E Speaking Exercise    top

Instructions:    Discuss the following questions with the members of your group and together, decide if the statement is True (T) or False (F).

  1. Coffee is the second most traded commodity in the world, second only to oil.
  2. Tea is the most popular drink worldwide and coffee is the second most popular drink.
  3. It takes 25 coffee beans to make an espresso.
  4. Espresso contains less caffeine than any other roast.
  5. An average cup of coffee contains 15 milligrams of caffeine.
  6. On average, women drink more coffee than men do.
  7. Worldwide, a majority of people drink their coffee “black”. 
  8. More than half of the coffee consumed is consumed at breakfast.
  9. Americans drink an average of 35 million cups of coffee a day.
  10. In Turkey, traditionally the oldest person is served coffee last out of respect.
  11. Over 25 million people are employed in the coffee industry.
  12. Coffee is grown in over 100 countries. 

$  Reading Exercise    top

Instructions:    Read the text and complete the comprehension and writing questions that follow.

 

The years following the Seven Years War (1756-1763) witnessed England undergo a period of drastic economic decline.  As a result of this financial crisis, England was forced to impose taxes on many of its exports.  Included in these “taxed goods” destined for the colonies were: wine, sugar, molasses and tea.   The American colonists voiced their displeasure with the new taxation policy through a number of boycotts and protests.   This civil unrest came to a head on the night of December 16, 1773, when 150 American patriots disguised as Mohawk Indians boarded the ships of the East Indian Company which had docked in the Boston harbor.    They managed to dump 342 chests of tea (valued at 10,000 pounds) into the harbor.  This historic event became known as the “Boston Tea Party” and is cited as one of the events leading to The American War of Independence.  It was at this time, that Americans turned to coffee as the beverage of choice because tea was viewed as a symbol of British control over the colonies.  So, it goes without saying that this act of defiance not only lead to the founding of a new country, but also spawned a nation of coffee drinkers.  The love affair had indeed begun.

 

Coffee was first discovered in Eastern Africa in an area known today as Ethiopia.  Legend has it that an Ethiopian shepherd observed how his goats stayed awake at night after spending the day grazing on wild coffee berries.  The shepherd is purported to have told some local monks of the berries’ mysterious effect on his animals.  The monks used this knowledge to concoct a beverage made from fruit, water and these mystical coffee berries.  After consuming this beverage, the monks found that they were able to stay awake during their late night prayer sessions.  Later, coffee berries were transported to the Arabian peninsula (Yemen) and eventually found their way to Turkey.  It was in Turkey, that the beans were first roasted over an open fire.  These roasted beans were crushed and boiled in water to make a beverage similar to the coffee we consume today.  In due course, coffee made its way to Europe via the Venetian trade merchants.  Upon its arrival in Europe, many Catholics condemned this mysterious beverage calling it “the drink of the devil”.  To the surprise of many, the Pope revealed that he was already a coffee drinker and thus he declared it a truly “Christian beverage”. 

 

In the 1700s, a French infantry captain brought a small coffee plant along on his journey across the Atlantic.  From the humble origins of this lowly plant, over the next 50 years coffee trees began to sprout up throughout the regions of South and Central America.  Today, coffee is a booming global industry employing more than 25 million people.  Worldwide, more than 400 billion cups are consumed every year, making it the most popular beverage.  Although there are numerous environmental risks directly related to the cultivation of coffee (for instance pesticide use), the most significant environmental impact is related to all of the coffee paraphernalia we produce such as:  cups, filters, grounds and stir sticks.        

 

1.  The word “drastic” (in the 1st paragraph) is:  (a) an adjective  (b) a verb  (c) a noun  (d) an adverb

 

2.   Find a synonym in the 1st paragraph for the word “sovereignty”.    ___________________

 

3.  Find a ‘prefix’ in the 1st paragraph that means “not”  _________________

 

4.  What does the expression “it goes without saying” (in the 1st paragraph) mean?  

___________________________________________________________________________

 

5.  All of the following statements are true EXCEPT:   (a) Coffee stir sticks are detrimental to our environment.  (b) In the 1700s a French infantry cook brought a coffee tree on his journey across the Atlantic.  (c) American colonists were dissatisfied with the British taxation policy.  (d) Mohawk Indians did not dump the British tea into the Boston harbor.

 

6.  The phrase “sprout up” (in the 3rd paragraph) means:  (a) wither  (b) grow  (c) brew  (d) filter

 

?  Extension Questions for Writing     top

Answer the following questions using sentence format. 

 

7.  Why did monks enlist the aid of these “mysterious” coffee berries? 

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

 

8.  Many people feel that the coffee industry tends to exploit poor and developing countries.  Do you agree with this opinion?  Why or why not?

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

 

9.  In many parts of the world, people sit down in a café or restaurant to drink their coffee; whereas,  here in North America it is common for people to order their coffee to go.  When you order a coffee (or tea), which way do you prefer to drink it?  Why? 

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

þ    Grammar Exercise:   top

Adverbial Time Expressions             

It is useful to know the time words and expressions that usually accompany the various verb tenses.  Especially in sentences which contain only one action, a time expression can make the time of the action clear.  When writing, you should use your verb tenses consistently; do not jump from one tense to another unless you have a logical reason for doing so.  Using adverbial time expressions can inform the reader that you will be changing the time of events in your narrative. 

1.  Here is a list of some words that are used with certain tenses to indicate a specific time period: 

Simple Past                               Past Continuous

ago                                  while

Present Perfect                          Present Perfect Continuous

for                                    for     

since                                since

yet                        

so far                                Future Perfect

up to now                          by the time

ever

 

2.  Adverbs of frequency express how often an activity occurs.  Most adverbs of frequency can be used with several tenses; however, with the simple tenses, they express the idea of habitual or repeated action.  With the present perfect tense, adverbs of frequency describe an action from a point in the past up to and including the present. 

 

100%  always                                 

           usually

           frequently

           often

50%    sometimes

           occasionally

           rarely, scarcely

           seldom

           hardly ever

           once in a while 

0%      never

 

F Adverbs of frequency come before the main verb (except “to be”).  Occasionally, sometimes, often, frequently and usually can go at the beginning or the end of a sentence.  

Exercise One     top

Instructions:    Complete the sentence by writing the correct tense of the verb provided.  Use the time expression to assist you in your verb tense choice.

1.  Some of my friends __________________ (wait) for me outside of Starbucks now.

2.  My aunt __________________ (come) to visit me this Friday.

3.  By this time next month, I __________________ (completed) my dissertation.

4.  I must have missed my aunt’s call while I __________________ (hang out) with my friends at Starbucks. 

5.  The local coffee shop __________________ (receive) its shipment of fair-trade coffee yet.

6.  Up to now, we __________________ (receive/only) three applications for the position. 

7.  I not sure when Alice applied, but I __________________ (submit) my application weeks ago. 

8.  They __________________ (introduce) that new blend in two weeks.

9.  I __________________ (think about) this latte since early this morning. 

Exercise Two      top

Instructions:    Complete the following paragraph using the correct form of the verb in parentheses. 

I (1) _______________ (met) quite a few interesting people since moving to Toronto in 2000.  In May of 2000, I (2) _______________ (enroll) in an ESL class offered by the Toronto Catholic District School Board.  I (3) _______________ (forget/never) my first day in the “Basic Class”.  My teacher (4) _______________ (ask) me (5) _______________ (introduce) myself to the rest of the class.  I (6) _______________ (be) so shy and I couldn’t think of anything intelligent to say.  While I (7) _______________ (introduce) myself, I (8) _______________ (notice) that a lady sitting in the front row (9) _______________ (smile) at me.  Later, she (10) _______________ (tell) me her name was Nurgul.  Since that first day in class, Nurgul and I (11) _______________ (become) great friends.  Our children (12) _______________ (play) together on the weekends and our husbands (13) _______________ (love) to drink coffee together. 

            After two long years of study, I (14) _______________ (be) finally able to enroll in the TOEFL class at my school.  It was during this time, that I (15) _______________ (meet) a rather “unusual” teacher.  Although TOEFL is a serious subject, our teacher Jean-Paul (16) ______________ (love) to make us laugh with his crazy jokes and silly stories.  Rarely (17) _______________ (do) people feel sad in our class.  My teacher always (18) _______________ (say) that the best way to study a language is in a professional, yet relaxed atmosphere.  After a lot of hard work, I (19) _______________ (be) finally ready to register for the TOEFL exam at the end of next month.  Jean-Paul (20) _______________ (say) that I can expect to be a little nervous when I (21) _______________ (write) my exam.  I (22) _______________ (get up) early the day of my exam because I want to leave myself plenty of time to get to the testing center.  If all (23) _______________ (go) well, by this time next year I (24) _______________ (complete) my first term at the University of Toronto.  One thing (25) _______________ (be) for certain, if I pass my TOEFL test, I (26) _______________ (take) Jean-Paul and Nurgul out for a coffee to celebrate my success!