Learn how to ask where an office is
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| INTRODUCTION |
| Becky: Asking for Directions at an Office. Becky here. |
| John: Hi, I'm John. |
| Becky: In this lesson, you'll learn about asking where an office is. The following conversation takes place in an office lobby. |
| John: It's between Linda and a receptionist. |
| Becky: The speakers are strangers; therefore, they will speak formal English. Okay, let's listen to the conversation. |
| DIALOGUE |
| Receptionist: Mrs. Baker, you can go ahead. |
| Linda: What floor is Mr. Handerson's office on? |
| Receptionist: He's waiting for you on the third floor. |
| Linda: Where are the stairs? |
| Receptionist: You can use the elevator, down the hall to the left. |
| Linda: Thank you for your help. |
| Becky: Listen to the conversation one time slowly. |
| Receptionist: Mrs. Baker, you can go ahead. |
| Linda: What floor is Mr. Handerson's office on? |
| Receptionist: He's waiting for you on the third floor. |
| Linda: Where are the stairs? |
| Receptionist: You can use the elevator, down the hall to the left. |
| Linda: Thank you for your help. |
| POST CONVERSATION BANTER |
| Becky: Okay, it’s meeting time, but first Linda has to find the office. |
| John: It seems straightforward enough. |
| Becky: Yeah, the receptionist didn’t tell Linda to turn twenty different corners, so the office must be close to the elevator. |
| John: Or maybe Mr. Handerson will meet her at the elevator. |
| Becky: Maybe! Is it typical for office buildings to have elevators in the U.S.? |
| John: Yes, especially in buildings that have several floors. In big cities, many companies operate out of skyscrapers, so elevators are a must. |
| Becky: Listeners, remember that in the U.S., the floor that is level with the ground is known as the “entry” or “first” floor. |
| John: Floors below this are usually known as "B1," "B2," and so forth. |
| Becky: You should also know that it is common for American elevators not to have a thirteenth floor, as "thirteen" is considered an unlucky number |
| John: Right. Sometimes the thirteenth floor is labeled as "fourteen" instead, or it exists but as a maintenance floor. |
| Becky: Okay, now onto the vocab. |
| VOCAB LIST |
| Becky: Let’s take a look at the vocabulary from this lesson. The first word is... |
| John: To go. [natural native speed] |
| Becky: To move or travel to. |
| John: To go. [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| John: To go. [natural native speed] |
| Becky: Next we have... |
| John: Ahead. [natural native speed] |
| Becky: In a forward direction or position. |
| John: Ahead. [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| John: Ahead. [natural native speed] |
| Becky: Next we have... |
| John: Floor. [natural native speed] |
| Becky: A level in a building. |
| John: Floor. [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| John: Floor. [natural native speed] |
| Becky: Next we have... |
| John: To wait. [natural native speed] |
| Becky: To stay in the same place until an action happens. |
| John: To wait. [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| John: To wait. [natural native speed] |
| Becky: Next we have... |
| John: Third. [natural native speed] |
| Becky: Constituting the number three in some sequence. |
| John: Third. [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| John: Third. [natural native speed] |
| Becky: Next we have... |
| John: Stairs. [natural native speed] |
| Becky: A series of steps that lead to another floor. |
| John: Stairs. [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| John: Stairs. [natural native speed] |
| Becky: Next we have... |
| John: Elevator. [natural native speed] |
| Becky: A machine that carries people and objects between floors in a building. |
| John: Elevator. [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| John: Elevator. [natural native speed] |
| Becky: And lastly.... |
| John: Down. [natural native speed] |
| Becky: A lower position. |
| John: Down. [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| John: Down. [natural native speed] |
| KEY VOCAB AND PHRASES |
| Becky: Let's have a closer look at the usage of some of the words and phrases from this lesson. The first phrase is... |
| John: To go ahead. |
| Becky:The first word, "to go," is a verb that means to move from one place to another. The second word, "ahead," is an adverb that means to move further forward. |
| John: You can use this phrase to tell someone to proceed and do an action. |
| Becky: Can you give us an example using this phrase? |
| John: Sure. For example, you can say, “You can go ahead with the new project.” |
| Becky: You can use “go ahead” as a reply, also, if someone asks you if it is okay to do something. |
| Becky: Okay, what's the next phrase? |
| John: Third floor. |
| Becky: The first word, "third," is the ordinal number for "three." The second word refers to the level or story of a building. |
| John: You can change "third" to any other ordinal number to talk about different floors. |
| Becky: Can you give us an example using this phrase? |
| John: Sure. For example, you can say, “I live on the third floor of the building.” |
| Becky: Okay, now onto the lesson focus. |
Lesson focus |
|---|
| Becky: In this lesson, you'll learn how to ask where an office is. If you are visiting a company or are new to the office, chances are you won’t know where everything is. |
| John: If that’s the case, you might have to ask for directions. The key phrases when asking for directions are “Where is…?” or “Where are…?” followed by the name of the place or person. |
| Becky: You can use these phrases no matter what you are looking for, from a big building to a pen. Let’s give some examples. |
| John: “Where is ABC Company?” or “Where are the paperclips?” |
| Becky: There are a few other ways you can ask for directions, too. |
| John: Right. For example, you can say, “How do I get to the ABC Company?” or “What floor is the meeting room on?” |
| Becky: Asking for the address is important as many people now use Google Maps or in-car GPS for directions. What are some phrases you can use in these cases? |
| John: “Can you show me on Google Maps?” or “Can you put the details into the GPS?” |
| Becky: Ok, now let’s see how to give directions. |
| John: When giving directions, we need to use prepositions. |
| Becky: Let’s review together some of the most commonly used prepositions of place and give an example sentence for each. Let’s start with “next to.” |
| John: For example, you can say, “The office is next to the park.” |
| Becky: “Behind.” |
| John: “The office is behind the train station.” |
| Becky: “Across from.” |
| John: “The office is across from the school.” |
| Becky: Listeners, you can find a complete list in the lesson notes. Be sure to check it out! |
| John: Also, instead of saying the name of the place, if people know what you are talking about it’s fine to say “It is/They are.” |
| Becky: For example, instead of “The office is across from the school,” you can just say, “It’s across from the school.” |
| John: Instead of “Go down this street, and the office is on the left,” you can simply say, “Go down this street, and it’s on the left.” |
Outro |
| Becky: Okay, that’s all for this lesson. Thank you for listening, everyone, and we’ll see you next time! Bye! |
| John: See you! |
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