Monthly Archives: February 2012

Grammar Basics: Unit 18 – For, Since, and Ago (Solutions)

Exercise: Complete the following sentences, using “for” or “since.”

Example:

I have been practicing the piano ____________ 3 o’clock. ==> I have been practicing the piano since 3 o’clock.
I have been practicing the piano ____________ 90 minutes. ==> I have been practicing the piano for 90 minutes.


1. Jane has been absent from class since Monday.
2. Jane has been absent from class for several days.
3. The baby has been walking for two months.
4. The baby has been walking since January.
5. We have been in business since 2001.
6. We have been in business for over five years.
7. She’s had a pet monkey since last year.
8. She’s had a pet monkey for six months.
9. Keith has been playing the piano since he was a young child.
10. Keith has been playing the piano for 20 years.

Exercise: Complete the sentences, using the word in the parentheses and “for” or “ago.”

Example:

I went on vacation (three weeks). ==> I went on vacation three weeks ago.
I have been on vacation (a week). ==> I have been on vacation for a week.

1. We have been driving for six hours.
2. We drove to California two months ago.
3. Sam went to the library ten minutes ago.
4. Sam has been at the library for three hours.
5. Jim lived in Hawaii many years ago.
6. Jim has lived in Hawaii for sixty years.
7. The kids played outside for 45 minutes.
8. The kids played outside two days ago.

Google

Grammar Basics: Unit 18 – For, Since, and Ago

For, Since, and Ago are similar, but they are not the same. Sometimes it is confusing and difficult to decide which one is the correct one to use. Here are some hints to help you determine whether you should use “for,” “since,” or “ago.”

For and Since

Both of these are used to indicate a time span. In other words, if you are answering the question “How long ~?”, you want to use “for” or “since.”

For:

“For” is used when you are using a specific period of time: one week, three hours, five years, etc.

Examples:

I have been working on my homework for two hours.
Father has been sick for a week.
Tom has been attending college for three years.
She’s been waiting for the bus for a long time.

Since:

“Since” is used when you indicate the beginning of a specified period of time. The period of time continues until the present.

Examples:

I have been working on my homework since 1 o’clock.
Father has been sick since Sunday.
Tom has been attending college since 2005.
She’s been waiting for the bus since this morning.

Ago

“Ago,” on the other hand, just refers to some time in the past. “Ago” uses the simple past tense. You can think of “ago” = “before now.”

Examples:

I worked on my homework four days ago. (= “I worked on my homework four days before now.”)
John came home from college a month ago. (= “John came home from college one month before now.”)
People lived in caves a long time ago.

Exercise: Complete the following sentences, using “for” or “since.”

Example:

I have been practicing the piano ____________ 3 o’clock. ==> I have been practicing the piano since 3 o’clock.
I have been practicing the piano ____________ 90 minutes. ==> I have been practicing the piano for 90 minutes.

 

1. Jane has been absent from class ____________ Monday.
2. Jane has been absent from class ____________ several days.
3. The baby has been walking ____________ two months.
4. The baby has been walking ____________ January.
5. We have been in business ____________ 2001.
6. We have been in business ____________ over five years.
7. She’s had a pet monkey ____________ last year.
8. She’s had a pet monkey ____________ months.
9. Keith has been playing the piano ____________ he was a young child.
10. Keith has been playing the piano ____________ 20 years.

Exercise: Complete the sentences, using the word in the parentheses and “for” or “ago.”

Example:

I went on vacation (three weeks). ==> I went on vacation three weeks ago.
I have been on vacation (a week). ==> I have been on vacation for a week.

 

1. We have been driving (six hours).
2. We drove to California (two months).
3. Sam went to the library (ten minutes).
4. Sam has been at the library (three hours).
5. Jim lived in Hawaii (many years).
6. Jim has lived in Hawaii (sixty years).
7. The kids played outside (45 minutes).
8. The kids played outside (two days).

Google

Culture Focus: Valentine’s Day

 

For our culture focus this week, we’ll take a look at an unofficial holiday that many Americans celebrate: Valentine’s Day, February 14. There were several early Christian martyrs named Valentine, but it is not clear how a saint’s feast day came to be associated with a day celebrating romantic love. According to legend, one of the Roman emperors had ordered young men to remain single, believing that married men did not make good soldiers. The priest Valentine nonetheless performed marriage ceremonies in secret for young men.

Whatever the origins of St. Valentine’s Day, it is a day for lovers to remember one another and affirm their love. It is especially common for boyfriends and husbands to give their girlfriends and wives flowers, candy (particularly chocolate), cards, and / or take them out to a romantic dinner. Roses are a favorite gift on this holiday. Sometimes, the color of the rose may have special meaning. According to Wikipedia,

  • Red: A very close friendship, love “I Love You”
  • Pink: Grace, gentle feelings of love and friendship
  • Dark Pink: Gratitude
  • Light Pink: Admiration, sympathy
  • White: Innocence, purity, secrecy, friendship, reverence and humility.
  • Yellow: Often akin to joy and deep friendship or platonic love. In German speaking countries, however, they can mean jealousy and infidelity.
  • Yellow with red tips: Friendship, falling in love
  • Orange: Passion
  • Burgundy: Beauty
  • Blue: Mystery
  • Green: Calm
  • Black: used to signify death (black being the color of death) often of old habits. In a positive light it signifies rebirth after death. Also, slavish devotion (as a true black rose is impossible to produce)
  • Purple: protection (paternal/maternal love)

For Valentine’s Day, the most common color for roses is red.

Although children are too young to be interested in romancing the opposite sex, it is common for children to pass out children’s valentines to all their classmates and teachers. It is also common for the children to pass out “conversation hearts,” which are little candy hearts with various sayings stamped on them.

Google

Grammar Basics: Unit 17 – More Present Perfect (Solutions)

Exercise: Complete the following sentences.

Example:

  • He is vice president of the bank. He __________ vice president for 10 years. ==> He has been vice president for 10 years.

 

1. I know Tom. I’ve known him since we were classmates in grade school.
2. Jan is on vacation. She’s been on vacation since last Thursday.
3. Mark lives in Colorado. He’s lived there since he graduated from college.
4. I’m afraid of dogs. I’ve been afraid of them ever since a dog bit me when I was ten.
5. Sally is divorced. She’s been divorced for five years.
6. The wind is blowing. It’s been blowing hard all afternoon.
7. Hannah is doing math. She’s been doing math for 20 minutes.
8. Joe is shoveling snow. He’s been shoveling snow since 6 a.m.
9. We’re working on a project. We’ve been working on it since yesterday.
10. They’re baking cookies. They’ve been baking cookies all week.

Exercise: Choose the correct form.

Example:

  • Jack and Jill (are married / have been married) since 2001. ==> Jack and Jill have been married since 2001.

1. Our teacher has been sick all week.
2. Tom has played the piano every day for the past five years.
3. The secretary is typing the letter for me now.
4. Jennifer works at the library on Tuesdays.
5. We have lived in the red house for 12 years.
6. Edward has been in London several times.
7. The principal has known about the cheating for a long time.
8. Jake has been cleaning his bedroom very well these days.
9. Mary has been eating broccoli since the doctor told her it’s good for her.
10. They have been waiting for the bus for 15 minutes.

Google

Grammar Basics: Unit 17 – More Present Perfect

As we saw last time, the Present Perfect is used to talk about a time from the past until now. In other words, something that started in the past and is still in effect now uses the Present Perfect. In the following examples, note that the question “How long have you…?” is always in present perfect.

Examples:

Are you sick? (simple present)
—Yes.

How long have you been sick? (present perfect)
—I have been sick for a week. (I first got sick several days ago, and the effects are still with me – I’m still sick.)

Are you married? (simple present)
—Yes.

How long have you been married? (present perfect)
—I’ve been married for eight years. (I first got married several years ago, and the effects are still with me – I’m still married.)

Where do you live? (simple present)
—I live in Los Angeles.

How long have you lived there? (present perfect)
—I’ve lived there since 1995. (I first started living there several years ago, and the effects are still with me – I’m still living there.)

Do you have a cat? (simple present)
—Yes.

How long have you had a cat? (present perfect)
—We’ve had a cat for a couple of months. (We first got the cat several weeks ago, and the effects are still with us – we still have the cat.)

We can also have the present perfect continuous form for present continuous situations that started in the past and are still in effect.

Examples:

How long have you been studying Korean?
—I’ve been studying Korean for eight years.

How long has it been snowing?
—It’s been snowing all day.

How long has the baby been crying?
—He’s been crying for the past 30 minutes.

Exercise: Complete the following sentences.

Example:

  • He is vice president of the bank. He __________ vice president for 10 years. ==> He has been vice president for 10 years.

1. I know Tom. I__________ him since we were classmates in grade school.
2. Jan is on vacation. She__________ on vacation since last Thursday.
3. Mark lives in Colorado. He__________ there since he graduated from college.
4. I’m afraid of dogs. I__________ of them ever since a dog bit me when I was ten.
5. Sally is divorced. She__________ for five years.
6. The wind is blowing. It__________ hard all afternoon.
7. Hannah is doing math. She__________ math for 20 minutes.
8. Joe is shoveling snow. He__________ snow since 6 a.m.
9. We’re working on a project. We__________ on it since yesterday.
10. They’re baking cookies. They__________ cookies all week.

Exercise: Choose the correct form.

Example:

  • Jack and Jill (are married / have been married) since 2001. ==> Jack and Jill have been married since 2001.

1. Our teacher (is sick / has been sick) all week.
2. Tom (plays / has played) the piano every day for the past five years.
3. The secretary (is typing / has been typing) the letter for me now.
4. Jennifer (works / has worked) at the library on Tuesdays.
5. We (live / have lived) in the red house for 12 years.
6. Edward (is / has been) in London several times.
7. The principal (knows / has known) about the cheating for a long time.
8. Jake (is cleaning / has been cleaning) his bedroom very well these days.
9. Mary (is eating / has been eating) broccoli since the doctor told her it’s good for her.
10. They (are waiting / have been waiting) for the bus for 15 minutes.

Google

Education Focus: Private Schools

For our educational focus this week, I want to look at private schools. Private schools are an alternative to public schools. There are private schools at every level of education, from private pre-schools and kindergartens all the way to private high schools and universities.

Public schools are funded almost exclusively from taxing residents in various ways. Private schools, on the other hand, derive their funds from a variety of sources, including tuition, grants, and endowments. Sometimes private schools accept money from the government (in the form of grants, for example). Usually, though, private schools avoid accepting public money, because they consider it an invasion of liberty. If a private school accepts money from the government, then the government could take more control over what is taught in the school, and even how it is taught. Therefore, to minimize government interference, private schools tend to avoid taxpayer funding.

Different private schools have different motivations for being private. Many private schools are affiliated with a church or other religious group, providing religious education and education from a religious perspective. Other private schools are strictly secular, but wish to educate children according to an alternative teaching philosophy. Still other private schools focus on providing an elite or rigorous education, with an emphasis on preparing its students for admission into a top-ranked university such as Harvard or Yale. Some schools are military academies, which teach discipline and respect alongside academic subjects.

Just as there are many different motivations for operating a private school, so parents have different motives for sending their children to private schools. Some parents want a religious education for their children, or want their children to be educated in accordance with their religious beliefs. Other parents are concerned that public schools do not provide enough of an academic challenge. Some parents don’t want to expose their children to negative influences like drugs, violence, or other anti-social behavior. Still other parents may want to send their children to a military academy to help the student learn discipline and self-control. And yet other parents may want to send their kids to an elite school to give the children an edge when it comes time to apply to college.

Although each state has its own regulations governing the qualifications of private schools, in general the education at private schools tends to be as good as, if not better than, that of public schools. Scores on college admission tests such as the SAT and ACT demonstrate that the quality of a private school education meets or exceeds that of public schools.

Google

Crossword: TOEFL 1 (Solution)

Here is the solution to the TOEFL crossword. How did you do?

 

crossword puzzle solution

Google

Crossword: TOEFL 1

crossword puzzle

 

This crossword puzzle might be kind of difficult – the vocabulary comes from a list of words that are common on the TOEFL test. Give it a try, and see how you do. Have fun, and learn from the words you don’t know!

Across

1. praise for a person or their achievements

4. a situation in which two people, ideas, or statements agree with each other

5. to not do something, especially something enjoyable, because you think it is bad for your health or morally wrong

7. hand or swing loosely

11. take the whole attention, enslave

12. a trick

14. no longer useful, outdated

16. unspoken, silent

19. astonish

21. the ability to think quickly and make good judgments

22. unreasonably impatient or irritable

24. death-like, pale and ill

25. very similar to something

26. looking ill, not bright

27. good at doing something that needs care and skill

28. to hate a type of behavior or way of thinking, especially because you think it is morally wrong

Down

1. to change something so that it can be used in a different way or for a different purpose

2. to repair

3. good enough in quality for a particular purpose or activity

4. angry or threatening behavior or feelings that often result in fighting

6. distress, suffering

8. to praise highly

9. yield, die

10. to make understandable

13. invent, prepare by mixing together

15. rub or wipe out, obliterate

17. to tell or warn someone severely that they have done something wrong

18. take away from, prevent from using

20. to slander

23. to decide officially to give something to someone or use something for a particular purpose

Google

Idiom Focus: Animal Idioms 8

Every Saturday I’ll give you a couple of idioms to learn. An idiom is a saying or phrase whose meaning cannot be taken from the literal meanings of the words.

dark horse: In an election, a dark horse candidate is one unexpectedly nominated, who previously had not been considered a likely choice.

Example:

Abraham Lincoln was a dark horse Republican candidate who became the 16th president of the United States.

dog-eat-dog: indicating all-out competition, fighting and doing whatever it takes to win or be successful; having a “kill or be killed” mentality in business or other competition.

Example:

Pressure to get into a top-name university results in dog-eat-dog competition and widespread cheating among some high school students.

Google

Writing Assignment: The Theater (Solution)

actors on stage

 

1. What kind of building is this?
This building is a theater.

2. How many balconies are on the left side?
There are four balconies on the left side.

3. Who is sitting in the balcony?
People in the audience (spectators) are sitting in the balcony.

4. Are the first two rows full?
It looks like the first two rows are full.

5. Are the spectators watching a film or a play?
The spectators are watching a play.

6. Can you also watch an opera in this theater?
Yes, you can also watch an opera in this theater.

7. How many people are on stage?
There are two people on stage.

8. Are the actors performing a German, French, or Spanish play?
The actors are probably performing a Spanish play.

9. Who is playing a guitar?
The man is playing a guitar.

10. Does the scene take place inside or outside?
The scene takes place outside.

11. Is that a real moon in the background?
No, it is not a real moon in the background. It is an artificial (fake) moon.

12. Where does the orchestra sit?
The orchestra sits in the orchestra pit, located in front of the stage.

13. Is the man playing a piano or an organ?
The man is playing an organ.

14. During the intermission, what hangs before the stage?
During the intermission, a curtain hangs before the stage.

15. What is listed in a program?
In the program is a list of the actors/actresses, the director and his crew, and the stage hands.

16. Do you buy an admission ticket before or after the performance?
You buy an admission ticket before the performance.

17. When do the spectators applaud?
The spectators applaud at the end of the play or opera.

18. Does the picture show a city theater or a school stage?
The picture shows a city theater, not a school stage.

19. Where do you prefer to sit in a theater?
I prefer to sit near the front of a theater.

20. What is the name of an American play?
The name of an American play is “Our American Cousin.” It is the play that Abraham Lincoln was watching when he was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth.

Paragraph: An Evening at the Theater

Write a brief paragraph about going to see a play. What play did you see (would you like to see)? What kind of people attended the play? How did you like it?

When I was in high school, I went on a class trip to downtown Chicago to see the play “Waiting for Godot.” The theater was not a very large one, but it was located near the lake and it seemed like a nice place. The theater did not sell concessions, or snacks, so we had to bring a sack lunch and eat it on the school bus after we had seen the play. The performance that we attended was during the day, and so the audience was mostly other high school kids who were also on a class trip to watch the play.

I thought that the play was very strange. It was about two old men who did nothing all day except wait for Godot. Godot never showed up (“showed up” = came), and so we never found out who Godot was, why he was important, or why the old men in the play were waiting for him. The play was too avant-garde for me, and I would prefer to see a play where the plot made more sense.

Google