How to use this set. Each recording already plays the text twice, as in the exam, with a pause between the readings. Answer the question first, and only then open the transcript to check what you missed. These 8 items are drawn from the bank for this topic — they are practice, not a whole paper, but each one matches the marks and text type of its kind of HSC question.
Reason: why did it happen?2 marks · dialogue
Why is Xiao Xing taking the train?2
How to answer. Two marks means two reasons. One is about money, the other only comes out when she answers his objection — keep listening after the first line.
Model answer — open after you have written yours
the answer itselfevidence from the text
The train is much cheaper, so she can afford to stay two extra days, and she does not think the day on the train is wasted: she can look out of the window and read, which she cannot do on a plane.
Transcript — open only after you have answered
MALE小星，你去南边为什么不坐飞机？火车要走一天呢。
FEMALE火车便宜多了，我可以多住两天。
MALE可是路上一天什么都不能做。
FEMALE怎么不能？火车上可以看外面，也可以看书。飞机上没有东西看。
Words from this text便宜多了pián yi duō lemuch cheaper多住两天duō zhù liǎng tiānstay two extra days路上lù shàngon the way / during the journey外面wài mianoutside
Note and table completion2 marks · phone message
Complete the table below in ENGLISH.2
How to answer. One mark per row. The first row asks which meals are provided — the message names what is provided and what is not, so make the difference clear. Answer in English.
Model answer — open after you have written yours
the answer itself
Meals provided — breakfast only; guests cook their own lunch and dinner, and may use the kitchen. One thing to be aware of — there is no internet there at night.
Transcript — open only after you have answered
MALE王小姐您好，您订的房间已经好了。三个晚上，一天八十块。早饭我们准备，中饭和晚饭要自己做，厨房可以用。还有，我们这里晚上没有网。
Words from this text订dìngto book准备zhǔn bèito prepare / provide自己做zì jǐ zuòmake it yourself没有网méi yǒu wǎngthere's no internet
Multiple choice1 mark · dialogue
Why can Xiao Tong not go?1
- ☐ A. He has not saved enough money.
- ☐ B. His mother will be in hospital that week.
- ☐ C. The school has not approved his place.
- ☐ D. He has already made other plans for August.
How to answer. Tick one box. The first reason offered is not the real one — he corrects it. Listen to the end before choosing.
Model answer — open after you have written yours
Transcript — open only after you have answered
FEMALE小同，八月的活动你去吗？
MALE去不了。
FEMALE为什么？钱不够吗？我可以帮你问问学校。
MALE钱我存好了。是我妈妈那个星期要住医院，我得在家。
Words from this text去不了qù bù liǎocan't go钱不够qián bú gòunot enough money存好了cún hǎo lehave saved it up得在家dé zài jiāhave to be at home
Summarise the main points3 marks · announcement
Summarise the rules for the group.3
• …………………………………………………………………………………………
• …………………………………………………………………………………………
How to answer. One of the three marks is for the summarising itself — putting it in your own words rather than writing down every word. The bullets tell you how many points to make: two bullets, two points. She marks them with 第一 … 第二 … 第三.
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the answer itselfevidence from the text
Be up by 6:30, when work starts; keep showers short because there is not much water; and stay in after nine at night, as it is dark outside and the paths are bad.
Transcript — open only after you have answered
FEMALE欢迎大家。住在这里有三件事请记住。第一，早上六点半我们开始工作，那个时候不要还在睡觉。第二，这里的水不多，洗澡请快一点。第三，晚上九点以后不要出门，外面很黑，路也不好走。
Words from this text记住jì zhùremember / keep in mind还在睡觉hái zài shuì jiàostill asleep快一点kuài yì diǎnbe quick不好走bù hǎo zǒuhard to walk on
Opinion and feelings3 marks · dialogue
How does Xiao Jia feel about the trip? Support your answer with reference to the text.3
How to answer. Three marks and 'support your answer', so give her feelings AND the detail that shows them. Her feelings are not all the same — an answer with only the frightening part cannot reach full marks.
Model answer — open after you have written yours
the answer itselfevidence from the textwhy it matters
She enjoyed it but was also a little frightened, because the people there spoke neither English nor Chinese. She managed by showing photos on her phone, and once an elderly man walked with her for ten minutes to help. She would go again, because she discovered something she had not known before: you can make friends with people even when you cannot talk to them.
Transcript — open only after you have answered
MALE小佳，你上个月去的那个地方怎么样？
FEMALE很好玩，可是有一点怕。那里的人不说英文，也不说中文。
MALE那你怎么问路？
FEMALE我用手机给他们看照片，他们就懂了。有一次一个老先生还带我走了十分钟。
MALE那你还想去吗？
FEMALE想。我发现不会说话也可以跟人做朋友，这是我以前不知道的。
Words from this text好玩hǎo wánfun / enjoyable问路wèn lùask the way懂了dǒng leunderstood我发现wǒ fā xiànI discovered
Compare two speakers4 marks · dialogue
Compare and contrast the two speakers' views on how to spend their travel money.4
How to answer. 'Compare and contrast' asks for both what they share and where they differ — an answer with only the difference cannot reach full marks. Note each speaker in a separate column; each gives a reason, and those reasons are your evidence.
Model answer — open after you have written yours
the answer itselfevidence from the text
Both want the most out of a week away and both accept the cheaper ticket costs an extra day of travelling. They differ on what that day is worth. She would take the cheap ticket because the money saved buys three more days there, and last time the saving was spent at the destination and she enjoyed it. He would rather pay more than spend his holiday getting there, since they only have a week, and long journeys leave him too tired to do anything for the first two days.
Transcript — open only after you have answered
FEMALE小南，你看这个，早一点走的票便宜一半。
MALE可是那个要在路上多花一天。
FEMALE省下来的钱可以多住三天啊。
MALE我不想为了省钱把假期都花在路上。我们只有一个星期。
FEMALE我上次就是这样，省下来的钱后来都用在那儿了，玩得很开心。
MALE你说得也对。可是我一坐长途车就累，到了以后两天都不想动。
Words from this text便宜一半pián yi yí bànhalf the price省下来的钱shěng xià lái de qiánthe money saved为了wèi lein order to / for the sake of一…就…yī…jiù…as soon as … , then …
Predict and justify5 marks · dialogue
Is the family likely to change the holiday? Support your answer with reference to the text.5
How to answer. You must decide yes or no — listing what each speaker said is not an answer to 'is the family likely to'. Five marks, so justify it: watch which side gives ground, and notice that the last piece of information removes the objection the mother started with.
Model answer — open after you have written yours
the answer itselfevidence from the textwhy it mattersties it together
Yes, probably. The mother's only objection is money — the room is booked and changing it costs — and she first argues the rain will not last all day. But she gives ground once her son points out that his younger brother gets ill whenever he is caught in the rain, which happened last year: her 这倒是 concedes the point. He then removes her remaining objection entirely: the hotel allows a free change three days ahead and today is exactly the third day. Her reply is not a refusal but a referral to the father, so the decision is being passed on rather than blocked.
Transcript — open only after you have answered
MALE妈，天气预报说那几天都下雨。
FEMALE房间已经订了，现在改要花钱。
MALE下雨的话，我们去了也是坐在房间里。
FEMALE那边下雨不一定一整天，早上还可以出去走走。
MALE可是弟弟一淋雨就生病，去年就是这样。
FEMALE……这倒是。
MALE旅馆说提前三天改不用花钱，今天正好是第三天。
FEMALE那你去问问你爸爸，他今天晚上回来。
Words from this text天气预报tiān qì yù bàoweather forecast已经订了yǐ jīng dìng lehas already been booked一…就…yī…jiù…as soon as … , then …提前tí qiánin advance
Language and persuasion5 marks · speech
What makes this speech effective? Refer to both its content and its use of language.5
How to answer. 'Both content and language' means two things are marked: what she says, and how she says it. For language, name the technique, quote the Chinese, and say what it does to the listener — naming it alone earns little. Listen for the question she puts to the audience near the start, the two objections she raises before you can, the single number she uses as an answer, and how she ends.
Model answer — open after you have written yours
the answer itselfevidence from the textwhy it mattersties it together
She starts from her own experience rather than an instruction, then turns to the audience with a question about when they last went anywhere with their grandparents, so each listener answers it privately and finds the answer uncomfortable. She raises the two objections her classmates would make. To 'travelling with old people is too slow' she concedes the fact — three days, two places — and then reverses its value: in those three days her grandmother told her more than in the previous three years. To 'I'll take them when I'm working and have money' she answers with one bare number, 我奶奶今年八十二岁, and lets it do the work. She closes on a contrast between students, who can travel far and wait, and grandparents, who cannot, then asks for something deliberately small — even one day — so the request is hard to refuse.
Transcript — open only after you have answered
FEMALE同学们，去年放假的时候，我第一次带我奶奶出去玩。你们上一次跟爷爷奶奶一起出门，是什么时候？有人说，跟老人一起走太慢了，什么地方都去不了。我们那次三天只去了两个地方。可是那三天我奶奶跟我说的话，比过去三年都多。她跟我说了她小时候的事，说了我妈妈小时候的事，还有很多我以前不知道的事。还有人说，等我工作以后有钱了再带他们去。我奶奶今年八十二岁。同学们，你们放假的时候可以走很远，可是他们不能等那么久。这个假期，请你们带他们出去走走，一天也好。
Words from this text上一次shàng yí cìthe last time太慢了tài màn letoo slow比过去三年都多bǐ guò qù sān nián dōu duōmore than in the past three years put together一天也好yì tiān yě hǎoeven one day would do