IELTS General Training Reading Practice Test 1: Answers & Explanations

All 40 answers below, each with the exact line of the passage that proves it and the reason the tempting wrong option was tempting. If you have not sat the test yet, do that first — a key read before the attempt teaches nothing.

Passage 1: Riverside Community Centre — Autumn Noticeboard

13 marks

Answer key and explanations for passage 1
Q	Answer	Evidence in the passage	Why, and the trap
1	Notice F	“how money is returned when a yearly agreement is ended early”	Notice F: annual members cancelling before the halfway point get a partial refund, dated from receipt of notice.
2	Notice B	“the condition for getting a deposit back after an event”	Notice B: the deposit is returned within ten working days "provided the hall is left clear".
3	Notice D	“a course that must be completed before taking on one particular role”	Notice D: lunch club volunteers must complete a food hygiene course, paid for by the centre.
4	Notice A	“the times at which people swimming lengths are given priority”	Notice A: "Lane swimming has priority before 9am and after 8pm."
5	Notice E	“what to do when arriving outside normal hours”	Notice E: outside 6am to 11pm "the side gate on Mill Lane must be used".
6	Notice C	“the only activity that can be paid for one session at a time”	Notice C: single sessions are not sold "for any class except yoga".
7	FALSE	“The main pool is open from 6.30am on weekdays and from 8am at weekends.”	Weekday and weekend opening times differ by ninety minutes.Trap: Opposite Meaning
8	TRUE	“Regular bookings of eight weeks or more receive a fifteen per cent reduction.”	"Reduction" and "discount" are the same claim; the threshold matches.
9	NOT GIVEN	“Beginners' pottery runs on Wednesday evenings for eight weeks and is already full, with a waiting list held at reception.”	The notice covers the autumn term only. Nothing is said about a repeat, in either direction.Trap: Outside Text
10	FALSE	“Spaces cannot be reserved.”	A three-word sentence contradicts the statement completely.Trap: Opposite Meaning
11	about three weeks (also accepted: three weeks)	“which takes about three weeks to process”	Three words at most, with or without "about".
12	Mill Lane	“the side gate on Mill Lane must be used”	A proper noun, two words.
13	medical reasons (also accepted: medical)	“frozen for up to three months in a year for medical reasons”	Two words, lifted from the notice.

Passage 2: Halden Logistics — Extract from the Staff Handbook

13 marks

Answer key and explanations for passage 2
Q	Answer	Evidence in the passage	Why, and the trap
Paragraph A	i — The trial period and how it is assessed	“All new employees complete a six-month probationary period.”	Probation, the informal eight-week review, the formal five-month review and notice periods.
Paragraph B	ii — Changing and exchanging shifts	“The depot operates three shifts and assigns a pattern on joining.”	Requesting a pattern change and recording swaps on the depot system.
Paragraph C	iii — When extra hours attract a higher rate	“Overtime is voluntary and paid at the standard rate for the first four hours.”	Standard rate, time and a half, and double time on public holidays.
Paragraph D	iv — Telling the company you cannot come in	“An employee unable to attend must speak to the shift supervisor.”	Two hours' notice to a supervisor, self-certification and medical certificates.
Paragraph E	v — Funded qualifications and leaving early	“The company funds the licences required for the role.”	Funded licences, and repayment on a sliding scale if the employee leaves within a year.
19	five	“The formal review at five months determines confirmation”	One word; the eight-week review is the informal one.
20	system	“must be recorded on the depot system before the shift begins”	One word completing the term.
21	double	“Hours worked on a public holiday are paid at double time”	One word; "time and a half" applies to ordinary overtime instead.
22	self-certification	“Absences of up to seven calendar days are covered by self-certification”	One hyphenated word.
23	FALSE	“its outcome is not recorded on file”	The eight-week review is informal and explicitly not recorded.Trap: Opposite Meaning
24	NOT GIVEN	“must be recorded on the depot system before the shift begins, not afterwards”	The requirement to record a swap is stated; what the system does in response is never mentioned.Trap: Outside Text
25	FALSE	“hours worked without authorisation are paid, but a repeated pattern of unauthorised hours is treated as a performance matter”	Such hours are paid; the consequence is disciplinary rather than financial.Trap: Partial Truth
26	TRUE	“Employees who leave within twelve months of completing a funded qualification repay a proportion of its cost”	Eleven months falls within twelve, so a proportion is repayable — reduced by one twelfth per month worked.

Passage 3: Why We Got Handwriting Wrong

14 marks

Answer key and explanations for passage 3
Q	Answer	Evidence in the passage	Why, and the trap
27	YES	“if that were all it was the decision would be sound”	The writer grants the conditional and then denies the condition: handwriting is also a learning method.
28	NO	“Some replications have found smaller effects than the original study, and one large attempt found none.”	The finding is called "frequently overstated" and the replication record is given as mixed.Trap: Partial Truth
29	NO	“The finding is therefore not that handwriting is superior but that the default behaviour it forces is superior”	The advantage is attributed to the behaviour writing forces, which a typist told to summarise can also achieve.Trap: Opposite Meaning
30	YES	“the choice of script matters far less than whether the child can write without attending to it”	Automaticity is named as the goal of instruction and style is explicitly subordinated to it.
31	NO	“None of that supports either of the positions the public argument has settled into.”	The final sentence rejects both public positions.Trap: Opposite Meaning
32	recognise	“Children taught to form letters by hand recognise those letters more reliably afterwards”	One word; keep the verb form the sentence needs.
33	variation	“generates variation that helps the brain build a category”	One word, lifted unchanged.
34	understanding	“perform better on questions requiring conceptual understanding”	One word completing the phrase.
35	automaticity	“This argues for automaticity as the goal of instruction”	One word from paragraph E.
36	mixed	“A mixed script, in which letters are joined only where joining is natural”	One word; "full cursive" and "full print" are the alternatives it beats.
37	does about as well as someone writing by hand.	“A typist told to summarise instead of transcribing”	Paragraph D: "a typist instructed to summarise rather than transcribe should do as well, and in several studies that is what happens".
38	has less attention left for what they are composing.	“A child whose handwriting takes effort”	Paragraph E: such a child "has less attention available for what they are writing".
39	are weaker than those making them suggest.	“The arguments usually offered in favour of cursive”	Paragraph F: the evidence for speed, historical continuity and reading difficulties "is weaker than its advocates claim".
40	is not worth the time it takes up.	“Handwriting instruction continued past the point of fluency”	Paragraph G: "sustained instruction beyond the point of fluency is not" worth the time.

Convert your score out of 40

Count your correct answers across all three passages. There is no penalty for a wrong answer, so an unanswered question and a wrong guess score the same.

IELTS General Training Reading raw score to band score
Band	Correct (of 40)
9.0	40
8.5	39
8.0	37–38
7.5	36
7.0	34–35
6.5	32–33
6.0	30–31
5.5	27–29
5.0	23–26
4.5	19–22
4.0	15–18
3.5	0–14

General Training conversion, which is stricter than Academic because the texts are easier — band 7 needs 34 correct here against 30 on the Academic paper. Both tables are on the Reading band calculator.

IELTS General Training Reading Practice Test 1: Answers & Explanations

Passage 1: Riverside Community Centre — Autumn Noticeboard

Passage 2: Halden Logistics — Extract from the Staff Handbook

Passage 3: Why We Got Handwriting Wrong

Convert your score out of 40

Turn the wrong answers into a band