Listening for Gist A1: Understanding the Situation in Basic Dialogues
Welcome to Lesson 3 on listening for gist! In this lesson, we will practice figuring out where a conversation is happening. This is called understanding the situation1.
1. How to Understand the Situation
To understand the situation, you listen for keywords in a dialogue2. For example, if you hear words like "buy," "dollar," or "how much," the situation is probably in a shop. This is a useful skill for understanding conversations you might hear at the Old Market in Siem Reap.
2. Dialogue 1
Listen to this short dialogue. Where are these people?
Speaker A: Hello. Can I help you?
Speaker B: Yes, please. I want to buy a t-shirt.
Speaker A: This one is nice. It is twenty dollars.
Speaker B: Okay, I will take it.
What is the situation?
- A) In a classroom
- B) In a shop
- C) At a hotel
Click to Show Answer
Answer: B) In a shop. The keywords were "buy," "t-shirt," and "dollars."
3. Dialogue 2
Let's try another one. Listen for the keywords to understand the situation.
Teacher: Good morning, class.
Students: Good morning, teacher.
Teacher: Please open your book to page ten. Today we will read about families.
What is the situation?
- A) In a classroom3
- B) In a restaurant
- C) In a temple
Click to Show Answer
Answer: A) In a classroom. The keywords were "class," "teacher," "book," and "read."
4. Dialogue 3
One more practice. Where are they?
Waiter: Hello, are you ready to order?
Customer: Yes. I would like the fried rice with chicken, please.
Waiter: And to drink?
Customer: Just a bottle of water, thank you.
What is the situation?
- A) At the airport
- B) In a market
- C) In a restaurant4
Click to Show Answer
Answer: C) In a restaurant. The keywords were "order," "fried rice," "drink," and "water."
Final Quiz: What's the Situation?
Listen to two more short dialogues and choose the situation for each one.
-
Dialogue 1: (Listen to the audio)
Situation? (a) In a shop, (b) At a hotel, (c) In a classroom
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Dialogue 2: (Listen to the audio)
Situation? (a) In a restaurant, (b) At the airport, (c) In a tuk-tuk
Click to Show Answers
Answers: 1-b, 2-c
Homework Task
1. Situation Hunt: The next time you are in a public place (like a market or cafe), close your eyes and listen to a conversation happening nearby (in any language). Based only on the sounds and keywords, try to guess the situation.
2. Roleplay: With a friend, choose a situation (e.g., at the cinema, at the doctor's). Create a very short, two-line dialogue that shows this situation. Practice saying it.
Vocabulary Glossary
- Situation (noun) - Khmer: ស្ថានភាព - The set of circumstances and the place where something is happening. ↩
- Dialogue (noun) - Khmer: ការសន្ទនា - A conversation between two or more people. ↩
- Classroom (noun) - Khmer: បន្ទប់រៀន - A room in a school where students are taught. ↩
- Restaurant (noun) - Khmer: ភោជនីយដ្ឋាន - A place where people pay to sit and eat meals. ↩