All English 4U · Reading Skill Drill
Matching Headings
Match each paragraph to the heading that captures its main idea – not just a word it contains. Read one short passage, choose five headings, and see why each one fits.
How to match a heading to a paragraph
- Find the main idea. Ask what the whole paragraph is about – usually the first or last sentence points to it.
- Beware keyword traps. A heading that repeats one word from the paragraph is often a distractor, not the answer.
- There are extra headings. Some headings match no paragraph. Do the easy ones first, then decide between the close options.
Reading Passage
AFew animals have shaped the rivers of the northern hemisphere as thoroughly as the beaver. For thousands of years these large rodents were a common sight across Europe and North America, until relentless hunting for their fur and scent glands drove them to the edge of extinction. By the early twentieth century, beavers had vanished from most of their former range. In recent decades, however, the tide has turned: conservationists have begun returning beavers to rivers where they had not been seen for centuries.
BWhat makes the beaver so remarkable is its ability to transform the landscape around it. Using branches, mud and stones, a beaver builds dams across streams, slowing the flow of water and flooding the land behind them. Over time, a single family can turn a narrow channel into a chain of ponds and marshes. Few other creatures, apart from humans, alter their surroundings on such a scale.
CThese watery landscapes bring a surprising range of benefits. The ponds behind beaver dams store water during dry spells and hold it back during heavy rain, reducing the risk of flooding further downstream. The still water traps sediment and filters pollutants, so streams below a beaver dam often run cleaner. The wetlands also become havens for wildlife, from dragonflies and frogs to fish and wading birds, boosting the variety of life along the river.
DNot everyone welcomes the beaver’s return. When dams flood farmland or block drainage channels, they can damage crops and roads, and landowners are sometimes left to pay for the repairs. A beaver that fells a prized tree or floods a footpath quickly turns from a symbol of nature’s recovery into a nuisance. Such conflicts have made some communities wary of reintroduction schemes.
EFortunately, most of these problems can be managed. Where flooding threatens property, engineers can fit a “flow device” – a pipe through the dam that lowers the water level without destroying it. Culverts can be protected with fencing, and in extreme cases beavers can be trapped and moved elsewhere under licence. Such measures allow farmers and beavers to share the same valley with far less friction.
FAttitudes are slowly shifting in the beaver’s favour. In a growing number of countries the animal is now legally protected, and it is illegal to kill one or destroy its dam without permission. Surveys suggest that, once people see the wetlands and wildlife that beavers create, public support tends to rise. For an animal once hunted almost to oblivion, it is a remarkable change of fortune.
Questions 1–5
The passage has six paragraphs, A–F. Choose the correct heading for each paragraph from the list below. Paragraph A is done for you as an example.
- i A history of decline and return – Example: Paragraph A
- ii Reshaping rivers and creating wetlands
- iii The wider gains from bringing beavers back
- iv Where beavers and people come into conflict
- v Practical ways to live alongside beavers
- vi Growing legal protection and public backing
- vii The high cost of removing beavers entirely
- viii Comparing beavers with other water engineers
Answer key & explanations
| Para | Heading | Why |
|---|