Stuff for ESL Learners October 2009
Each month EnglishClub.com posts interesting articles for ESL learners.
Question of the Month: October 09
EnglishClub members ask many interesting questions about learning English. The EC team will feature one of your “burning questions” each month. A burning question is one that you really, really want an answer to. Please help us answer the question by adding your own suggestions in the comment section.
Question: I want to practise speaking with native speakers, but I’m nervous and I don’t know what to say. Do you have any advice for me?
Answer: Yes! I hear this question so often. My first question is, are you in a foreign country? If yes, this should be easy! Talk to people at bus stops, in grocery store line ups, in doctor’s offices, and in coffee shops. If no, try to visit places where foreigners frequently travel. Believe that you will find English speakers to chat with and you will.
Here are 10 tips:
- Relax and smile. You will not get a grade for your conversation. Don’t think too hard about what to say next. Be a good listener, and enjoy the moment.
- Learn the native speaker’s name and ask if you are pronouncing it correctly. Find a way to remember this name, such as thinking of a famous person with this name or using a word association (Jen with the jewellery or Ben with the beard). You can even ask the native speaker to spell his or her name out for you (write it invisibly on your hand). When the conversation is over use the person’s name. “Thanks for chatting, Jen.” OR “It was great to meet you Ben.”
- Ask about the other person’s day or their weekend. People like to talk about themselves. I always ask my kids this question after school: “What was the best part of your day?”
You could also ask:
“Did anything exciting happen today/this week?”
“How was your weekend?”
Then, describe something memorable or funny about your day or week.
“You’ll never guess what happened to me…”
- Discuss a current event. It’s a good idea to stay on top of the world news!
You can use these starters:
“Did you know…”
“Did you hear…”
“I just heard…”
“I just read…”
“Is it true…?”
For example:
“Did you hear about the bus strike?”
“I just read that the recession is officially over.”
“Is it true that gas prices are going up again?”
- Discuss your surroundings. Is there something worth discussing nearby (art on the wall, music in the background, children playing)? Try to find something positive. Nobody wants to talk to a complainer.
For example:
“The garden is so nice, isn’t it? I wonder who takes care of it.”
“I can’t believe how many buses stop here. Is it always like this?”
“I can’t believe how many students live around here.”
“There sure are a lot of dogs here. Do you have a pet?”
- Discuss travel. Tell the person where you are from and ask if he or she has been there. This could lead to a conversation about travel.
For example:
“Where have you travelled?”
“Where would you like to travel?”
“Have you ever been to…?”
“You should go to …” (offer reasons why this is a good place to travel)
“Have you lived here all your life?”
- Ask for advice.
For example:
“What is there to do around here?”
“Where is a good place to eat/have a coffee?”
“Is there anywhere to go swimming in this town?”
“I like to watch English movies. Can you recommend a good one?”
- Ask about the native speaker’s interests (and share your own). If possible, try to find a common interest, such as movies, television shows, or sports.
For example:
“What do you get up to in your spare time?”
“Don’t laugh but…I’m into reality TV shows these days.”
“Do you play any sports?”
- Ask your own burning question about English.
For example:
“Can I ask you a question about English? I often hear people at the coffee shop say ‘double double’. What does that mean?”
“You said you were ‘crazy busy’ this week. What exactly does that mean?”
- If all else fails…talk about the weather.
Here are some Conversation Starters. These will help you strike up a conversation in many different places, such as at the bus stop, or in a line-up.
Contributed by Tara Benwell | October 2009
Tara Benwell is a Canadian freelance writer and editor who specializes in materials and articles for the ELT industry.
Thank you for helping us with this ideas. I’m sure if
put it in practice it will help us a lot.
Hello Tara,
Begining of this application is wonderful for helping anyone especially who wants to start speaking at once in their schedule.
I am watching here is getting better all the time.
Your contribution is appreciated.
Always I am here.
All my best wishes.
Selma,
i think that the best way to improve ur english or to reach the max extent in which u speak english as native is to live their atmosphere and try alwasy to trike up conversation which benefit ur diction as well as the ur spelling.
Jorge: Good point about “putting it into practice”! Please come back and tell us if you tried any of the ideas on the list.
Your comments are really well said and present good advice for students. You can’t learn a language unless you speak it. We’re an English school — but we also tutor US residents in international languages. Many of our Spanish, Italian, French and German students have been in high school or college classes for over two years and still don’t speak a word. All my native tutors do is get them speaking and Voila!
I want help about all things because Iam doing Intensive English
I m in fix because of weak of memory, I can not recall the word I have need to use during speaking with my friends thats why I feel guily during speaking. I m From Pakistan & would like to speak english fluently. Please give me tips for the solution of my problem mentioned above.
Thanks for helping us with ideas. I’m sure if put it in practice it will help us a lot .
Shabbir: Are you trying to use words that you rarely use? In English we say, it’s “on the tip of my tongue” when we can’t recall the word we want. You know the word, but you can’t get it out! Try to speak in simple English and don’t worry about using a wide vocabulary when you are talking to native speakers. Also, it wouldn’t hurt to share the word you are looking for in your own language. Use gestures and body language to try to explain what you mean. My best advice is…keep it simple!
Thanks so much for the ideas. They are helpful though I am that very native speaker but not a student anymore ((
I think I’ll print this piece of advice for my students ))
Thanks again!
thank you so much..my students will be glad to read all these tips..they´re working on ways to improve their english! carry on being creative
thankkksssss
Thanks for the ideas.It’s a great help for me.I discuss to my students the Tips.I not a native speaker that’s why I like to read more about English.
Thanks again!!!
in my point of view the most useful way to improve your speaking is to live with an english family for a while and sure you will see the difference and also you will be able to comunicate with others. it’s really a good opportunity to practise ur english with an english family and that’s my best advice to you all…thanx
Thank you so much of your email this is very helpful to improve our english I print these and practice every day
thanks alot once again
i am very very appreciate even i don’t have word to thank you it’s helping me a lot God bless you
hai
i am still have many doubts in English. please mail so many tips to my id. i have some difficulty in English while talking .but most of your tips are very useful for me . thanks a lot………
thank you very much, it is so helpful for me
Tnx 4 ur effective guides.It really help us to be perfect & improving our english.
Have a great time!
Hi …
YEah… those tips are very intereting… I think I can find them useful for my students…
THX
This practive is very important to know how far we can.
Very good.
Go a head with the project…
Success
I am very happy for the kind of contributions given by others on this monthly question. It will be very easy to learn a native language by starting from your home. Simply because socialization begins in the family(home) of every individual. And if you find it difficult to do try to make friends outside so that you can easily chat with them and by so doing you can easily learn from them. You can also start to learn a native language by trying to greet whoever you meet on the way- personal interaction.
Try these and will get to learn without being noticed.
All the comments are very good and useful,especially the 10 tips. But fluent spoken English mainly results from good listening compprehension. It is more important for a Chinese student to impove his listening comprehension first.
thanks alot for all your great ideas, it`s very interesting to read all your tips to improve listening comprehension, I`m so glad to be part of this interesting group, thanks so much for effective guides.
i’m thankful to you , i appreciate the efforts u r doing to improve our language , so KEEP IT UP !
Very nice topic ! I really like it !
Linda k
thank you for advising
Hi,
It is so nice to read like this and make practice, if we practrice every day like this that would be advantage more and more.
Thanks for providing good ideas for my trainees… I will surely use them:-)
since i have no helpful circumstances related to the activation of my learning english through communicating with english people so i must do personal and individual efforts supplied by your great helping.
Thanks for the advice, I think I have found the conversation concepts with others.
When you’re in Rome; be a Roman.Where ever you are,people should be comfortable with you.And communication is the best tool to build up relationship with anybody and make that person comfortable with you.Talking in their language is the best way to win people. For which, I think you’ve to be friendly in nature.The best way to learn native language is talking to common people like cab drivers, shop keepers, waiters in restaurants.If you want to learn fast you love the language and try to speak wholeheartedly and see the difference !
Vee Vishak, Bangalore, India
Thank you for this great ideas you’re doing a
Wonderful job and needs to be recommended
Thank you this will go a long way
Thanks more tara ,i hope to be more good in pass english test to move in conversation level and then i can find who take with him / her ? so the best tests where i can have it ?
Im very pleased so it is very helpful Im from Mali.Thanks a lot for this beautiful ideas you send us
Hello dear Tara , like always your tips are so outstanding and i am really interested to make a opportunity to find a native speakers for talking and sharing somethings pleasure , i have some native friends like you and i can write to them but i am interested to talknig in reality .
i try to do this even if it needs to travel !!!
Keep it up
Sami
thanks
,,,,,really good…
thanks a lot…
hi there!
just wanna say thank you so much english club for the ideas and tips on how can I improve my english communication skills. Keep up the good work!
roberto
thank you soooo much for your help
samiha
A wandafull session for me and iam very proud of it ,i some times wander to my self for the speed of lerning English i have.Sure this is the way to lern English,trying to chart with the people of the different level of English,i alway enjoy to do so.My gratefull thanks to the Englishclub members for your coments.
Mary
thank you very much for your ways which improve our English skill.I am not English person.But I love English language.And I really want to be a speaker as English speaker.And them i want to chat the friend who living in every country .All of my friend invite to chat me.And If you know a wonderful word and beautiful sentence share all the the English who the fresh water sailor
Thanks for these useful tips.
i will keep it in mind .
[...] EnglishClub members ask many interesting questions about learning English. Last month we featured our first “burning question” of the month. A burning question is one that you really, really want an answer to. Thank you to all of the learners and teachers who left comments and shared ideas about overcoming nerves when speaking to native speakers. [...]
HI
Really your advise for imporving english speaking and listening is
welland good ,more I would like to add new point which releated to listening
“my point if possible to add extra audio text contain many usefull vocabulary
Q:How to improve my english speaking in case am living in acountry ppl don’t speak and use english lanquage .
Thanx and regards
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