Improving Your Speaking Skill

SAYING GOODBYE
Mina: Id better be going. See you later.
Oliver: It might be awhile before we run into each other again.
Mina: Why is that?
Oliver: Im going to Puerto Rico for three months starting next Tuesday. I got a job there for
the summer.
Mina: I didnt know that. Thats great! Ive never been to Puerto Rico, but Ive heard its nice.
Have a good trip. Its a shame we didnt have more time to catch up. Is your girlfriend going
with you?
Oliver: Yeah, she is. She got a job there, too, so we wont have to be apart for three months.
Mina: Thats good. Its too bad I wont get to see her before you two leave. Give her my best.
Oliver: I will. Oh, Id better get going or Ill be late.
Mina: It was good seeing you.
Oliver: You, too. Stay in touch.
Mina: I will. Lets get together when you get back from Puerto Rico.
Oliver: Id like that. Bye. Mina: Bye.

Speaking Techniques

A FAST WAY TO MAKE YOURSELF UNDERSTOOD

Last week English teacher Nina Weinstein talked about ways to get mentally prepared. The
most important part of any speech is you, Nina says. But for the audience, the focus is not you
but the information they are there to get. And one way for English language learners to make
themselves more understandable is to slow down.

NINA WEINSTEIN: "You can't make your pronunciation perfect if it's not there yet. You need
to take pronunciation classes or whatever, but you still have to give your speech. And so one of
the most effective ways to be understood is to cut your speed in half. Whenever you're
speaking to a group you have to slow down anyway, even if you're a native speaker. So that's
one technique.
"Another technique is to open your mouth wider. A lot of times students feel that they're
pronouncing the 'th' sound or the 'w' sound or the 'b' sound fully, but in actuality if their
mouths are not open wide, then maybe thirty percent of the sound is being trapped.
And so just doing those two things makes it easier for the audience to understand you no
matter what level you are."
RS: "So how would you practice doing these skills? Basically what we've talked about is the end
game, of actually making a presentation. How do you get there? How do you practice -- can you
divide this up into bits?"
AA: "Do you write out the speech word for word and try to memorize it?"
NINA WEINSTEIN: "No, no, I don't encourage my students to do that, and none of the places
that I've taught have encouraged that. If you write it out word for word, then what you're
ultimately going to do is memorize it, and then you're reading. You just memorize
something, and you're kind of giving that as if you're reading it. No, I have my students put
it on three-by-five cards and just put lines as if they're outlining it, just put things that will
help them with the sequence of it, so they don't forget something that they want to say.
"As far as the actual practicing of it, they practice in front of a mirror, we practice in class.
But one of the things that they should do that I think is really effective is to have someone
videotape them. Because one of the issues about giving a speech is controlling your body
language.
"You don't want to stand like a statue, but on the other hand you don't want nervous
gestures. I had a student who played with his hair the whole time, so that becomes really
distracting and it focuses the audience's attention on the fact that he's nervous.
"So if you videotape, you're going to see something like that. Or sometimes students will kind
of sway back and forth a little bit or maybe they're holding the cards in their hands and they're
tapping on them with their index finger, or those kinds of things that can be caught if they
videotape."

AA: "And kind of look back and forth across the audience as you talk, look in front and in back?
What do you tell people to do with their gaze?"
NINA WEINSTEIN: "They need to make eye contact. What happens sometimes is that
students will sweep the audience but they won't go all the way to each side, so the people on
the ends are left out. And that's how it feels as an audience member if the speaker doesn't
look at you, you feel as if you've been left out.
"So you want to make sure that you're looking at everyone. You don't have to actually look at
them, but you have to look in their direction, so it feels like you're looking at them. In a small
group, you actually will be looking at them. But let's say that you're speaking in front of fifty
people or a hundred people. You won't actually be looking at each person, but you'll be
sweeping the room so that it looks like you are."
RS: "And just moving on beyond the classroom, how do you think that by doing these kinds of
oral presentations in the classroom can help them with their English language learning outside
the classroom?"
NINA WEINSTEIN: "I think it can help them in every way. First of all, they get confidence
because they feel what it is to be in control of English. I think when we learn another language
we know that we're not in control. We're trying our best and we're juggling so many different
skill areas and so forth. But the tricks that I teach them, the slowing down, the opening
your mouth wider, if there's a grammar issue and people don't understand, you can
go back to the basic grammar structure of subject-verb-object -- these are all tricks and
tools for them to control themselves in English.
"And so I think once they feel that, my students tell me that they apply it to their other classes,
whether they're giving oral presentations or they're just expressing their opinion in a class. It's
basically the same skill."

Everyday Conversations

I COULDN'T HELP IT
Daryl: I am upset. Somebody told my boss I have a part-time job.
Smith: And he doesn't like that ?

Daryl: No, he doesn't. He thinks that I am too tired to work.

Smith: I am sorry. I have to admit I told him.
Daryl: You told him ? Why ?
Smith: I couldn't help it. He asked me point-blank.
Explanation :

If you can't help the way you feel or behave, you cannot control it or stop it from
happening. You can also say that you can't help yourself.

If you say something point-blank, you say it very directly or rudely, without explaining or
apologizing.

Spoken English
'UH HUH', 'UNH UNH' AND 'OOPS!'

AA: I'm Avi Arditti with Rosanne Skirble, and this week on Wordmaster: we talk with English
teacher Nina Weinstein about some expressions in spoken American English that you might not
find in a dictionary.
RS: But if you are a good listener, you'll hear them. They give people time to think while
helping connect one thought to the next.
NINA WEINSTEIN: "One of the useful links, I think, is the expression 'let's see,' which means
'let me think.' Often my students will use a kind of word like that from their own language. And
so they'll be speaking Japanese or Spanish or whatever with their linking word and THEN they'll
continue the rest of the sentence in English. And so I give them 'let's see' as a way to bridge
their thoughts and also give them time to think."
AA: "'Let's see' also has a meaning in itself, though, too, doesn't it? Where, for example, you're
not sure which way you've decided on something so you'll say 'OK, let's see' -- let's see what
happens. 'Let's see.'"
NINA WEINSTEIN: "I think you're right. I think it could indicate that you're not sure of the
answer. It has a lot of meanings. And a lot of these have dual meanings, like the simple
expression 'uh huh.' Uh huh can mean that we're listening to what the person is saying, so this
is a way of keeping them talking. It can also mean yes, or it can be pronounced 'um hmm.'"
RS: "What about no?"
NINA WEINSTEIN: "'Unh unh.' And my students often have a problem distinguishing between
uh huh and unh unh."
AA: "Give us an example of how to use them correctly."
NINA WEINSTEIN: "'Do you want to go to the movie?' 'Uh huh.' Do you think that the movie
will start after nine?' 'Unh unh.'"
RS: "You say your students have trouble distinguishing between the two?"
NINA WEINSTEIN: "Right."

RS: "Now, do you reinforce them with facial expressions or shaking your head, or nodding your
head [yes] or shaking your head no?"
NINA WEINSTEIN: "I talk about the beat. If you listen to 'uh huh,' the accent is on the second
syllable. If you listen to 'unh unh,' it's equal. So 'unh unh' is more staccato. And I tap my hand
on the desk to kind of reinforce this. And then I usually asked them if they sing karaoke or
something like that, so they get the idea of the beat. But I don't sing for them!"
AA: "Unh unh."
RS: "So you give them a couple of examples and they're tapping out on their desk whether it's
yes or no?"
NINA WEINSTEIN: "Exactly."
RS: "I want to go back to unh unh, uh huh and a third one, 'uh oh.'"
NINA WEINSTEIN: "Uh oh."
RS: "They sound very similar. We have three here and if you could go over them again for us, I
think that would be very useful because they sound so similar, but they're used in such different
contexts."
NINA WEINSTEIN: "Well, I think if we look at the rest of the sentence or listen to the rest of
the sentence, that gives us a big clue. If someone asks a question and the answer is uh huh,
then it has to be either yes or no, so that pretty much narrows it. If there's a situation -- for
instance, if a person spills some coffee or something like that, and the person says 'uh oh,' I
think there's a kind of feeling that the situation gives us that something bad has happened, and
uh oh means 'oh no,' there's a problem, something bad has happened, there's trouble or
something like that. So often the situation will give us the idea."
AA: "It's a synonym for 'oops,' right?"
NINA WEINSTEIN: "It can be oops. We also say 'whoops.'"
AA: "What about a word like 'hey'?"
NINA WEINSTEIN: "Hey is actually a conversational strategy and it's used to draw attention
to what you're talking about: 'Hey, did you see the movie on Channel 3 last week?' So I can
delete the hey and still have a good sentence, but hey adds a kind of attention focus to the
sentence."
RS: "What would you suggest to do to teach these things? Is it just to listen a lot?"
NINA WEINSTEIN: "I think that often what I read in the literature is a kind of lumping together
of all of these strategies. But just in what we've spoken about today, you can see that they're
very complicated, or they can have multi-purposes, each one. So I think that we need to give
students systematic practice in hearing them and in distinguishing when the differences can be
confusing, such as uh huh/unh unh."
AA: Nina Weinstein is an English teacher in Southern California and author of the book
"Whaddaya Say? Guided Practice in Relaxed Speech." She's put together a list of conversational
strategies including the ones we talked about today, which we'll post on our Web site,
voanews.com/wordmaster.
RS: And that's Wordmaster for this week. Our e-mail address is word@voanews.com. With Avi
Arditti, I'm Rosanne Skirble.

MUSIC: "Uh Huh Oh Yeh"/Paul Weller

--Conversational Strategies
Vocabulary or techniques used in spoken English, but not in written:

Uh huh shows the speaker youre listening; can mean yes; can be pronounced um
hmm (mouth closed)

Unh unh means no; can be pronounced mm mm (mouth closed)

Uh, um give the speaker time to think. (Dont use these too much.)
Hmm means Im thinking or Thats interesting. Can be pronounced Mmm. (Mmm
can also mean I like it" food, an idea, etc.)
Uh oh means Oh no, theres trouble.
You know establishes understanding between the speaker and listener ("The
restaurant is on the street; you know, the one just before you get to the mall.") It
also gives the speaker time to think.

Huh? is informal for what? Can be pronounced hmm?

Hey is a casual way to draw attention to what youre saying. Often begins a sentence.
In other words can begin a sentence. Can be used to check that the listener
understood the speaker (very useful for second language learners)
Oops or whoops is used when someone makes a mistake or drops something.
Lets see means let me think or Im thinking. Often begins a sentence.
Tsk tsk tsk expresses disapproval
Aha means Ive discovered something. Usually said with a lot of emphasis.
Other conversational strategies include:
Irregular pacing. Natural English isnt spoken at one speed; native speakers can
speed up or slow down within a speech, sentence, or even a phrase.
Repetition of words. Words and phrases are often repeated spontaneously.

Speaking Practice

UNIT 8: LOVING AND DATING

- Dating practices vary from culture to culture: ways of dating are different from country to
country.
- People date for a period of time to see if they are compatible.
- There are three typical kinds of date: going out on group dates with a number of friends,
going on blind dates (going out with a person that you've never met), and going with your only
partner.
- Be careful when dating because people sometimes don't show their true colors on the first,
second, or fifteenth date.
- It's difficult to get to know someone through email or online.
QUESTIONS:
Why do you date?
Where do you want to have dates?
Why do you choose such places?
What should you do at the first date?

Avoiding Your Mistakes

DAY 2
Wrong: Come to here.
Right:Come here.
Wrong: Common students in US don't wear a uniform.
Right: The average students in US don't wear a uniform.
Wrong: Who cooked this salad ?
Right: Who made this salad ?
Wrong: Different from me, she is proficient in English.

Right: Unlike me, she is proficient in English.

Wrong: Little children are difficult to understand that.
Right: It is difficult for children to understand that.

Avoiding Your Mistakes

DAY 1
Wrong: It's seven twenty o'clock.
Right:It's seven twenty.
Wrong: Your coat is broken.
Right:Your coat is torn.
Wrong: Susan didn't make a fault anyway.
Right: Susan didn't make a mistake anyway.
Wrong: Would you mind posting this letter for me ? Yes, certainly.
Right:Would you mind mailing this letter for me ? Of course not. OR ( Not at all )
Wrong: He becomes better.
Right:He got better.
Wrong: We'll have a hearing test tomorrow.
Right:We'll have a listening test tomorow.
Wrong: I recommend you to take a long vacation.
Right:I recommend that you take a long vacation.
Wrong: The last bus leaves at eleven o'clock. It's about eleven now, Hurry up!
Right: The last bus leaves at eleven o'clock. It's nearly ( almost ) eleven now, Hurry up!
Wrong: It was still bright outside.
Right: It was still light outside.

How To Speak English Well

Unit 33: STUDENTS AND PART-TIME JOBS

-

As a matter of fact: in fact

time-consuming: tn nhiu thi gian, oi hoi nhiu thi gian, cn nhiu thi gian
experimental (a): trial or special observation
psychology: human soul
aspect (n) : field.
Significant (a): much
Expense (n); money you spend on s.yh
To take s.th into account: to consider s.th
To provide s.o with s.th: to provide s.th for s.o
to be familiar with s.th : to be used to s.th / doing s.th

to interact: to communicate
self-esteem (n): The holding a good opinion of one's self: long t trng
to donate: to give
worthwhile (a): very good
to indulge in s.th / doing s.th: like doing s.th very much

Function of English
1. ASKING FOR REPETITION
- Sorry. (with a rising intonation)
- Pardon (me). (with a rising intonation)
- Excuse me. (with a rising intonation)
- Im sorry. I didnt hear what you said.
- Could you repeat what you said, please?
- Could you say it / that again, please?
- Would you mind repeating that, please?
2. ASKING FOR MEANING
- Repeat the word or phrase that you didnt understand.
Ex: Philosophy?
- Ask for spelling
Ex: Philosophy? How do spell that?
- Philosophy? What does that mean?
- Excuse me. What does philosophy mean?
- What do you mean, exactly?
- Could you explain what you mean, please?
- Could I have some more details, please?
- Can you make it clear, please?

How To Speak English Well

Unit 32: PLANS FOR YOUR FREE TIME

- to be busy + v-ing
- to be busy with s.th
Ex: We are busy preparing for our activities during the day.
I am always busy with my work.
- routine (n): daily work
- day in and day out: everyday
Ex: Day in, day out, no matter what the weather is like, she walks ten miles
Bt k thoi tit th nao, ngay ngay c ta vn i b
moi d
m
- luxury (n): s xa xi, s xa hoa
a life of luxury: i sng xa hoa
- to intend to do s.th: d nh lam g
- to assure: to insure
- to waste time on s.th / doing s.th: lng ph thi gian cho vic g / lam g
- trivial (a): ['trivil]: tm thng, khng ang k, t quan trng
+ trivial loss: tn tht khng ang k
+ a trivial mistake: m
t sai lm khng ang k
- foresight of s.th: su thy truc, su nhn xa; su lo xa
+ to fail for want of foresight: tht bai v khng bit nhn xa
- reservation (n): [,rez'vein]: su danh trc, su giu trc,
+ a hotel reservation: su
t ch trc khach san
- accommodation (n): ch n
- regardless of: bt k, bt chp
Ex: He continued speaking, regardless of my feelings on the matter
n vn c ni, bt k nhung cam nghi cua ti v vn
- to results in s.th: dn n kt qua
- interrupted (a): b gian oan, ct ngang
- checklist (n): ban li
t k nhng muc cn kim tra
- departure (n): sett-off
- to prevent s.o from doing s.th: ngn chn ai lam g
Ex: Nobody can prevent us from getting married; nobody can prevent our getting married
Khng ai c th ngn can chung ti kt hn
- worry-free: khng phai lo lng
- to be supposed to do s.th: c cho la
- to spend (time, money) on s.th ; doing s.th
- to get rid of: to forget
- to see s.o do / doing s.th: thy ai lam / ang lam g
- to soar: bay vut ln

- to need + v-ing = to need to be + PP

- I could not agree more: I completely agree with you

UNIT 31: MUSIC AND LIFE

- to deny: to refuse
- to play a role / a part: ng mt vai tr
Ex: Music plays an important role in our life
- soul (n): linh hn, tm hn, tm tri
+ commend one's soul to God: gi gm linh hn cho Chua
+ to throw oneself soul into s.th: ht tm tri vao vic gi
Ex: He cannot call his soul his own
No bi ngi khac khng ch
President Ho is the soul of the Party
H chu tich la linh hn cua ang
- profound (a): [pr'faund]: su, thm thm, su sc, uyn thm, thm thuy
+ profound depths of the ocean: ay su thm cua ai dng
+ a profound thinker: mt nha t tng thm thuy
+ a man of profound learning: mt ngi hoc vn uyn thm
- emotion (n): [i'moun]: s cam ng, s xuc ng, s xuc cam mi xuc ng, mi xuc cam
- to encourage s.o in s.th: khuyn khich; c vu; ng vin
+ Don't encourage bad habits in a child: ng khuyn khich thi quen xu cua tre
+ He felt encouraged by the progress he'd made: anh ta cam thy c khich l bi nhng tin b cua minh
+ Her parents encouraged her in her studies: b me c y khuyn khich c y hoc tp
+ to encourage somebody to lose weight: khuyn khich ai giam cn
- to enrich: [in'rit]: s.o / s.th with s.th: lam cho ai/cai gi giau c hoc phong phu hn
Ex: A nation enriched by the profits from tourism
Mt quc gia giau ln nh li nhun t nganh du lich
Reading enriches the mind: oc sach bao lam giau tri tu
- to play a role / a part: ng vai tr
- heyday (n): ['heidei]: thi cc thinh, thi hoang kim
in the heyday of youth: luc tui thanh xun sung sc
- chaotic (a): [kei'tik]: hn n, hn loan, ln xn
- it is + adj (for s.o) + to inf: It's easy for me to speak English

How To Speak English Well

Unit 30: JUDGING A PERSON AT THE FIRST MEET

1. VOCABULARY:
- delicate / 'delikt /: nhay cam, t nhi
Ex: I admire your delicate handling of the situation
Ti phuc anh a x ly tinh hung tht kheo leo
to conduct delicate negotiations
tin hanh thng lng tht t nhi
- to mislead: [mis'li:d] s.o about / as to s.th: lam cho ai c mt y nim hoc n tng sai v ai/cai gi
Ex: You misled me as to your intentions
Anh a lam cho ti nghi sai v nhng y inh cua anh
- nave: [nai'i:v] : ngy th; cht phac
- impartial (a): [im'pa:l]: cng bng, khng thin vi, v t
- to watch s.o do / doing s.th: thy ai la gi
- prejudice (n): ['predzudis]: inh kin, thanh kin, s thin kin
+ colour/racial prejudice: thanh kin chung tc/mau da
+ to have a prejudice against s.o: c thanh kin i vi ai
+ to have a prejudice in favour of s.o: c inh kin thin v ai
Ex: To succeed here, you will need to overcome your prejudices
Anh mun thanh cng thi phai khc phuc nhng inh kin cua anh
- species (n): ['spi:i:z]: (sinh vt hoc) loai
a species of antelope: mt loai linh dng
2. GRAMMAR:
- so + adj or adv that: qua n ni
Ex: The second one is so honest and nave that they can show us who they are at the first meet
- It takes s.o (time) to do s.th
Ex: It takes us a long time to know a person
- it is + adj (for s.o) to do s.th
Ex: It is easy for me to speak English