Real English Conversations
MONTREAL
- Escucha la conversación. Elige "modo normal" o "un poco más lento". Es recomendable que escuches primero sin seguir el script.
- Pon atención al vocabulario nuevo y enfocate en la pronunciacíon.
- Al final podrás elegir un personaje y silenciar su parte de la conversación para que tomes su lugar en una conversación simulada. (Para ello haz click sobre los simbolos micrófono que aparecen en su imagen, luego presiona "modo continuo" para empezar la conversación)
Description:
Ann talks about her city in Canada.
Country: Ann from Canada and Todd from the U.S.
Time: 1:54
Level: Intermediate
Normal speed
A bit slower
Audio Script
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TODD: Hello, Ann! How are you doing?
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ANN: I'm fine.
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TODD: Ann, could you introduce yourself and tell people where you are from? |
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| ANN: Yeah, my name's Ann Hutchingson and I'm from Montreal, Canada. And right now I'm an English teacher in Tokyo, Japan. |
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TODD: Mh-hm. OK. What's Montreal like? |
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ANN: Montreal is a really nice city. It's just very cold in the wintertime. It is…uh, it has four seasons, and the nicest season is the summertime because it's really warm and people play a lot of sports, and there are some parks in Montreal, and you can go swimming and hiking and biking and rollerblading. It's a very interesting city. |
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TODD: Wow! Were you born in Montreal?
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| ANN: I was born in Montreal and I can speak two languages. English is my first language but I also studied French in high school. |
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TODD: Oh, so, were you in a submersion program, or all your subjects were in French. | |
| ANN: No, I went to an English high school but a lot of people in Montreal are in immersion programs. |
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TODD: OK. Since you learned French, what do you think is the best way to learn language?
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ANN: I think that you have to like learning another language and if you have a positive attitude then you
can find learning another language fun rather than stressful, so I think
that I had a few French friends and we would practice and they would be very patient, and I liked the fact that I could communicate using another language because then you have
another identity. |
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TODD: You have your French identity?
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| ANN: I do. |
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TODD: OK. So what's your name in
French?
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ANN: "Mono e Ann" |
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TODD: Oh, OK.Wow! I need to get myself a French name?
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ANN: Todd. |
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TODD: OK. Thanks a lot Ann. |
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ANN: You're welcome. Nice speaking with you. |
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Vocabulary Notes
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Rollingblading |
“You can go swimming, hiking, biking and rollerblading there”
'Rollerblading' is like skating on wheels. The wheels are placed in a line along the bottom of a boot. Notice the following:
- I go rollerblading a few times a week.
- There is a great path around the lake for rollerblading.
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First language |
“English is my first language, but I also studied French”
Your 'first language' is also called your native language and it is the first language that you learn to speak when you are a child. Notice the following:
- His first language is Italian, but he speaks Spanish and Portuguese fluently.
- Is English your first language?
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Immersion (or submersion) program |
“A lot of people in Montreal are in immersion programs”
In an 'immersion program' the students are spoken to and must respond only in the language that they are trying to learn. The idea behind this is that they will learn more quickly. Notice the following:
- I was in a 2 week submersion program when I first arrived in Guatemala.
- He started the immersion program in kindergarten.
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Find something + adjective |
“If you have a positive attitude, you'll find learning another language fun rather than stressful”
If you 'find something fun' you think it is fun. How we find something is our opinion of it. Notice the following:
- I found the exam really difficult.
- Did you find the performance a little boring?
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Another identity |
“I liked that I could communicate in another language, because then you have another identity”
Our identity is who we are. The example says that by learning another language we get to become another person in a way. Notice the following:
- It was the first time that he showed another identity.
- She has completely another identity at work.
Now, it's your turn!
"Click on "Start Step by Step" for listening each sentence one by one. Click on "Start Continuos mode" to listen the whole dialog. If you want to listen a sentence click on it. If you see a micro over a character picture, you have to get its role and read its text on its turn."
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