New Beginner Speaking Resources to welcome you to English!
Welcome!
Here are some resources to help you start speaking in English, so we can talk together in English in our classes.
A tip to learning vocabulary quickly
Many words are similar in English and Spanish. Can you guess what the English words are, based on words you know in Spanish?
Can you also find… flower? sweater? balcony?
Notice how the words sound the same in both Spanish and English. If you don’t know a word in English, try the Spanish word. It might be correct!
Let’s learn some basic expressions.
BASIC EXPRESSIONS
Thank you.
You’re welcome. / No problem.
Excuse me.
Of course!
Please wait a moment.
Okay.
Please repeat.
Sure. I said…
Please speak slowly.
No problem!
What is it? / What are they?
It is… / They are…
Do you understand?
Yes, I understand.
No, I don’t understand.
What does ______ mean?
It means ______.
How do we say ______ in English?
We say _______.
How do we spell ______?
We spell it ______.
Let’s start speaking in English together!
DIALOGUE ONE
LET’S READ THE DIALOGUE: I’ll be A the first time.
A. [Point to a picture of a cow and asks] What is it?
B. I think it’s a cow or something. (Speaks too quickly.)
A. Excuse me. I don’t understand. Please repeat the word, and speak slowly.
B. Okay. No problem! The word is “cow”.
A. How do you pronounce it? Please repeat it again.
B. Sure. The word is “c o w”.
A. What does “cow” mean?
B. A cow is a black and white animal.
A. I still don’t understand. How do we say “cow” in Spanish?
B. It’s “vaca”.
A. I understand. Thank you.
B. You’re welcome.
LET’S MAKE OUR OWN DIALOGUE.
A. [Indicate something and ask] What is it?
B. I think it’s a ______ or something. (Speaks too quickly.)
A. Excuse me. I don’t understand. Please repeat the word.
B. No problem! The word is “_____”.
A. How do you pronounce it? Please speak slowly.
B. Sure. The word is “_____”.
A. What does “_____” mean?
B. A _____ is a _____ (colour) _____ (category).
A. I understand. Thank you.
B. You’re welcome.
DIALOGUE TWO
Hi! How are you?
What is your name?
How do you spell your name?
What is your phone number?
What is your favourite colour?
What is your favourite animal?
What is your favourite food?
Okay! Nice to meet you!
Goodbye!
Hello! I am fine/well, thank you.
My name is…
I spell it…
My number is…
My favourite colour is…
My favourite animal is…
My favourite food is…
Nice to meet you too!
Bye!
DIALOGUE THREE
Go the the New Beginner dialogue.
DIALOGUE FOUR
Go to the Excuse Me game.
DIALOGUE FIVE
A fast category game.
We will go around in a circle and ask and answer the questions one time slowly to pronouns and identify the categories, and then as quickly as possible. Don’t repeat any words!
Tell me something that is a name. Katherine is a name!
Tell me something that is a plant. A ________ is a plant.
Tell me something that is a thing. A ________ is a thing.
Tell me something that is a vowel. ________ is a vowel.
Tell me something that is a day of the week. ________ is a day of the week.
Tell me something that is a building. A ________ is a building (edificio).
Tell me something that is a colour. ________ is a colour.
Tell me something that is an animal. A ________ is an animal.
Tell me something that is a number. ________ is a number.
Tell me something that is clothing. ________ is clothing (ropa).
Tell me something that is an adjective. ________ is an adjective.
Tell me something that is a consonant. ________ is a consonant.
Tell me something that is a month of the year. ________ is a month of the year.
Tell me something that is an ordinal. ________ is an ordinal.
Tell me something that is a place. A ________ is a place.
Tell me something that is a body part. A ________ is a body part.
Tell me something that is a food. A ________ is food.
Dialogue SIX
Before we start the next dialogue, notice the sentence structure:
This is an affirmative sentence with the verb to be.
The negative is: It is not a small, blue thing.
You can contract the subject and the verb: It isn’t OR It’s not.
The question is: Is it a small, blue thing?
DIALOGUE SPEAKING GAMES
How to play:
Select a secret word. The other players tries to guess your word by asking questions.
Let’s use the first board to practice.
1.) Take turns reading through the words on the squares.
2.) Ask each other questions. For example:
Is the horse black? – Yes, he is./No, he is not.
Are the potatoes brown? – Yes, they are./No, they are not.
3.) Practice the dialogues to guess the objects.
Singular words:
It is a big grey thing.
Is it a building?
No, it isn’t.
Is it a ________ ?
Yes, it is!
Plural words:
They are small yellow things.
Are they plants?
No, they aren’t.
Are they ________ ?
Yes, they are!
Let’s play again!
Let’s keep practicing the verb to be, and add new verbs!
20 Questions
You are ready to speak English with a more advanced game and play 20 Questions!
Try making your own dialogue!
What do you want to do next?
