READING AND WRITING Intro

Sabina Ostrowska
Kate Adams
with
Wendy Asplin
Christina Cavage
 HOW PRISM WORKS

WATCH AND LISTEN

1 Video

Setting the context

Every unit begins with a video clip. Each video serves PREPARING TO WATCH
1 Work with a partner and answer the questions.
ACTIVATING YOUR
as a springboard for the unit and introduces the KNOWLEDGE 1 What are five things that you do every day?
2 What jobs do people in the mountains do? What do you think
topic in an engaging way. The clips were carefully they do every day?
3 What jobs do people on islands do? What do you think they

selected to pique students’ interest and prepare do every day?

4 What do you think is better, living in the mountains or living on an
island? Why?
them to explore the unit’s topic in greater depth. As 2 Match the sentences to the pictures (1–4) from the video.
PREDICTING CONTENT
they work, students develop key skills in prediction, USING VISUALS a
b
The women wear colorful clothes.
The woman is caring for a plant.
comprehension, and discussion. c
d
There is a village on the island.
The man is catching food to eat.
GLOSSARY

coast (n) the land next to the ocean

deep (adj) having a long distance from top to bottom, like the middle of the ocean
culture (n) the habits and traditions of a country or group of people
sweep (v) to clean, especially a floor, by using a broom or brush
raise (v) to take care of from a young age

60 UNIT 3

SCANNING TO FIND WHILE READING

INFORMATION 4 Scan the texts. Write words from the texts in the blanks.

2 Reading 1 What is the job? (1)

text A

pilot
text B
(2)
text C

2 Which country is the job in? (3) (4)

Canada
3 Where is the work? Shelburne
Vancouver Hospital (5)
Elementary School
Receptive, language, and analytical skills 4 What is the pay? $4,800 per month (6) (7)

Students improve their reading abilities through 5 What is the schedule? Monday–Friday and 10–15 hours per
some weekends week
(8)

a sequence of proven activities. They study key READING FOR DETAILS

vocabulary to prepare them for each reading and to
SKILLS

Reading for details

develop academic reading skills. A second reading Reading for details means looking for key words and information that supports
the main idea. Details give more information about the main idea. One way of
leads into synthesis exercises that prepare students reading for details is to follow the steps below:
• Ask a question. (e.g., Vancouver Hospital teaches nurses – is this true or false?)

for college classrooms. Language Development • Scan the text to find key words and sentences. (e.g., Vancouver, teach, nurses)
• Read the sentences in the paragraph with the key words to find the correct

sections teach vocabulary, collocations, and answer. (e.g., We teach doctors and nurses.)

language structure. READING FOR

DETAILS
5 Read the texts again. Write T (true) or F (false) next to the statements.
1 The pilot at FlyHigh must speak two languages.
2 The teacher at Shelburne Elementary School has to teach
grade 12.
3 The nurse at Vancouver Hospital must have ten years of
experience.
4 Teachers at Shelburne Elementary School are friendly.
5 Pilots at FlyHigh are paid per hour.
6 The nurse at Vancouver Hospital must speak two languages.

DISCUSSION
6 Work with a partner. Ask and answer the questions.
1 Which jobs need someone who is friendly?
2 Which jobs ask that the person speak more than one language?
Why do you think they ask for that?
3 Which job from Reading 1 do you want? Why?
108 UNIT 5

8 HOW PRISM WORKS

 HOW PRISM WORKS

2 Write the third person singular form of the simple present verb.

infinitive third person singular verb form

get up
travel
go
1 gets up
2
3
3 Writing
study 4
stay 5
have 6 Critical thinking and production
3 Read the text. Circle the correct forms of the verbs. Multiple critical thinking activities begin this section,
Noreen (1) is / are a student in my class. This (2) is / are her
schedule. She (3) study / studies English at the University of
preparing students for exercises that focus on
Wisconsin. She (4) get up / gets up at 6 a.m. She (5) eat / eats breakfast
at 6:30 a.m. On Mondays and Wednesdays, Noreen (6) meet / meets grammar for writing and writing skills. All of these
with a study group at 11 a.m. She (7) have / has lunch at 12:30 p.m.
every day. She (8) study / studies in the library from 3 to 6 p.m. lead up to a structured writing task, in which students
She (9) go / goes to the gym with friends on Sundays. Noreen
(10)
is / are a serious student. apply the skills and language they have developed
over the course of the entire unit.
ACADEMIC WRITING SKILLS
MAIN IDEAS AND DETAILS
SKILLS

A main idea states what a paragraph is about. The details add information
about the main idea.
main idea details
Matteo Taha is a student. He has a busy schedule. Matteo studies
engineering at the University of Michigan. He takes five classes. They
are physics, calculus, English, engineering, and history. His favorite
classes are physics and calculus.
The main idea is often at the beginning of the paragraph. Then the writer writes
details after it. They give more information and explain the main idea.
The main idea in the example is that Matteo is a student. The details give
more information about Matteo’s life as a student. They talk about his school,
schedule, and classes.

ACADEMIC WRITING SKILLS 75

ON CAMPUS
WRITING EMAILS TO PROFESSORS
4 On Campus
SKILLS

Writing emails
Students often write emails to their professors to ask for help or permission.
They need to be polite. They should also give complete information and good
reasons.
Skills for college life
PREPARING TO READ
1 Work with a partner and answer the questions.
This unique section teaches students valuable skills
1 Do you write email messages to your professors? What do you write
about?
beyond academic reading and writing. From asking
2 Look at the reasons below. When is it okay to write to a professor?
You are sick and you want to know the homework assignment.
questions in class to participating in a study group
You don’t like your project group.
You want to turn in your homework late. and from conducting research to finding help,
You need help with a lesson.
You aren’t ready for a test. You don’t want to take it on the test day. students learn how to navigate university life. The
3 Are you nervous when you write to a professor or teacher?
Why / Why not? section begins with a context-setting reading and
WHILE READING moves directly into active practice of the skill.
2 Read the two email messages.
Subject: Appointment request
Dear Professor Thompson,
I am a student in your Math 124 class. I don’t understand today’s lesson. I need
some help, so I want to talk to you, please. Your office hours1 are from 2:30 – 4:30,
but I have to work at the library then. Could I make an appointment2 at 1:30?
Sincerely,
Magda Koch

Subject: Hi from Lily

Hi,
I’m Lily. I have a lot of homework. Also, I have to take a test in another class tomorrow.
I wanna turn in my project next week. Okay?
Lily

1
office hours (n) the time a professor is in their office ready to talk to students
2
make an appointment (phr) agree on a time to see someone
122 UNIT 5

HOW PRISM WORKS 9

 WHAT MAKES PRISM SPECIAL:
CRITICAL THINKING

WRITING
Bloom’s Taxonomy CRITICAL THINKING
At the end of this unit, you are going to do the Writing Task below.
Write an email about a job.

SKILLS
Using a Likert scale
In order to truly prepare for college coursework, A scale is a way to measure something. In a Likert scale, you read a statement

students need to develop a full range of thinking and then circle the answer that is true for you. Your answer shows how
you feel.

skills. Prism teaches explicit critical thinking skills in I am good at English.

1 2 3 4 5

every unit of every level. These skills adhere to the 1 = strongly disagree
2 = disagree
4 = agree
5 = strongly agree
3 = neither agree nor disagree
taxonomy developed by Benjamin Bloom. By working
within the taxonomy, we are able to ensure that your EVALUATE
1 Read the statements and circle the answers that are true for you.

students learn both lower-order and higher-order 1 = strongly disagree 4 = agree

thinking skills. 2 = disagree

3 = neither agree nor disagree
5 = strongly agree

1 I am healthy and in shape. 7 I am very good at basketball.

Critical thinking exercises are accompanied 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5

2 I am good at dancing. 8 I am good at math.

by icons indicating where the activities fall in 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5

Bloom’s Taxonomy. 3 I am good with people.

1 2 3 4 5
9 I am good at writing.
1 2 3 4 5

4 I am very smart. 10 I am good with computers.

1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5

5 I am kind and helpful. 11 I am good with animals.

1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5

6 I am good with children. 12 I am good at languages.

1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5

114 UNIT 5

Create: create, invent, plan, compose,

construct, design, imagine

Evaluate: decide, rate, choose,

recommend, justify, assess, prioritize

Analyze: explain, contrast, examine,

identify, investigate, categorize

Apply: show, complete, use, classify,

illustrate, solve

Understand: compare, discuss,

restate, predict, translate, outline

Remember: name, describe,

relate, find, list, write, tell

10 WHAT MAKES PRISM SPECIAL

 WHAT MAKES PRISM SPECIAL:
CRITICAL THINKING

WRITING
CRITICAL THINKING
Higher-Order
At the end of this unit, you are going to do the Writing Task below. Thinking Skills
Write about the results of a survey about transportation.
SKILLS

Collecting data
Before you write, you can collect data. You can use questionnaires and surveys
to collect data.
Create, Evaluate, and Analyze are critical skills for
1 Look back at Reading 2 on page 177. Check (✔) the number of the
students in any college setting. Academic success
UNDERSTAND
paragraph or paragraphs that state the percentages in the pie chart.
1 2 3
depends on their abilities to derive knowledge
ANALYZE
2 Now look at the results from a survey on transportation in Chicago. from collected data, make educated judgments, and
Match the questions to the results.
We asked over one million workers the following questions: deliver insightful presentations. Prism helps students
1 Do you use public transportation? If so, what type?
2 If you don’t use public transportation, how do you get to work? get there by creating activities such as categorizing
3 Which statements do you agree with?
a The bus takes too long. There is too much traffic. The water taxi is not
information, comparing data, selecting the best
close to my work. It takes too long to walk to my work.
b 17% take the subway or other train. Eight percent take the bus. Two solution to a problem, and developing arguments for
percent ride a water taxi.
c One percent bike to work. Seven percent walk to work. Three percent a discussion or presentation.
take a taxi to work. The other 63% drive to work.
3 Underline the
information in Exercise 2
that you could show in a
pie chart.
4 Use the information
CREATE
from Exercise 2. Write
the percentages and
names of transportation
in the pie chart.

182 UNIT 8

WRITING
CRITICAL THINKING
At the end of this unit, you are going to do the Writing Task below.
Write about the weather in your town or city.
Lower-Order
Thinking Skills
SKILLS

Understand a chart
A chart shows facts and numbers. It is easy to see facts and numbers in a chart.

season months average temperature

Apply, Understand, and Remember provide the

spring March, April, May –6 ˚F (–21 ˚C)

1 Complete the chart. Use information about Yakutsk from the text and
graph on page 41.
UNDERSTAND foundation upon which all thinking occurs. Students
1 Write the name of one season in each row in Column A.
2 Write the names of the months for each season in Column B.
need to be able to recall information, comprehend it,
3 Write the average temperatures for each season in Column C.
and see its use in new contexts. Prism develops these
A B C
skills through exercises such as taking notes, mining
notes for specific data, demonstrating comprehension,
and distilling information from charts.

CRITICAL THINKING 47

WHAT MAKES PRISM SPECIAL 11

 WHAT MAKES PRISM SPECIAL:
ON CAMPUS
More college skills
Students need more than traditional
academic skills. Prism teaches important
skills for being engaged and successful
all around campus, from emailing Professors
professors to navigating study groups. Students learn how to
take good lecture notes
and how to communicate
with professors and
academic advisors.

Beyond the classroom

Skills include how to utilize
campus resources, where to
go for help, how to choose
classes, and more.

Active learning
Students practice participating
in class, in online discussion
boards, and in study groups.

Texts
Learners become proficient at
taking notes and annotating
textbooks as well as conducting
research online and in the library.

12 WHAT MAKES PRISM SPECIAL

 WHAT MAKES PRISM SPECIAL:
RESEARCH
LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT

Vocabulary Research
COLLOCATIONS FOR FREE-TIME ACTIVITIES
LANGUAGE

A pair or small group of words that are often used together is a collocation.
One type of collocation is a verb + a noun or a noun phrase.

sentence collocation
(verb + noun or noun phrase)
I have breakfast. have + breakfast Learning the right words
Dae-Jung and Chung-Hee play video
games.
play + video games
Students need to learn a wide range of general
Matteo studies English. studies + English
and academic vocabulary in order to be successful
Another type of collocation is a verb + a prepositional phrase.

sentence collocation
in college. Prism carefully selects the vocabulary
Matteo goes to the gym.
(verb + prepositional phrase)
goes + to the gym
that students study based on the General Service
Matteo studies in the library. studies + in the library List, the Academic Word List, and the Cambridge
Matteo relaxes with friends. relaxes + with friends
English Corpus.
1 Match the sentence halves.
1 Fernando studies a coffee before work.
2 Matteo gets up b physics at Yale University.
3 Melody and Ginger take c at 6 a.m.
4 In the morning, I have d to the gym every Saturday.
5 My friends go e the bus every morning.

LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT 69

GRAMMAR FOR WRITING

COMPARING QUANTITIES
LANGUAGE

You can compare quantities with more / fewer / less + a noun or a noun phrase

Grammar for Writing

+ than. This phrase comes after the subject and the verb.
Use more for a higher quantity.
One World Trace Center has more elevators than the Shanghai World
Financial Center.
Skyscrapers cost more money than other buildings.
The garden home in Saigon has more rooms than the roof house.
Use fewer or less for a lower quantity. Use fewer with count nouns, and use less
with noncount nouns. Focused instruction
The Shanghai World Financial Center has fewer elevators than One World
Trade Center. This unique feature teaches learners the exact
There is less information about Building B than about Building A.
grammar they will need for their writing task. With
1 Put the words and phrases in order to make sentences.
1 The Burj Khalifa / more / floors / than One World Trade Center / has / . a focus on using grammar to accomplish rhetorical
goals, these sections ensure that students learn the
2 visitors / than / has / The Burj Khalifa / the Shanghai World Financial
Center / more / . most useful grammar for their assignment.
3 more / than the Mall of America / The John Hancock Center / has /
stairs / .

4 has / than the Shanghai World Financial Center / elevators / more /

The Burj Khalifa / .

5 money / cost / One World Trade Center / than the Burj Khalifa /
more / .

6 Burj Khalifa / less / money / cost / than One World Trade Center / .

138 UNIT 6

WHAT MAKES PRISM SPECIAL 13

 LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Reading skill Predict content using visuals

Grammar Compare quantities; comparative adjectives

Academic writing skills Compound sentences with but; supporting sentences

Writing Task Write a paragraph comparing two buildings

On Campus College classes

124 Unit 6
 HOMES AND BUILDINGS UNIT 6

ACTIVATE YOUR KNOWLEDGE

Work with a partner. Ask and answer the questions below.
1 Do you think this city looks like a nice place to live? Why or why not?
2 How is this city like or not like your town or city?
3 Do you like being in very big cities? Why or why not?

HOMES AND BUILDINGS 125

 WATCH AND LISTEN

PREPARING TO WATCH
1 Work with a partner. Write the name of a famous tall building for each
ACTIVATING YOUR
country.
KNOWLEDGE

Canada Mexico Italy Dubai, UAE China

2 Look at the pictures from the video. Match the pictures (1–4) to the
PREDICTING CONTENT
countries.
USING VISUALS
a England
b United States
c France
d Egypt
GLOSSARY

stone (n) a hard, natural substance that is found in the ground

cathedral (n) a large and important church
spire (n) a tall, pointed tower on the top of a building such as a church
steel (n) a very strong metal made from iron
skyscraper (n) a very tall building

126 Unit 6
WHILE WATCHING
3 Watch the video. Put the buildings in order (1–5) from the oldest to
UNDERSTANDING
the newest.
MAIN IDEAS
a Lincoln Cathedral
b Eiffel Tower
c Great Pyramid
d Taipei 101
e Chrysler Building
4 Watch again. Circle the correct answer.
UNDERSTANDING
1 The Great Pyramid of Egypt is 445 / 455 feet tall. DETAILS
2 The Lincoln Cathedral was 46 feet taller than the Great Pyramid /
Eiffel Tower.
3 The Chrysler Building used stone / steel to make it the tallest
skyscraper in 1930.
4 The Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia are made of glass, steel,
and stone / concrete.
5 Using the information in the video, check (✔) the true statements.
MAKING INFERENCES
1 Buildings are getting taller.
2 Buildings do not change very much.
3 New materials help us build taller buildings.
4 New buildings use more glass than old buildings.
5 Skyscrapers are common in large cities.
6 There will be more skyscrapers in the future.

DISCUSSION
6 Work with a partner and answer the questions.
1 Have you visited any of the buildings in the video? If so, which one(s)?
2 Which building would you like to visit the most? Why?
3 Describe the tallest building in your city.

Watch and Listen 127

 READING
READING 1
PREPARING TO READ
1 Ask and answer the questions with a partner.
USING YOUR
KNOWLEDGE 1 What do you like about your home?
2 What kind of home do you want to live in?
3 What makes a home a good place to live?
2 You are going to read an interview with an architect. Read the sentences.
UNDERSTANDING
Write the words in bold below the photos.
KEY VOCABULARY
1 In a garden, you grow flowers and plants.
2 Children drink out of plastic cups.
3 Cities have tall buildings.
4 Tables and chairs are made of wood.
5 The roof on our house is red.
6 I have a picture on the wall.
7 The sun shines through the window.
8 Be careful. Glass can break.

A B C D

E F G H

128 Unit 6
PREDICTING CONTENT USING VISUALS
SKILLS
Visuals can be photographs, pictures, graphs, or charts. You can use the visuals
to help you understand the topic of the text.

3 Look at the photos. Circle the phrases to make statements you agree with.
I think the buildings in the photos are …
a exciting. c good for people to live in.
b easy to build. d in the same city.

Architect’s World EXPERT

INTERVIEW
1 Professor Michael Chan teaches design to architects at the London School
of Architecture. He has been at the school for 30 years. There have been many
changes in home design in the last 30 years. This week, Michael Chan tells us
The architect, Michael Chan,
more about new home design around the world. makes drawings for houses.

Japanese roof house garden home with plants mirror house

2 Architect’s World: What are 3 AW: What do you think about 4 AW: What do architects use to
your favorite home designs? “green”4 homes? build houses?
Michael Chan: I really like MC: It is very important to build houses that MC: Many architects use
Japanese designs. Many people are good for the Earth. My favorite example wood. It keeps your house
in Japan build interesting houses. is a house in Saigon, Vietnam. It is a “garden warm in winter. They also use
For example, the roof house is home.” This house is in the middle of a busy metal5 and glass. Sometimes
very tall and has a steep1 roof. city, but there are plants everywhere. From they use something different.
The windows on the roof are the street, people see a tall garden. But, in For example, one architect
different sizes. Inside the house, fact, it is a house. There are plants and trees from Amsterdam put mirrors
the rooms are very narrow2, and in front of the glass walls. There is also a on every wall of a house. Other
the ceilings3 are very high. It is small garden on top of the roof. You can put architects use glass or even
simple and very small inside. chairs and a table there and enjoy tea with plastic for the walls.
your family.
1
steep (adj) goes down very quickly and almost straight down
2
narrow (adj) not much space from one side to the other
3
ceilings (n) the inside top of a room that you see when you look up
4
green (adj) something that is good for the Earth and does not use a lot of energy
5
metal (adj) a hard and shiny material, such as iron or gold
Reading 1 129
 WHILE READING
SCANNING TO FIND 4 Read the text. Check (✔) the boxes in the chart that are true for the
INFORMATION two houses.

has a small
windows are rooms are
has glass walls garden on the
different sizes narrow
roof

Japanese roof
house

Vietnamese
“garden home”

5 Match the sentence parts to create a main idea.

READING FOR
MAIN IDEAS 1 Michael Chan likes a metal, wood, glass, and plastic.
2 Green architecture is b good for the Earth.
3 Architects make homes out of c unusual and interesting homes.
6 Read the interview again. Write T (true) or F (false) next to the statements.
READING FOR DETAILS
1 Professor Chan’s favorite home designs are Korean.
2 The roof house has small and narrow rooms.
3 Professor Chan says it is important to build more homes
in Vietnam.
4 The “garden home” is in the center of a big city.
5 Gardens and plants are good for the Earth.
6 In Amsterdam, many architects put mirrors on the walls.

DISCUSSION
7 Ask and answer the questions with a partner.
1 What do you think makes a home good for the Earth?
2 Which home from the photos would you like to live in? Why?
3 Why do you think the architect from Amsterdam used mirrors?

130 Unit 6
READING 2
PREPARING TO READ
1 Tell a partner if you agree or disagree with each statement. Explain why.
USING YOUR
1 It’s important for the buildings in a city to look interesting. KNOWLEDGE
2 Tall buildings are better than small buildings.
3 It is fun to be high up in a building.
2 You are going to read an article about skyscrapers. Read the sentences.
UNDERSTANDING
Write the words in bold next to the correct definitions.
KEY VOCABULARY
1 The car is too expensive. I don’t have the money to buy it.
2 The buildings in my city are made of metal and glass – both the stores
and the offices.
3 You can take an elevator to the top of the building. It is very high!
4 I live in an apartment on the fourth floor.
5 How much does this TV cost? I can’t see the price.
6 A plane ticket to Boston is very cheap! I bought it for only $54!
a (adj) costing a lot of money
b (n) a house, school, office, or store with a roof and walls
c (adj) costing little money
d (n) a set of rooms for someone to live in on one level of a
building or house
e (v) to have an amount of money as a price that someone
must pay
f (n) a machine, like a small room, that carries people straight
up or down in a tall building

Reading 2 131
 Skyscrapers
What Are Skyscrapers?
1 Skyscrapers are very tall buildings. They are usually more than 984 feet (300 meters) tall.
You can see skyscrapers in cities around the world. Many countries build skyscrapers
so tourists go there. There are many skyscrapers in Asia, the Middle East, the Americas,
and Europe. Inside a skyscraper, there are offices, stores, restaurants, and apartments.

What Are Some Famous Skyscrapers?

2 The Empire State Building in New York is a world-famous skyscraper. It has two million visitors
every year. It is popular with tourists, but there are taller and more modern skyscrapers in
the Middle East and in Asia. The Shanghai World Financial Center, One World Trade Center
in New York City, and the Burj Khalifa in Dubai are taller than the Empire State Building. The
Burj Khalifa is taller than the Shanghai World Financial Center and One World Trade Center.
One World Trade Center is taller than the Shanghai World Financial Center. One World Trade
Center is more modern than the other two buildings. It opened in 2014.

How Much Money Do Skyscrapers Cost?

3 Skyscrapers are very expensive. They cost more money than other buildings.
The Burj Khalifa cost $1,500,000,000 to build. It was more expensive than the
Shanghai World Financial Center ($850,000,000), but it was cheaper than
One World Trade Center. One World Trade Center cost $3,900,000,000.

What Is Inside a Skyscraper?

4 The Burj Khalifa has 163 floors.
This is more than One World
Trade Center or the Shanghai
World Financial Center. One
World Trade Center has 104
floors and the Shanghai World
Financial Center has 101
floors. All skyscrapers have
elevators. The Burj Khalifa has
more elevators than One World
Trade Center or the Shanghai
World Financial Center. It has
57 elevators. One World Trade
Center has 54 elevators, but the
Shanghai World Financial Center
has fewer. It only has 31. Many
skyscrapers also have shopping
malls inside them. A lot of people
come to shop every day. Shanghai World One World Trade Burj Khalifa,
Financial Center, Center, 2014 2010 (2717 feet)
2008 (1614 feet) (1776 feet)
132 UNIT 6
WHILE READING
3 Scan the text. Write words from the text in the chart.
SCANNING TO FIND
INFORMATION
Shanghai World One World Trade
Burj Khalifa
Financial Center Center
A city Shanghai New York (1)

B height (ft) (2) (3) 2,717

C year 2008 2014 2010
D number of (4) 104 163
floors
E number of (5) 54 57
elevators
F cost (USD) $850,000,000 (6)
$ $1,500,000,000

4 Follow the directions to annotate the text.

READING FOR DETAILS
1 Underline the four questions in italics the text asks.
2 Underline key words in each paragraph that answer the question.
3 Compare your answers with a partner.

DISCUSSION
5 Ask and answer the questions with a partner. Look at the photos and
SYNTHESIZING
the text.
1 Which skyscraper was the most expensive to build? Why do you think
it was so expensive?
2 Why do you think skyscrapers need so many elevators?
3 Use information from Reading 1 and Reading 2 to answer the question:
What information do architects need to make a building or a home?

LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT
PRONOUNS
LANGUAGE

You can match pronouns to nouns to help you understand a text.

Skyscrapers are very tall buildings. They [They = Skyscrapers] are
usually more than 984 ft (300 m) tall.
The Empire State Building in New York is a world-famous skyscraper.
It [It = The Empire State Building] has two million visitors every year.

LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT 133

 1 Read the text on page 132 again. Match the words and phrases in the box
to the pronouns in bold in the sentences.

Burj Khalifa ​One World Trade Center ​

Shanghai World Financial Center ​skyscrapers

1 It was more expensive than the Shanghai World Financial Center

($850,000,000).
2 It opened in 2014.
3 They cost more money than other buildings.
4 It has only 31 elevators.

VOCABULARY FOR BUILDINGS

2 Read the sentences and write the words from the box in the blanks.

apartments ​ceiling ​​elevators ​entrance ​exit
​garden ​parking lot ​roof ​shopping mall ​
stairs ​walls ​windows

1 There are over 520 different stores in the Mall of America, which is a
in Minnesota.
2 In the Burj Khalifa, there are over 900 you can live in.
3 It is popular for a building to have a on the .
The plants on top of the building are good for the city.
4 The John Hancock Center in Chicago has a race up the building. People
run up the .
5 Skyscrapers often have one main at the front of the
building. It is also the . You leave from there, too.
6 One World Trade Center has 13,000 glass .
7 Each floor in the One World
Trade Center is nine feet high
from floor to .
8 There are 1,100 parking spaces
in the at Shanghai
World Financial Center.
9 The of skyscrapers
have to be very strong. They hold
the building up.
10 Skyscrapers must have
. They are too tall for
people to walk up the stairs.

134 Unit 6
3 Read the sentences and circle the correct words.
1 You can leave your car in the garden / parking lot.
2 You can ride on the elevator / stairs to the next floor.
3 You go into a building through the entrance / exit.
4 You can walk up the elevator / stairs to the next floor.
5 You must go to the entrance / exit to get out if there is a fire.
6 I live in an apartment / shopping in the city.
7 I have beautiful pictures on my ceiling / walls.
8 The windows / roof in my house are made of glass.

ADJECTIVES
4 Match the adjectives to their opposites.
1 big a ugly
2 tall b cheap
3 traditional c short
4 old d small
5 expensive e modern
6 beautiful f new
5 Write the adjectives from the box in the correct blanks.

beautiful ​cheap ​expensive ​modern ​traditional ​ugly

1 It is to build skyscrapers. They are not cheap.

2 Buildings with glass look . They shine in the sun.
3 Skyscrapers are buildings. They are new and interesting.
4 Some homes in China are . They look like homes from the
past.
5 It is hard to find a apartment in the city. They cost too
much money.
6 Most people like skyscrapers, but I think they are . I prefer
small buildings and more traditional designs.

LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT 135

 WRITING
CRITICAL THINKING
At the end of this unit, you are going to do the Writing Task below.
Write a comparison of two buildings.
SKILLS

Comparison of data
Data is facts or information. Data is often numbers. If we compare the facts or
information about two or more things, we make a comparison of data.

1 Read the sentences and match them to the row with the same data in the
UNDERSTAND
chart on page 133. Write the letter of the row at the end of the sentence
it matches.
1 The Burj Khalifa cost $1,500,000,000 to build. It was more expensive
than the Shanghai World Financial Center ($850,000,000), but it was
cheaper than One World Trade Center. One World Trade Center cost
$3,900,000,000.
2 The Burj Khalifa has 163 floors. This is more than One World Trade
Center or the Shanghai World Financial Center. One World Trade
Center has 104 floors, and the Shanghai World Financial Center has
101 floors.
3 The Burj Khalifa has more elevators than One World Trade Center or
the Shanghai World Financial Center. It has 57 elevators. One World
Trade Center has 54 elevators, but the Shanghai World Financial Center
has fewer. It only has 31.

136 Unit 6
2 Work with a partner. Choose two skyscrapers you are interested in. Find
CREATE
information on the Internet to complete the chart.

(building 1) (building 2)
city
height (ft)
year
number of floors
number of elevators
cost (USD)

3 Work with a partner. Ask and answer the questions about your buildings.
ANALYZE
1 Which building is taller?

2 Which building is more modern?

3 Which building is has more floors?

4 Which building has more elevators?

5 Which building was more expensive?

Critical Thinking  137

 GRAMMAR FOR WRITING
COMPARING QUANTITIES

LANGUAGE You can compare quantities with more / fewer / less + a noun or a noun phrase
+ than. This phrase comes after the subject and the verb.
Use more for a higher quantity.
One World Trace Center has more elevators than the Shanghai World
Financial Center.
Skyscrapers cost more money than other buildings.
The garden home in Saigon has more rooms than the roof house.
Use fewer or less for a lower quantity. Use fewer with count nouns, and use less
with noncount nouns.
The Shanghai World Financial Center has fewer elevators than One World
Trade Center.
There is less information about Building B than about Building A.

1 Put the words and phrases in order to make sentences.

1 The Burj Khalifa / more / floors / than One World Trade Center / has / .

2 visitors / than / has / The Burj Khalifa / the Shanghai World Financial
Center / more / .

3 more / than the Mall of America / The John Hancock Center / has /
stairs / .

4 has / than the Shanghai World Financial Center / elevators / more /

The Burj Khalifa / .

5 money / cost / One World Trade Center / than the Burj Khalifa /
more / .

6 Burj Khalifa / less / money / cost / than One World Trade Center / .

138 Unit 6
COMPARATIVE ADJECTIVES
LANGUAGE
Use comparative adjectives to describe how two things are different.
For one syllable adjectives, add -(e)r + than.
tall ➞ taller than
The Burj Khalifa is taller than the Shanghai World Financial Center.
The roof house is smaller than the garden home.
For adjectives with two syllables that end in a consonant + -y, replace the -y
with -i and add -er + than.
busy ➞ busier than
Shanghai is busier than Kansas City.
For adjectives with two or more syllables, use more + adjective + than or less +
adjective + than.
expensive ➞ more expensive than
➞ less expensive than
One World Trade Center was more expensive than the Burj Khalifa.
The Burj Khalifa was less expensive than One World Trade Center.

2 Correct the mistakes in the sentences.

1 The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York is popular the Art
Institute of Chicago.

2 One World Trade Center is more of modern the Empire State Building.

3 The John Hancock Center in Chicago is more small the Shanghai World
Financial Center.

4 Modern buildings are beautifuler that traditional buildings.

5 The Burj Khalifa taller the One World Trade Center.

6 Wood is more expensive that plastic.

7 This street is many busy than the main road.

8 Many buildings in New York are more old than buildings in Kansas City.

Grammar for writing  139

 ACADEMIC WRITING SKILLS
COMPOUND SENTENCES WITH BUT

SKILLS
A sentence always has a subject and a verb. You can use but to join two simple
sentences to make a compound sentence. But makes a comparison.
Sentences 1 and 2:
subject verb subject verb
One World Trade Center is tall. The Burj Khalifa is taller than One
World Trade Center.

Join sentences 1 and 2 with but. Add a comma before but:

One World Trade Center is tall, but the Burj Khalifa is taller than One
World Trade Center.

Do not repeat than + noun phrase after a comparison:

One World Trade Center is tall, but the Burj Khalifa is taller than One
World Trade Center.

New sentence:
One World Trade Center is tall, but the Burj Khalifa is taller.

1 Join each pair of simple sentences below to make one compound

sentence with but.
1 The Shanghai World Financial Center has over 101 floors. One World
Trade Center has more floors.

2 The Sears Tower is tall. The CN Tower in Toronto is taller than the
Sears Tower.

3 One World Trade Center has many elevators. The Burj Khalifa has more
elevators than One World Trade Center.

4 The Art Institute of Chicago has many pictures. The Metropolitan

Museum of Art has more pictures than the Art Institute of Chicago.

140 Unit 6
SUPPORTING SENTENCES
SKILLS
Supporting sentences are in the middle of the paragraph and explain the topic
sentence to the reader. Supporting sentences give details and examples to
make the topic sentence clearer. All supporting sentences should be related to
the topic sentence.

topic sentence Skyscrapers are very expensive.

supporting They cost more money than other buildings. The
sentences and Burj Khalifa cost $1,500,000,000 to build. It was more
details expensive than the Shanghai World Financial Center
($850,000,000), but it was cheaper than One World Trade
Center. One World Trade Center cost $3,900,000,000.

2 Read the topic sentence. Check (✔) the supporting sentences and details
that explain the topic sentence.
1 topic sentence: Skyscrapers are very tall buildings.
They are usually more than 984 feet (300 meters) tall.
The Burj Khalifa has more elevators than One World Trade
Center or the Shanghai World Financial Center.
Many countries build skyscrapers so tourists go there.
There are many skyscrapers in Asia, the Middle East, the
Americas, and Europe.
2 topic sentence: All skyscrapers have elevators.
The Burj Khalifa has more elevators than One World Trade
Center or the Shanghai World Financial Center.
It has 57 elevators.
One World Trade Center cost $3,900,000,000.
The Empire State Building in New York is a world-famous
skyscraper.
One World Trade Center has 54 elevators, but the
Shanghai World Financial Center has fewer.

Academic writing skills  141

 3 Read the topic sentence. Find a supporting sentence in Reading 1 or
Reading 2 for the topic sentence.
1 topic sentence: Skyscrapers are very tall.
supporting sentence:

2 topic sentence: It is important to build houses that are good for

the Earth.
supporting sentence:

4 Read the topic sentence. Write a supporting sentence to explain the

topic sentence.
1 topic sentence: Modern design is interesting.
supporting sentence:

2 topic sentence: Skyscrapers are very expensive.

supporting sentence:

WRITING TASK
Write a comparison of two buildings.

PLAN
1 Look at the chart you completed in the Critical Thinking section. What other
information do you want to compare? Add it below.

(building 1) (building 2)

2 Refer to the Task Checklist as you prepare your paragraph.

142 Unit 6
WRITE A FIRST DRAFT
3 Write sentences for each topic. Use the information in your chart from
the Critical Thinking section and from Exercise 1.
1 Write the names of your buildings. Write what city they are in.
2 Compare the height of your buildings.
3 Compare the year your buildings opened.
4 Compare the number of floors in your buildings.
5 Compare the number of elevators in your buildings.
6 Compare the cost of your buildings.
7 Compare any other information you have.

EDIT
4 Use the Task Checklist to edit your paragraph.

TASK CHECKLIST ✔
Use supporting sentences and details to explain the topic
sentence and compare two different buildings.

Use pronouns to refer to your buildings.

Use sentences which compare quantities.

Make sure sentences have than after a comparative adjective.

Join sentences with but to make comparisons.

5 Make any necessary changes to your paragraph.

WRITING TASK 143

ON CAMPUS
COLLEGE CLASSES
SKILLS
Class information
In colleges, there are different kinds of classrooms. There are big lecture halls
and small science labs. There are also different kinds of teachers. Some are
professors, and some are graduate students. The graduate students are usually
called TAs (teaching assistants).

PREPARING TO READ
1 Work with a partner. Discuss the questions below.
1 In your country, are classes different sizes?
2 Do you speak or listen more?
3 What are your favorite classes?
4 Do you think college students in your country read more or less for
their classes than in North America?

WHILE READING
2 Read the class descriptions and the notes from the academic advisor1.

BIOLOGY 148 Human Biology ENGLISH 132 Intro to American Literature

Maximum: 650 students Maximum: 12 students

• main class in big lecture hall2, • seminar class, every day with
Tuesday and Thursday, all professor
students together with professor • a lot of discussion
• small lab class, once a week, • must read 8 novels
15 students each, with TA
• one book, 480 pages

SOCIOLOGY 150 Social Problems

Maximum: 85 students

• main class in small lecture hall, Monday

& Wednesday, all students together with professor
• quiz section in classroom, once a week, academic advisor (n) a person
1

who helps students with

12 students each, with TA
education plans
• must buy course pack with 27 journal articles 2
lecture hall (n) a large
• a lot of writing
classroom in a college

144 UNIT 6
3 Write T (true) or F (false) next to the statements below.
1 A lecture is bigger than a quiz section.
2 A TA teaches a lecture class.
3 In the English class, students talk a lot.
4 A course pack is a kind of book.
5 A professor teaches a lab class.
6 There is a lot of reading in all the classes.

PRACTICE
4 Complete the email message with the words in the box.

quiz section seminar lab class lecture

Subject: My semester schedule

Hi Samim,
How is your class schedule this semester? I’m really busy! I have an economics class.
There is a big (1) with the professor on Tuesday and Thursday
mornings. I think there are 400 students! On Monday and Wednesday,
we have a (2) with a TA. That class is small, so I get a lot
of help.
My chemistry class is really hard. The professor talks so fast! But I like the
(3)
because the TA is really good. And we do fun science
projects in that class.
I also have a history class and we read 100 pages every night! There are only 18
students. It’s a (4) , so we talk a lot! That makes me nervous.
You know, I don’t like to talk in class. But the professor is really nice.
Okay, I have a lot of reading right now! Call me later.
Aleksandra

REAL-WORLD APPLICATION
5 Work with a partner. Find a class schedule at your college.
6 Choose one class. Find this information:
The name of the class is (1) . It meets on
(2)
(days). It meets in (3)
(classroom).
There is / is not a quiz section. There is / is not a lab class. The class has
(4)
(number) students.
7 Report to your class. Write the name of the class on the board. Then talk
about the class.
8 Discuss the classes. Which one is your favorite? Why?

ON CAMPUS 145