Unit 1 The Paragraph

Answer Key

PARAGRAPH FOCUS

1.
1. Travelling (topic) is my favourite pastime (controlling idea).
2. The kitchen space has varied meanings in different cultures.
3. Working as a baby-sitter was the worst job I have ever had.
4. Television commercials can have a negative effect on children.
5. Life in a small town has several advantages for me.

2.
Suggested answers:
__________________________Exams______________________
___________School leaving examinations_________________
_________The English Language examination_______________
Topic sentence (topic+controlling idea): The school leaving English Language
examination (topic) was the easiest of all (controlling idea).

Internet______________________
___________________Means of communication___________________
____________Social networks____________
_______Facebook__________
Topic sentence (topic+controlling idea):_Facebook provides opportunities to keep
informed. ____________________________________________________________

Friends______________________
___________________Best friends _________________
Childhood friends _________________
___________ ____________
Topic sentence (topic+controlling idea): Childhood friends are special for several
reasons. __________________________________________________________

3.

There are several things that I remember about my grandmother. (Supporting idea 1)The first
thing that I remember is her ability to weave. On winter evenings, she would sit at the wooden
loom and weave wonderful cloths with vivid colours and complex designs which she would later
turn into beautiful national costumes. I clearly remember how she taught me how to weave.
When I learned to weave multicoloured patterns myself, I would spend at least five hours a day
at the loom because it was only at the linen smelling place of my grandmother that I could
practice the skill. (Supporting idea 2)Another thing that I remember about my grandmother is
her love for her flowers. She had at least six or seven small flower beds that were scattered all

1
over her well-kept garden. She would ask us to help her plant new flowers and remove old ones,
to water them and sometimes to decorate them with small rocks and sea-shells. (Supporting
idea 3)My most precious memories are about a small garden where my grandmother allowed my
sister and me to plant and grow our favourite berries, strawberries. It was our pleasant duty to
take care of it: to weed it, to water it and to pick the ripe berries. After we picked the
strawberries, our grandmother would make dozens of puffy pancakes, and we would eat them
with freshly made strawberry jam. At present, the things that my grandmother taught me have
become a dear part of my life.
Topic sentence: There are several things that I remember about my grandmother.
Supporting idea 1: grandmother’s ability to weave
Specific detail: grandmother in a wooden loom
Specific detail: her wonderful cloths with vivid colours and complex designs
Specific detail: grandmother teaching me to weave

Supporting idea 2: grandmother’s love for her flowers

Specific detail: grandmother’s at least six or seven small flower beds
Specific detail: granddaughters taking care of the grandmother’s flower beds

Supporting idea 3: grandmother’s garden

Specific detail: granddaughters growing and picking berries
Specific detail: grandmother making pancakes with strawberries

Concluding sentence: At present, the things that my grandmother taught me have become a dear
part of my life.

4.

Type of the concluding sentence: restatement

Possible alternative concluding sentence: My grandmother’s ability to weave, her love for her flowers
and garden and her ability to pass on her skills to her grandchildren are the things I will never forget.
Type: summary.

5.

Support 4 is off-topic. Support 4 should be related to reading habits. Moreover, there is a mistake
in parallelism. Support 4 should contain – ing structure just as other supporting ideas.
8.

Nowadays, when people live in the world that is strongly affected by globalisation, they look for
something that could help them to stay more coherent and closer to each other. One of the things

2
that helps to achieve this aim is belonging to various groups. Usually such groups not only
provide people with a feeling of social connectedness but also help to save cultural heritage of a
country. For example, almost every school has folk dance and song groups. These groups unite
young people who share similar ideas and visions about the future of their country and its
culture. Another way to stay related to others is participation in various festivals. Such festivals
bring together people who have the same taste in music or other forms of entertainment. To
illustrate, more than 10,000 people attended a jazz festival in my small native town where global
and local tendencies in music and their influence on national culture and fans could be observed.
To sum up, there are many ways for people to stay close together. They just need to find what
suits them best.

One of the things, another way - to introduce and add information

For example, to illustrate - to give examples
To sum up - to conclude
10.

(1) There are several reasons why I like studying at my university. (2) It is the best
university in the area. (3)Many foreign students choose to study there, and many visiting
professors come to lecture at my university. (4) The university offers a flexible study
schedule which allows students to have a part time job. (5) I work as a shop assistant to pay
for my studies. (6) Receiving additional income, I can afford both to study and travel. (7)
My best friend likes travelling very much. (8) She has visited the Baltic States, Poland, the
Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania, and Turkey. (9) She is very fond of national cuisines.
(10) My best friend studies at the same university, and we often study for exams together.
(11) She lives in the same dormitory, and she has a dance class twice a week. (12) After
graduation from the university, my friend wants to work abroad for a year. (13) My friend
and I are members of the Student Board and attend student meetings together. (14) The
university is centrally located, and it is easy to get there by public transport or bike. (15) The
city bus goes there every ten minutes, and the university has a large bicycle parking space.
(16) Encouraging students to use bikes, the university promotes environment friendly policy.
(17) Last week a student’s bike was stolen from the bicycle parking lot. (18) My university
is the best place to study for someone who values high quality studies, likes to spend time
with friends, and is environment-friendly.

Suggested answer:

(1) There are several reasons why I like studying at my university. (2) Most importantly, it
is the best university in the area. (3)To illustrate, many foreign students choose to study
there, and many visiting professors come to lecture at my university. (4) The university also
offers a flexible study schedule which allows students to have a part time job. (5)
Personally, I work as a shop assistant to pay for my studies. (6) Receiving additional
income, I can afford both to study and travel. (7) Another reason why I like studying there is
that my best friend studies at the same university, and we often study for exams together. (8)

3
 What is more, she lives in the same dormitory. (9) My friend and I are members of the
Student Board and attend student meetings together. (10) Furthermore, the university is
centrally located, and it is easy to get there by public transport or bike. (11) The city bus
goes there every ten minutes, and the university has a large bicycle parking space. (12)
Encouraging students to use bikes, the university promotes environment friendly policy. (13)
My university is the best place to study for someone who values high quality studies, likes to
spend time with friends, and is environment-friendly.

LANGUAGE FOCUS

1. To look at a) to examine
2. I need to b) it is necessary for me
3. To make up for c) to compensate
4. To put up with d) to tolerate
5. To say sorry e) to apologize
6. To seem f) to appear
7. To show g) to demonstrate
8. To stand for h) to represent
9. So i) as a consequence
10. To tell j) to inform

2.

1. Also a) In addition
2. To ask b) to enquire
3. But c) However
4. To check d) to verify
5. To check up on e) to investigate
6. To get f) to receive
7. To give g) to provide
8. To go up h) to increase
9. To help i) to assist

4.

1. Compound sentence.
2. Complex sentence.

4
3. Compound sentence.
4. Complex sentence
5. Simple sentence.
6. Compound sentence.
7. Complex sentence.
8. Complex sentence.
9. Complex sentence.
10. Simple sentence.

5.
Suggested answers:

1. The goal of healthy eating is to develop a healthy diet that one can maintain for life.
2. People often think of healthy eating as abstaining from some products, but the key to a healthy
diet is moderation.
3. Some young children do not eat seafood because they do not like it
4. Although children do not like seafood, they should consume about 150g a week of a variety of
seafood such as salmon, trout, mussels, or oysters.
5. Seafood has protein, minerals, and omega-3 fatty acids which are beneficial for a person’s
heart.
6. If a person has a healthy diet, eating a burger once a week probably will not have a negative
effect on one’s health.
7. A person should feel satisfied at the end of a meal, but he or she should not feel very full.
8. When a person abstains from eating certain foods, it is natural to crave for these foods even
more.
9. Having meals with other people has social and emotional benefits; therefore, it helps one to
develop healthy eating habits.
10. Colourful fruits and vegetables contain high concentrations of vitamins, minerals, and
antioxidants; therefore, a person should consume a minimum of five fruits or vegetables per day.