Writing Skills Independent Task Essay Topic 149 Imagine that you have received some land to use as you wish How would you use this land? Use specific details to explain your answer Thesis Paragraph Main idea Supporting details @ 6) Paragraph Main idea Supporting details @) @ 6) Paragraph Main idea Supporting details 6) 137 138 Writing for the TOEFL iBT IDEA MAPS Look at the following examples of idea maps and essays for specific topics Sample Essay Topic When choosing a place to live, what you consider most important—location, size, style, number or rooms, types of rooms, or other features? Use reasons and specific examples to support your answer Idea Map lecation is the most important z expensive inexpensive nature Writing Skills Independent Task ‘Compare the idea map with this essay, House Hunting When choosing a place to lve, ! look at several things | need to consider price, size, and type of housing However, the most important thing of all is location | look for a house in a convenient and pleasant neighborhood that has rents | can afford to pay My apartment must be conveniently located | don’t have a car, so | want to be near my job | want to be able to walk or take the bus to work I don’t have a lot of time for shopping, so | want to be near stores, 100 | wantto lve in a pleasant neighborhood | ike quiet areas with litle traffic like to have nature around me, so | prefer a neighborhood with a lot of trees, ‘gardens, and maybe even a park Most of all, want to have friendly neighbors ‘Some neighborhoods are more expensive than others | have to look for my apartment in neighborhoods that aren't too expensive Some neighborhoods are very beautiful, but if the rents are too high, | can't afford to live there If | only look in areas ofthe city that have affordable rents, | won't be disappointed ‘The size of my apartment and the style of the building aren't important to me | don't care if my apartment is small or ifthe building is old and in need of repair If can find an affordable place to lve in a convenient and pleasant location, then | will have everything | need 139 140 Writing for the TOEFL iBT Essay Topic People attend college or university for many different reasons (for example, new experiences, career preparation, increased knowledge) Why you think people attend college or university? Use specific reasons and examples to support your Idea Map new shills competitive | | different | | independent on the Job market Kinds of people decisions out other subjects Writing Skills Independent Task Compare the idea map with this essay Three Reasons People Attend College People attend college for a lt of different reasons | believe that the three ‘most common reasons are to prepare for a career, to have new experiences, and to increase their knowledge of themselves and of the world around them Career preparation is probably the primary reason that people attend college These days, the job market is very competitive Careers such as infor‘mation technology will need many new workers in the near future At college, students can learn new skills for these careers and increase their opportunities, for the future Students also go to college to have new experiences For many, itis their first time away from home At college, they can meet new people from many diferent places They can see what iis lke in a different city They can leam to live on their own and take care of themselves without having their family always nearby At college, students have the opportunity to increase their knowledge AS they decide what they want to study, pursue their studies, and interact with their classmates, they leam a lot about themselves They also, of course, have the opportunity to learn about many subjects in their classes In addition to the skills and knowledge related to their career, college students also have the chance to take classes in other areas For many, this will be their last chance to study different subjects Colleges offer much more than career preparation They offer the opporturity to have new experiences and to leam many kinds of things | think all of these are reasons wity people attend college 141 142 Writing for the TOEFL iBT Se ACC rae eae Read each essay, Complete the missing parts of each idea map Essay Topic 111 Some people prefer to spend time with one or two close friends Others choose to spend time with a large number of friends Compare the advantages of each choice Which of these two ways of spending time you prefer? Use specific reasons to support your answer, We all need to have friends, and | think the more friends we have, the bette When you have a lot of friends, you are never alone You always have people Who will entertain you, people you can trust, and people who teach you about fe | want to have a lot of people I can have fun with If | have a lot of friends, | always have people to laugh and joke with me | have people to go to the movies or the mall wth me | have people to go to parties with me If! have only a few friends, they might be busy when | want to these things, or they might not enjoy some ofthe things I enjoy | need to have a lot of people I can trust f have a problem, | want to share it wth several friends If | make a mistake or fail a test or have a fight with my parents, I need my friends to help me | want to be able to pick up the phone ‘and know I can easily find some friends to talk with If| have only a few friends, they might not be available when | need them like to have a lat of people who teach me about ie If! have allt of friends, | have a lot of ctferent people to leam from Each person has different experiences and a diferent point of view | can lear a lot of things from a lot of different people If | have only a few friends, | will see only a few points of view ike to have a lot of frends around me | ike to have fun with them and to learn from them and to know that I can rely on them My ife is better because of all the friends | have, Writing Skills Independent Task 143 people to have Fun with ge to movies talk with me few friends = might + be Few hiends = might available different experiences and points of View Pew Hriends, Fewer points Of View 144 Writing for the TOEFL i8T Essay Topic 85 AA foreign visitor has only one day to spend in your country Where should this visitor go on that day? Why? Use specific reasons and details to support your choice ‘Aforeign visitor with only one day to spend in my country should definitely ‘spend that day in the capital Spending time in the capital is the easiest way to see many aspects of our country in one place In this city, the visitor can learn about our history, see examples of our culture, and buy our best products Our country’s history is represented in several ways throughout the city In the Government Palace, a visitor can leam about the history of our independence In our National Museum, a visitor can see exhibits that show al the different stages of our history, from ancient times to the present In parks all around the city, a visitor can see monuments to famous historical people and events, Itis also possible to see different representations of our culture throughout the city Our art museums and galleries show paintings and sculptures by our artists Plays written by national playwrights are performed in the theaters Folk ballet performances show examples of our traditional dances, Many resiaurants in the capital serve our native dishes The best products of our country are sold in the capital city The large department stores sell clothes, furniture, and household items manufactured in ur country The Central Market sells fruit and vegetables from the surrounding agricultural region Tourist and craft shops sell native handicrafts made in the countryside The capital city is the best place to learn about our country in one place Of course, it is diffcult to see all of the city’s attractions in one day With some Planning, though, it s possible to see at least a few examples of our country’s history, culture, and products in one day Writing Skills Independent Task @ foreign visitor Should visit the capital ` one palece ae museums and glleries ee: store 145 146 Writing for the TOEFL iBT Create an idea map for each of the following topics You may not need all parts of the ‘map Then write an essay from your idea map Write on a separate piece of paper or on computer Compare your essays with the essays for those topics in the Model Essay section, beginning on page 244 of the Appendix Essay Topic 124 Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? It is more important for students to study history and literature than it is for them to study science and mathematics Use specific reasons and examples to support your opinion Writing Skills Independent Task Essay Topic 154 In some countries, people are no longer allowed to smoke in many public places and office buildings Do you think this is a good rule or a bad rule? Use specific reasons and details to support your position 147 148 Writing for the TOEFL iBT Essay Topic 69 If you could study a subject that you have never had the opportunity to study, what would you choose? Explain your choice, using specific reasons and details Writing Skills Independent Task Essay Topic 70 Some people think that the automobile has improved modern life Others think that the automobile has caused serious problems What is your opinion? Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer 149 150 Writing for the TOEFL iBT Step Write WRITE THE INTRODUCTION You need two things to write a good introduction You need to have an opinion on the topic and you need to have topic sentences for each of the paragraphs Your opinion will tell the reader what you think about the subject; the summary of the topic sentences will guide your reader through your essay State Your Opinion The introduction to your essay should tell the reader what your opinion is on the topic The Independent Task is a personal essay Your ideas on a topic are important The readers are interested in what you have to say There is, however, no right or wrong opinion The readers look to see how you express your opinion, whatever ivis ‘You can express your opinion by using set phrases or by varying the verbs, adjectives, and adverbs you use On the Independent Task, you must show semantic and syntactic variety in your language to score high This section will help you give your writing more variety Here are some examples of set phrases that you can use to express your opinion Set Phrases In my opinion ‘According to me To my way of thinking Tn my view To me From my point of view EXAMPLES Ít is my opinion that believe I think Ie seems to me that Ic appears that ‘To my mind In my opinion, university students must attend classes According to me, one must change with the times To me, there is nothing more important than good health Ie is my opinion that one learns by example Ie seems to me that a good neighbor is one who respects your privacy Te appears that all the information one needs is available on computer Writing Skills Independent Task iS nn PRACTICE Give your opinion abous these topics Use the phrases suggested — People’s lives (are/are not) easier today In my opinion, peap/e's lives are easier today Most people (prefer/do not prefer) to spend their leisure time outdoors Ie seems to me that, S777 An apartment building (is/is not) better than a house To my mind, Ik (islis not) good that English is becoming the world language From my point of view, Verbs You can use different verbs to show how strongly you feel about something, Believe and think are the most common verbs used to express a personal opinion agree believe guess hope imagine EXAMPLES infer realize suppose think understand I agree that studying science is more important than studying literature T hope that people remember the special gifts I gave them I infer from their actions that most youth feel they have nothing to learn from older people T understand why people like to work with their hands 151 ... one day Writing Skills Independent Task @ foreign visitor Should visit the capital ` one palece ae museums and glleries ee: store 145 146 Writing for the TOEFL iBT Create an idea map for each... find an affordable place to lve in a convenient and pleasant location, then | will have everything | need 139 140 Writing for the TOEFL iBT Essay Topic People attend college or university for many... of these are reasons wity people attend college 141 142 Writing for the TOEFL iBT Se ACC rae eae Read each essay, Complete the missing parts of each idea map Essay Topic 111 Some people prefer