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Five jumbled up sentences (labelled 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5), related to a topic, are given below. Four of them can be put together to form a coherent paragraph. Identify the odd sentence and key in the number of that sentence as your answer.

  1. People who study children's language spend a lot of time watching how babies react to the speech they hear around them.
  2. They make films of adults and babies interacting, and examine them very carefully to see whether the babies show any signs of understanding what the adults say.
  3. They believe that babies begin to react to language from the very moment they are born.
  4. Sometimes the signs are very subtle slight movements of the baby's eyes or the head or the hands.
  5. You'd never notice them if you were just sitting with the child, but by watching a recording over and over, you can spot them.

Entered answer:

Solution

✅ Correct Answer: 3

Step 1: Find the opening sentence -> Look for one that introduces the topic without needing previous context.

Step 2: Follow the pronouns and references -> See which sentences connect naturally through words like "they," "them," "the signs."

Step 3: Check the logical flow -> Make sure the ideas build on each other smoothly.


From passage: "People who study children's language spend a lot of time watching how babies react to the speech they hear around them."

This sentence must come first -> introduces "people who study children's language" -> all other sentences start with "they" (referring back to these people).

Flow analysis:

  • Sentence 1 -> introduces the researchers
  • Sentence 2 -> "They make films" (connects to sentence 1's researchers)
  • Sentence 4 -> "Sometimes the signs are very subtle" (connects to sentence 2's "signs of understanding")
  • Sentence 5 -> "You'd never notice them" (connects to sentence 4's "subtle signs")

The odd sentence out:

Sentence 3 -> "They believe that babies begin to react to language from the very moment they are born"

Why it doesn't fit: This is a general belief about when babies start reacting to language. But sentences 1, 2, 4, and 5 focus specifically on the research method of filming and observing subtle signs.

Sentence 3 talks about when babies react (from birth) -> The other 4 sentences talk about how researchers study these reactions (through filming and careful observation).

Answer: 3

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