Listening Everyday English Speaking Reading and writing

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Module 1 Small Talk
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Reading and Listening
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Read and match the conversations with the places.
There is one extra place.
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at a summer school, during a job interview, in a
business meeting, on a boat
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1 A Wonderful, arent they? B Er Im
sorry? A The cliffs. B Oh yes, they are.
A Been here before? B Pardon?
2 A So you wrote in your application form that
youre interested in mountains. B Yes. Have you
ever climbed a mountain? A Have you ever climbed
a mountain? B No. A Have you ever read any
books about mountain-climbing? B No.
on a boat
during a job interview
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• 3
• A When did you arrive?
• B Yesterday.
• A Nice journey?
• B Very nice.
• A Did the immigration people ask to see your
  visa?
• B I didnt need to get a visa.
• A Really? Why not?
• B Because I was born here.
• A Oh yes, of course!

At a summer school
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Answer the questions abut the conversations.
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• 1. Do you think the conversations are between
  people who know each other? Give reasons for your
  answers.
• No, they arent. In conversation 1 Been
  here before? indicates they are strangers. The
  second is an interview between strangers. In the
  third conversation Speaker A obviously knows
  something about Speaker B, but probably doesnt
  know him.

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2. Which of the conversations would you call
small talk? 3. What do you think about the
answers in the interview? a) The answers
show that the interviewee is interested in the
job. b) The answers are too short. c)
The answers are impolite.
1 (and possibly 3)
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Listen to the whole of the first conversation and
answer the questions.
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• 1. Do the people both speak English as a first
  language?

No, they dont.
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• 2. Why did the woman have problems understanding
  what the man was saying?
• 3. How did the man help her to understand him
  better?

She needed to get used to his voice.
He spoke slowly and repeated things.
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Choose the correct endings to lines from the
conversation.
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a

• 1. Sorry, I couldnt ______.
• a) hear what you said
• b) understand what you said
• 2. I didnt ____.
• a) like what you said
• b) catch what you said

b
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a
3. Could you __________? a) repeat what you
said b) explain what you said 4. You neednt
have _______. a) spoken to me b) spoken
so slowly 5. I just needed a few
seconds_________. a) to get used to your
voice b) to understand you voice
b
a
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Everyday English
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• Look at the sentences. Notice how certain
  words are left out in informal conversations.
• Wonderful, arent they?
• Been here before?

Theyre wonderful, arent they?
Have you been here before?
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Now make complete sentences from the examples.

• 1 Language course?
• Are you taking a language course?
• 2 Staying long?
• Are you staying long?
• 3 Going anywhere nice?
• Are you going anywhere nice?

• 4 Lovely place.
• It is a lovely place.
• 5 Go there a lot.
• I go there a lot.
• 6 Never been there.
• I have never been there.

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Cultural Corner
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Words Preview
function psychologist successful formula imagine p
urpose
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Fast Reading

• 1. How does the AAA model work?
• 2. Is the AAA model a good idea while making
  small talk with someone you dont know in China?
• (Open)

The speakers answer the question, add a piece of
information, and then ask a question.
In Details
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• 1. When two strangers meet, they often use the
  AAA.
• From the example in the passage we know that the
  first person asks the second person a question,
  the second person answers. This is the first A
  (answer). Then the conversation begins.
• In order to show that he is interested in the
  conversation, the second person can add ( the
  second A) something exact to the simple answer to
  the question.

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And then in order to continue their conversation,
the second person can ask the partner the same
question or quite another. This is the third A
(ask). At first they may have difficulty, but
they soon realize that the important thing is
that they are saying something. By continuing
with the AAA model, they continue the
conversation to avoid an embarrassing silence.
Maybe in the end they can find something they
have in common. This is how the AAA model works.
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• 2. Of course. I think in whichever countries you
  are, people are eager to communicate with others.
  Most of the time a small talk is necessary. The
  AAA model is very useful in the conversation.
• There is no exception in China. When we meet
  someone we dont know, we often start the
  conversation by asking a question, for example,
  where do you live? Or where is your hometown? In
  this way the conversation starts.

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Useful expressions in The AAA

• It is estimated that
• establish a relationship
• avoid (doing) sth.
• an embarrassing silence
• in this way
• social technique
• have something in common
• at last

??? ???? ??(?)?? ????? ????? ???? ???? ??
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????
1. ???????????? She tried to avoid answering my
questions.  2. ???????????????? His second novel
established his fame as a writer.  3. ????????
The work should be done in this way.  4.
???????????? The two sisters have nothing in
common. 
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Thank you!