Taking a Survey When you take a survey, you ask different people the same questions or you answer other people’s questions. When you are asking the questions in a survey:

Yes/No Questions Yes/no questions are questions that have an answer of yes or no . when you ask a yes/no question, your voice goes up at the end. Example:        May I ask you a question?                         Are you planning to go to college? Wh– Questions When you ask with wh– ( what , who , where , when , why , and how ), your voice goes down at the end of the question. Example:         Why?                                                    How did you do it?                          Why not?                                              How does it work?                         Who is it?                                             When does it start?                         What’s up?                                           Where did they go? Resource: Listening For General Communication book by Laurie Blass and Pamela Hartmann

Asking For and Giving Permission To ask for permission, begin question with May I . . . , Can I . . . , or Could I . . . ? Example:        May I borrow your pencil?                         Can I close the door?                         Could I see your class note? Here are common replies (answers). Example:         Sure.                            Uh, I don’t know.                   Sorry, no.                         Yes.                              Um, I’m not sure.                   No.                         Yeah. (= yes)                Uh, it depends.                        Nope. (= no) Note: Use um and uh when you are thinking of an answer. Asking How to Do Something Here are some expressions to ask how to do something:                         How do/did you do it?                                    How did you do that?                         What did you do?                                How does it work? Example:         A

Many words go together in phrases . It’s important to learn these phrases, not just single words. Like can be followed by a noun, a gerund (verb + -ing ), oran infinitive (to + verb). Example:        I like music .                                         Music is noun.                         I like listening to music.                     Listening is a gerund (verb + ing).                         I like to listen to music.                       To listen is an infinitive (to + verb). Enjoy can be followed by a noun or a gerund. Enjoy can not be followed by an infinitive. Example:        I enjoy movies .                                    Movies is a noun.                         I enjoy going to the movies.                Going is a gerund. When you use the negative, add don’t or doesn’t . Example:        I don’t like pop music.                         Adam doesn’t enjoy reading books. Resource: Listening for General C

Guessing the Meaning from Context When people speak, they often use words that will be new to you. Of course, you can’t get out your dictionary to check the meaning of a new word in the middle of a conversation! You will need to guess the meaning from the context , the situation. There are many ways to underdstand new words as you listen to someone speak. Here are two ways: ·          Listen for the words you know . Sometimes you will hear an explanation after you know . Example: I like gardening– you know , planting flowers, watering, stuff like that. ·          Watch the speaker ‘s body language (movements with the hands and body). Previewing: Having Question in Mind It’s good idea to have a question or questions in mind when you listen to an interview, radio program, lecture, or presentation. Then when   you are listening, you will listen for the answer(s). This help you to focus and understand more. Listening for Examples Speakers often gi

Brainstorming Brainstorming is thinking of as many ideas as you can. When you brainstorm in a group, each person gives as many ideas as possible. You don’t worry if the ideas are good or bad. Giving Advice One way to give advice­–suggestions–is with the words should or shouldn’t .             Example :        You shouldn’t study harder. You should study better.                         You shouldn’t be afraid to ask questions. You should ask a lot of them. Clarifying Sometimes when you ask a question or make a statement, the other person doesn’t understand. When this happens, you need to clarify–explain–what you said. One way to do this is to say I mean . . . and then give an example or repeat the idea with new words. Example :       A : How can student be better student ?                         B : Excuse me ?                         A : I mean, what are some good study techniques? What can you suggest? Resource : Li

Making Predictions Before listening to a radio program or lecture, it’s good to think about what you will hear. Make predictions (guesses) about what people might say before you listen. When you make predictions, you will listen to find out if your predictions were correct or not. This will help you focus and understand more.