ING01_GETTING INTERNATIONAL

Session 1.- Passport to London.

Situation
Narrator: Lourdes and Susana always wanted to go abroad. They were born in a small quiet village in the South of Spain and
they always dreamt about exploring new countries and getting to know other cultures, however, they didn't know how. Years
passed and the two girls saw how their dream disappeared till one day, everything changed!
They finished secondary school and they didn't feel like going to university, so they decided to try some Vocational Training.
They were very enthusiastic about it and they finally chose Business, since they thought it would be great one day to work
within a company or even start their own! However, what they had never thought about was that that decision would definitely
change their lives.
They passed their first year with really good grades and it was time for them to decide where to do their FCT internship. They
thought about many companies till suddenly Lourdes came up with an idea!
Lourdes: Why don't we do our internship in London?
Narrator: Susana was shocked! She had never thought about that before!
Susana: In London? Holy cow! You must be joking! (surprised)
Lourdes: Why not? Gema tried the same thing three years ago, and now she's working for a great British company in London,
why don't we apply for an internship in her company?
Narrator: They discussed about that crazy idea for hours, they thought about the pros and cons and even about their families'
opinion, but they finally took a decision: They were going to London! (narrator very enthusiastic).
Lourdes and Susana: Yeaaaaah! We're going to London!! (screaming, very happy).

1.- What to say: Getting to places.

Quotation
"Be curious always! For knowledge will not acquire you: you must acquire it." Sudie Back

Situation
After an hour and 50 minutes' flight, Lourdes and Susana finally get to London City airport. During the flight, they were so
nervous that they couldn't even ask for an orange juice to the flight attendant. They were so excited that they couldn't stop
thinking about how their new lives will be like. When they land, they take a quick look around and everything seems really
different to what they are used to. "Am I dreaming? This looks like a film!" Susana thinks. Lourdes on the contrary cannot utter
a word.
They follow the sign "baggage claim"; they pick up their baggage and go to the exit to look for a taxi and start their adventure.
However when they get to the entrance, there are no taxis around; they look and look and there are no signs around, what would
you do?
Of course! Ask someone for help!

1.1.- Asking for directions.

When you are lost, do you know how to ask for directions?
First, relax and breathe deeply. Think that the most important thing is to get your ideas across. Below you will find some useful
phrases that you may need to know to find your way.

Asking for directions. Useful vocabulary

COMMON EXPRESSIONS TRANSLATION
Perdone, ¿podría decirme por favor cómo puedo conseguir un
Excuse me, could you tell me how to get a taxi, please?
taxi?
Excuse me, could you tell me how to get to the British Museum, Perdone, ¿podría decirme por favor cómo llegar al Museo
please? Británico?
Sure! Go straight on this street/ Go ahead this street. Claro! Siga recto por esta calle.
Cross the street/ road. Cruce la calle/ carretera.
Then, turn right/ left. Luego, gire a la derecha/ izquierda.
Pass the roundabout/ traffic-light. Pase la rotonda / el semáforo.
Until you get to the corner. Hasta que llegue a la esquina.
You'll find the taxi stand opposite to you. Encontrará la parada de taxis delante de usted.
Behind you. Detrás de usted.
 Asking for directions. Useful vocabulary
COMMON EXPRESSIONS TRANSLATION
Next to the Café. Al lado de la cafetería.
Between the Café and the tube station. Entre la cafetería y la estación de metro.
Thank you very much! ¡Muchas gracias!
You're welcome! / No worries! ¡De nada!

1.2.- Now you put it into practice (I).

Now it's your turn
Let's see if you understood what you listened to:

If you go up to the fifth floor, you'll find his office on your right as you come out of the elevator.

Go to the end of the road and turn left by the traffic lights.

Take a right just after the supermarket.

You can’t miss his house, it's painted bright pink!

Go straight on to the end of the road.

2.- How to say it: The present: Simple and Continuous.

Think about it
Read these two sentences carefully, what is the main difference between them?
My boss always speaks English to his partner in London.
My boss is speaking English with his partner.
Great! As you may have thought, in the first sentence the verb "speaks" refers to a habitual action, something my boss usually
does, that is why it is in the present simple. However, in the second sentence, the action takes place at the moment of speaking
and therefore we need to use the present continuous.
Translation
Genial, tal y como te habrás dado cuenta, en la primera frase el verbo se refiere a una acción habitual, algo que mi jefe suele
hacer cada día por ello va en presente simple. Por el contrario, la segunda frase habla de una acción que está teniendo lugar
en el momento de hablar por ello va en presente continuo.

As you already know the Present continuous is used to express:

 Actions that take place at the moment of speaking E.g.

o I'm checking my emails at the moment.
o Mr. Parker is having lunch right now.
 Sometimes we use the present continuous to talk about the future. We use it when we want to talk about what we have
already arranged to do.
o I'm meeting my colleagues tomorrow at 7.30 a.m.
o My boss is travelling to China on Friday morning.

Translation
Usamos el presente continuo para expresar:
 Acciones que tienen lugar en el momento de hablar.
 Acciones futuras ya planeadas de antemano o anotadas en una agenda

H ow to make the Present Continuous:

Affirmative Form:
Subject+ Verb To Be + main Verb + ING Paul is talking on the phone.

Negative Form:
Subject+ Verb To Be + NOT + main Verb + ING Joseph isn't reading the newspaper.

Interrogative Form:
Verb To Be + Subject + main Verb + ING + Complements + ? Is he working at the moment?

Common Present Continuous Time Expressions:

At the moment, now, today, this week, this month, tomorrow, next week (for future arrangements), currently.

2.1.- Now you put it into practice (II).

Choose the correct verbal tense.

What does your sister do for a living? (do)

Math is working in a Factory at the momento till he finds a better job. (work)
Molly always has lunch at the canteen on Fridays. (have lunch)
After work, he often goes down to the gym round the corner. (go)
Apple is launching a new IPOD in two weeks. (launch)
My boss is having a videoconference with his partner in Tokyo right now. (have)
Is John coming to the office today? (come)
Paul and Rachel are always complaining about her job. (complain)
I am at the bank. I don’t work here, I am just withdrawing some money. (not work / withdraw)
She doesn’t like the new manager. He eis very demanding. (not like)
The dollar is falling against the Euro. (fall)
I don’t feel like doing all this stuff today. (not feel)
Do you travel a lot for business? (travel)

Complete this text with the correct present tense.

My name is (to be) Peter, I live (t olive) in the suburbs of Boston with my family. Most people believe (believe) we are (to be)
rich because we live (t olive) in a big house. But our family seems (to seem) to be like any other one. Have a look:
Maggie, my wife, loves (tol ove) cooking. She enjoys (to enjoy) being in the kitchen with her friends. At the momento she is
making (to make) a cake and you can’t talk to her. What really worries (to worry) her i sour daughter, who prefers (to prefer)
to chat in front of her computer instead of cooking with her.
Like many teenagers, Jenny is always complaining (to complain) about her parents and she thinks (to think) it is (to be) easier
to get advice from someone she is not going to (not+to go to) see later tan listening to her parents.
It’s 5 p.m. Paul, my son, is playing (top lay) basketball in the garden and I am watching (to watch) TV, waiting for thaht
delicious cake that Maggie is cooking (to cook). I told you, a family like yours.
Peter.

2.2.- Stative verbs.

According to grammarians, there are two types of verbs: Stative and Dynamic. That is, those verbs that cannot be used in the
present continuous and those that can be used in any verbal tense.
Here you have a list of the verbs that cannot be used in the present continuous.

Like.→Know.→Belong.→Love.→Realise.→Fit.
Hate.→Suppose.→Contain.→Want.→Mean.→Consist.
Need.→Understand.→Seem.→Prefer.→Believe.→Depend.
Agree.→Remember.→Matter.→Mind.→Recognise.→See.
Own.→Appear.→Look. (=seem)→Sound.→Taste.→Smell.
Hear.→Astonish.→Deny.→Disagree.→Please.→Impress.
Satisfy.→Promise.→Surprise.→Doubt.→Think (=have an opinion).
Feel (=have an opinion).→Wish.→Imagine.→Concern.→Dislike.
Be.→Have.→Deserve.→Involve.→Include.→Lack.
Measure. (=have length etc)→Possess.→Owe.→Weigh. (=have weight).
2.3.- Revision of Grammar. (tabla apart)
2.4.- Pronunciation. The third Person Singular: Voiceless sounds.
Look and learn.

The -(e)s of the simple present tense is pronounced as /s/ after a voiceless sound, except /s/, /sh/, and /ch/. The voiceless sounds
are sounds that are produced with no vibration of the vocal chords. The voiceless sounds in English are:

/f/, /k/, /p/, /s/, voiceless th (as in with), ch (as in watch), sh (as in wash)

Examples: laughs, talks, stops.

Mira y aprende II:

La terminación -(e)s del presente simple se pronuncia como /s/ tras los sonidos sordos, excepto: /s/, /sh/, and /ch/. Los sonidos
sordos se producen sin vibración de las cuerdas vocales. Los sonidos sordos en Inglés son:
/f/, /k/, /p/, /s/, /th/ (como en "with"), ch (como en "watch"), sh (como en "wash")

3.- Words you need: At the airport.

When you get to airport there is some useful vocabulary that you should know to move around. Take a look and try to learn the
most important ones.

Useful vocabulary at the airport

ENGLISH WORDS TRANSLATION
Air steward. Auxiliar de vuelo.
Airline counter. Mostrador de la compañía aérea.
Arrivals. Llegadas.
Aisle-seat. Asiento de pasillo.
Baggage claim. Recogida de equipaje.
Boarding gate. Puerta de embarque.
Boarding card. Tarjeta de embarque.
Cabin crew. Personal de abordo.
Carry-on luggage. Equipaje de mano.
Check-in desk. Mostrador de facturación.
Customs. Aduana.
Departures. Salidas.
Departures are delayed on Schedule. Las salidas están retrasadas / en horario.
Direct flight / non-stop flight. Vuelo directo.
Duty free. Libre de impuestos.
Emergency exit. Salida de emergencia.
Flight attendant. Azafata, auxiliar de vuelo.
Flight number. Número de vuelo.
Jet lag. Descompensación por la diferencia horaria.
Landing. Aterrizaje.
Life vest. Salvavidas.
Meeting point. Punto de encuentro.
One-way trip. Viaje de ida.
Overbooking. Sobreventa (De Asientos).
Overweight. Sobrepeso.
Pilot. Piloto.
Restroom / lavatory. Sanitarios.
Round trip. Viaje de ida y vuelta.
Seat. Asiento.
Seat belt. Cinturón de seguridad.
Shuttle bus. Autobús de traslado.
Stopover. Escala.
Take-off. Despegue.
Time of arrival. Hora de llegada.
Time of departure. Hora de salida.
To get on board. Abordar.
To check-in. Facturar el equipaje.
To fasten the seatbelt. Abrocharse el cinturón de seguridad.
To land. Aterrizar.
To take off. Despegar.
Take-off. Despegue.
Tourist. Turista.
Travel agency. Agencia de viajes.
Trolley. Carrito.
Window seat. Asiento del lado de la ventanilla.

3.1.- Now you put into practice (III).

Fill in the gaps with previous words.

1. Whe I travel by plane, I always ask for a window seat. I love looking through the window and see the landscape.
2. The flight-attendant told us that it was compulsory to fasten the seat-belt during take-off and landing.
3. When I went to the USA I had a terrible headache due to the terrible jet lag.
4. My boarding gate is G-22, what about yours? Is it the same one?
5. When our flight was cancelled, we went to the airline counter to ask for an explanation.
6. I love buying ítems at the airport. With the duty free they are much cheaper.
7. When you get to the airport, the first thing you have to do is to check-in your luggage.
8. In case of an emergency, your life vest is the yellow iten under your seat.
9. If you want something to drink, call the flight attendants they will come immediately to your seat.
10. Thoug we usually buy our tickets directly on the internet, when we went to London, we arranged our jorney throug a
travel agency.
  
Match the words on the left to their definition on the right.
Matching exercise
Word Match Definition
PASSENGER. G A. The process of moving a plane down onto the ground at the end of a journey.
DEPARTURE J B. A card that each passenger has to show before they are allowed to get on a plane or a
TIME. ship.
TAKE OFF. T C. A strong belt in a car or plane that you fasten around yourself to hold you in your seat.
A D. A bus, train or plane that makes frequent short journeys between two places, especially at
LANDING.
the airport.
CHECK-IN. E E. To arrive at an airport and show your ticket to an official.
BOARDING B F. Go on a journey to a place and come back again.
CARD.
H G. Someone who travels in a motor vehicle, aircraft, train or ship but it is not the driver or
MEETING POINT.
one of the people who works on it.
SEAT BELT. C H. A point at an airport or railway station where people can arrange to meet.
SHUTTLE BUS. D I. When a plane leaves the ground and starts flying.
ROUND TRIP. F J. The time when a bus, plane or train leaves.
  

Session 2.- Getting used to it.

Situation
Lourdes and Susana are finally in London! They had some difficulties finding Gema's house but with a little bit of patience
and their few words in English they managed to get to their destination.
Today is a really important day since they start their internship at the company. They get up very early, have some breakfast and
take a taxi to British Corporation, the company they are going "to work for".
When they get to the office, they go to the reception desk and ask for Mr. Parker, the Business manager and their new boss.
Lourdes: Good morning, we are Lourdes Serrano and Susana Moreno. We're starting an internship here, could we talk to Mr.
Parker, please?
Mr. Parker comes immediately, he's tall and slim, he has got blonde hair and blue eyes and in the girls' opinion…
Lourdes and Susana: He is gorgeous! (very enthusiastically).
Lourdes and Susana introduce themselves and Mr. Parker shows them around the company so that they meet the rest of their
colleagues.

1.- What to say: Meeting new people.

Situation
In their tour around the office, Mr. Parker introduces the girls to the rest of their colleagues and shows them around the
different departments. They start at the Sales Department where they meet Francesco, an Italian boy; they follow with the IT
Department where they meet Karen and Steve, who are British, and they end up at the Human Resources Department, where
Miss Brown asks them some questions to fill in some application forms and asks them to fill in other documents.
Miss Brown: What's your name?
Lourdes: My name's Lourdes Serrano.
Miss Brown: Is "Serrano" your surname that is, family name?
Lourdes: Yes, it is.
Miss Brown: Ok. Ms. Serrano, Where were you born?
Lourdes: I was born in Spain. I'm Spanish.
Miss Brown: When were you born?
Lourdes: I was born on August 26th, 1990.
Miss Brown: Could you please tell me what's your address at home?
Lourdes: My address is number 34, Alcalá street. Badajoz (Spain).
Miss Brown: Have you already got an address here in London?
Lourdes: Yes, I have. It's 20 Paddington Lane WC2H 7LA. London
Miss Brown: Great, What's your home telephone number?
Lourdes: My telephone number is 00 34 924245638
Miss Brown: Have you got a mobile phone?
Lourdes: Yes, It's 00 34 654768749
Miss Brown: Are you married?
Lourdes: No. I'm not. I'm single.
Miss Brown: Do you suffer from any illness?
Lourdes: No, I don't, though I'm allergic to nuts.
Miss Brown: Ok, Ms. Serrano I think that's all for now. Thank you very much.
Lourdes: You're welcome, bye.

1.1.- Talking about yourself.

When meeting new people, it is quite normal to talk about oneself since after all, this is what meeting people consists off. Here
you will find some useful phrases for you to ask, and others to help you introduce yourself so that you can interact with other
people in English.
Common questions Translation
Hello/Hi, my name's X, what's your name? Hola, me llamo X, ¿cómo te llamas?
Hi, how are you? Hola, ¿qué tal?
Where are you from? ¿De dónde eres?
What do you do for a living? ¿Cómo te ganas la vida? ¿A qué te dedicas?
What nationality are you? ¿Cuál es tu nacionalidad?
Where do you live? ¿Dónde vives?
What's your telephone number? ¿Cuál es tu número de teléfono?
What's your job? ¿En qué trabajas?
What do you usually do in your free / spare time? ¿Qué sueles hacer en tu tiempo libre?
What's your address? ¿Dónde vives? ¿Cuál es tu dirección?
Common answers Translation
Hi, nice to meet you. Hola, encantado / encantada de conocerte.
It was nice meeting you, bye!
My name's X and I'm X years old.
I live in London.
My address is number 8, Princess Avenue.
My home telephone / mobile number is…
I've got 2 brothers and one sister.
I'm an only child.
I'm a teacher / an engineer.
I'm English.
I'm single / married / engaged.
I love / enjoy playing basketball / travelling.
In my free time I usually read books.
My favourite film / book is …
I'm good at painting / languages…
I'm interested in politics.
Ha sido un placer, hasta la próxima.
Me llamo X y tengo X años.
Vivo en Londres.
Mi dirección es Princess Avenue, número 8.
Mi fijo es… / mi móvil es…
Tengo dos hermanos y una hermana.
Soy hijo único / hija única.
Soy profesor, soy ingeniero.
Soy Inglés / Inglesa.
Estoy soltero o soltera / casado o casada / comprometido o comprometida.
Me encanta jugar al baloncesto / viajar.
En mi tiempo libre suelo leer.
Mi película favorita / libro favorito es.
Se me da bien pintar / se me dan bien los idiomas.
Me interesa / me gusta la política.

2.- How to say it: Past simple versus Past continuous.

Read the following sentences carefully. What is the difference between them?
 When he arrived, we had lunch.
 When he arrived, we were having lunch.

Usage.

The past continuous tense expresses an action at a particular moment in the past. The action started before that moment, but
has not finished. For example, yesterday I watched a film on TV. The film started at 7 pm and finished at 9pm; therefore, I can
say that at 7.30 pm I was watching a film on TV.
Moreover, We often use the past continuous tense to "set the scene" in stories. We use it to describe the background situation at
the moment when the action begins, whereas we use the past simple to introduce an action which interrupts the longer one.
Often, the story starts with the past continuous tense and then moves into the simple past tense. Here is an example: Mr. Parker
was working hard in his office. It was raining. The wind was blowing ,when he suddenly heard a noise.
To conclude, remember that there are some verbs that can't be used in the continuous form in English. For further
information, review unit 1, session 1, section 2.2.

Translation

El pasado continuo se utiliza para referirse a una acción en progreso en un punto concreto del pasado. La acción comenzó antes
de ese momento específico del que hablamos y aún no ha acabado. Por ejemplo ayer vi una película en la tele. La película
comenzó a las 7 y terminó a las 9, por tanto podemos decir que a las 7.30 yo estaba viendo una película en la tele.
Del mismo modo, solemos utilizar el pasado continuo para establecer la escena de una historia, sobretodo para describir el
entorno que rodea la acción; el pasado simple por el contrario, introduce una acción repentina que interrumpe a la que ya estaba
en progreso. Normalmente, la escena comienza en pasado continuo y de ahí cambia a pasado simple.
Finalmente, recuerda que hay algunos verbos que no pueden utilizarse con los tiempos de continuo en Inglés. Para más
información repasa la sección 2.2 de la primera sesión de esta unidad.

2.1.- Used to/Would.

Think about it
Read the sentences. Do you notice a difference?
 When I was a child, I used to go to school every day.
 When I was a child, I went to Italy three times with my parents.

The past simple, would + infinitive, and used to + infinitive are all possible ways to talk about the past.

You can use would to talk about regular or repeated past actions. It sometimes suggests a feeling of nostalgia so it is often used
to talk about personal memories.
  Every day my friends and I would play after school.
 I would go cycling to school every day.
You rarely use would with this meaning in the negative or question form.
You can use used to like would for regular or repeated past actions, and also for past states or situations. You can use used to in
negative forms and in question forms.
 Children didn't use to have mobile phones.
 Did you use to like going to school?
Translation
Podemos utilizar el pasado simple, used to y would para hablar de hábitos del pasado.
Would se puede usar para expresar acciones regulares o repetidas. Normalmente no se utiliza en forma negativa o interrogativa.
Used to se utiliza igual que would y además se usa para hablar de estados o situaciones del pasado. Se puede utilizar en forma
negativa o interrogativa.

Think about it
Look at the sentences below; they are all in the past simple. Read them and discuss these questions.
1. Which sentences could be changed to would + verb?
2. Which sentences could be changed to used to + verb?
3. What does this tell you about how to use these two structures?

 I believed in ghosts. – I used to believe in ghosts.

 I was afraid of spiders. – I used to be afraid of spiders.
 I had long hair. – I used to have long hair.
 I started learning English… when I was 6.
 I went to school every day. – I used to go to school every day / I would go to school every day.
 I didn't like fish. – I dind’t use like fish.

2.2.- Now you put it into practice (I).

Now it's your turn
Put the verb into the correct form, past continuous or past simple. Use contractions where possible.

1. When the post man arrived (arrive), I was having a shower (have a shower).
2. While my sister was studying (study), my boyfriend was making (make) some muffins.
3. I went (go) to the dentist 3 days ago because I had (have) a terrible toothache.
4. Ryan arrived (arrive) at Kara’s house a Little befor 10 o’clock, but she wasn’t (not/be) there. She was studying (study)
for her final exam.
5. When I was (be) 8, I ate (eat) cookies every evening.
6. He missed (miss) the bus because he was talking (talk) with some friends.
7. The burglars came (come) into the house while the man was sleeping (sleep).
8. I drank (drink) a glass of orange juice at ten. I’m not thisrty now.
9. When I walked (walk) into the busy office, the secretary was talking (talk) on the pone, several clerks were working
(work) at their desks, and two managers were discussing (discuss) methods to improve customer service.
10. Did you write (you write) the composition last Monday?
11. My grandfather wasn’t (not/be) at home when he fell (fall) down the stairs.
12. The children were playing (play) in their room when their mother called (call) them.
13. I didn’t understand (not/understand) what they were talking (talk) about.
14. Rachel lived (live) in London for more tan two years. In fact, she was living (live) there when…
15. When it started (start) to rain, our cat wanted (want) to come inside.
  
Choose the correct answer to complete the sentence.

The children _____ often help me make a cake. They still do sometimes.
Either: used to / would.

You _____ like him... Yes, but now I hate him!

Used to

I remember we _____ go camping every summer when I was a child.

Either: used to / would

He _____ be a very good footballer, until he broke his ankle.

Used to

When we were children, we _____ on holiday to France twice.

Went

2.3.- Pronunciation. The third Person Singular (II): Voiced sounds.

Voiced sounds.

1. The -(e)s of the simple present tense is pronounced as /z/ after a voiced sound, except /z/, /zh/, and /j/. The voiced
sounds are sounds that are produced by vibration of the vocal chords. The voiced sounds in English are:
a. All vowels.
b. /b/, /g/, j sound (as in judge), /l/, /m/, /n/, /r/, voiced th (as in bathe), /v/, ng (as in bang), zh sound (as in
measure), z sound (as in buzz).
Examples: plays, sees, goes, robs, hangs, calls, rams, learns, blurs, clothes, receives.
2. However, when a word ends in /s/, /sh/, /ch/, /z/, /j/ the -es is pronounced as a separate syllable:/ ɪz/. Therefore, if a verb
ends in one of these sounds, the present tense will have one more syllable than the simple form.
Examples:
fix (1 syllable)-->fixes (2 syllables).
kiss (1 syllable)-->kisses (2 syllables).
wash (1 syllable)-->washes (2 syllables).
watch (1 syllable)-->watches (2 syllables).
damage (2 syllables)-->damages (3 syllables).
memorize (3 syllables)-->memorizes (4 syllables).
exercise (3 syllables)-->exercises (4 syllables).

3.- Words you need: Parts of a company.

As you already know, most companies are divided into different departments and sections, all of them with workers carrying out
different tasks. Let's take a look at the most common ones.

Parts of a company Translation

Departments Departamentos

Human Resources Recursos Humanos

Research and Development I+D
IT Information technology Informática
Production Producción
Finance Contabilidad
Marketing Marketing
Sales Ventas
Customer service Atención al cliente
Logistics Logística
Purchasing Compras

Jobs / position Cargos

Secretary Secretario/a
Manager Gerente / administrador
Deputy manager Sub-gerente / segundo de abordo
Director Director
Accountant Contable
Intern Becario/a
Analyst Analista
Designer Diseñador
Chairman / president Presidente
Commercial agent Comercial
Cleaning staff Plantilla de limpieza
Caretaker Conserje

Other facilities Otras instalaciones

Parking lot Aparcamiento
Reception desk Mostrador de recepción
Cafetería / Canteen Cafetería
Lifts (british) / elevators (american) Ascensores
Vending machine Máquina expendedora
Toilets (british) / restrooms (american) Baños
Staff room Sala de personal
Cleaning room Sala de la limpieza
Copy machine Fotocopiadora

3.1.- Now you put it into practice (III).

Match up the following departments to what they do.

Human Resources → Research and Development → IT Information technology → Production → Logistics→ Finance →
Marketing → Sales → Customers.

Responsible for taking care of customers needs. Customers

Responsible for making the product. Production
Responsible for selling the product. Sales
Responsible for how the product is launched. Marketing
Responsible for hiring and dealing with staff. Human resources
Responsible for the company's network and computers. I.T. Information technology
Responsible for payments, bills and expenses. Finance
Responsible for developing and improving the product. Research and Development
Responsible for the shipping and handling of the product. Logistics

There are different posts in a company. Fill in the gaps with the right job.

Analyst → designer → chairperson → partner → secretary → manager → commercial agent → accountant → receptionist →
cleaning staff.

Amancio Ortega is the chairperson of Inditex.

Our commercial agent will visit your business soon.
I work as a receptionist at the Royal Hotel.
Please, contact my secretary to arrange our next meeting.
Sam Works at Bank of America as a financial analyst.
I would like tot speak to the manager of the sales department.
Oh, sorry, you are right. The accountant has made a mistake in the bill.
The designer of our company logo has been awarded a prize.
Mr. Fox has been my business partner and my friend for over 20 years.
My office has been refunishec. Now I need the cleaning staff to tidy up the mess.

Session 3.- A new day at the office.

Situation

The girls are a little bit overwhelmed with all the changes: new city, new company, new colleagues.. They didn't expect it would
be so hard to adapt to a new country and culture.
Susana seems to be particularly unhappy. Lourdes finally asks her: "What are you thinking, Susana? What's going on?"
Susana thinks for a few seconds and then finally replies: "Not much, Lourdes, I was just thinking that maybe it wasn't such a
good idea to come all the way to England to do our internship after all. We are far away from our friends and family and we
don't know any of these people... we don't have any friends here.. yes, there is Gema, but..."
Lourdes tries to cheer her friend up: "Don't worry! I'm sure things will get better soon, we'll meet new people, improve our
English... you'll see."
A few minutes later, Mr. Parker approaches the girls: "Good morning, girls. How are you? I just wanted to let you know that
your corporate email addresses are ready. Yours, Lourdes, is lourdes.serrano@britishcorp.co.uk, and yours, Susana, is
susana.moreno@britishcorp.co.uk. Now you can communicate with everybody in the company and we'll be able to be in touch
with you too. Also, most employees here don't know who you are or what you do and I'd like you to meet everybody and start
working as soon as possible. I've had an idea: why don't you prepare a short presentation? You can talk about yourselves, your
country, your education and past work experiences, etc., so that everybody here can get to know you. It'll be fantastic! I'll
organise everything. If you need any help, come and see me. See you later."
Susana can't believe it: "We have to give a talk... in front of everybody... in English!"

1.- What to say: Getting in touch.

Situation

Mr. Parker also wants the girls to fill in a questionnaire:

"It's an informal online questionnaire", he says, "can you fill it in now please? It will help us to get to know you better and it
might help you with your presentation."
"Aha, says Lourdes, there are some interesting questions here. For example...
Can you briefly describe your education / work background?
Can you describe your experience learning English? When did you start learning it? Where did you learn it? Do you like it?
Who told you about us?
Why did you decide to do your training in the UK?"
Susana looks at the questionnaire for a few seconds and then says:
"You're right, Lourdes, let's start by answering these questions and they we'll continue with the presentation. Have I ever told
you that I love quizzes and questionnaires? Even those in magazines. You know, like Are you really in love? or Which Star
Trek character are you? "
The girls can't help bursting out laughing.

Think about it

Look at questions numbers 1-4. What is the word order in questions? Is there anything special about question number 3?

Usually, word order in questions is as follows:

(Question word) + auxiliary verb + subject + main verb?
Question 3 is different because there is no auxiliary verb. This happens when the question word is the subject of the question.
Other examples: What happened to you? / Who directed Titanic?

1.1.- Writing informal emails.

How often do you use your email? Most of us use it on a daily basis, but do you know how to write a good email in English?
Let's see.
Email is electronic mail. You can send an email to someone, or email them. They will reply to your email or email you back.
When we write informal emails, we use a more direct language than the one we use for letter writing. For example, instead of
using "I am writing with reference to..." we simply say "about..." and instead of writing "please accept our apologies for this
misunderstanding", we e-mail "sorry about". We normally keep emails short and to the point, dealing with one topic per
message. It is recommended to use a neutral style, neither too formal nor too familiar.

 reply to all: send an answer to the person who sent an email, and everyone who received a copy of it.
 reply: send an answer to the person who sent an email.
 forward: send an email you have received to someone else.
 delete: get rid of an email you don't want.
 cc: send a copy to...
 bcc: send a blind copy to... (the other people don't know you're sending this copy).
 attach: send a document, for example a picture, with an email.
 @: at.
 _: underscore.
 -: hyphen.
 .com: dot com.
  /: (forward) slash.

Situation
Let's take a look at another email that Lourdes has just received:

From: chris.lippett@britishcorp.co.uk

To: lourdes.serrano@britishcorp.co.uk

CC: mark.parker@britishcorp.co.uk

Subject: Paper volume

Hi Lourdes,

Thanks for your email asking for ways of reducing the paper volume. We really need to be more aware of the global
environmental problems. Please find attached a word document with specific plans for this. Please let me know if you can't read
this attachment. I'm copying Mark Parker in on this. Do forward it to the other interns if you feel that's appropriate.

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Best wishes,

Chris.

2.- How to say it: Questions.

Think about it

Look at the following questions. Do you remember what the word order in questions is? What is different about question 3?
1. Does he like jazz?
2. Why do you want to learn English?
3. Who wrote Romeo and Juliet?

Usually, word order in questions is as follows:

(Question word) + auxiliary verb + subject + main verb?
When the question word is the subject of the question, we omit the auxiliary verb.

2.1.- Questions: form.

When learning a language you soon need to ask a lot of questions. This is what we are learning here, to ask questions. Curiosity
may have killed the cat, but I'm sure it's good for you.
 Questions with yes/no answers begin with an auxiliary or modal verb (is, are, do, does, can...) followed by the
subject. We usually answer these questions with yes or no.
o Can he type letters? Yes, he can.
o Does she work for British Corporation? No, she doesn't.
Negative questions are formed with not, but there is a difference in the word order between the short form and
the full form.
o Full form: auxiliary+subject+not+verb.
 Do you not like the working hours?
o Short form: auxiliary+n't+subject+verb.
 Don't you like the working hours?
We use negative questions in speech.
o To ask for confirmation.
 This is a great restaurant! Wouldn't it be nice to come here more often?
o To express surprise, admiration or annoyance.
 Don't you know how to make a reservation?
 Isn't she a great secretary?
 Can't you be quiet for one minute?
 Wh- questions begin with a question word (Who / Whose /What / Which / When/ Where/ Why / How).
 o Who is used without a noun to ask about people.
 Who do you want to see? The manager.
o Whose is used to ask about possession.
 Whose is that car? It's Carla's.
o What is used alone or before a noun to ask about things.
 What time did you get up yesterday? // What are you doing?
o What is also used to talk about people, animals or things when there is an unlimited choice of answers.
 What countries have you visited?
o Which is used alone, before nouns, before one/ones or before of, to ask about people, animals or things. It is
normally used when there is only a limited choice of answers.
 Which is our rental car?
 Which option do you like best, train or coach?
o Where is used to ask about places.
 Where is the nearest post office?
o When is used to ask about time.
 When is he arriving?
o Why is used to ask about reasons.
 Why do you recommend local restaurants?
o How is used alone or before an adjective or an adverb to ask about manner.
 How did you get to Prague? By train.
 How old are you? Twenty-five.
 How long ago did you start work? Two years ago.
 How often do you travel abroad? Three times a year at least.

2.2.- Subject/Object questions.

Subject and object questions is something you may not be familiar with because we don't have a similar thing in Spanish. It may
sound confusing but in reality it is quite simple.
o Object questions are questions we ask when we want to know the object of the sentence. If the question word is not the
subject of the sentence, we use the auxiliary verb.
 How often do you have coffee?
 Where does he live?
 Question Word + auxiliary verb + subject + main verb?
o We ask subject questions ask when we want to know the subject of the sentence. If the question word is the subject of
the sentence, we don't use the auxiliary verb.
 Who works at the Paris office?
 Which costs more, the red or the white?
 Question Word+ main verb?
In Object questions if a verb is followed by a preposition, the preposition usually comes at the end of the sentence.
 Where are you from?

Think about it
Some common mistakes when asking questions are: The correct ones are:
 Who does work with you in the office?  Who works with you in the office?
 Does he likes dancing?  Does he like dancing?

2.3.- Now you put it into practice (I).

Fill in the blanks with a suitable question word "wh-?"

1. What is your surname?

2. How do you spell your surname?
3. Where do you live?
4. What do you do?
 5. When were you born, in 1986?
6. Where in Spain were you born?
7. How long have you been waiting?
8. How much money do you have?
9. How many brothers or sisters do you have?
10. How many people registered for the course you are attending?
11. Who are you going with?
12. What does your classmate look like?
13. Which of these two briefcases is yours?
14. Whose is this Passport?
15. Why do you like learning English?

Make suitable questions for these answers.

1. Where did you go? We went to Brighton.

2. What did you do? We had a meeting.
3. When did you come back? We came back on 23rd October.
4. Who did you go with? I went with Christopher.
5. Who arranged everything? Our partner John arranged everything.
6. How many people were there? There were about 50 people.
7. What were they doing? They were writing a memo.
8. How did you go there? We went there by car.
9. Did you use to go camping? Yes, I used to go camping every summer.
10. Why is he upset? He’s upset because he didn’t get a promotion.

2.4.- Intonation in questions.

Did you know that asking questions with the right intonation is key to understanding and being understood?
Questions can be pronounced with the voice going up at the end or going down at the end.
 Normally questions with yes/no answers have a rising intonation, that is, the speaker stresses the ending of the
question. ↑
 Wh- questions have a falling intonation and the speaker stresses the beginning of the question. ↓

3.- Words you need: Informal emails (I).

Here you have a number of standard phrases used for emails.

You can begin your email with:

 Hi / Dear Daniel,
You can end with:
 (All) Best wishes.
 (Kind / Best) Regards.
To people you know well, you can end with:
 All the best.
 Best.
If you are expecting a reply:
 I look / Looking forward to hearing from you.
 Please write soon.
 Hope to hear from you soon.
Making reference:
 About…
 With reference to...
 Thanks for your email...
Replying to a request:
 Here is / Here are...
 Thanks for...
Providing information:
 Just to let you know…
 A quick note to tell you…
Confirming:
 Just to confirm that…
Asking for information or advice:
 Can you tell me about…
 Please tell me about…
 Could you tell me if…
 Please let us know about…
Explaining and clarifying:
 Here's some information about...
 Just to clarify…
Enclosing information:
 Please find attached a...
 Attached is...

3.1.- Informal emails (II).

And more standard phrases for emails.
Apologising.
 Sorry for…
 Sorry about…
Arranging a meeting.
 See you on…
 Let's meet up to discuss…
Requesting.
 Could you…
 Please could I have…
 Please could you give me…
 Please send me…
Establishing context.
 Mrs Blanco asked me to write to you about…
 Could you give me some information about…
 Would you be interested in...
Offering help.
 Let me know if you'd like any other information.
 Feel free to contact me…
For urgent matters.
 Please get back to me asap.
 Please reply asap.
Sometimes abbreviations are used in emails.
 AFAIK: As far as I know.
 HTH: Hope this helps.

What do you think the following abbreviations mean?

 ASAP – As soon as posible

 BTW – By the way
 CUL –
 FYI –
 IMO –
 POV –
 TIA –
 TTFN –

3.2.- Now you put it into practice (II).

How would you change this email to make it sound more professional? Use expressions that mean the same as
the underlined expressions.

From: chris.lippett@britishcorp.co.uk
To: daniel.owen@britishcorp.co.uk

CC: nora.peterson@britishcorp co.uk

Subject: Advertising budget.

Hi Daniel,

Thanks for your email asking for ways of reducing the advertising budget. I'm sending this email to Nora Peterson
too. With this email, you'll find a word document with specific plans for this. Please let me know if you can't open the
document that comes with this email. I'm sending it to the rest of the board.

Send me a reply soon.

Bye,

Chris

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  Hi Daniel,

Thanks for your email asking for ways of reducing the advertising budget. I'm copying Peter Martin in on this.
Please find attached a word document with specific plans for this. Please let me know if you can't open the
attachment. I'm forwarding it to rest of the board.

Hope to hear from you soon. / Looking forward to hearing from you.

Best wishes / Kind regards,

Chris

Match the bodies of emails with their responses. Write A, B or C in the central column.
Body of emails Match Response

Dear Sharon,
Just a quick note to tell you that the meeting has been
b
A. Thanks for the info. I have already marked the
arranged for Monday next week at 9 a.m. All the trainees are
expected to attend. date on my calendar.
I look forward to seeing you there.
Kind regards,
Dear colleagues, B. About the meeting on Monday next week, I
The fire alarms are going to be tested next Friday at 8. This is a know I should go but, I was wondering... do I
going to happen on a weekly basis. really have to go?
Best wishes,
Hi Sean,
Just a quick email to remind you that we have a very
c
C. See you at the conference with the
important conference next Thursday. Please remember to presentation.
bring the presentation with you.
All the best,
  

GETTING INTERNATIONAL.- Culture and people.

Cultural differences and stereotypes.
Situation
Is it polite to shake hands in China, or to smoke in a business meeting in Australia? Let's take a minute to stop and think about
cultural differences.
When working with people from different countries, you have to understand and respect cultural diversity: the differences
between regions, countries and cultures. You have to learn the skills of proper etiquette, manners, and intercultural
communication.
First of all, when people go into another cultural environment, some of the things that can be different for them are such things
as the verbal communication style, that can be radically different. And we're not just talking about a different language but
literally the way that we use verbal communication.
Secondly, the non-verbal communication, body language, the gestures and the things that we do as part of our communication.
For example, when you greet someone, body contact is generally taboo in most Asian countries but in other parts of the world
hugging and kissing is acceptable. Even within France, some people kiss on one cheek only, some on two cheeks, some on three
cheeks.
Another good example of cultural difference is in the way different cultures view time. Do we see time as a linear process with a
fixed series of events following each other, or is time something much looser, much more flexible? People have different
attitudes to time and experience time in different ways. Westerners feel that Easterners are rude when they come 20 minutes to
half an hour late to an appointment. But when an Easterner says "11:00" he or she means "between 11 and 12". In contrast
Westerners divide time into strictly-measured hours, minutes and seconds, into which one carefully arranges one's plans,
appointments, and activities so as to fit exactly and not cause delays to one's own or anyone else's plans. When persons with
different assumptions come into contact there is great room for misunderstanding!
You have to be very careful with stereotypes. A national stereotype is a system of culture-specific beliefs connected with the
nationality of a person. This system includes beliefs concerning those properties of human beings that may vary across nations,
such as appearance, language, food, habits, psychological traits, attitudes, values etc. When we stereotype someone, we assume
that they will behave in a certain way. Don't stereotype people from other nationalities. Keep an open mind and remember that
we all are individuals.

Decide if the following are true or false:

In Japan you can introduce yourself if you are attending a large meeting.
False.

In the USA, a handshake is not a common greeting.

False.

Business is viewed as being very serious, and Germans do not appreciate humour in a business context.
True.

In Hong Kong it is common to accept a gift the first time it's offered.
False.

If you do not speak French, it is very important that you apologize to French people for your lack of knowledge.
True.

1.- Experiences of people living abroad.

If you were an exchange student in a different country, which cultural differences do you think would affect you the most?
Which would you enjoy and which would bother you?
What cultural differences would exchange students in your country have trouble with? Which cultural differences might they
enjoy?
We are going to watch a video in which some exchange students talk about some of the quirky differences between their
homelands and the United States.

https://www.edupass.org/living-in-the-usa/culture/