Unit SCHOOL TALKS A READING Part Read the passages and put a tick (√) in the right column Meeting and Greeting Customs There are many different greeting customs around the world Here are some Chile: people usually shake hands when they meet for the first time When two women first meet, they sometimes give one kiss on the cheek (They actually "kiss the air") Women also greet both mate and female friends with a kiss Chilean men give their friends warm hugs or sometimes kiss women on the cheek Finland: Finns greet each other with a firm handshake Hugs and kisses are only for close friends and family The Philippines: The everyday greeting for friends is a handshake for both men and women Men sometimes pat each other on the back Korea: Men bow slightly and shake hands to greet each other Women not usually shake hands To address someone with his or her full name, the family name comes first, then the first name The United States: People shake hands when they are first introduced Friends and family members often hug or kiss on the cheek when they see each other In these situations, men often kiss women but not other men Chile Finland The Philippines Korea The US People shake hands every time they meet Women not shake hands Women kiss at the first meeting Men hug or pat each other on the back Women kiss male friends The family name comes first Part Read the passage and then complete the summary below it Conversational Turns Probably the most widely recognised conversational convention is that people take turns speaking But how people know when it is their turn? Some rules must be present, otherwise conversations would be continually breaking down into a disorganised Jumble of interruptions and simultaneous talk Turn-taking cues are usually quite subtle People not simply stop talking when they are ready to yield the floor They usually signal in advance that they are about to conclude The clues may be semantic ("So anyway, " or "Last but not least, "); but more commonly the speech itself can be modified to show that a turn is about to end — typically, by lowering its pitch, loudness, or speed Body movements and patterns of eye contact are especially important While speaking, we look at and away from our listener in about equal proportions; but as we approach the end of a turn, we look at the listener more steadily Listeners are not passive in all of this Here too there are several ways of signaling that someone wants to speak next One way is through an observable iIncrease in body tension — by leaning forward or producing an audible intake of breath A less subtle approach is simply to interrupt — a strategy that may be tolerated, if the purpose is to clarify what the speaker is saying, but that more usually leads to social disapproval SUMMARY Turn-taking is a way of organising (1) so that people not (2) each other or (3) at the same time Some ways of signaling when you are about to stop talking are using specific (4) , changing (5) _, loudness or speed, and looking more (6) at the listener Listeners may show they want to talk by (7) _ up, leaning forward or simply (8) which people disapprove of unless it is done for clarification B LANGUAGE FOCUS Exercise Choose the words with italicised letter(s) that are pronounced /A/ and /a:/ passage fast language headmaster father classmate lovely complain worry wonderful holiday month