Business English: Role-playing activities part 3

8th May 2020

The final activity sheet is devised for a totally different type of client. This firm uses urban, street lingo (language), trying to attract a young, modern and dynamic workforce. They attempt to stand out from other companies by their use of non-standard vernacular and images.

There are some notes at the end of the blog to help explain some of the vocabulary.

TEACHERS’ NOTE: When I make physical copies, I use an appropriate font, looking like a hand-written flyer, so play around with the style and alignment.

GOTAJOB INNIT

Fun work for fun peeps

Here at Gotajob Innit, we try to sort you out with cool work, so you can get some cash to party and buy some wicked stuff. Work don’t have to bring you down, man 🙂 it can be a laugh …… INNIT !!!

Why do this ?

When you could do this ?

Fun work for fun peeps

Yo – check out these little beauties

1 Junior web designer. Travel company

Young, energetic company seek candidate to join their lively and fast-moving team. Some experience preferable. Basic programming skills essential. Qualifications not necessary, talent and potential more important.

Candidate must be fun, energetic and able to work to a deadline. Candidate will be required to submit an example of own work.

Salary starts at £17K per annum plus bonus.

2 PR – party planner

We love this job – we wanna do it. Young and amazing person needed to promote events and organise parties. Take something boring and make it F U N

Got to be able to work and drink, and organise and drink, and shout at people.

No experience, no qualifications … can you drink ? This could be your perfect job. Salary – lots of fun and drink and also some money.

3 Lotteria shift manager

Join this fun, lively, bright red hangout and get experience in the food and retail industry. We know you ain’t going to stay long, but tell your friends and give them a discount ! You’ll be in charge of a small team so you can be boss, a little, and tell people to clean the floor hahaha ! The money is rubbish, but you can eat all the junk your stomach can digest. Great way to meet other cool cats. You can wear the cool uniform and the uber-cool hat – WOW !

Good luck, peeps !

Notes:

Wicked means very bad or evil in standard English, but in urban talk, it means very good, amazing and fantastic.

Gotajob (got a job ?) is taken from a British TV show from the 1980s, when unemployment was high. One of the characters walks from job site to job site, asking, aggressively, “Gotajob ?”

Innit is urban vernacular for the tag question ‘isn’t it ?’ as in, “Hot today, isn’t it ?” or “Hot today, innit ?”

Peeps is taken from a British TV comedian, and is short for ‘people’, but was later used to mean someone’s close friends, ‘my peeps.’

Rubbish is what the British use for the US English trash or garbage. Also used to express contempt for something that is not good e.g. “The film was rubbish !”

Lotteria is a Japanese fast-food chain popular throughout east Asia. You could substitute it for a similar franchise in your country.

Adult Speaking Class, Level 3.

17th January 2020

A collection of exercises and features aimed at the advanced student.

Contents

British culture (Charles Dickens, William Shakespeare)

Politics

Speaking games

Speaking practice

British culture

Charles Dickens

Here’s a little video about the famous short story, ‘A Christmas Carol’ by the British writer (start video at 1.27 – 1.55):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SrYIMmUTFdo

Debtor’s prison = people were sent to prison if they couldn’t pay their debts.

Famous Shakespearean quotes:

Match the quote to the play !

To be or not to be // Romeo and Juliette

Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears // Hamlet

Now is the winter of our discontent // A Midsummers’ Night Dream

A plague on both your houses // Julius Caesar

Lord, what fools these mortals be ! // Richard III

Watch an excerpt from a performance at Shakespeare’s Globe in London

How much can you understand ? : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WiVaQheUfE

Politics

In December 2019, The UK had a general election. USA have their election at the end of 2020.

Image result for british general election 2019

Idioms and collocations

campaign / victory / vote / party / voter

It was a long and dirty election _________which divided the country. The Conservatives won a landslide _________ in the last general election. I usually cast my _________ for the candidate who is more business friendly. The problem with two _________systems like the USA’s, is not all views are represented. I’m a typical floating _________ , I never decide how to vote until the day of the election.

If you elect me for President, I will make a difference. I will lower taxes for every citizen and I will make sure that every worker gets a fair deal. I will not stand by and watch the poor and the needy being downtrodden.

Conversation:

How long is a political term in your country ?

Do you think it’s important to vote?

If you were elected leader of your country, what law would you change first?

Watch this clip. Could this happen in your country ? (politicians attacked) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kKdDnMwnV_o

Speaking game

Build a character

You will see some character information. Use this to create a character for yourself.

Take some time to think. Put some effort into this by using the facts and incorporating them.

EXAMPLE:

Lee Morgan 27 musician born Chicago resides Sai Gon not married

Likes music ! barbecue and spicy food cinema going to clubs and dancing

Dislikes early mornings 9 – 5 jobs Vietnamese food traffic no-smoking ban

Hi, my name’s Morgan, Lee Morgan. I’m 27 and I hail from Chicago, Illinois, which is a dynamic city, but pretty damn cold in winter; icy winds and snow. I’m currently living here, in HCM or Sai Gon, whatever. I’m still single, haven’t found the right girl yet but there are a heap of cute ladies in Vietnam, right ?

I’m a professional musician so, of course, I love music, it’s my passion. I also really love barbecue and hot, spicy food like chilli or gumbo. Yeah, what else … oh, I also enjoy taking in a movie, but at the cinema, not on DVD … no atmosphere at home. Because I finish work late, I often find myself going to clubs and dancing the night away. Great way to meet women, too !

What I’m not crazy about is getting up early. I never get up before noon, no way ! Oh, yeah, sorry to say, I really can’t find any Vietnamese food I like, hey, sorry. Some of it’s OK, but it’s just soup and noddles and bones ! The traffic is another pet hate, it’s hellish and absolutely dangerous. Lastly, I’m a smoker and I want to smoke where and when I want. I hate that I get told not to smoke.

If you have just met, what questions could you ask Lee ?

Remember – nothing too personal. When he answers, show interest, maybe add information about yourself.

BACKCHANNEL – say ‘yeah’, ‘oh, right’, ‘really ?’ etc

Example:

I was born in Hue but I grew up in Na Trang.

Really ? I’m from Na Trang. When did you move to HCMC ?

I like sports.

Me too. I play badminton every week and football every Sunday.

We’ve been married for three years but no kids.

Why not ? What is wrong with you, or is your wife too lazy to have kids ?

(this is not considered a correct or polite thing to say. Instead, change the subject)

Kenjie Ozu 24 medical student born Tokyo resides Sai Gon engaged

Likes Jazz music / keep fit / karaoke / meeting friends / computer games

Dislikes noise and pollution / smoking / animal cruelty / fast food

Rob Forster 31 lawyer born Sydney resides Sai Gon married, 2 children

Likes barbecue and beer / jogging / investing money / repairing cars / rugby

Dislikes lazy people / Vietnamese traffic / nagging wife / housework / liars

Vu Nugyun 43 security guard born HCMC resides HCMC married, 2 kids

Likes sitting / sleeping / smoking / beer / karaoke / gambling / shouting

Dislikes work / his boss / exercise / when his wife asks for money / foreigners

Hank Douglass 30 shop manager born San Francisco resides Ha Noi single

Likes investing / gambling / baseball driving / fast cars / action movies

Dislikes housework / romantic films / tipping / drunk people / police / recycling

Speaking practice:

Boz I don’t get much time to read, but I’d like to improve my English. Any tips ?

Pip Well, maybe you could give Dickens a go. Oh, some of his books are 1000 pages.

Boz Bloody hell ! Who has time or energy to read 1000 pages !

Pip Hold your horses, he also wrote short stories. ‘A Christmas Carol’ is very famous.

Boz Hang on … yes, I know … Ebenezer Scrooge, right ? I’ll download it later.

Pip Of course, the most famous writer is Shakespeare. ‘To be or not to be…’

Boz Not sure that’s my cup of tea. I prefer something a bit more modern.

Pip Conversely, watch a version. I went to see a play in London, at the Globe.

Boz The reconstructed theatre ? I saw it on the news. It looks really cool … and cold !

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Adult Class, Level 2: Making your mind up !

27th May 2019

Tonight is a new class, a block of four lessons, and phrasal verbs dominate the session – they almost take over. These, like idioms, can be very confusing for a learner, yet are an integral part of everyday English. Don’t give up, keep on trying and you’ll pick it up in next to no time.

First, as a warm up, we’ll go over some recent lessons and see how much of the lingo (slang for language), the students have picked up. They recently had a lesson about choice, confusion and making decisions … or not making decisions. Being unable to act, or to decide is known as procrastination … and is a flaw in one of Literature’s most famous characters, the prince of Denmark; I’m referring to none other than Shakespeare’s Hamlet. This quote may be familiar …

Shakespeare is a world-famous writer, and a great example of British culture … but what about Vietnam ? If I wanted to read some classic Vietnamese texts, what would the students suggest ?

The task is for the students, in small groups, to decide upon one suggestion for each of the following.

To begin with, the Great British seaside. the sun rarely peeks out so when it does, we rush off to the seaside. What can you see here:

Blackpool, a famous seaside town in north England.

The seaside is associated with building sandcastles, donkey rides, deck chairs, paddling, pier, sun cream and ice cream. I want to visit a typical Vietnamese beach town. Where is the best … and why ?

Now, seasides and travelling help us build up an appetite … so what to eat ? What do the students think of a traditional British breakfast (not that I’ve ever eaten one ! It’s not exactly vegetarian-friendly) ?

Again, I want to try a traditional Vietnamese breakfast. What should I eat, where should I go, what should I drink ?

Now, being British, and a teacher to boot (as well), I enjoy a beer (or two …). Here’s a typical British pub:

I’m not sure such places exist in Vietnam, but what do I know ? Maybe the students can help me ? Where could I go to drink beer and which is the best Vietnam brand ?

This is just a quick game to occupy the first part of the lesson (while students are still arriving). Let’s keep the theme of being decisive, tied in with phrasal verbs. We’ve had Shakespeare and ‘high’ culture; now it’s time to be more ‘popular’. British people over a certain age and yes, that includes me, will recognise this number (slang for a song): The music doesn’t start until around the 0:30 mark.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AkCfJGpX_xY

This is a famous song that won a contest back in the day (when I was younger). See how many phrasal verbs there are in the lyrics (words of a song).

Then we can go to the desert survival game :

Desert survival

You need to select five items below to help you survive in the desert.

Factors to consider:

food, drink, heat, cold, injuries, attracting attention, wildlife

First aid kit / matches / rope / knife / compass

cigarettes / blankets / barrel of water / flare gun / torch

magnifying glass / Beatles CD / make up set / dried food

grammar study book / Angry Birds game / air rifle / sun block

Negotiation language

I see your point but … that’s interesting, however …

I’m not sure about that I can’t go along with that

I don’t feel that is entirely right / I fail to see the merits

I respectfully disagree / I find your contention somewhat flawed

The students, first in small groups, then as a class, have to decide upon five items to help them survive in the desert. Some items are multi-purpose, for example, a CD is useless in terms of listening to music, but the reverse could be used as a mirror, to reflect the sun, while the sides are sharp and could be used for cutting. Cigarettes are loathsome and not usually associated with long life … however … in the desert, they could save your life. Snakes hate cigarette ash so, at night, light the tobacco and sprinkle the ash in a large circle, then you can safely sleep inside.

And then time to hit the books.

The early bird catches the worm … do the students understand this saying ? What do they think it means ?

To end the lesson, we could try a Family Fortunes game … in small groups, I ask questions and require four answers. They will usually be about me, for example, what four instruments can I play, what four sports do I do ? which four places have I been to in Vietnam, what do I like most about Vietnam, etc ….

And … not forgetting … what quote from Shakespeare do they know ? And they’re not going home until they say it.