Keep your face always toward the sunshine - and shadows will fall behind you. Walt Whitman
Idea Transcript
Sentence transformations Complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first sentence, using the word given. Do not change the word given. You must use between two and five words, including the word given. 1.
Marisa hadn’t sung in public for over 10 years. more It was ................................................................................... Marisa had sung on stage.
2.
My cousins all speak French very well. good My cousins are all ................................................................................... French.
3.
People say that football has become more about money than sport. said Football is ................................................................................... more about money than sport.
4.
The teachers didn’t let us wear make-up at school. allowed We ................................................................................... wear make-up at school.
5.
They told the passengers they had to continue the journey by taxi. necessary They said that ................................................................................... the passengers to continue the journey by taxi.
6.
He carried on working despite feeling ill. although He carried on working ................................................................................... ill.
7.
I wish I’d done more sport when I was younger. having I regret ................................................................................... more sport when I was younger.
He prefers travelling on his own than with others. rather He ................................................................................... on his own than with others.
9.
The burglar couldn’t get into the house because of the dog. prevented The dog ................................................................................... into the house.
10. ‘Have you seen the latest Simpson’s film?’ Jack asked Kate. whether Jack asked Kate ................................................................................... the latest Simpson’s film. 11. The opera singer couldn’t sing because of a sore throat. able The opera singer ................................................................................... because of a sore throat. 12. The athlete ran faster last year than this year. as The athlete ................................................................................... this year as last year.
Check list 9 1.
Do you know which language structure is being tested in each question?
Sentence transformations Teachers’ notes and answer key Level: FCE Aim: To practise sentence transformations and develop good exam skills for correcting and checking mistakes. Duration: 1 hour This is straightforward practise of sentence transformations that students have to do in Paper 3, the Use of English part of the FCE exam. Lesson plan If students aren’t familiar with this type of exercise have them read the instructions at the top of the worksheet then write the following example on the board. Example: She’s too young to walk home on her own. not First ask students to underline the information they have to rewrite. too young Then ask if they can think of another way of saying this. Write the correct answer on the board. She’s not old enough to walk home on her own. Explain that the word given is not always the first word they need to use. Now ask students to work in pairs for the first 6 so that they can pool ideas. Check the answers together. Answer key: 1. more than 10 years since 2. good at speaking 3. said to be 4. weren’t allowed to 5. it was necessary for 6. although he felt For questions 6 – 12 ask students to work on their own so that it’s more like an exam. Then check answers with them.
7. not having done 8. would rather travel/’d rather travel 9. prevented the burglar from getting 10. whether she had/she’d seen 11. was not/wasn’t able to sing 12. did not/didn’t run as fast Follow up A good idea after doing this exercise is to collect in the students’ worksheets and look at some of the common mistakes that they have made. Copy out some of their mistakes and ask them to correct them a week or so later.