Writing Advice: Using model sentences

Here’s a different way to practise sentence grammar: Take a model sentence that was written by a native speaker, and use its structure to make your own sentences.

Let’s look at some examples.

Model sentence:

More waste goes to landfill sites than to any other refuse management facility.

New sentence with the same structure:

More British people go on holiday to Spain than to any other country.

Model sentence:

Austria and Belgium are the most environmentally friendly of the fifteen countries, recycling around 60% and 50% of their waste respectively.

New sentence with the same structure:

Apple and Google are the most successful of the five tech companies, recording profits of $45 billion and $20 billion respectively.

Model sentence:

Video cameras make cities safer for inhabitants and visitors alike.

New sentence with the same structure:

Teaching assistants make lessons easier for students and teachers alike.

New sentence with a few changes:

The school website can be used by students, teachers and parents alike.

Study task: Take a sentence from one of my lessons, and use its structure to create your own new sentence.

Comments

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15 Comments

  1. Ngoc Nguyen on 17/04/22 at 16:30

    1. More travellers go to other provinces and cities than to any other foreign countries during holidays due to Covid-19 pandemic.
    2. Facebook and Instagram are the most popular of the five social networks, attracting 40 million and 30 million people respectively.
    3. Technology makes more time saved for employees and clients alike.

    • Ngoc Nguyen on 17/04/22 at 16:31

      I mean “provinces and cities within the country”

      1. More travellers go to other provinces and cities within the country than to any other foreign countries during holidays due to Covid-19 pandemic.

    • Mu Jun on 17/04/22 at 16:41

      3. Technology saves more time for employees and clients alike.
      Ngoc, I will run the 3rd sentence in this way, I do not know if it will be more natural for a native speaker.

    • Pheona Harrison on 17/04/22 at 20:47

      1 More African relocate to UK for lucrative jobs than any other countries
      2.African-Americans are prone to sickle cell carcinoma than white Americans
      3. Twitter and Instagram have most followers about 1000 and 600 people respectively

    • Simon on 21/04/22 at 15:19

      Ngoc:

      1. Just write “…than to foreign countries” (delete “any other”)
      3. Technology SAVES time for… (Thanks Mu Jun for correcting that)

      Pheona:

      1. More Africans (plural)… to THE UK… than TO any other…
      2. are MORE prone
      3. have THE most followers, AT about…

  2. Mu Jun on 17/04/22 at 16:35

    More graduates choose to further their study than to hunt a job.
    HKU and CUHK are the most top ranking university of the eight HK universities , global ranking at 21 and 43 respectively.
    Marriage makes a stable sense for parents and children alike.

    • Simon on 21/04/22 at 15:22

      Good. Small corrections:

      – to further their studies (plural) than to hunt FOR a job
      – are the HIGHEST ranking UNIVERSITIES… WITH global rankingS of 21 and 43…
      – Marriage makes sense / Marriage creates stability (You can’t say “makes a stable sense”)

  3. Tien Nguyen on 18/04/22 at 09:35

    The ability to play music brings many benefits that all children should experience
    >> the ability to communicate foreign language fluently brings many benefits that all staff in hospitality industry should experience.

    • Simon on 21/04/22 at 15:24

      Good. Small corrections:

      – to communicate FLUENTLY IN A foreign language
      – in THE hospitality industry

  4. Chao MA on 19/04/22 at 00:20

    More budget should go to public transport system than to healthcare.
    Italy and France are the richest of the 15 EU members, earning GDP of 10 trillion and 12 trillion respectively.
    Orientation can make on-job-training more effective for new blood and existing staff alike.

    • Simon on 21/04/22 at 15:28

      Good. Some small corrections:

      – More money / more OF THE budget
      – to THE public transport system (you need ‘the’ with ‘system’)
      – on-THE-job training
      – new employees (new ‘blood’ seems too colloquial for an IELTS context)

  5. Chen on 19/04/22 at 13:00

    Hi Simon, I have a question regards to speaking.
    I’ve got band 7.5 in speaking six times in a row, and I’m really frustrated about hitting a brick wall. I had a mock test with an IDP expert, and the expert told me that I already had strong lexical resources and great fluency. However, it’s the grammar and some certain word pronunciations that hold me back from getting band 8 in speaking.
    May I know how could I improve these two areas? I have started to record myself and found that I’m not great at using fillers to make my answers sound more logical. Any tips for this?

    • Simon on 21/04/22 at 15:34

      Hi Chen. Perhaps it’s best to focus on just one of those areas, especially if you only need a half band improvement.

      I wouldn’t worry about fillers – these are unlikely to change your score. I would work on accuracy: after recording yourself, try to identify any errors that you made. Aim to gradually reduce the number of small mistakes, either by correcting errors that you identified, or by choosing ‘safer’ ways to express your ideas.

  6. alyssa han on 20/04/22 at 03:25

    Model Sentence
    In many cases these changes have come to be seen as desirable qualities.
    New
    In many cities these artworks have come to be seen as landmarks.

    • Simon on 21/04/22 at 15:36

      Perfect!