Ex.6. Read and translate the dialogue.

Ann: Hello.

Serge: Hi, Ann. It’s Serge. I’m calling to make an appointment for LeeAnn. She wants to meet Miles next week sometime.

Ann: Let me take a look at his appointment schedule. Let’s see, can LeeAnn be here on Tuesday at 2 pm?

Serge: No, she’s tied up all Tuesday afternoon, but I could shuffle around some of her commitments to free her up on Tuesday morning, if that helps.

Ann: Unfortunately, Tuesday morning is out. I could bump someone on Wednesday afternoon at 3 pm. Can LeeAnn be here at that time?

Serge: She has an appointment at 2:30 in this office, but it shouldn’t last more than a half hour. She should be able to make it by 3 o’clock if she’s not running late. Better yet, I may be able tochange something, maybe push back that appointment until she gets back to the office. Why don’t you pencil her in for now?

Ann: Okay, I’ll do that, but can you confirm with me by Monday?

Serge: Sure, I’ll give you a heads up no later than noon on Monday if I can’t push back her other appointment.

Ann: Okay, sounds good. Tell me, do you ever feel like we’re spinning our wheels, spending our days making, changing, and canceling appointments?

Serge: Yeah, every single day!

Ex. 7. Role-play the dialogue.

Rachel: Hello, my name is Rachel Jones and I'd like to make an appointment to speak to Mr. Smith.

Secretary: Can I ask you what is the purpose of the appointment?

Rachel: Of course. I met him at a luncheon last week and he asked me to call him to make an appointment to talk about a job.

Secretary: Okay. Mr. Smith has an appointment available on Monday June 10th at 4 pm or Thursday June 13th at 2 pm. Which one would be better for you?

Rachel: Monday at 4pm would be perfect.

Secretary: Excellent. I've got you down for that day and time. Can I have your phone number just in case something comes up and he needs to reschedule?

Rachel: Yes, certainly. It is 085-897-9393.

Secretary: (repeats the phone number to make sure it's correct) 085-897-9393.

Rachel: That's it. Thank you so much. I'll see you on Monday June 10^th at 4 pm.

Secretary: Have a nice day!

Ex.8. Complete the dialogue with the words and word combinations from the box.

A)

Pam: Hello. Pam Robertson __________ .

Bob: Oh hello, Pam. It's Bob here.

Pam: Hello Bob. How can I help you?

Bob: _______ the new advertising budget meeting. ______ on Tuesday afternoon?

Pam: Let me see. Sorry I'm __________ the new factory all day on Tuesday. How about Wednesday at two p.m.?

Bob: I'm meeting a customer in the morning, but the afternoon is __________ .

Pam: Good. So __________ on Wednesday then. Good bye.

Bob: Good bye.

b)

A: Good morning. Dr. Brown's office. __________?

A: Good morning. I __________with Dr. Brown.

B: Ok. Just a minute. __________on Monday at 1:00 pm?

A: No. Monday is a busy day for me. I __________until 9:00 pm. I __________the office early.

B: What about Wednesday at 6:00 pm? __________?

A: __________? You know how heavy the traffic is at 6. I __________on time.

B: OK. You __________by Dr. Brown on Wednesday at 7. OK? If you can't come for any reason, please __________and I will try to set another time.

B: OK. Thanks.

Ex.9. Work with a partner.

Your partner wants to arrange a meeting next week. However, you're very busy!

Think of three reasons why you are busy.

1)

2)

3)

Role-play the conversations with your partner:

Your partner will suggest a time. Say you are busy, and use one of the above reasons.

Your partner will then suggest a different time. Accept the second time.

Ex.10. Work in pairs. Practice making and changing an appointment.You are going to role-play five situations. Refer to Ex. 5 for useful phrases.

A. You're a chemical engineer who works in the company's R&D labs. You're attending a conference on a new chemical processing technology. A friend from college (who is now a professor doing research in the same area) will be attending the conference. You want to schedule some time to talk to him and get his perspective on recent developments in the field. But he is hard to reach.

2. An old friend from college (who is doing research work in the same field as you in the R&D labs of a large corporation) wants to get together and talk. You try to find some time for him in your busy schedule.

A. You sell expensive medical equipment. You have to make an appointment to talk with a doctor who is very influential at a hospital where you're trying to close a sale. You want to get him in the right mood so you invite him to play a round of golf at an expensive country club.