Bold Introductions

A fun test to help you improve your introductions. Think to yourself, 'What would Andrew write?'

Question 1 of 7.

Question 1

There are two main ways to influence people to become more environmentally aware, with [A] or with [B].

1. A. good news B. great news

2. A. a carrot B. a stick

3. A. four monkeys B. more than four monkeys

'Carrot and stick' is a well-known English idiom. The same thing in German is 'sugarbread and whip'.

Picture a donkey. He moves away from the stick and towards the carrot.

The carrot is the incentive (money, love, opportunity) while the stick is the punishment (no money, being alone, being imprisoned.)

All human life can be thought of as relating to carrots and sticks. It's a useful phrase!

Question 2 of 7.

Question 2A

A Chinese proverb advises people to '_____________________'.

1. put monosodium glutamate in all your food to make it tasty

2. put all your eggs in one basket

3. speak softly but carry a big stick

4. stop quoting Chinese proverbs all the time

Question 3 of 7.

Question 2B

A Chinese proverb advises people to speak softly but carry a big stick. This [A] advice can be applied equally well to the [B] problem of making people more environmentally aware - we should try to persuade people to do the right thing, but punish them if they do not.

1. A. stupid B. clever

2. A. misleading B. reliable

3. A. ancient B. modern

Is this intro amazing? I think it might be amazing.

Did you see the section about using 'past-present-future' as a way to organise your ideas? It's in the 'Organisation' module, which seems like a good place for it.

Fun fact - this seems to actually be an African proverb, not a Chinese one. British people tend to think that anything that sounds wise like this is Chinese.

Question 4 of 7.

Question 3 (Which is the 4th question. Weird, right?)

[A]. That's how many [B] my favourite [C] won. Which is shocking since it is considered to be the greatest [D] of all time. I refer, of course, to [E].

1. A. One. B. Oscars. C. movie. D. film. E. Citizen Kane

2. A. Zero. B. Grammy Awards. C. song. D. track. E. Despacito by Luis Fonsi.

3. A. Zero. B. Olympic Gold Medals. C. phrasal verbs course. D. online English course. E. Phrasal Verbs for Cambridge Exams by Andrew Girardin.

4. A. Two. B. major international awards. C. video game. D. computer game. E. Goat Simulator 3

One. That's how many Oscars my favourite movie won. Which is shocking since it is considered to be the greatest film of all time. I refer, of course, to Citizen Kane.

Boom! That's how you IMPRESS THE LADIES.

I actually read a couple of essays where the writer was really angry that Despacito didn't win anything in the 2017 Grammys. Seems harsh since it was such a big hit. And if you chose #4 as your answer - WRONG. Goat Simulator 2 is much better.

Question 5 of 7.

Question 5A

People who do not exercise are ____________ - they are nothing more than a financial burden to the health system.

1. just normal people living their lives

2. parasites

Question 6 of 7.

Question 5B

People who do not exercise are parasites - they are nothing more than a financial burden to the health system. In order to stop [A] turning into [B], young people should be encouraged to exercise at least three times a week, hopefully forming a lifelong habit. It is therefore vital that children are inspired to take up exercise, either by watching their parents train or by attending school programmes.

1. A. microscopic single-celled organisms B. giant dinosaurs

2. A. small problems B. complete failure

3. A. small problems B. major challenges

4. A. healthy children B. sickly adults

"People who do not exercise are parasites" - Oooh what a shocking, controversial intro! And then we get a sexy bit of balance - healthy contrasted with sickly, and children with adults.

I admit this one would be hard for most of you to write - you need to know the word 'sickly' which is a CPE kinda word. But I hope it gives you a good idea on how you might tackle some of these 'boring' topics.

Question 7 of 7.

Question 8? 9? I lost count

Dear Jack,

I loved reading your latest letter. Thanks for that!

You asked about my time at the Rochester English Adventure Camp. I'm happy to tell you all about it! It was one of the most [A] experiences of my life. I [B] every minute of it!

1. A. normal B. passively lived through

2. A. terrible B. loved

3. A. amazing B. loved

If you chose answer 3 you are probably mad at me right now. You are probably shouting at the screen saying 'Andrew you VILLAIN your course is WRONG and my answer was RIGHT.' In which case, take a deep breath, count to 10 (in Chinese) and then come back when you are quite calm.

Think about a letter that starts: It was amazing, I loved it. It's FINE and you could write an EXCELLENT letter like that. But it's pretty much going to be positive, positive, positive.

My plan for this letter is to complain about a few things - the food, the weather, whatever. And the twist is that on the first day I met a cute French girl and that made everything great! We laughed about the horrible food, moaned about the weather, etc and now she's my girlfriend! I only have positive memories of Rochester English Adventure Camp!

The examiner who reads my text will think 'oh no this student has made a mistake OH WAIT HE'S A GENIUS'.

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Bold Introductions

Question 1

Question 2A

Question 2B

Question 3 (Which is the 4th question. Weird, right?)

Question 5A

Question 5B

Question 8? 9? I lost count

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