2017-03-08 TOEFL: speaking 5, reading vocab

Greg Malivuk
[email protected]
http://www.pastebin.com/u/gmalivuk - notes from all classes
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http://ed.ted.com/lessons/how-do-whales-sing-stephanie-sardelis
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Your response to speaking task 5 should have these parts:
1 Problem summary. “The students are discussing the man’s problem with…”
2 List solutions. “The woman suggests two solutions. He could either … or …”
3 Your opinion. “In my opinion, the man should…”
4 Lead-in. “I have two reasons for this opinion.”
5 First reason. “The first reason is that this option is cheaper.”
6 detail “If he …, it could get very expensive, so I think he should save his money and … instead.”
7 Second reason. “The second reason is that this option is safer.”
8 detail “He won’t risk…”
(if there’s time, you can finish with a conclusion)
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If timing is a problem, drop details before you drop main reasons, and briefly summarize your reasons in your thesis statement if you’re worried about not having enough time to explain them fully in your response.
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Record your responses to task 5 of the three ETS guide practice tests.
Then listen to your replies and choose one we might listen to as a class.
What’s good and bad about the responses you heard?
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BREAK
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Rhythm and intonation are the punctuation of speaking, so they can really help or hurt people’s understanding of what you say.
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Reading section: first section, 3 or 4 passages, 20 minutes each to answer about 15 questions
There are around ten different types of questions:
- fact
- negative fact
- vocabulary (what does this word mean in this specific context?)
- inference (what does the author imply about the topic?)
- reference (what does a word like “this” or “others” refer to?)
- paraphrase (which sentence has the most similar meaning to one from the reading?)
- purpose (why does the author say this?)
- sentence insertion (where in the paragraph should this sentence be inserted?)
- summarize (choose three sentences that express the most important ideas from the passage.)
- categorize/organize (put 5 or 7 sentences correctly into two or three categories)
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Vocabulary in context
DELTA p. 49 - Description of the question type and several clues to look for when answering them.
p. 56 - Choose the correct answers for questions 1-4 and identify which context clues from the paragraph help you make that decision.
1 D - The example of a head cold helps you answer (because you might know that colds affect smell most of all).
2 A - The example of a hexagon helps you understand that 120 degrees helps explain the six-sided structure.
3 B - The people who compile it are the same people who “are responsible for preparing the report”, so you should be able to choose the answer most similar to “prepare”.
4 A - “but then” contrasts “split off” from “common origin”
Take 5 minutes to answer questions 5-10. Skim for the important clues and contextual information.
5 A
6 B
7 A
8 D (If you don’t understand “hazards”, you should still be able to eliminate the other three options.)
9 C
10 D
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Another clue is figurative or metaphorical language. A mask conceals your face, so when one thing masks another (even if there isn’t a physical mask), it conceals it.
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p. 59 Take 5 minutes to answer 1.3.B questions 1-6
1 D
2 B
3 A
4 C
5 D
6 C
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Homework: fill out and bring in the TOEFL registration form at https://www.ets.org/s/toefl/pdf/iBT_reg_form.pdf, also bring your passport or a photo of the first page of your passport. There is some information you’ll need to find at https://www.ets.org/toefl/ibt/about/bulletin in order to complete the form.
Before we practice independent writing tomorrow, we will do a fake TOEFL check-in with Kim, as they would do on the day of the test.