Transcript Get Ready for the TOEFL

Get Ready for taking
the TOEFL,
Proficiency Test
Prepared and Presented by
Kartika Noez
GRAMMAR

Some Strategies to work with problems with
grammar of English
1.
Identify the Subject and Verb in the sentence, make sure if the
sentence already contains Subject and verb, if No then try to
locate the options that contain subject and Verb, then consider the
agreement between the two.
If the problem lies on the Subject it must be dealt with noun so
then check if the articles or determiners, plurality, or noun clause,
or gerund or to infinitive is used properly. Or, if there is a blank
space after subject, it means that we are going to deal with the
adjective clause or appositive, when there are two commas.
If the problem is dealt with the verb, we need to check the
agreement between subject and verb, and then go to see if the
tense is used correctly.
If there is no problem with the Subject and Verb, the problems
might be found in the object or the adverb of the sentence, so take
a look and check. When dealing with object, it is probably dealing
with the adjective clause or appositive.
2.
3.
4.
Cont’d: Expl-1
Examples:
----S+ V--- with their surroundings, or they
hide in crevices for protection.
a.
b.
c.
d.
Lobsters
Lobsters blend
Lobsters blending
Because Lobsters
blend
S
S+V
S + V (- agreement)
Clause Marker + S + V
Cont’d: Expl-2

----S--- grow close to the ground in the
short Artic summer.
a.
b.
c.
d.
Above tundra plants
Tundra plants
Tundra plants are found
For Tundra plants
Prep. + S
S
S+V
Prep. + S
Cont’d: Expl-3

Liz Moses, ----N/NP---, grows beautiful
vegetables in her garden.
a.
b.
c.
d.
is my next-door neighbor
of my next-door neighbor
whom my next-door neighbor
my next-door neighbor
V + NP
Prep + NP
Cl. Marker +NP
NP
Cont’d: Expl-4

We do not ---V---- the bow drill was first
developed for woodworking or fire making.
a.
b.
c.
d.
whether it
know whether it
know whether
sure whether
Conj. + N
V + Conj + N
V + Conj
V (with missing
be)+ Conj.
Cont’d: Expll-5

Willa Cather is an author ---Adj Cl----for
her evocative and memorable vision of
frontier prairie life
a.
b.
c.
d.
whom readers
the praise of readers
whom praisings
whom readers praise
Cl. Marker + N
NP + Prep. obj
Cl. Marker + ?
Cl. Marker + S + V
Some Basic Points to Know
English Sentence : What We Need to Know
1.
A sentence contains at least one subject and one predicate
Peter eats at 5:00.
Peter is the Subject, the doer of the action
eat is the predicate, the action
2.
Besides, S and P, a sentence might contain objects or noun
complements.
a. Object (O):
1. Direct receiver of the action of a sentence (DO)
2. Indirect receiver of the action of a sentence (IO)
3. Object of a preposition (O of Prep)
I gave Jane a book for her birthday
IO
DO
O of Prep
Cont’d (2)
Pronoun:
You like roses
S
You gave him the roses
S
IO
Gerund (phrase): Growing roses is your favorite hobby (as S)
You relax by growing roses (as O of Prep)
Infinitive (phrase): You like to grow roses (O of Prep)
Noun clause : Everyone says that you grow beautiful roses. (DO)
Cont’d
4.
A sentence can contain more than one clause. This sentence
contains a main clause that contains a subject and a verb; and also
a subordinate clause that also contains a subject and a verb.
However, a subordinate clause cannot stand alone as a sentence.
There are three types of subordinate clauses: noun clauses,
adjective clauses, and adverb clauses.
a.
b.
c.
A noun clause functions as a subject, object, or complement
in a sentence.
I like what you said
An adjective clause functions as an adjective in a sentence.
I like the book that you gave me
An adverb clause functions as an adverb in a sentence.
Jack will call you as soon as he gets home.
Cont’d (3)
5.
Clause markers (CM) are used to connect clauses in
English
a.
b.
Coordinating conjunctions (CM that is used to
connect main clause with other main clauses). These
includes and, but, or, so, for, and yet.
Karina has a new coat, and Carolyn has new boots.
(a comma is usually placed just before the
conjunction)
Other clause markers connecting main clauses
include however, nevertheless, in addition, as a
result, on the other hand, furthermore, and moreover.
Carolyn has new boots; in addition, she has new
gloves.
(a semicolon (;) usually precedes the CM; but
sometimes a period (.) can be used preceding the
CM)
Cont’d (4)
c.
d.
e.
The clause markers for noun clauses are that, how,
how many (much), what, when, where, why, who,
whom, whose, and which.
I am not sure that we will be able to take a vacation
The clause markers for adjective clauses are who,
whom, whose, which, that, and sometimes, when,
where, and why
I like the cat that has yellow stripes
The clause markers for adverb clauses, some, are
after, as long as, because, as, if, unless, although,
while, when, and since.
We will take a walk after we finish studying
Cont’d (5)
6.
Appositive and Reduced Adjective Clause
Appositive = a noun structure which comes just after or just before
another noun structure. The appositive renames or has the same
meaning as the noun structure it accompanies. They are often set
off by commas. They come from adjective clauses.
Carol, who is my colleague, studies psycholinguistics. (Adj. Cl)
Carol, my colleague, studies psycholinguistics. (appositive)
Thus,
Adjective Clause that uses a reduced form can be written using
an appositive.
Reduced Adjective Clause
Carol, who is my colleague, studies psycholinguistics, becoming
Carol, my colleague, studies psycholinguistics
Cont’d (6)
7.
Reduced Adverb Clauses
Some of the adverb clauses can be
reduced.
Although he works very hard, he cannot
earn more than what he spends for food
becoming,
Although working very hard, he cannot
earn more than what he spends for food
READING

Some Common Strategies Used against
Problems of Reading Comprehension
1.
Recognize the types of the questions before starting to read the
passage.
Start working with questions of word meanings in context.
Continue to work with questions about finding referents.
The next can be directed to search the answers of questions
about detain and factual information.
Those types of questions will give us time to read at a glance the
passage. It will help us to build our schemata that is worthwhile for
helping us to understand in the second reading. The second
reading is done for answering the rest types of questions including
inferences, topic and main ideas, purpose and organizational
patterns, and author’s attitude and tone of the passage.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Reading Practices

Questions 1-9
Spiders produce three basic types of webs. The
sheet web is a two-dimensional layer of threads
seemingly laid out at random. The space web is a threedimensional, wispy structure. The orb web, by far the
most familiar, is the two-dimensional cartwheel pattern.
Of the 30,000 spider species, some 6,000 are orb
spinners. For three decades Dr. Peter N. Witt has
studied orb spinners, especially a species called
Areneus diadematus, and their webs. Witt is a Germanborn medical doctor and self-taught arachnologist,
whose passion is to understand the ways of spiders. Witt
has delved deeply into the behavior of spiders and vastly
expanded our knowledge about orb spinners and their
webs. Some of his findings have even amazed other
arachnologists.
Cont’d RP-1
“We have actually compared human building activities to
spider building, and we find an enormous amount of
parallel between the two,” Witt says. For one of thing, just
like their human counterparts in the building traders, orb
spinners erect a form of removable scaffolding as they
weave their webs.
Orb spinners are solitary creatures who dwell one to
a web. The web is home, food source, and mating ground,
it is guarded aggressively. When a male arrives at mating
time, the courtship ritual is an intricate set of advances and
retreats until the female is finally won over and no longer
tries to kill her would-be lover.
Cont’d RP-2
Orb spinners each weave a new web every day, working
in the predawn darkness and executing the distinctive
pattern of concentric circles and radial lines in a half hour
or less. “ There is nothing important as web building,
because without the web there is no food,” Witt says.
Cont’d RP-3
1.
The topic of this passage is
a. spiders
b. different types of webs spiders make
c. Dr. Peter N. Witt
d. Orb spinners and their webs
2.
According to the passage, the difference between the
sheet web and the orb web is
a. the pattern
b. the size
c, the texture
d. the length of threads spun by the spiders
Cont’d RP-4
3.
The phrase “at random” in line two is closest in
meaning to
a. arbitrarily
b. quickly
c. deftly
d. incongruously
4.
We can infer from passage that an arachnologist is
a. a photographer
b. a medical doctor
c. a person who studies spiders
d. a person who intensely dislikes spiders
Cont’d RP-5
5.
The word “their” in line 14 refers to
a. humans who build
b. other arachnologists
c. Witt and his associates
d. orb spinners
6.
According to the passage, web-making by spiders and
human building activities are
a. both dependent on removable scaffolding
b. hard to compare
c. simple to analyze
d. lengthy procedures
Cont’d RP-6
7.
The word “it” in line 18 refers to
a. the web
c. the female spider
b. the food source
d. the mating ground
8.
We can infer that the female or spinner is NOT
a. hard-working
c. solitary
b. cautious
d. easily wooed
9.
We can conclude the passage that the purpose of
webs is
a. to initiate courtship of spiders
b. to engage spiders in useful activity
c. to provide a way for spiders to entrap food
d. to display artistic talents of spiders.
Cont’d: text 2

Questions 10 – 11
When a strong earthquake occurs on the ocean floor
rather than on land, a tremendous force is exerted on the
seawater and one or more large, destructive waves
called tsunamis are commonly called tidal waves in the
United States, but this is really an inappropriate name in
that the cause of the tsunami is an underground
earthquake rather than the ocean’s tides.
Far from land, a tsunami can move through the wide
open vastness of the ocean at a speed of 600 miles (900
kilometers) per hour and often can travel tremendous
distances without losing height and strength. When a
tsunami reaches shallow coastal water, it can reach a
height of 100 feet (30 meters) or more and can cause
tremendous flooding and damage to coastal areas.
Cont’d: text 2
10.
The paragraph preceding the passage most probably
discusses
a. tsunami in various parts of the world
b. the negative effects of tsunamis
c. land-based earthquakes
d. the effect of tides on tsunamis
11.
Which of the following is most likely the topic of the
paragraph following the passage
a. the cause of tsunamis
b. the destructive effects of tsunamis on the coast
c. the differences between tsunamis and the tidal
waves
d. the distances covered by tsunamis