domingo, 26 de abril de 2015

HOW TO WRITE AN OPINION ESSAY (CÓMO ESCRIBIR UN ARTÍCULO DE OPINIÓN)




                               A.- PLAN


PARAGRAPH 1
·         Introduce the topic and give your opinion. Say whether you agree or disagree with the statement.
PARAGRAPH 2
·         Give a reason to support your opinion.
PARAGRAPH 3
·         Give a second reason to support your opinion.
PARAGRAPH 4
·         Summarize your ideas and repeat your opinion using different words.

BASIC DO'S IN WRITING AN OPINION ESSAY
Introduce each paragraph with a topic sentence, outlining the main ideas.
Do not write about advantages or disadvantages or points for or against.
Write in formal style.


BASIC DON’T'S IN WRITING AN OPINION ESSAY
Don’t use colloquial expressions.
Don’t use short forms.
Don’t use emotive vocabulary.
Don’t give personal examples.



                        B.-  VOCABULARY


EXPRESSING OPINIONS
In my opinion, ….  
En mi opinión…
Personally, I think/ I believe (that)…
Personalmente, creo que…
I strongly believe that….
Creo firmemente que…
It is clear (to me) that…
Me parece evidente que…
I feel very strongly that…
Siento firmemente que…
I (completely) agree/disagree with …
Estoy (totalmente) de acuerdo/ en desacuerdo con….
It seems to me that…
Me parece que..
As I see it, …
Como yo lo veo…
To my mind….
En mi opinión,…
In my view,…
Desde mi punto de vista,…
From my point of view, ….
Desde mi punto de vista,…
As far I am concerned, …
En cuanto a lo que a mí respecta,…
I am sure/ convinced that …
Estoy seguro / convencido de que…
I (dis)agree with the statement, because …
Estoy de acuerdo/ en desacuerdo con la afirmación porque…


GIVING REASONS
My main reason is….
Mi razón principal es..
Another reason is…
Otra razón es…
One reason for… is ….
Una razón para…. es….
Many people say/ believe that…
Mucha gente dice/ piensa que..
Because…
Porque…
Since…
Puesto que/ ya que…
Because of/ due to…
Debido a…


EXPRESSING FACTS
It is widely known that…
Es ampliamente conocido que..
It is a well-known fact that …
Es un hecho bien conocido que…
Research has shown that…
La investigación ha demostrado que…
There are definitely…
Definitivamente hay…
It is a fact that…
Es un hecho que…
It is clear/ true that…
Está claro que/ es verdad que…
For example/ for instance,...
Por ejemplo,…
ADDING IDEAS
What is more,…
Y lo que es más,..
Moreover/ furthermore/ in addition (to)
Además,…
Apart from (that)…
Aparte de…
Firstly,…
En primer lugar,…
First of all,…
En primer lugar,…
Secondly,..
En segundo lugar,..
Thirdly,…
En tercer lugar,..
Lastly,…
Por último,..
Finally,…
Finalmente,…

EXPRESSING CONTRAST (LINKERS OF CONTRAST)
ALTHOUGH (aunque)
Although I was feeling depressed, I went to the party.
DESPITE (a pesar de)
Despite the rain, I went to the party.
Despite feeling depressed, I went to the party.
IN SPITE OF ( a pesar de)
In spite of the rain, I went to the party.
In spite of feeling depressed, I went to the party.
EVEN IF (incluso si)
I will go to the party, even if I feel depressed.
WHEREAS (mientras que)
Adults can make their own decisions, whereas teenagers have to do what other people tell them.
HOWEVER (sin embargo)
Mike is a very good singer. However, he can’t play any instruments.
IN CONTRAST
BUT (pero)
Their music is very good. But, their lyrics are not very interesting.
ON THE ONE HAND….. ON THE OTHER HAND (por una parte…. por la otra)
On the one hand, they are extremely rich. But on the other hand, they have lots of debts.

  





EXPRESSING PURPOSE (LINKERS OF PURPOSE)


We use linkers of purpose to introduce reasons:


SO (THAT) (para)


I have brought a microphone so that the audience will be able to hear us.


IN ORDER TO ( para)


We need to register with the council in order to vote.


TO (para)


I am phoning to ask information about the event.


SO AS TO(para)


We all need to vote so as to express our opinions.



CONCLUDING THE ESSAY


TO SUM UP,…


Para resumir…


TO CONCLUDE,…


Para concluir…


IN CONCLUSION,…


En conclusion…


IT IS CLEAR THAT…


Está claro que


IN SHORT


En resumen…


ON THE WHOLE


En general…


ALL IN ALL,…


En conjunto, en terminus generals,…
 C.- EXAMPLES
“The teenage years are the best years of your life”. Do you agree?
People often say that the teenage years are the best years of your life. However, I do not agree with the statement.
Firstly, most teenagers have little independence. They have to do what they are told by their parents and 
teachers. In addition, they usually do not have much money.
Secondly, teenagers may not have the responsibilities adults have, but they have other worries. Teenagers have a 
lot of pressure form exams, which can determine the rest of their life.
All in all, teenagers have a lot of fun, but I believe that the best years of your life come when you are a bit older, with 
a job, money and the freedom to do what your like.

SEMI MODAL 'NEED'

Present and future
Need can behave either as a modal verb or as a main verb:
  • As a modal verb, need is most typically used in negative sentences or in affirmative sentences with a negative meaning. It expresses absence of obligation or necessity, and it is followed by a bare infinitive:
    You needn't worry about that.
    No one need be surprised at what happened.
    You need only just ask.
    I doubt whether I need help you.
    Need as a modal verb also occurs in interrogative sentences, but this use is much more formal:
    Need you make so much noise?
  • Need as a main verb is followed by a to-infinitive and expresses that something is necessary. It can be used in affirmative, negative and interrogative sentences:
    Do you have a minute? I need to talk to you about something.
    don't need to be told that I should lose weight.
    Do you need to use the hairdryer?
    If you want good results, you will need to work harder.
Past
  • The past tense of the main verb need to is needed to:
    needed to have my hair cut.
    Why did they need to change the lock?
    The negative form didn't need + to-infinitive normally refers to actions which were unnecessary and were not performed:
    We didn't need to buy any milk. We had plenty at home. (we didn't have to buy any milk, and we didn't buy any)
  • Need as a modal does not have a past tense form. Needn't + perfect bare infinitive (have + past participle), however, is used for actions which were performed but were unnecessary:
    We needn't have bought any milk. We still have plenty at home. (we bought some milk, but it wasn't necessary)
For diagrams and quotes related to this topic, check out our e-book The Grammaring Guide to English Grammar.

domingo, 19 de abril de 2015

EEOOII READING EXERCISES : ANSWER KEYS

MALALA YOUSAFZAI TEXT'S ANSWERS: (B1 LEVEL)

1A, 2C, 3C, 4C, 5B, 6B, 7B, 8A, 9B, 10B


HAVING IT ALL WITHOUT HAVING CHILDREN TEXT'S ANSWERS: (B2 LEVEL)

1C, 1C,3A, 4B, 5B, 6A, 7C, 8B, 9A, 10A