Following a Hostel’s Recycling Plan
About this practice test
An A2 reading about a hostel recycling plan, including where guests put different waste, how staff monitor the bins, and the results by Friday.
What you’ll practice
Finding detail
Locate specific information and evidence.
Interpreting ideas
Connect main points and inferences.
Evaluating arguments
Assess claims, evidence, and limitations.
What to expect:
2 questions with explanations to review after submission.
Study the questions and tasks
Work through the material below, or start the interactive practice above to complete an attempt. Try the exercises before opening any answer or transcript sections, then use them to review your work.
- Practice level
- A2. Try this level if you can follow the instructions and understand most of the language; choose an earlier level if you need more support.
- Question formats
- Cloze (dropdown)
How to approach this practice
Read the passage for its main idea, then return to the relevant sentence or paragraph for each question. Base answers on the passage.
Following a Hostel’s Recycling Plan
At Green Leaf Hostel, Mia made a simple recycling plan for the guests. She put blue boxes for paper near the lobby, green bins for bottles by the kitchen, and a small box for food waste beside the sink. On Monday morning she showed everyone a card with clear pictures. She asked them to rinse cans and fold cardboard before they dropped them in the right box. The guests could read the colours and pictures quickly, and many of them checked the card before they threw anything away. Most people tried hard, but a few forgot at first. By Friday, the bins were much lighter and the rubbish bag was smaller. Mia was happy because the kitchen stayed cleaner and the hostel paid less for waste collection. She said the plan worked best when everyone used the same labels every day. After dinner, the staff emptied each bin and wrote the amount on a chart. The chart helped them see which item still caused the most mistakes, so they could remind guests the next day.
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Question 1 · Cloze (dropdown)
Choose the correct option for each blank.
Complete the summary. Choose the correct option for each gap. Mia started the hostel’s plan by placing different bins in the right places. Blue boxes were for 1___, green bins were for 2___, and a small box was kept for 3___. She then showed the guests a card with 4___ so sorting would be easier.
Return to the passage, recording or visualChoices for blank 1
- food waste
- shoes
- glass
- paper
Choices for blank 2
- food waste
- towels
- bottles
- paper
Choices for blank 3
- bottles
- paper
- food waste
- cards
Choices for blank 4
- clear pictures
- long rules
- new labels
- busy signs
Check answers and explanations
- Blank 1
- paper
- Blank 2
- bottles
- Blank 3
- food waste
- Blank 4
- clear pictures
Gap 1: The blue boxes were for paper, as the passage says, “She put blue boxes for paper near the lobby.” Gap 2: The green bins were for bottles, as shown by “green bins for bottles by the kitchen.” Gap 3: The small box was for food waste, which was kept “beside the sink.” Gap 4: Mia showed a card with clear pictures, helping guests sort the items quickly.
She put blue boxes for paper near the lobby, green bins for bottles by the kitchen, and a small box for food waste beside the sink.
On Monday morning she showed everyone a card with clear pictures.
food waste: The blue boxes were not for food waste.
shoes: The passage does not mention shoes.
glass: The passage does not say the blue boxes were for glass.
paper: This matches the passage.
food waste: The green bins were not for food waste.
towels: The passage does not mention towels.
bottles: This matches the passage.
paper: The passage says the green bins were for bottles, not paper.
bottles: The small box was not for bottles.
paper: The small box was not for paper.
food waste: This matches the passage.
cards: The small box was not for cards.
clear pictures: This matches the passage.
long rules: The card had pictures, not long rules.
new labels: The passage says the card had clear pictures.
busy signs: The passage does not mention busy signs.
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Question 2 · Cloze (dropdown)
Choose the correct option for each blank.
Complete the summary. Choose the correct option for each gap. By Friday, the hostel had less rubbish and a smaller rubbish bag. Mia thought the plan worked best when everyone used the same 1___ every day. After dinner, staff wrote the amount on a 2___. This helped them see which item still caused the most 3___. The hostel also paid less for 4___.
Return to the passage, recording or visualChoices for blank 1
- pictures
- labels
- keys
- doors
Choices for blank 2
- shelf
- chart
- card
- bin
Choices for blank 3
- guests
- mistakes
- bags
- smells
Choices for blank 4
- waste collection
- new posters
- cleaning work
- meal times
Check answers and explanations
- Blank 1
- labels
- Blank 2
- chart
- Blank 3
- mistakes
- Blank 4
- waste collection
Gap 1: Mia said the plan worked best when everyone used the same labels every day. Gap 2: After dinner, the staff wrote the amount on a chart. Gap 3: The chart helped them see which item caused the most mistakes. Gap 4: The hostel paid less for waste collection. These details describe separate results of the plan.
She said the plan worked best when everyone used the same labels every day.
After dinner, the staff emptied each bin and wrote the amount on a chart.
Mia was happy because the kitchen stayed cleaner and the hostel paid less for waste collection.
pictures: The passage says labels, not pictures.
labels: This matches the passage.
keys: The passage says labels, not keys.
doors: The passage does not mention doors.
shelf: The passage does not mention a shelf.
chart: This matches the passage.
card: The staff wrote the amount on a chart, not a card.
bin: The amount was written on a chart, not a bin.
guests: The chart helped them see mistakes, not guests.
mistakes: This matches the passage.
bags: The chart helped them see mistakes, not bags.
smells: The passage does not mention smells.
waste collection: This matches the passage.
new posters: The passage does not mention new posters.
cleaning work: The passage says waste collection, not cleaning work.
meal times: The hostel paid less for waste collection, not meal times.
What to review next
Find the words that support each answer. For a mistake, compare the question with the evidence and identify the detail or inference you missed.
A focused practice result shows how you did on these tasks. Use several activities across skills to decide what to study next; one practice score does not certify an overall CEFR level.
Before you practise: a worked example
Look for evidence in the text. Separate what the writer says from what you already know about the topic.
The library normally closes at six, but on Fridays it stays open until eight. When does it close on Friday?
The answer is eight. But introduces an exception to the normal closing time, so the first time mentioned is not the answer.
This teaching example is separate from the scored questions. After your test, compare any mistakes with the explanation and revisit the topic before trying again.