world's richest plant and animal communities. But paradoxically, the soils here are highly acidic and contain few nutrients. About 10 per cent of the rainforest's nutrients can be found in the soil; the rest are bound up in plants and animals. Only plants that are perfectly adapted to draw their nutrients from decaying plants and animals can survive in the reddish or yellowish earth that dominates this area.

But researchers have discovered that some parts of the rainforest contain plots of a man-made miracle soil, known as terra preta (literally "black earth" in Portuguese), which contains elevated levels of nutrients and organic matter perfect for agriculture in areas otherwise unsuitable for it. This soil - a result of refuse piles usually including charcoal, fish bones, pottery fragments, animal bones, shells and excrement - may have provided food for tens of thousands of inhabitants and allowed for the development of large towns and villages.

This fertile soil is as deep as two metres in fields sometimes as large as 200,000 square metres. Researchers estimate that as much as one per cent of the Amazon rainforest is covered with it. The fertile pockets are concentrated near riverbanks, and the present-day inhabitants of the rainforest are still making use of them. In addition, they are much more productive than other soils. One of the many miracles of terra preta is that it does not become depleted, but retains its fertility for many years.

Most of the plots are between 500 and 2,500 years old, and some researchers suspect that inhabitants of the area created and spread the rich soil intentionally. They theorise that, by exploiting terra preta's extreme fertility, natives were able to put their previous existence as nomads behind them. Instead, they settled in villages, surrounding themselves with orchards providing fruit and fields providing cereals sufficient to feed a large population.

Eduardo Neves, an archaeologist at the University of São Paulo in Brazil, has been studying these vanished cultures for 17 years, and from his discoveries in the Amazon rainforest, he is convinced that the rainforest was relatively densely populated between 500 and 1,000 years ago. He suggests that at least five to six million people may have lived in the rainforest during that period.

Settlements comprised over 1000 people, Neves believes, yet the inhabitants left no mark on the archaeological record in the form of buildings. In a region where stone was not available, they could only have constructed their homes and temples from wood, and as a result, the buildings would have long since rotted in the humid tropical climate. But in more than 100 locations in the region where the Rio Negro flows into the Amazon, Neves has found smaller relics of long-lost cultures. Among the finds are ceramic objects, pots and large vessels able to hold more than 185 litres. According to Neves, people who lived as nomads in the rainforest would have neither made nor attempted to travel with such large containers. So it is likely these containers were for water in the places where the people settled permanently.

The first European to explore the Rio Xingu region was the Spaniard Francisco de Orellana, who, in 1542, reported seeing large settlements on the riverbanks. Expeditions entering the Amazon rainforest in the 1800s found no evidence of the settlements that Orellana had reported and his reports were dismissed as being untruthful. However, research now indicates that Orellana was probably telling the truth. Heckenberger and his team have combed the rainforest around the upper reaches of Rio Xingu since 1993 and, aided by satellite imagery, have found evidence of 28 settlements. These lie in an area of 20,000 square kilometres, and were once linked by roads. The settlements were all laid out in the same pattern around a plaza, showing evidence of sophisticated planning.

Fawcett set off on his last voyage in pursuit of a lost city, and Neves's and Heckenberger's work may now confirm his suspicions. It seems likely that people of the Amazon rainforest attained a much higher level of development than was once thought to be the case. As research proceeds, our assumptions about the fearsome Amazon are likely to be disproved.

Questions 1-6

Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 1? In boxes 1-6 on your answer sheet, write TRUE if the statement agrees with the information FALSE if the statement contradicts the information NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this

1
The English adventurer Percy Fawcett ignored advice from local guides.
2
There is now evidence that people lived in settlements in the region where Fawcett went missing.
3
In the Amazonian rainforest the reddish or yellowish soil contains a considerable proportion of nutrients.
4
Terra preta is a type of soil that occurs naturally in the Amazonian rainforest.
5
Terra preta is mostly found close to flowing water.
6
In recent years, the current inhabitants of the Amazonian rainforest have stopped farming the terra preta soil.

Questions 7-13

Complete the notes below. Choose ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage for each answer.

Amazonian rainforest study

Agricultural evidence for early human settlements

terra preta found in region

terra preta

o is made from human refuse

7. o its ________________ lasts a long time

Theories about settlements

8. inhabitants would have grown ________________ and grain to eat.

9. population of each settlement may have been more than ________________ .

lack of evidence of buildings due to the humid climate

10. large vessels found were probably used to keep a supply of ________________ available for inhabitants.

11. earliest European claim of finding villages in Amazonian rainforest made in the year ________________ .

12. satellite imagery shows that ________________ connected settlements.

13. each settlement was arranged with a ________________ in its centre.

Reading Passage 2 — Children's comprehension of Television Advertising

A In 1874, long before the advent of television, the English Parliament passed a law to protect children ‘from their own lack of experience and from the wiles of pushing tradesmen and moneylenders’ (James, 1965). The act is one of the earliest governmental policies to address children’s vulnerability to commercial exploitation and was produced before major corporations earned huge profits by marketing products directly to children. Yet the issues underlying this 19th-century policy remain much the same in the 21st century.

B Television has long been the predominant medium that advertisers have chosen for marketing products to children. It is estimated that the average child sees more than 40,000 television commercials a year, most of which are 15 to 30 seconds in length (Kunkel, 2001). According to another estimate, children aged 14 years and under make $24 billion in direct purchases and influence $190 billion in family purchases, underscoring the high stakes involved (McNeal, 1987).

C A number of factors have contributed to an unprecedented growth in both the amount and type of advertising directed at children. First and foremost among these are changes in the media environment. In decades past, television programming targeted at children was limited and relegated to time slots unpopular with their parents, such as Saturday mornings (Turow, 1981). Today, the number of channels received in the average US home has escalated with the diffusion of cable television and satellite technologies. In this new multi-channel era, there are numerous national program services devoted exclusively to children. Naturally, these channels deliver significant amounts of child-oriented marketing messages. Although parents may be pleased that their youngsters can now watch children’s programming at any hour of the day, they may not recognize that such viewing opportunities entail much greater exposure to advertising than any previous generation of youth has experienced.

D Approximately 80% of all advertising targeted at children falls within four product categories: toys, cereals, candies, and fast-food restaurants (Kunkel et al, 1992). Commercials are highly effective at employing specific features designed to attract children’s attention. For example, they use the strategy of introducing unique sound effects and rapidly moving images (Greer et al, 1982). The other most common persuasive strategy employed in advertising to children is to associate the product with playfulness and happiness, rather than to provide any actual product-related information (Kunkel et al, 1992). For example, a commercial featuring Ronald McDonald dancing, singing, and smiling in McDonald’s restaurants without any mention of the actual food products available reflects a playful or happy theme. This strategy is also found frequently with cereal ads, which often include cartoon characters to help children identify the product. In contrast, most commercials fail to mention even the major grain used in each cereal.

E Another common feature of advertising to children is the use of product disclosures such as 'batteries not included’ or 'each part sold separately'. Studies make clear that young children do not comprehend the intended meaning of these disclaimers. For example, fewer than one in four kindergarten through second grade children could grasp the meaning of 'some assembly required' in a commercial. In contrast, the use of child-friendly language such as 'you have to put it together' more than doubled the proportion of children who understood the qualifying message (Liebert et al, 1977). The phrase 'part of a balanced breakfast’ is also a frequent disclosure included in most cereal ads to combat the concern that sugared cereal holds little nutritional value for children. Research shows that most children below age 7 years have no idea what the term ‘balanced breakfast’ means (Palmer & McDowell, 1981). Rather than informing young viewers about the importance of a nutritious breakfast, this common disclaimer actually leaves many children with the misimpression that cereal alone is sufficient for a meal. This pattern of employing creative terminology in advertising content so as to obscure certain information that might be unhelpful to the sponsor is a long-standing practice that often misleads the consumer (Geis, 1982).

F Very young children do not recognize that there are two fundamentally different categories of television content: programs and commercials. Most children below the age of 4 or 6 exhibit low awareness of the concept of commercials, frequently explaining them as if they were a scene in the program itself. Once this confusion diminishes, children first recognize the difference between programs and commercials based on either affective (‘commercials are funnier than TV programs') or perceptual (‘commercials are short and programs are long’) cues (Blatt et al, 1972).

G Although most children's programs indicate that a commercial break is coming (e.g. by saying 'We’ll be right back after these messages’), research reveals that these ‘separators' generally do not help children to recognize advertising content (Palmer & McDowell, 1979). This likely occurs because they are not perceptually distinct from the adjacent programming that surrounds them; in fact, many separators feature characters that appear in the same show that the commercial has just interrupted. When an ad includes one of the characters featured in a program, this is known as host-selling. This type of advertising makes the task of discriminating between program and commercial content particularly difficult for young children (Kunkel, 1988) and is thus restricted in the US by the Federal Communications Commission during children’s programs.

H In sum, because young children lack the cognitive skills and abilities of older children and adults, they do not comprehend commercial messages in the same way as more mature audiences, and are therefore uniquely susceptible to advertising influence.

Questions 14–18: Matching headings

Reading Passage has eight paragraphs, A-H. Which paragraph contains the following information? Write the correct letter, A-H, in boxes 14-18 on your answer sheet. NB You may use any letter more than once.

14
a description of recent innovations in TV broadcasting
15
a mention of the main goods and services advertised to children
16
a reference to a current limitation on television advertising aimed at children
17
two techniques used to encourage children to watch TV commercials
18
a type of advertisement that may make children believe the opposite of what is true

Questions 19–22: Matching researchers

Look at the following statements (Questions 19-22) and the list of researchers below. Match each statement with the correct researcher(s). A-H

List of Researchers

A Kunkel

B Kunkel et al

C McNeal

D Turow

E Greer et al

F Liebert et al

G Palmer & McDowell

H Geis

19
Ads often aim to teach children that a brand is fun rather than telling them about what is being sold.
20
Originally, children’s programmes were only broadcast when adults rarely watched TV.
21
Children have a significant impact on what adults buy.
22
Tests showed that children can follow information if simple words are used.

Questions 23–26: Summary completion

Complete the summary below. Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.

How very young children perceive commercials

Children below the age of 4 or 6 do not understand the difference between television programmes and commercials. In fact, these children often mistake an advertisement for a 23______ from the programme they are watching. This is despite the fact that children’s TV programmes usually include announcements called 24______ to show that there is going to be a commercial break. The problem is made more difficult because of a technique called 25______ whereby a person or cartoon figure from the programme is used to sell a product during the commercial break. From the age of 4 or 6, children begin to realise that commercials are different from TV programmes; for example, they may recognise that there is a difference in length or that advertisements are 26______ than actual TV.

Reading Passage 3 — Practical Learning in the Classroom

A teacher describes a case study involving middle school students and traditional earthen architecture

The way we think about architecture in schools has come a long way. Once, studying architecture in the art class meant learning to appreciate great buildings art-history style, through slide presentations. In recent years, though, the American Institute of Architects has fostered the idea that the process of architectural design, not just the appreciation of architecture, is a beneficial aspect of the art curriculum (Sandler, 1989).

The value of architectural design is that it is the concrete training ground for a broadly applicable creative process. Architectural training can help people design structures to meet needs. It can help teachers design lessons to meet needs, help representatives design laws to meet needs, or help farmers design crop rotations to meet needs. Furthermore, it provides hands-on experiences that reinforce learning in various other subjects, from math to social studies.

In the ongoing dialogue about architecture in one middle school art curriculum, many believe students should actually build the structures they design in their courses. Although the technology and expertise required of modern architecture can prohibit students from actually realizing their designs, traditional architectural materials and methods remain quite accessible to the art classroom. Traditional architectural materials, such as earth, clay and straw, are cheap, easy to work with and readily available. Further, when students participate in the construction or preservation of a traditional earthen structure in their local community, they engage in a form of experiential learning and they are motivated to invest in the project. This is evident in a case study of an adobe conservation project with middle school students in the town of Zuni, New Mexico, in the Southwestern United States.

Traditional architecture reaches back to preindustrial America, when local resources and cultures produced structures in styles unique to each region. In New Mexico, examples of hand-built earthen structures still abound. The region has seen some decline in traditional architecture as industrialization has brought new building codes and materials; however, the traditional, non-industrial home, either preserved from earlier generations or newly built, remains in use. Traditional building materials and the land that supplies them are so accessible that handcrafting a house still remains feasible.

Thus, with no technical expertise and little cost, middle school students can participate in the construction or preservation of a traditional earthen structure. During the project, a student will get to know the materials, understand the chemistry, solve problems, work with classmates, and exercise muscles. The student can apply knowledge of design principles and the creative process while participating in a cooperative effort. But most significantly, this type of project-based activity motivates students to invest intellectually.

The benefits extend beyond academic knowledge. Students develop a tangible connection to their local heritage and environment. They learn the value of sustainable, low-impact building practices and gain respect for craftsmanship. Such projects can foster community pride and intergenerational learning when local elders or artisans share their knowledge. While modern construction techniques dominate the professional world, the educational power of traditional, hands-on building offers a unique way to teach problem-solving, teamwork, and cultural appreciation in a manner that is both engaging and deeply meaningful.

Questions 27–31: Summary completion

Complete the summary below. Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.

The Value of Architecture in Education

Historically, architecture was taught through 27 ________ presentations focusing on appreciation. Now, the focus has shifted to the design 28 ________ itself. This process is valuable as it trains a broadly applicable creative skill. In middle school, there is a belief that students should 29 ________ their designs. Modern architecture is often too complex, but 30 ________ materials like earth and clay are accessible. A case study in Zuni, New Mexico, involved students in an 31 ________ conservation project.

Questions 32–35: Yes/No/Not Given

Do the following statements agree with the claims of the writer in Reading Passage 3? Write: YES if the statement agrees with the claims of the writer NO if the statement contradicts the claims of the writer NOT GIVEN if it is impossible to say what the writer thinks about this

32
The American Institute of Architects believes only the appreciation of architecture should be part of the art curriculum.
33
Architectural design skills can only be applied to designing buildings.
34
Traditional earthen architecture has completely disappeared in New Mexico.
35
The main advantage of using traditional materials in school projects is their low cost and availability.

Questions 36–40: Multiple choice

Choose the correct letter, A, B, C, or D.

36
What is the main purpose of the first paragraph?
- A. To criticize old teaching methods
- B. To show how architecture education has changed
- C. To list famous architectural works
- D. To promote the American Institute of Architects
37
According to the passage, why are traditional building methods suitable for school projects?
- A. They require advanced technical expertise.
- B. They are cheap, easy, and connect students to local heritage
- C. They are the most modern construction techniques.
- D. They are mandated by new building codes.
38
The writer mentions that students "exercise muscles" (Paragraph 5) to emphasize that the project involves:
- A. Physical education classes.
- B. Physical, as well as intellectual, engagement.
- C. Training for professional construction work.
- D. The need for students to be very strong.
39
What is described as the "most significant" benefit of such projects for students?
- A. They learn specific chemistry facts.
- B. They become motivated to invest intellectually.
- C. They get to work outdoors.
- D. They can avoid other school subjects.
40
What broader benefit is mentioned in the final paragraph?
- A. Students learn to dislike modern architecture.
- B. Students develop a connection to local heritage and sustainability.
- C. Students are guaranteed jobs in architecture.
- D. Such projects are cheaper than all other teaching methods.

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显示答案

1. NOT GIVEN
NOT GIVEN is correct because the passage does not say whether Percy Fawcett ignored advice from local guides; it only mentions he departed without guides.
2. TRUE
TRUE is correct because the passage says that researchers have discovered the remains of 28 settlements in the same area where Fawcett disappeared.
3. FALSE
FALSE is correct because the passage states that the reddish or yellowish soil is highly acidic and contains few nutrients, not a considerable proportion.
4. FALSE
FALSE is correct because terra preta is described as 'man-made miracle soil,' not a naturally occurring type.
5. TRUE
TRUE is correct because the passage says the fertile pockets of terra preta are concentrated near riverbanks, which are close to flowing water.
6. FALSE
FALSE is correct because the passage says present-day inhabitants are still making use of terra preta for farming.
7. fertility
The answer is 'fertility' because the passage states that terra preta 'retains its fertility for many years.'
8. fruit
The answer is 'fruit' because the passage says people surrounded themselves with orchards providing fruit and fields providing cereals.
9. 1000 / 1,000
The answer is '1000' because the passage says settlements comprised over 1000 people.
10. water
The answer is 'water' because the passage says large vessels were likely for water in places where people settled permanently.
11. 1542
The answer is '1542' because the passage says the first European to explore the region was Orellana, who did so in 1542.
12. roads
The answer is 'roads' because the passage says the settlements were once linked by roads.
13. plaza
The answer is 'plaza' because the passage says settlements were laid out in the same pattern around a plaza.
14. C
C is correct because it describes the growth of channels and changes in the media environment, which are recent innovations in TV broadcasting.
15. D
D is correct because it says 80% of advertising to children is for toys, cereals, candies, and fast-food restaurants.
16. G
G is correct because it mentions that host-selling is restricted by the Federal Communications Commission during children’s programs.
17. D
D is correct because it describes using sound effects and associating products with playfulness and happiness to attract children.
18. E
E is correct because it explains that disclaimers like 'part of a balanced breakfast' can mislead children into thinking cereal alone is enough.
19. B
B is correct because it says commercials associate products with playfulness and happiness rather than providing actual product information.
20. D
D is correct because it says children's programming was once limited to time slots unpopular with parents, like Saturday mornings.
21. C
C is correct because it says children influence $190 billion in family purchases, showing their significant impact.
22. F
F is correct because it says using child-friendly language more than doubled the proportion of children who understood the message.
23. scene
The answer is 'scene' because the passage says young children often explain commercials as if they were a scene in the program.
24. separators
The answer is 'separators' because the passage says most children's programs indicate a commercial break is coming with separators.
25. host-selling
The answer is 'host-selling' because the passage says using a character from the program in an ad is called host-selling.
26. funnier
The answer is 'funnier' because the passage says children may recognize commercials as being funnier than TV programs.
27. slide
The answer is 'slide' because the passage says architecture was taught through slide presentations focusing on appreciation.
28. process
The answer is 'process' because the passage says the focus has shifted to the process of architectural design.
29. build
The answer is 'build' because the passage says many believe students should actually build the structures they design.
30. traditional architectural
The answer is 'traditional architectural' because the passage says traditional architectural materials like earth and clay are accessible.
31. adobe
The answer is 'adobe' because the passage describes a case study involving an adobe conservation project.
32. NO
NO is correct because the passage says the American Institute of Architects supports teaching the design process, not just appreciation.
33. NO
NO is correct because the passage says architectural design skills can help with many things, not just buildings.
34. NO
NO is correct because the passage says traditional homes remain in use and handcrafting a house is still feasible.
35. YES
YES is correct because the passage says traditional materials are cheap, easy to work with, and readily available.
36. B
B is correct because the first paragraph explains how architecture education has changed from appreciation to design.
37. B
B is correct because the passage says traditional methods are cheap, easy, and help students connect to local heritage.
38. B
B is correct because the passage says students 'exercise muscles' to show the project involves both physical and intellectual engagement.
39. B
B is correct because the passage says the most significant benefit is that students are motivated to invest intellectually.
40. B
B is correct because the final paragraph says students develop a connection to their local heritage and learn about sustainability.

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