1. Study the words and word combinations and circle in the list the lexis you know. Try to find the verbs that are synonyms:

agenda

minutes

chair

item

to arrange

to set up

to fix

to bring forward

to put back

to postpone

to cancel

to run

to chair

to attend

to miss

digression

to wander off the point

to stick to the point

2. Fill in the missing words in the story below. Choose them from the following:

Agenda, any other business, decision, chair, point (item), room, matters arising, closed, minutes, monthly, start, meeting

It was a terrible ……………………… . It was planned to …………………… at nine o’clock. But no one had the …………………….…. And no one knew which ………………………… to go to. The …………………….. … arrived at 9.15. At last we thought we could start. But no one had the ………………… of the last meeting, so the secretary had to go and look for them – and to make copies of the agenda. It took time to go through the ………………………..…. from the last meeting. At last we got to the main ………………………….… on the agenda. We talked for two hours but did not reach a ………………..…. There was no time for ……………………..… The chair declared the meeting ……………………………… just before midday. Thank goodness it’s only a …………………………..… meeting!

3. Match the quotes (a-k) with statements (1-11) about the meeting.

1. Sophie welcomed the participants. a) Could I say something?

2. She checked to see who was present. b) Let’s go on to the next item.

3. She opened the meeting. c) Let me go over the main points.

4. She stated the main aim of the meeting d) I couldn’t agree more.

5. She invited Tom to introduce the e) Is everyone here?

first point. f) We’re running short of time.

6. Naomy supported Tom. g) Could you lead on this one?

7. Jacob tried to interrupt. h) If I understand you correctly,

8. Tom asked Jacob for clarification. you’re saying that…

9. Sophie tried to speed the meeting up. i) That’s all for today.

10. She moved the meeting to the next point. j) Thanks to everyone for coming

11. Sophie summarized the discussion. k) The reason we’re all here is.

12. And she closed the meeting. l) OK. Let’s make a start.

4. Language focus: Past Indefinite Tense

Complete the dialogue with the right form of the verbs in brackets.

How was the meeting?

Some colleagues are discussing a meeting they had yesterday.

Ann: I think it (be) very productive.

Juliet: Well, I think it (be) a complete waste of time. I (not hear) anything I (not know) .

Barbara: I agree with Ann. I (feel) we (have) some very useful discussions, and that we

(reach) an agreement that was good for both sides. We certainly (cover) a lot of

ground. It was incredible the number of things we (get) through.

Juliet: But there were too many digressions. John was rambling and (keep) wandering

off the point. He just uses meetings as a chance to show off. He just (want) to show

how powerful he is and what a good talker he is.

Ann: But to be fair, the chair really (keep) things moving. She (encourage) people to be

brief and to stick to the point and we (achieve) a lot in a short time. Anyway, I

(learn) a lot and I think they (listen) to what we (have to) say.

5. Situation:

a) Try to arrange the meeting at class:

- Find the chair and make the agenda.

- Discuss the items of the agenda

- Use the words and word combinations you have learnt during the lesson.

b) Discuss in class:

- What sort of meeting do you go to in your educational establishment?

- Do you prefer to avoid arguments or not if you take part in the meeting?