WRITING-TRENDS
Graphs A and B below show trends in two activities in Britain.
Consumption of fruit and vegetables (vegetables v fruit)
Cigarette smoking (male vs female)
1. Fill in the chart by matching Graphs A and B to the following short
paragraphs. Then say which activities you think each graph represents.
a. There was a steady downward trend in both X and Y between 1974 and 1994.
Both activities levelled out briefly before continuing to fall.
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b. Activity X remained fairly steady over the period, reaching a small peak in
about 1986. Meanwhile there was an increase in activity Y, which exceeded
Activity X for the first time in 2000.
Graph Paragraph Activity
A
B
Make sure you can match each expression in bold to features on the graphs.
2. Now read through the language in the Useful language box and check any
expressions you don’t know
Find another way of saying the following.
1. A very small increase 4. To rise quickly
2. from 2000 until 2003 5. To reach a maximum
3. a steep decline 6. To stop falling
USEFUL LANGUAGE: DESCRIBING DATA
ADJECTIVES NOUNS
Slight Increase/rise (in)
Steady/gradual Decrease/decline/Fall (in)
Sharp/ steep/rapid Upward/downward
Marked/significant Trend (n)
recovery
VERBS ADVERBS
Rise/increase Slightly/steadily/gradually
Fall/decline/decrease Sharply/steeply/significantly/rapidly
Be at/reach a peak
Level out
Remain steady
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exceed
TIME EXPRESSIONS
• In 2000 /recent years, etc.
• Since (point of time) July/209,
etc
•
• For (period of time) several
months/ten years etc.
• During/over the year/ /the
period 1999 to 2009, etc
House prices have fallen steadily since
the beginning of 2008.
Car sales have reached a peak during the
month of June.
There was a slight increase in the cost of
living between 2005 and 2007.
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3.Complete the description of the graph using terms from Useful
language.
Over the period 1971 to 1997 as a whole, there was 1________________
In the consumption of butter and margarine and a 2_______________ in
the consumption of low-fat spreads. Butter was the most popular fat at the
beginning of the period, and a consumption 3_________________of about
150 grams per person per week in about 1975. Since, then, there has been
4__________________. In 1981, the consumption of margarine
5__________________ that of butter for the first time, but since 1987
there has been 6____________________ in the consumption of
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margarine, which seems set to continue. Low-fat spreads were introduced
7_______________ and there has been 8__________________in
their consumption since then, so that by about 9________________they
were more popular than either butter or margarine.
4. ADJECTIVES DESCRIBING CHANGE
Dramatic marginal sharp steady
Gradual marked significant steep
Limited rapid slight substantial
Put them in the correct boxes:
Big /fast Change Small/slow change
5. REPORTING TENSES
When you are describing graphs or tables or statistics it’s important to establish a
time frame and use an appropriate tense.
1. Which of the tenses listed below is more likely to be used with these
expressions?
a. Since last summer……
b. During the period from June to December last year……
c. Over the next few years……
d. For the time being……
e. By the year 2000…..
f. Between 1958 and 1988……
g. For nearly twenty years now……
h. In about 1900,……
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Present prices fall/are falling
Present perfect prices have fallen/ have been falling
Past prices fell
Past Perfect prices had fallen
Future prices will fall
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Ex . 6
a. What percentage of the British public owned
i) A microwave oven in 1999/2000?
ii) a CD player in 1997/1998?
iii) A home compute in 1999/2000?
iv) A mobile phone in 2005/06?
b. Which product increased in popularity most over the whole period? By how
much?
c. Which product increased in popularity least over the whole period? By how
much?
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d. Compare the ownership of mobile phones and home computers in 1997/98,
and again in 2006.
e.
Ex 7. Study the graph and answer the questions.
1. What is the main difference between the two graphs?
2. Which country does the data come from?
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3. What do the figures on the bottom line indicate?
4. What are the two most popular activities for both sexes?
5. Which group is more likely to spend time reading, men or women?
6. Are there any activities which only appear on one of the graphs?
8.
The graphs above gives information on participation by men and women in various
leisure time activities. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main
features, and make comparisons where relevant. (no more than 3 words in each
space)
The two graphs 1___________the percentages of men and women who take
part in certain leisure activities in 2___________ England from the figures,
we can see that watching TV is the 3___________ leisure activity for
4___________8 in ten men and women. Spending time with friends and
family is the 5__________ most common leisure activity for both men
6___________and women (82%).
However, there are also some differences between the 7___________. Men are
more likely than women to 8_____________ sport and exercise( 58%
compared with 43%) while women are more likely to spend their free time
9___________ with three quarters doing so, compared with around
10___________ of men. Similarly women were more likely to engage in
cultural activities 11____________ reading (73%), compared with men
(56%).
12___________ it seems there is a general consistency between the sexes in
their choice of leisure activities despite some differences in individual rankings.
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It's often helpful to describe statistics in terms of the nearest round figure eg. 47%
= approximately /almost 50 %: 25.5% =just over a quarter/ one in four
USEFUL LANGUAGE: Qualifiers
exactly about more than less/fewer than
approximately (just) over (just) under
almost/nearly around
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REPORTING TENSES
When you are describing graphs or tables or statistics it’s important to establish a
time frame and use an appropriate tense.
2. Which of the tenses listed below is more likely to be used with these
expressions?
i. Since last summer……
j. During the period from June to December last year……
k. Over the next few years……
l. For the time being……
m. By the year 2000…..
n. Between 1958 and 1988……
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o. For nearly twenty years now……
p. In about 1900,……
Present prices fall/are falling
Present perfect prices have fallen/ have been falling
Past prices fell
Past Perfect prices had fallen
Future prices will fall
Describing tables and graphs
1. Read the following findings from a museum survey into visitor
satisfaction, then answer questions 1-3.
Visitors surveyed: 10,000
Very satisfied 2,000
Quite satisfied 5,080
Not satisfied 500
Don’t know 100
• Twenty percent/a fifth of the people surveyed said there were ‘very
satisfied’
• Approximately/just over 50 percent of/half the visitors said they
were satisfied
• Only one per cent of /one in a hundred visitors had no opinion
a. What proportion of visitors were ‘very satisfied’ or ‘satisfied’?
b. What percentage of visitors to the museum had no opinion?
c. What percentage of visitors expressed dissatisfaction?
2. Statistics can be expressed in a number of ways, as fractions( half, a
quarter etc.), percentages (20%) or in expressions like ‘one in ten’.
Match each of the percentages 1-6 with expressions from the box
below.
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1 10% 4 33%
2 20% 5 75%
3 25% 6 90%
a third three out of four one in three three quarters
One in ten a half a quarter nine out of ten a fifth
a tenth one in five one in four two-thirds
It’s often helpful to describe statistics in terms of the nearest ‘round figure’,
eg.
47%= approximately/almost 50%
25.5%=just over a quarter/one in four.
1. Study the graph and answer the questions.
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Overall, the most popular type of arts event during the period were theatre
performances, which were attended by 1____________ of all adults aged 16
and over. By contrast, the least popular events were classical music performances,
attended by just 2__________of adults. People aged 3___________ were
more likely than other age groups to attend a theatre performance 42%, while
4___________were more likely to be attended by those aged 16 to 24
(5________) the difference is
6 ___________ age groups were particularly marked in the case of craft
exhibitions and classical music where attendance rates were around
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7____________ higher for older people 8___________ for the younger
ones. It is clear from the evidence that age plays a significant role in the popularity
of the arts events listed. (151 words)
Cohesion: avoiding repetition
The following sentences contain unnecessary repetition. Replace the
underlined sections with a suitable word or phrase chosen from the box
below and make any changes necessary. You can use any expression more
than once.
THIS THESE ONE THE FORMER …..THE
LATTER
THAT THOSE DID SO RESPECTIVELY
1. Whereas only 34% of adults said they went to the cinema in 1987-88,
more than half said that they went to the cinema in 1997-98.
2. Some museums introduced admission charges and introducing
admissions charges affected the number of visits made.
3. A higher proportion of people aged 35 and over said they attended
classical music concerts than people aged 15 to 34.
4. We were shown a number of good videos in the life and culture course,
but the video I liked best was Faulty Towers.
5. Titanic was the top box office film of 1998 in the United Kingdom. Titanic
was followed by The Full Monty and Saving Private Ryan.
6. The two most popular cultural events after the cinema were plays and art
galleries /exhibitions with attendances of 24% and 22% for plays and art
galleries /exhibitions in that order.
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7. Excursions to Stratford upon Avon and Oxford have been arranged for
this term. The excursion to Stratford upon Avon will be on the 16th of
April and the excursion to Oxford will be on the 2nd of July.
8. Approximately 25% our visitors made purchases in the museum shop. Of
the 25% of visitors who made purchases in the museum shop, most
spent less than £5 .
9. In 1998, the number of visits made to the Tate gallery rose to more than
double the number of visits made in 1981.
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Describing Information from a table
Study the table below, including the heading and footnotes, and write your
summary.
Before you begin, answer these questions.
1. what does the table show?
2. What has been the overall trend in the number of visits in the UK?
3. How much has this increased over the period?
4. Which is the most common reason for visiting the UK :business or leisure?
5. Where do most visitors to the UK come from North America or Western
Europe?
6. How has the leisure sector changed over the period?
7. How has the business sector changed over the period?
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8. Are both sectors still growing
The table above shows the number of visits to the UK by overseas residents
between 1975 and 1998.
Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main features and make
comparisons where relevant
Write at least 150 words
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