1. Making social conversation (small talk).

A photo of two people in an office making social conversation.

Read each question and look at the four possible answers. Decide if the answers are appropriate.

1. Where do you come from?

2. What do you do?

3. How long have you worked for your company?

4. Do you like your work?

5. What's your hometown like?

6. Have you ever been to Berlin?

7. How long are you staying?

8. Do you have any plans for the summer?

2. Returning questions.

If you want to ask someone the same question that they have asked you, you can use the phrases How about you? or What about you? and then repeat the question.

Listen to this dialogue.

A: What do you do?
B: I'm an engineer. What about you? What do you do?
A: I work in advertising.

The words in bold are emphasised in each sentence. Listen again. Can you hear the emphasis?

Listen to these dialogues and click on the emphasised words in the questions that B asks.

3. Pronunciation.

Listen to the dialogues and repeat what B says. The bold words are emphasised.

1.
A: Where are you from?
    B: I'm from Wales. What about you? Where are you from?
    A: I'm from New Zealand.
2. A: What do you do?
    B: I'm a sales rep. How about you? What do you do?
    A: I work in human resources.
3. A: Do you like your job?
    B: Yes, I do. How about you? Do you like your job?
    A: It's OK. I enjoy the travelling.
4. A: Do you have any plans for the summer?
    B: Yes. I'm going to Thailand. What about you? Have you got any plans?
    A: Not yet. I might have a winter holiday this year.
5. A: What do your children do?
    B: They're still at school. How about you? What do your children do?
    A: One's a dentist and the other works in a clothes shop.
6. A: How long are you staying?
    B: Until Friday. What about you? How long are you staying?
    A: Oh, I'm going back after the conference.

4. Reacting to what someone tells you.

Match the comments with the correct responses.

Listen to the dialogues before you check your answers.

5. Reacting to what someone tells you.

A photo of two people in an office making social conversation.

Listen again to each dialogue from the previous exercise. Type in the missing words.

6. A visitor arrives.

Watch the first video and answer the questions.
Kara Thompson
Alistair Duncan

7. Starting a converstion.

Watch the second video. Which topics do they talk about?

8. Responding.

Watch the second video again. Who says these things?

9. Test your memory.

From memory, match the comments with the reactions.

Watch the video again to check.

10. The conversation continues.

Watch the third video and complete the sentences.

Watch the videos again and read the subtitles.

11. Speaking Tutorial 2.

Choose 10 of the questions below to ask your tutor during the speaking tutorial. Also prepare your own answers to the questions. During the speaking tutorial your tutor will ask you all the questions that you ask.

Your tutor will also ask some other questions. Return his/her questions. Use the expression "What/How about you?" and repeat the question.

  • What does your job involve?
  • What company do you work for?
  • How long have you been working for your company?
  • Do you like your job?
  • What do you do in your spare time?
  • What do you normally do at the weekend?
  • Are you reading anything good at the moment?
  • Do you like going to the theatre?
  • Have you seen any good films recently?
  • When do you normally take your holidays?
  • Do you have any plans for the summer?
  • Where did you go last summer?
  • Where are you from?
  • Where do you live?
  • Have you ever been to London?
  • Are you married?
  • Have you got any children?
  • What do you do to keep fit?
  • What's the weather like at the moment where you live?

Useful phrases for the speaking tutorial:
Hello, this is ....
Can I speak to ..., please?
Hello ..., this is .... I'm calling to do Speaking Tutorial 2 of the Travelling module.