OXFORD BOOKWORMS COMPREHENSION TEST

Stage 2
Dead Man’s Island

1 Can you complete the occupations of 5 Carol says that Mr Ross is a dead man.
these people? Why does she say this? Do you think Mr
Carol’s father: Businessman Ross can be happy?
Carol’s mother: Secretary ………………………………………..………………
a Jake Rosso: ............... ………………………………………..………………
b Mr Ross: ............... ………………………………………..………………
c Mrs Duncan: ............... ………………………………………..………………
d Mr Duncan: ............... ………………………………………..………………
e Dan and Stella Parks: ............... ………………………………………..………………
    10 marks      40 marks 

2 Are these sentences true (T) or false (F)?     Total marks 

a ___ Carol’s mother found the job in a
newspaper.
b ___ Carol and her mother talked to Mr
Ross in London.
c ___ Many visitors came to the island.
d ___ The people on the island were
members of Mr Ross’s family.
e ___ Jake Rosso killed a young girl when he
was riding a motorbike.
    10 marks 

3 Describe the differences. How has Jake

Rosso changed?
………………………………………..………………
………………………………………..………………
………………………………………..………………
………………………………………..………………
………………………………………..………………
………………………………………..………………
    20 marks 

4 Complete the following sentences with

information from the story.
a Carol lives in England now but ...
b Carol’s mother took her daughter to England
because ...
c Mr Ross is a rich man because …
d Carol wanted to see inside the locked room
because ...
e Mr Ross didn’t want Carol to take a
photograph of him so ...
    20 marks 

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OXFORD BOOKWORMS COMPREHENSION TEST ANSWERS
Stage 2
Dead Man’s Island

1
a Pop singer
b Businessman
c Housekeeper
d Gardener
e Farmers

2
a T
b F
c F
d T
e F

3
Possible content for students’ answers:
He looks older and more serious. His hair is very
short now and he’s got a moustache. He is
wearing businessman’s clothes and he’s got
glasses.

4
Possible content for students’ answers:
a ... before she lived in Hong Kong.
b ... she wanted to take her away from bad
friends and drugs.
c ... before he was Jake Rosso, a famous pop
singer and he sold many records.
d ... she saw Mr Ross enter the room at night.
e ... he told Mr Duncan to take the film out of
her camera.

5
Possible content for students’ answers:
Carol calls Mr Ross a dead man because when
he went to the island he killed Jake Rosso and
took a new identity. Socially he is dead because
he never leaves the island so he never meets
anyone, not even other businessmen. He is rich
and lives with his family but at the same time he
cannot forget his past, and the death of the girl. It
must be difficult to be happy when you have
killed somebody.

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OXFORD BOOKWORMS MULTIPLE CHOICE TEST
Stage 2
Dead Man’s Island

SETTING 9 Carol said she would like to _____.

a  become Greta’s secretary
Choose the best answer. b  work in the local shop
1 Carol Sanders lived in _____ for seven c  work on the farm
years. d  stay in London
a  Australia
10 Carol became worried _____.
b  India
a  after hearing about the big house
c  Hong Kong
b  about working in a garden
d  Singapore
c  after hearing Greta’s phone call
2 Her father died _____. d  about flying to Scotland
a  in a plane crash
    20 marks 
b  on holiday
c  in a car accident
d  in Scotland CHARACTERS

3 Carol’s favourite _____ was Jake Rosso. Choose the best answer.
a  actor 11 Carol liked _____ music at school.
b  writer a  pop
c  teacher b  hip-hop
d  singer c  classical
4 At the time of the plane crash, Carol d  reggae
was _____. 12 She _____ when her father died.
a  a secretary a  played her records a lot
b  working on a farm b  stopped going out with her friends
c  a student c  stopped eating
d  still at school d  saw a lot of her old friends
5 She had to leave college because _____. 13 Greta Ross was about _____.
a  she took drugs a  thirty
b  she didn’t pass her exams b  twenty-five
c  her mother wanted to leave Hong Kong c  thirty-five
d  she didn’t like her course d  twenty
6 Carol and her mother decided to _____. 14 Her husband invested money in
a  go to Australia companies _____.
b  go back to England a  around the world
c  travel round the world b  in the USA
d  stay in Hong Kong c  in Britain
7 They looked in the newspapers _____. d  in Scotland
a  to find a job for Carol’s mother 15 He had _____ and wore glasses.
b  for interesting news articles a  short dark hair, a beard
c  for a flat in London b  long dark hair
d  to find a big house in Scotland c  short dark hair, a moustache
8 Greta Ross wanted to know _____. d  long dark hair
a  if they liked Hong Kong 16 Everything on the island belonged to _____.
b  where they lived in India a  Mr Parks
c  all about Carol’s father b  Mrs Ross
d  where they lived before Hong Kong c  Mr Ross
d  Mrs Duncan

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OXFORD BOOKWORMS MULTIPLE CHOICE TEST
Stage 2
Dead Man’s Island

17 Carol’s mother _____. 25 ‘You can ride Smoke around the island, if
a  didn’t like the work you like.’
b  worked all day and in the evenings a  Mr Park
c  didn’t have to work hard b  Greta
d  only worked during the day c  Mr Ross
d  Carol’s mother
18 Greta Ross liked _____.
a  investing in companies 26 ‘Stay away from the rocks, Carol.’
b  gardening a  Greta
c  walking around the island b  Carol’s mother
d  painting pictures c  Mr Ross
d  Tony
19 Tony Duncan was _____.
a  Mr Ross’s older brother 27 ‘Never take photographs of Mr Ross.’
b  Mrs Ross’s younger brother a  Tony
c  Mr Ross’s younger brother b  Mr Duncan
d  Mrs Ross’s older brother c  Greta
d  Mr Parks
20 Mr and Mrs Parks were really
Mr Ross’s _____. 28 ‘That room is private.’
a  grandparents a  Mr Ross
b  cousins b  Mrs Duncan
c  parents c  Greta
d  aunt and uncle d  Carol’s mother
    20 marks  29 ‘Stop playing detective, Carol.’
a  Carol’s mother
DIALOGUE b  Greta
c  Mr Ross
Who said this? d  Mr Duncan
21 ‘It’s not true!’ 30 ‘The police found the burned car and
a  Greta thought I was dead.’
b  Mr Ross a  Mr Duncan
c  Carol b  Carol’s father
d  Carol’s mother c  Greta
22 ‘I want to forget what’s happened.’ d  Mr Ross
a  Carol’s mother     20 marks 
b  Mr Duncan
c  Mr Ross
VOCABULARY
d  Carol
23 ‘Don’t worry, they’ve been away from Choose the best answer.
England for ten years.’ 31 a big piece of paper with a picture and
a  Carol words on it
b  Mr Ross a  document
c  Greta b  photo
d  Mrs Parks c  letter
d  poster
24 ‘Mr Ross doesn’t like visitors to the island.’
a  Greta
b  Carol
c  Carol’s mother
d  Tony

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OXFORD BOOKWORMS MULTIPLE CHOICE TEST
Stage 2
Dead Man’s Island

32 to put money into something and get more 40 to be important

money back a  matter
a  arrest b  worry
b  buy c  care
c  invest d  cry
d  sell
    20 marks 
33 very big pieces of stone
a  rocks PLOT
b  boats
c  records Choose the best answer.
d  tourists 41 Mr Ross was a businessman _____.
34 you get eggs from these animals a  so he travelled a lot
a  sheep b  and he had a lot of visitors
b  chickens c  and he had his own plane
c  cows d  but he never left the island
d  horses 42 He became very angry when _____.
35 a sudden bright light during bad weather a  Carol sold her photographs
a  cloud b  he wasn’t in Carol’s photograph
b  storm c  Carol took his photograph
c  lightning d  Carol took a photo of the house
d  sun 43 Carol was very interested in _____.
36 to damage or hurt something so that it is a  the locked room
no good b  the room next to her bedroom
a  stop c  the office
b  hit d  the farmhouse
c  turn 44 Mr Ross hid the key _____.
d  spoil a  under the plant pot
37 a number of people who work together in b  in his office
business c  in a boat
a  island d  in a plant pot
b  college 45 The room was full of _____.
c  farm a  posters of Mr Ross’s favourite group
d  company b  photos of Greta
38 to make or do something that looks real but c  photos of Carol
is not real d  posters and photos of Jake Rosso
a  hide 46 Mr Ross finally told Carol _____.
b  bake a  Jake Rosso was his cousin
c  fake b  he wasn’t Jake Rosso
d  paint c  he was Jake Rosso
39 a ‘box’ to put things in like flowers d  she should leave the island
a  pan 47 The other people on the island were _____.
b  pot a  his friends
c  bag b  his family
d  plant c  police officers
d  prison officers

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OXFORD BOOKWORMS MULTIPLE CHOICE TEST
Stage 2
Dead Man’s Island

48 Mr Ross decided that Jake Rosso had to die

because _____.
a  he killed a young girl
b  his fans no longer liked him
c  he had problems singing
d  he stopped writing good songs
49 James Ross _____.
a  wanted to go to the police
b  was still taking drugs
c  never wanted to sing again
d  wanted to sing again
50 Carol _____.
a  didn’t tell anybody the secret
b  sold the story to the newspapers
c  told her mother the truth
d  went to the police
    20 marks 

    Total marks 

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OXFORD BOOKWORMS MULTIPLE CHOICE TEST ANSWERS
Stage 2
Dead Man’s Island

SETTING PLOT
1 c 41 d
2 a 42 b
3 d 43 a
4 c 44 d
5 a 45 d
6 b 46 c
7 a 47 b
8 d 48 a
9 c 49 c
10 c 50 a

CHARACTERS
11 a
12 b
13 a
14 a
15 c
16 b
17 b
18 d
19 c
20 d

DIALOGUE
21 c
22 d
23 c
24 d
25 c
26 a
27 b
28 c
29 a
30 d

VOCABULARY
31 d
32 c
33 a
34 b
35 c
36 d
37 d
38 c
39 b
40 a

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OXFORD BOOKWORMS BOOK ACTIVITY ANSWERS
Stage 2
Dead Man’s Island

BEFORE READING

Activity 1 Chapter 3
Do not give the answers to this activity but 1T
encourage students to speculate and make 2 F Mrs Ross owns the island.
guesses. When they have read the story, 3 F The island did not have visitors.
they will find that 1b and 2c are correct. 4 F Carol took a photograph of Mr Ross.
5T
Activity 2
1 Yes 2 Yes 3 Yes 4 Yes 5 Yes 6 Yes Chapter 4
7 Perhaps/Yes 8 Perhaps/No 1 Carol
2 Mr Ross
Students will probably answer ‘Perhaps’ to 5,
3 Mr Ross
6, 7 and 8 when they read the back cover,
4 Carol’s mother
and become more certain about their
5 Greta Ross and Tony Duncan
answers after reading the story
introduction. Before Reading Chapter 5
Activity 3 Encourage students to speculate and to
make guesses. They will find out as they
Encourage students to speculate and to
read that the ‘yes’ answers are 3, 5 and 8.
make guesses. The most accurate
answer is 4, but do not tell students this
now.

Activity 4
AFTER READING
Encourage students to speculate and to
make guesses. The correct answers are Activity 1
1a and 2d, but do not tell students this 1+10 2+11 3+8 4+12 5+9 6+13 7+14
now.
When Jake Rosso was driving his car one
night, he had an accident. He hit a young
WHILE READING girl and she died. He didn’t tell the police
about the accident because he was afraid.
Chapter 1
So he put a guitar and some clothes in his
1 Hong Kong. car and then he pushed the car over a cliff
2 Jake Rosso. and burned it. When the police found the
3 He died in a car accident. burned car, they thought Jake Rosso was
4 He was in a plane crash. dead. After some months, Greta changed
5 She was lonely and sad and she wanted to her name to Ross and bought the island
die too. with Jake Rosso’s money. Now Mr Ross
6 Because she began to take drugs. lives very quietly but he can never forget
7 She was going to go to a college. the young girl who died.
8 Because Carol’s mother needed a job.
Activity 2
Chapter 2
 farmer: garden, sheep, cows, chickens,
1 Tony Duncan is the boatman. vegetables, fruit
2 Mrs Duncan is the housekeeper.  businessman/woman: telephone,
3 Mr Duncan is the gardener. secretary, computer, desk, office, letters
4 Mr Ross is a businessman.
5 Greta Ross is his wife. Activity 3
6 Mr Ross’s secretary is in hospital. 1 Carol 10 Greta Ross
7 Dan and Stella Parks work on the farm. 2 Greta 11 Mrs Sanders
8 Carol is going to work on the farm too. 3 Mrs Sanders 12 Carol

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OXFORD BOOKWORMS BOOK ACTIVITY ANSWERS
Stage 2
Dead Man’s Island

4 Mr Ross 13 Mr Ross Jake: I’m going to push my car over a cliff and
5 Greta Ross 14 Greta Ross burn it.
6 Mrs Sanders 15 Mr Ross Greta: Then what will we do? Where will we live?
7 Greta Ross 16 Mr Ross Jake: You must change your name and buy a
8 Mr Ross 17 Carol house. I’ll give you all my money.
9 Mr Ross Greta: What about your music?
Possible descriptions: Jake: I’m never going to sing again.
 Carol is eighteen. She likes riding and
gardening, and she wants to be a farmer.
 Greta Ross has very long dark hair and
she is very beautiful. She likes swimming
and painting, so she isn’t lonely on the
island. She owns the island, house and
farm.
 Mrs Sanders is Carol’s mother. She was
married to a businessman but now she
works as a secretary.
 Mr Ross was a famous pop star called
Jake Rosso, but his real name is James
Duncan. He is Tony Duncan’s brother. He
has a moustache, short dark hair and
glasses. He never leaves the island but
he works very hard.

Activity 4
Open answers.

Activity 5
Open answers.

Activity 6
Possible letter:
Dear . . .
I’ve been here on the island for a week. It’s very
beautiful, and everyone is very friendly, but Mr
Ross is really strange. He is young and rich but
he doesn’t like visitors. He never leaves the
island and he doesn’t like photographs. He has
a locked room in his house.

Activity 7
Possible answers:
Greta: Jake, what’s happened?
Jake: I’ve had an accident.
Greta: Oh no! Did you tell the police?
Jake: No, I didn’t.
Greta: What are you going to do?
Jake: I’m going to fake my death.
Greta: How are you going to fake it?

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