Name: Michigan Proficiency First Steps
ISBN: 9789604036189

Diane Flanel Piniaris

This is an introduction to Michigan Proficiency designed to prepare students for the GCVR and Writing papers of the Michigan ECPE.

Introduction 
About the Michigan ECPE: Overview − Results − ECPE writing criteria

1. Artistic Attributes
Cloze Remembering the Beatles Vocabulary round-up 
Grammar Think grammar! Tackling ECPE grammar questions 
Reading Picasso the poet Vocabulary round-up 
Vocabulary Extension and review
Expressing passionate (and not so passionate) intensity
Body language (compound adjectives) 
Writing ECPE writing criteria (1)
Mechanics (punctuation – spelling – capitalization)
Rhetoric (organization of ideas – topic development – linking) 

2 Females at their finest
Cloze Jackie: A remarkable First Lady Vocabulary round-up 
Grammar Relative clauses Tackling relative clause questions on the ECPE 
Reading Jessica: A joyful girl pilot Vocabulary round-up 
Vocabulary Extension and review Shades of shyness − Beauty is in the eye of the beholder −
A “look back” at the -spec in retrospect
Writing ECPE writing criteria (2) Grammar and syntax
Vocabulary
Vocabulary consolidation 1 

3 Echoing eco themes
Cloze Extinction: Palms under threat Vocabulary round-up 
Grammar Verb-tense questions Adjusting your expectations of ECPE verb-tense questions 
Reading Evolution: The giraffe’s neck Vocabulary round-up 
Vocabulary Extension and review Long, longer, longest − Short, shorter, shortest − Idioms with long and short 
Writing For and against (1)
Rhetoric: Structuring your essay (the “tell them” prototype)
The “for and against” essay: Zoos / Protecting endangered species 
4 Amazing adaptations
Cloze Whirly bird: The red-necked phalarope Vocabulary round-up 
Grammar Frequently tested verb structures Learning to recognize and cope with verb-structure questions 
Reading Heating things up: The sacred lotus Vocabulary round-up 
Vocabulary Extension and review Spreading out − The more things change, the more they stay the same −
Subtle differences
Writing For and against (2) Featured topic: Ecotourism 
Vocabulary consolidation 2 

5 Weighty health problems
Cloze Obesity on the rise Vocabulary round-up 
Grammar Easily confused word forms Tackling questions with easily confused word forms 
Reading Public health enemy number 1 Vocabulary round-up 
Vocabulary Extension and review Overweight and underweight - Good and bad 
Writing The opinion essay (1) Featured topic: Weighing in on the “fat tax” 
HEALTH AND MEDICINE 3
Contents
Skill area Topic Featured subjects 
 Is there a doctor in the house?
Cloze Asthma alert Vocabulary round-up 
Grammar Participle clauses Coping with items that involve participle clauses 
Reading A new kind of med school Vocabulary round-up 
Vocabulary Extension and review Emergency room – Doctor, doctor! – Other medical descriptors 
Writing The opinion essay (2) Featured topic: Banning smoking in public places 
Vocabulary consolidation 3

7 Devastating disasters
Cloze Eruption: “Vancouver, this is it!” Vocabulary round-up 
Grammar Easily confused phrases Becoming sensitive to similar phrases with different meanings 
Reading Oily messes: Slicks and spills Vocabulary round-up 
Vocabulary Extension and review Speaking of spills – Sound like ... – Figuratively speaking 
Writing The problem/solution essay (1) Featured topic: Are we ready for the next “big one”? 
8 Rubbish!
Cloze Amazing mountains of trash Vocabulary round-up 
Grammar Impersonal vs. personal constructions Tackling items that test impersonal and personal constructions 
Reading The secret life of tires Vocabulary round-up 
Vocabulary Extension and review What’s left over − Catastrophic collocations 
Writing The problem/solution essay (2) Featured topic: Think outside the recycling bin! 
Vocabulary consolidation 4

9 Innovative inventors
Cloze Henry Ford: A tinkerer for all times Vocabulary round-up 
Grammar The subjunctive, inversion, and so/such Points to remember about the subjunctive, inversion, and so/such 
Reading Thomas Edison: A classic innovator Vocabulary round-up 
Vocabulary Extension and review
Ahead of the times, behind the times – Greek time, Roman time – TIme out for
time expressions
Writing Tasks that don’t quite fit the mold Featured topic: What makes an invention successful? 
10 Inventive innovations
Cloze Online: The “new normal” Vocabulary round-up 
Grammar Subordinators and other linking words Recognizing and tackling items with missing linking words 
Reading Road gizmos: Botts’ dots Vocabulary round-up
Vocabulary Extension and review The brain vs. mind debate - Computer verbs 
Writing Time management Developing a time-management approach to ECPE writing 
Vocabulary consolidation 5 
TECHNOLOGY
Exam practice (GCVR and Writing) 
Extra activities (crossword puzzles, word jumbles, Internet survey) 
Grammar reference

Michigan Proficiency First Steps

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