THAT’S ENGLISH! – MODULE 11 – UNIT 2

IT’S JUST GOOD MANNERS

A) GRAMMAR

- Describing habits

http://englishadvanced2.blogspot.com.es/2013/10/speakou-advanced-p-11-describing-habits.html

http://www.ecenglish.com/learnenglish/lessons/describing-habits

http://www.englishandculture.com/blog/bid/59149/ESL-English-Grammar-Describing-Habits-in-the-Past-and-Present

http://valenciaenglish.netfirms.com/habits.htm

B) VOCABULARY

Complete the sentences about British culture with these words:

hug slap someone on the back have good manners pick your nose boast

blush / feel embarrassed

1 In the past, men who used to open doors for women were said to … , but not so much now.

2 We normally only … people … to congratulate them, for example if they win a competition.

3 Family will … you, but you’d be shocked if your colleagues did.

4 It is generally considered bad taste to … about how much money you have.

5 Young people sometimes drink too much and behave badly. They often … and … about their behaviour next day!

6 It’s considered rude to … in public or burp when eating in company.

Complete the sentences with these expressions :

a stigma attached self-deprecation culture shock work ethic

status symbol puritanical streakphysically demonstrative

1 My parents always had a strong … and would only give me pocket money if I helped round the house.

2 iPhones have become an important … for young professionals.

3 Although my father isn’t normally … , he gave me a big hug when I came back from six months in Australia.

4 In the acting profession, there’s … to women being overweight.

5 Living in China was a huge … for him and he found it difficult to adapt.

6 I think … is charming: modesty and being able to laugh at yourself is great.

7 He’s got a bit of a … , he seems to feel that enjoying himself is wrong!

Complete these sentences so that they are true for you.

1 My attitude towards the American work ethic is …that it’s ridiculous! How can anyone think it’s healthy to work a 100-hour week and only have two weeks’ holiday?

2 Among my possessions, the object that is closest to a status symbol is … because …

3 I do / don’t consider myself a physically demonstrative person. I often / don’t usually …..

4 When people are self-deprecating, I …

5 In our society, I think there is a stigma attached to …

Complete the sentences with the correct form of a verb from A and a preposition from B.

A

Adapt talk put fit cope

B

with down to up in

1 He is finding it difficult to … his new life in Brazil.

2 Don’t … yourself … . You’re just as good at your job as anybody else in the office!

3 She’s worried that she won’t … very well in her new job. She’s younger than most of her colleagues and the only woman.

4 He’s always … his great qualifications, but he isn’t any better than you or me.

5 Do you think you can … looking after a family and working full time?

Complete the sentences so they are true for you.

1 In order to fit in with my friends / in my family, you need to be interested in sport, or at least pretend!

2 I often find it difficult to cope with …

3 Something I’ve had to adapt to is …

4 When someone brings up the topic of … in conversation, I …

C) READING COMPREHENSION

READING COMPREHENSION. Read the following article about Culture Shock and answer the questions which follow according to the information given in the text.

Culture Shock: A Fish Out of Water

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Kalvero Oberg was one of the first writers to identify five distinct stages of culture shock. He found that all human beings experience the same feelings when they travel to or live in a different country or culture. He found that culture shock is almost like a disease: it has a cause, symptoms, and a cure.Whenever someone travels overseas they are like "a fish out of water." Like the fish, they have been swimming in their own culture all their lives. A fish doesn't think about what water it is in. Likewise, we often do not think too much about the culture we are raised in. Our culture helps to shape our identity. Many of the cues of interpersonal communication (body language, politeness expressions, tone of voice, etc) are different in different cultures. One of the reasons why we feel like a fish out of water when we enter a new culture is that we do not know all of the cues that are used in it.Psychologists tell us that there are five distinct phases (or stages) of culture shock. It is important to understand that culture shock happens to all people who travel abroad, but some people have much stronger reactions than others.During the first few days of a person's stay in a new country, everything usually goes fairly smoothly. The newcomer is excited about being in a new place where there are new sights and sounds, new smells and tastes. The newcomer may have some problems, but usually accepts them as just part of the newness. They may find themselves staying in hotels or with a home-stay family that is excited to meet the foreign stranger. The newcomer may find that "the red carpet" has been rolled out and they may be taken to restaurants, movies and tours of the sights. The new acquaintances may want to take the newcomer out to many places and "show them off". This first stage of culture shock is called the "honeymoon phase".Unfortunately, this honeymoon phase often comes to an end fairly soon. The newcomer has to deal with transportation problems (buses that don't come on time), shopping problems (they can't buy their favorite foods) or communication problems (just what does "Chill out, dude," mean?). It may start to seem as if people no longer care about your problems. They may help, but they don't seem to understand your concern over what they see as small problems. You might even start to think that the people in the host country don't like foreigners.This may lead to the second stage of culture shock, known as the "rejection phase." The newcomer may begin to feel aggressive and start to complain about the host culture/country. It is important to recognize that these feelings are real and can become serious. This phase is a kind of crisis in the 'disease' of culture shock. It is called the "rejection" phase because it is at this point that the newcomer starts to reject the host country, complaining

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about and noticing only the bad things that bother them. At this stage the newcomer either gets stronger and stays, or gets weaker and goes home (physically, mentally or both).If you don't survive stage two successfully, you may find yourself moving into stage three: the "regression phase." In this phase of culture shock, you spend much of your time speaking your own language, watching videos from your home country, eating food from home. You may also notice that you are moving around campus or around town with a group of students who speak your own language. You may spend most of this time complaining about the host country/culture. Also, in the regression phase, you may only remember the good things about your home country. Your homeland may suddenly seem marvellously wonderful; all the difficulties that you had there are forgotten and you may find yourself wondering why you ever left. You may now only remember your home country as a wonderful place in which nothing ever went wrong for you. Of course, this is not true, but an illusion created by your culture shock 'disease.'If you survive the third stage successfully (or miss it completely) you will move into the fourth stage of culture shock called the "recovery phase" or the "at-ease-at-last phase." In this stage you become more comfortable with the language and you also feel more comfortable with the customs of the host country. You can now move around without a feeling of anxiety. You still have problems with some of the social cues and you may still not understand everything people say. However, you are now 90% adjusted to the new culture and you start to realize that no country is that much better than another – there are just different lifestyles and different ways of dealing with the problems of life.With this complete adjustment, you accept the food, drinks, habits and customs of the host country, and you may even find yourself preferring some things in the host country to things at home. You have now understood that there are different ways to live your life and that no way is really better than another, just different. Finally, you have become comfortable in the new place.Once you have returned to your homeland you may find yourself entering the fifth phase of culture shock. This is called "reverse culture shock" or "return culture shock". You have been away for a long time, becoming comfortable with the habits and customs of a new lifestyle and you may find that you are no longer completely comfortable in your home country. Many things may have changed while you were away and it may take a little while to become at ease with the cues and signs and symbols of your home culture.There is a risk of sickness or emotional problems in many of the phases of culture shock. Remember to be kind to yourself all the time that you are overseas, and when you get home. Give yourself time to adjust. Be your own best friend. If you do these things, you will be a much stronger person. If you do these things, you will be a citizen of the world!

1. According to the text, culture shock isa. a diseaseb. unavoidable for travellersc. difficult to describe in any systematic wayc. all of the above

2. Which of the following does not fall under the list of cues of interpersonal communication?a. smilingb. knowing when you can and cannot interrupt a conversationc. apologizingd. gesturing

3. What brings about the transition between the “honeymoon stage” and the “rejection stage”?a. common daily situationsb. the fact that the natives dislike newcomersc. the fact that the natives show a total lack of empathy for newcomersd. (b) and (c)

4. The “regression stage”a. is experienced by all newcomersb. is experienced by those newcomers who have gone home.c. involves newcomers favorably comparing the home to the host cultured. (a) and (c)

5. Reverse culture shocka. is the worst part of culture shock.b. always occurs because conditions in the home country change.c. is likely to be experienced after you have gone on vacation.d. amounts to feeling like a stranger in one’s own country.

Activity 2. VOCABULARY. CUSTOMS AND BEHAVIOR. Complete the missing words in the following sentences and definitions. A thesaurus may help you. Notice the use of specific prepositions.

1. You c _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ someone on their success or achievements when you tell them that you are pleased about them.2. On meeting, some people h_ _ (another word is "embrace"). 3. You feel aw_ _ _ _ _  when someone else behaves too formally or too informally (you feel embarrassed).4. When you are r _ _ _  to someone, you showing a lack of respect for them and their feelings. (A synonym: impolite.)5. When you meet someone for the first time, it's important to make a good i_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 6. If you ap_ _ _ _ _ _ _  to someone (for something) , you tell them that you are sorry for doing something wrong or causing a problem. 7. When you pay someone a c _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ , you express remark intended to show admiration or approval for that person.

8. If you have good m _ _ _ _ _ _ , you behave and speak very politely. 9. A synonym for behaviour: c _ _ _ _ _ _ 10. You send your friend your r _ _ _ _ _ _ [pl.] when you ask another person to give your greetings to your friend.

  Activity 3. VOCABULARY. GREETINGS, CONVENTIONAL SOCIAL UTTERANCES AND EXCHANGES. Write what you would say in each of the following situations in an anglophone country.

Example: Express pleasure in finding that your friend has just passed his exams. Answer: "Congratulations (on your exam results)!"

1. Use a phrase with the word "enjoy" to express the wish that your friends will have a good time.

2. You want to get past someone. Use a suitable two-word phrase.

3. You have stood on someone's foot. Use a suitable word to apologize for it.

4. You didn't hear what someone said. Ask them politely to repeat it. Use as many expressions as you can think of.

5. Think of different phrases to tell someone to wait (including those used when you're talking on the phone).

6. Use a not-very-polite phase with the word "business" to tell someone not to interfere with things that won't concern that person.

7. The most common word used when answering the phone is:

Answer Key: Culture shock

1. 1-B; 2-B; 3-A; 4-C; 5-D.

2. 1. congratulate2. hug3. awkward4. rude5. impression6. apologize7. compliment8. manners9. conduct10. regards

3.1. Enjoy yourself2. Excuse me.3. Sorry.4. Could you repeat that please? I’m sorry, I didn’t hear you. 5. Hold on, please. Just a moment/minute, please.6. Mind your own business.7. Hello.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0Bz6h50hL_ljVcDdteWRXa2ZVOU0/edit?pref=2&pli=1

https://www.icosmos.com.tw/templates/images/files/C59010801.pdf

http://ingleseb1.pbworks.com/f/Mod2aLez12_Prepositions_PhrasalVerbs.pdf

https://books.google.es/books?id=62fHBgAAQBAJ&pg=PA8&lpg=PA8&dq=Reading+comprehension+about+manners++around+the+world&source=bl&ots=6ubjUJuG1_&sig=LROyhdcQMj2e1Il0z-y5GZhX4aY&hl=es&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiXzY2Iga_NAhUDfRoKHTXvAzI4ChDoAQhnMAk#v=onepage&q=Reading%20comprehension%20about%20manners%20%20around%20the%20world&f=false

D) LISTENING COMPREHENSION

http://www.thelocal.fr/20160105/british-comics-attack-on-french-kissing-goes-viral

http://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/en/uk-culture/manners

Changing behaviour:

http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/howto/howto_ask_change_behaviour.mp3This programme is all about asking ………………………………………………….. Perhaps a flatmate or a colleague …………………………………. How do you ask them ………………………………..without ……………………………………? Well, I spoke to my flatmates, who ……………………………….. and want…………………………………………. Listen to them and try to hear ……………………………………………………………..

- Neil, I hope you …………………………………………………..this, but would you ………………………………………….after you’ve used the toilet? It’s just me. I really don’t………………………………………...

- To be honest, I think, you know, the state you’ve been …………………………………….is……………………………………….. All I’m saying is would you…………………………………………………………………?

- I wondered…………………………………………………..; specifically …………………………………………..because it’s beginning to bug me a bit. The thing is………………………………………………. I mean I do mine but yours is there. If you’re…………………………………………………….. It would be good if you could do that otherwise ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Sarting a sensitive conversation Example situation

I hope you don't mind me mentioning this but...

I really don't like it when you leave the toilet seat up.

I wondered if we could have a quick chat about... ...the washing up.

Asking someone to change their behaviour

Suggesting different behaviour

Would you mind... keeping the toilet seat down?cleaning the bathroom?

Would you mind not... smoking?shouting?

It would be good if you could... do the washing up.

Key: http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/howto/howto_ask_change_behaviour.pdf

(American – British) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6XxnlQEDgVIHow many slang American words does Hugh know? (What do they rally mean?)What about Helen and British slang words)

http://www.engvid.com/bad-manners-polite-english/

http://www.engvid.com/good-manners-polite-english/

E) SPEAKING

Match the descriptions to the photos.

invading someone’s personal space having a laid-back attitude complaining

public displays of affection slurping your food deferential behaviour

1 What eating habits do you consider unacceptable?2 What are your feelings about public displays of affection?3 Do you usually complain if you have a problem in a shop or a restaurant?4 Who do you habitually defer to: e.g. your parents, older people, your boss?5 Do you have a laid-back attitude to life or are you more uptight?

You are going to prepare a talk contrasting the habits of your own culture with another culture you know about. Choose three of the topics below:

Food social life culturemoney and work greeting styles

attitudes towards animals and children

social life: families get together to celebrate important dates like birthdays, anniversaries, etc …greeting styles: friends always kiss on both cheeks when they meet, …

F) WRITING

Which of these personal qualities or habits do you personally appreciate the most? Choose your top three.

politeness openness sense of humourkindness punctuality cleanlinessbeing respectful honesty

Now write about the following topic:

What personal qualities do you think are the most and the least highly valued by Spanish people?