It’s nobody’s favourite exam reading exercise! This is a slightly tweaked version of a very old lesson plan I use to help C1 students tackle the part 7 gapped reading task. Apologies for the rather ugly PowerPoint template! Download the PowerPoint and handout below:
Month: October 2023
C2 Proficiency: Key Word Transformation Ladder
This is my C2 version of a great activity I’ve seen on some other blogs. It’s a great way of giving exam prep students an engaging way to do some practice for the use of English part 4 task.
- Students work in pairs or groups of 4.
- Each group gets 5 cards with 5 key word transformations on them.
- They place their cards on the table to form a “ladder”
- Student A goes first and attempts to complete the bottom “rung”
- They flip the card over to check their answer.
- If they’re right they go up the ladder one rung and continue until they make a mistake.
- When/if they make a mistake they must flip over all the cards and go back to the bottom.
- Student B then has a go.
- First to reach the top of the ladder wins.
- The answer they give must be the exact words on the back of the card; no “más o menos”
- They then swap cards and start again.
Download the cards below:
C1 Advanced: Key Word Transformation Ladder
This is my version of a great activity I’ve seen on some other blogs. It’s a great way of giving exam prep students an engaging way to do some practice for the use of English part 4 task.
- Students work in pairs or groups of 4.
- Each group gets 5 cards with 5 key word transformations on them.
- They place their cards on the table to form a “ladder”
- Student A goes first and attempts to complete the bottom “rung”
- They flip the card over to check their answer.
- If they’re right they go up the ladder one rung and continue until they make a mistake.
- When/if they make a mistake they must flip over all the cards and go back to the bottom.
- Student B then has a go.
- First to reach the top of the ladder wins.
- The answer they give must be the exact words on the back of the card; no “más o menos”
- They then swap cards and start again.
Download the cards below:
C1 Advanced: Grammar Range Test
A quick, simple worksheet I’ve created for my C1 Advanced class. They’re in their second year of preparation for the exam and I just want to get an idea of their grasp of some of the typical advanced grammar points that come up in the syllabus so that I know where to focus our efforts in the coming weeks.
I’m tying it into chatting about travelling and holidays and getting them to complete an informal letter writing task. I’ve used this old worksheet that I made years ago for the homework task.
It also serves as some exam practice for part 4 of the reading and use of English paper. You could have students complete it in pairs or individually then check the answers in open class. Tell students not to worry too much if any of the structures are unfamiliar as future lessons will look at them in detail where necessary.
Download the worksheet below:
Complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first using the word given. You must use between 3 and 6 words, you must not change the word given.
- It took us 6 hours to walk up the mountain.
WALKING
When we arrived at the top of the mountain _____________________ 6 hours.
- It was the first time I had seen such a beautiful sunset.
BEFORE
Never _____________________ a beautiful sunset.
- You mustn’t leave the vehicle while you’re on safari.
CIRCUMSTANCES
Under ______________________ of the vehicle while you’re on safari.
- If I went there again, I’d definitely pack warmer clothes.
GO
Were ______________, I’d definitely pack warmer clothes.
- The water was so clear that we could see all the fish at the bottom.
CLEAR
So _______________ could see all the fish at the bottom.
- I enjoyed going on the roller coasters the most.
WAS
What ____________________ on the roller coasters.
- We had no idea that there were man-eating sharks in the water!
KNOW
Little _____________________ there were man-eating sharks in the water!
- I didn’t pack enough warm clothes because I didn’t know the weather would be so cold.
WOULD
Had _____________________ be so cold, I would have packed more warm clothes.