The Night Before
B2 First · Open Cloze · Cambridge Ready original exercise
For questions 1–8, read the text below and think of the word which best fits each gap. Use only one word in each gap. There is an example at the beginning.
Most students have stayed (0) ___ late at least once, trying to learn a whole term's work the night before an exam. It may feel productive, but cramming is far from ideal. It may help you remember facts long enough (1) ___ pass the next day's test, but most of what you learn this way disappears almost as quickly (2) ___ it went in. Instead, scientists recommend a method known (3) ___ 'spaced practice'. Rather than studying a topic once for several hours, you return (4) ___ it a number of times, with breaks of a few days in between. Each time, you test yourself on what you can remember, (5) ___ makes the memory stronger. Lack of sleep is another problem. The brain needs rest to make sense (6) ___ new information, so staying awake all night can do (7) ___ harm than good. The best advice, then, is to start early and plan your revision (8) ___ that you are not left with too much to do in the final week.
The Night Before
Available as a free printable PDF worksheet with an optional answer key.