LESSON TWO: USE OF ENGLISH

• English
• Middelbare school
• havo, vwo
• Leerjaar 2-4

FCE Use of English revision

Use Of English

With the FCE Use of English revision with your upcoming exam in mind. We will focus on such problematic areas as:

         a) phrasal verbs

       b) prepositions

c) adverbs

We will practice parts 2 and 4 using an old exam paper

The Task

The handout features 3 exercises: open cloze, word formation and keyword transformation 

(FCE Use of English parts 2, 3, and 4). 

As this is meant as a revision class, the best way to go about it is to work on each parts of FCE Use of English individually and then check it together clarifying doubts and correcting mistakes.

Handout and key are available in pdf format  here:

https://www.lessonplansdigger.com/2015/05/16/fce-use-of-english-revision/#more-35

About Part 2 - Open Cloze

You will read a short text which has 8 gaps. For each gap you have to add the missing word. In the exam you transfer your answer to a special answer sheet. Part 2 tests your knowledge of grammar.

The main focus in the Open Cloze is grammar and certain parts of speech are often tested. Let’s have a look at some of them.

Pronouns

Pronouns will often be gapped. In particular look out for reflexive pronouns such as 'ourselves', 'yourself' etc. and relative pronouns - 'who', 'where', 'when' etc. 

Example:

I work as a motorbike stunt rider. The Le Mans race track in France was .......... I first saw some guys doing motorbike stunts. 

Articles and quantifiers

Articles and quantifiers like 'much', 'more', 'some', 'many', 'any', etc. will sometimes be required. 

Example:  I haven't got ..... plans for the weekend if you'd like to go out somewhere

Modal verbs

Modal verbs, like 'will', 'would', 'must', 'can' etc and the auxiliary verbs 'be', 'do', and 'have' are often tested

Example: 

1. I told you we ... have booked the tickets earlier.

2. Excuse me. ... I open the window?

Conjunctions

Conjunctions like 'although', 'yet', 'still' or 'because' will sometimes be gapped.

Example: 

1) ..... he felt quite ill he still went to work.

 2) There was heavy traffic in the city today ..... of an accident.

Prepositions

Prepositions, especially those in set expressions like 'on the contrary' or 'in the meantime' will sometimes be gapped.

Example:

1) The surgeon is operating ... the patient now.

2) There's no possibility ... us finishing the project by the weekend.

Dos and don'ts

Make sure your handwriting is clear. Look at the text before and after the gap. Don't leave the answer sheet blank for any question. If you don't know the correct answer you should always make a guess.

How to improve

Collect some short texts of your own and make a test by gapping grammatical words, eg prepositions, articles, pronouns etc. Swap texts with a friend and test each other. Or use the online practice tests on the following slides. 

www.flo-joe.co.uk

www.examenglish.com

About Part 3 Word Formation

You will read a short text which has 8 gaps. For each gap you have to use a given 'stem' word to make the correct form of the missing word. In the exam you transfer your answer to a special answer sheet. Part 3 tests your knowledge of the way words are formed in English, including the use of prefixes and suffixes, and spelling rules associated with these changes.

Exam tips

Here are some tips for this part of the exam. As always, read the complete text first to get a global understanding of the content.

Examine the sentence structure to identify the part of speech required, such as a noun, verb, adjective or adverb.

Use your understanding of the context to decide if the missing word is positive or negative.

www.flo-joe.co.uk

About Part 4 Key Word Transformations

You will be given a complete sentence followed by a second, incomplete sentence. You must complete the second sentence so that it has the same meaning as the first using a word given that must not be changed. There are 6 sentences in total. In the exam you transfer your answer to a special answer sheet. Part 4 tests your knowledge of grammar and vocabulary. It is impossible to predict areas that you could be tested on here. However, phrasal verbs seem to appear quite often.

Exam tips

Finally, let's look at some tips for the exam. Be sure to follow the instructions: use the key word given, don’t change the form of this word and use between 2 and 5 words - no more. Remember that contractions count as two words.

www.flo-joe.co.uk

Good luck !