Selecting a Hotel

Selecting a Hotel

Introduction: In this activity you will be a travel agent offering three unique hotel options. Two of the options are already provided for you. You will create the third option. Your teacher gave you a group number. Go to the section that corresponds with your number and follow the instructions.

Group 1

Instructions: Look at the information and photos about two hotels and create a similar description for a third hotel that you think visitors will like. Be prepared to describe all three hotels to partners from another group. 

Poseidon Undersea Resort

Location: Fiji

Size: 10 rooms.

Average Temperature: 30 degrees.

Description: This is the first underwater hotel in the world. The walls are made of glass so you can see fish swimming around your room. It has large bedrooms, a restaurant with fresh seafood, and a spa.

Activities: You can rent mini-submarines to explore the ocean around the hotel. There are scuba excursions and also fishing tours.

Nightlife: You can do a night tour of the reef in one of the submarines.

Price: $10,000 to $15,000 per night.

Emirates Palace Hotel 

Location: Dubai

Size: 300 rooms.

Average Temperature: 38 degrees.

Description: This is one of the most exclusive and luxurious hotels in the world. It has a private beach, a marina for boats, and even a small airport planes and helicopters. There are 5 restaurants with different types of food. There is even an ATM (cajero automatico) that dispenses gold! 

Activities: You can go on shopping tours to different malls near the hotel. There is a golf course and tennis courts. You can go fishing or water skiing.

Nightlife: There are 3 casinos in the hotel and 2 discos if you like to dance.

Price: $5,000 to $9,000 per night.

Your third hotel: Create a unique hotel option in Costa Rica by providing the following information.

• Name of the hotel
• Location
• Number of rooms
• Temperature
• Description
• What makes this place special?
• What is the price per night?

Group 2

Instructions: Look at the information and photos about two hotels and create a similar description for a third hotel that you think visitors will like. Be prepared to describe all three hotels to partners from another group. 

Vertical Horizons

Location: Oregon, USA

Size: 15 rooms.

Average Temperature: 18 degrees.

Description: This is a very unique hotel built in the beautiful cloudy forests of Oregon. All of the rooms are treehouses! Each treehouse is connected to a central building by bridges. The central building has a gourmet restaurant, a spa, and a gym. The rooms have a rustic style but they are very comfortable and you can see birds and other animals from your window and balcony. 

Activities: There are nature hikes, a canopy tour, and horseback riding.

Nightlife: You can sit around a fire at night, cook marshmallows, and tell scary stories with other guests.

Price: $2,500 to $3,000 per night.

Ice Palace 

Location: Sweden

Size: 25 rooms.

Average Temperature: -3 degrees.

Description: This unique hotel is made entirely of ice! The walls, the floor, the ceiling, the chairs, and even the bed are made of ice. The hotel is only open during the winter because when spring comes, it melts in the warm weather. The ice palace is cold but each guest receives free jackets, boots, and hats and there are many warm blankets on the beds. 

Activities: You can go skiing or snowboarding. There are hikes in the forest. You can also take lessons to learn how to make ice sculptures.

Nightlife: You can spend the night drinking in the Ice Bar where all the drinks are cold because they are served in glasses made of ice.

Price: $3,500 to $4,000 per night.

Your third hotel: Create a unique hotel option in Costa Rica by providing the following information.

• Name of the hotel
• Location
• Number of rooms
• Temperature
• Description
• What makes this place special?
• What is the price per night?

Talking about Hotels

Talking about Hotels

Instructions: In this class we will review some important vocabulary related to hotels. Read the vocabulary items in the photo below and match them with a picture and a definition. Click the pictures to see a larger version if necessary. When you finish, click the link to check your answers. 

CLICK HERE to check your answers.

Task 2: Discussion Questions

Complete the questions with an appropriate vocabulary word and answer them from your own point of view.

• What ______________ would you expect from a 5 start hotel? What about a 1 star hotel?
• When you stay at a hotel for several days do you ever request a change of ______________? If so, what specifically?
• Are you the kind of guest who uses the "do not disturb sign" or do you want ______________ to come?
• What do you think would be a fair ______________ for a regular hotel in your city? What about a nice hotel in a touristic area?

Photospheres of Lima

Photospheres of Lima

Instructions: Click on the links below to view 360 photos of different places in Lima. Explore each place and discuss these questions with your partner:

• What is this place? 
• Have you been there or to any similar place?
• What can you see in the photo?
• What do people do there?
• What do you know about the history or significance of this place?
• Is it near any other places of interest?

Be sure to click the X button in the corner to put the photo in fullscreen.

Photosphere Links

Photo 1: Convento de San Francisco

Photo 2: Saint Cristobal Mountain

Photo 3: Larcomar 1

Photo 4: Larcomar 2

Photo 5: Zona Financiera

Photo 6: El Sauce Cementery

Photo 7: Fruit Market La Victoria

Photo 8: Plaza de Armas

Useful Language for Tour Guides

Useful Language for Tour Guides

Instructions: The phrases and vocabulary below can be help you when planning your tour and when responding to questions from the tourists. 

Adjectives for Describing Places

Phrases for Showing a Place

• In front of you is...
• On your right/left you will see...
• Up ahead there is...
• On your left you will see...
• As we turn the corner here, you will see...
• In the distance...
• If you look up you will notice...
• Look to the east...
• To your west...
• In a few minutes we'll be passing...
• We are now coming up to...
• As you will see...
• You may have noticed...
• Take a good look at...
• I'd like to point out...
• Keep your eyes open for...

Responding to Visitor Questions

• Do you have a question, Sir/Mam?
• I'll try my best to answer your questions.
• I'm afraid I don't have the answer to that. (Sorry I don't know.)
• That's an interesting question.
• I wish I knew the answer. (Sorry, I don't know.)
• Hmm.That's a tough (difficult) question.
• I'll have to ask someone about that.
• Hmm. I've never been asked that before.
• I'm not sure, but I can find out for you.

Note: Content for this post was taken from https://www.englishclub.com/english-for-work/tour-guide.htm

Pros and Cons of Tourism

Pros and Cons of Tourism

Instructions: The economy of many regions relies on tourism. However, tourism can be a double-edged sword (arma de doble fila). Discuss with your partners the potential positive and negative impacts of tourism in a particular place. You can use the words in the list below to guide your conversation if necessary.

• Local Economy
• National Economy
• Types of Jobs
• Culture
• Traditions
• Environment
• Crime
• Prices
• Property values
• Traffic
• Public services
• Other areas

Thinking about Tourism

Thinking about Tourism

Instructions: Discuss the following questions with your partners in detail.

• What are some places in your country that are popular with tourists?

• Have you been there? 

• What can you do there? What is the attraction?

• Do you think that these places provide an authentic experience for visitors? Why or why not?

• What are some places around the world that you would like to visit someday? Why are you interested in these places?

• Are there any touristic areas that you are not interested in visiting? Why is the place not attractive to you? Why do other people find it attractive?

Pronunciation Practice: S vs Z

Pronunciation Practice: S vs Z

Introduction: The S and Z sounds are often confused by students of English. In this task we will work on some strategies to improve in this area. Follow the instructions in the tasks below.

Task 1: Practice Saying

The sentences below have a mixture of S and Z sounds. One of the hardest things about English is the fact that words are not always pronounced the way they are spelled. In the case of the letter S, it can sometimes be pronounced with an S sound but in many cases it is pronounced with a Z sound. Read the sentences and pronounce all the BLUE letters with an S sound and all of the RED letters with a Z sound.

• Sue saw some zebras at the zoo.

• She says she took many pictures of them because they are so beautiful.

• This breeze feels good. It's much cooler in this area compared to places in other zones.

• My brother plays songs on his guitar but I don't like his music. For me jazz is better.

• These are the last days of summer. Soon the leaves on the trees will change colors and the autumn winds and rains will come.

Task 2: Spot the difference

Take turns saying words from the box below and your partner will listen to determine if you are pronouncing the words with the S or the Z sound. Say the words in random order to test your partner's listening ability.

Task 3: Vibrations or No Vibrations

Many verbs and nouns finish with an S and it is sometimes hard to decide if it should be pronounced with an S sound or a Z sound. There is one very easy strategy to know for sure. Find the sound in the word immediately before the S and say that sound will touching your adam's apple. If the sound has a vibration, you should pronounce the S with a Z sound. If the sound does not produce vibrations, it should be pronounced like an S. 

Spin the wheel to get a word. Pronounce the last sound of the word before the S. Decide if it vibrates or not and how you should pronounce the S.

Professional Networking

Professional Networking

Instructions: Networking is the action of making personal and professional connections with other people. This is an important part of your working life because these connections can potentially help you with projects and valuable information now or in the future.

Find your assigned profile below and read the information. Create a name for your character. Imagine you are this person and you are participating in an international conference for young business professionals. You will interact with other people and do the following:

• Introduce yourself and break the ice.
• Participate in some small talk to get to know each other.
• Get down to business. See if there is a possible way that you can help each other in the future.
• Take your leave.

EACH CONVERSATION WILL LAST 4 MINUTES!

You can click the information to see a larger picture.

Icebreakers, Introductions, and Leave Takings

Icebreakers, Introductions, and Leave Takings

Introduction: In this activity you will work with your partners to review useful questions and phrases to introduce yourself to someone as well as say goodbye. Complete the tasks below. 

Task 1: Breaking the Ice - Discuss the following questions with your partners.

• What are some common phrases you can use to introduce yourself?
• What are some questions you could ask someone to get to know someone you just met?
• What are some phrases you can use to say good bye to someone you just met?

Task 2: Play the Role - Improvise the following two dialogues between the people shaking hands in the photograph.

• Two people meeting each other for the first time.
• Two people saying good bye to each other after their first meeting.

Now, CLICK HERE to see a list of phrases. Analyze each phrase and discuss its function. Then improvise the same dialogue several more times trying to use the phrases from the list in an appropriate way.

Cultural Differences

Cultural Differences

Instructions: In the following video you will see two scenes where foreigners encounter a cultural difference while traveling. Watch the two scenes and be prepared to discuss the following questions with your partner:

• Describe what happened in each video.
• What was the misunderstanding?
• What did each culture understand/misunderstand?
• Have you ever had a cultural misunderstanding while traveling or interacting with people from other cultures?

Cross-Cultural Business Training

Cross-Cultural Business Training

Introduction: Cultures around the world have different customs related to meeting people. It is important to be familiar with what is appropriate behavior in the place where you are traveling to be respectful and avoid offending the people you meet. In this activity, you will study the customs of a particular culture and prepare a short presentation for your partners about the DOs and DONTs when doing business in that place. 

Task 1: Discuss the following questions for 10 minutes to introduce the topic.

• What are the most common ways to greet people in your country?
• How would you greet a friend, a coworker you don't know very well, a customer you just met, or a stranger on the street? 
• How do you show respect or degrees of formality or informality when interacting with people in your culture?
• Have you ever experienced cultural differences regarding these customs when traveling or interacting with people from other places?

Task 2: The teacher assigned you a particular country. Find your country in the space below and read the information with your partner. Decide what is the most important information. What is similar to your culture? What is different from your culture?

After you read, prepare a presentation consisting of the following:

• A short scene showing what NOT to do when meeting and doing business in this culture.
• A short scene showing what you should do when meeting and doing business.
• A brief analysis of the two scenes and a summary of the most important tips to remember.

South Korea

Greetings:

• Use a person’s formal title (i.e. Mr, Ms, Doctor) when addressing them for the first time, and continue to use it until they tell you to call them something different.
• The most common way to greet in South Korea is with a bow (reverencia).
• The casual bow is to lower your head with eyes closed. This type of greeting is used when informally greeting someone or walking past someone of a higher status.
• Business interactions require a deeper bow, where you incline your torso by about 30 degrees.
• The deepest, most polite bow expresses sincerest gratitude or apology. You bend your torso to around 45 degrees.
• Handshakes are also used to greet in South Korea. To show great respect during this greeting, you should support the wrist of your right hand with your left hand as you shake.  

Basic Manners:

• In Korea, people rarely thank others for gestures of courtesy (e.g. holding open doors), nor do they generally apologize if they bump into one another on the street. Koreans consider these minor incidents to be actions that you should expect in life and for that reason they do not require an apology or a ‘thank you’.
• Always show respect for people who are older than you. This means you should defer to their opinion and look down when they are talking. When eating, the oldest person should be served first. Everyone should wait for them to begin eating before starting.
• Always give and receive objects with two hands.
• Remove your hat when you are inside.
• Remove your shoes before entering a Korean home.
• Koreans are punctual and they try make the most of the time they have. In certain contexts, they can seem impatient.
• Sneezing is considered rude in Korea. You should leave the room if you you need to sneeze.
• Do not point to people or objects using your finger. It is rude. Use your entire hand instead.

Business Culture:

• Be punctual to meetings and make an apology if you are late.
• Avoid making jokes with people who are superior to you.
• You will often be offered tea during business meetings. It is best to accept it as a gesture of respect.
• Koreans are generally very respectful listeners. Reflect their manners and wait your turn to speak without interrupting.
• Koreans often sit in silence before responding to a question or offer. This shows that they are carefully considering what you have said. Do not interrupt these moments of silence.

Saudi Arabia

Greetings: 

• In Saudi Arabia, the most common form of greeting is a handshake and the phrase “Assalaam ‘alaikum” (May peace be upon you), to which the reply is “Wa ‘alaikum assalaam” (And peace be upon you).
• Handshakes are most common in business settings and always use the right hand.
• Muslims do not make physical contact with members of the opposite gender.
• Therefore, when greeting a Saudi of the opposite gender, it is best practice to simply greet them verbally and wait to see if they feel comfortable extending their hand.
• Greetings between friends of the same gender often involve kisses on the cheek. You extend your left hand to the other person’s right shoulder and give three kisses on the cheek (either right-left-right, or all on the same cheek). 
• Saudi men who are very close friends may greet one another by touching noses. This indicates trust, intimacy and respect in the friendship. 
• People expect to be referred to by their titles – especially if they are your senior and/or elder (e.g. Mr/Mrs, Uncle/Aunt, Doctor, Professor).

Basic Manners: 

• The left hand is considered unclean. It should not be used for functions such as waving, eating or passing items. For this reason, you should gesture, touch people or offer items using your right hand or both hands together. 
• It is considered rude to check the time while you are in a conversation with someone or at a social event.
• Do not sit in any position that allows the bottom of your shoe to face another person. This is considered insulting. Similarly, it is inappropriate to cross your legs when facing someone.
• Pay respect to elderly in all situations. For example, standing up when they enter a room or offering them your seat.
• To be polite, Saudis often decline an offer several time before accepting it. Be sure to offer everything multiple times. If you only offer something once, a Saudi person may respond, "No, it's ok" out of politeness even though the intend to accept it on the second offer.
• In Saudi Arabia, the consumption of alcohol is prohibited for Muslims under Islamic law. You should avoid drinking alcohol to avoid potential embarrassment or offence.

Business Culture:

• When first entering a room or greeting your Saudi business partners for the first time, you should shake hands with everyone from right to left.
• Meetings generally start with a considerable amount of small talk and can seem like a constant round of appointments where people are becoming acquainted.
• Do not openly correct someone or directly criticize someone’s proposal in front of others during a meeting. Take an indirect approach to avoid causing offence or embarrassment.
• Be aware that the Saudi working week is from Sunday to Thursday, with the ‘weekend’ falling on Friday and Saturday instead of Saturday and Sunday.
• Saudi men may speak loudly. This is seen as a positive characteristic rather than a negative one. Shouting can indicate sincerity and active participation in the conversation, not necessarily anger or hostility. 

Kenya

Greetings:

• When Kenyans greet one another, they often ask about their families and health.
• The most typical gesture when greeting is a handshake. You are expected to shake the hands of everyone present. For example, if you enter a room with ten people, you should take the time to greet each person verbally and by shaking their hand.
• To show respect for an elder or someone of higher status, support your right arm with your left hand when shaking hands with this person.
• When greeting a man, the polite term to say is ‘bwana’ (a combination of ‘mister’ and ‘sir’).
• For anybody around the age of forty and above, the term ‘mzee’ (‘older man’ or ‘elder’) is used. This term signifies respect for the person, their wisdom and experience as an elder.
• For women of any age, the typical term is ‘mama’.

Basic Manners: 

• Use your right hand or both hands to pass items to people. Just using your left hand is considered rude.
• Kenyans have a relaxed attitude about time. It is common for people to arrive 30 to 40 minutes late. One reason why perceptions of time in Kenya may differ from the English-speaking West is that many Kenyans operate on both the world time system and on their traditional time system known as ‘Swahili Time'. 
• Arriving early to an event will make your Kenyan host feel uncomfortable. It is best to arrive half an hour after the designated time.
• For many Kenyans, it is considered impolite to say goodbye at the door. Instead, hosts will usually walk with their departing visitors for some distance before returning home.
• Guests invited to someone’s home should bring a small gift of appreciation. Common gifts to give are flowers and tea leaves.
• Since Kenyans tend to be indirect communicators, direct criticism may be perceived negatively.
• Pointing with your finger is considered rude. People point with their chin or lips in the direction they want to indicate.

Business Culture:

• To formally begin a meeting, each person will stand up and introduce themselves to everyone present.
• The seating positions in a meeting are usually based on the hierarchy of those present.
• Business meetings in Kenya are often long as everyone is expected to contribute to the meeting. 
• If you try to push a meeting to go faster, it will probably result in the meeting being longer since Kenyans prefer to take their time when discussing the agenda.
• Large meetings usually have a coffee break while small meetings will have coffee or tea on offer during the meeting.
• When greeting important members of a Kenyan business, you should make some initial small talk and ask about their health and their family members. If you skip this step or try to do it too quickly, it will be perceived as rude. 

More Practice With Irregular Verbs

More Practice with Irregular Verbs

Instructions: Irregular verbs in English do not follow the rule of VERB + ED to make the past and past participle. Instead, they come in different forms and you just have to memorize them if you want to learn them. In this activity you will continue your review of the most common irregular verbs.

Task 1: Fix the error and answer the question
In this task you will detect the errors in following questions, fix them, and answer the questions.

• Have you ever lose something valuable? What was it? How did you lose it? 
• When was the last time you feel sick? What did you have? What did you do?
• Where did you went on your last vacation? What did you did?
• Have you ever spend a lot of money in one day. What did you spend it on?
• When did you begun studying English? 
• What neighborhood did you grown up in? What was it like when you was a child?
• How many times have you flew on a plane? When was the last time you fly on a plane?
• When was the last time you wear a t-shirt and sandals?
• How many times in the last decade have you wrote a letter by hand?

CLICK HERE to check your answers.

Task 2: Spin the Wheel to Tell a Story

In this task you will take turns adding sentences in the chat to write a story. You will spin the wheel and it will give you a verb in the present form. You have to transform it into the past and add it into your story. Make sure your story includes at least 6 sentences. 

When you finish you story, CLICK HERE to see a list of the most common irregular verbs. Here you can check that the verbs you wrote are in the right form.

Task 3: 

Small Talk Rally

Small Talk Rally

Instructions: To practice your skills of improvisation you will participate in a small talk rally. You will have 4 conversations in 12 minutes. In each conversation you will make small talk with your partner and you will invent a new identity for each context. At the end of the 4 conversations, you will give your partner feedback on the following aspects.

Get your timer ready!

Choose one of these contexts and start your 3 minute conversation.

Get your timer ready!

Choose another one of these contexts and start your next 3 minute conversation. Remember to create a new identity. Continue with this until you finish your 4th conversation.

Evaluation: Now, take your final 3 minutes to discuss your experiences in the different conversations. How would you evaluate your partner's performance considering these aspects?

Meeting People - Introduction

Meeting People - Introduction

Instructions: In this unit we will talk about the topic of meeting people. Let's get started by having a discussion about the following questions. 

• How often do you meet new people? In what context do you meet them?

• What is the first thing you say or do when meeting someone for the first time?

• How long does it normally take for you to feel comfortable around a person you meet?

• Who is your best friend and how did you meet him or her? How long did it take for you to get to know each other?

• What are some typical questions you ask people to get to know them?

• What are some questions you definitely wouldn't ask until you feel more comfortable with them?

• Have you ever had an awkward first meeting? For example, meeting your girlfriend's parents for the first time, meeting your new boss, etc.

Irregular Past Participles Review

Irregular Past Participles Review

Instructions: Regular verbs in English have two past forms, the past simple and past participle. For regular verbs we just add the letters ED to the end of the verb to create both forms. However, you know that English has MANY irregular verbs that do not follow this rule. In this activity you will review some of the most common irregular verbs. 

Task 1: Start a timer on your phone and make a list of as many irregular past and past participles as you can in the chat. Just use your memory. Don't look for verb lists on Google. 

Task 2: Ask your partner questions about their life experiences using the question starter "Have you ever...". If your partner answers yes, ask them follow up questions to learn more about this expereince. Use the "word cloud" below to get ideas. You can click the image to see a larger version.

• Have you ever ...?
• Yes, I have. I ... last December and...
• No, I have never ...

Task 3: Which of these verbs are irregular? Which are regular?

Reviewing Simple and Continuous Forms

Reviewing Simple and Continuous Forms

Instructions: You know by now that there are two common verb forms in all English tenses, simple and continuous (also called progressive). In general the continuous form refers to actions that are in progress at a particular moment in time. Complete the following tasks to get a better idea about how these forms work.

Task 1: Identify the concept. Look at the following diagrams that represent simple and continuous forms in different tenses and decide:

• What time is it (past, present, future)?
• Is it simple or continuous?
• Can you think of the sentence that the diagram describes?

• Time and form:
• Possible Sentence:

Time and form:

Possible Sentence:

Time and form:

Possible Sentence:

Time and form:

Possible Sentence:

Time and form:

Possible Sentence:

Time and form:

Possible Sentence:

Time and form:

Possible Sentence:

When you finish, you can CLICK HERE to check your answers. Read through the document with your partners and identify the structure of the continuous forms in the different tenses.

Task 2: Find the error. Now that you understand what the simple and continuous forms mean and how they are constructed, let's look at some exceptions. We cannot make continuous sentences with every verb. In English we have two type of verbs, dynamic and stative. Dynamic verbs can be used in the continuous but stative verbs cannot.

Look at these pairs of sentences. For each one, decide if the verb looks good in the continuous form or if it seems strange. If it seems strange to you, it is probably a stative verb that can only be used in the simple form.

• I run three kilometers every day.
• The man is running on the street.

• I love English literature.
• I am loving you.

• We need more chairs for the meeting.
• I am needing to go to the store to buy some food.

• People in Costa Rica eat lots of rice.
• I was eating a pizza and my shirt got dirty.

• I like to go to the cinema on the weekends.
• I am liking that movie.

• I don't believe you.
• I am not believing you.

• What does this word mean?
• What is this meaning?

• The president of the company will visit in July.
• While he is visiting we should show him nice places in the city.

• I know the answer.
• She is knowing the answer. 

• We try to give every customer the best experience possible. 
• I'm trying to help you but you won't listen. 

• I don't want to do anything this weekend.
• I'm wanting to watch Netflix and relax.

When you finish, CLICK HERE to check your answers. 

Useful Language and Strategies for Debates

Useful Language and Strategies for Debates

Instructions: For this speaking assessment you will have a group debate. The purpose of this activity is for you to work together with your group members to express your point of view in a clear, organized, and convincing manner. You now know the topic and your group's position. Complete the following tasks to prepare for the debate.

Task 1: Brainstorming

 

Take 5 minutes to think of as many ideas related to your point of view as possible. What are some possible reasons and details that could support your ideas? What are some common opinions that people have about this topic? What are some ways that you can look at this topic from a unique perspective?

Task 2: Organizing

Now that you have some ideas to work with, think about how you could best organize them. What are your strongest arguements? What is the most logical way to present your topics and subtopics? At this point, you should decided which group members should be in charge of the different topics.

Task 3: Predicting and Strategizing

Now that you have your ideas organized, it's time to think about your oponents. What arguments do you think the other group will make? How can you respond to these arguements if they mention them in the debate? What could be your bomb, secret weapon, or ace up your sleeve (as bajo la manga) that you could use in an emergency?

Task 4: Useful Language

These phrases can help you in the debate.

• I agree with you, but...
• That might be true, but...
• I'm sorry but I have to disagree with you because...
• That's simply not true!
• Everyone knows that...
• One reason for this is...
• Another reason is...
• On the other hand...

Can you think of other phrases that can help you in the debate?