Intensive

Reading

BOTTOM-UP

Yulianto

Fakultas Keguruan dan Ilmu Pendidikan

Universitas Islam Riau
Pekanbaru

Preface

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 First of all, thanks to Allah SWT because of the help of Allah, writer
finished writing the paper entitled “Intensive Reading” right in the calculated
time.

Although a number of useful books are available on the teaching of

reading in a second or foreign language, this is the first book to focus specifically
on the nature of intensive and the development of intensive reading material based
Students’ difficulties in reading comprehension faced by the first year at English
language Education and Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL) Approach

The purpose in writing this book is to fulfill the need of the first year
students of English Language Education who take intensive reading course. 

In arranging this book, the writer truly gets lots challenges and
obstructions but with help of many individuals, those obstructions could pass.
Writer also realized there are still many mistakes in process of writing this book.

Because of that, the writer says thank you to all individuals who helps in the
process of writing this book. Hopefully Allah replies all helps and blesses you all.
The writer realized that this book still imperfect in arrangement and the content.
Then the writer hope the criticism from the readers can help the writer in
perfecting the next book. Last but not the least hopefully, this paper can help the
readers to gain more knowledge about reading comprehension.

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 Contents
Preface.............................................................................................................. i
Table of Contents.............................................................................................. ii

INTRODUCTION
What is Intensive Reading
LESSON 1. Vocabulary: the Key to Meaning................................................. 1
A. Recognizing the Structure of Words.............................................. 4
B. How to Use Word Parts................................................................. 10
C. Pronouncing Unfamiliar Words..................................................... 11
Summary........................................................................................ 12

LESSON 2. Parts of Speeches

A. The Eight Parts of Speeches.......................................................... 13
Noun............................................................................................... 13
Pronoun.......................................................................................... 13
Verb............................................................................................... 14
Adjective........................................................................................ 14
Adverb........................................................................................... 14
Preposition..................................................................................... 14
Conjunction.................................................................................... 15
Interjection..................................................................................... 15
B. Exercises........................................................................................ 16

LESSON 3. English Phrases

A. What is a Phrase............................................................................. 18
B. Different Types of Phrases............................................................ 19
C. Exercise.......................................................................................... 20

LESSON 4. Understanding Sentences

A. Punctuations................................................................................... 22
B. Using Context Clues...................................................................... 26
C. References...................................................................................... 32
D. Identifying Core Parts of Sentences............................................... 34
E. Types of sentences......................................................................... 34

LESSON 5. English Cohesion

A. Theory of Cohesion....................................................................... 38
B. Lexical Cohesion........................................................................... 38
C. Grammatical Cohesion.................................................................. 38
D. Exercise.......................................................................................... 39

LESSON 6. Theme and Rheme

A. Theme............................................................................................ 41
B. Rheme............................................................................................ 41
C. Exercise.......................................................................................... 41

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LESSON 7.Understanding Paragraph
A. Identifying Topic........................................................................... 44
B. Finding Main Idea.......................................................................... 44
C. Recognizing Supporting details..................................................... 48
D. Transitions..................................................................................... 50

LESSON 8. Following Author’s Thought Patterns

A. Thought Patterns............................................................................ 53
B. Summary........................................................................................ 60

LESSON 9. Reading Articles/Essay

A. Organization Features.................................................................... 61
B. Types of Essays............................................................................. 64

LESSON 10. Reading Selections..................................................................... 64

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 INTRODUCTION

WHAT IS INTENSIVE READING?

A LIMITED VIEW
As the name suggests, intensive reading refers to reading short texts
thoroughly and with clear goals, such as to answer reading comprehension
questions or to identify how sentences are linked. Unlike extensive reading, the
goal of intensive reading is not to read many texts for fluency, but rather to read a
shorter piece of text to gain a deeper understanding of that text.
Although reading comprehension can be one goal of intensive reading, its
goals may include learning subject matter, vocabulary learning and studying the
authors’ intentions. In other words, the goal of intensive reading is not limited to
reading comprehension.

A HOLISTIC VIEW
In intensive reading, learners usually read texts that are more difficult, in
terms of content and language, than those used for extensive reading. To help
learners make sense of texts that may present a significant challenge in terms of
its, teachers should focus on reading skills, such as identifying main ideas and
guessing the meaning of unfamiliar words from context (Macalister, 2011).
The four learning goals for intensive reading are (Macalister, 2011):
1. Focusing on new language such as vocabulary and grammar
2. Focusing on ideas such as themes and topics
3. Learning new skills such as making inferences and identifying main ideas
4. Paying attention to text features such as genre structure and cohesion

THEORY AND PRACTICE

Reading comprehension instructions can focus on understanding the
content/topic or on reading strategies (Liang & Dole, 2006).
Teachers can use images or videos as a means of introducing learners to
the reading text topic. An alternative pre-reading activity is to have students
complete a true/false statements activity and then have them discuss their
responses in groups. The goal of this activity is to prompt learners to think about
and explore the topic, drawing on their background knowledge.
When focusing on reading strategies, teachers can introduce the idea of
skimming (reading rapidly for overall idea) and scanning (reading rapidly to find
specific information). Before reading a text to practice these skills, teachers can
ask students to speculate about the content and confirm their speculations after
reading the text. The speculation activity provides a sense of direction and
purpose for the reading practice.

CHARACTERISTICS:

 usually classroom based 

 reader is intensely involved in looking  inside the text 
 students focus on linguistic or semantic details of a reading 

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 students focus on surface structure details such as grammar and discourse
markers
 students identify key vocabulary
 students may draw pictures to aid them (such as in problem solving)
 texts are read carefully and thoroughly, again and again 
 aim is to build more language knowledge rather than simply practice the skill
of reading 
 seen more commonly than extensive reading in classrooms

MATERIALS:

 usually very short texts - not more than 500 words in length 
 chosen for level of difficulty and usually, by the teacher
 chosen to provide the types of reading and skills that the teacher wants to cover
in the course

SKILLS DEVEPOED:

 rapid reading practice 

 interpreting text by using:
- word attack skills
- text attack skills 
- non-text information
ACTIVITIES:

Intensive reading exercises may include:

 looking at  main ideas versus details

 understanding what is implied versus stated
 making inferences
 looking at the order of information and how it effects the message
 identifying words that  connect one idea to another
 identifying words that indicate change from one section to another

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 LESSON 1
VOCABULARY: The Key to Meaning
Joe and Rachel were both taking an intensive reading course. Joe was
doing well in the course, but Rachel was not. In particular, Rachel was having
trouble with the vocabulary in the textbook. She complained, “I can’t even
pronounce some of these words, much less know what they mean!. There are so
many words I don’t know that I can’t look them all up. And to make things worse,
the instructor uses these same words on exams.”
Rachel asked Joe if he were having the same trouble, Joe agreed that there
were many new and difficult words, but he said he had worked out a way of
handling them. He figured out the meanings of many words from the way they
were used in a sentence. He also used word parts to figure out meanings. To
pronounce hard words, he broke the words into syllables. Then he used a
dictionary to check meanings or pronunciations of which he was unsure.
Joe has acquired a set of skills that are helping him to handle the
vocabulary in college courses. These skills help him improve his overall everyday
vocabulary as well.
Vocabulary development is a skill worth the effort to improve. Your
vocabulary affects not only your reading skills, but your speaking, listening, and
writing skills as well. In speaking, the words you choose affect how well you are
understood, the impression you make, and how people react to you. In writing,
your vocabulary determines how clearly and accurately you can express your
ideas to others. In listening, your vocabulary influences how much you understand
in class lecture, speeches, and class discussions.

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A. RECOGNIZING THE STRUCTURE OF WORDS
This unit will show you how to
1. Figure out words you do not know
2. Use prefixes, roots, and suffixes

USING WORD PARTS TO EXPAND YOUR VOCABULARY

Suppose that you came across the following sentence in a human anatomy
textbook:
Trichromatic plates are used frequently in the text to illustrate the position
of body organs.
If you did not know the meaning of trichromatic, how could you
determine it? There are no clues in the sentence context. One solution is to look
the word up in the dictionary. An easier and faster way is to break the word into
parts and analyze the meanings of the parts. Many words in the English language
are made up of word parts called prefixes, roots, and suffixes. These word parts
have specific meanings that, when added together, can help you determine the
meaning of the word as a whole.
The word trichromatic can be divided into three parts, its prefix, root, and
suffix.

 Prefix – tri (“three”)

 Root – chrome (“color”)
 Suffix – atic (“characteristic of”)
You can see from this analysis that trichromatic means “having three colors.”
Here are a few other examples of words that you can figure out by using
prefixes, roots, and suffixes.”
The parent thought the child was unteachable.
un- = not
teach = help someone learn
-able = able to do something
unteachable = not able to be taught

The student was a nonconformist.

non- = not
conform = go along with others
-ist = one who does something
nonconformist = someone who does not go along with others.

The first step is using the prefix-root-suffix method is to become familiar

with the most commonly used word parts. The prefixes and roots listed in the
table 1 and 2 will give you a good start in determining the meanings of thousands

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of words without looking them up in the dictionary. For instance, more than
10.000 words can begin with the prefix non-. Not all these words are listed in a
collegiate dictionary, but they would appear in unabridged dictionary. Another
common prefix, pseudo-, is used in more than 400 words. A small amount of time
spent learning word parts can yield a large payoff in new words learned.
Before you begin to use word parts to figure out new words, there are a
few things you need to know:
1. In most cases, a word is built upon at least one root.
2. Words can have more than one prefix, root, or suffix.
a. Words can be made up of two or more roots (geo/logy).
b. Some words have two prefixes (in/sub/ordination).
c. Some words have two suffixes (beauty/ful/ly)
3. Words do not always have prefix and suffix.
a. Some words have neither a prefix nor a suffix (read)
b. Others have a suffix but no prefix (read/ing)
c. Others have a prefix but no suffix (pre/read)

4. Roots may change in spelling as they are combined with suffixes (root =
aud/audit, meaning = hear, sample word = audible)
5. Sometimes, you may identify a group of letters as a prefix or root, but find that
it does not carry the meaning of the prefix or root. For example, in the word
internal, the letters inter should not be confused with the prefix inter-, meaning
“between.” Similarly, the letters mis in the word missile are part of the root and
are not the prefix mis-, which means “wrong; bad.”
PREFIXES
Prefixes appear at the beginnings of many English words. They alter the
meaning of the root to which they are connected. In Table 1, thirty-two common
prefixes are grouped according to meaning.

Table 1 COMMON PREFIXES

Prefix Meaning Sample Word

Prefixes referring to amount or number
bi two bimonthly
equi equal equidistant
micro small microscope
mono one monocle
multi many multipurpose
poly many polygon
semi half semicircle
tri three triangle
uni one Unicycle

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 Prefix Meaning Sample Word
Prefixes meaning “not”
(negative)
a, an, ab not asymmetrical
anti against antiwar
contra against, opposite contradict
dis apart, away, not disagree
in/il/ir/im not inactive, Illogical
non not nonfiction
un not unpopular
pseudo false pseudoscientific
mis wrong, bad misunderstand
Prefixes giving direction, location, or placement
Prefix Meaning Sample Word
circum around circumference
com/col/con with, together compile
de away, from depart
extra from, out of, former ex-wife
hyper over, excessive hyperactive
inter between interpersonal
intro/intra within, into, in introduction
post after posttest
pre before premarital
re back, again review
retro backward retrospect
sub under, below submarine
super above, extra supercharge
tele far telescope
trans across, over transcontinental

ROOTS
Roots carry the basic or core meaning of a word. Hundreds of root words
are used to build words in the English language. Thirty of the most common and
most useful are listed in Table 2. Knowledge of the meanings of these roots will
enable you to unlock the meanings of many words. For example, if you know that
the root dic/dict means “tell or say,” then you would have a clue to the meanings
of such words as dictate (speak for someone to write down), dictation (words
spoken to be written down), and diction (wording or manner of speaking).
Table 2 COMMON ROOTS

Root Meaning Sample Word

aud/audit hear audible
aster/astro star astronaut
bio life biology

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 cap take, seize captive
chron(o) time chronology
corp body corpse
cred believe incredible
dict/dic tell, say predict
duc/duct lead introduce
fact/fac make, do factory
graph write telegraph
geo earth geophysics
log/logo/logy study, thought psychology
mit/miss send dismiss
mort/mor die, death immortal
path feeling sympathy
phono sound, voice telephone
photo light photosensitive
port carry transport
Pod, ped foot podiatrist, pedestrian
Polis city metropolis
scop seeing microscope
scrib/script write inscription
sen/sent feel insensitive
spec/spic/spect look, see retrospect
tend/tent/tens stretch or strain tension
terr/terre land, earth territory
theo god theology
ven/vent come convention
vert/vers turn invert
vis/vid See invisible
voc call provoke

SUFFIXES
Suffixes are word endings that often change the part of speech of a word.
For example, adding the suffix y to the noun cloud produces the adjective cloudy.
Accompanying the change in part of speech is a shift in meaning. (Cloudy means
“resembling cloud; overcast with clouds, dimmed or dulled as if clouds.”)
Often, several different words can be formed from a single root word with
the addition of different suffixes.
Examples: Root: class
Root + suffix = class/ify, class/ification, class/ic
Root: right
Root + suffix = right/ly, right/ful, right/ist, right/eous.

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 If you know the meaning of the root word and the ways in which different
suffixes affect the meaning of the root word, you will be able to figure out a
word’s meaning when a suffix is added.

Table 3 COMMON SUFFIXES

Suffix Sample Word

Suffixes that refer to a state, condition, or quality
able touchable
ance assistance, relevance
ate activate
ation confrontation
ence reference
ible tangible
ic aerobic, economic
ion discussion, fusion
ism terrorism, vandalism, communism
ity superiority
ive permissive
ment amazement
ness kindness
ous jealous
ty loyalty
y creamy
Suffixes that mean “one who”
ee trainee
eer engineer
er teacher
ist activist
ian librarian
or advisor
Suffixes that mean “pertaining to or referring to”
al autumnal
ship friendship
hood brotherhood
ward homeward

You can expand your vocabulary significantly by learning the variations in

meaning that occur when suffixes are added to words you already know. When
you find a word that you do not know, look for the root word. Then, using the
sentence the word is in (context), figure out what the word means with the suffix
added. Occasionally, you may find that the spelling of the root word has been
changed. For instance, a final e may be dropped, a final consonant may be
doubled, or a final y may be changed into i. Consider the possibility of such
changes when trying to identify the root word.

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Examples: The article was a compilation of facts.
root + suffix
compil(e) + -ation = something that has been compiled,
or put together into an orderly form.
Our college is one of the most prestigious in the state.
root + suffix
prestige(e) +-ious = having prestige or distinction

Exercise 1.
Directions: Read each of the following sentences. Use your knowledge of
prefixes to complete the incomplete word.
1. A text titled Botany was ___titled Understanding Plants.
2. The politician delivered his speech in a dull ____tone.
3. The new sweater had a snag, and I returned it to the store because it was
___perfect.
4. The flood damage was permanent and ___reversible.
5. I was not given the correct date and time, I was ___informed.
6. People who speak several different languages are ____lingual.
7. A musical ___lude was played between the events in the ceremony.
8. I decided the magazine was uninteresting, so I ____continued subscription.
9. Merchandise that does not pass factory inspection is considered ____standard
and sold at a customer.
10. The tuition refund policy approved this week will apply to last year’s tuition
as well; it will be ___active to January 1 of last year.
Exercise 2.
Directions: Complete each of the following sentences with one of the words
listed below.
synchronized verdict scripture
graphic visualize spectators
phonic prescribed extensive
apathetic

1. The jury brought in its _____________ after one hour of deliberation.

2. Religious or holy writings are called _________________
3. She closed her eyes and tried to _____________ the license plate number.
4. The ______________ watching the football game were tense.
5. The doctor _____________ two types of medication.
6. The child’s list of toys he wanted for his birthday was _____________.
7. The criminal appeared ______________ when the judge pronounced sentence.
8. The runners ____________ their watches before beginning the race.
9. The textbook contained numerous ____________ aids, including maps, charts,
and diagrams.
10. The study of the way different parts of words sound is _____________

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Exercise 3
Directions: For each of the words listed, add a suffix so that the word will
complete the sentence. Write the new word in the space provided. Check a
dictionary if you unsure of the spelling.
1. converse
Our phone ____________ lasted ten minutes.
2. assist
The medical ___________ labeled the patient’s blood samples.
3. qualify
The job applicant outlined his _____________ to the interviewer.
4. intern
The doctor completed her ______________ at Memorial Medical Center.
5. eat
We did not realize that the blossoms of the plant could be _________.

Exercise 4
Directions: For each word listed below, write as many new words as you can
create by adding suffixes.
1. compare_______________________________________________________
2. adapt__________________________________________________________
3. right__________________________________________________________
4. identify________________________________________________________
5. critic__________________________________________________________

B. HOW TO USE WORD PARTS

Think of root words as being at the root or core of a word’s meaning.
There are many more roots than are listed in table 2. You already know many of
these, because they are everyday words. Think of prefixes as word parts that are
added before the root to qualify or change its meaning. Think of suffixes as add –
ion that make the word fit grammatically into the sentence in which it is used.
When you come upon a word you do not know, keep the following pointer
in mind:
1. First look for the root. Think of this as looking for a word inside a larger
word. Often a letter or two will be missing.
Examples: un/utter/able post/operat/ive
defens/ible non/adapt/able
inter/college/iate im/measure/ability
2. If you do not recognize the root, then you will probably not be able to
figure out the word. The next step is to check its meaning in a dictionary.
For tip on locating words in a dictionary rapidly and easily.
Suppose you are looking up the word loathsome. The guide words
on a particular page are livid and lobster. You know that the word
loathsome will be on that page because, alphabetically, loathsome comes
after livid and before lobster.

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 3. If you did recognize the root word, next look for a prefix. If there is one,
determine how it changes the meaning of the word
Examples: un/utter/able post/operative
un = not post – after
4. Locate the suffix, if there is one, and determine how it further adds to or
changes the meaning of the root word.
Examples: unutter/able postoperat/ive
-able = able -ive = state or condition
5. Next, try out the meaning in the sentence in which the word was used.
Substitute your meaning for the word and see whether the sentence makes
sense.
Examples: Some of the victim’s thoughts were unutterable at the time
of the crime.
Unutterable = not able to be spoken

My sister was worried about the cost of postoperative care.

Postoperative = state or condition after an operation.

C. PRONOUNCING UNFAMILIAR WORDS

Most college students, at one time or another, meet words that they are
unable to pronounce. To pronounce an unfamiliar word, sound it out syllable by
syllable (Knowing how to divide words into syllables is useful for typing term
papers and other written materials. When you have to break a word at the end of a
line, it must be split between syllables).
Here are a few simple rules for dividing words into syllables:
1. Each syllable is a separate, distinct speech sound. Pronounce the following
words and try to hear the number of syllables in each.
Example: expensive ex/pen/sive = 3 syllables
recognize rec/og/nize = 3 syllables
punctuate punc/tu/ate = 3 syllables
complicated com/pli/cat/ed = 4 syllables
2. Each syllable has a least one vowel and usually one or more consonants
(The letter a, e, i, o, u, and sometimes y are vowels. All other letters are
consonants.)
Examples as/sign re/act cou/pon gen/er/al
3. Divide words before a single consonant.
Examples: hu/mid pa/tron re/tail fa/vor
4. Divide words between two consonants appearing together.
Examples: pen/cil lit/ter lum/ber sur/vive
5. Divide words between prefixes (word beginnings) and roots (base words)
and/or between roots and suffixes (word endings)
Example: Prefix+ Root
Pre/read post/pone
Root + suffix
Sex/ist agree/ment list/ing

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 6. Divide compound word between the individual words that form the
compound word.
Examples: house/broken house/hold space/craft
green/house news/paper sword/fish
7. Divide words between two vowel sounds that appear together.
Example: te/di/ous ex/tra/ne/ous
SUMMARY
When context does not give enough clues to the meaning of an unknown
word, it is helpful to break the word into word part. The beginnings, middles, and
endings of words are called prefixes, roots, and suffixes. Learning the meanings
of the most common prefixes, roots, and suffixes will provide a basis for
analyzing thousands of English words.

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 LESSON 2
PARTS OF SPEECH

A. THE EIGHT PARTS OF SPEECH

There are eight parts of speech in the English language: noun, pronoun,
verb, adjective, adverb, preposition, conjunction, and interjection. The part of
speech indicates how the word functions in meaning as well as grammatically
within the sentence. An individual word can function as more than one part of
speech when used in different circumstances. Understanding parts of speech is
essential for determining the correct definition of a word when using the
dictionary.

1. NOUN

A noun is the name of a person, place, thing, or idea.

man... Butte College... house... happiness

A noun is a word for a person, place, thing, or idea. Nouns are often used
with an article (the, a, an), but not always. Proper nouns always start with a
capital letter; common nouns do not. Nouns can be singular or plural, concrete or
abstract. Nouns show possession by adding 's. Nouns can function in different
roles within a sentence; for example, a noun can be a subject, direct object,
indirect object, subject complement, or object of a preposition.

The young girl brought me a very long letter from the teacher, and then

she quickly disappeared. Oh my God!

2. PRONOUN

A pronoun is a word used in place of a noun.

She... we... they... it

A pronoun is a word used in place of a noun. A pronoun is usually

substituted for a specific noun, which is called its antecedent. In the sentence
above, the antecedent for the pronoun she is the girl. Pronouns are further defined
by type: personal pronouns refer to specific persons or things; possessive
pronouns indicate ownership; reflexive pronouns are used to emphasize another
noun or pronoun; relative pronouns introduce a subordinate clause; and
demonstrative pronouns identify, point to, or refer to nouns.

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 The young girl brought me a very long letter from the teacher, and
then she quickly disappeared. Oh my God!

3. VERB

A verb expresses action or being.

jump... is... write... become

The verb in a sentence expresses action or being. There is a main verb and

sometimes one or more helping verbs. ("She can sing." Sing is the main
verb; can is the helping verb.) A verb must agree with its subject in number (both
are singular or both are plural). Verbs also take different forms to express tense.

The young girl brought me a very long letter from the teacher, and then
she quickly disappeared. Oh my God!

4. ADJECTIVE

An adjective modifies or describes a noun or pronoun.

pretty... old... blue... smart

An adjective is a word used to modify or describe a noun or a pronoun. It

usually answers the question of which one, what kind, or how many. (Articles [a,
an, the] are usually classified as adjectives.)

The young girl brought me a very long letter from the teacher, and then

she quickly disappeared. Oh my God!

5. ADVERB

An adverb modifies or describes a verb, an adjective, or another adverb.

gently... extremely... carefully... well

An adverb describes or modifies a verb, an adjective, or another adverb,

but never a noun. It usually answers the questions of when, where, how, why,
under what conditions, or to what degree. Adverbs often end in -ly.

The young girl brought me a very long letter from the teacher,

and then she quickly disappeared. Oh my God!

6. PREPOSITION

A preposition is a word placed before a noun or pronoun to form a phrase

modifying another word in the sentence.
by... with.... about... until

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 (by the tree, with our friends, about the book, until tomorrow)

A preposition is a word placed before a noun or pronoun to form a phrase

modifying another word in the sentence. Therefore a preposition is always part of
a prepositional phrase. The prepositional phrase almost always functions as an
adjective or as an adverb. The following list includes the most common
prepositions:

The young girl brought me a very long letter from the teacher, and then
she quickly disappeared. Oh my God!

7. CONJUNCTION

A conjunction joins words, phrases, or clauses.

and... but... or... while... because

A conjunction joins words, phrases, or clauses, and indicates the

relationship between the elements joined. Coordinating conjunctions connect
grammatically equal elements: and, but, or, nor, for, so, yet. Subordinating
conjunctions connect clauses that are not equal: because, although, while, since,
etc. There are other types of conjunctions as well.

The young girl brought me a very long letter from the teacher, and then
she quickly disappeared. Oh my God!

8. INTERJECTION

An interjection is a word used to express emotion.

Oh!... Wow!... Oops!

An interjection is a word used to express emotion. It is often followed by

an exclamation point.

The young girl brought me a very long letter from the teacher, and then
she quickly disappeared. Oh my God!

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B. Exercise 1.
Decide which parts of speech are the underlined words (verb, adverb, adjective,
noun, pronoun, preposition, conjunction, and interjection)

1. You have to believe in yourself if you ever expect to be successful at

something.     
2. We left for the mountain just before six in the morning.  
3. We first went to the store to buy a few things.     
4. We had a breakfast at a café near the rail station.     
5. My friend wasn't strong enough to lift his heavy rucksack.  
6. I helped him carry it.     
7. The weather was very cold.       
8. My friend said, "Oh! What a cold weather!"     
9. We didn't spend the night there.       
10. We got back home late at night but we didn't go to sleep immediately. We
were very hungry. 

Exercise 2.
Identify the category of the words in the following sentences. Use the
abbreviations N for noun, V for verb, Adj for adjective, Adv for adverb, Prep for
preposition, Pro for pronoun.

a. He worked hard but earned only average grades.

b. Nobody really knows what normal reading is.
c. The market for audiobooks is very large.

Exercise 3.
1. Choose the correct answer to the following question: Which of the following
words is an example of a preposition?
a. into b. if c. many d. you

2. Choose the correct answer to the following question: Which of the following
words is an example of an interjection?
a. soon b. when c. ouch d. within

3. Choose the correct answer to the following question: Which of the following
words is an example of a conjunction?
a. and b. run c. below d. her

4. Choose the correct answer to the following question: Which of the following
words is an example of a verb?
a. Taste b. late c. not d. slowly

5. Choose the correct answer to the following question: Which of the following
words is an example of an adjective?
a. Ralph b. below c. fifteen d. wait

16
6. Choose the answer that names the part of speech of the capitalized word in the
following sentence: The usher CLOSED the door.
a. Noun b. pronoun c. verb d. adverb

7. Choose the answer that names the part of speech of the capitalized word in the
following sentence: Farmers had VERY poor crops this year.
a. adjective b. pronoun c. verb d. adverb

8. Choose the answer that names the part of speech of the capitalized word in the
following sentence: EVERYONE met at the field house.
a. noun b. pronoun c. adjective d. preposition

9. Choose the answer that names the part of speech of the capitalized word in the
following sentence: Have you heard the GOOD news?
a. Pronoun b. verb c. adverb d. adjective

10. Choose the answer that names the part of speech of the capitalized word in
the following sentence: The cat knocked a vase OFF the shelf.
a. Pronoun b. verb c. adverb d. preposition

17
 LESSON 3
ENGLISH PHRASES

A. WHAT IS A PHRASE?
Definition, Examples of English Phrases
Phrase definition: A phrase is a grammatical term referring to a group of words
that does not include a subject and verb.

What is a Phrase? Examples, Definitions

What are phrases? A phrase is a group (or pairing) of words in English. A
phrase can be short or long, but it does not include the subject-verb pairing
necessary to make a clause.

Some examples of phrases include:

 after the meal (prepositional phrase)
 the nice neighbor (noun phrase)
 were waiting for the movie (verb phrase)
None of these examples contains a subject doing an action (subject-verb).
Therefore, each example is merely a group of words called a phrase. A phrase will
always be more than one word.

Phrases vs. Clauses: a Hierarchy of Word Units

A phrase is any group of words that does not contain a subject completing
an action. When a group of words contains a subject doing an action (subject-
verb), it becomes a clause. Phrases can be added to sentences to make them
more complex.

Concepts can begin with a single word and develop into a compound
sentence.

Example:
 meal (word)
 after the meal (phrase)
 that mom prepared (clause)
 After the meal that mom prepared I felt full. (sentence)
 After the meal that mom prepared, I felt full because I ate too much.
(complex sentence)
 After the meal that mom prepared I felt full, but my brother was still
hungry. (compound sentence)

More Phrase Examples

Before we go into different types of grammatical phrases, let’s look at a
few more examples of phrases.

 In the air (prepositional phrase)

 Beside the bed (prepositional phrase)

18
  Along the road (prepositional phrase)
 To live and breathe (infinitive phrase)
 Looking stunning (participle phrase)
As you can see, English phrases can be just about any combination of
words so long as they do not contain a subject-verb pairing.

B. DIFFERENT TYPES OF PHRASES

What is a noun phrase? Noun phrases consist of a noun and its modifiers.
 the nice neighbor
 a soft, comfortable bed

What is a verb phrase? Verb phrases consist of a verb and its modifiers.

 were waiting for the movie
 felt a prick on his arm

What is an adverbial phrase? Adverbial phrases are phrases that act as adverbs.

They modify verbs, adverbs, or adjectives.
 around the block (modifying where)
 after the meal (modifying when)
 in silence (modifying how)

What is a gerund phrase? Gerund phrases are essentially noun phrases that

begin with a gerund.
 running through the woods
 jumping like a kangaroo

What is an infinitive phrase? Infinitive phrases begin with a verb infinitive and

include any modifiers. Infinitive phrases function as nouns, adjectives, or adverbs.
 to run out of food
 to visit to the countryside

What is an appositive phrase? An appositive is essentially a noun phrase but

one that renames another noun in the sentence.
 The tree, a tall redwood, was beautiful.
 The curtains were made of lace, a beautiful and delicate fabric.

What is a participle phrase? A participle phrase begins with a present (-ing) or

past (-ed) participle. A participle phrase includes the participle and its modifiers.
Participle phrases function as adjectives.
 The girls giggling and playing in the park never seemed to tire.
 Fatigued and dehydrated in the desert the men traveled on.

What is a prepositional phrase? A prepositional phrase is a group of words that
includes a preposition and a noun. A prepositional phrase will function as either
an adjective or an adverb.
 before church
 under the stairs

19
What is an absolute phrase? An absolute phrase includes a noun and a participle
and any modifiers.
 the flag flying at half-mast
 her hair streaked with sunlight

Summary: What are Phrases?

Define phrase: The definition of phrase is any grouping of words that does not
contain a subject and a verb. A phrase is a very basic word unit in English.
 Phrases Examples:
 Reading a book
 The tall basketball player

C. Exercise 1.
Determine types of phrases of the underlined group of words
1. She liked the shirt given to her by her grandmother.
a. gerund phrase c. participle phrase
b. infinitive phrase d. appositive phrase

2. We all sighed in relief, James having found his passport

a. infinitive phrase c. gerund phrase
b. participle phrase d. absolute phrase

3. Does the captain want us to lower the sails before we enter the harbor?
a. infinitive phrase c. gerund phrase
b. participle phrase d. absolute phrase

4. As a souvenir, Mary bought herself a beautiful oval-shaped, soft pink pearl.

a. noun phrase c. gerund phrase
b. verb phrase d. infinitive phrase

5. To celebrate their arrival at the villa, they all enjoyed a glass Sangria on the
terrace overlooking the sea.
a. participle phrase c. infinitive phrase
b. prepositional phrase d. absolute phrase

6. Before putting to much effort into the project, maybe you should get some
guidance from your advisor.
a. infinitive phrase c. appositive phrase
b. gerund phrase d. prepositional phrase

7. Tom Hank, star of “Philadelphia”, will be appearing in a new film this holiday
session.
a. infinitive phrase c. appositive phrase
b. gerund phrase d. prepositional phrase

20
8. Fascinated by the stalactities and stalagmites in the cave, the tourists took
many picture.
a. infinitive phrase c. verb phrase
b. noun phrase d. participle phrase

9. Patricia would have gone for a walk to explore the surroundings had others
been interested
a. noun phrase c. verb phrase
b. gerund phrase d. infinitive phrase

10. Tom visited India while studying the history of Indian art.
a. appositive phrase c. prepositional phrase
b. infinitive phrase d. noun phrase

21
 LESSON 4
UNDERSTANDING SENTENCES
Along with words and phrases, sentences are basic units of meaning to
consider when we try to improve reading rate and comprehension. Clear accurate
understanding of sentences is essential to other comprehension skills and to the
effective reading and study of textbook chapter.
A sentence is commonly defined as a group of words that express a
complete thought or idea. Understanding sentences can be used as a
comprehensible input through comprehending punctuations, context clues,
references, and sentence core parts.
Aims of this lesson:
1. This lesson is aimed at providing the students with knowledge and application
of punctuations in order that they are able to read better.
2. After studying this lesson, it is expected that you have good understanding
about punctuations.
3. This lesson contains all important types of punctuations which are needed very
much in catching the writer’s message.

A. PUNCTUATIONS
Punctuation is the set of marks used to regulate texts and clarify their
meanings, principally by separating or linking words, phrases, and clauses.
1. Comma (,)
The comma has a number of different uses. But in each case, it separates
some type of information from other parts of the sentences. The different uses of
the comma are explained below.

a. The introductory use. The comma can be used to separate introductory,

beginning, or opening parts of a sentence from the main part of the sentences.
Examples:
1. To my surprise, most people attending the party were over thirty years old.
2. At the age of sixteen, he began to give piano concerts.
3. In spite of noise, he was able to sleep.
4. Before the war began, American colonist had already been rebelling for several
years.

b. The Parenthetical Use. The comma can be used to separate additional

information from the main part of the sentence. Writers occasionally interrupt
the core sentence to add some extra (parenthetical information which
important, but not crucial, to the sentence meaning. They use a comma before
and after this parenthetical information. To you as a reader, this use of the
comma should help you to tell important from less important information and
should aid you in identifying the sentence’s core part. You will notice that even

22
 when the parenthetical phrase is left out, the sentence is complete and conveys
meaning.
Examples
1. My daughter, Raida Afifah, plans to go to Bali.
2. Dolphins, as a matter of fact, are very friendly creatures that frequently come
to the rescue of people.
3. Carl Akely, the American Naturalist, led two expeditions in the nineteen-
twenties.
4. The Coal Mine Safety Act, one of the first federal efforts to enforce safety
standards, reduced worker productivity.
5. Drug and alcohol, experts warn, are an unsafe and dangerous combination.

c. The Serial Use. Whenever several items are presented in a list or series, in a
sentence, they are separated by comma. Many different types of items may be
given in series. Single words, such as nouns or adjectives as well as phrases
and clauses are all separated by commas when they are part of list. In all cases,
the items in a series are equal and consistent in how they are connected or
related to the core parts of a sentence. As you are reading, if you notice many
items separated by commas, you might expect that they are a series of related
facts or ideas.
Examples
1. After I saw the film, I was bored, tired, and angry.
2. The language skills are taught in the order of listening, speaking, reading, and
writing.
3. Please runs upstairs, go into my bedroom, get my hand phone, and give it to
me.
4. Social adjustment requires that an individual maintain himself independently,
to be gainfully employed, and to conform to social standards set by the
community.

d. Related Ideas Use. The comma can be used to joint two closely related and
complete ideas within a single sentence. When used in this way, the comma
must be used with a conjunction or connecting words (and, or, nor, but and
for). This use of the comma tells you that there are actually two complete but
related ideas within a sentence (there are two sets of core parts within the
sentence)
Examples
1. We walked two miles into the woods, but we did not see a single wild animal.
2. We as teachers cannot be held responsible for the differences in ability that
students bring in the classroom, but we are responsible for motivating our
students and for making sure that they are involved in learning.

23
2. The Semicolon (;)
The primary use of the semicolon is to separate two very closely related ideas
which have been combined in a single sentence. Sentence 1 and 2 in the examples
below can be combined to form sentence 3.
Examples
1. They bought the house at a very low price.
2. The former owner had to sell immediately and move to another city.
3. They bought the house at a very low price; the former owner had to sell
immediately and move to another city.
You may notice that this use of the semicolon is similar to the use of the
comma to separate complete and related ideas in one sentence. One main
difference is that a conjunction such as and or but must be used along with the
comma, but the semicolon can be used alone – without conjunction. When a
semicolon is used, you know that the two ideas have equal weight or importance.
Examples:
1. The job had to be finished on time; we found we had underestimated the
amount of work involved.
2. A good actor has to spend a lot of time in classes where he studies human
emotions, such as sadness, happiness, or anger; in these classes, he
concentrates on the audience in the theatre.
3. The fisherman caught fifteen trout; they cooked over on open fire.
Occasionally, a semicolon is used to separate sentence parts which, if divided
by comma, would be confusing or difficult to read. To illustrate this use of the
semicolon, the sentence below has been written in two versions.
1. Speakers at the conference included Dr, Frank, a biologist, Dr, Flock, a
philosopher, and Professor Smith, a geneticist.
2. Speakers at the conference included Dr, Frank, a biologist; Dr, Flock, a
philosopher; and Professor Smith, a geneticist.
As you read the first version of the sentence, you are not sure whether the
speakers include Dr. Frank and a biologist or whether it was Dr. Frank who was
being described as a biologist.
3. The Colon (:)
The colon is most often used to introduce a list, statement, or quotation.
The colon tells you, the reader, that some type of additional information which
further explains the main idea of a sentence is to follow. The colon also serves as
a marker indicating that the sentence’s core parts precede the colon.

24
Examples
1. Books that I have enjoyed recently include: Pride and Prejudice, Sons and
Lovers, and Bleak House (The colon introduce a list of book titles)
2. The causes of the war can be divided into three categories: social, economic,
and political (a list of categories will follow).
3. Chomsky described two levels of language: One underlying or deep structure
involved with meaning, and a surface level used in ordinary conversation. (The
colon in this example signals that an explanation of the two levels of language
is to follow).

4. The Dash (–)

The dash is most commonly used in a sentence to separate unessential or
parenthetical element from the core sentence, when using a comma would be
confusing. This usage also assists the reader in separating core parts from
supporting information.
Examples
1. At least three sports – basketball, football, and tennis – are continually gaining
television fans.
2. Throughout history, man has been puzzled and exasperated by the strange
duality of his nature – half animal, half angel – and much religious and
philosophic teaching has been an attempt to understand and integrate these two
sides of human nature.
Summary
The sentence, one of the basic units of meaning, is defined as a group of
words that express a complete thought or idea. In order to be complete, a sentence
must contain sufficient information, so the reader is not left to questions what
happened or to whom or to what something happened.
All complete sentences must have two essential components; these are called
core parts. First, a sentence must have subject; it must be about person, thing, or
idea. Second, a sentence must express some type of action; something must
happen to or be done by the subject. In long complicated sentences, identifying
the core parts is more difficult because it is necessary to separate the core parts
from other words, phrases, and clauses which provide additional information
about the core parts.
Punctuation is an aid to the reader in comprehending sentence meaning and
identifying the core parts of the sentences. Each types of punctuation mark gives
the reader specific information about the relative importance of ideas and the
location of core parts within the sentence.

25
B. USING CONTEXT CLUES
1. Figure out the meanings of words from their use in a sentence.
2. Use types of context clues.
What do you usually do when you come to a word you do not know in your
reading?
a. Look it up in the dictionary?
b. Ask your teacher?
c. Ask another students or friends?
d. Try to guess what it means?
If your answered a, b, or c, then you are not reading as effectively and
efficiently as you could be. In fact, the best strategy for dealing with an unknown
word is to try to guess what it means. This strategy:
 is fast because you don’t interrupt your reading.
 helps your comprehension because you stay focused on the general sense
of what you are reading.
 helps build vocabulary because you are more likely to remember the
words.
 Allows you to enjoy your reading more because you don’t have to stop
often.
WHAT IS CONTEXT
Read the following brief paragraph. Several words are missing. Try to
figure out the missing words and write them in the blanks.
Most Americans can speak only one _______. Europeans, however,
________ several. As a result, Europeans think ______ are unfriendly and
unwilling to communicate with them.
Did you insert the word language in the first blank, speak or know in the
second blank, and Americans in the third blank? You could tell from the sentence
what word to put in. The words around the missing words (the sentence context)
gave you clues to what word would fit and make sense. Such clues are called
context clues. Context clues can help you to figure out the meaning of unfamiliar
words.
Words are unit which is a constituent at phrase level and above. It is
sometimes identifiable according to such criteria. Words are the raw materials we
use to write everything from such as email, messages and memos to letter, essays
and textbooks. Therefore, when you do not understand a word an author uses, you
can use several strategies to help you define it. To understand an author’s specific
meaning of a word, you must look at the word in context, how it is used with the
other words in the sentence and surrounding the sentences. This is because word
takes a meaning from their context and has multiple meaning.

26
Think about definitions of the word medium in these sentences.
1. The internet is a powerful medium for finding information.
2. Copper is a good medium for conducting heat.
3. I asked for my beef burger to be cooked medium more than rare, but less
than well done.
4. At the state fair, we saw a fortuneteller and a medium to try to
communicate with my dead uncle’s spirit.
5. The artist used watercolors on cloth as the medium for her work.
Explanation
Understanding the way the word is used with the other words in the sentence
helps you understand the specific meaning of medium.

 In sentence 1 medium is a mean of communication.

 In sentence 2 medium is something that carries energy.
 In sentence 3 medium is an intermediate amount.
 In sentence 4 medium is a person who cahnnels communication between
the earthly world and spirit.
 In sentence 5 medium is the technique and material used by an artist.

DEFINING WORD AND PHRASES WHILE READING

To understand the variety of material you are required to read, you must
use the strategies flexibly, choose the strategy or strategies that best fit the
situation, for example, when you come to a word you do not understand, you
might first look for any context clues you can use. On the other hand, if you
recognize a part of the word, perhaps that is the entire clue you need. Or you
might start by looking it up in the dictionary and fitting the meaning back into the
context.

REMEMBERING WORD

 Understanding
Being able to remember something often depends on how thoroughly you
learned it in the first place. You must get or understand something before
you can “forget it”. In this context, understanding means your ability to
translate words and information into ideas that make sense to you.
However, applying several of your senses will help: see it, say it, hear it,
and write it.
 Reviewing and Using
Begin a session by reviewing some of the words you have already learned,
and then tackle new ones. You also have use new information to remember
it. In fact, it has been estimated that you must use a new word at least ten
times before it is really “your”. Try to use a few in your writing and
conversations each day.

27
TYPES OF CONTEXT CLUES
There are many types of context clues in determining word meanings in
textbook material: definition, example/illustration, cause and effect, contrast,
restatement, and modifier.
1. Definition Clues
Many times a writer defines a word, directly or indirectly, immediately
following its use. The writer may define a word directly by giving a brief
definition or providing a synonym (a word that has the same meaning). The words
and phrases such as means, is, are, refer to, can be defined as, can be called, and
are called often use.
Examples
1. Language is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols used for human
communication.
2. Business refers to the production, distribution, and sale of goods and services
for a profit.
3. A markdown is a reduction in the original selling price of a product.
At other times, a writer may define a word indirectly. Indirect definitions
usually follow the word and are set off by commas, parentheses, or dashes. In the
following examples, the boldface word or phrase is defined the underlined part of
the sentence.
Examples
1. A hypochondrium, excessive worry over one’s health, is common among
senior citizen.
2. Some stores offer loss leader (products on which the stores lose money) to gain
new customers.
3. Probability – the likelihood that an event will occur – is important in the field
of statistics.

2. Example/illustrate Clues
Writers often include examples that help to explain or clarify a word.
Suppose you don’t know the meaning of the word toxic, and you find it used in
the following sentence.
Toxic materials, such as arsenic, asbestos, pesticide, and lead, can cause
bodily damage.
This sentence gives four examples of toxic materials. From the examples
given, which are all poisonous substances, you could conclude that toxic means
“poisonous”.
The words and phrases such as include, for example, for instance, to
illustrate, such as, and like indicate example clues.

28
1. Unconditioned responses, including heartbeat, blinking, and breathing, occur
naturally in all humans.
2. Mark experienced several traumas in early childhood, including the divorce of
his parents and the death of his grandma.
3. Most condiments, such as pepper, mustard, and catsup, are used to improve the
flavor of foods.
4. Reports such as the check-and-earnings statement are essential to operating a
business.
3. Cause and Effect Clues
The words and phrases such as because, consequently, so, due to, as a
result indicate cause and effect relationships.
Examples
1. Mary’s eyes had been sore for almost a week, so her mother decided to take her
to an oculist for treatment.
2. John was energetic enough to work sixteen hours at hospital because he had a
restful week end.
3. Computer is very expensive, so we cannot afford to buy it.

4. Contrast Clues
It is sometimes possible to determine the meaning of an unknown word
from a word or phrase in the context that has an opposite meaning. The words and
phrases such but, although, even though, yet, on the other hand, whereas,
nevertheless, and on the contrary indicate contrasting ideas.
Examples
1. During the ceremony, the graduates were quiet, but afterward they became
boisterous.
2. I loathe dogs even though most of my family loves them.
3. Most of graduates were elated, although a few felt sad and depressed.
4. I am certain that the hotel will hold our reservation, but if you are dubious, call
to make sure.

5. Inference Clues/ Logic of a Passage

Many times you can figure out meaning of unknown word by using logic
and reasoning skills. For Instance, look at the following sentence.
John is quite versatile; he is a top athlete, an excellent car mechanic, and a
gourmet cook.
You can see that John is successful at many different types of activities,
and you could reason that versatile means “capable of doing many things
competently”.

29
 Some of questions now before us are empirical issues that are requiring
evidence directly bearing on the question.
From the way empirical is used in the sentence, you know that an
empirical issues is one that require direct evidence, and from that information you
can infer, or reason, that empirical has something to do with proof or supporting
facts.
6. Restatement
The words and phrases such as or, in other word, that is to say, that is and
the signals, commas, parentheses, and dashes indicate restatement.
1. The instructors also teach the culture (the idea and beliefs of society).
2. Students memorize information; in other word they learn and remember
basic rules and facts.
3. Communicating or getting our message across is concerned not only of a
second language teacher but also all in our daily lives in whatever
language we happen to use.
4. An awareness of body language – the subtle messages conveyed by
posture, hand movement, eyes, and smiles – is one among the many
avenues to improve communication by adult.
5. Ancient Egyptians wrote hieroglyphics – pictures used to represent words.

7. Modifier
The phrase or clause after a noun modifies the noun.
1. They have city manager, who runs all the service departments of the
government and takes charge of buying, for the city.
2. An Illiterate person, being unable to read and write, is often cheated

8. Sentence/Paragraph
The sentence or sentences that come before or after the sentence
containing word explain the word. The paragraph in which an unknown word
appears may also explain the word.
1. At six on faster morning, the bell in the church began its sonorous ring. The
full, deep, rich ring of the bell could be heard in the empty street as the sun
came up.
2. Language learning strategies are not always readily observable to the human
eye. Many aspects of cooperating a strategy in which learner works with
someone else to achieve a learning goal, can be observed, but the act of making
mental association, an important memory strategy, can not be seen.
3. Children’s capabilities include both reception and production. They can
understand and they can communicate.

30
Exercise
1. They were conscientious workers, never stopping until they had taken care of
every detail so that everything was done correctly and precisely.
Conscientious means …
2. We feared that the new prime minister would be a menace to society, but she
turned out to be great peacemaker.
Menace means …
3. He jumped into fray and enjoyed every minute of the fight.
Fray means …
4. Fatty deposits on artery walls combine with calcium compound to cause
arteriosclerosis (hardening of the arteries).
5. Servers in restaurant depend on customers to leave a gratuity for their services.
Without tips, waiters could not make a living.
Gratuity means …
a. Money b. compliment c. recommendation
6. In searching for food, homeless people often have to scavenge in dumpsters.
Scavenge means …
a. Sleep b. hunt c. hide

31
C. REFERENCE
Understanding reference words in reading is an essential skill in order to
understand the passage in reading, so read this lesson carefully!
Take a look at this sentence – what wrong with it?

Some people believe that a university education should be available to

everyone as a university education will help with employment.

The problem here is that ‘university education’ has been repeated – the sentence
would have been better presented using a reference word like this:

Some people believe that a university education should be available to

everyone as this will help with employment.

Reference words (words that refer back to a previous word or phrase but
without repeating it) are very common in reading, and can often cause some
confusion. An important part of understanding a text is being able to identify the
reference words and their relationship to other words, phrases or sentences in the
passage.

References are words which substitute for other words or phrases. They
usually refer back to the ideas that have already been expressed; they sometimes
refer forward to the ideas yet to be stated.
The term The word reference is derived from Middle English referren,
from Middle French référer, from Latin referre, "to carry back", formed from
the prefix re- and ferre, "to bear". A number of words derive from the same root,
including refer, referee, referential, referent, referendum.
Exercise 1
Test your skills – what do the underlined words refer to?
New Zealand is becoming an increasingly popular destination for overseas
visitors. It attracts tourists and people on business, but the vast majority comes as
students. Mostly from Asian countries, they stay for anything from a few weeks to
a few years or more, studying at language schools, colleges and universities. New
Zealand can offer good homestay accommodation, a clean and beautiful
environment and a reasonable cost of tuition. These factors attract an ever-
increasing number of overseas students, accounting for millions of dollars in
revenue for New Zealand.
It : ______________
They : _______________
These factors : ____________

32
Exercise 2
Test your skills – what do the underlined words refer to?
A small group of scientists do not believe that dinosaurs became extinct because
they were big, clumsy beasts. Through their painstaking studies, these researchers
are trying to prove what really happened to these giants of yesteryear on the basis
of a theory that will astonish many: they think the cause of their demise came
from outer space.
they : ______________
their : ______________
these giants of yesteryear : ___________________
they : ______________
their : ______________

33
D. IDENTIFYING CORE PARTS OF SENTENCES

DEFINITION OF A SENTENCE
A sentence is a group of words that express a complete thought that
always contains subject and verb as its core parts. When you read, you must
understand the sentences in order to get the information that the author is telling in
his writing. For understanding the information, you need to look the key words in
a sentence. The key words are the subject and the verb. The subject tells who or
what the sentence is about. The verb tells what the subject does.
Example
Rachel lives in Pekanbaru
The subject of his sentence is Rachel. The sentence is about Rachel.
The verb in this sentence is lives.
The following exercise will help you learn how to find the important parts
of sentences
A B
1. Rachel is drinking a bus
2. Carol is cooking in a chair
3. Sam is driving near the door
4. Sergio is sitting coffee
5. Laura is standing a book
6. Don Pablo is reading dinner

When a group of words does not have subject or verb, that is not a
sentence, but it is called sentence fragment.
Example

 The man in the black suit

 Ate all the roast beef
 Running in the corridor
 When the race was over

E. TYPES OF SENTENCES
1. Simple sentence
A simple sentence, also called an independent clause, contains a subject
and verb, and it expresses a complete thought.

34
Simple Sentence:
 Has 1 independent clause
 Can stand alone
 Does NOT mean it is simple or easy
Examples
1. Juan and Arturo play football every afternoon.
2. Pekanbaru is a beautiful town.
3. Padang, the capital of West Sumatera province, is a beautiful town.
4. Will John go to Padang next week?
5. Are you students?
2. Compound sentence
A compound sentence contains two independent clauses joined by a
coordinator. The coordinators are as follow: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so
(FANBOYS).
Compound Sentence:
 Has 2 or more independent clauses (ones that can stand alone)
 Sentences combined with a conjunction (FANBOYS)
Examples
1. I went to the movie theatre on Saturday, and the movie “Gundala” was
great.
2. Alejandro played football, but Maria went shopping.

3. Complex sentence
A complex sentence has an independent clause joined by one or more
dependent clauses. A complex sentence always has a subordinator such as,
because, since, after, although, or when or a relative pronoun such as that, who, or
which.

Complex Sentence:
 Has 1 independent clause (stand alone)
AND
 Has 1 or more dependent clauses (a part that cannot stand alone)
Examples
1. When I got home, the door was locked.
2. Do all of your homework, before you go out to play.
3. The girl who sits next to me is beautiful.
4. The town where I grew up is in Indonesia.

4. Compound-complex sentence
A compound-complex sentence has two or more independent clauses
joined by one or more dependent clauses
Compound-Complex Sentence:
 Has 2 or more independent clauses (stand alone)
AND

35
  Has 1 or more dependent clauses (a part that cannot stand alone)
Example
1. Because we are future English teachers, some people expect us to speak
perfectly, and other people expect us to write perfectly.
2. Although I like to go camping, I haven't had the time to go lately, and I
haven't found anyone with whom to go.

CORE PART OR KEY IDEAS OF A SENTENCE

The two core part of a sentence – the subject and the verb, must be present
for a group of words to convey a complete thought. To be considered as a
sentence in written English, a group of words must fulfill three conditions. It must
(1) contain a subject, (2) contain a verb, and (3) express a complete thought. To
read and understand s sentence, you should be able to quickly identify these three
core parts.
In a simple sentence, the core parts are easy to identify, because, it often
has only the core part and a few additional descriptive words or phrases. Read this
sentence: The ship sank. It consists of the core part: the subject – Ship and the
verb or action – sank. Now read this sentence: After the battle, the ship sank. The
core parts are still easy to identify – ship and sank. However in condition to
conveying the basic message that the ship sank, the sentence contains one
additional place of information – when it sank.

Object
In some sentences, the verb has an object or thing it refers to that
completes the meaning of the sentence. You might think of the object as the
person, place, or thing upon whom or to which the action is performed. The object
is often called the receiver of the action. Here are a few sentences in which the
object is underlined.
The psychology instructor discussed a theory of motivation.
- A theory of motivation is what the instructor discussed.
Researchers have investigated the differences in communication style.
- Differences in communication style are what researchers have
investigated.

Sentence Modifier
Once you have identified the core parts of a sentence, the next step is to
determine how the meaning of those core parts is changed or modified by the
remainder of the sentence. These remaining parts, called modifier, provide you
with further information about one of the core parts. Notice how each of the
underlined modifiers expands, alters, or limits the meaning of the following
sentences.
After showing the film, the instructor gave a quiz.
- The modifier tells when the quiz is given.
Dr. Ling, my philosophy instructor, assigns one chapter per week.
- The modifier indicates who Dr. Ling is.

36
 Everyone except engineering major is required to take a philosophy
course.
- The modifier limits by giving an exception

In many long and complicated sentences, the key idea is not as obvious as
in the previous examples. To find the key idea, ask:
1. Who or what is the sentence about?
2. What is happened in the sentence?
Examples
1. Intelligence, as measured by IQ, depends on the kind of test given, the
skill of the examiner, and the cooperation of the subject.
2. Violence in sports, both at amateur and professional level, has increased
dramatically over the past ten years.
Identifying Core parts in Complicated Sentences
Many sentences are short, direct, and straightforward and, as such, are
easy to comprehend. Other, however, are complicated by the addition of
numerous facts and the expression of complex relationships.
Identifying core parts as you read becomes more difficult as sentences
become longer and more complicated and as additional information is added.
Simple sentence:
Abnormal behavior is the product of biochemical processes in the
brain
Complicated sentence:
Many professionals in the field of psychology, especially those
with medical backgrounds, believe that most, if not all, abnormal
behavior is the product of biochemical processes in the brain of
the affected individual.
The sentence is complicated by the addition of three pieces of information: (1)
who believe abnormal behavior is biochemically caused – “many professionals in
the field of psychology, especially with medical background”; (2) the qualifying
statement “most, if not all”; and (3) whose brain – “of the affected individual.”

37
 LESSON 5
ENGLISH COHESION
A. THEORY OF COHESION
Since the term of cohesion in paragraph refers to the content relationship,
Michael Halliday and Ruquaiya hasan propose five cohesive devices in English
(1976) as a mark of cohesion in discourse. Cohesion has role of building up
sentences in any given text. This comes through the linking of different parts of a
text to each other so that it gives a structure to a text. It helps in hanging sentences
together in a logical way, for having a right meaning. So, cohesion has a relation
with the broader concept of coherence.
B. Lexical Cohesion
According to Halliday and Hasan (1976: 6) classify cohesion in English
into two broad categories: grammatical cohesion and lexical cohesion.
Grammatical cohesion is the surface marking of semantic link between clauses
and sentences in written discourse and between utterances and turn in speech.
Then, lexical cohesion refers to how the writer uses lexical items such as verb,
adjectives, nouns and adverbs to relate to the text consistently to its area of focus
(Eggins, 1994). It is signaled by means of lexical elements/vocabularies.
C. Grammatical Cohesion
Grammatical cohesion includes devices such as reference, substitution, ellipsis,
and conjunction (Tanskanen, 2006: 15). Reference refers to items of language that
instead of being interpreted semantically in their own right, make reference to
other item for which the context is clear to both sender and receiver. In written
text, reference indicates how the writer introduces participant and keeps track of
them throughout the text. According to Halliday and Hasan, (1976:37) there are
three main types of references: personal reference, demonstrative reference, and
comparative reference. The category of personal reference includes: 1) personal
pronouns, e.g I, me, you, him, she, he, her, we, us, they, them, it; 2) possessive
determiners, e.g my, yours, their, its, our, his, her; 3) possessive pronouns, e.g.
mine, yours, hers, theirs, ours. The categories of demonstrative reference include
three classes namely: nominative demonstrative (this, that, these, those),
circumstantial demonstrative (here, there, now, then) and definite article (the).
The classification of comparative reference into two kinds, namely: “general” and
“particular” comparison. General comparison deals with comparison which is
simply in terms of likeness and unlikeness, without respect to any particular
property: two things may be the same, similar or different (where “different”
includes both “not the same” and “not similar”)
According to Halliday and Hasan emphasize that substitution is a relation
in the wording rather than in the meaning. They also explain that there are three
types of substitution, namely: nominal (one/ones), verbal (do) and clausal (so, not)

38
 Ellipsis is omission of elements normally require by the grammar which
the speaker/writer assumes as obvious from the context and therefore need not to
be raise. Halliday and Hasan (1976: 146) clasify Ellipsis into three types; Nominal
ellipsis, Verbal ellipsis, and Clausal ellipsis
Mather & Jaffe (2002: 1) state that conjunction represent semantic relation
that expresses how a clause or statement is relate in meaning to a previous clause
or statement; it is signal by a specific connecting word or phrase. Halliday and
Hasan also classify conjunction into four types, namely adversative, additive,
temporal and causal
According Halliday and Hasan (1976) divide lexical cohesion into two
major categories, namely: reiteration and collocation. Reiteration is a mechanism
of producing cohesion in a text by means of repetition of two or more lexical
items that are observable at the surface of the text. The following is example of
the use of reiteration which was quote from Halliday and Hasan (1976: 279)
There is a boy climbing a tree
a. The boy is going to fall if he doesn’t take care (repetition)
b. The lad is going to fall if he doesn’t take care (synonym)
c. The child is going to fall if he doesn’t take care (super ordinate)
d. The idiot is going to fall if he doesn’t take care (general word)

D. Exercise 1
Identify and analyze grammatical cohesion (reference, conjunction, ellipsis and
substitution) of the sentences below!

1. In my composition I don’t touch upon the question of death penalty, because

it is a complicated one.
2. The children will carry the small boxes, the adults _ the large.
3. I give two shirts to Dona, how many should I give to Raida? Give same to
her.
4. I never met him before. My friends said that he is a kind and helpful
professor. I wish I can see Professor William soon.
5. She hugged and _ kissed her baby
6. Do you think that the assignment will due this week? I hope not! I haven’t
written anything!
7. What have you been doing? _ Swimming.
8. She was 5 minutes late submitting her final project. As a result, she lost 5%
of her final score
9. Who was playing the piano? John was_.
10. Daughter : Mom, what do you think about this dress?
Mom : Oh dear, I think that’s too short for you.

39
Exercise 2
Identify and analyze lexical cohesion (synonym, repetition, antonym, and
hyponym) of the following sentences.

1. A conference will be held on national environmental policy. At this

Conference, the issue of salinity will play an important role.
2. A conference will be held on national environmental policy. This
environmental symposium will be held primarily a conference dealing with
water.
3. The meeting commenced at seven thirty. But from the moment it began, it was
clear that all was not well.
4. We were in town today shopping for furniture. We saw a lovely table.
5. There was a fine old rocking chair that his father used to sit in, a desk where
he wrote letters, a nest small table and dark, imposing bookcase. Now all this
furniture was to be sold, and with it his own past.
6. Although Tom was anxious about the test, Tina was not worried at all.
7. Wise men should speak. Fools are much less interesting to listen to.
8. John caught a snake underneath a bucket. The serpent is going to suffocate if
he does not let it go.
9. He was just wondering which road to take when he was started by a noise from
behind him. It was the noise of trotting horses . . . He dismounted and led his
horse as quickly as he could along the right-hand road. The sound of the
cavalry grew rapidly nearer …

40
 LESSON 6
THEME AND RHEME
A. Theme (in some sources, also “topic,” “background,” or “presupposition”) is
the semantic point of departure of a clause (or more broadly, discourse) about
which some information is provided:
1) Tom likes travelling.
2) Our friends have invited us.
In these examples, theme (Tom/our friends) is in the initial position. This
is the most common position for theme in English. Due to SVO (subject-verb-
object) structure of a typical English sentence, theme is often the subject of the
sentence; however, passive voice violates this rule. It is worth mentioning that in
some other languages (e.g. Japanese), the common place for theme is the end of a
sentence. In languages with free word order (e.g. Ukrainian), theme can be found
in the middle of a sentence.

B. Rheme (in some sources, also “comment,” “focus,” or “pre dictation”) is the

destination where the presentation moves after the departure point:
3) Tom likes travelling.
4) Smoking is harmful for our health.

In examples 3 and 4, rheme is represented by “like travelling” and “is

harmful for our health”. Structurally, rheme usually follows theme in English.
Theme – rheme relationship produce cohesion making parts of a sentence a
communicative whole.

C. Exercise 1
Identify and analyze theme-rheme in each sentence or clause of the text
below. Put theme-rheme in the table provided.

Oprah Gail Winfrey is a great talk show host from America. Her
well-known talk show “The Oprah Winfrey Show” was the highest-rated
television program from 1986 to 2011. Because of this phenomenal talk
show, she dubbed as the “Queen of All Media”. She has also been ranked
the richest African-American and_greatest black philanthropist in
American history.
Oprah was born on January 29, 1954 in Mississippi, United States.
By 2019, her age is 64 years old.  She has 169 centimeters tall while her
weight is 77 kilograms. During her career, she successfully lost her
weight. But then, she gained much weight again. She has brown eyes &
black hair.
Oprah Winfrey was born into poverty in rural Mississippi. She was
molested by her cousin, uncle, as well as a family friend when she was
nine years old. At 14, she became pregnant but her son was born
prematurely and died shortly after birth. Then, she moved to her father’s

41
 house and landed a job in radio. Her consistent efforts led her into the
successful African-American.

No Theme Rheme
1 Oprah Gail Winfrey is a great talk show host from America
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

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 LESSON 7
UNDERSTANDING PARAGRAPHS
Understanding paragraph can be used as a comprehensible input through
comprehending paragraph components (topic, topic sentence, supporting details,
and transitions) and paragraph pattern.
1. Identify main ideas in paragraphs.
2. Pick out the key details.
3. Use transitions to make reading easier.
When you go to see a movie, the first thing you want to know is: “What is
it about?” As the movie begins, various characters interact. To understand this
interaction, you have to know who the characters are and understand what they
are saying. Then you have to note how characters relate to one another. To grasp
the point the film is making, you have to realize what all of the conversation and
action, taken together, means.
Understanding a paragraph is similar in ways to understanding a movie.
The first thing you need to know is what the paragraph is about. Then you have to
understand each of the sentences and what they are saying. Next, you have to see
how the sentences relate to one another. Finally, to understand the main point of
the paragraph, you have to consider what all the sentences, taken together, means.
The one of the whole paragraph is about is called the topic. The point that
the whole paragraph makes is called the main idea. The sentences that explain the
main idea are called details. To connect their ideas, writers use words and phrases
known as transitions.
A paragraph, then, is a group of related sentences about a single topic. It
has four essential parts: (1) topic, (2) main idea, (3) details, and (4) transitions. To
read paragraph most efficiently, you will need to become familiar with each part
of a paragraph and be able to identify and use these parts as you read.

GENERAL AND SPECIFIC IDEAS

To identify topics and main ideas in paragraphs, it will help you to
understand the difference between general and specific. A general idea is a broad
idea that applies to a large number of specific items. The term clothing is general
because it refers to a large collection of specific items – slacks, suits, blouses,
shirts, scarves, and so on. A specific idea or term is more detailed or particular. It
refers to individual items. The word scarf, for examples, is a particular term. The
phrase red scarf is even more specific.
Now we will apply the idea of general and specific to paragraphs. The
main idea is the most general statement the writer makes about the topic. Pick out
the most general statement among the following sentences.

43
 1. People differ according to height.
2. Hair color distinguishes some people from other.
3. People differ in a number of different ways.
4. Each person has his own personality.
What sentence is the most general statement? Now we will change this list
into a paragraph, rearranging the list and adding a few facts.
People differ in numerous ways. They differ according to physical
characteristics, such as height, weight, and hair color. They also differ in
personality. Some people are friendly and easygoing. Others are more
reserved and formal.
In this paragraph, the main idea is expressed in the first sentence. All the
other sentences or statements are specific details that explain this main idea.
A. IDENTIFYING THE TOPIC
The topic is the one thing a paragraph is about. Every sentence in a
paragraph in some way discusses or explains this topic. To find the topic of a
paragraph, ask yourself: What is the one thing the author is discussing throughout
the paragraph.
Flextime, which began in the mid-1960s as an alternative work schedule
experiment, will be a fact of life in many industries in the 21 st century. We’ll
work not according to traditional work schedules but according to our
biological and emotional rhythms. The night owls among us will be delighted
to work the lobster shifts and let the rest of us work during the day. The
number of hours worked won’t be as significant as what you accomplish when
you work. The advantage of flextime is that it permits flexible, cost-effective
work arrangements.
In this example, author is discussing one topic – flextime – throughout the
paragraph. Notice that the words flexible and flextime are used several times.
Often the repeated use of a word can serve as a clue to the topic.
B. FINDING THE MAIN IDEA
The main idea of a paragraph is what the author wants you to know about
the topic. It is the broad, important idea that the writer develop throughout the
paragraph. The entire paragraph, then, explains, develops, and supports this main
idea. A question that will guide you in finding the main idea is, “What is the
author saying about the topic?”
The Topic Sentence
Usually one sentence expresses the main idea. This sentence is called the topic
sentence.

44
 In the following paragraph, the topic is the effect of alcohol on the brain.
Read the paragraph to find out what the writer wants you to know about how
alcohol affects the brain. Look for one sentence that states this.
The effects of alcohol are achieved through a depression of brain function.
It is a common misconception that alcohol is a stimulant. The liveliness of
people who have had one or two drinks at a party is the result of sedation of
portions of the brain that normally exercise judgment or control. At slightly
higher concentrations, alcohol affects portions of the brain that control
muscular coordination. At higher concentrations yet, the ability of the brain to
receive pain messages is impaired, and body metabolism is slowed down, in
extreme cases to the point of coma or death.
The first sentence states that alcohol depresses the function of the brain. The
remainder of the paragraph explains how the brain reacts to varying amounts of
alcohol.
Where to Find the Topic Sentence
The topic sentence can be located everywhere in the paragraph. However, there
are several positions where it is most likely to be found..
TOPIC SENTENCE FIRST
The most common placement of the topic sentence is first in the
paragraph. In this type of paragraph, the author states the main idea at the
beginning of the paragraph and then elaborates on it. For example:
The good listener, in order to achieve the purpose of
acquiring information, is careful to follow specific steps to achieve
accurate understanding. First, whenever possible the good listener
prepares it advance for the speech or lecture he or she is going to
attend. He or she studies the topic to be discussed and finds out
about the speaker and his or her beliefs. Second, on arriving at the
place where the speech is to be given, he or she chooses a seat
where seeing, hearing, and remaining alert are easy. Finally, when
the speech is over, he or she reviews what was said and react to
and evaluates the ideas expressed.
Usually, in this type of paragraph, the author is employing a deductive
thought pattern in which a statement is made at the beginning and then supported
through the paragraph.
TOPIC SENTENCE LAST
The second most likely place for a topic sentence to appear is last in the
paragraph. When using this arrangement, a writer leads up to the main point and
then directly states it at the end.

45
 Whenever possible the good listener prepares it advance for
the speech or lecture he or she is going to attend. He or she studies
the topic to be discussed and finds out about the speaker and his or
her beliefs. Second, on arriving at the place where the speech is to
be given, he or she chooses a seat where seeing, hearing, and
remaining alert are easy. Finally, when the speech is over, he or
she reviews what was said and react to and evaluates the ideas
expressed. Thus, an effective listener, in order to achieve the
purpose of acquiring information, is careful to follow specific steps
to achieve accurate understanding.
The thought pattern frequently used in this type of paragraph is inductive. That is,
the author provides supporting evidence for the main idea first, and then states it.
TOPIC SENTENCE IN THE MIDDLE
Another common placement of the topic sentence is in the middle of the
paragraph. In this case, the author builds up the main idea, states it in the middle
of the paragraph, and then goes on with further elaboration and detail.
Whenever possible the good listener prepares it advance for
the speech or lecture he or she is going to attend. He or she studies
the topic to be discussed and finds out about the speaker and his or
her beliefs. An effective listener, as you are beginning to see, takes
specific steps to achieve accurate understanding of the lecture.
Furthermore, on arriving at the place where the speech is to be
given, he or she chooses a seat where seeing, hearing, and
remaining alert are easy. Finally, when the speech is over, he or
she reviews what was said and react to and evaluates the ideas
expressed.
TOPIC SENTENCE FIRST AND LAST
Sometimes an author uses two sentences to state the main idea or state the
main idea twice in one paragraph. Usually, in this type of paragraph, the writer
states the main idea as the beginning of the paragraph, then explains or supports
the idea, and finally restates the main idea at the very end. For example:
The good listener, in order to achieve the purpose of
acquiring information, is careful to follow specific steps to achieve
accurate understanding. First, whenever possible the good listener
prepares it advance for the speech or lecture he or she is going to
attend. He or she studies the topic to be discussed and finds out
about the speaker and his or her beliefs. Second, on arriving at the
place where the speech is to be given, he or she chooses a seat
where seeing, hearing, and remaining alert are easy. Finally, when
the speech is over, he or she reviews what was said and react to
and evaluates the ideas expressed. Effective listening is an active

46
 process in which a listener deliberately takes certain actions to
ensure that accurate communication has occurred.

INFERRING UNSTATED MAIN IDEAS

Although most paragraphs do have a topic sentence, some do not. This type of
paragraph contains only details or specifics that, taken together, point to the main
idea. In paragraphs in which no one sentence clearly expresses the main idea, you
must figure it out.
Reading paragraph in which the main idea is unstated is similar to doing a
math problem. It is a process of adding up the facts and deciding what they mean
together. To solve this math problem you add the numbers and come up with a
total sum.
46 fact
74 fact
89 fact
+22 +fact
231 main idea

Think of a paragraph without a topic sentence in a similar way. It is a list of

facts or details that you add up or put together to determine the meaning of the
paragraph as a whole.
Use the following steps as a guide to finding unstated main ideas.
1. Find the topic. Ask yourself: “What is the one thing the author is
discussing throughout the paragraph?”
2. Decide what the writer wants you to know about the topic. Look at each
detail and decide what larger idea each explain.
3. Express this idea in your own words.
Read the following paragraph; then follow the three steps listed above.
In the past, most individuals were educated during a specific period of
their lives. By the time they reached their mid-20s, they could retire their
notebooks, textbooks, carbon paper, scratch pads, and pencils and pens and
concentrate on building their careers. Tomorrow’s workers will have to hold
on to their training paraphernalia because they can expect to be retrained
throughout their working lives. It may mean taking company-sponsored
courses every few months, after-work seminars, or spending a number of days
or weeks in a nearby university attending lecturers at different points during
the year.

47
C. RECOGNIZING SUPPORTING DETAILS
Supporting details are those facts and ideas that prove or explain the main idea
of a paragraph. While all the detail in a paragraph do support the main idea, not all
details are equally important. As you read, try to identify and pay attention to the
most important details. Pay less attention to details of lesser importance. They key
details directly explain the main idea. Other details may provide additional
information, offer an example, or further explain one of the key details. What are
the main facts the author uses to back up or prove what he or she said about the
topic?
The following diagram shows how details relate to the main idea and how details
range in degree of importance. In the diagram, more-important details are placed
toward the left; less-important details are closer to the right.
Most Important lesser important
MAIN IDEA

Detail

Detail

Detail
Read the following paragraph and study the diagram that follows.
The skin of the human body has several functions. First, it serves as a
protective covering. In doing so, it accounts for 17 percent of the body weight.
Skin also protects the organs within the body from damage or harm. The skin
serves as a regulator of body functions. It controls body temperature and water
loss. Finally, the skin serves as a receiver. It is sensitive to touch and temperature.
Skin has several functions

protective covering

17 percent of body weight

protects organs

Regulates body functions

temperature

water loss

Receiver

touch

temperature

48
TYPES OF SUPPORTING INFORMATION
Authors use various types of supporting information to explain a
controlling idea of a topic sentence or a textbook section. Recognizing these types
of supporting information is the key to understanding how author develops and
connect his or her ideas.
Examples/illustration
Usually a writer gives an example to make an idea practical and
understandable. An example shows how a principle, concept, problem, or process
works or can be applied in a real situation.
The situations consumers find themselves in can also have direct
influence on their purchase behavior. Consider, for example, the consumer
behavior of a person who has a tire blow out one block away from a
service station. …
Description
An author uses description to help you visualize the appearance,
organization, or composition of an object, a place, or a process. Descriptions are
usually detailed and are intended to help you create a mental picture of what is
being described. Read the following description of the stylistic features of various
artists’ work.
To turn now to our central topic, style in art, we can all instantly
tell the differences between a picture by Van Gogh and one by Norman
Rockwell or Walt Disney, even though the subject matter of all three
pictures is the same, for instance, a seated woman. How can we tell? By
the style, that is, by line, color, medium, and so forth─all of the things we
talked about earlier in this chapter. Walt Disney’s figure tend to be built
up out of circle (think of Mickey Mouse), and the color shows no modeling
or traces of brush strokes; Norman Rockwell’s methods of depicting
figures are different, and Van Gogh’s are different in yet other ways. …
Fact and Statistic
Another way to support an idea is to include facts or statistics that provide
information about the main idea or controlling idea. Read the following passage,
and notice how facts and statistics are used to support the idea that age is a
limiting factor in the war against poverty.
Another limitation of the success of the War on Poverty involves
age rather than residence or region. Most of the people who officially
moved out of poverty, especially in the 1070s, were older. And even their
relative gains began to be reversed in the early 1980s.

49
 Between 1970 and 1978, the number of poor people over 65
dropped by almost a million and a half. Most of this decline resulted from
improved Social Security benefits. …
Citation of Research Evidence
In many field of study, authors support their ideas by citing research that
has been done on the topic. Authors report the result of surveys, experiment, and
research studies to substantiate theories or principles or to lend support to a
particular viewpoint. The following excerpt from a social problems textbook
report the result of research conducted to described the extent of family violence.
One of the most extensive recent studies of family violence,
conducted by the sociologists Murray Strauss, Richard Gelles, and
Suzanne Steinmetz, concluded that “violence between family members is
probably as common as love” …

D. TRANSITIONS
Transitions are linking words or phrases that a writer uses to lead the order
from one idea to another. If you get in the habit of recognizing transitions, you
will see that they often guide you through a paragraph, enabling you to read it
more easily.
In the following paragraph, notice how the underlined transitions lead you (a
reader) from one important detail to the next.
The principle of rhythm and line also contributes to the overall unity of the
Landscape design. This principle is responsible for the sense of community
between different areas of the Landscape. One way in which this continuity
can be developed is by extending planting beds from one area to another. For
example, shrub beds developed around the entrance to the house can be
continued around the sides and into the backyard. Such an arrangement helps
to tie the front and rear areas of the property together. Another means by
which rhythm is given to a design is to repeat shapes, angles, or lines between
various areas and elements of the design.

Table 1 COMMON TRANSITIONS

Types of Transitions Example What they Tell the Reader

Time-Sequence First, later, next, finally The author is arranging ideas
in the order in which they
happened
Example for example, for instance, An example will follow
to illustrate, such as
Enumeration first, second, third, last, The author is marking or

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 another, next identifying each major point
(sometimes these may be
used to suggest order of
importance
Continuation Also, in addition, and, The author is continuing with
further, another the same idea and is going to
provide additional
information.
Contrast On the other hand, in The author is switching to a
contrast, however different, opposite, or
contrasting idea than
previously
Comparison Like, likewise, similarly The writer will show how the
previous idea is similar to
what follow
Cause-Effect Because, thus, therefore, The writer will show a
since, consequently connection between two or
more things, how one thing
caused another, or how
something happened as a
result of something else
Summary
A paragraph is a group of related sentences about a single topic. It has four
essential parts.
1. TOPIC: The one thing the entire paragraph is about.
2. MAIN IDEA: The most important idea the writer wants the reader to know
about the topic.
3. DETAILS: Facts and ideas that prove or explain the main idea.
4. TRANSITIONS: Words and phrases that lead the reader from one idea to
another
A paragraph, then, provides explanation and support for a main idea about a
particular topic. The sentence that expresses this main idea is called the topic
sentence. A topic sentence may be located anywhere in a paragraph, but the most
common positions are first, last, middle, or both first and last.
While most paragraphs contain a topic sentence, occasionally a writer will
write a paragraph in which the main idea is not stated in a single sentence. Instead,
it is left up to the reader to infer, or reason out, the main idea. To find main idea
when it is instated, ask yourself the following questions: What is the one thing
(topic) this paragraph is about, and what is the author saying about this thing
(main idea)?

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 LESSON 8
FOLOWING THE AUTHOR’S THOUGHT PATTERNS
A. THOUGHT PATTERN
1. Improve your understanding and recall by recognizing thought
patterns.
2. Identify five commonly used thought patterns

a. Study each of these drawings for a few seconds (count to ten as you
look at each one.

b. Cover up the drawings and try to draw each from memory.

c. Check to see how many you had exactly corrected.
Most likely you draw all but the fourth correctly. Why did you get that one
wrong? How does it differ from the others?
Drawing 1, 2, 3, and 5 have patterns. Drawing 4, however, has no pattern;
it is just a group of randomly arranged lines.
From this experiment you can see that it is easier to remember drawings
that have a pattern, some understandable form of organization. The same is
true of written material. If you can see how paragraph is organized, it will be
easier to understand and remember. Writer often present their ideas in a
recognizable order. Once you can organize the organizational pattern, you will
remember more what you read.

Pattern of Organization

For many kinds of reading, such as reading textbooks or articles in your own field,
in addition to the author’s topic and main idea, you also need to recognize how he
developed them. That way of idea development is called the pattern of
organization. In some paragraph information are presented in sequence of events,
some others in sequence of steps, in comparison and contrast, in cause and effects,
in list of characteristics, or in the mixture of two different paragraph types. Once
you recognize the pattern, you will understand and follow their ideas more
efficiently. According to Mikulecky and Jeffries (2007: 134), there are six major
pattern of organization, i.e. listing, sequence, comparison/contrast, cause/effect,
problem/solution, and extended definition. The following explanations are based
on Mikulecky and Jeffries’ work.

1. Listing

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In the listing pattern, the writer states the main idea in the form of a generalization
and gives a list of details or examples to support that general statement. Common
key words/phrases found in the main idea are: many, several, a number of, a
variety of, a few, kinds of. Transitional words/phrases used in this organizational
pattern are: for example, for instance, first, second, another, also, besides, in
addition, final, last, most important. Look at the following paragraph.

There are several different theories about the origin of the Moon. One theory,
called the fission’ theory, states that early in the life of Earth, a piece broke off,
and that piece became the Moon. A second, closely related theory is that the
Moon is composed of several pieces of Earth that broke away from our planet.
Yet another theory is that the Moon formed elsewhere in the solar system and was
captured by Earth’s gravity.’ The final theory states that a huge piece of planetary
rock struck Earth and broke up into pieces. One of the pieces became the Moon.
(From: Mikulecky, B. S. and Jeffries, L. 2007: 135)

Explanation:

This paragraph discusses about “Theories about the origin of the Moon”. This is
the topic. In relation to the topic, writer states, “There are several different
theories about the origin of the Moon.” This is the main idea. To make this idea
convincing, he lists four theories. That’s why the organizational pattern of this
paragraph is listing.

2. Sequence

In the sequence pattern, the writer explains the main idea with a series of events
or steps in a process that follow one after the other in time order. The common
key word/phrases in the main idea are: began, account, story, process, history,
sequence. The common signal words/phrases are: first, second, then, next, after,
while, since, then, soon, finally, at last, in 1965, last June, later, over time, the
next step, the following week. Look at the following paragraph.

The years between 1918 and 1945 brought violence and upheaval to the newly
formed Polish nation. In 1918, Poland was declared independent, and army officer
Jozef Pilsudski took control of the government. After 1926, the government
became a dictatorship, first under Pilsudski and later, after his death in 1935,
under officers loyal to him. The officers, however, did not rule for long. In 1939,
Germany and Russia invaded Poland, and both powers divided up the country.
During the war years that followed, the Germans murdered anywhere from three
to five and a half million Polish Jews; they killed more than half of the population
of Warsaw, and the capital itself was completely destroyed. Warsaw, once one of
the most beautiful capitals n Europe, was reduced to rubble.

Explanation:

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This paragraph focuses on “political events in Poland between the years 1918 and
1945,” and this is the topic of the paragraph. In addition to the sequence of
political dates and events, this paragraph also expresses the writer’s idea that
“Poland underwent violence and upheaval during 1918-1945.”  This is the main
idea of the paragraph, which is contained in the first sentence. So, this sentence
functions as the topic sentence.

The following paragraph also employs the sequence organizational pattern.

However, different from the paragraph above which uses a series of events, the
next paragraph uses a series of steps (process).

Not all stars are the same age, so it is possible to see stars at every stage of their
life cycle. From their observations, astrophysicists can explain the process of the
formation of a star. A star begins life inside a nebula, a huge cloud of gas and dust
in outer space. Over time, the force of gravity pulls some of the gas and dust
together to form into clumps. Then the temperature inside the nebula begins to
rise. Next, several clumps come together and become denser and hotter, and they
form a protostar (an early form of a star). After that, the protostar continues to
grow until it has become about as large as our Sun. At that point, nuclear reactions
begin to occur in its core (center), and these reactions send energy to the surface
of the protostar. Finally, the energy escapes as heat and light and a new star begins
to shine.

Explanation:

This paragraph discusses about “The process of the formation of a star”. This is
the topic. According to the writer, “a star is formed in a process during which
clumps of gas and dust form a protostar that becomes large and hot.” This is the
main idea.

3. Comparison/Contrast

In the comparison/contrast pattern, the writer’s main idea is a general statement

about two things and how they are similar and/or different. A comparison can
include both similarities and differences, or only the similarities. A contrast states
only differences. The common key words/phrases in the main idea: similarities,
differences, both, in common, same, different, compare, comparison. The usual
signal words/phrases for similarities are similarly, also, in the same way, as, like,
both, in common. The common signal words/phrases for differences are: however,
but, on the other hand, although, while, in contrast, than, conversely, yet, unlike.
Look at the following paragraph.

When Gerald Ford, the thirty-eighth president of the U.S., came to office, he was
fond of emphasizing his resemblance to one of his famous predecessors, Harry S.
Truman. Like Ford, Truman had been a vice president who became president only
by chance. Truman took over when Franklin Roosevelt died in office, a
circumstance that resembled Ford’s own ascent to the presidency when Richard

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Nixon resigned from office. Truman, like Ford, was not an intellectual, and he
tended to exaggerate his lack of learning, insisting that he was just a simple man
with simple tastes. Ford also like to emphasize that both he and Truman came to
office at a difficult time. Truman led the nation during the final months of World
War II, and Ford entered office after the nation had been faced with the Watergate
scandals.

Explanation:

This paragraph focuses on some similarities between Ford and Truman. This is
the topic of the paragraph. The main idea appears in the first sentence: “Gerald
Ford liked to point out how similar he was to Harry Truman. The remaining
supporting sentences develop that main idea by listing the similarities between
them.

Different from the paragraph above, which focuses on similarities, the following
paragraph focuses on differences.

Earth differs greatly from its two closest neighboring planets, Venus and Mars.
The Venusian and Martian atmospheres are composed almost entirely of carbon
dioxide, while Earth’s atmosphere contains very little. The dominant material in
our atmosphere is nitrogen (77 percent). The other major component of Earth’s
atmosphere is oxygen (21 percent), a gas that is almost nonexistent on Venus and
Mars. Our planet has an abundance’ of water, which covers about 70 percent of
Earth’s surface and supports life on our planet. In contrast, Venus and Mars are
extremely dry planets and incapable of supporting life.

Explanation:

This paragraph focuses on some differences between Earth and Venus and Mars.
This is the topic of the paragraph. The main idea appears in the first sentence:
“The Earth differs greatly from that of its two closest neighboring planets, Venus
and Mars. The remaining supporting sentences develop that main idea by listing
the differences among them.

4. Cause/Effect

In this pattern, the writer’s main idea is that one event or action caused another
event or action. Common key words/phrases in the main idea and the signal words
for details are the same and often include: causes, leads to, is the cause of results
in, creates, brings about, makes, provokes, produces, gives rise to, contributes to,
is due to, is the result of, comes from, results from, is produced by, is a
consequence of, follows, is caused by. Look at the following paragraph.

There are more old people in the world today because of an increase in medical
services. Today, more people can get medical services from doctors and nurses in
hospitals and clinics. As a result, fewer people get fatal disease such as yellow

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fever, malaria, cholera, and typhoid. This decrease in fatal diseases causes a
decrease in the number of people who die from these diseases. Because of this
decrease in number of deaths, people can live longer today. As a result, there has
been an increase in the number of old people living in the world today. 

Explanation:

The topic of this paragraph is the cause of increase in the number of old people.
According to the writer, there are more old people in the world today because of
an increase in medical services. This is the main idea. To support his idea, the
author shows how the increase in medical services has caused the increase in the
number of old people living in the world today.

5. Problem/Solution

In this pattern, the main idea names a problem and indicates that one or more
solutions. The paragraph always consists of two parts: 1) a statement and 2) a
description and explanation of how it was solved. There are often no signal words
for the details. The common key words/phrases in the main idea are situation,
trouble, crisis, dilemma or issue. The common key words in the body of the
paragraph include: solve, solution, resolved. Look at the following paragraph.

Beginning in the 1600s, astronomers had realized that their telescopes had serious
limits. They had managed to build stronger and better telescopes, but no matter
how strong the new telescopes were, they were less than satisfactory. The
astronomers were able to view objects only when the objects were in view of
Earth. At the same time, however, Earth’s light and atmosphere made it difficult
to see many heavenly objects. Thanks to the Hubble Telescope, this has been
solved, because the Hubble is not just a telescope. It is a digital camera on a
satellite that travels about 370 miles (600 km) above Earth, making a complete
orbit every ninety-seven minutes. Since 1990, Hubble has been able to take digital
pictures of planets, galaxies, comets, and more, and these are sent back to Hubble
headquarters for scientists to study.

Explanation:

The topic of this paragraph is “the problem caused by telescope limitation”.

According to the writer, the new Hubble telescope has solved the problem.” This
is the main idea.

6. Extended Definition

In this pattern, the writer names a concept or complicated process that the
paragraph will define and explain. Usually, the main idea or first sentence of the
paragraph states a dictionary definition of the concept or process, followed by a
description and/or an explanation. There are usually no signal words for the

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details. The common key words/phrases in the main idea are: consists of, is, seems
to be, are. Look at the following sample paragraph.

A solar eclipse is an astronomical event during which the Moon seems to cover
the Sun. When the Moon passes between the Earth and the Sun, all or part of the
Sun’s light is blotted out. The Moon, in fact, is much smaller than the Sun, but it
is also a great deal closer to the Earth. As a result, both the Sun and the Moon
seem to be about the same size to us. During a total eclipse, the Sun, the Moon,
and the Earth are all in a straight line and the Moon completely hides the Sun
from view. A partial eclipse occurs when the three bodies are not exactly in a
straight line. In an annular solar eclipse, the Sun is visible as a bright ring around
the Moon because the Moon is farthest from the Earth.

Explanation:

The topic of this paragraph is “Solar eclipse”, whereas the main idea is the one
stated in the first sentence, i.e. “A solar eclipse is an astronomical event during
which the Moon seems to cover the Sun.”

SUMMARY
Recognition of an author’s thought, or organizational, pattern is an aid to
comprehension and recall. There are six of the most common ways paragraphs are
organized:
1. Illustration-example. An idea is explained by providing specific
instances or experiences that illustrate it.
2. Definition. An object or idea is explained by describing the general class
or group to which it belongs and how the item differs from other in the
same group (distinguishing features)
3. Comparison-Contrast. A new or unfamiliar idea is explained by showing
how it is similar to or different from a more familiar idea.
4. Cause-effect. Connections between events are explained by showing what
caused an event or what happened as a result of a particular event.
5. Classification. An object or idea is explained by dividing it into parts and
describing or explaining each.
6. Chronological Order-Process. Events or procedures are described in the
order in which they occur in time.

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 EXERCISES

Read the following paragraphs and determine the topic, the main idea, and the
organizational pattern employed in each of them.

1. Between 1890 and 1900, millions of people from southern and eastern
Europe left their home in search of the American dream. The new
immigrants had hoped to find a comfortable place where they could settle
and live out their lives. But the cities to which they came were not
prepared for the new arrivals, and many immigrant families ended up in
ugly tenements that were poorly supplied with light, heat and water. They
had dreamt of finding work, work that could make them independent, even
rich. Instead they found that jobs were scarce. Frequently they had to take
jobs for which they were unsuited, and the work left them exhausted and
depressed. Many immigrants found that instead of the warm welcome they
expected, they were treated as outsiders, with funny customs and even
funnier way of speaking.
2. Human digestion begins when we use our teeth to cut and grind food. As
we chew, saliva moistens and softens food so it can be easily swallowed.
After being swallowed, the food passes into a tube that connects the mouth
and stomach; this tube is called esophagus. After the food reaches the
stomach, muscles in the stomach will mix it together and combine it with a
gastric juice that consists mostly of water and hydrochloric acid. The
gastric juice reduces the food to a liquid that can pass into the small
intestine. The passage takes about eight hours. During this time, enzymes
break down the food even more, preparing it for absorption into the blood
stream.
3. Liberty Statue is a colossal statue in Liberty Island in the Upper New York
Bay, U.S., made to commemorate the friendship of the peoples of the
United States and France. Standing 305 feet (93 meters) high including its
pedestal, it represents a woman holding a torch in her raised right hand and
a tablet bearing the adoption date of the Declaration of Independence (July
4, 1776) in her left. The torch, which measures 29 feet (8.8 meters) from
the flame tip to the bottom of the handle, is accessible via a 42-foot (12.8-
metre) service ladder inside the arm (this ascent was open to the public
from 1886 to 1916). An elevator carries visitors to the observation deck in
the pedestal, which may also be reached by stairway, and a spiral staircase
leads to an observation platform in the figure’s crown.
4. The atmosphere of Earth acts like any window in serving two very
important functions: to let light in and to permit us to look out and to
guard Earth from dangerous or uncomfortable things. A normal glazed
window lets us keep our house warm by keeping out cold air. In such a
way, the Earth’s atmospheric window helps to keep our planet to a
comfortable temperature by holding back radiated heat and protecting us
from dangerous levels of ultraviolet light. Just like a window which
prevents rain, dirt, and unwelcome insects and animals from coming in,
scientists have discovered that space is full of a great many very dangerous

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 things against which our atmosphere guards us. (Adapted from: Brandon
& Brandon, 2011: 289).
5. Astronauts face many problems in space caused by weightlessness. One of
these problems is floating around the cabin. To solve this problem,
astronauts wear shoes that are coated with a special adhesive. This
adhesive sticks to the floor of the cabin. Serving food is another problem.
It won’t stay put on the table! Experts solved this problem by putting food
and drinks in pouches and tubes. It only needs to be mixed with water.
Weightlessness also causes problems when an astronaut tries to work. The
simple task of turning a wrench or a doorknob can be difficult. Since there
is no gravity to keep him down, when he exerts a force in one direction,
the opposite force may flip him over completely. To solve this problem, he
must be very careful about how much force he uses to do these simple
tasks. Here on earth, life is much simpler, thanks to gravity.

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 LESSON 9
READING ARTICLES AND ESSAYS

This part will show you how to

1. Use organizational features of articles and essays
2. Recognize various types of articles and essays and read them more
effectively.
Most college students expect to be given textbook reading assignment.
However, many are surprised when their instructors assign other types of reading
as well. Many instructors assign supplementary (additional) readings in books or
magazines. Others distribute reading lists or place material on reserve in the
library. These assignments add to the information the textbook provides. Some
may present a particular viewpoint on a controversial issue. Others may update
information in the text. Still others may know a particular application of concepts
and theories learned in the course.
When reading assigned articles and essays, you must comprehend the
material. Becoming familiar with organizational features will make
comprehension easier. Reading will also be easier if you know what type of article
or essay you are reading and how to approach it.
ORGANIZATIONAL FEATURES
Most articles and essay follow a basic organizational pattern. Once you
familiar with the pattern, reading articles and essays will be easier task. With few
exceptions, articles and essays have five basic parts.
1. Title
2. Introduction
3. Thesis statement
4. Supporting information (body)
5. Conclusion or summary
Title
There are two basic kinds of titles, descriptive and interest catching.
Descriptive title announces what article will be about. Interest catching title does
not tell the subject of the article.
Introduction
When reading article, it is tempting to rush through the first paragraph in order
to get right into the main part of the article. Actually, the introduction is one of the
most important parts of an article because it usually:
- Introduces the topic of the essay.

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 - Gives a general background of the topic
- Indicates the overall “plan” of the essay.
- Arouse the reader’s interest in the topic.
The introductory paragraph consists of two parts a few general statements
about the subject to attract reader’s attention, and a thesis statement, to state the
specific subdivision of topic. A thesis statement for an essay is just like a topic
sentence for a paragraph: it names the specific topic and the controlling ideas or
major subdivisions of the topic.
Example:
A person born in the twentieth century has seen a lot of changes take place
in almost all areas of human life. Some people are excited by the challenges
that these changes offer; others want to return to the simpler, less automated
life style of the past. Living in the twentieth century has certain advantages,
such as a higher standard of living, but it also has some disadvantages, such
as a polluted environment, the depersonalization of human relationship, and
weakening of spiritual values.
The first sentence in an introductory paragraph should be a very general
comment about the subject. Its purpose is to attract the reader’s attention and to
give background information on the topic. Each subsequent sentence should
become more specific than the previous one and finally into thesis statement.
General Statement: 1. introduces the topic of the essay
2. gives background information on the topic.
Thesis Statement
Thesis statement is the one important sentence in the introduction. It sates the
specific topic and lists the major subtopic that will be discussed in the body of the
essay. Furthermore, it often indicates the method of organization, such as
chronological order, logical division, cause and effect, comparison and contrast,
and so forth
Thesis Statement:
1. states the main topic
2. lists the subdivision of the topic
3. may indicate the method of organization of the entire paper.
4. Is usually the last sentence in the introductory paragraph.
To sum up, an introductory paragraph is like a funnel: very wide at the top,
increasing narrow in the middle and very small at the neck or bottom.
Supporting Information
You know a paragraph contains details that explain the main idea. Similarly,
an article or essay contains supporting ideas that explain the thesis statement.
Again, as is true in paragraphs, not all supporting ideas are of equal importance. A

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quick rule of thumb is that you can expect at least one major supporting idea per
paragraph. As you read supporting ideas, keep one question in mind: How does
this information support the thesis of the selection.
Most writers use various types of supporting information. Often this
information is organized by means of one or more of the pattern described in the
previous material. In addition to these common patterns, writers may support their
ideas by giving description, or by citing facts, statistics, or research.
Conclusion or Summary
An article or essay is usually brought to a close with a summary or conclusion.
Each in its own way brings together the ideas expressed in the article.
A summary provides a review of importance ideas. It can be thought of as an
outline in paragraph form. The order in which the information appears in the
summary reflects the organization of the article itself.
A conclusion is a final statement about the subject of the article. A conclusion
does not review content as a summary does. Instead, a conclusion usually suggests
a new or further direction of thought. It most always introduces an idea that has
not been stated previously or a new way of looking at what has been stated.

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 LESSON 10

READING SELECTIONS

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