English Reading Practice
Malaysia
Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. It borders Thailand and is surrounded by the sea.
Malaysia became an independent country in 1963 after being ruled by Great Britain for many years. It has a very strong economy that includes tourism and trade.
Because of its location in the South Pacific ocean, the climate of Malaysia is tropical. This means that is is very hot and humid. "Humid" is when there is a lot of water in the air. Also, the temperature does not change much throughout the year.
Malaysia's climate makes it a wonderful place for many plants and animals to live. In fact, Malaysia is one of the world's most diverse ecosystems. "Diverse" means has many different parts. "Ecosystem" means a place where plants and animals live. Many of the plants and animals that live in Malaysia can only be found there.
Biodiversity in Malaysia
"Biodiversity" means that a large number of different kinds of animals and plants exist together.In 2001, Malaysia was ranked as one of the top 12 diverse countries in the world in terms of biology (plants and animals). It is believed that over 170,000 different kinds of plants and animals live in Malaysia. In fact, scientists think that nearly 20% of the world's animals live in Malaysia.
Some of the animals that live in Malaysia are mammals (animals that give birth to live babies not eggs), birds, frogs, lizards, snakes, and insects. Malaysia is home to tigers, elephants, rhinos, turtles, and many different kinds of monkeys including Orangutans.
Some of these animals live in the mountains of Malaysia and some live in the forests. Because Malaysia has different landscapes, many different kinds of animals with different food and housing needs can live there.
In addition to animals, some of the world's most exotic plants live in Malaysia. "Exotic" means rare or hard to find. Most of Malaysia is forest so many different kinds of trees can be found there. Scientists believe that over 2000 different kinds of trees grow in Malaysia. Also, over 8500 different kinds of plants can be found in Malaysia. Like with the animals, many of these trees and plants are only found in the Malaysian forests and mountains.
Being a home to so many different kinds of animals and, especially, plants is not only interesting but is also very important for the world. Many medicines are made from plants. For example, many medicines used to to prevent or help cure certain kinds of cancer are made from plants. The plants that these medicines are made from come from all over the world. Many come from the forests of Malaysia.
And now, practice:
Malaysia - Exercises
Vocabulary Questions
1. What does "humid" mean?a) dry air
b) wet air
c) heavy air
d) light air
b) wet air
c) heavy air
d) light air
2. What does "biology" mean?
a) plants and animals
b) fish
c) rocks
d) mountains and forests
b) fish
c) rocks
d) mountains and forests
3. What does "exotic" mean?
a) common
b) easy
a) rare
b) hard
b) easy
a) rare
b) hard
Grammar Questions
1. Malaysia is _________ country in Southeast Asia.a) a
b) the
c) an
d) that
b) the
c) an
d) that
2. Malaysia _________ an independent country in 1963.
a) becomes
b) became
c) had become
d) will become
b) became
c) had become
d) will become
3. In Malaysia _________ are many different kinds of plants.
a) they're
b) their
c) there
d) the
b) their
c) there
d) the
Comprehension Questions
1. What kinds of animals live in Malaysia?_______________________________________________________________
2. How many different kinds of plants live in Malaysia?
_______________________________________________________________
3. Why are scientists and doctors so interested in the plants in Malaysia?
_______________________________________________________________
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