Compelling Conversations: for Advanced students
1
GETTING STARTED
“Well begun is half done.”
—Greek proverb
Proverbs and quotations appear frequently throughout this text. Reading the ideas of other people and other cultures helps you look at many ways of thinking and introduces you to some famous people.
Also, throughout these lessons, you will be asked to work with conversation partners. You will be asking questions about their experiences, and you will be answering questions that they ask you. In this way, you will be practicing English, learning about other cultures, and practicing ways to make conversation pleasant and interesting. Our goal is to create Compelling Conversations.
Activity One
In conversation, it is often helpful to show other people that we understand what they are trying to communicate. A smile, a nod of the head, and eye contact are encouraging to others and invite them to continue. Frowning, shaking one’s head no, or looking away while others are speaking will discourage others from trying.
With your conversation partner(s), practice smiling at others and encouraging them. Take turns telling why you want to learn more English. Where do you speak English now? Where would you like to speak English more? Why?
Activity Two
Words can also show that we want others to feel comfortable speaking. With your conversation partner(s), take turns saying each of the following statements. Give eye contact to others as you speak. This practice will make it easier to use these encouraging statements in your conversations with others.
That is interesting.
What happened next?
You are right!
Can you explain more?
I enjoy listening to what you have to say.
Please continue.
I like that!
Cool
Activity Three
With your conversation partner(s), read aloud each of the following quotations. Decide among yourselves what you think the quotation means. Then, talk about how the meaning of the quotation will help you work well with the other students, or the people you know. Remember to practice using encouraging gestures and words with each other.
1. “Courtesy costs nothing.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), American writer, philosopher
2. “Pleasant words are as a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and health to the bones.”
—Bible
3. “You catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.”
—Proverb
4. “I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand.”
—Chinese proverb
5. “We learn by doing.”
—English proverb
6. “The secret of education is respecting the pupil.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), American poet, philosopher
7. “It is not best that we should all think alike; it is a difference of opinion which makes horse races.”
—Mark Twain (1835-1910), American writer, humorist
8. “I am tomorrow, or some future day, what I establish today. I am today what I established yesterday or some previous day.”
—James Joyce (1882-1941), Irish novelist
Vocabulary
Review the vocabulary words below. Choose the words you know. Ask your partner or teacher for the meanings of the other words.
quotation | proverb | conversation | pleasant | gesture
nod | communicate | courage
discourage | encourage | argue | disagree
“An acquaintance that begins with a compliment is sure to develop into a real friendship.”
—Oscar Wilde (1856-1900), British playwright
Activity Four
With your conversation partner(s) or on your own, make a list of five or more important rules to follow that will help you have pleasant conversations.
The Conversation Continues
With your conversation partner(s) or on your own, take turns reading the following quotations out loud. Do you agree? Do you disagree? Why? Explain your reasons.
1. “Conversation means being able to disagree and still continue the conversation.”
—Dwight MacDonald (1906-1982), American editor
2. “Speech is civilization itself It is silence which isolates.”
—Thomas Mann (1875-1955), German writer
3. “If it is language that makes us human, one half of language is to listen.”
—Jacob Trapp (1899-1992), American religious leader
4. “Argument is the worst form of conversation.”
—Jonathan Swift (1667-1745), English writer, satirist
5. “People have one thing in common: they are all different.”
—Robert Zend (1929-1985), American writer
6. “Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.”
—Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919), 26th U.S. President
7. “Talk low, talk slow, and don’t say too much.”
—John Wayne (1907-1979), American actor
8. “Keep it light, bright and polite.”
—English proverb
9. “Man’s main task in life is to give birth to himself.”
—Erich Fromm (1900-1980), psychologist
10. “There is only one beautiful child in the world, and each mother has that one.”
—Latin American proverb
11. “Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one’s courage.”
—Anaïs Nin (1903-1977), French-American author
12. “Man does not speak because he thinks; he thinks because he speaks. Or rather, speaking is no different than thinking: to speak is to think.”
—Octavio Paz, (1914-1998), Mexican writer, Nobel Prize winner
On Your Own
People communicate with words 24 hours a day, seven days a week. During the next 24 hours, carefully observe people talking to each other. Note their communication style, gestures, and word choices. You can watch people in stores, on buses, at school, and even on TV. Go ahead, listen to the people around you and eavesdrop!