phone english blogB2 – Upper intermediate
Idioms are a very fun way to express certain situations. They put more color to your sentences and are a great way to increase your vocabulary.
Read the short articles and answer the questions that follow.
B2 – Upper intermediate
Should cleaning the house be really an issue between partners? Listen to the podcast below and express your thoughts about doing domestic chores. Share some of your experiences as well.
Be ready to discuss the different vocabulary terms featured in the podcast.
Discuss:
1. What are some of the domestic chores that you do? Which ones do you hate?
2. Would you say that you have a very high threshold or a low threshold when it comes to untidiness?
3. Do you agree that women have a tendency to take care more of their children as compared to men?
4. How do you feel about hiring cleaning ladies and nannies to help you around?
B2 – Upper Intermediate
It is a well-known fact that media is very influential. Censorship boards are present to help rate television shows and guide parents and children accordingly. But, in China, the government has decided to totally ban shows that display violence, homosexuality and excessive drinking.
Read the article below then express your thoughts about the topic.
http://www.english-online.at/news-articles/world/asia/china-bans-immoral-content-from-television.htm
Discussion Questions:
B2 – Upper intermediate
In 2011, Japan suffered a devastating disaster that left many homeless. After some years, residents of Fukushima are still picking up the pieces, hoping that normality will be restored.
Read the article below and express your thoughts about it.
Discuss:
1. What do you know about what happened in Fukushima and to its nuclear power plant?
2. What is your general opinion about nuclear energy?
3. Does your country rely on nuclear energy? How about alternative forms of energy?
4. Do you think it is possible to fully rely on natural forms of energy?
B2 – Upper Intermediate
Being credible can greatly affect our professional career. Lack of it will make it difficult for us to have a good deal with clients.
What is credibility and how important is it? Click on the link below to listen to the podcast.
Discussion Questions:
B2 – Upper Intermediate
Are you looking for something that would finally drive you to get back into shape? Ever considered using Fitness Trackers? These are wearable devices that are designed to help you achieve that goal of losing some weight. The question is, are they really effective?
http://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/3532167.html
Discussion Questions:
1. What is your take on fitness trackers? Do you find them useful?
2. What kind of exercise/s do you do? How did you get into this workout?
3. What are effective ways to develop a habit of exercising?
B2 – Upper Intermediate
This article will help increase your vocabulary. It contains different idiomatic expressions which you can use on a daily basis.
Read the article and listen to the audio clip then be ready to use the expressions in sentences.
https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/words-and-their-stories-clothing-expressions/3538378.html
Discussion Questions:
B2 – Upper Intermediate
The business of renting has been proved to be very profitable. You can have a house rented out, a car and also some services. But, wedding guests?
Read the article below about a specific business in Korea that’s all about hiring friends for your wedding.
In a sharing economy, people rent out goods, services, and expertise, and the trend has grown in recent years. Many of the successful companies begin in the US, but soon expand around the world. After all, there are resources everywhere, and everyone wants to earn more cash if they can fulfill a need.
Airbnb is one recognizable example. People rent out their homes or spare rooms to vacationers on a nightly, weekly, or even monthly basis. Uber, which is an Internet taxi service, is also very popular, and anyone with a car, accident insurance, and a driver’s license can become a taxi driver or chauffeur. There’s Elance too, where professionals can freelance their skills as a writer, web designer, translator, accountant, and so on. However, perhaps one of the more unique examples of the sharing economy comes from South Korea, where weddings hire fake friends to attend the ceremony.
It might seem that hiring fake friends on such an important occasion is inconceivable. Weddings are a big deal in South Korea, though. There is a lot of pomp in the ceremony, such as musical numbers, skits, and several hundred guests in attendance. According to Korean tradition, the immediate family, extended family, and family friends must all be invited. As such, it can be a problem if, for example, the groom has two hundred guests and the bride has only fifty guests. In order to save face, the solution is to hire actors.
Fake guests get reimbursed roughly $20 per ceremony, and the actors might attend several weddings in one day during the busy season. The service that offers wedding guests contains a database of 20,000 actors, and these people can also be hired as fake bosses, office employees, family members, spouses, and even mistresses.
Source: headsupenglish.com
Discussion Questions:
B2 – Upper intermediate
Most people today claim to be extremely busy. They generally regard themselves as being busy even if they are not. No one wants to admit to idleness and laziness. It may also be that people are aware that there are so many possible things to do that they feel compelled to do them all.
What keeps you busy? Answer the questions below and express your opinions.
Discuss:
1. What is your busiest day of the week?
2. Do you like to be busy, or do you like to have an easy schedule?
3. What takes up most of your time?
4. Do you think you manage your time wisely?
5. Do you manage time, or does time manage you?
B2 – Upper intermediate
A new study suggests that watching sad movies alleviates pain and may boost social bonds among audience members due to good chemicals produced by the brain.
Read the article below to find out more. Be ready to express your preferences.
Discuss:
1. What do you think of sad movies? What’s the saddest movie you have ever seen?
2. How much tolerance do you have for pain?
3. What do you do to get a natural high?
4. What kind of movies do you like?