Intermediate English | Monday, February 29, 2016

I. Quiz
1. Now that we have a new President, the __________ President works somewhere else.
(a) latter
(b) opaque
(c) former
2. The explosions in the galaxy were perceived to result in a lot of __________ and chaos.
(a) havoc
(b) opaque
(c) tipping
3. After Jane had her first baby, she learned that she would plan better for __________ babies.
(a) latter
(b) subsequent
(c) previous
4. The police asked me what the suspect looked like, but I told the detective I only got a __________.
(a) havoc
(b) glance
(c) wrap
5. If you __________ the door, you will find my __________ behind it.
(a) close; clothes
(b) clothes; close
(c) close; close
6. Jared stole __________ things __________ impress his girlfriend, and it didnt work.
(a) to; too
(b) two; too
(c) too; to
7. Mikaela could not __________ the stress of having to fight a __________ in the forest.
(a) bare; bear
(b) bear; bare
(c) bear; bear
8. Allison was upset that her boyfriend would __________ something like stealing jewelry.
(a) do
(b) dough
(c) dew
9. Doing my chores is so difficult, but it is not as difficult as __________.
(a) her
(b) hers
(c) she
10. Judging a book by its cover is not a __________ thing to do.
(a) well
(b) good
(c) very
II. Vocabulary
astonish
athlete
attic
bathrobe
coward
decathlon
depending
flock
glance
inquire

surprise, amaze
sportsman or woman
area between the roof and ceiling of a house
clothing worn after taking a shower
a person who is not brave
ten track and field events
trusting, relying on
group of sheep
to look quickly
ask questions

III. Idiom
cut corners = to do something in the easiest or cheapest way by
skipping something important
Example: When you are studying for a test, you should work hard, not cut corners.

NS 11.19.15

Intermediate English | Monday, February 29, 2016

IV. Grammar
Modal verbs are helping (auxiliary) verbs that are used in front of other verbs. They change the meaning
of the sentence to make a sentence seem possible and ask for permission, for example.
Some examples of modal verbs are: can, could, have to, must, might, should. Modal verbs have the
tense of the sentence, so the other verb should not have a tense on it. Note that modal verbs dont have
tense markers like ed or s on them.
V. Story
There is a little town that is far from any big city. It is isolated and the only school is very small and does
not have much support, so the people who live in the town cannot get good education.
One day, a new lady moves to the town. Her name is Sophia. She is a lively, radiant person. She opens a
free learning center so that the kids who live in the town can get better education. Lots of young people
go to the learning center. Sophia is busy all day and has to get a staff of volunteers to help her! The kids
have a lot of fun and learn many new things with the kind volunteers. They even improve their grades at
school.
Most of the parents in town are thrilled with Sophia's learning center, but one mother, Judy, is not
convinced. "Who would want to open a free learning center and work for free?" Judy wonders. "Sophia
must be a liar or a criminal. She has something to hide."
But her neighbors disagree. "That is not true," they say. "She is just a good person. She wants to improve
this community for all of us."
"Oh, no," Judy insists. "On the inside, all people are bad. You cannot trust anyone. This learning center
seems too good to be true. I know she is hiding something. I am going to write to the Town Hall and
report her to the education department!"
But Judy never gets a chance to carry out her threats. All of the local parents unite and write to the
education department the very next day. They explain the wonderful work Sophia is doing and the
amazing changes she is helping to create in their community. Sophia and her team are great with the
town's children. Their grades at school are improving, and many of them want to go to university. They
never even considered that possibility before.
The parents even publish a lovely letter in the local newspaper thanking Sophia for her hard work and
dedication to the community.
Everyone is very happy now: the children, the parents, the town residents and officials, and, of course,
Sophia.
The only person who is not happy is Judy. She is already looking for someone else to say nasty things
about. But her neighbors value the volunteer work that Sophia does and recognize that she is truly a
person of good will.
VI. Conversation
1. Employment

NS 11.19.15