IELTS Reading Choosing from a list (Kauri Gum)

Choosing from a list is another ‘matching information’ question type, as you are matching dates with events that happened in the text.

The structure of this text is chronological – everything goes in order of TIME, from the origins of the gum and how it was formed, to what happened in more recent times.

An awareness of this style of IELTS Reading text will help you find the answers much more quickly.

Question type 1: Matching Information

Highlight keywords in the statements.
Matching Information questions are NOT the same as Matching Headings. One paragraph could contain more than 1 piece of information
If the text is chronological like this one (in order of time), use that structure to match keywords like ‘recent’ (Q33)

Questions 28-33
The text has six sections A-F.
Which section contains the following information?
Write the correct letter, A-F, in boxes 28-33 on your answer sheet.

NB You may use any letter more than once.

28 an example of a domestic product made of high-quality gum

29 factors affecting gum quality

30 how kauri gum is formed

31 how gum was gathered

32 the main industrial uses of the gum

33 recent uses of kauri gum

A The kauri tree is a massive forest tree native to New Zealand. Kauri once formed vast forests over much of the north of the country. Whereas now it is the wood of the kauri which is an important natural resource, in the past it was the tree’s sap (the thick liquid which flows inside a tree) which, when hardened into gum, played an important role in New Zealand’s early history.

After running from rips or tears in the bark of trees, the sap hardens to form the lumps of gum which eventually fall to the ground and are buried under layers of forest litter. The bark often splits where branches fork from the trunk, and gum accumulates there also.

The early European settlers in New Zealand collected and sold the gum. Gum fresh from the tree was soft and of low value but most of the gum which was harvested had been buried for thousands of years. This gum came in a bewildering variety of colours, degree of transparency and hardness, depending on the length and location of burial, as well as the health of the original tree and the area of the bleeding. Highest quality gum was hard and bright and was usually found at shallow depth on the hills. Lowest quality gum was soft, black or chalky and sugary and was usually found buried in swamps, where it had been in contact with water for a long time. Long periods in the sun or bush fires could transform dull cloudy lumps into higher quality transparent gum.

B In Maori and early European times up until 1850, most gum collected was simply picked up from the ground, but, after that, the majority was recovered by digging.

E The first major commercial use of kauri gum was in the manufacture of high-grade furniture varnish, a kind of clear paint used to treat wood.. The best and purest gum that was exported prior to 1910 was used in this way.

F In the last decades, it has had a very limited use in the manufacture of extremely high-grade varnish for violins, but the gum of the magnificent tree remains an important part of New Zealand’s history.

Answers: Matching information

28 an example of a domestic product made of high-quality gum E

The first major commercial use of kauri gum was in the manufacture of high-grade furniture varnish, a kind of clear paint used to treat wood.. The best and purest gum that was exported prior to 1910 was used in this way.

29 factors affecting gum quality A

Gum fresh from the tree was soft and of low value but most of the gum which was harvested had been buried for thousands of years. This gum came in a bewildering variety of colours, degree of transparency and hardness, depending on the length and location of burial, as well as the health of the original tree and the area of the bleeding. Highest quality gum was hard and bright and was usually found at shallow depth on the hills. Lowest quality gum was soft, black or chalky and sugary and was usually found buried in swamps, where it had been in contact with water for a long time. Long periods in the sun or bush fires could transform dull cloudy lumps into higher quality transparent gum.

30 how kauri gum is formed A

…it was the tree’s sap (the thick liquid which flows inside a tree) which, when hardened into gum…

After running from rips or tears in the bark of trees, the sap hardens to form the lumps of gum which eventually fall to the ground and are buried under layers of forest litter. The bark often splits where branches fork from the trunk, and gum accumulates there also.

(the Present Simple Active and Passive tenses here show us that this is a PROCESS – the sap hardens… which eventually fall…. and are buried…. the bark splits…. gum accumulates…..)

31 how gum was gathered B

In Maori and early European times up until 1850, most gum collected was simply picked up from the ground, but, after that, the majority was recovered by digging.

32 the main industrial uses of the gum E

The first major commercial use of kauri gum was in the manufacture of high-grade furniture varnish, a kind of clear paint used to treat wood.

33 recent uses of kauri gum F

In the last decades, it has had a very limited use in the manufacture of extremely high-grade varnish for violins, but the gum of the magnificent tree remains an important part of New Zealand’s history.

2. IELTS Reading Choosing from a list (matching dates)

Questions 34-39
Look at the following events in the history of kauri gum in New Zealand (Questions 34-39) and the list of time periods below.

Match each event with the correct time period, A-I.

Kauri gum – a piece of New Zealand’s history.

34 Kauri gum was first used in New Zealand.

(Para C) The original inhabitants of New Zealand, the Maori, had experimented with kauri gum well before Europeans arrived at the beginning of the nineteenth century.

35 The amount of kauri gum sent overseas peaked.

(Para D) The increasing number of diggers resulted in rapid growth of the kauri gum exports from 1000 tons in 1860 to a maximum of over 10,000 tons in 1900.

36 The collections of kauri gum supplemented farmers’ incomes.

(Para D) By the 1890s, there were 20,000 people engaged in gum-digging. Although many of these, such as farmers, women and children, were only part-time diggers, nearly 7,000 were full-timers.

37 Kauri gum was made into jewellery.

(Para F) In the time of Queen Victoria of England (1837 – 1901) some pieces were made into fashionable amber beads that women wore around their necks. The occasional lump that contained preserved insects was prized for use in necklaces and bracelets.

38 Kauri gum was used in the production of string instruments.

(Para F) In the last decades, it has had a very limited use in the manufacture of extremely high-grade varnish for violins…

39 Most of the kauri gum was found underground.

(Para B) In Maori and early European times up until 1850, most gum collected was simply picked up from the ground, but, after that, the majority was recovered by digging.

List of time periods

A before the 1800s

B in 1900

D between the late 1800s and the early 1900s

E between the 1830s and 1900

F in 1814 and 1815

G after 1850

H in the 1930s

I in recent times

Answers: Matching dates

34 Kauri gum was first used in New Zealand.

A before the 1800s

(Para C) The original inhabitants of New Zealand, the Maori, had experimented with kauri gum well before Europeans arrived at the beginning of the nineteenth century.

35 The amount of kauri gum sent overseas peaked.

B in 1900

(Para D ) The increasing number of diggers resulted in rapid growth of the kauri gum exports from 1000 tons in 1860 to a maximum of over 10,000 tons in 1900.

36 The collections of kauri gum supplemented farmers’ incomes.

D between the late 1800s and the early 1900s

37 Kauri gum was made into jewellery.

E between the 1830s and 1900

(Para F) In the time of Queen Victoria of England (1837 – 1901) some pieces were made into fashionable amber beads that women wore around their necks. The occasional lump that contained preserved insects was prized for use in necklaces and bracelets.

38 Kauri gum was used in the production of string instruments.

I in recent times

(Para F) In the last decades, it has had a very limited use in the manufacture of extremely high-grade varnish for violins…

39 Most of the kauri gum was found underground.

G after 1850

(Para B) In Maori and early European times up until 1850, most gum collected was simply picked up from the ground, but, after that, the majority was recovered by digging.

Question type 3: Multiple Choice

40. What was most likely to reduce the quality of kauri gum?

A how long it was buried

B exposure to water

C how deep it was buried

D exposure to heat

(Para A) Lowest quality gum was soft, black or chalky and sugary and was usually found buried in swamps, where it had been in contact with water for a long time.

Final question 40

40. What was most likely to reduce the quality of kauri gum?

B exposure to water

(Para A) Lowest quality gum was soft, black or chalky and sugary and was usually found buried in swamps, where it had been in contact with water for a long time.

Key Vocabulary for IELTS

Guess these words first from context (look at the sentences that surround them) and then check in a dictionary:

Kauri once formed vast forests.
Early European settlers collected the gum.
The gum was harvested by hand.
It had been buried for many years.
The quality depended on the location of their burial.
The original inhabitants of New Zealand were the Maori.
Sometimes the gum was ignited.
Exports peaked in 1900.
Gum-digging was a way to earn a living.
Poor quality gum was discarded as waste.
It was displaced by synthetic alternatives in the 1930s
In the last decades it has had limited use.

To know a word, you need to know:

The meaning (synonyms, opposites, connotation etc)
The pronunciation
The spelling
The different forms (verb, noun, adjective, adverb)
The grammar (how to use it in a sentence, past tense etc).
Some common collocations (which words usually go with it) e.g.

‘To bury something’

To put something underground.
| ˈberi |
Bury – buried (past tense)
Burial (noun) buried (adjective)
The gum was buried (Passive) under the tree
A burial site, buried treasure, buried at sea.

Learn the essential vocabulary that will get you to Band 7+ in my Vocabulary Booster course.

Learn more about IELTS Question types on the official IELTS.org website.

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