IELTS Reading drill · True / False / Not Given

How do pigeons find their way home?

Timeabout 15 minutesQuestions9, real-test style
Reading

True / False / Not Given questions check whether you can tell what a passage really says. Most students lose marks on Not Given, because the statement uses words from the passage but adds something extra. Learn the proof test, then try it on a passage about homing pigeons.

1Quick tip

TRUEThe passage says the same thing, usually in different words.
FALSEThe passage says the opposite. Both can't be true at the same time.
NOT GIVENThe passage doesn't say. You can't know if it's true or false from the passage alone.

The 3-question proof test

  1. Find it. Find the part of the passage about the statement. The answers come in the same order as the passage.
  2. Does it agree? If the passage says the same thing, the answer is TRUE.
  3. Does it disagree? If the passage says the opposite, the answer is FALSE. If it does neither, the answer is NOT GIVEN.

⚠️ Watch the small words: all, always, only, first, more than, proven. One small word can turn a TRUE statement into FALSE or NOT GIVEN. And never use what you know about the topic, only what the passage says.

2Read and answer

In the real test you have about 20 minutes for each passage and its 13 or 14 questions. This passage is shorter, with 9 questions. Use the clock if you want real-test pace.

Optional. The clock never stops you.

Questions 1–9 · Do the following statements agree with the information in the passage? Choose TRUE, FALSE or NOT GIVEN.

1Pigeons were used to send messages during the Second World War.
2Early researchers found that pigeons could not get home if they were unable to see the route.
3Gustav Kramer's discovery was quickly accepted by other scientists.
4Pigeons whose body clocks had been changed flew in the wrong direction.
5Magnets attached to pigeons confused them in all kinds of weather.
6Scientists have shown that the magnetic sense is found in the pigeon's beak.
7Pigeons can hear low sounds better than any other bird.
8Near home, some pigeons choose a longer route that follows things like roads.
9Racing pigeons cost more today than they did in the past.

4Talk about it Speaking Part 3 practice

The passage gave you ideas and words. Use them! Give an opinion, a reason, an example and a final view. About 1 minute each.

  1. Why do you think people have always been fascinated by animals' abilities?
  2. Do you think people today rely too much on technology to find their way?
  3. Should children learn to read maps at school? Why or why not?
navigatefind your way
rely ondepend on, need
a sense of directionknowing which way to go
on the other handto give the other side

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This practice lives online. Visit getbandready.com/drills/reading/tfng.html to do the drill.