sábado, 7 de abril de 2012

basic small talk questions

Starting a Conversation - Top Ten Questions

By Kenneth Beare, About.com Guide

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Here are ten questions to help you start speaking English. Each of these questions help to begin or continue a conversation. The questions are in two categories: Basic Facts and Hobbies / Free Time. There are also a number of questions that can help you continue the conversation after the first question.

Five Basic Facts
These five questions will help you get to know people. They are simple questions with simple answers and provide information so you can ask more questions.
What is your name?
Where do you live?
What do you do?
Are you married?
Where are you from?
More questions for ...
These questions help to continue the conversation after your first question.
"What is your name?"
It's a pleasure to meet you. Where are you from?
That's an interesting name. Is it Chinese / French / Indian, etc.?
"Where do you live?"
How long have you lived there?
Do you like that neighborhood?
Do you live in an apartment or house?
"What do you do?"
Which company do you work for?
How long have you had that job?
Do you like your job?
What's the best / worst thing about your job?
What do you like best / least about your job?
"Are you married?"
How long have been married?
Where did you get married?
What does your husband / wife do?
Do you have any children?
"Where are you from?"
Where is ....?
How long did you live there?
What is XYZ like?
Do you like living here?
Hobbies / Free Time
These questions will help you continue conversations and find out more about people's likes and dislikes.
What do you like doing in your free time?
Can you play tennis / golf / soccer / etc.?
What kind of films / food / vacations do you enjoy?
What do you do on weekends / Saturdays?
More questions for ...
These questions will help you ask for more detail.
"What do you like doing in your free time?"
How often do you (listen to music, eat out in restaurants, etc.)?
Where do you (listen to music, eat out in restaurants, etc.) in this town?
Why do you like (listening to music, eating out in restaurants, etc.) so much?
"Can you play tennis / golf / soccer / etc.?"
Do you enjoy playing tennis /golf /soccer /etc.?
How long have you played tennis /golf /soccer /etc.?
Who do you play tennis /golf /soccer /etc. with?
"What kind of films / food / vacations do you enjoy?"
What's the best place to see /eat / go on vacations?
What's the best type of film /food / vacation, etc. in your opinion?
How often do you watch films / eat out / go on vacation?
"What do you do on weekends / Saturdays?"
Where do you go to ...?
Could you recommend a good place to (go shopping / take my children swimming / etc.)?
How long have you done that?

Help with Basic Questions

Practice Speaking English

Conversation Lesson Plans

Kenneth Beare
English as 2nd Language Guide

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Starting a Conversation - Beginning level English guide to Starting a Conversation>

We will analyze the lyrics of the song I HAVE A DREAM . Abba

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_PoDIiGFqg&feature=player_detailpage

Learn the Deep English Method

lunes, 2 de abril de 2012

VIDEO about Africa

video about Africa for listening and reading practice

LISTENING and READING

Africa

There is, there are

by Bob Wilson at autoenglish.org

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Reading worksheet 1 2

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INSTRUCTIONS:

left-click on audio icon to listen

to download audio right-click on audio icon and save link as...

to get the printable text left-click the pdf icon

LEVEL:

Beginner

GRAMMAR:

There is, there are

READABILITY:

9.19 (Coleman Liau index)

WORDS:

155

script with questions

Africa

There are 53 countries in Africa and about 900 million people. In the north, there are deserts and in the middle, where the equator is, it is tropical. In the south, there are big plains and a desert called the Kalahari.

Africa is very famous for wild animals. There are very big herbivores such as giraffes, elephants and hippos and big carnivores like lions and crocodiles. There are many national parks which are very popular with tourist.

There are a lot of natural resources in Africa including oil and minerals. Unfortunately, Africa is also very poor. Today, 380 million Africans are poor. Why?

There are one thousand languages or more in Africa so African culture is very rich. African music is very varied. One famous musician is Ali Farke Touré from Mali. African dancing is wonderful and the clothes are beautiful and colourful.

Education and health care is very important for the future of Africa.

PLEASE REPORT DEAD LINKS

steps for reading comprehension

Stories can be used to achieve higher levels of thinking in these ways:

· Knowledge : students arrange characters and events in the story.

· Comprehension : they classify events, describe characters, and explain precisely what has occurred.

· Application : they apply existing knowledge to the story by illustrating, dramatizing and writing their interpretations.

· Analysis : students analyze, categorize, and differentiate characters and events.

· Synthesis : they collect and organize facts to form hypotheses.

· Evaluation : they appraise, argue, assess, and evaluate their opinions in the process.

STEPS FOR READING COMPREHENSION

1. Start with 2 or 3 global readings.

2. Then, underline all the transparent words you can find in the text.

3. After that, start reading looking for words that avoid your comprehension of a sentence/ paragraph. Look for that word in the dictionary and start your vocabulary.

4. Once you have all this, start with global readings again.

5. Finally, you will understand what you are reading about.

WE ARE NOT TALKING ABOUT TRANSLATION, IT´S COMPREHENSION.

sábado, 24 de marzo de 2012

Another opportunity to practise and more...

Después de leer una muy buena introducción, pueden tratar de poner en práctica las sugerencias para aprender inglés cuando no se tiene mucho tiempo.

Noticia Completa

Yes I know when you are reading this it could be quite late because you are so busy with your job and family. Or is it your study? Whatever your situation, if you can improve your English, you will have more time for the things you like doing most. Why? Because when you speak good English you can work more effectively, meet more intelligent people and establish better business contacts. The big question still is how

'How can I improve my English when I don't have much time'?
First of all, keep in mind that you are not the only person who has this problem. There are millions of people whose schedules might be even busier than yours. Second, you need to understand that it's not important how much time you have. What really counts is how you use your time. This fact is so crucial that I want to repeat for you: The important thing is how you use your time. We all live on the same planet and a day still has 24 hours regardless of what country you live in and what job you do or how many kids you need to care for. Time management starts in your head. Decide what you want to do and you will find the time to do it.

But let's get back to our question:

How can I improve my English speaking skills?

The answer: Get in touch with native English speakers. Listen to them. Ask them questions. Answer their questions. Learn from them and help them learn from you. "OK", I can hear you say "but how do I do that when I live in China, Russia, India or any other country where there no native speakers in my neighbourhood?" Don't worry. You don't have to move to the US or the UK. You can make friends with native speakers no matter where you live. Use the Internet. Use our forum. All you need to do is listen to the following voice messages and record your own. The first message is from Inga, an English teacher who lives and works in Minsk, the capital of Belarus. In her recording Inga says that she doesn't have much contact with native speakers in Minsk. That's why she uses our forum to talk to people like Alan Townend from London and Tom Kane from the United States. Here is what Inga has to say: How to speak English on the forum?

Useful links:

· 200 listening exercises

· English for winners