Welcome to my blog

Introduction: This blog has been created in order to help you to increase your knowledge, and also the correct comprehension about some skills and rules that are very useful at the moment we realize the TOEFL test.

WELCOME TO LISTENING SKILLS

SKILL 1: FOCUS ON THE LAST LINE

This skill explains to us that when we listen to a conversation between two people; this conversation has a question, we can find the answer to this type of question in the last line of the conversation.

Example:

(Man) : Billy really made a big mistake this time.

(Woman) : Yes, he forgot to turn in his research paper.

(Man) : What does the woman say about Billy?

Possible answers:

(A) It was the first time he made a mistake

(B) He forgot to write his paper.

(C) He turned in the paper in the wrong place.

(D) He didn't remember to submit his assignment.

In this conversation, the second line indicates that Billy forgot to turn in his paper, and this mean that he did not remember to submit his assignment. Therefore, the best answer is (B).

For more Information: Clic HERE to watch a video

SKILL 2: CHOOSE ANSWERS WITH SYNONYMS

This skill explains to us that the correct answer does not have the same words as the dialogue or the conversation, because it expresses the same meaning but using different words, so we can infer that it uses synonyms.

Example:

(woman )   : Why is Barbara feeling so happy?

    (man)    : She just started working in a real estate agency.

(woman)   : What does the man say about Barbara?

Possible answers:

(A) She always liked her work in travel agency

(B) She began a new job

(C) She just bought some real estate.

(D) She bought a real estate agency

In this conversation, the correct answer is letter B, because the word began has the same meaning as started, and job has the same meaning as working. The words are different, but with the same meaning.

Clic HERE I have prepared a video with more information for you.!!

SKILL 3: AVOID SIMILAR SOUNDS

If we find an answer with the same words as the dialogue, or if the sound is similar, so this answer is probably wrong. There are words that contain similar sounds but with different meanings, and we can easily get confused with the sound of this word, therefore we need to look for an answer with the same meaning, not the same sound.

Example: 

(Man) Why couldn’t Mark come with us?

(Woman) He was searching for a new apartment.

(Narrator) What does the woman say about Mark?

          Possible answers:

A.He was in the department office.

B.He was looking for a place to live.

C.He was working on his research project .

D.He had an appointment at church.

          In this example, the correct answer is letter B, because it has the same meaning as the second line of the conversation, and the other answers have words that sound similar, for example, department/ apartment, research/search, appointment/apartment, and church/search. It is necessary to know that when we heard a word that in the answer sound similar, it means that we need different sound as the example above.

If you want to learn more about this skill Clic: HERE  I have prepared a video for you.

SKILL 4: DRAW CONCLUSIONS ABOUT WHO, WHAT AND WHERE

In many conversations, we will have to make an inference from what the speakers say, or to draw some kind of conclusion. In this type of question the answer is not clearly stated; instead, we must draw a conclusion based on clues given in the conversation. We might hear questions like these:

Who is the man/woman?

What will probably happen next?

Where does this conversation probably take place?

What will the man/woman probably do next?

Use clues in the conversation to help you make an intelligent guess about the answers to these questions.

Here is an example of a question that asks who.

(Woman) Can you tell me what assignments I missed when I was absent from your class?

(Man) You missed one homework assignment and a quiz.

(Question) Who is the man?

          In your test book, you read:

(A) A newspaper editor.

(B) A police officer.

(C) A teacher.

(D) A student.

           As you can see, we have some clues: homework and quiz, It means that the man is probably a teacher, therefore  the correct answer is C.

Clic: HERE To watch more examples.

SKILL 5: LISTEN FOR WHO AND WHAT IN PASSIVES

Sometimes the conversation contains an active statement, but the correct answer has a passive statement with the same meaning.

Sometimes it’s the other way around. 

For example:

(Man) Did Sally go to the bank this morning?

(Woman) Yes, she did. She opened a new checking account.

(Question) What does the woman imply?

       In your test book, you read:

(A) Sally wrote several checks.

(B) Sally wanted to check up on the bank.

(C) A new bank account was opened.

(D) Sally checked on the balance in her account.

      We are going to choose answer (C) because it has the same meaning as “she opened a new checking account,” but it is in the passive form. Be careful: In passive sentences, the subject receives the action, it doesn’t do it.


If you want more information; watch the following video: HERE - Skill 5 good luck!!