Agreeing and disagreeing

So and neither

1. I’m not very interested in ________________________________.

2. I’m passionate about ________________________________.
3. I’m a fan of ________________________________.
4. I can’t stand ________________________________.
5. I would ________________________________ if I was rich.
6. I hate ________________________________.
7. I didn’t ________________________________ yesterday.
8. I should ________________________________.
9. I’m not very keen on ________________________________.
10. I fancy ________________________________.
11. When I was a child, I was not fond of ________________________________.
12. I don’t usually ________________________________ at the weekend.
13. I have never ________________________________.
14. I haven’t seen ________________________________.

Speaking activity: do you agree or disagree with these statements?

More houses or flats should Children shouldn’t be given Students should be

be built in your town. any pocket money. punished if they don’t do
their homework.

Cooking should be taught at Doctors and nurses should Only healthy food should be
school. be paid more than sold in schools.
footballers.

Shops should be kept open Public transport should be Smoking should be banned
as normal on Sundays. provided for free. in public spaces.

The police should be Reality shows shouldn’t be Teachers should be made to

allowed to use handguns. shown on TV. take exams every year.

Characters in films should Educational books should Adverts for fast food and
only be played by actors of be sold to students at a sweets shouldn’t be shown
the same nationality or race. lower price. to children.

Politicians who cheat on Any animal that attacks a Children under the age of
their partners should be person should be put down. three should be banned
removed from power. from long flights.
Endangered animals should Everyone should be made Supermarkets should be
be protected from poachers to do exercise for half an encouraged to donate food
by armed guards. hour before work or school. they don’t sell to charity.

Exams should be abolished Manufacturers should be Gambling should be

for students under the age forced to label their products restricted to small sums of
of 18. with the salaries of their money.
workers.

Agreeing Disagreeing Expressing Asking opinions

opinions

-I (totally) agree with -I’m sorry but I have -From my point of -Don’t you
you. to disagree. view… think/agree?
-That’s (absolutely) -You may be right, -As far as I’m -What do you think
true. but I have a different concerned… of…?
-Yes, I see what you view. -I think…/I believe -What’s your point of
mean. -I see your point, but -I would say… view?
I don’t agree. -How about you?
Candidates’ discussion Part 3

Imagine that a town wants more tourists to visit. Here are some ideas they’re thinking about and a
question for you to discuss.

– Candidate A: ​Shall I go first​?

– Candidate B: Sure, go ahead.

– Candidate A:​ I believe​ that this option (pointing), «building a large nightclub», will attract
tourists, especially young ones who enjoy partying and going out with friends, ​don’t you
think​?

– Candidate B: ​Yes, I think so, too​. However, it might not be the best type of tourism,
because it can disturb neighbours and residents. ​How about​ having more shops?

– Candidate A: Oh, ​that’s a great idea​. If the city offers a good shopping experience, many
people will be attracted to it, which ​I guess​ is quite positive for everyone. ​Wouldn’t you
agree​?

– Candidate B: Yes, of course. Maybe that option could go hand in hand with building
holiday flats because, ​the way I see it​, you want tourists to spend more time in your city. So
if you have plenty of shops and accommodation, it’s the perfect combination, ​right​?

– Candidate A: Yeah, ​you’re absolutely right​. But ​what do you think about​ the other two
options? (pointing)? Do you think they’re a good idea?
– Candidate B: Well, ​if you ask me​, putting up security cameras isn’t very appealing to
anyone, but I suppose parks can be attractive. I’m not sure how much exactly, though.
What’s your take on​ those two options?

– Candidate A: As you said, security cameras are not appealing at all. As for parks, maybe
they are a good thing for residents, but not for tourists, particularly.

_________________________________________________________________________
Clara​: Hi, how are you? I haven't seen you in class for a while.

Ben​: Good, thanks. You?

Clara​: Great, as long as I don't think too hard about all the essays I have to write this term!

Ben​: Yeah …

Clara​: Hey, are you OK?

Ben​: I have to admit, I'm struggling a bit. Maybe even a lot. I've not been sleeping well at all and
then I can't concentrate. And all these things are just going around and around in my head.

Clara​: Mmm … that doesn't sound good. So, you're sleeping badly and you can't concentrate. Is
that all it is, do you think?

Ben​: Well, if I'm honest, it's more than that. I'm starting to dread going outside. I find myself
worrying about stupid things like what if I forget the way home. Or, what if I go to class thinking
it's Monday but actually it's Friday and I'm in the wrong place at the wrong time. It sounds even
more stupid when I say it out loud. It took me two hours to leave the house today.

Clara​: It doesn't sound stupid at all. It actually sounds a lot like me last year.

Ben​: Really? But you're so together!

Clara​: I've learned to be, but even I still have bad days. I used to have panic attacks and
everything. When you were trying to leave the house today, how did you feel?

Ben​: Like I couldn't breathe. And my heart was going way too fast.

Clara​: Hmm … that sounds like a panic attack to me.

Ben​: I thought I was going to die.

Clara​: You'd be surprised how common they are. Loads of people have them, they just don't talk
about it.

Ben​: How did you get over them?

Clara​: I actually talked to a doctor about it, and you should too. But I learned some practical
things as well. Though they're easier said than done, and they're going to sound weird, so hear me
out, OK?

Ben​: OK …

Clara​: So, one thing I did was to try to reduce the power of the anxiety and the panic attacks
when they came. So – and this may sound strange – at a time when you're feeling safe and OK,
you literally do things that make your heart start racing faster and your breathing speed up. Like
spinning around on a chair until you're dizzy or hyperventilating so you're short of breath.

Ben​: That sounds awful!

Clara​: It is, but it means you get used to the symptoms, so they feel less scary.

Ben​: Right.

Clara​: Then you have to deliberately do the things that usually make you feel panic. So, if it's
going to class on Monday and being scared you've got the wrong day, on Monday you go to class.
If you let the anxiety control you by making you stay at home, it just makes it worse the next time
you really do have to go out.

Ben​: And what did you do if a panic attack came anyway?

Clara​: I had a distraction plan. So, I walked everywhere instead of taking the bus because the
exercise helped, but also I did things like count trees or red cars or something. Whatever it was
didn't matter, as long as I had something else to focus on.

Ben​: I can't tell you how much I appreciate this. I thought …