EXERCISE S7 Connecting ideas using transitional expressions

Join the following ideas using transitional expressions.

1. I admired my high school history teacher for several reasons. He could explain historical events as if he were telling a
story.
2. I enjoyed doing quiet activities like playing chess. My brother preferred more physical activities like football.
3. Our teacher would walk around the classroom looking at our work. We were busy on our individual projects.
4. The rain poured down for several days. The river banks in my city overflowed.
5. I took as many science courses as I could. I studied biology, chemistry, biochemistry, and physics.
6. The rain forest provides us with many products. The forests are being cleared for crops.

EXERCISE S9 Connecting ideas by using parallel structures

Join the following ideas using parallel structures.

1. Wind energy is an alternative form of energy. So is solar energy.

2. To get accepted into some universities, you have to send copies of your high school diploma. The university might
want letters of recommendation from a teacher who knows your work. Also, you frequently have to write an essay
stating why you want to study there.
3. Students tend to get out of shape because they spend a lot of time studying. Frequently they eat a lot of junk food, too.
4. Rivers are polluted by factories dumping their waste products into the water. People also throw their garbage into the
river.

EXERCISE S11 Connecting ideas by using pronouns

Read the sentences on the next page. Use pronouns to replace repeated words.

1. I prefer to spend my leisure time with different friends. Since my friends have diverse interests, one friend or the other
is always involving me in different activities.
2. Many children are sent to school at an early age to get a head start in a formal education. That is unfortunate because
children learn very important lessons about life through play.
3. The woman believes that the new plan to reserve study rooms will affect students adversely. Because of the plan,
students won't be able to reserve the rooms ahead of time, and it is possible that a room will not be available when the
room is needed.
4. The computer program contains activities for dyslexic children. The children work through the activities to help improve
reading abilities.

EXERCISE S12 Finding inconsistencies

Underline the sections where you see inconsistencies in tense, person, or number.

1. Cooking is fun when you are planning a nice meal for visitors. You can make a starter, main course, a salad, and a
dessert. Then, when your guest arrives, you can surprise him with how well you have cooked it. Guests will appreciate
all the work one does to make tasty meals.
2. It is very important for a teacher to be patient because their students don't always understand what they are expected
to do. Sometimes one has to guess what the teacher means. It is very upsetting if you guess wrong and then they get
angry when it isn't your fault.
3. A movie is never as good as the novel they are based on. Sometimes the novel has two or three subplots. Since all
these subplots can't be addressed in a two-hour movie, the main plot is frequently changed. But without the subplot,
they don't make sense. In the end, the movie tells a completely different story than that of the novels.
4. The professor talked about the rise and fall of empires. He notes that the conquerors spread through the valleys, the
most fertile and accessible parts of a country. However, the people who live in the less accessible areas, like the
tropical forests or the high mountain regions, are frequently not affected by the conquerors and continued to maintain
languages and traditions throughout the many invasions that will take place over the centuries.
EXERCISE S14 Choosing a topic for the personal preference task
Read the following categories and quickly decide on a topic within each category that you could speak about comfortably.

Hobbies stamp collecting

1. sports
2. animals
3. food
4. courses
5. teachers

EXERCISE S15 Restating the task and defining your choice

Read the following tasks. Quickly decide on a topic for each.

You read: Name a hobby you have and explain why it is important to you. Include details and examples to support your
explanation.
You say: I like to work on cryptic crossword puzzles because the clues are a challenge. Cryptic crossword puzzles are
crosswords that have special clues instead of just straightforward synonyms like most crossword puzzles.

1. Name a teacher who has influenced you and explain why that teacher was important. Include details and examples to
support your explanation.
2. Describe a class you have taken and explain why that class was important to you. Include details and examples to
support your explanation.

EXERCISE S18 Putting it all together

Practice planning speeches using the tasks that have already been presented, but choose different topics to speak about.

1. Name a skill you have learned and explain why it is important to you. Include details and examples to support your
explanation.
2. Name a hobby you have and explain why it is important to you. Include details and examples to support your
explanation.
3. Name a person who has influenced you and explain why that influence was important. Include details and examples to
support your explanation.
4. Describe a class you have taken and explain why that class was important to you. Include details and examples to
support your explanation.

EXERCISE S20 Making a personal choice

Look at the following choices and quickly decide which choice you could most easily defend. Do not take more than five
seconds to decide.
Cats or dogs as pets: dogs
1. movies on TV or movies at the theater ____________________________________________
2. traditional food or exotic food ____________________________________________
3. outdoor sports or indoor sports ____________________________________________
4. city life or country life ____________________________________________
5. the sciences or the arts ____________________________________________

EXERCISE S21 Restating the task and stating your position

Read the following task. Quickly choose your preference.

1. Some people believe that students should immediately go on to college after completing high school. Others believe
that students should take a year or more off between high school and college. Which approach do you think is better
for students interested in getting a college degree? Include details and examples in your explanation.
 2. Some students would like to have a long vacation during the academic year. Other students would like to have
several shorter vacations during the academic year. What is your preference and why? Include details and examples
in your explanation.

EXERCISE S24 Putting it all together

Practice planning speeches using the tasks that have already been presented, but make a different choice or provide
different supporting ideas

1. Some students prefer to do group projects. Other students prefer to do individual projects. Which kind of projects do
you think produce more learning and why?
2. Some people believe that students should immediately go on to college after completing high school. Others believe
that students should take a year off between high school completion and starting college. Which approach do you think
is better for students interested in getting a college degree? Include details and examples in your explanation.
3. Some students would like to have a long vacation during the academic year. Other students would like to have several
shorter vacations during the academic year. What is your preference and why? Include details and examples in your
explanation.

EXERCISE S26 Practice responding to independent speaking tasks

Practice responding to the following independent speaking tasks.

Personal preference tasks

1. Name an academic subject that you like and explain why it attracts you. Include details and examples to support your
explanation.
2. Describe a personal possession that is special to you and explain why it is important. Include details and examples to
support your explanation.
3. Describe a feature of your city that you consider interesting and explain why you think it is interesting. Include details
and examples to support your explanation.
Personal choice tasks
4. Some people prefer television programs that present serious issues. Other people prefer those that are for
entertainment only. Which kind of program do you consider the most important for people to watch and why?
5. Some people prefer to focus their energy to excel in one activity. Other people prefer to participate in many different
activities. Which method do you think is better for the development of a person’s intellect and why?