Prompt C Outline
QO Convenience: tr
Trang 2EXERCISE 25.1
Focus: Reading and analyzing Independent Writing prompts
Directions: Read the six prompts for Independent Writing tasks given below, then write an analysis for each one similar to the analyses on pages 658-659
Prompt for Task 1
Some people believe that schools should primarily teach students how to best compete with others Other people believe that schools should primarily teach students how to cooperate with others Which of these two approaches do you favor? Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer
Analysis of Task 1 Prompt for Task 2
Imagine that you can talk for one hour with any person who has lived at any time in history Which person would you choose to meet? Use specific details and examples to explain your choice
Trang 3Prompt for Task 3
Do you agree or disagree with the following statement?
When people are traveling, they often behave differently from the way they behave at home
Use specific details and examples to support your answer
Analysis of Task 3
Prompt for Task 4
Some university students prefer living in campus housing such as dormitories Other students prefer living in off-campus housing such as apartments If you were faced with this decision, which of these two options would you choose? Use specific reasons and details to explain your choice
Trang 4Prompt for Task 5
Do you agree or disagree with the following statement?
It is better for university students to first get a general education, taking classes in many fields, than it is for them to take classes only in their own field of study
Use specific details and examples to support your answer Analysis of Task 5
Prompt for Task 6
Your hometown has just received a grant from an international organization to fund a single improvement project Which of the following would you recom- mend to receive the funding?
the city airport the streets and roads the police department the fire department the local schools the city parks the public transportation system the local hospitals the art museum
Give specific examples and reasons to support your recommendation
Trang 5EXERCISE 25.2
Focus: Brainstorming and taking notes on Independent Writing prompts
DirEcTIONs: Brainstorm the six prompts in Exercise 25.1 and take notes on any ideas that occur to you Don’t spend more than one or two minutes per prompt
Notes for Task 1:
Notes for Task 2:
Trang 6Notes for Task 3:
Notes for Task 4:
Notes for Task 5:
Trang 7Notes for Task 6: EXERCISE 25.3
Focus: Writing informal outlines for Independent Writing Responses
DirECTIONS: Write short, informal outlines from the notes that you took on prompts 1, 2, and 3 in Exercise 25.2 Do not spend more than three or four minutes per outline
Outline for Task 1:
Outline for Task 2:
Trang 8Outline for Task 3: EXERCISE 25.4
Focus: More practice writing informal outlines for Independent Writing Responses DireEctIons: Write short, informal outlines from the notes that you took for tasks 4, 5, and 6 in Exercise 25.2 Do not spend more than three or four minutes per outline
Outline for Task 4:
Outline for Task 5:
Trang 10IN THE INDEPENDENT RESPONSE
(A) Giving Opinions
To write the Independent Response, you must give your opinion of issues and ideas You may have to show your preference for one concept or another or agree or disagree with a statement You then must support your opinions and ideas with valid arguments
The following structures and sentence patterns can be used to express your opinion:
In my opinion, A is the best choice It’s my opinion that B is an excellent idea I think that X should be used
I believe that we should choose Y I feel that A is correct
It’s my belief that C is the best plan
Personally, I think/feel/believe that X should not be
Expressing your preference for one concept over another is a way of giving your opinion, so the sentence patterns for showing your preferences are often com- bined with the patterns used to express your opinion
In my opinion, A is a much better choice than B It’s my opinion that C should be used in place of Y I believe that X is preferable to Y
Personally, I feel that Z is superior to A I prefer A toC
I like Y more than B
I like to do Y more than to do Z I like doing Y more than doing Z 1 would rather do X than Z.* I would prefer to see a B than a C.*
I would choose to have X rather than to have Y.*
I generally enjoy going to Z more than to A.*
Pay special attention to the examples marked with an asterisk (*) Notice that the verb phrase would rather is used with a base form (would rather do) The verb phrases would prefer and would choose take an infinitive (would prefer to see; would choose to have) The verb enjoy takes a gerund (enjoy going)
Trang 11Showing agreement and disagreement with a person or an idea is also a way of expressing an opinion
I agree with the statement that X is the best way to do Y
I disagree with those people who believe that B is the best option I agree that people should generally do A before they do B
Some people think C is the most important quality in a Z, but I don't agree Note that agree/disagree with is used with noun phrases, while agree/disagree that is used with clauses
It is not enough, in the independent response, to simply give your opinion or preference or to just say that you agree or disagree You must support your ideas with reasons Here are some sentence patterns for giving reasons:
I agree with those people who say that X is true because of Y
I disagree with those people who believe that B is the best option because Ais true
Note that because of is used with noun phrases, while because is used with clauses There are several reasons why | think X is better than Y
I agree with the opinion of people who believe that X is true There are several
reasons for this
You should also develop your ideas by providing examples:
I would rather visit city X than any other city in the world because it has so many cultural attractions For example, Museum Y has one of the best collec- tions of Z in the world
There are many ways in which students can get higher grades in a class For instance, students can ask their teachers how to do A
What is the most useful subject I have ever studied? I believe Y is by far the most helpful Here are three examples of how studying Y has helped me I chose to attend the University of X because it has many excellent teachers A good example of this is Professor Y
We have the use of many technological devices that were not available to our grandparents The C is a good example of this
In some countries, such as Y, this practice is quite common
You should not use the phrase for example or for instance + noun as a complete sentence:
INCORRECT: I would rather visit city X than any other city in the world because it has so many cultural attractions For example, Museum Y
Trang 12CORRECT: I would rather visit city X than any other city in the world because it has so many cultural attractions Museum Y is a good example
CORRECT: I would rather visit city X than any other city in the world because it has so many cultural attractions For example, Museum Y has a wonderful col- lection of modern art
You can also support a general idea with personal experiences Here are some sentence patterns used to give personal experiences
Some people support the idea that we should generally do A before we do B In my experience, this is not necessarily true
The statement says that C is true Some experiences from my own life support this idea
How can we learn how to do Y? For me, there have been at least three ways
(B) Connecting Ideas
Transition words (such as therefore, however, and moreover) and other expressions can be used to join paragraph to paragraph, sentence to sentence, and clause to clause Some of these expressions are given below
1 Expressions used to list points, examples, or reasons First example or reason:
First, let’s consider X
The first reason for this is thatY One example of this is Y
Additional examples or reasons:
Second, there is the example of Z
A second (third) good example of this phenomenon isA Another exampleisB
Next, there is the example of Y Another reason is that C is usually Final example or reason:
Finally, we have Z
2 Expressions that show addition
The transition words/phrases in addition, furthermore, and moreover can be used to join clauses or sentences
Clause 1; furthermore, clause 2
Sentence 1 Furthermore, sentence 2
One point is given in the first clause or sentence and another in the second clause or sentence
Trang 133
I would never want to own aY because it is so expensive In addition, it often breaks down
I predict that, in the future, people of all ages will use Ys Moreover, Ys will be found in every country of the globe
Expressions that show a result or conclusion
The conjunction so can be used to join two independent clauses The first clause gives a reason, the second clause a result (Clause 1, so clause 2)
I believe doing C is a waste of time, so I avoid C whenever possible The transition words therefore, consequently, and thus can be used to join clauses or sentences The first clause or sentence gives a reason, the second clause or sentence a result
Studying mathematics teaches you how to A; therefore, everyone should study mathematics
A recent study showed that many high school graduates could not do Y Consequently, Y should be part of the curriculum of all high schools In high school, I learned how to A, how to B, and how to C; thus, I was prepared for my studies at a university
Expressions that show contrast
The conjunction but can be used to join two independent clauses that contain contrasting information (Clause 1, but clause 2)
People who oppose Y may have some good points, but on the whole, I think Y serves a useful function
The adverb clause markers although and while can be used to join an adverb clause and an independent clause with contrasting information
Although most of the people in my country choose to study X as a second language, I wanted to learn how to speakY first
Some people believe that doing X is harmful, while others enjoy it
These transition words/phrases can join clauses and sentences containing con- trasting information
Many people like to visit large cities such as X or Y; however, | prefer to see scenic natural places such as Z and A
Many people think that the government should encourage people to do Y because it will help the economy On the other hand, doing Y can have a number of negative results
Expressions that show similarity
The transition words likewise and similarly can join clauses and sentences con- taining similar information
I think it is useful for children to do X; likewise, I think it is helpful for adults
to do the same
Trang 146 Expressions that introduce a concluding paragraph
These transition phrases can be used at the beginning of the last paragraph of your response
In conclusion, for all these reasons, I think that X is a valid argument In summary, there is no doubt in my mind that Y is true
Allin all, | must agree with those people who support X
Below are some additional examples of the vocabulary used for giving opinions and connecting ideas
1 I completely agree with the idea of stricter gun control for a number of reasons First, statistics show that guns are not very effective in preventing crime Moreover, accidents involving guns frequently occur Finally, guns can be stolen and later used in crimes
2 I believe that a good salary is an important consideration when looking for a career However, the nature of the work is more important to me Thus, I would not accept a job that I did not find rewarding
3 There are many reasons why I would rather live in an urban area thanina small town The first and most important reason is that there are more profes- sional opportunities for me in a big city than in a small town Another is that the educational opportunities for my children are much better in a city Third, a city offers cultural attractions such as museums, theaters, and good restau- rants Personally, I think that I would be bored living in a small town Therefore, I agree with those people who prefer to live in big cities
EXERCISE 26.1
Focus: Using transition words and other expressions to connect ideas
DirEcTIONS: Complete each of the following sentences with one of the words or phrases below Do not use any item more than once
likewise for example personally furthermore
however _ therefore on the other hand similarly 1 IL believe that women should have the right to serve in the military
, | don’t believe that they should be assigned to combat roles
2 Many actors, rock musicians, and sports stars receive huge amounts of money for the work that they do , a baseball player was recently offered a contract worth over twelve million dollars —— — —,]feel that this is far too much to pay a person who simply provides entertainment
3 The development of the automobile has had a great impact on people every- where _——_, the development of high-speed trains has had an impact on people in many countries, including my home country of France
Trang 154 Lused to work in a restaurant when I was in college I realize what a difficult job
restaurant workis —_—_——_— _— , whenever Ï go out to eat, I try to
leave a good tip for my waiter or waitress
Many people would agree with the idea that the best use for the open space in our community is to build a shopping center _mm , there are other people who feel we should turn this open space into a park
In the United States, people celebrate their independence from Britain on July4._—_—_ — —,we Mexicans celebrate our independence from Spain on September 16
Corporations should do more to reduce air pollution ——_—_——, they should encourage recycling
EXERCISE 26.2
Focus: Connecting ideas with transition words and other expressions
DI
1
3
on
RECTIONS: Complete the following sentences in your own words Young children have a special talent for language learning; therefore,
Some forms of advertising serve a useful purpose; however,
Small classes are the best environment for learning, but
Some people relax by watching television; personally,
Although there are many ways to learn a language,