Taylor Lautner, Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson: Giving Gifts

Taylor Lautner, Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson

                                                                        

Gift Giving

The Christmas season is starting to come alive.  The stores have put up their Christmas decorations.  Talking about ‘what to give people for Christmas’ is a common conversation topic for this season.  The stars of the Twilight series tell us a little bit about their gift giving styles….

 

Targeted Listening

 Listen to the video to answer the questions below:

1.What kind of gifts does Kristen like to give?

2.What kind of gifts does Taylor like to give?

3.What kind of gifts does Robert like to give?

Targeted Listening Answers

1. Kristen’s Answer:  “I love giving pets when it is appropriate. “ “ I gave…ah…Josh Hutcherson…um…ah…a turtle when I worked with him.”

2. Taylor’s Answer:  “I like giving simple things.”

“Basically, I like giving creative gifts rather than just going out and buying something.”

3. Robert’s Answer:  “I was going to get my parents a boiler for Christmas.”

 

 Speaking Style

Both Kristen and Taylor give a generalized answer style of their gift giving style or habit: “I love/like giving _______.” Kristen expands her idea by giving a specific example ‘a turtle’.  Robert gives a specific answer for a single case (parents) of gift giving for Christmas rather than telling the listener his habit or style of gift giving.

Kristen and Taylor give an answer style that is the most common for a ‘habitual case’.  However, people also answer like Robert and give an example directly: ‘a boiler’ which ‘breaks’ the common grammar pattern (habitual case).  The interviewer is quite amused and laughing at his unique gift idea.  It’s fun and unique! 

So, listen to the video a few more times to get comfortable with the sentence styles and ideas.  Then, talk with your friends this week and find out what type of ‘gift givers ‘they are.  Enjoy!

Speaking Practice Stylized for Daily Conversation

Question: What kinds of gifts do you like giving?

1. Kristen’s Answer style:  I love giving ________. I gave ________.

2. Taylor’s Answer: Basically, I like giving ________.

3. Robert’s Answer:  I was going to get ________.

Examples

1. Kristen’s Answer style:  I love giving chocolates. I gave my best friend expensive chocolates for her birthday.

2. Taylor’s Answer style:  Basically, I like giving hand made gifts. 

3. Robert’s Answer style:  I was going to get my sister a gift card to her favorite store.

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Related Blog:
Tom Cruise: A Christmas Memory
 

Alex

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Beyoncé: Clothes and Hairstyles

                                                            Beyoncé

Question 1:  What’s one item of clothing you can’t get enough of?

Beyoncé Answer 1:  T-shirts.  I can never have enough.  My favorite is a simple white T-shirt.

Question 2:  Of all the hairstyles you’ve tried over the years, which one is your favorite?

Beyoncé Answer 2:  My favorite is still a high ponytail.  It’s clean and classic.

 

Talking clothing and hairstyles with American R&B recording artist Beyoncé. 

Speaking Style Answer 1

Beyonce uses a common grammar pattern but puts the Object at the beginning creating two sentence styles.

Common grammar pattern

I can never have enough T-shirts.

(S)               (V)                 (O)

Beyonce’s style

T-shirts.  I can never have enough. 

(O)           (S)             (V)

Beyonce’s answer sounds natural in conversation because all of the elements of the sentence are in the answer.  This speaking style emphasizes T-shirts and then Beyonce follows with a second sentence.  The second sentence, with the use of the word ‘favorite’, also implies an idea of ‘one item only’ and gives more information to the listener. 

Speaking Style Answer 2

Beyonce uses common English to describe her favorite hairstyle.  The word ‘still’ in the answer reflects the idea of ‘over the years’ (asked in Question 2).  She then follows with a second sentence to give more detail or the ‘why’ she likes the high ponytail. 

Clothing and hairstyles are pretty popular topics but here are some more to try out!

Enjoy!

                                             

Example Speaking Styles

Speaking Style Answer 1

Question 1:  What’s one item of clothing you can’t get enough of?

Answer 1:  T-shirts.  I can never have enough.  My favorite is a simple white T-shirt.

Ex.1

Question 1:  What’s one item of jewelry you can’t get enough of?

Answer 1:  Earrings.  I can never have enough.  My favorite is a simple hoop earring.

Ex.2

Question 1:  What’s one kind of food you can’t get enough of?

Answer 1:  Ice cream.  I can never have enough.  My favorite is chocolate.

Speaking Style Answer 2

Question 2:  Of all the hairstyles you’ve tried over the years, which one is your favorite?

Answer 2:  My favorite is still a high ponytail.  It’s clean and classic.

Ex.1

Question 2:  Of all the skin care brands you’ve tried over the years, which one is your favorite?

Answer 2:  My favorite is still L’Oreal.  It’s silky and accelerates skin recovery.

Ex.2

Question 2:  Of all the cars you’ve driven over the years, which one is your favorite?

Answer 2:  My favorite is still a mustang.  It’s cool and fast.

Until next week let's enjoy some popular music from Beyoncé!

Beyoncé performing Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)

Beyoncé performing Best Thing I Never Had

Alex

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Leonardo Dicaprio: Travel and Scuba diving

                                                                  Leonardo Dicaprio

Question 1:  What’s the best place you’ve visited?

Leonardo Dicaprio Answer 1: Wow… There are quite a few. Thailand is one of the most amazing places that I’ve ever been. I’m a big scuba-diver, too, so I just went to the Galapagos Islands.

Question 2:  Where else do you recommend diving?

Leonardo Dicaprio Answer 2: You can’t beat the Great Barrier Reef for coral reefs.

Travel is a common topic of conversation amongst friends and people you don’t know so well.  This topic is neutral and anyone can participate by asking questions or explaining their travel experience.  Also, people tend to talk about travel because it is exciting!

Conversation Flow

Leo (Leonardo) starts by showing his enthusiasm for the topic with the word ‘Wow’ following with the idea that there are many great places in the world.  However, to keep the conversation interesting, he naturally says a location ‘Thailand’ and one of his favorite activities ‘scuba diving’.  Leo finishes his thought with the last place he went to ‘the Galapagos Islands’.

The person asking questions can easily continue the conversation by asking about the place(s) or activity.  However, the listener selects scuba diving because Leo mentions scuba diving in two locations: Thailand and the Galapagos Islands.

Casual Slang Expressions 

(1)I’m a ‘big’ scuba diver. =

I really like scuba diving/I love scuba diving.

(2)You ‘can’t beat’ the Great Barrier Reef for coral reefs =

The Great Barrier Reef for coral reefs is the best.

This common conversation topic is easy to adapt to your own travels internationally or nationally.  Our favorite activity often is connected to our vacations.  This style is comfortable but exciting for the speaker and listener! Try it out! 

Speaking Pattern Practice

Question 1:  What’s the best place you’ve visited?

Answer 1: Wow… There are quite a few. Thailand is one of the most amazing places that I’ve ever been. I’m a big scuba-diver, too, so I just went to the Galapagos Islands.

Question 2:  Where else do you recommend diving?

Answer 2: You can’t beat the Great Barrier Reef for coral reefs.

Examples

1.

Question 1:  What’s the best place you’ve visited?

Answer 1: Wow… There are quite a few. Costa Rica is one of the most amazing places that I’ve ever been. I’m a big surfer, too, so I just went to Hawaii.

Question 2:  Where else do you recommend surfing?

Answer 2: You can’t beat the Gold Cost of Australia.

2.

Question 1:  What’s the best place you’ve visited?

Answer 1: Wow… There are quite a few. New Zealand is one of the most amazing places that I’ve ever been. I’m a big golfer, too, so I just went to Scotland.

Question 2:  Where else do you recommend golfing?

Answer 2: You can’t beat Pebble Beach in the United States.

 

LEO'S WEBSITE

LINK: http://www.leonardodicaprio.com/

Leo's - Titanic-Theme Song
'My Heart Will Go On ' by Celine Dion

Enjoy! See you next week!

Alex

Celebrity English

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Natural Language from Dan Radcliffe of Harry Potter: Music

      Daniel Radcliffe          

                    

Question: You're a major (major =big) music fan, aren't you?

Daniel Radclilffe: ‘Huge’.

Question:  Do you get to go to gigs?  (get to = able to, gigs = musical performances)

Dan: Not as much as I'd like to, but I'm seeing the Chilli Peppers (American music band) in Hyde Park. I'm going to that, very excited, because The Pixies (American music band) are supporting.

Question: So when did you come across The Pixies?

Dan: Um... I'm really ‘into’ films, obviously, as well, and I got Total Film (British Film magazine) and there was a compilation of soundtracks, and "Where is my mind?" was on there, because it's the soundtrack to Fight Club (1999 American film with Bradd Pitt and Edward Norton), and so I went out and bought Death to The Pixies: The Greatest Hits.

Speaking Style

Daniel or Dan’s speaking pattern is casual/informal for many reasons but I would like to focus on two expressions.  He uses the word ‘Huge’ in his first answer and uses the word ‘into’ in a slang style.    

Question: You're a major (major =big) music fan, aren't you?

Dan:  Huge

When he uses the word ‘huge’, the meaning is ‘really really big music fan’.  Also he shortens his sentence for a faster talking style. 

Longer speaking style:  “I am a 'huge' music fan.”

The shorter speaking style is used here because to a native English speaker we know there are more questions coming.  A detailed answer isn’t necessary.  Why? Because the interviewer uses a tag question: …, aren’t you?.

Now when we learn grammar this answer is not usually the best. 

Question: You're a major music fan, aren't you?

Answer:   Yes, I am/No, I am not.

This is a common drill type question used in language classes to emphasize the grammar point.  It is a bit robotic if constantly used in conversation.   

In a conversation tag questions are used like an exercise warm up or to get to know someone when talking to them for the first time. 

However, even with such a short, simple question, Dan signals he wants to continue talking about music.  The answer ‘Huge’ doesn’t follow the yes/no grammar pattern.  Instead he answers emphasizing his excitement about music.  It doesn‘t sound disjointed to a native speaker because ‘Huge’ refers to the ‘major music fan’ idea of the interviewer’s question.  Dan’s natural answer helps link the ideas.   His enthusiasm/emphasis allows me to know that this is a good topic for him.  This speaking strategy is great for creating continued conversation.

The use of ‘into’ is a casual slang style.

Dan: I'm really ‘into’ films.  (to be into something/someone=to like

                                              or love something/someone)

  

 Ex. Same sentence idea - Dan: I really like/love films.

 'Into' is such a common word in English but the indirect meaning sometimes tricks us.  

You can get some more ideas about how to use 'huge' and 'into' in the next part.

Try out in your daily conversation!

1.Question: You’re a major fan of rock n roll, aren’t you?

   Answer:  Huge

2.Question: Are you a huge fan of jazz?

   Answer: Absolutely, I am really  into jazz fusion. 

3. Question: Are you a major fan of baseball?

     Answer:  Huge! I have been into it since my dad took me to my 
                   first game when I was 6 years old.

  

More Stuff!

Click on the links below for Dan Radcliffe’s music, reading, and film interests mentioned in today's conversation points:

The Chilli Peppers (The Red Hot Chilli Peppers-RHCP) music

LINK      http://redhotchilipeppers.com/

The Pixies music

LINK      http://www.thepixiesmusic.com/

Total Film magazine

LINK      http://www.totalfilm.com/

Fight Club movie

LINK      http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0137523/

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Trailer Official HD 

Alex
Celebrity English





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Britney Spears: Friends

                                                                                  Britney Spears

Britney Spears talking about her friends: 

It's so funny how different friends bring out different sides of you. Felicia is more of my work side. I talk to my friend Jenny more about my personal stuff. My cousin Laura Lynn I'm goofiest with. And with Courtney, who is totally* silly, I act completely serious.    

                                                        (totally*=completely)

Speaking Style

Britney is describing her friends and how they affect her when she is with them.  

Britney introduces her idea with a statement.  In this case, ‘funny‘ can mean ‘interesting’.  The statement: “It’s funny how…” is a common, natural expression.  It is rhetorical in this case.  For a good conversation style, when you use a statement you should follow with example ideas to give the listener more details and support the initial statement. This signals to the listener that you are comfortable with the topic and want to continue talking about it.  Also, you are signaling that you want to share some more personal information about yourself.  This helps to create ‘intimacy’/’closeness’.  As people share intimacy or deeper feelings, the conversation can move toward a deeper understanding of one another. 

Personally, if I was talking to Britney ‘one-to-one’ I would ask her some more questions about her friends and then tell her about my friends.  With both people sharing, two-way (intimate) communication is achieved.  Moreover, sharing of information about your friends helps gain trust between people.  It is trust that allows people to feel more comfortable talking to you! 

Detailed answers, mutual sharing of information, and creating a sense of trust will aid in people sharing and talking about more DETAILED/COMPLICATED LANGUAGE TOPICS!

Speaking Pattern

 Part 1

1. The underlined names you can change with your own case.
2. Change Felicia, Jenny, Laura Lynn, Courtney
3. Also to note: ‘My cousin’ can be changed to ‘My sister’, ‘My brother’, etc.

It's so funny how different friends bring out different sides of you. Felicia is more of my work side. I talk to my friend Jenny more about my personal stuff. My ‘cousin’ Laura Lynn, I'm goofiest with. And with Courtney, who is totally silly, I act completely serious.

Part 2

It's so funny how different friends bring out different sides of you. Felicia is more of my work side. I talk to my friend Jenny more about my personal stuff. My cousin Laura Lynn I'm goofiest with. And with Courtney, who is totally silly, I act completely serious.

Examples:

1. It's so funny how different friends bring out different sides of you. Felicia is more of my business side. I talk to my friend Jenny more about my private stuff. My cousin Laura Lynn I'm silliest with. And with Courtney, who is totally serious, I act completely reserved.

2. It's so funny how different friends bring out different sides of you. Felicia is more of my job side. I talk to my friend Jenny more about my intimate stuff. My cousin Laura Lynn I'm happiest with. And with Courtney, who is totally relaxed, I act completely at ease.

Hope you have chance to try out this conversation style! Hang in there and take care!

                                                     
ALEX!

Celebrity English

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ENJOY THE MUSIC: 'Till the World Ends'

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