TOEFL Q6: Plant Biology

DIRECTIONS

In this lesson, your tutor will help you go over question six from the TOEFL speaking test. Listen
to a short lecture.

Note to tutor: read the text to the student. The text is not presented to the student in the actual
test.

Have you ever wondered why some trees shed their leaves during the winter? This occurs for
many reasons, but the main reasons trees do this is to protect themselves. You know, most trees
that lose their leaves are in cold climates. During the long cold winters, the air becomes very dry.
This causes the leaves of trees also to become dry. To keep the leaves alive, the trees have to
give them a lot of moisture. The problem with this is that trees could lose too much moisture and
die. So instead of giving moisture to the leaves, the trees keep the moisture inside. They keep it
in their trunks and branches. After a while, the leaves start to die. As the leaves die, they fall to
the ground around the trees. When this happens, the leaves actually help the trees survive. How
you may ask? Well, the leaves form the protective layer around the roots of the trees. This allows
the roots to stay warm. So, by losing their leaves the trees are able to live through the winter.

Question

Using points and examples from the talk, explain why trees shed their leaves.

Preparation time: 20 seconds l Response time: 60 seconds

SUMMARIZE

Use the chart below to summarize the lecture.

Guideline

Topic In this lecture, the professor explains why trees __. She claims that trees
do this to protect themselves.

Detail 1 During the winter, the leaves need a lot of __. If the trees give moisture to
the leaves, they might __. So they keep moisture inside their trunks and
__.

Detail 2 The leaves die and fall __. This creates a __ that protects the roots of the
trees.

Keywords cold climate, air becomes dry, moisture, protect the root

SAMPLE ANSWER

Reading great sample answers is one way to improve. Go over the sample answer with your
tutor. Ask questions if you have any.

Sample Answer
 The lecture mainly discusses why trees shed leaves during winter. According to the speaker,
trees do this to protect themselves. During the winter, trees use a lot of moisture to keep their
leaves alive. If the trees lose too much moisture, they can die. So they keep their moisture inside
their trunks and branches. This causes leaves to die. As they fall to the ground, they form a
protective layer over the roots of the trees. Together, these factors allow the trees to survive
through a long, cold winter.

FURTHER STUDY

Got more time? Here is a list of common vocab words related to the text you studied today. Go
over each one with your tutor.

Additional Expressions

shed (v) to fall off; to drop out

e.g. The dog is ​shedding​ its

fur.

protect (v) to keep from being

damaged or injured; to
defend

e.g. He had no raincoat to

protect​ himself from the
rain.
moisture (n) wetness

e.g. These flowers grow

best with ​moisture​ and
shade.

trunk (n) the main part of a tree

e.g. The ​trunk​ of this tree

has a radius of 1 foot.

branch (n) part of a tree that grows

out of the trunk

e.g. A large tree ​branch​ fell

into our yard during the
storm.

survive (n) to live

e.g. I don’t see how any

creature can s​ urvive​ under
those conditions.
layer (n) one thickness of
something over another

e.g. Everything was

covered by a thin l​ ayer​ of
sand.

root (n) the part of a plant that is

underground

e.g. Elm trees have shallow

roots​.

bark (n) the outer covering of a

tree

e.g. He picked up a piece

of birch ​bark.

foliage (n) the leaves of a plant or

of many plants

e.g. She admired a tree

with pretty f​ oliage.