(Episode 6: Present simple for events with timetables)
(Photo by me!)
We all need a vacation, don’t we? No matter what you do or where you work, you have to manage your time so that you can do everything. You also have to match your schedule with the schedule of work, trains, buses, and sometimes movie theaters and concert halls. And that itself is a source of stress!
Well, let’s at least take the stress out of talking about it! Come listen to this episode with me, and in a few short minutes, we will see how easily we can talk about the week ahead.
Episode transcript
Take a deep breath with me. Relax your shoulders, relax your jaw, and let’s talk English. This will be easy, I promise!
Hi guys! I’m happy you are here again. How have you been? And it looks like we have a few newcomers! Welcome! You are listening to English Airs, a podcast that will give you effortless accuracy, and my name is Parya. I have been an English teacher for over 2 decades now, and currently, I am in Tokyo.
Today we want to talk about a night out. What would you like to do? See a movie? Go to a concert? I hope by the time this episode airs, we can go and listen to live music again, so let’s do that. Let’s go to a concert this weekend. Now we have a plan. What do we say?
Well done! “We are gonna go to a concert this weekend.” And since I am so excited about it, I will get the tickets. (Why will? Because I made an offer, right?). On the ticket, we have a lot of information: the date, the time the concert starts, the time the doors close, and our seat numbers.
Wait a minute! Doesn’t the concert start in the future? Don’t the door close in the future? Then why did I say “The time the concert starts” and not “is going to start”, or “is starting”? Do you know why? Let’s see if we can guess. Remember our trip to Greece in episode 3? Our flight leaves at 4:50 in the afternoon. How about the next episode of this podcast? I have scheduled it and it airs next Monday at noon Tokyo time. What do the concert, the flight, and the next episode have in common? I’ll pause here so that you can think a little, and as always, I have already given you the clue. You can go back and listen to this part again.
Most of you got it right: these are all scheduled events that happen according to a timetable. This is a special case where we say “It happens at this time”, but we are actually talking about the future, and telling our listener that there’s a timetable. And what does that mean? That right: We can’t be late!
All right. Now I want to hear you tell me about a few things on your schedule. Think about your week, and tell me if you have any meetings, or lessons, or maybe a TV show that you watch. You can also talk about podcasts you listen to! So, go ahead! I’m listening!
Good job! Not too difficult, right? It’s so simple we don’t even need to practice it much! Just take a look at the episode webpage on englishairs.com to find extra help, links to online tests and worksheets, and the transcript. This time, it has some extra, color-coded explanation that will reinforce your memory since you are adding something visual. Did you know that there are three different types of memory? Do you know what they are? Maybe you also know that each person has a unique combination of them, and you can use it to learn better and faster. If you don’t know, and you are interested, let me know so that we can talk about them in a future episode. There will be questions on the Instagram page, and I think I never told you: I am on Twitter and Facebook as well. Look me up and get your dose of practice!
Remember to listen to the episode a few times until next week, and give new answers every time. We will be moving to another topic next week, so it might be a good idea to go back and listen to previous episodes to make sure everything is clear. If not, feel free to ask me. I would also like to hear your comments. You can leave them under the post on the website, or wherever you get your podcasts. We are almost midway through season one, and I wanted to thank you all for listening and telling friends about this podcast! We have been reaching a lot more people than I thought after a few episodes, and it’s thanks to you guys! So, please keep introducing English Airs to anyone who might need it, or enjoy it. As you know, I wish to help as many people as I can, with your help.
Parya out!
When does it start?
What things have timetables or are scheduled? Here are a few examples:
What can you say about each picture? This will appear on Instagram as well, and the funniest (correct) comments will be shared with everyone! With your consent of course!
You are ready to test yourself! You can do it here.
Things not clear? Leave a comment under this post, or ask me.