SPEAKING PRACTICE - PART TWO Topic 1: Describe your free time activity You should say: what it is where and when you it how you it why you enjoy doing it In my free time, I often watch TV I often watch TV at home After lunch, I watch TV for 20 minutes to know the news After dinner, I often watch TV for hours I like to watch the news to know what happens in Vietnam and in the world Sometimes, I watch film and music programs to relax I also watch game shows because it is fun I like watching TV because it helps me to enlarge my knowledge and relax Questions for discussion: Is your activity very popular among people at your age? Yes, it is Nearly everyone likes watching TV when they’re at home What is the most popular hobby among the young in Vietnam? I think the most popular hobby among the young in Vietnam is listening to music, playing game online, chatting online, or shopping Topic 2: Describe a job you have done or would like to You should say: what it is what qualities you need to get the job what qualifications are required for the job why it is important to you At present, I am a I work at I have worked there for years I like my job because it is interesting To be a _ I had to study years at university I have to master the basic knowledge of _ and _ The qualifications I need to have are the B.A degree, and certificates of English and computer I need English because I can use it to communicate with foreigners and I often use computer in my job Questions for discussion: How is the workplace changing in Vietnam? Now, the workplace in Vietnam requires professional people who can use office machine and computer well Which are the most important jobs to Vietnam’s economy? They are teachers (for education), doctors (for health-care), engineers (for farming and construction), and business people (for economy development) Đào Minh Trung Topic 3: Describe a place that you would like to visit You should say: where the place is who you would like to visit it with what you would there why you would like to visit that place If I have a change, I would like to visit Da Lat with my family We will stay there four days We will stay in a hotel near Xuan Huong Lake so we can go sight – seeing every morning We will visit many places in Da Lat such as Flower Garden, Love Valley, Lang Biang Mountain, Mong Mo Hill, Bao Dai Palace, Truc Lam Temple, etc Besides, we will enjoy new food and fresh fruit We will take many pictures and buy a lot of clothes and souvenirs for our friends The weather in Da Lat is cool, so it is nice to stay there and visit beautiful places I think we will enjoy ourselves very much So, I wish we can visit Da Lat many times Questions for discussion: Do you plan to visit that place again? Why/why not? Yes, I Because it has good weather with beautiful scenes Does your hometown have any places of interest? Yes, it does My hometown has _ Topic 4: Describe something healthy you enjoy doing You should say: what you where you it when you it who you it with and explain why you think doing this is healthy Everyday, I often get up early at 5:00 After that, I often go walking for 30 minutes I often walk with my friends We walk along the street near my house Besides, I play badminton with my friends on weekend We often play badminton in my friend’s yard I like to walk in the morning because I can enjoy fresh air and it’s good for my heart I play badminton because I would like to be active and keep fit Questions for discussion: Why some people think that modern lifestyles are not healthy? I think because today people are very busy so they don’t have time to rest Besides, the environment is polluted and the food contains a lot of chemicals What could be done to encourage people to live in a healthy way? I think people should exercise daily and they should eat more vegetables, fish and eggs and less fast food, red meat and chicken Đào Minh Trung Topic 5: Describe your favorite means of transport You should say: what it is how often you take it where you often get to and explain why it is special to you I have a motorcycle I have used it for _ years It is Wave alpha made by Honda I often go to work by motorcycle I also use it to go to market or go out with friends I like it because I use it everyday to travel around My motorcycle uses less petrol and it’s small, so I can keep it in my house With my motorcycle, I can be active because I can go to any place at any time It’s my favorite means of transport Questions for discussion: Which means of transport you think will be popular in the future? Why? I think public transport will be popular because people want to protect the environment What you think of the traffic in your hometown? The traffic in my hometown is crowded but safe because there are not many accidents Topic 6: Describe your favorite festival / holiday You should say what it is and when it is celebrated what activities people on this festival holiday what you to celebrate why you enjoy this festival / holiday My favorite holiday is Tet (or Lunar New Year) It falls on the first week of January lunar calendar It is when people say good bye to the old year and welcome the New Year People often many things to prepare for Tet such as cleaning the house, buying new clothes, making traditional foods On Tet, people often gather at their parents’ house Then they visit their relatives and friends People often wish each other good luck and good health Children often get lucky money from adults Many people like traveling or drinking with friends Like everyone, I also clean my house, prepare food and visit relatives and friends on Tet holidays I like Tet because it is a good time for family members to stay together Questions for discussion: What are some types of festivals? How are the different? There are main kinds of festivals: traditional (like Tet), political (like Independence Day – 2/9), and religious (like Christmas) They are different by meanings Đào Minh Trung Do you think festivals are important in life? Why? Yes, I think so because we can stay at home and family members can meet together Topic 7: Describe an object you own which is very important to you You should say: where you got it from how long you have had it what you use it for and explain why it is so important to you The object (thing) which is very important to me is my mobile phone It is a Nokia E6 It’s black It was a present from my mother/father/ wife/ husband on my birthday _ years ago I have used it since then With my phone, I can many things I can make or receive calls I can send and get texts I can connect the Internet and chat with friends I can play game, listen to music, or watch videos Besides, I can record voice and take pictures with my phone I use it every day and I like it very much Questions for discussion: Would you like to exchange it for anything? No, I wouldn’t Because it is a present of my mother/father/ wife/ husband What are the advantages/disadvantages of advertising on television? The advantages of advertising on TV: people can know about the new product; the shop can sell more goods; and the advertising company can earn more money The disadvantages of advertising on TV: the TV program is interfered; the information about the goods are not always true; and the company has to pay a lot of money for advertising Topic 8: Describe a film you have enjoyed watching You should say: what the name of the film is what the film is about how it differs from other films why you consider this film so good The film I enjoyed watching is “Kung-Fu Panda” made by DreamWorks The movie is about Po – a fat, love-eating panda Po loves Kung fu very much and wants to learn kung fu and becomes a hero During that time, an evil fighter, Tai Lung, escapes the prison and comes to the valley where Po lives To fight against Tai Lung, master Shifu has to choose the Dragon Warrior, who is supposed to defeat Tai Lung Unluckily, Po is chosen and trained After a hard time training and practicing, Po finally understands the Dragon Secret and defeats Tai Lung This film is animated and I like it because it is interesting and the main character is so lovely Đào Minh Trung Questions for discussion: Which you prefer: watching movies at home or at a movie theatre? I like watching movies at home because I feel comfortable I can lie and chat with family members, or I can eat and drink while watching the movie Do you think there is too much violence in movies nowadays? Yes, I think so So, parents should choose the TV programs for their children to watch Topic 9: Describe your best friend You should say: who it is and how long you have known him/her where you first met him/her why you regard this person as your best friend My best friend is _(full name) (S)he is a _(job) _ (S)he works at I have known him/ her for _ years We first met at high-school/ university (S)he is good-looking (S)he is (quite) tall/ short (S)he has got long/short dark/light hair and a long/ thin/ oval face (S)he is friendly, nice and helpful (S)he likes shopping/ playing sports We often go shopping/ playing sports together (S)he often helps me when I need We often meet and share happiness and sorrows together (S)he is my good friend Questions for discussion: What are the qualities of a good friend? I think a good friend should be honest, friendly, and helpful, so we can share feelings and ideas together How can we maintain our relationships? I think we should keep in touch and pay attention to our friends We have to meet together sometimes to share happiness and sorrows Topic 10: Describe a major change in your life You should say: what your change was whether it was a positive or negative change when it happened how you felt I think the major change in my life is when I started to study the master program at CTU last year After passing the exam to master program, I had many things to I had to go to work I had to attend class and take care of my family So, I was very busy and tired However, because I wanted to study so I tried to manage my time And after some months, I could arrange my time to everything well Now I can study, go to work and take care of my family well I’m happy now because I know I can everything well if I try Đào Minh Trung Questions for discussion: What would you like to change about your life? I think I want to change my job because with my present job I don’t have enough money to support my family Can people change their life? How? Yes, I think they can If they work hard and manage time well, they can make their life better Topic 11: Describe the school you studied You should say: what it is and what size it is where it is located how many classrooms, teachers, and students there are what is special about it and why you like it I studied high-school at (name of the school) It is in (address) It is a big/small, old/ new school It has about _ classrooms There are about teachers and _ students in (name of the school) It has _ big/ small yards (with many trees) It has a lab, computer rooms, a big library, and a canteen I like to study there because the teachers are experienced and friendly Besides, the study equipment is good Students can use the library and the computer room for their study Questions for discussion: What subjects should be taught to students? Why? I think students should learn maths (to calculate), literature (to speak and write well) and English (to communicate with other countries) What is the role of students/ teacher in a school? The role of students in a school: they have to attend class every day; they have to learn the lessons and the homework; and they have to respect their teachers and read books The role of teachers in a school: they have to prepare the lesson plan carefully; they have to be on time; they have to help and respect their students Đào Minh Trung Topic 12: Describe a TV program which has made a strong impression on you You should say: what kind of TV program it was when you saw the TV program what the TV program was about why this TV program made such an impression on you In my free time, I often watch TV at home After dinner, I often watch TV for hours I like many TV program, but the TV program which has made a strong impression on me is “Vuot Len Chinh Minh” on Vinh Long TV station I watch it on Friday night The program is about people who are unluckly in life Though they work hard, they can’t pay their debts So, the program helps them to have money to pay debts They have to use their skill to complete a task in about minutes If they can well, they can also get money from sponsors This program is meaningful because it really helps poor people This program often makes me touching but I like watching it Questions for discussion: In your opinion, what are the disadvantages of watching television? There are some advantages of watching TV: (first) we can know what happens in many places in the world; (second) we can enlarge our knowledge; and (third) we can relax ourselves (with many programs such as films, game shows, music) There are some disadvantages of watching TV: (first) we waste a lot of time; (second) we may be passive because we just sit and watch; (third) we may not have many friends because we don’t go out and meet people Do you think children should be forbidden to watch television? Yes, I think so Children should watch the TV program their parents choose or they should watch children program Đào Minh Trung ... morning because I can enjoy fresh air and it’s good for my heart I play badminton because I would like to be active and keep fit Questions for discussion: Why some people think that modern lifestyles... relatives and friends on Tet holidays I like Tet because it is a good time for family members to stay together Questions for discussion: What are some types of festivals? How are the different?... pictures with my phone I use it every day and I like it very much Questions for discussion: Would you like to exchange it for anything? No, I wouldn’t Because it is a present of my mother/father/