Learn the very common English greeting, "How's it going?"
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| INTRODUCTION |
| Jessi: Hi everyone! Jessi here. |
| Daniel: Daniel here. Beginner Series Season 1, Lesson 1 - How’s it going? |
| Jessi: Hello everyone, and welcome to EnglishClass101. |
| Daniel: With us, you’ll learn to speak English with fun and effective lessons. |
| Jessi: We also provide you with cultural insights... |
| Daniel: And tips you won’t find in a textbook. |
| Jessi: So Daniel, what are we going to learn in this lesson? |
| Daniel: In this lesson you will learn how to start a typical conversation. |
| Jessi: Sounds good. And where does this conversation take place? |
| Daniel: This conversation takes place on a college campus. |
| Jessi: And who is the conversation between? |
| Daniel: The conversation is between Mike and Vicky. |
| Jessi: And what kind of English are they using? |
| Daniel: The speakers are friends, so the speakers will be speaking casually. |
| Daniel: Don’t forget - you can leave us a comment on this lesson. |
| Jessi: So if you have a question... |
| Daniel: Or some feedback... |
| Jessi: Please leave us a comment! |
| Daniel: It’s very easy to do. Just stop by EnglishClass101.com... |
| Jessi: Click on comments, enter your comment and name, and that’s it! |
| Daniel: We’re looking forward to hearing from you! |
| Jessi: Now let’s listen to the conversation. |
| DIALOGUE |
| Mike: Hey, Vicky! |
| Vicky: Hi, Mike! How's it going? |
| Mike: Great! How about you? How are you doing? |
| Vicky: Not so good. |
| Mike: Oh no! What's wrong? |
| Vicky: Oh, classes start tomorrow. |
| Mike: Ha ha ha. Yeah, I know what you mean. |
| POST CONVERSATION BANTER |
| Jessi: So, Vicky sounds a little upset that classes are starting tomorrow. |
| Daniel: She does. It sounds like it's a problem for her. But, how do you feel about taking classes, going back to school? |
| Jessi: Well, on one hand I think it's kind of exciting. You know, new classes, maybe meet new friends. |
| Daniel: Yeah. |
| Jessi: But, at the same time, you're sad that, you know, maybe summer vacation or spring vacation is over. So, I understand how she feels. |
| Daniel: Yeah, I agree. But, usually I enjoy going back to school. |
| Jessi: Oh yeah? So, you like learning new things? |
| Daniel: It's fun. |
| Jessi: Yeah, that sounds great. |
| Daniel: Let's take a look at the vocabulary for this lesson. |
| VOCAB LIST |
| Jessi: How's it going? [natural native speed] |
| Daniel: this is an expression to ask about someone's health or situation |
| Jessi: How's it going? [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Jessi: How's it going? [natural native speed] |
| Daniel: Next phrase. |
| Jessi: How are you doing? [natural native speed] |
| Daniel: this is also an expression to find out about someone's health or situation |
| Jessi: How are you doing? [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Jessi: How are you doing? [natural native speed] |
| Daniel: Next. |
| Jessi: great [natural native speed] |
| Daniel: very good |
| Jessi: great [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Jessi: great [natural native speed] |
| Daniel: Next. |
| Jessi: not so good [natural native speed] |
| Daniel: an expression meaning that one's health or situation is bad |
| Jessi: not so good [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Jessi: not so good [natural native speed] |
| Daniel: Next. |
| Jessi: summer vacation [natural native speed] |
| Daniel: a break from school or work during the summer months |
| Jessi: summer vacation [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Jessi: summer vacation [natural native speed] |
| Daniel: Next. |
| Jessi: pretty good [natural native speed] |
| Daniel: phrase to show that you are fairly healthy and your situation is good |
| Jessi: pretty good [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Jessi: pretty good [natural native speed] |
| Daniel: Next. |
| Jessi: not bad [natural native speed] |
| Daniel: acceptable, fairly good |
| Jessi: not bad [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Jessi: not bad [natural native speed] |
| Daniel: Next. |
| Jessi: all right [natural native speed] |
| Daniel: okay; to one's liking; acceptable |
| Jessi: all right [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Jessi: all right [natural native speed] |
| VOCAB AND PHRASE USAGE |
| Daniel: And now, let’s have a closer at some of the words and phrases from this lesson. |
| Jessi: The first phrases we’ll look at are |
| Daniel: How's it going? / How are you doing? |
| Jessi: And what do both of these phrases mean? |
| Daniel: Both of these phrases mean the same thing and they are similar to "How are you?" The difference is simply that they are more casual expressions. Jessi, what phrase or phrases do you usually use to ask about someone's health or situation? |
| Jessi: I think usually I would say "How's it going?" if I was talking to a friend. If I were asking about their health in particular, I might ask "How are you feeling?" |
| Daniel: Do you often use "How are you?" |
| Jessi: I would say in a more polite or formal situation I might use "How are you?" But with friends, it sounds more natural to use "How's it going?" or "How are you doing?" |
| Daniel: I agree, I would use “How are you?” usually only in a job interview, or maybe if I met the Queen of |
| England, something like that. |
| Jessi: Some time when you have to be kind of more informal. |
| Jessi: And what’s the next phrase? |
| Daniel: Not bad. |
| Jessi: Does that phrase just mean that something is OK? |
| Daniel: It can mean that something is just OK, but if you use a positive intonation, it can actually mean "good'. |
| Jessi: Can we hear an example of that positive intonation? |
| Daniel: Sure, why don’t you ask me how I’m doing. |
| Jessi: Okay. So Daniel, how’re you doing? |
| Daniel: Not bad! But if I just said... Not bad... |
| Jessi: Yeah, you sound like you’re not doing that great. |
| Daniel: Right. |
| Jessi: So make sure to put kind of the stress on bad. Not bad! |
| Daniel: Exactly. |
Lesson focus |
|---|
| Jessi: And now let’s take a look at the grammar point for today’s lesson. The focus of this lesson is asking about someone’s health or general situation. Phrases such as, “How are you doing?” or “How’s it going?” |
| Daniel: We often ask people we know about their health or situation the first time we see them on that day. You may be more familiar with the formal conversation that goes like this… |
| Jessi: How are you? |
| Daniel: Fine, thanks. And you? |
| Jessi: Fine thanks. |
| Daniel: Although this conversation is useful in formal situations, most of our conversations are in more casual situations. We are more likely to hear questions such as "How are you doing?" and "How's it going?" between friends. We are also likely to hear answers other than "fine". |
| Jessi: Here are some examples of other answers we might hear… |
| Daniel: Pretty good |
| Jessi: Not bad |
| Daniel: All right |
| Jessi: OK |
| Daniel: Not so good |
| Jessi: So be sure to try some of these phrases in your own conversations. |
| Daniel: Jessi, shall we try a few examples? |
| Jessi: Sure, sounds good. |
| Daniel: How’s it going, Jessi? |
| Jessi: Pretty good. How about you? |
| Daniel: Not bad. |
| Jessi: Alright, so let’s try it again, and this time I’ll start by asking you. How are you doing, Daniel? |
| Daniel: Great, how about you? |
| Jessi: Not so good. And now, let’s go over some pronunciation tips. |
| Daniel: You may have noticed in these conversations that pronunciation and intonation is very important. In casual speech, sounds are often pushed together. Listen to how the sounds are pushed together in these questions. The first one is.. |
| Jessi: “How’s it going?” |
| Daniel: “How is it” sounds like “Howz it” when spoken casually. |
| Jessi: How’s it going? |
| Daniel: and the other one? |
| Jessi: How ya doing? |
| Daniel: “How are you doing” sounds like “How ya doing” when spoken casually. |
| Jessi: How ya doing? |
| Daniel: So be sure to practice the pronunciation with these questions. Well, that just about does it for today. |
Outro |
| Jessi: Don’t forget to stop by EnglishClass101.com and pick up the lesson notes. |
| Daniel: It has the conversation transcript. |
| Jessi: vocab, sample sentences, a grammar explanation, |
| Daniel: and a cultural insight section. |
| Jessi: Saying the English really helps you remember faster. |
| Daniel: But don’t take our word for it. Please have a look for yourself. |
| Jessi: And let us know what you think. |
| Daniel: Well, until next time, see ya. |
| Jessi: Bye. |
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