Learn how to discuss past experiences
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| INTRODUCTION |
| David: Talking About New Beginnings in English. David Here. |
| Kellie: Hello. I'm Kellie. |
| David: In this lesson, you’ll learn how to talk about past experiences. The conversation takes place at the park. |
| Kellie: The speakers are friends. |
| David: So they will use informal English. Okay, let's listen to the conversation. |
| DIALOGUE |
| Phil: You start university next week, huh? |
| Katrina: Yeah, I'm nervous. Have you ever studied abroad, Phil? |
| Phil: No, I haven't. I have worked abroad, though. |
| Katrina: How was it? |
| Phil: It was fun! Everyone was really nice and looked after me. |
| Katrina: I hope people are as nice to me. |
| Phil: It'll be fine. Everyone has been nice to you so far, right? |
| Katrina: Yeah, it's been a great experience so far! |
| David: Listen to the conversation one time slowly. |
| Phil: You start university next week, huh? |
| Katrina: Yeah, I'm nervous. Have you ever studied abroad, Phil? |
| Phil: No, I haven't. I have worked abroad, though. |
| Katrina: How was it? |
| Phil: It was fun! Everyone was really nice and looked after me. |
| Katrina: I hope people are as nice to me. |
| Phil: It'll be fine. Everyone has been nice to you so far, right? |
| Katrina: Yeah, it's been a great experience so far! |
| POST CONVERSATION BANTER |
| David: Katrina is nervous about starting university. That’s natural, I think. |
| Kellie: I think so too. It’s also natural to ask people if they have any past experiences that might help. |
| David: Hearing good stories can really put your mind at ease. |
| Kellie: They’re also a great way to keep a conversation going. If someone talks about something they have done, or are about to do, then just jump in with “me too!” or “I’ve also…” |
| David: Yeah, people like to hear about the experiences of others. |
| Kellie: Yeah, you can compare and contrast past experiences. |
| David: People also like to hear about things they will do in the future. |
| Kellie: They can hear the good parts and the bad parts. |
| David: And hopefully avoid the bad. |
| Kellie: Hopefully! It’s also good to ask other people if they have any experiences to share. |
| David: Yeah, it makes you sound interested in those around you. |
| Kellie: And people like talking about themselves, so it’s a win-win situation. |
| David: Okay, now onto the vocab. |
| VOCAB LIST |
| David: Let’s take a look at the vocabulary from this lesson. The first word is.. |
| Kellie: nervous [natural native speed] |
| David: uneasy and apprehensive |
| Kellie: nervous[slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Kellie: nervous [natural native speed] |
| David: Next we have.. |
| Kellie: ever [natural native speed] |
| David: at any time |
| Kellie: ever[slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Kellie: ever [natural native speed] |
| David: Next we have.. |
| Kellie: abroad [natural native speed] |
| David: outside of the current country |
| Kellie: abroad[slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Kellie: abroad [natural native speed] |
| David: Next we have.. |
| Kellie: to look after [natural native speed] |
| David: to take care of, to watch out for someone or something |
| Kellie: to look after[slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Kellie: to look after [natural native speed] |
| David: Next we have.. |
| Kellie: everyone [natural native speed] |
| David: every person, each person |
| Kellie: everyone[slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Kellie: everyone [natural native speed] |
| David: Next we have.. |
| Kellie: far [natural native speed] |
| David: at or up to a certain point |
| Kellie: far[slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Kellie: far [natural native speed] |
| David: And last |
| Kellie: experience [natural native speed] |
| David: knowledge or skill acquired over a period of time |
| Kellie: experience[slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Kellie: experience [natural native speed] |
| KEY VOCAB AND PHRASES |
| David: Let's have a closer look at the usage of some of the words and phrases from this lesson. The first word is.. |
| Kellie: nervous |
| David: meaning "to feel uneasy or apprehensive" |
| David: Katrina said she was feeling nervous. |
| Kellie: She did. We can use this word when we are feeling uneasy. It can be in serious, physically threatening situations such as walking through a bad part of town, or more trivial situations like waiting for a show to start. |
| David: Is it the same as being scared? |
| Kellie: No. Being nervous can be a good thing. Some people perform better when they are nervous and a little stressed. |
| David: Do you? |
| Kellie: I do, actually! |
| David: Can you give us an example using this word? |
| Kellie: Sure. For example, you can say.. “I have a job interview later so I'm really nervous.” |
| David: ..which means "I have a job interview later so I feel apprehensive." Okay, what's the next word? |
| Kellie: so far |
| David: meaning "up until now" |
| David: We know that “far” can mean distance, that something isn’t close. |
| Kellie: That’s right. But when paired with “so far”, it is talking about time, not distance. |
| David: Alright. So what does it mean? |
| Kellie: It means up until this point in time, until now. But it hints that there is more to come. |
| David: Oh, like “the film has been good so far”. |
| Kellie: Yeah, if you say that when watching a film, it means it has been good, but it isn’t finished yet so there is still more to go. |
| David: Can you give us an example using this word? |
| Kellie: Sure. For example, you can say.. So far it's a draw, but I think England can win. |
| David: .. which means "Up until now the match is a draw, but I think England can win in the rest of the match". Okay, now onto the lesson focus. |
Lesson focus |
|---|
| David: In this lesson, you'll learn how to discuss past experiences. |
| David: To do this, we need to talk about the present perfect tense. |
| Kellie: Okay, we use this tense to talk about things that have happened in the past. However, we aren’t being specific. |
| David: So we can’t use it to talk about what we did yesterday. |
| Kellie: That’s right. Words like “yesterday,” “last week”, “March” or “Friday” can’t be used in this tense. We have to use general time words like “before”, “once” or “already”. |
| David: How do we make sentences in this form? |
| Kellie: First you need a subject, then “has” or “have”, followed by the past participle of the verb. |
| David: Let’s hear an example. |
| Kellie: If the verb is “walk”, we can make a sentence like “I have walked to school before.” |
| David: Okay, how about the verb “eat”. |
| Kellie: I have eaten ostrich. |
| David: Have you? |
| Kellie: Yes, I have actually! We can also use this pattern for changes over time. So, if the last time you saw a child they were tiny and now they’re six feet tall, you can say “You have grown tall.” |
| David: This sentence pattern reminds me of a game we played at university all the time. |
| Kellie: What game is that? |
| David: “Have you ever...” |
| Kellie: Ah, I’ve played that game too! And it does use this sentence pattern. It’s a simple game that asks about past experiences and there is usually a forfeit for anyone that has that experience. |
| David: That’s right. |
| Kellie: So that uses the present perfect tense plus “ever” to make a question. “Have you ever been to Spain?” |
| David: “Have you ever climbed a mountain?” |
| Kellie: These questions are asking if you have done these activities any time in the past. They’re a great way to ask about past experiences. |
| David: Katrina asked Phil “Have you ever studied abroad?” |
| Kellie: Yes, she did. And what did Phil say? |
| David: “No, I haven’t.” |
| Kellie: That’s how you answer these questions if you haven’t done the activity. If you have, then say “Yes, I have.” |
| David: Thanks! |
Outro |
| David: Okay, that’s all for this lesson. Thank you for listening, everyone, and we’ll see you next time! Bye! |
| Kellie: Bye. |
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