Buổi 89: Thi thử – Writing (Task 1 + Task 2)

The table compares the numbers of people who visited four attractions in City M in 2015, 2020 and 2025.

Overall, the aquarium and the theme park became more popular over the period, while the zoo and the history museum attracted fewer visitors. By 2025, the theme park was the most visited attraction.

The aquarium saw the most dramatic growth. Its visitor numbers almost doubled from 60,000 in 2015 to 110,000 in 2020, and then rose further to 180,000 in 2025, three times the original figure. The theme park also grew steadily, from 150,000 to 160,000 and finally to 210,000, making it the top attraction in the last year.

In contrast, the zoo, which was the most popular attraction in 2015 with 200,000 visitors, declined to 150,000 in 2020 and 140,000 in 2025. The history museum followed a slightly different pattern: its numbers fell from 120,000 to 90,000 before recovering a little to 100,000 in the final year.

Dear Mr Lee,

I hope you are well. I live in the flat next to yours, number 8B, and I wanted to write to you about something that has been worrying my family recently.

For the past few weeks, we have often heard loud music from your flat late at night, usually from around 11 p.m. until after midnight, especially on weekdays. I'm sure you may not realise how much sound travels through the walls in our building.

Unfortunately, it is affecting us quite a lot. My wife and I both start work early, and our young children go to bed at 8.30, so they have been waking up and finding it hard to get back to sleep. As a result, everyone in the family has been feeling tired.

I wonder if you could keep the volume lower after 10 p.m., or perhaps use headphones late in the evening. I would really appreciate it, and of course, please let me know if anything from our flat ever disturbs you.

Best regards, Nguyen Minh Hai (8B)

Many people believe that schools should spend more time teaching everyday skills such as cooking and managing money, rather than concentrating only on traditional academic subjects. I largely agree with this view, although I do not think practical skills should replace academic learning completely.

On the one hand, practical skills are essential for adult life. Young people who leave school without knowing how to cook simple, healthy meals may depend on fast food, which can affect their health. Similarly, many young adults have never learnt how to make a budget, compare loans or save for the future, so they may get into debt when they start working or move away from home. If schools taught these skills, students would be better prepared for independent life, and some of these problems could be avoided.

On the other hand, academic subjects remain very important. Maths, science and languages develop the ability to think logically, solve problems and communicate clearly, and they are necessary for further study and many careers. For this reason, I believe that practical skills should be added to the timetable rather than replacing academic subjects. In fact, the two can be combined: a maths lesson could include planning a monthly budget, and a science lesson could explain why some foods are healthier than others.

In conclusion, I agree that schools should give more attention to practical skills such as cooking and money management, because they are vital for everyday life. However, these should be taught alongside academic subjects, not instead of them.