Michigan Proficiency First Steps

Diane Flanel Piniaris is a native New Yorker who has been teaching EFL since 1980. A graduate of Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, with a BA summa cum laude in English Literature, she spent three years working as a book editor in publishing houses in New York City and London. After studying TEFL methodology at the International Teacher Training Institute in Hastings, England, she moved to Greece, where she taught English for many years. She now lives in New York, where she continues to write and edit EFL textbooks.

• Introduction About the Michigan ECPE: Overview - Results - ECPE writing criteria1. Artistic AttributesCloze Remembering the Beatles Vocabulary round-up Grammar Think grammar! Tackling ECPE grammar questions Reading Picasso the poet Vocabulary round-up Vocabulary Extension and reviewExpressing passionate (and not so passionate) intensityBody language (compound adjectives) Writing ECPE writing criteria (1)Mechanics (punctuation – spelling – capitalization)Rhetoric (organization of ideas – topic development – linking) 2 Females at their finestCloze Jackie: A remarkable First Lady Vocabulary round-up Grammar Relative clauses Tackling relative clause questions on the ECPE Reading Jessica: A joyful girl pilot Vocabulary round-up Vocabulary Extension and review Shades of shyness - Beauty is in the eye of the beholder -A “look back” at the -spec in retrospectWriting ECPE writing criteria (2) Grammar and syntaxVocabularyVocabulary consolidation 1 3 Echoing eco themesCloze Extinction: Palms under threat Vocabulary round-up Grammar Verb-tense questions Adjusting your expectations of ECPE verb-tense questions Reading Evolution: The giraffe’s neck Vocabulary round-up Vocabulary Extension and review Long, longer, longest - Short, shorter, shortest - Idioms with long and short Writing For and against (1)Rhetoric: Structuring your essay (the “tell them” prototype)The “for and against” essay: Zoos / Protecting endangered species 4 Amazing adaptationsCloze Whirly bird: The red-necked phalarope Vocabulary round-up Grammar Frequently tested verb structures Learning to recognize and cope with verb-structure questions Reading Heating things up: The sacred lotus Vocabulary round-up Vocabulary Extension and review Spreading out - The more things change, the more they stay the same -Subtle differencesWriting For and against (2) Featured topic: Ecotourism Vocabulary consolidation 2 5 Weighty health problemsCloze Obesity on the rise Vocabulary round-up Grammar Easily confused word forms Tackling questions with easily confused word forms Reading Public health enemy number 1 Vocabulary round-up Vocabulary Extension and review Overweight and underweight - Good and bad Writing The opinion essay (1) Featured topic: Weighing in on the “fat tax” HEALTH AND MEDICINE 3ContentsSkill area Topic Featured subjects Is there a doctor in the house?Cloze Asthma alert Vocabulary round-up Grammar Participle clauses Coping with items that involve participle clauses Reading A new kind of med school Vocabulary round-up Vocabulary Extension and review Emergency room – Doctor, doctor! – Other medical descriptors Writing The opinion essay (2) Featured topic: Banning smoking in public places Vocabulary consolidation 37 Devastating disastersCloze Eruption: “Vancouver, this is it!” Vocabulary round-up Grammar Easily confused phrases Becoming sensitive to similar phrases with different meanings Reading Oily messes: Slicks and spills Vocabulary round-up Vocabulary Extension and review Speaking of spills – Sound like ... – Figuratively speaking Writing The problem/solution essay (1) Featured topic: Are we ready for the next “big one”? 8 Rubbish!Cloze Amazing mountains of trash Vocabulary round-up Grammar Impersonal vs. personal constructions Tackling items that test impersonal and personal constructions Reading The secret life of tires Vocabulary round-up Vocabulary Extension and review What’s left over - Catastrophic collocations Writing The problem/solution essay (2) Featured topic: Think outside the recycling bin! Vocabulary consolidation 49 Innovative inventorsCloze Henry Ford: A tinkerer for all times Vocabulary round-up Grammar The subjunctive, inversion, and so/such Points to remember about the subjunctive, inversion, and so/such Reading Thomas Edison: A classic innovator Vocabulary round-up Vocabulary Extension and reviewAhead of the times, behind the times – Greek time, Roman time – TIme out forti

Introduction About the Michigan ECPE: Overview - Results - ECPE writing criteria 1. Artistic Attributes Cloze Remembering the Beatles Vocabulary round-up Grammar Think grammar! Tackling ECPE grammar questions Reading Picasso the poet Vocabulary round-up Vocabulary Extension and review Expressing passionate (and not so passionate) intensity Body language (compound adjectives) Writing ECPE writing criteria (1) Mechanics (punctuation - spelling - capitalization) Rhetoric (organization of ideas - topic development - linking) 2 Females at their finest Cloze Jackie: A remarkable First Lady Vocabulary round-up Grammar Relative clauses Tackling relative clause questions on the ECPE Reading Jessica: A joyful girl pilot Vocabulary round-up Vocabulary Extension and review Shades of shyness - Beauty is in the eye of the beholder - A "look back" at the -spec in retrospect Writing ECPE writing criteria (2) Grammar and syntax Vocabulary Vocabulary consolidation 1 3 Echoing eco themes Cloze Extinction: Palms under threat Vocabulary round-up Grammar Verb-tense questions Adjusting your expectations of ECPE verb-tense questions Reading Evolution: The giraffe's neck Vocabulary round-up Vocabulary Extension and review Long, longer, longest - Short, shorter, shortest - Idioms with long and short Writing For and against (1) Rhetoric: Structuring your essay (the "tell them" prototype) The "for and against" essay: Zoos / Protecting endangered species 4 Amazing adaptations Cloze Whirly bird: The red-necked phalarope Vocabulary round-up Grammar Frequently tested verb structures Learning to recognize and cope with verb-structure questions Reading Heating things up: The sacred lotus Vocabulary round-up Vocabulary Extension and review Spreading out - The more things change, the more they stay the same - Subtle differences Writing For and against (2) Featured topic: Ecotourism Vocabulary consolidation 2 5 Weighty health problems Cloze Obesity on the rise Vocabulary round-up Grammar Easily confused word forms Tackling questions with easily confused word forms Reading Public health enemy number 1 Vocabulary round-up Vocabulary Extension and review Overweight and underweight - Good and bad Writing The opinion essay (1) Featured topic: Weighing in on the "fat tax" HEALTH AND MEDICINE 3 Contents Skill area Topic Featured subjects Is there a doctor in the house? Cloze Asthma alert Vocabulary round-up Grammar Participle clauses Coping with items that involve participle clauses Reading A new kind of med school Vocabulary round-up Vocabulary Extension and review Emergency room - Doctor, doctor! - Other medical descriptors Writing The opinion essay (2) Featured topic: Banning smoking in public places Vocabulary consolidation 3 7 Devastating disasters Cloze Eruption: "Vancouver, this is it!" Vocabulary round-up Grammar Easily confused phrases Becoming sensitive to similar phrases with different meanings Reading Oily messes: Slicks and spills Vocabulary round-up Vocabulary Extension and review Speaking of spills - Sound like ... - Figuratively speaking Writing The problem/solution essay (1) Featured topic: Are we ready for the next "big one"? 8 Rubbish! Cloze Amazing mountains of trash Vocabulary round-up Grammar Impersonal vs. personal constructions Tackling items that test impersonal and personal constructions Reading The secret life of tires Vocabulary round-up Vocabulary Extension and review What's left over - Catastrophic collocations Writing The problem/solution essay (2) Featured topic: Think outside the recycling bin! Vocabulary consolidation 4 9 Innovative inventors Cloze Henry Ford: A tinkerer for all times Vocabulary round-up Grammar The subjunctive, inversion, and so/such Points to remember about the subjunctive, inversion, and so/such Reading Thomas Edison: A classic innovator Vocabulary round-up Vocabulary Extension and review Ahead of the times, behind the times - Greek time, Roman time - TIme out for time expressions Writing Tasks that don't quite fit the mold Featured topic: What makes an invention successful? 10 Inventive innovations Cloze Online: The "new normal" Vocabulary round-up Grammar Subordinators and other linking words Recognizing and tackling items with missing linking words Reading Road gizmos: Botts' dots Vocabulary round-up Vocabulary Extension and review The brain vs. mind debate - Computer verbs Writing Time management Developing a time-management approach to ECPE writing Vocabulary consolidation 5 TECHNOLOGY Exam practice (GCVR and Writing) Extra activities (crossword puzzles, word jumbles, Internet survey) Grammar reference