Small Talk with the FORD & HEFE Methods

Do you find it hard to start talking to people at a party when you do not really know them that well? How can you avoid an awkward silence when you are early for a work meeting and some other colleagues are already waiting in the room? Of course, you can just grab your phone, look down and pretend that you checking your mail to reduce social exposure, but have you ever ventured into the old art of conversation?

Dr. Elisabeth Yuko is a Bioethics lecturer and a regular writer for Lifehacker, where she discusses self-improvement techniques to reduce social anxiety in situations where you do not feel overly confident, for example, when you desperately need ideas for "small talk" to avoid an awkward silence. In two of her latest articles, she presents two methods to start a conversation, the first article is entitled "Use the FORD Method to Master Small Talk", and the second "Use the HEFE Method to Strike Up a Conversation". Both articles are short and not too difficult, including the informal comments from the readers, so they can be accessible to B2 students and above. In the FORD Method article you will find interesting words like: small talk, to strike up [a conversation], a check out [line], public transit, challenging, an acronym, to come up with [a method], to jog [your] memory, to go blank, to launch [into your questions], lest, to be up to [you], a sibling, to follow up [a question], connection, a casual [encounter], to come in handy, open-ended [questions], to engage with [your questions], a meaningful career, a spouse, to put a damper on [a converstation], the same holds for [talking with someone], to [fully] acknowledge, to be disrespectful, to diminish [you], sanitized [responses], schmooze, fake [friendliness], tongue-tied, a safe-haven, to wave, a grocery store, invasive, to disclose [information], to lay [people] off, to floss, to scrape, awkward, to shore up [investments], to inquire, to catch [somebody] off guard, snowflak(y).

In the HEFE article, you will come across words such as: to strike up [a conversation], to figure out, to stand for, renovations, crowded, low-stakes, awkward, to require, expertise, controversial [subjects], the appeal, predictability, to take the focus off [yourself], to revolve around, a belief, to loathe, nippy, clumsy, a trait, [my] forte, loathesome, to yearn for [personal connections], a chasm, a gateway, a stand-up [comedian], banter, wallflower awkwardness, convenient, a diversion, to bring [others] out [of their shell], to seek, approachable [people], a [delayed, eyes-rolled] nod, stuff, dismissive, disrespectful, to compromise, a bold [idea], intimidating, a teleprompter, geez, garbage. 

If you want to listen to a TED-Talk where Dr. Elizabeth Yuko discusses some Bioethics principles illustrated with a number of episodes from the sitcom The Golden Girls -which was very popular in the 80's and 90's, you can watch this 12:22 YouTube video from Fordham University. This video with subtitles is recommended for C1 students and above:

Words of the Year 2023 in UK, USA and Australia

Each major English dictionary has recently chosen the 2023 Word of the Year. Next, you can find links to the articles that explain the winning words in the UK, USA and Australia,  the reasons to choose the winners, the shorlists and longlists of candidates etc. 

Many dictionaries have chosen words related to Artificial Intelligence and new technologies.  The Collins Dictionary, based in Glasgow, has directly chosen "Artificial Intelligence" as the overall 2023 winner and it adds an illustrated shortlist of another 9 neologisms with their definitions. The Cambridge Dictionary has chosen "hallucination" with the meaning "when artificial intelligence hallucinates, it produces false information" and the article explains why their dictionaries are better tools to learn a language than artificial intelligence, among other things.  The Merriam-Webster Dictionary has chosen "authentic", in an era of "deepfakes" and "post-truth", when authenticity "is questioned and valued more than ever", according to the Associated Press News. 

On the other hand, The Oxford English Dictionary, has chosen "rizz", meaning "charisma" or "charm", similar to the verb "to rizz up", which means "to attract for a sexual encounter" or to chat up and Macquarie Dictionary, in Sydney, has chosen "cozzie livs" a humorous play on "cost of living", among an interesting shortlist of runner-ups in Aussie English. 

Most of the articles can be read by B2 students, but, perhaps the Merriam-Webster and Macquarie texts are more suitable for C1 students.  You will find fascinating words like: 

Collins: bazball, influencing, nepo baby, ultra-processed, canon event, debanking, greedflation, semaglutide , ULEZ.

Cambridge: to spark [a worldwide discussion], natural language processing, to track [changes in the language], trustworthy, to prevent from [happening], accurate, a prompt, a quizz, ephemeral, ghost [work], [voice] cloning.

Merriam-Webster: a lookup, to boost, to delve into [the reasons], to head for, a spike, deeds, a cockney [accent], worthy, a [data] cruncher, to filter out, evergreen, a bevy, a runner-up, EGOT, rizz, kibbutz, to implode, a deadname, an onslaught, to curtail [LGBTQ+ rights], doppelganger, a springboard, to soar, deepfake, a lawsuit, dystopian, covenant, to indict.

OED: to pertain, to rizz up, a prompt, to harness, a prompt engineer, situationship, to blend, to coin [a word], the noughties, swiftie. 

Macquarie: to coin, to resonate, clipped, reminiscent, menty b, locky d, to be joined, settled, blue-sky flood, algospeak, a deluge, to circumvent, surveillance, low-lying, flow, floodwater, cessation, substantial [rainfall], coded, to shadowban, innocuous, generative AI, to touch a nerve, skimpflation, succinct.

Finally, you can listen to the Brian Lehrer Show on WNYC, where Ben Zimmer, a linguist and language columnist from the The Wall Street Journal, discusses the words of the year 2023 with the radio host and some listeners in the segment 2023 as Defined by the Words of the Year, an audio recording (25:32) which is recommended for C2 students without the help of the transcript, or for C1 students with the support of the transcript.

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A mini-lesson plan for B2+/ C1/ C2 students: To activate some vocabulary through interaction, you can discuss the following questions with your students or mates in English: Which of these words do you like most? Which of these words make you feel uneasy? Do you have your own, 2023 word of the year either in English or in Spanish? Which one and why?

If you want to keep on talking, you can find more questions on the topic "Words" at ESL Discussions.com/Words.

You can also read here about "Goblin Mode", the Oxford Word of the Year 2022.

"Goblin Mode" is Oxford Word of the Year

The Oxford Word of the Year 2022 has been chosen by popular vote for the first time in its two decades of existence from a short list of three finalists:  1) Metaverse; 2) #IStandWith; 3) Goblin Mode. The media has reported widely on the winning word, you can watch this video report by Al Jazeera, which is copied again below.

The video is short (2:41), and you can read the subtitles, so, it can be accessible to B2 students. You will find interesting words like: metaverse, #IStandWith, goblin mode, a short list, hashtag, unapologetically, self-indulgent, greedy, slovenly, to take off, a lockdown, usage, gleefulness, goblin, gargoyle, to burst forth, gaslighting, permacrisis, to vote with your feet, cold and miserable, pithy, thought-provoking, churros.

If you are a teacher or you are really interested in this topic, you can watch the Oxford Word of the Year Launch Event, a long video (57':56") with subtitles, where a panel of experts discuss the candidates for OUP Word of the Year. This video is suitable for C2 students and above. You can also take a look at the List of Oxford Words of the Year since 2004. 

Other dictionaries have also announced their own word of the year for 2022: "Gaslighting" has been chosen by Merriam-Webster, whereas "Permacrisis" was Collins Word of the Year and Cambridge Word of the year was "Homer". The senior body of linguists that started the first Word Of The Year competition (WOTY) is, apparently, the Amercian Dialect Society, and here you can check the ADS List of Words of the Year since 1990

"I Have a Dream" & the American Civil Rights Movement

"I Have a Dream", Dr. Matin Luther King's speech, has inspired several generations of civil rights activists to fight peacefully but unyieldlingly for justice and against any kind of discrimination. American Rhetoric.com ranks "I Have a Dream" as number one in the list of the most influential speeches in the USA, it is powerful, moving, rich in literary and biblical references and very rhythmical -a well-crafted mixture of political speech and Baptist sermon.  You can also watch the whole speech on the YouTube video below. 

The speech needs a certain historical introduction, as it contains numerous references to the struggle against segregation laws in the 1950's and 60's, which students will problably miss otherwise. This lesson plan for a two-hour C1 class includes some reading, speaking and vocabulary tasks (1h 30'), based on extracts from the Wikipedia's page on the Civil Rights Movement, with a slide presentation to illustrate the major events of the movement and a clip from Bob Dylan's song "The Death of Emmett Till", which is mentioned in the Wikipedia texts. The second part of the class is a  simple listening and reading task with a fill-in-the gap exercise on the transcipt of Dr. King's speech "I Have a Dream" (20'- 25'). The online file includes another document with further examples of Jim Crow laws. The lesson is hard at times but hopeful.

The text contains a lof of legal terms in American English.  Some of the less frequent vocabulary students will come across is the following: facilities, [a court] to rule, literacy, [to file] a suit, a plaintiff, to overturn [a decision/ a court ruling], a melting pot, to flirt, to dispose of, casket, to rally [support], to acquit of [a crime], double jeopardy, outrage, to spark, a standoff, a [lunch] counter, to pledge, bail, a restroom, to flee, to cram, turmoil, a stance, to enforce [a law], to skip school, restraint, upheaval, to gather, to fulfill [a requirement].

If you want further information on the March on Washington you can watch this Time Magazine short documentary (6':05") or just browse on Google or YouTube.  The rally ended with some memorable musical performances by Joan Baez, The Freedom Singers, Peter, Paul & Mary, Mahalia Jackson, Bob Dylan, Odetta, or the Eva Jessye Choir, which are worth watching. 

Martin Luther King Jr. Day is a federal holiday in the USA which is observed on the third Monday of January (the 18th of the current month in 2021), as Dr. King's birthday was on January 15th.

Common European Framework of Reference Self-Assessment & Learners' Beliefs

This is a lesson plan based on the Common European Framework of Reference and the European Language Portfolio, which can help students to reflect upon their history as language learners, their goals, beliefs and interests, and to do informal self-assessment of their language level using the Self-Assessment Grid of the CEFR.  It can be used the first or the second day of the course, before starting with the textbook, but it can also be used as distance conversation practice in the topic "Languages". The questionnaire is supposed to be for C1 students, but, with minimum changes, it can be adapted for B2 and even C2 learners.

Here you can find a link to the Questionnaire "Language Learning Experiences and Beliefs" for conversation practice, again the Self-Assessment Grid of the CEFR and a lesson plan with suggestions for teachers.

The less frequent vocabulary includes the following words and expressions: concening, current affairs, delivery, [to be] implied, predictable [information], attitudes, viewpoints, prose, with ease, rate [of speech], to handle [social exchanges], to keep the conversation going, to search for [expressions], [for social and professional] purposes, skilfully, to convey finer shades of meaning, to backtrack, [my educational] background, events, to round off [with an appropriate conclusion], a [clear] smooth-flowing [description or argument], the recipient, a wide-range [of subjects], to highlight, a wellstructured [text], at [some] length, salient [issues], [to present] a case.

Oral Presentations and Public Speaking Tips

December is a good month for oral presentations. Students have a long bank holiday in Spain and not many university exams yet, so they can prepare a short, five-minute presentation about a topic of their choice. This activity takes only three lessons, one to give them encouragement and basic guidelines and two lessons for the presentations themselves, all in all, from 5 to 6:30 hours of classroom time and the results are always impressive.

Here you can find a Lesson Plan for B2, C1 and C2 students which revolves around an Interactive Exercise that was originally published by Allyn & Bacon Public Speaking (www.abpublicspeaking.com, but this link is no longer available on the web), which has been adapted for B2, C1 and C2 students. You can also find the Key to the Interactive Exercise, which the teacher can use to give students the main guidelines for the task, and an Oral Presentation Checklist to help the teacher assess the presentations. 

You can also find three more handouts: 10 Tips for Improving Your Public Speaking Skills by Marjorie North from Harvard Extension School, Oral Presentations from Duke University Writing Studio, and a glossary with Useful Language for Oral Presentations, that my colleague Mar C. once passed me, which can be a really useful vocabulary list. In addition, C1 and C2 students can also watch this 14':46" video with subtitles by Thomas Frank and listen to his 9 Public Speaking Tips:

YouTube is loaded with videos to help students start speaking in public, here you can find two more links: Presentations in English, How to Give a Presentation by Oxford Online English, which is suitable for B2 and less experienced students, and 6 Public Speaking Tips to Hook Any Audience, by Mohamed Qahtani, which can be interesting for C2 students who want to incorporate basic acting techniques to present longer monologues and engage their audiences. And the best models for modern, oral rhetoric  can currently be found at TED Talks.

Some of the words you will find in the Interacative Exercise Key are: to churn, to wring [wet], to spell disaster, to dispel, the flow [of your points], setting, reservations to overcome, the adrenaline rush, to tighten, self-defeating, to discard, time constraints, time slot, to disrupt, an issue, to undermine, to strive [for comfort], a cap with a bill, overly loose clothing, blousy sleeves, smooth, to mar [the flow of speech], to interject, to stare, to scan, to dwell, the prevailing [norm], to avert from [direct eye contact], to pace [back and forth], to sway [to and fro], the culprit, to set up [a display table], a slide show, to enhance [my presentation], to engage [the audience], a rule of thumb, the razzle and dazzle, a back up [plan], a [computer] crashes, a bulb blows, overhead [transparencies].

Antonio Banderas on "Pain & Glory" and Chutzpah

Antonio Banderas, talks to Terry Gross on Fresh Air about his latest movie with Pedro Almodóvar, "Pain & Glory", which earned him a "Best Actor Award" in the Cannes Film Festival and a nomitation to the Oscars, and about his acting career both in Spain and in Hollywood.  In addition, he explains what the contracultural movement, "La Movida" meant in 1980s Spain, when a whole country regained control of its own future and started enjoying public and private freedoms that had been alien during the dictatorship, and finally, he talks about his Soho Theatre in Malaga. During the interview, Antonio Banderas talks very openly about his experience as a learner of English, who started an acting career in Hollywood, with a very basic level of English and tons of chutzpah, and about the challenge of doing radio interviews in English.

This 37 minute long interview can be accessible to B2 students, as long as they have the support of the transcript, but it could be heard by higher level leaners while commuting, walking or doing housework. The interview might prove extremely interesting for examiners of English, as a genuine example of interlanguage from a bilingual Spanish speaker of English, who has a good command of his second language in terms of oral fluency, vocabulary range and an ability to explain complex ideas in detail and with touches of humour, but who still shows traces of L1 interference in some aspects of phonetics, word order and even in verb tenses.

In the vocabulary, you will find, among other words, quite a few examples of cinema and medical jargon, like screenwriter, ulcers, reflux, to star [in a film], rehearsals, the shooting [of a film], to dig up [deep into memories], a falling out, to overdo, to be bigger than life, the framing, to be measured [with the actors], [colours] clash or match, [it] is unheard of, swell (American English), a warehouse, stents, to be right on, a crier, a tough guy, teary, vulnerable, laundering money, to rule [a country], restraints, the counterculture, eerie, to prove [ourselves], anathema, on the screen, a scandal, there's something wrong, to usher [a new era of freedom], trans and straight characters, a gasp, to be under the political boot, customs, to be compromised, to grow up [in Spain], chutzpah (colloquial for "nerve" or "daring"), perseverant, a movie based on a novel, to fake, to do a screen test, to learn [your lines] phonetically, the exception to the rule, to comprehend English, to be out, to reassure [somebody on something], to label [somebody], a crane, a stunt guy, a harness, to rehearse, CGI (computer-generated imagery), grenades, a conflagration, excellence.

If you prefer a shorter interview to Antonio Banderas, you can try this 7 minute report from NPR's Morning Edition, which also includes a transcript.

Twitter Turns an Old Quarry in Nigeria into a Tourist Hotspot

This BBC article tells the story of an old stone quarry that has become a new tourist hotspot in Nigeria after it became popular through Twitter.  The article is short and it has very illustrative pictures, so it can be accessible to B2 students.

But here you can find a lesson plan which focuses on vocabulary and speaking, basically, for C1 students.

B2 learners (and above) will find rich, descriptive vocabulary here, like an abandonded quarry, a tourist hotspot, a cliff, a moss-lined footpath, to shimmer [in the sun], [the views are] breathtaking, on the outskirts, to be thronged, food vendors, a burgeoining community, expatriates, lockdown, to be somewhat bemused, city-dwellers, tiers, a stunning view, sightseers, a winding footpath, the top terrace, [the path] snakes down to the water's edge, the brave, to plunge into, an aquifer, a fracture-prone area, tremors, to warn amateurs against hiking, fun-seekers seemed not to be deterred, chagrin, to put measures in place, to clear up a trail of plastic waste, to split, a clean-up dash, to dispose of [litter], to poison [a place], [a job or a profession] to be cut out for [me].

If you are interested in local varieties of  English worldwide, you can read here a West-Africa pidgin version of the article above from the BBC Pidgin Service, based in Lagos (Nigeria).

Coronavirus Spanglish in Gibraltar

The coronavirus epidemic has spread fear and disease around the world, but it has also spread a colourful array of funny videos and memes to laugh at our plight.  A good example is this video with a conversation in Spanglish in Gibraltar, a British colony in Spain.

This video is basically in Spanish, so it is suitable for B1 Spanish  students and above, In the case of other L1 students, a C2 level of Spanish is advisable.

Laughter

Laughter is, basically, a social activity.  Humans laugh as a way to bond with each other -or to separate from those who belong to another social group. Other animal species also laugh, rats or apes, but the reasons why humans laugh are many and very nuanced.  This BBC article describes laughter and explains some of the reasons why we laugh.
Although the vocabulary in this article is very rich, the text can be accessible to B2 learners.