sentence 2 c. sentence 4 sentence 5

READING 99

3. Decide whether the answer makes sense in the context

of the sentence. If not, eliminate it and try another. For example, look at how the strategy works with the following reference question. The word they in paragraph 2 refers to:

a. the victims of heat stroke b. the treatments for heat stroke

c. the people who administer aid to victims of heat stroke d. the characteristics of heat stroke

Here’s the sentence in which they is used: They are a high body temperature which may reach 106 degrees F or more; a rapid pulse; hot, dry skin; and a blocked sweating mechanism. They clearly does not refer to people, so you can rule out choices a and c. When you replace they with the remaining answer choices, you can easily narrow your answer to the correct choice: d. In Your Own Words Questions that ask you to paraphrase, or reword, a sentence test the same skills as reference questions. They measure your ability to comprehend a sentence or paragraph. As you read, think about what the material is stating, then try rewriting it on paper or in your mind in new terms. This will increase your comprehension skills and improve your chances of answering paraphrased sentence questions correctly. 100 TOEFL EXAM ESSENTIALS RECOGNIZING STRUCTURAL PATTERNS Just as an architect needs a blueprint when designing a building, writers must have a plan that organizes their information and ideas. Learning organizational strategies will help you identify common patterns so that you can guess at what is coming ahead. Recognizing structural techniques also helps you answer two types of questions on the TOEFL exam: supporting-detail ques- tions you will be able to locate specific information in a passage and sentence-insertion questions you will know where best to place new information in a passage. The four most common organizational patterns that writers use are:

1. chronological order time 2. order of importance

3. comparison and contrast 4. cause and effect

Chronological order describes events in the order that they happened, will happen, or should happen. History texts, mem- oir, personal essays, and instructions often use this organization. Writers often provide clues in the form of transitional words or phrases to guide readers through events. Here are some common chronological transitions: first, second, third before after Next now then when as soon as Immediately suddenly soon during while Meanwhile later Finally in the meantime at last eventually afterward