5.6. Exercises

I. Build up a conversation centred round the following line.

Men can’t be good teachers.

A good teacher must be a real artist.

Teaching a foreign language in school is pointless.

Schoolchildren should be allowed to choose the subjects they want to study.

Things went downhill in education.

You should have a healthy lifestyle and keep to a balanced diet to keep fit.

You were laid up with flu last week, I believe.

Public health care should go hand in hand with private health care.

One should master relaxation techniques to be able to overcome stress.

Alternative medicine has come of age.

Have you heard that traffic in Britain keeps to the left?

The Tower of London has a rich history.

Westminster stands for Parliament.

One of the special joys of London is the amount of space given over to parks, gardens, squares and open areas.

London museums enjoy a great popularity with London visitors.

The UK has a turbulent history going back some 2000 years.

London is the city of great contrasts.

II. Develop a line into a free conversation.

In my opinion it is preferable to study at a state university than at a private one.

The most interesting and bizarre time of the year to visit Cambridge is during May Week.

I say at the age of 16 schoolchildren in Great Britain take their GCSE examinations and then...

My cherished dream is to enter the Teachers’ Training University and to become a teacher of English.

The most popular spectator sport is football, of course.

If the ball hadn’t been invented, there would have been no sport.

Sport should be competetive otherwise I wouldn’t call it sport take aerobics or body-building for example.

If you don’t get the exercise that your body wants, then things can go badly wrong.

Britain is a smallish country, but there is hardly a country in the world where such a variety of scenery can be found in such a small compass.

No wonder the English race is a sea-loving one.

The Highlands of Scotland boast their outstanding beauty with romantic past.

Personally I hate seeing people off.

Travelling by air you have comfort, speed and pleasure combined.

5.7. Informational Style How to hold an audience

The speech should be enjoyed both by audience and speaker...

It should be the aim of the man who wishes to speak in public to arrange and to express his ideas in such a way that people cannot help listening to what he has to say...

Your voice shows not only your character but also your mood. Your voice is you: listen therefore to the voices of other people, and work to improve your own... It is only with proper preparation that delivery can be spontaneous and that you can give your whole attention to the audience. The successful speech is the result of constant, patient practice. Memory, judgement, imagination all play part. Properly prepared you can concentrate on what you are actually saying. Preparation is a training in arranging ideas in logical order and in proportion.

Before ever you face your audience you must think long and seriously on the subject on which you intend to speak.

Distinct speech is possible for everyone provided he takes the trouble to develop the habit of clear speaking: monotony in the voice may indicate a feeling of inadequacy. Many people talk habitually with their mouths half-closed. How much pleasanter it would be to listen to many speakers we know if they had once developed the habit of opening their mouths.

Speak out as if addressing those at the back. Talk slowly, deliberately, particularly when you introduce a new idea or an unusual word or phrase...

Be absolutely clear as to what you want to say and say it as simply and as definitely as possible. Don’t be afraid of opposition.

Use gestures, the only purpose of which is to arrange the communication.