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SMALL TALK
Lesson Summary
I
Social and Communication Role of Small Talk
II
Approaches
Weather
Examples:
Nice day, isn’t it?
How is it out there?
Getting warmer, eh?
Enjoying the spring?
……….. ……….. ……….. ………..
Conversation piece
Beautiful picture.. Who painted it?
That’s a masterpiece of a paperweight!
That’s one mean looking dog. What breed is he? Or is it she?
……….. ……….. ……….. ………..
Plans
Going anywhere this weekend?
Where are you off to next?
Hope you get a chance to see some sights.
……….. ……….. ………..
Compliments
New scarf? Nice pattern.
This new hairstyle suits you so well!
……….. ……….. ……….. ………..
Questions
I know you travel around Russia a lot. What places would you recommend I visit?
……….. ……….. ……….. ………..
Common acquaintances
Who is uncle John these days?
My best regards to you mom. How is she these days?
……….. ……….. ……….. ………. .
III
Practice & Homework
Try thinking up more approaches and more specific phrases.
Construct a few short small-talk type dialogues which could take place while entering an elevator, or when greeting you colleagues at the beginning of the day.
Think of some conversation openers at a party or an informal gathering. I'd like to see short dialogues of this sort in writing.
PS. The above are fairly non-controversial approaches. But you may go for the shock value – works quite well sometimes. My favourite is to demonstrate my pet cockroach. Filters out wrong people too! The main thing is (a) to demonstrate willingness to talk and (b) give the other side something to hang on to. The rest depends on the situation and the personalities involved. There is no hard and fast rule, and certainly no set list of acceptable topics.
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