TABLE OF CONTENTS Pages Table of contents 1 Introduction 2
Chapter 1: WRITING A SENTENCE BASED ON A PICTURE 3 Lesson 1: SV, SVA Patterns 5 Lesson 2: SVO, SVOO Patterns 9 *Lesson 3: SVC, SVOC Patterns 13 Lesson 4: SVOA, There to be 17 Lesson 5: Mixed Patterns 21
Lesson 6: Expanding Mixed Patterns 25
Chapter 2: RESPONDING TO AN E-MAIL REQUEST LETTER 29
Lesson 7: The format of an e-mail letter 30
Lesson 8: The header, greeting and closing parts of an e-mail letter 35
Lesson 9: The main purpose of an e-mail letter 38
Lesson 10: Writing the main content of a reply 44 Lesson 11: Review 49
Chapter 3: WRITING AN OPINION ESSAY 54
Lesson 12: Analyzing essay questions 55
Lesson 13: The organization of an essay 59
Lesson 14: Writing the thesis statement 63 Lesson 15: Review 65 REFERENCES 67 1
INTRODUCTION TO TOEIC 4 SKILLS TEST
The Test of English for International Communication, TOEIC®, is a standard and objective
assessment for English language proficiency in the workplace. The TOEIC® is the most used test
for Business English with more than 7 million worldwide test-takers each year. The TOEIC® is
recognized as proof of a person’s English language competence by businesses, universities,
technical colleges and business schools, when considering potential candidates for admission to
their organizations. In countries such as the United Kingdom, the TOEIC® is a requirement for Visa
applications. The TOEIC® 4 Skills test offers a common standard of measurement for listening,
reading, writing, and speaking skills. Test Format
• Non-incremental placement test (no pass-or-fail system)
• Paper and pencil (Listening & Reading)
• Online test (Speaking &Writing)
• Administered in authorized TOEIC® test centers
• Individual test sittings available by appointment Language Level
A1-C1 in accordance with the Common European Frame of Reference Usage
Evaluation and certification of English language skills are used at a specific point in time for
students, graduates, employees, job applicants and professionals, who may require evidence of their
language skills for their studies or jobs. The test can also be used as an aid to monitor the learning
progress of individual’s participating in language training programs. Structure
Listening: 100 multiple choice questions in 45 min.
Reading: 100 multiple choice questions in 75 min.
Speaking: 11 tasks (6 types of questions) in 20 min.
Writing: 8 tasks (3 types of questions) in 60 min. Test Length
200 min. test duration plus a break of 30 min. between Listening & Reading, Speaking & Writing Results
• Score reports for Listening & Reading and Speaking & Writing
• Individual analysis of strengths and weaknesses
• Correlation table with CEFR* mapping and Can-Do-Statements
• Certificate for all four skills (optional)
• Score evaluation within 15 business days, excl. postal time 2 TOEIC Writing
The optional Speaking and Writing test was introduced in 2006. More and more people in business
connect globally through video conferencing, web conferencing, Skype and e-mail. If you're going
to be successful in a global company, you have to be able to speak fluently and write well in English.
The type and format of the questions in the optional Speaking and Writing test are quite different
compared to the standard TOEIC .
test However, similar skills are being tested as well as your
ability to communicate effectively. As with the standard test, all the questions are designed to
represent real world corporate situations from the factory level all the way up to the boardroom.
Your ability to communicate in any kind of workplace situation is being evaluated. However, you
do not have to have specialized business knowledge to be able to answer the writing or speaking tasks. Unlike the and Listening
Reading sections of the standard TOEIC test, the optional Speaking and
Writing test is done at a computer. Your responses are sent directly to ETS's online scoring network
where highly trained graders by ETS will mark your responses. For Writing, the range of scores
varies for each of the 3 types of tasks: 0-3 for tasks 1-5, 0-4 for tasks 6-7 and 0-5 for task 8. The sum of your for scores
the 8 writing tasks is then scaled. The scaled score range is 0-200. In
addition to your scaled score, you are assigned a proficiency level. There are 9 for writing. To see
what the 9 levels are as well as description of what each means in terms of your writing skills.
What score you get for your writing responses is based on how well you demonstrate these essential skills: sentence variety, ,
grammar range and appropriateness of vocabulary, and coherence and
organization. Sentence variety means you use more than one kind of sentence structure. Grammar
covers many, many skills. Make sure to read over your responses for spelling mistakes! Range and
appropriateness of vocabulary means you don't use the same words over and over again, as well as
using the right words related to the topic. What you write should make sense, someone reading it
should not be confused or have a hard time understanding what you're trying to convey. Going from
one idea to another should progress in a logical manner. This is what coherence and organization refer to.
The Writing section has 8 tasks. You have a total time of 1 hour to complete them all. These are the
3 types of TOEIC Writing tasks in the order in which you will do them in the test: W
rite a sentence based on a picture : 5 questions Respond to a written request : 2 questions Opinion essay : 1 question 3 CHAPTER 1 WRITING SENTENCES Lesson 1: SV, SVA Patterns Lesson 2: SVO, SVOO Patterns Lesson 3: SVC, SVOC Patterns Lesson 4: SVOA, There to be Lesson 5: Mixed Patterns
Lesson 6: Expanding Mixed Patterns 4
LESSON 1: SV, SVA PATTERNS A-LANGUAGE FOCUS I- Basic clause elements S V: Subject + Verb -He is sleeping. -The baby is crying.
SVA: Subject + Verb + Adverbial phrase
-The man is in the kitchen.
-The actor is appearing on the stage. -He is going to the theatre. II-Expanding clauses SV(A), SVA(A)
-He is sleeping in the garden (place)
-He is sleeping in the morning (time) -He is sleeping well (manner)
-He is writing with a pen (manner)
TEST TIP: Use modifiers appropriately
One of the words may be a modifier. These are adjectives and adverbs or adverbial phrases which
give more information about the subject/or verbs. Understanding how to identify them, and position
in a sentence will help you make well-formed sentences. B-LANGUAGE PRACTICE
I-Underline and name the clause elements 1. The lion is roaring loudly.
2. The boy is lying on the ground.
3. The tall man is standing behind the tree.
4. The man is talking on the telephone.
5. The meeting is happening in the afternoon.
II-Make a sentence with the given words: 1. man/ room/ alone 2. plant/ table
3. festival/ occur/ Danang city 4. animals/ run/ away
5. passengers/ wait/ line/ shop C-PRACTICE IN TOEIC I. Building Language Picture 1 Picture 2 5
a- Give some nouns and verbs which may be used to describe pictures 1 and 2. Compare with your friends.
b- Complete the following about picture 1 and 2 sentences with the given words:
alone - sitting - the phone - next to – in front of
1. The man is in the room……alone…………..
2. The man is talking on…the phone……………..
3. The man is ………sitting…………. on a desk
4. The chefs are ...........next to.............. each other.
5. The desserts are ……in front of………….the chefs. II. Tactic Practice
Make sentences about the pictures with the suggested words Picture 1: meeting/ go/ well
Picture 2: ship/ be/ port
The meeting didn’t go well The ship is in port
……………………………………….. ……………………………………………
……………………………………….. ……………………………………………
Picture 3: workers / be/ ground
Picture 4: city/ run/ coast
The workers aren’t on the ground The city runs along the coast
……………………………………….. ……………………………………………
………………………………………… …………………………………………… III. Test Practice
In this part of the test, you will write ONE sentence that is based on a picture. With each
picture, you will be given two words or phrases that you must use in your sentence. You can change
the forms of the words and you can use the words in any order. 6
TEST TIP: Think about the subject
The subject of the sentence may be people or things. Given nouns will always be singular, so you
may have to change them to the plural form. Your sentence could also be about location of certain
objects in the picture, e.g. There are two pens on the desk. 1. boat/sail
Subject: …the boat……………….
Verb:…run……………………..
Adverbial phrase:…Sail…………
Preposition: ………………………
Other modifiers………………… Sentence:
…The boat don’t run on sails……..
…………………………………..
…….............................................. 2. passengers/ train 1. THE PASSENGERS ARE WAITING FOR THE TRAIN. 2. THE PASSENGERS ARE GETTING ON THE TRAIN
GET ON/ GET OFF: LÊN / XUỐNG (TÀU, BUS, MÁY BAY,…) GET INTO/ GET OUT OF: CAR, TAXI,… 3. cars/ bridge Subject: The Car………. Verb:…run…………..
Adverbial phrase: the bridge……
Preposition: ………………………
Other modifiers………………… Sentence: The car is running on the bridge…….. 7 4. stand/line Subject: People ………… Verb:…stand……… Adverbial phrase:…line……
Preposition: ………………………
Other modifiers………………….. Sentence:
……People are standing in line …..
…………………………………..
…………………........................... 5. boat/ dock
Subject: …The boat………….
Verb:…be………………….. Adverbial phrase: the dock…………
Preposition: ………………………
Other modifiers………………… Sentence:
The boat is at the dock…………..
…………………………………..
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LESSON 2: SVO, SVOO PATTERNS A-LANGUAGE FOCUS I-Basic clause elements
S VO: Subject + Verb + Object -He is writing a letter
-The baby is drinking a cup of milk
SVOO: Subject + Verb + Object + Object
-The man is passing a box to the woman
-He sent a letter to his father Notes:
SVOdOi: S + V + Odirect + preposition + Oindirect
-He sent a letter to his father
SVOiOd: S + V + Oindirect + Odirect -He sent his father a letter NOTES:
HE SENT A LETTER (DIRECT OBJECT) TO HIS FATHER ( INDIRECT OBJECT).
TO: GIVE; SEND; TEACH, OFFER; MAKE; WRITE, …. FOR: BUY; BRING; HAND, …… II-Expanding clauses SVO(A), SVOO(A)
-He is writing a letter in the library (place)
-He sends a letter to his father every week. (time) -He can run (manner) very quickly -The man is using a machine (purpose) to make a key
TEST TIP: Use modifiers appropriately
One of the words may be a modifier. These are adjectives and adverbs or adverbial phrases which
give more information about the subject/object or verbs. Understanding how to identify them, and
position in a sentence will help you make well-formed sentences. B-LANGUAGE PRACTICE
I-Underline and name the clause elements
1. The cat(S) is catching(V) a mouse(O)
2. The boy students(S) send(V) flowers to the girl friends(O) on 8th March(A)
3. The tall man(S) is eating(V) a big cake(O) in the kitchen.(A)
4. The man(S) is carrying(V) a case.(O)
5. The lorry(S) is passing(V) the road.(O)
II-Make a sentence with the given words:
1. porter/ suitcases/ second floor=> the porter carrying the suitcases to the second floor
2. waiter/ table/ carefully=> The waiter wipes the table carefully
3. engineers/ buildings/ the beach=> The engineers are planning to buildings home at the beach
4. buy/ a gift/ sweetheart=> My sweetheart buys a gift for me
5. train/ passengers/ Hanoi station=> The passengers waiting for the train at Hanoi station. C-PRACTICE IN TOEIC I. Building Language
a-Give some nouns and verbs which may be used to describe pictures 1 and 2. Compare with your friends. 9
b-Complete the following about picture 1 and 2 sentences:
1. The man is holding a….container……
2. The man is ……wearing……….a red apron
3. The woman is ………handing to…………. man his ticket.
4. The woman is ......................... at the man.
5. The man and woman are at the…ticket counter……….. Picture 1 Picture 2 II. Tactic Practice
Make sentences about the pictures with the suggested words
Picture 1: person/ money /ATM
man /arrange / warehouse Picture 2:
The person withdrawing money The man is arranging the warehouse at an ATM
……………………………………….. ……………………………………………
……………………………………….. ……………………………………………
Picture 3: engineers/ discuss/ plans
Picture 4: guard/ search/ man
The engineers are discussing the plans
The security guard is searching on man of the hous
… …………………………………….. ……………………………………………
………………………………………… …………………………………………… 10 III. Test Practice
In this part of the test, you will write ONE sentence that is based on a picture. With each
picture, you will be given two words or phrases that you must use in your sentence. You can change
the forms of the words and you can use the words in any order.
TEST TIP: Think about the subject
The subject of the sentence may be people or things. Given nouns will always be singular, so you
may have to change them to the plural form. Your sentence could also be about location of certain
objects in the picture, e.g. There are two pens on the desk. 1. snow / away
Subject: ………………………….
Verb:……………………………..
Object:…………………………..
Adverbial phrase:…………………
Preposition: ………………………
Other modifiers………………… Sentence:
The man is cleaning the snow right away…………………….. 2. children/ hands
Subject: ………………………….
Verb:……………………………..
Object:…………………………..
Adverbial phrase:…………………
Preposition: ………………………
Other modifiers………………… Sentence:
The children are raising their hands to answer ……………….. 3. tie/ post
Subject: ………………………….
Verb:……………………………..
Object:……………………………
Adverbial phrase:…………………
Preposition: ………………………
Other modifiers………………… Sentence: 11
…The boats are tied to the post …………….. 4. check/ data
Subject: ………………………….
Verb:……………………………..
Object:…………………………..
Adverbial phrase:…………………
Preposition: ………………………
Other modifiers………………….. Sentence: …The man is checking the computer’s data 5. woman/ notebook
Subject: ………………………….
Verb:……………………………..
Object:…………………………..
Adverbial phrase:…………………
Preposition: ………………………
Other modifiers………………… Sentence:
…The woman looking at notebook on bus…………………..
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LESSON 3: SVC, SVOC PATTERNS A-LANGUAGE FOCUS I-Basic clause elements
S VC: Subject + Verb + Complement
-She is beautiful. (adjective)
-The cake tastes sweet (adjective)
-The boy is a clever student (noun)
Notes: The Complement Subject
In this clause pattern the element that comes after the verb provides more information about the
subject; it serves to complete the subject, so it is called the complement, or more fully, the subject complement.
AFTER LINKING VERBS: TOBE, APPEAR, BECOME, KEEP, TASTE, SEEM, SOUND, LOOK + ADJ (S.C) *MAKE; FIND + O + O.C
SVOC: Subject + Verb + Object + Complement
-They are keeping the hands warm (adjective)
-The son have the car cleaned (participle)
-We call him ‘Father’ (noun)
Notes: The Complement Object
In this clause pattern the element that comes after the
object provides more information about the
object; it serves to complete the object, so it is called the complement, or more fully, the object complement. II-Expanding clauses SVC(A), SVOC(A)
-He is a teacher at DTU (place)
-He is keeping the baby warm in the winter morning (time) -He is very beautiful (degree)
TEST TIP: Use modifiers appropriately
One of the words may be a modifier. These are adjectives and adverbs or adverbial phrases which
give more information about the subject/or verbs. Understanding how to identify them, and position
in a sentence will help you make well-formed sentences. 13 B-LANGUAGE PRACTICE
I-Underline and name the clause elements 1. The woman (S) appears(V) lonely(SC) 2. The boy
(S) keeps(V) the dog(O) warm(OC) 3. Most college freshmen
(S) call(V) themselves serious teachers(SC) 4. The freshmen
(S) described(V) themselves as "conservative " (SC) 5. The cake (S) tastes(V) sweet(SC)
II-Translate into English:
1. Các chàng trai đó trở thành những cầu thủ bóng đá nổi tiếng=> Those boys became famous soccer players
2. Họ trông có vẻ kiệt sức=> They look exhausted
3. Chúng tôi để cửa sổ mở=> We leave the window open
4. Họ bầu John làm lớp trưởng=> They vote John as class president
5. Chúng tôi đặt tên nó là Mimosa=> We named it's Mimosa C-PRACTICE IN TOEIC I. Building Language
a-Give some nouns and verbs which may be used to describe pictures 1 and 2. Compare with your friends.
b-Complete the following about picture 1 and 2 sentences:
1. The class………is………..exciting. (picture 1)
2. The children seem……to be very active………….....
3. The teacher looks …so happy…………………
4. The woman is holding the ......... elevator door................ open. (picture 2)
5. The door has not been ……closed………….yet. Picture 1: Picture 2: II. Tactic Practice
Make sentences about the pictures with the suggested words Picture 1: traffic/ be/ busy
Picture 2: woman/be /attentive
……Traffic isn’t busy………….. The woman is attention to the book in her hand..
……………………………………….. ……………………………………………
……………………………………….. …………………………………………… 1
Picture 3: man/ hold/ open
Picture 4: people/ seem/ tired
…. The man is holding the car door open……. ……The people seems to be tired…..
……………………………………….. ……………………………………………
………………………………………… …………………………………………… III.Test Practice
In this part of the test, you will write ONE sentence that is based on a picture. With each
picture, you will be given two words or phrases that you must use in your sentence. You can change
the forms of the words and you can use the words in any order.
TEST TIP: Think about the subject
The subject of the sentence may be people or things. Given nouns will always be singular, so you
may have to change them to the plural form. Your sentence could also be about location of certain
objects in the picture, e.g. There are two pens on the desk. 1. platform/high
Subject: ………………………….
Verb:……………………………..
Adverbial phrase:…………………
Preposition: ………………………
Other modifiers………………… Sentence: ……… the platform looks
high……………………… ….. 2. be/ ancient
Subject: ………………………….
Verb:……………………………..
Adverbial phrase:…………………
Preposition: ………………………
Other modifiers………………… Sentence: 15 ……The pyramid looks very
ancient…………………… ………..
3. conversation/ comfortable
Subject: ………………………….
Verb:……………………………..
Adverbial phrase:…………………
Preposition: ………………………
Other modifiers………………… Sentence:
… The conversation is going on comfortably……………… ……………….. 4. make/ happy
Subject: ………………………….
Verb:……………………………..
Adverbial phrase:…………………
Preposition: ………………………
Other modifiers………………….. Sentence:
…… The father makes his son
happy……………………… …….. 5. family/ happy
Subject: ………………………….
Verb:……………………………..
Adverbial phrase:…………………
Preposition: ………………………
Other modifiers………………… Sentence: …… This family seems very
happy……………………… ….. 16
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LESSON 4: SVOA, THERE TO BE A-LANGUAGE FOCUS I-Basic clause elements
S VOA: Subject + Verb + Object + Adverbial
-The man put a pen on the table.
-She is releasing a bean into the bag. There + to be -There are many cats. -There is a bag on the table. II-Expanding clauses SVOA(A), There +to be +(A)
-The man is putting a pen on the table carefully. (manner)
-There are two cats in the room. (place)
TEST TIP: Use modifiers appropriately 17
One of the words may be a modifier. These are adjectives and adverbs or adverbial phrases which
give more information about the subject/object or verbs. Understanding how to identify them, and
position in a sentence will help you make well-formed sentences. B-LANGUAGE PRACTICE
I-Underline and name the clause elements
1. The man is putting a flower on the computer
2. There is a car on the pavement
3. The girls are sitting against the table.
4. The boys are beating the ball. 5. The eraser is in the box.
II-Make a sentence with the given words: 1. hold/ basket/ hand 2. put/ knife/ table 3. there/customers/bank 4. woman/ draw/ bag 5. bread/on C-PRACTICE IN TOEIC I.Building Language Picture 1: Picture 2:
a-Give some nouns and verbs which may be used to describe pictures 1 and 2. Compare with your friends.
b-Complete the following about picture 1 and 2 sentences:
1. There …………..some slices of lemon ……….the glass of water. (picture 1)
2. The woman is ………………..some slices of lemon ………. the glass of water.
3. The woman is inserting some flowers …………..the………. (picture 2)
4. There are some flowers ………. the………… II.Tactic Practice
Make sentences about the pictures with the suggested words Picture 1: woman/ against/ wall
Picture 2: put/ suitcases/ground
……………………………………….. ……………………………………………
……………………………………….. ……………………………………………
……………………………………….. …………………………………………… 1
Picture 3: there/ fruit/ basket
Picture 4: young/ jump/ grass
……………………………………….. ……………………………………………
……………………………………….. ……………………………………………
………………………………………… …………………………………………… III.Test Practice
In this part of the test, you will write ONE sentence that is based on a picture. With each
picture, you will be given two words or phrases that you must use in your sentence. You can change
the forms of the words and you can use the words in any order.
TEST TIP: Think about the subject
The subject of the sentence may be people or things. Given nouns will always be singular, so you
may have to change them to the plural form. Your sentence could also be about location of certain
objects in the picture, e.g. There are two pens on the desk. 1. family/sit
Subject: ………………………….
Verb:……………………………..
Adverbial phrase:…………………
Preposition: ………………………
Other modifiers………………… Sentence:
…………………………………..
…………………………………..
…….............................................. 19 2. bicycle/tree
Subject: ………………………….
Verb:……………………………..
Adverbial phrase:…………………
Preposition: ………………………
Other modifiers………………… Sentence:
…………………………………..
…………………………………..
…………………………………. 3. glasses/ sand
Subject: ………………………….
Verb:……………………………..
Adverbial phrase:…………………
Preposition: ………………………
Other modifiers………………… Sentence:
…………………………………..
…………………………………..
………………………………….. 4. boy/ ball
Subject: ………………………….
Verb:……………………………..
Adverbial phrase:…………………
Preposition: ………………………
Other modifiers………………….. 20 Sentence:
…………………………………..
…………………………………..