Red Line 4, Coursebook

56 f i f ty - s i x Polite small talk In the US, people who don’t know each other well often ask questions that sound personal. Really they are just being polite, and they don’t want a full answer to the question. We call this kind of conversation small talk, but the word ‘small’ doesn’t mean it isn’t important! Being friendly and polite to each other in public is very important for Americans. 1 Listening: At the supermarket a) Listen to three short conversations at a supermarket. In which conversations is the customer friendly? b) Look at the useful phrases and listen again. Which of the useful phrases do the people use? c) The next time you are waiting in line in a supermarket, listen. Do people in your country use small talk in the same way? Hi, how are you today? I’m fine, what about you? Hey, sounds great! I see your [T-shirt] there. It’s really nice. The weather’s great … . Yeah, isn’t it just beautiful today? You’re right about that. Thanks, have a nice day. USEFUL PHRASES 2 Polite small talk Imagine the cashier is speaking to you. What can you say each time? 1. “Hi – everything OK?” 2. “Isn’t it a nice day today?” 3. “So are you having a good day?” 4. “What are you going to do today?” 5. “I haven’t seen you here before.” 6. “What kind of accent is that?” 3 With people you don’t know well Imagine you’re at a party in the US and you don’t know most of the people. With a partner, use these prompts to start a short conversation. Don’t forget to use the useful phrases, too. 1. Someone says to you, “Isn’t it hot this summer?Wow!” 2. Someone is talking about the Grand Canyon. You want to see it, too. 3. Someone tells you, “The food is great.” 4. You hear someone with a different accent than your own. 5. You see someone your age with a T-shirt with the name and picture of your favorite US city. C p These phrases can help if the other person isn’t very friendly: OK, I was only wondering. Oh, I see. / Sure, that’s OK. T IP ➝ WB39, 1 – 2 ➝ WB39, 3 3 Check-in Language Talkwise Text Wordwise Check-out Nur zu Prüfzwecken – Eigentum des Verlags öbv