So, Tell Me About Yourself

 Here are some examples of things you can say about yourself:

My name’s...
I’m from... / I live in...
I was born in...
I’m ... years old.
I go to .... school.
I like.... because...
I don’t like...because...
In my free time / After school, I....
My best friends are...because...
My favourite (school subject, actor, pop group, sport) is...because...
I have ...brothers and sisters.
In the future, I’d like to...because...

Questions you can ask:

What do you like doing?

What sort of hobbies do you have?

What do you do to in your free time?

How to reply:

In my free time I…

When I have some spare time I…

When I get the time, I…

I relax by (watching TV)

I'm interested in (+ noun / gerund)

I'm keen on (+ noun / gerund)

I'm into (+ noun / gerund)

I enjoy (+ noun / gerund)

You can add "really" or "quite" after "I'm…" for emphasis.

"I'm really keen on football."

Giving a longer reply

You can give more information about your hobbies and interests:

I like arts and crafts. I'm a creative / practical person, and like doing things with my hands.

I'm an outgoing person, and like socialising / hanging out with friends

I enjoy being physically active, and spend a lot of time playing sports and team games.

Like doing vs like to do

We use like + gerund to talk about general likes:

I like fishing.

We use like + infinitive to talk about more specific likes:

I like to go fishing at the weekend.

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Hi. My name's Greg, and I'm originally from Denver, Colorado, but my family moved to Arizona when I was about 3, so I grew up there. I graduated from high school about three years ago, and I am currently attending a university in my city. I'm a junior, and I am majoring in economics with a minor in Spanish. I also work part time as a cashier at a grocery store. Life is really busy, but I enjoy hiking, reading, and hanging out with friends in my free time. When I graduate, I want to work for a company in this area.

Key Vocabulary:

originally (adverb): in the beginning, in the first place 

- My mom is originally from a small town in Texas.

currently (adverb): now, at this time 

- She is currently working as a server at a restaurant.

attend (verb): go to 

- I want to attend a school near my family.

junior (noun): third-year student

- He is only a junior, so he has another year to graduate.

major in (verb): have as one's main field of study

- I'm thinking about majoring in restaurant and hotel management.

cashier (noun): a person who receives and pays out money at a store

- Kathy found a job as a cashier at a restaurant.

grocery store (noun): supermarket

- My brother works full time as the manager of a grocery store.

hang out (phrasal verb): spend time with, socialize

- We usually hang out with friends after school.

Some qualities for describing yourself:

 1. adventuresome or cautious, 2.                affectionate and caring or aloof and distant, 3.                aggressive and dominant or passive and submissive, 4.                agreeable or argumentative, 5.                ambitious and energetic or relaxed and carefree, 6.                artistic and creative or scientific and practical, 7.                calm or high strung, 8.                communicative or quiet, 9.                competitive or laid back, 10.            socially conservative or socially progressive, 11.            courageous or timid, 12.            efficient and frugal or free with money and wasteful, 13.            generous or stingy, 14.            gregarious and outgoing or shy and introverted, 15.            independent and self-confident or dependent and reliant on others, 16.            impatient and demanding or patient and calm, 17.            jealous or unpossessive, 18.            lazy or hard-working, 19.            optimistic or pessimistic, 20.            organized or disorganized, 21.            outspoken and forthright or tactful and diplomatic, 22.            persistent or quick to bail out when things get tough, 23.            quarrelsome or easy to get along with, 24.            trusting or suspicious, 25.            playful or serious

Debate

Debates, contrasting ideas. They are not attacking you but attacking your arguments. Searching for truth. It is not 1+1= 2. The best idea at the moment. Is this a better restaurant or that. We are looking for the best answer.

State your argument. Too many holes in their case, State what you are going to attack, what you are going to prove, disprove, Disagree, reject, Suspend judgement for now, right, wrong, false true, doubtful, BECAUSE, Good solid notes. Amount of evidence. Little no evidence. Evidence: What supports an argument to be true. Claims that are supported or unsupported. Supported argument.Quality of evidence.Where did it come from? CNN, experts, www. junk mail.com 1937 outdated. Was it an expert or Sally's friend?

Up to speed: having the most recent information It took a long time for the FBI to get up to speed on computer crime. We'll bring you up to speed on the day's top stories after this commercial break.

Refute, Refutation- Persuasive, Proposition,Valid- Invalid. antagonise. I agree up to a point. I grant you that. Granted.

Useful Debate Vocabulary

“I’m listening to the other side.”

• I see your point, but I think…
• Yes, I understand, but my opinion is that…
• That’s all very interesting, but the problem is that…
• I’m afraid I can’t quite agree with your point.
• I think I’ve got your point, now let me respond to it.
• We can see what you’re saying. Here’s my reply…

“I need to say something now.”

• I’m sorry to interrupt, but you’ve misunderstood our point.
• Excuse me, but that’s not quite correct.
• Sorry, I just have to disagree with your point.
• Let me just respond to that, please.
• Forgive me for interrupting, but I must respond to that.
• Hold on a moment, that’s not correct.
• If you would allow me to add a comment here...
• If you don’t mind, I’d like to take issue with what you just said.

“You haven’t replied yet.”

• The other side will have to explain why.... otherwise we win that point.
• We said that… but the other side has not replied to our point.
• I’d like to focus on two points that the other side has failed to address.
• There are two points that we have succeeded in establishing…
• I want to call your attention to an important point that our opponents have not addressed yet.
• I’d like to point out that there are two issues our opponents have failed to dispute, namely…
• I must stress again that our point has not been refuted by the other side.

“Well, I think that…”

• The first point I would like to raise is this…
• Our position is the following…
• Here’s the main point I want to raise…
• I’d like to deal with two points here. The first is…
• Our opponents have still not addressed the question we raised a moment ago…
• The other side has failed to answer our point about…
• Notice that the affirmative side has not addressed our main point.
• Let me just restate my position.
• Just to be clear, here is what I mean…

“So finally, we…”

• To sum up, here are the main points our opponents have not addressed…
• We pointed out that…
• Our opponents have claimed that…
• To recap the main points…
• Let’s sum up where we stand in this debate.
• Let me summarize our position in this debate.
• In summary, we want to point out that…
• Let’s see which arguments are still standing.
• Let’s take stock of where we are in this debate.

These phrases are from Debate and Discussion by David Moser.
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 Debate vocabulary

(1) When you start saying something / contributing to a conversation
First of all, I would like to say/state that
To begin with, I
In the first line, I
(2)  What can you say instead of "I think" 
I would say/think
In my opinion
To my mind
I am of the opinion that
I hold the opinion that
(3)  When you want to stress your "personal opinion": 
Personally I think
As far as I am concerned
As for me
As I take it
As far as I can see
(4)  When you "agree" or when you "don't agree": 
I entirely/quite agree with you.
I agree to (with) her plan.    
I am of the same opinion.
I differ from/with you entirely.
I disagree with you: I am sure you're mistaken.
I stick to my opinion.
Let's agree to differ!
(5)  When you want to say the "opposite" of what someone else said: 
on the contrary! quite the contrary! just the opposite!
That is the very opposite of what I said.
That is quite the contrary to what I said.
I maintain the contrary.
In contrast to what you said, I maintain that...........
(6)  When you are "quite sure" of something: 
of course!
That goes without saying
It goes without saying that
I contend/maintain that................
It's my conviction that..................
(7)  When you want to "ask a question": 
May I interrupt you?
There arises the question/point whether/if
This question raises the whole issue
(8) When you "haven't understood":
I beg your pardon. / Pardon?
Could you repeat what you've just said? But slower, please./
Could you slow down a bit?
(9) If you should want to "correct a mistake":
Excuse me (for interrupting) you should have said:"....."
(10)When you want to distinguish one aspect from the other:
on the one hand - on the other hand
in general - in particular
generally speaking             
on the whole
taken as a whole
at first sight - on second thoughts
(11)When you want to "add" something:
In addition
Moreover
Furthermore
Finally
(12)When you want to "emphasize" something: 
I would like to lay (put) emphasis (stress) on the fact that..
I just want to point out that
(13)When you want to "say the truth": 
To be frank (with you)
Frankly (speaking)
To say the truth
(14)And if you are "not sure": 
I don't know exactly.
I don't know for certain.
(A) General phrases:
in other words                    in this respect
to a certain degree/extent        It depends on your point of view
in brief/short
To be brief
To cut a long story short,...... 
Let me put it this
way:....
I don't know. - I don't know either.   Nor/Neither do I.

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Add the following expressions to the given categories I agree with / disagree with you; I see/understand your point but ; You´ve got a point / a case there but; I´m not sure. whether …; I have doubts / reservations about ; I don´t see that working in practice. ; It may work in the short-term / in the long-term. ; I think that´s debatable. ; Prove it! ; Your argument is flawed because... ; What´s that got to do with the issue? ; You´re missing the point. ; It´s ridiculous to suggest that.... ; My feeling is.. ; If you ask me... ; As for me.... ; Bear in mind that … ; You´d better do ... ; Let´s face it.... ; In general... ; On the whole... ; As a rule.... ; It goes without saying that... ; What´s more / in addition / furthermore ; What I´m getting at is... / What I´m trying to say is.. / My point is... ; What is your point? What are you driving at? ; You´re not serious, are you? ;You must be joking! That´s nonsense / rubbish / ridiculous.

Advanced English at IPC

Advanced English at IPC will concentrate on improving students' communication skills in English and will be geared towards preparation for The University of Cambridge ESOL examinations. Emphasis will be given to exercises that enhance students' idiomatic knowledge and consequently make them feel at home in the language. Students are expected to:

* Keep diaries which demonstrate good note-taking skills as well as neatness and enthusiasm 

* To present at least one press review to the class. Press reviews are weekly presentations and either could be summaries of the news from the past week or could be devoted to commenting on one particular article from the English press

* To demonstrate dynamic and constructive class participation

Salman Rushdie

*A book is a version of the world. If you do not like it, ignore it; or offer your own version in return.

*A poet's work is to name the unnameable, to point at frauds, to take sides, start arguments, shape the world, and stop it going to sleep.

*Be sure that you go to the author to get at his meaning, not to find yours.

*Books choose their authors; the act of creation is not entirely a rational and conscious one.

*Doubt, it seems to me, is the central condition of a human being in the twentieth century.

*Free speech is the whole thing, the whole ball game. Free speech is life itself.

*I do not need the idea of God to explain the world I live in.

*I hate admitting that my enemies have a point.

*I used to say, 'There is a God-shaped hole in me.' For a long time I stressed the absence, the hole. Now I find it is the shape which has become more important.

*If I were asked for a one-sentence sound bite on religion, I would say I was against it.

*If Woody Allen were a Muslim, he'd be dead by now.

*In this world without quiet corners, there can be no easy escapes from history, from hullabaloo, from terrible, unquiet fuss.

*It is very, very easy not to be offended by a book. You just have to shut it.

*Most of what matters in your life takes place in your absence.

*Names, once they are in common use, quickly become mere sounds, their etymology being buried, like so many of the earth's marvels, beneath the dust of habit.

*One of the extraordinary things about human events is that the unthinkable becomes thinkable.

*Our lives are not what we deserve; they are, let us agree, in many ways deficient.

*Our lives teach us who we are.

*Rock and roll music - the music of freedom frightens people and unleashes all manner of conservative defense mechanisms.

*Sometimes legends make reality, and become more useful than the facts.

The Real Thing By Henry James (1843-1916)

* “Wouldn't it be rather a pull sometimes to have — a — to have —?” He hung fire; he wanted me to help him by phrasing what he meant. But I couldn't — I didn't know. So he brought it out, awkwardly: "The real thing; a gentleman, you know, or a lady” (James, 237).

*There were moments when I was oppressed by the serenity of [Mrs. Monarch’s] confidence that she was the real thing. All her dealings with me and all her husband's were an implication that this was lucky for me. Meanwhile I found myself trying to invent types that approached her own, instead of making her own transform itself — in the clever way that was not impossible, for instance, to poor Miss Churm. Arrange as I would and take the precautions I would, she always, in my pictures, came out too tall — landing me in the dilemma of having represented a fascinating woman as seven feet high, which, out of respect perhaps to my own very much scantier inches, was far from my idea of such a personage” (James).

*I could take his measure at a glance--he was six feet two and a perfect gentleman. It would have paid any club in process of formation and in want of a stamp to engage him at a salary to stand in the principal window.

* Learning that he was a painter they tried to approach him, to show him too that they were the real thing; but he looked at them across the big room, as if they were miles away: they were a compendium of everything he most objected to in the social system of his country. Such people as that, all convention and patent- leather, with ejaculations that stopped conversation, had no business in a studio. A studio was a place to learn to see, and how could you see through a pair of feather-beds?

*"Now the drawings you make from US, they look exactly like us," she reminded me, smiling in triumph; and I recognised that this was indeed just their defect. When I drew the Monarchs I couldn't anyhow get away from them--get into the character I wanted to represent; and I hadn't the least desire my model should be discoverable in my picture. Miss Churm never was, and Mrs. Monarch thought I hid her, very properly, because she was vulgar; whereas if she was lost it was only as the dead who go to heaven are lost--in the gain of an angel the more.

Quotations by Henry James: *It is art that makes life, makes interest, makes importance . . . and I know of no substitute whatever for the force and beauty of its process.

*To criticize is to appreciate, to appropriate, to take intellectual possession, to establish in fine a relation with the criticized thing and to make it one's own.

*Experience is never limited, and it is never complete; it is an immense sensibility, a kind of huge spider-web of the finest silken threads suspended in the chamber of consciousness, and catching every air-borne particle in its tissue.

*Live all you can; it's a mistake not to. It doesn't so much matter what you do in particular, so long as you have your life. If you haven't had that what have you had?

*Do not mind anything that anyone tells you about anyone else. Judge everyone and everything for yourself.

Robert Penn Warren (1905- 1989) on Hemingway (1899-1961) :

Hemingway’s heroes are not squealers, welchers, compromisers, or cowards, and when they confront defeat they realize that the stance they take, the stoic endurance, the stiff upper lip means a kind of victory. If they are to be defeated they are defeated upon their own terms; some of them have even courted their defeat; and certainly they have maintained, even in the practical defeat, an ideal of themselves – some definition of how a man should behave, formulated or unformulated – by which they have lived. They represent some notion of a code, some notion of honor, that makes a man a man, and that distinguishes him from people who merely follow their random impulses and who are, by consequence, “messy.”

I always try to write on the principle of the iceberg. There is seven-eighths of it underwater for every part that shows. Anything you know you can eliminate and it only strengthens your iceberg. It is the part that doesn't show. If a writer omits something because he does not know it then there is a hole in the story.

" You're an expatriate. You've lost touch with the soil. You get precious. Fake European standards have ruined you. You drink yourself to death. You become obsessed by sex. You spend all your time talking, not working. You are an expatriate, see? You hang around cafes. " from The Sun Also Rises