COMPARE & CONTRAST
1. Maids or Mothers? Error Correction
Find the mistakes in the model answer below. There are more than 10 errors in spelling, word choice, and punctuation.
Work, children and preparing dinner are some of the concerns families with
two working parents have to contend with. One solution to this dilemma is
to hire a maid. Or is it? In this essay, I am going to compare and contrast
about the similarities and differences between having a maid versus the
option of a stay-at-home mother.
Let me highlight some similarity. First, the two options provide piece of
mind. Having maids gives parents the chance to focus on their work
knowing that things are taken care of on the home front. Also housemaids
feel assured that they have a job. Furthermore, one could say the two cases
are similar, because they both provide employment opportunities. For
example, by hiring a maid it is much easier for a mother to take a job that
may have early starts or long days. Final point is that it gives both parties
financial freedom. Working mothers are able to contribute financially to their
families and similar maids can ease the financial woes of their distant families.
Despite these similarities there are also some differences. The primary
difference is payment. Mothers do not earn an income for taking care of
their own children. They do it for the “love of it”. A maid however is paid for
the care she provides. Another major different concerns the emotional
health of the children. People generally believe that the best care that
children can receive is from a happy mother. In contrast, maids may not
love the children and in extreme cases, as reported in the Gulf News, they may abuse them.
In breif, we can see that there are numerous points to consider regarding
whether it is better for mothers or maids to be at home. In my opinion, the
best choice would be for the mother to stay at home until the children are of school age.
2. Arranged or love marriage?
Fill in the blanks with a, an, the, or 0 (nothing)
Have you ever thought about what kind of marriage you’d like, arranged and love?
Which do you prefer? In this essay I’m going to outline some similarities and differences between ______ two.
First, let’s highlight some similarities. ______ primary one is spouses share love and
commitment in both cases. In ______ arranged marriage, bonds may grow more after
______ wedding while in ______ love marriage, ______ bonds may grow more before
but in either case, there will be ______ strong connection. ______ second point in
common is that both types of unions can provide ______ stable, secure environment
for children. In fact, research shows that how ______ parents came together is less
important than, simply, that they do stay together rather than divorce. Last, everybody
knows that both in love and arranged marriages, there will be ______ good and bad
times. In ______ former, fights may involve individuals whereas in ______ latter, other
family members may be more involved but, regardless, there will be conflicts that require resolution.
Turning to differences, ______ significant one is that ______ arranged marriage is
more of ______ contract between families and society. In contrast, ______ love
marriage tends to focus more on ______ two partners rather than extended family
members. ______ Another noteworthy distinction is that partners in arranged marriages
are more likely to be ______ same nationality and religion. Their counterparts,
however, may well differ in these aspects. Finally, some people would argue that in
______ love marriage, people know each other better before they tie ______ knot.
Those who are matched up, however, will probably not know each other very well before marriage.
To sum up, we can see numerous similarities and differences between ______ two
types of matrimony. I prefer ______ love marriage because it’s more representative of
my background as ______ Canadian. Moreover, I think I know myself better than
______ my parents and can make ______ better decision
3. Scrambled Sentences: Compare and Contrast Football and Basketball
Unscramble the sentences below - put them in the right order. Introduction
1. There are many different kinds.
2. Some of them are very popular and most sports provide many benefits to anyone who plays them.
3. Some of them are played individually, whereas others are played in teams against another team.
4. I am going to write about the similarities and differences between two sports; basketball and football.
5. Sports have been played all over the world for hundreds, maybe thousands of years. Similarities
1. It is usually a reddish-brown colour.
2. A basketball team consists of five players, while a football team is made up of eleven players.
3. It is usually black and white.
4. Another similarity between them is that they both use a ball, although these are not exactly the same.
5. In both of these sports, players can be replaced by substitutes when they are injured or tired.
6. In contrast, a basketball is generally not as light and it is made of hard rubber.
7. There are some important similarities between basketball and football.
8. A football is round, light, quite hard, and made of either leather of synthetic material.
9. Firstly, they are both team sports. Differences
Another obvious difference is the places that these sports are played.
In contrast, basketball players can only use their hands to control the ball, which they dribble, pass and shoot.
One difference is the part of the body used to control the ball.
Football is generally played outdoors on grass pitches, whereas basketball is
usually played indoors on a wooden surface, although quite a lot of people also
play outdoors on concrete basketball courts.
In football, the feet are used to dribble, kick and trap the ball.
Although there are some similarities, there are also some important differences.
Also, people sometimes use their heads to head the ball. Conclusion
1. That is probably the reason basketball and football are so popular all around the world.
2. They can also learn self-discipline and teamwork at the same time.
3. All in all, most sports, especially team sports like basketball and football, give
players a chance to develop themselves physically.