Chapter5:

AskingforDirections
FirstNationalBank

MetroZoo

JoesSuperBurger

unny

SunnyBeach

LewisBoulevard
CharlieChapinCinema
PostOffice

Hugos
Gym

ConversationPractice:
Jack: HowdoIgettotheFirstNationalBank from
SunnyBeach.
Tim:WalkalongLewisBoulevardpasttheMetroZoo.It
isrightnexttoJoesSuperBurgersonthenorth
sideofthestreet.
Jack:Thanksalotyouvebeenarealhelp!
Tim:Yourwelcome.IsityourfirsttimeinJacksonville?
Jack:Well,wejustmovedherefromTorontosowearestill
gettingusedtothecity.
Tim:Oh,welcometoJacksonville.ImsureIllseeyou
aroundsometime.
Jack:Yeah.Thanksagain.

Directionvocabulary:
walkup
walkdown
walkalong
north
downthe...

ontheright
ontheleft
onthenorthside
onthesouthsideof
upthe...

nextto
between
infrontof
east

acrossfrom
beside
south
west

Practiceaskingfordirectionswithaclassmateusingthestreetscene
above.Substitutethedifferentlocationsanddirectionvocabularyinyour
conversations.
CommonConversationsaboutDirections
Doyouknowwherethewashroomsare?
Franco:Excuseme,doyouknowwherethewashroomsare?
Lisa: Yes,theyaredownthehallonyourleft.
Franco:Thanksalot.
Lisa: Noproblem.

Culturalnote:InEnglishthewashroomscanalsobecalledtherestrooms,the
bathrooms,themensroom,andtheladiesroom.Someslangexpressionsincludethecan
andthejohn.Generally,itisnotimpolitetoaskforthewashroomsanditisntnecessaryto
excuseyourselfwhenyouneedtousethem..

Isthereapayphonenearhere?
Rosemary:
Caroline:
in
Rosemary.
Caroline:
Rosemary:
Caroline:
Rosemary.:
Caroline:

Excuseme.Isthereapayphonenearhere?
Yes,Ithinkso.Ithinkthereisoneacrossthestreet
frontofthetravelagency.
Doyouknowifittakescallingcards?
No,Imsorry.Ihavenoidea.
Okay,wellthanksanyway.Illcheckformyself.
Goodluck.Bye.
Oh,bye.Thanksforyourhelp.
Dontmentionit.*

*Dontmentionitmeansthesameas Itsnoproblem.orItsnothing.orYourewelcome.

Whereistheairport,please?
John:Canyoutellmewheretheairportis,please?
Hotelclerk:Certainly,sir.YoudrivewestalongBloor
St. until you come to a sign that says highway 401.
Turnrightatthesignandcontinuenorthalonghighway
401 until you see a sign for the airport on your left.
Taketheexitmarkedterminal.
John:Couldyouwritethatdownforme,please.
Hotelclerk :Sure,noproblem,sir.
John:Thanksalotyouhavereallybeenhelpful.

I.Lookatthemapandcompletetheconversation.
1.
A:Excuseme,sir.Is__________________abank_____________here?
B:Yes,theresabank_______________FifthStreet.
A:And,isthereacoffeeshop_________________thebank?
B:Sure,theresacoffeeshop_____________thepostofficeandNormasgym.
A:Thankyou.
2.

A:Excuseme,miss.Isthereasupermarket__________________________?
B:Yes,thereis.Its____________________thepark?
A:Oh,Iknow. Theresanewsstandjustinfrontofthesupermarket,right?
B:No.Thenewsstandis______________OakSt.AndFourth,buttheresa
busstop_____________________thesupermarket.
A:OK,thankyou.Bye!
II.Helpthesepeople!Lookatthemapandwritedirectionsforthem.
1. Aliceisgoingtothedepartmentstore.

2.Lauraislookingforahotel.

3.Jimisgoingtothecinema.

4.Bobislookingforagasstation.

5.Carolislookingforacoffeeshop.

III. Answerthequestions.
1. WherecanAlicebuyfood?_____________________________________________
2. WherecanBobhavedinner?____________________________________________
3. WherecanKatebuyamagazine?________________________________________
4. WherecanJimbuyabook?_____________________________________________
5. WherecanSuebuyaspirin?_____________________________________________
6. Wherecanyoubuyclothes?_____________________________________________

THEMAPOFBLOOMFIELD
Pop.12,019
26kmby25km
26ladiesbars

27stoplights
2policestations
1unemploymentoffice

O
Alice

SECOND 2nd

STREET

Elm

GRAND
HOTEL

NEWMANS
SUPERMARKET

GAS
STATION

Pine

O
St.

Oak

Carol

THIRD 3

RESTAURANT

St.

Rd

STREET

CINEMA

Palm

St.

PARK

St.

FOURTH 4th
LIBRARY

BANK

STREET
COFFE
E
SHOP

POST
OFFICE

NORMAS
GYM
X

FIFTH 5

th

O
Bob

BOOK FLOWER
STORE SHOP

PARKING
LOT

STREET

Laura

DEPARTMENT
STORE

X
X

Jim

X=Entrance

th

STREET

SIXTH 6

O=Locationofpeople

Scale 1:26000

Grammar Tip
In English, we use capital letters when referring to street names,
for example Davis Road, Lawrence Boulevard, First Street,
Country Club Drive, Miller Avenue, Lois Lane, Blueberry
Crescent, etc... We often use abbreviations for street names. They
are as follows :
Street = St., Avenue = Ave., Road = Rd., Drive = Dr., Crescent = Cr.,
Boulevard = Blvd.
We use the preposition on when we talk about a location of a particular place as
being on a particular street.
Ex.
The post office is on College Avenue.
What is on Cliff Road ?
However, we can use on or at when we talk about the corner of two streets.
Ex.
The train station is at the corner of Station Road and Main Street.
The public library is on the corner of Ocean Avenue and College Avenue.
Sometimes we only use the first part of the street name when we talk about
locations, especially if the person is very familiar with the city or town.
Ex.
The bank is on the corner of Prince and Park. (not Prince Street and Park Road)

Ordinal Numbers
If you want to identify or describe something by indicating where it comes in a
series or sequence , you use ordinal numbers. They are always used in English
when we talk about a date, a floor number in an apartment or office building,
certain street names, and for sports periods (i.e. baseball innings, boxing rounds
etc..).
First
Second
Third
Fourth
Fifth
Sixth
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
6th
Seventh
7th

Eighth
8th

Ninth
9th

Tenth
10th

Eleventh
11th

Thirteenth
13th

Fourteenth
14th

Fifteenth
15th

Sixteenth
16th

Seventeenth Eighteenth
17th
18th

Nineteenth
19th

Twentieth
20th

twentyfirst
21st

twentysecond
22nd

Twelfth
12th

twentythird
23rd

*Notethatwedonotalwayswritethest,nd,rd,orthbesidethenumbersbutwemust
alwayspronouncethemwhenwetalkaboutdates,floornumbers,streetnames,baseball
inningsetc...

Exercises
Complete the following sentences using ordinal numbers.
1. Take the Central Ave. bus and get off at _________ (5) Street.
2. My apartment is on the ______________ (11) floor.
3. Are you watching the baseball game on t.v. . Its in the __________ (9) inning.
4. Where do you work ? I work in the sunlight Tower on the _________ (22) floor.
5. Excuse me, how do I get to ___________ (1) Ave. from here ?
6. The supermarket is on _________________ (33) St. West.
7. Is there a bank near here ? Yes, its on the corner of ______________ (15) Ave.
and Lester Rd.
8. I live on ______________ (14) St. on the ________________(27) floor of a high rise
apartment building. It has a great view of the city.
9. What period is the hockey game in ? Its in the _______ (3) period.
10. Theres a post office on ________________ (12) Street.

There is / There are

There is or There are is usually used at the beginning of a sentence to describe
something and is generally followed by a subject. However, in question form we
can use it to ask directions or for information about something.
Ex.
Theres a plane at 8:30.
There are four people here.
Is there a bank nearby ?

Singular :
There is ...
There is not
Question
Formation
Is there ?

Plural
Contraction
Theres ...
There isnt or Theres not...

There are ...

There are not...
Question
Formation
Are there ... ?

A : Ask directions using Is there...? and Are there ...?

Contraction
There arent

Ex. (any good restaurants)Are there any good restaurants near the train station ?
1. ( any banks) ____________________________________ near here ?
2. ( a post office ) ___________________________________ on this street ?
3. ( tourist information office ) _______________________ close by ?
4. ( money exchange) _______________________________ in the hotel ?
5. ( any museums ) _________________________________ in this area ?

B : Use there is / there are to complete the following facts.

Ex. (second / minute) There are sixty seconds in a minute.
1. (days/ year) ______________________________________________ .
2. (planets/ solar system) ________________________________________ .
3. (provinces / Canada) __________________________________________ .
4. (President / Mexico) ___________________________________________ .
5. (continents / world) ___________________________________________ .

Write it !
Now write the question for the answers in B.
Ex. Are there sixty seconds in a minute ? or How many
seconds are in a minute ?
1. ____________________________________________________
2._____________________________________________________
3. ____________________________________________________
4. ____________________________________________________
5. ____________________________________________________

Reading Comprehension
McGill University in the Heart of Montreal
McGill University is located at the corner of McGill College
and Sherbrooke Street in Montreal. McGill is one of the
oldest universities in Canada. Students can find everything
they need at the campus bookstore on McTavish Street just
one block west of the main gates. McGill is located in downtown Montreal and
there are a lot of shopping centres nearby.
There are two metro stations very close to the university, Peel and McGill. To get
to the metro stations, you have to walk south on McGill College for two blocks
until you come to de Maissoneuve Blvd.. If you want to go to the Peel metro
station, you turn right and walk west along de Maissoneuve until you see a blue
and white metro sign at the corner of Peel St. and de Maissoneuve. If you want to
go to the McGill metro station, turn left and walk east and look for the same blue
and white sign Metro at the corner of University Ave. and de Maissoneuve. Both
metro stations are about 5 minutes from the campus.
There are many movie theatres and restaurants along St. Catherine Street which is
three blocks south of the campus. This is a famous shopping street in Montreal.
You can find almost anything you are looking for there. So enjoy your studies but
dont forget to enjoy the French flair of Montreal, too!

Vocabulary : Discuss the new vocabulary in the class

corner
metro stations

campus
famous

block
flair

downtown
main gates

Questions about the story: Discuss them in your class

1. Where is McGill University located ?
2. How do you get to the Peel metro station from the University ?
3. Are there any restaurants nearby ? Where are they ?
4. Do you think there is a bank close to the University ?
5. Is McGill University in a good location ? Why ?

Class Activity : Discuss where you work / go to school with your class. Is it in a good
location ? Why ? Are there many interesting things nearby ? Is that important to you ?

Opening and closing hours

Location

Openinghours

RoyalBank

MonFri8:30a.m.to3:30p.m.
ClosedonSaturdayandSunday

CarlasdryCleaning

MonSun9:30to6:30(Sunonlyto4:30

PublicLibrary

TuesSat.10Am.to7p.m.
(Sat.onlyto5p.m.)

Post Office

Mon. Fri. 9 to 4 and Sat. 9 to 12 Closed

Sunday

FransCafe

Open7daysaweekfrom7:30a.m.
to10p.m.

bigdiscount
supermarket

openmon.-fri.9a.m.to7p.m.(fri.
until9p.m.)
sat.andsun.openfrom10a.m.to
4:30p.m.

Answer the questions and practice them with a partner. Make up some of your
own.
1. When is the supermarket open ?
________________________________________________________________________ .
2. Is Carlas Dry Cleaning open on Sundays ?
________________________________________________________________________ .

3. When is the Royal bank closed ?

________________________________________________________________________ .
4. What are the opening hours of the Public Library ?
________________________________________________________________________ .
5. What are Frans Cafes closing hours ?
________________________________________________________________________

Conversation Practice :
Excuse me, do you know when the bank
is open ?
Catherine: Sure, its open from nine in the
morning to four in the afternoon,
Monday to Friday.
Harry :
What about Saturdays and Sundays ?
Catherine: No, its closed on the weekends.
Harry :
Thank you.
Catherine: Its my pleasure.
Harry:

Practice the conversation and then substitute locations from the

previous page .

Rap up :
Make a map of your neighborhood with all the important
locations on it. Find out what the opening and closing
hours are of at least four of these locations.
In partners, exchange maps and ask your partner
questions about his or her map, including questions
about the opening and closing hours and directions. You can rotate
around the class asking different students about their maps.

Write some of your questions below.

1. __________________________________________________________
2. ___________________________________________________________
3. ___________________________________________________________

Class Activity : Set up an obstacle course in the classroom or outside if possible. In

partners, have the students blindfold their partner and talk them through the obstacle course
step by step. Then have the other partner do the same. You can change the obstacle course
each time. Make sure to review all the direction vocabulary before doing this activity.