A staff member introducing families to the Sparkforce Discovery
IELTS Listening — IELTS Practice Originals, Listening Practice Test 9, Section 2
{# No redirect, deliberately: the text above must be the same thing a reader and a crawler get, and the CTA is how a reader crosses into the timed app. #} Listen and answer Play the recording once, as in the exam, then see every answer with the moment in the audio it comes from. Start nowTranscript
{# Shown in full, as the review screen does after a sitting: it is the text a searcher is looking for, and hiding it would leave this page with nothing on it but a heading. #}Section 2. You will hear a staff member introducing families to the Sparkforce Discovery Centre, a hands-on science centre. First, you have some time to look at questions 11 to 14.
Now listen carefully and answer questions 11 to 14.
MAN: Hello, families, and welcome to Sparkforce, a science centre where, unlike most museums, touching absolutely everything is the whole point. Let me give you the lie of the land and a few tips to get the most from your day. We opened just three years ago, in a converted power station, and we now get around a hundred and fifty thousand visitors a year, so at weekends, do come early, it gets busy by eleven.
MAN: A couple of practical notes. Entry to the main galleries is free, we're funded by the council, but the planetarium show does carry a small charge, so buy those tickets as you arrive, they sell out. Lockers for your coats and bags are by the entrance, and they're free, though you'll need a one-pound coin, which is refunded. And there's a café on the top floor, but you're also very welcome to bring a picnic and eat in the garden.
Before you hear the rest of the talk, you have some time to look at questions 15 to 20.
MAN: Now, the centre is arranged in four zones, and each has a different flavour. The Body Zone is all about how your own body works, and its most popular exhibit by far is a giant model heart you can actually walk through. The Space Zone is where you'll find the planetarium I mentioned. The Force Zone is the loud, energetic one, full of levers and pulleys and things to launch, it's where older children tend to spend hours. And the youngest visitors love the Water Zone, with its dams and channels, though I warn you, they will get wet, so we hand out aprons at the door.
MAN: Finally, a few things especially worth catching. There's a live science show in the theatre three times a day, do check the board for times, it's genuinely the highlight for most families. Our staff, in the bright yellow shirts, are all trained to run little experiments with your children on the spot, so don't be shy. And on your way out, the shop sells simple experiment kits to take home. Right, off you go and explore, and please, do touch everything.
That is the end of Section 2. You now have some time to check your answers.