Lesson 5

Making Small Talk

ROLE PLAY
The manager picks up the new expat from the airport.

Manager: Hello, Mr. Wood! Welcome to HoChiMinh City, the vibrant economic and cultural
hub of southern Vietnam. (shakes his hand)

Mr. Wood: Thank you.

Manager: How was your flight from Scotland?

Mr. Wood: Quite long. The flight was delayed and there was a large crowd of tourists
at the customs so I apologize for my late arrival and thank you for waiting for me. I
appreciate it.

Manager: Not a problem. I’m glad that you’ve landed safely.

(They walk out of the airport)

Mr. Wood: It’s quite hot! Is it always like this in Vietnam?

Manager: (smiles) Yes. The weather in Vietnam is hot in general. I hope that
you’ve packed some light clothing.

Mr. Wood: Actually, I’ll have to go shopping. It has been ages since I’ve been in
such humid weather.

Manager: Well, just to warn you, the latest headlines announce that it is going to
get even hotter in the next couple weeks.

Mr. Wood: Hotter? Is that even possible?

Manager: Don’t worry, you’ll get used to it. Just make sure to stay hydrated.
Also, I would gladly take you to the mall to buy some summer clothing, if you’d
like.
Mr.Wood: I would appreciate that. Thank you.

Manager: It is my pleasure. (takes out phone) I will now send you an email
regarding our meeting agenda for next week in order to keep you up-to-date with our
company’s activities.

Mr. Wood: Sounds good.

VOCABULARY
a. Arrive (v): to reach somewhere. E.g. The plane will arrive at 3:00pm.

b. Pick up (v): If you ‘pick up’ someone at the airport, you transport him/her from the
airport and to their destination. E.g. I am going to the airport to pick up our new expat.

c. General (adj): If something is ‘general,’ it is does not include any specific information.
E.g. Most Vietnamese people are nice in general. /I only put general information on my
Facebook profile. I don’t put any details about my personal information.

d. It has been ages (phrase): This is another way to say ‘it has been a long time.’
E.g. It has been ages since I visited my friend in America.

e. Capital (adj): describe a place that is the location of a government of a country or

state. E.g. The capital city of Vietnam is Hanoi.

f. Weather (n): conditions of the day. For example, it can be rainy, sunny, hot, cold,
windy, snowy, etc. E.g. the weather in Vietnam is very hot.

g. Latest (adj): describes something that is most recent. E.g. I like to follow the latest
trends in fashion.

h. Headlines (n): The title and first part of the news that attracts readers.

i. Opinion (n): what you think about something. E.g. Many Americans don’t have good
opinions of President Trump.

j. Crowd (n): a large group of people E.g. There was a large crowd of protestors in front
of the government building.

k. Completely (adv): describes something that is 100%. E.g. I don’t completely agree
with your opinion.

l. Up to date (adj): describes something that is new and in trend. E.g. Our company
tries to develop the most up to date computer softwares.
 Let’s talk about the role play

● Where is Mr. Wood from?

● Why does Mr.Wood need to go to shopping?
● What new words or phrases did you learn from the role play? Please discuss them
with your coach.

Now it’s your turn to Role Play

Scenario 1

a. Student: You are trying to make a small talk with a colleague at work. You talk about the
latest headlines on the news. The news is about 39 Vietnamese Died in a U.K Truck. You ask
your colleague about his/her opinions of the news.
b. Coach: Share your opinions with your colleague about the news. You are encouraged to see
that there is a hot news at that time.

Scenario 2

a. Student: You are the human resources manager. You pick up a new expat who just arrived at
the airport. You greet the expat for the first time. You talk about the weather in Vietnam with
the new expat.
b. Coach: You are the new expat. You thank the manager for picking you up. You just flew
from a cold country so you are not used to the hot weather in Vietnam.
Challenges
1. What is something that you haven’t done for a long time? Use the following format to
answer this question: It has been ages since….
2. Discuss about the latest new with your coach and share your opinion on it.
3. Please describe the weather in Vietnam for the following months.
January – March, April – June, July – September, October – December