2019-03-18 Pre-TOEFL: int writing intro

Greg Malivuk
gmalivuk@staffordhouse.com
http://www.pastebin.com/u/gmalivuk - notes from all classes
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Writing Section: fourth and last section of the test, 2 tasks, 20+30 minutes of writing time
1 integrated: read a text, listen to a lecture, write about how the lecture relates to the text
2 independent: read a choice question, write and support your answer
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ETS 1 test 1 - Read the text about dinosaurs. What is the main idea? What are the most important supporting points? Is 3 minutes enough?
Topic: dinosaurs
R0 (main idea): dinosaurs were endotherms
R1: polar dinosaurs - polar areas are cold, and animals that live there are usually endotherms; dinosaur fossils have been found in polar regions
R2: leg position and movement - endotherms can run, and need legs under their bodies for this; dinosaurs had legs under their bodies (unlike modern lizards and crocodiles)
R3: Haversian canals - these allow fast body growth, a characteristic of endothermy; dinosaur bones have many Haversian canals
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For each point, notice that there’s information connecting it to endotherms, and information connecting it to dinosaurs.
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Before reading, you should be able to predict two things from the lecture:
Topic: dinosaurs
L0 = main idea: dinosaurs are not endotherms (or we can’t be sure)
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Read the script. What are the main and supporting points?

Last lines:
mals that are not endotherms. Animals that maintain a constant body temperature year round, as true endotherms do, grow rapidly even when the environment becomes cool.

L0: reading arguments don’t prove dinosaurs were endotherms
L1: polar dinosaurs - polar regions were warmer when dinosaurs lived; they could hibernate or migrate when it was cold; fossils there don’t prove dinosaurs were endotherms
L2: leg position - legs under the body also help support more weight; some dinosaurs were very big, so this may be the reason for legs under the body
L3: bone structure - dinosaur bones also had growth rings, which means they stopped growing (or grew more slowly) during cool periods; endotherms grow rapidly all year
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Read the text for test 2 (about Chaco Canyon)
R0 = there are three possible explanations for how the “great houses” were used
R1 = residential
R2 = food storage
R3 = ceremonial centers
Read the listening transcript
L0 = none of those explanations is convincing
L1 = not residential because...
L2 = not food because...
L3 = not ceremonial because...