Making a language "roof" to help keep us safe and sound

Hello everybody

When tiles are fitted well on a roof, when it rains, the water runs off the roof. The water does not go through the tiles.

 

With language learning, we can build up our skill so that we don’t have a “leaky roof”

 

As with roof tiles, language is built up from a good, solid first stage. Let’s call this “the basics”

 

You can make sure that your “basic language” is in place. This is like the first row of tiles

 

Polite phrases: “please” and “thank you”

Good phrases for understanding a situation: “where exactly am I?” “Could you help me please? “ I wonder if you know where I could find…?”

 

We can build the next row of tiles on top: Good fill-in words: “I understand, thanks” ,“oh yes”, “ok”, “fine” “right”

 

We can then fit the next row….Additional words that keep a conversation “watertight” 

 

“Really?”  “that is so kind of you”  “I’m very grateful”, “so glad that you could do this for me”.

 

What I am trying to say is that just as each row of tiles produces a weather resistant  roof, so can each “language layer” add strength to conversations and enable much progress in how we communicate with native speakers.

 

1. The first row is basic
2. The second row fills-in the gaps
3. The third row add colour and style to your conversation

 

And so we go on, adding to our language vocabulary and language structure.

 

The important thing is simply to make sure each row of “language tiles” are securely fixed in place, before adding more to our “roof”

 

How many different rows can you think of?

 

See you later

 

Alan