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E GOAL Describe an Important Transition in Your Life
Communication
A What do you know about each life transition in the box? Tell a partner what you think happens or what you have experienced. Listen carefully while your partner speaks. Ask questions to get more information.
| from child to teenager from teenager to adult from single to married from studying to working from non-parent to parent from middle age to old age |
B Discuss the questions in pairs.
1. Who does the cleaning and other chores at your house?
2. How often do you do your own laundry?
3. When was the last time you bought groceries?
4. Are you old enough to vote?
As a teenager, I had different friends.
Me, too. I spent more time with the friends I had made in high school.
How much do you remember about that time?
It's difficult to remember. It was a long time ago.
Writing
| WRITING SKILLS: Using Time Expressions |
| Time expressions help your reader understand when different events happened. As soon as he realized his mistake, he apologized for it. This means there was no delay. He didn't wait until later to apologize. We had already read about Einstein's early life, so we didn't need to hear a lecture about it. The word already emphasizes that the reading happened before the lecture. Example time expressions: until / by + date or time never last week / month / year after that eventually a week / month / year ago |
C Read the sample paragraph and discuss the questions below with a partner.
1. What is the topic sentence in this paragraph?
2. What two examples support the topic sentence?
3. How did the writer feel about this transition in his or her life?
4. How do the bolded expressions help you understand the writer's meaning?
When I finished middle school and started high school, my parents began to give me more responsibilities. I had already started to wash some of my own clothes when I had no homework to do, but that summer it became my responsibility to do laundry for the whole family. My other chore was buying groceries for my elderly grandmother, who lived a few blocks away from my neighborhood. I went to visit her twice a week, and I asked her what she needed from the grocery store. She gave me the shopping list and some money, and I returned with her food, soap, and other necessities. It wasn't hard to do at all.
In fact, it was fun and I really enjoyed spending time with her that way. I also began to feel good about doing my family's laundry each week. It felt like I was learning to take responsibility and moving from childhood toward adulthood.
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A child looks out as his mother votes in an election. The ability to vote is often one milestone that marks the transition into adulthood.
D Complete the questionnaire. Write answers in your notebook.
QUESTIONNAIRE
1. Where do you live now?
2. How many times have you moved in your life?
3. As a child, what did you dream of being or doing when you got older?
4. What do you dream of being or doing now?
5. When did you meet your best friend or friends?
6. What are some of the most important personal relationships in your life?
7. What event in your life do you think changed you the most?
✔️GOAL CHECK
Describe an Important Transition in Your Life
1. Read your answers to the questionnaire especially to question 7. Write a well-organized paragraph (150-180 words) about a life transition and make sure it includes the following:
• a good topic sentence
• plenty of interesting details
• time expressions to show when things happened
2. Take turns. Tell your partner about the life transition you described in your paragraph. Was it easy or difficult for you to write about?
