stress&intonation practice

Learning a foreign language Paola: Hey, Lan! Have you finished your exam? Lan: Yes…,I have. Paola: Were the questions difficult? Lan: Well, they were quite hard. Paola: Did you pass? Lan: I’m not sure. The examiner didn’t tell me. Paola: What questions did she ask you? Lan: First she asked me what my name was, and where I came from. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • Paola: They were easy for you, weren’t they? Lan:….Then she asked me why I was learning English,…and if I spoke any other languages. Paola: Go on Lan:…Then she asked me how I learned English in my country. …And she asked how I would use English in the future. Paola: What else did she asked you? Lan:Oh, Paola! Let me try to remember! .Ah, She asked me what aspect of learning English I found most difficult. Paola: Is that all, Lan? Lan: Oh, there were a lot of other questions. She also to asked me to read a passage. Paola: What did she say in the end? Lan: I’m trying to remember…Oh, yes! Exactly she said “ If you want to attend the course, you must pass the written examination. Good luck!” Paola: It’s terrible, Lan. I don’t think I will be able to pass the exams. Lan: Don’t worry, Paola. Everything will be all right. What’s on? Ba: Do you watch TV, Nga? Nga: Not often. There aren’t many good programs for teenagers. Ba: What kinds of programs do you like? Nga: I like to watch programs about teenagers in other countries. I want to know what they do, what they wear, what music they like… Ba: There are some programs for young people. Nga: But older people make them. They don’t really know what we like. Ba: I like sports show, cartoons and movies. Nga: I don’t really like watching sports – I prefer taking part in them. And most of the movies on TV are very old. Ba: There are plenty of music programs. Nga: Yes, there are. But they don’t play the kind of music I like. Ba: What are you going to do this evening? Nga: Well, I’m not going to watch TV. I’m going to listen to the radio and maybe read a book. Festival Liz: Thanks for inviting me to the rice-cooking festival, Ba. Can you explain what is happening? Ba: Sure. There are three competitions: water- fetching, fire-making and rice-cooking. Liz: Where does the water come from? Ba: There’s a river about one kilometer away. One person from each team has to run to the river. There are four bottles of water on the river bank and each runner must take a bottle and return to the starting position. Liz: That man seems upset. What did he just yell? Ba: He urged his teammate to run faster. Liz: What’s special about the fire-making contest? Ba: The fire is made in the traditional way. Two team members try to make a fire by rubbing pieces of bamboo together. The winners are the first ones to make a fire. Liz: I’m interested in the rice-cooking contest, too. Ba: Six people from each team participate in this event. They have to separate the rice from the husk and then cook the rice. Liz: How do they decide who wins the contest? Ba: The judges try the finished products and the most delicious rice is the winner. Then all the points are added and the grand prize is awarded. Liz: Is that what is happening now? Ba: The council leader just said that he was pleased to award the prize to the Thon Trieu team.