Playing catch-up

This is a fun mingle activity which is perfect for large classes.  It does require a bit of preparation in order to provide examples of language but I think it´s well worth it.

The objective

To make conversation.  To find out what someone´s been doing since you last met.  To gossip even.

The language

Present perfect: I´ve just returned from a trip.

Present perfect continuous:  I´ve been working a lot.

Past simple: I saw a fantastic film last weekend.

Future (plans): I´m meeting an old friend on Friday.

Reported speech:  Juan says that he´s been working too much.

Relative clauses: I´ve found out that Juan has been working too much.

The set-up

Record, or write a dialogue between two people catching up on personal news (examples provided below, which of course you can use).  Print out the examples (even if you record them).

The low-down

Listen to or read the example dialogues and ask students the following.  

General understanding:

What´s happening?

What is their relationship?  

What news does each person give?

Specific phrases:

What questions do each speaker ask?

Why do they ask these questions?

What you want to establish is that some time has passed since their last meeting and so in order to learn what is new since that time, these questions are used.  Make sure you put the questions on the board.  Once you´re sure students understand the grammar, ask them to think in pairs of more questions they might ask someone they haven´t seen for a while. These questions could be specific or general.  They should think of things like, Did you go on holiday?  How was your weekend?  What´s new?  Have you been very busy?  Etc.

Put students´ ideas on the board when they´re finished and discuss them.

Now what?

Ask students to speak to their partner for (2 minutes??) and collect as much information about them as possible since their last meeting or since the last time they spoke (outside of class).  Information can be about themselves or others (family, friends, co-workers).  Demonstrate with a couple of students first.  At the end of the alloted time, ask them to change partners.  Repeat this process a couple of times, time allowing.  Finally, reorganize them into groups of three (hopefully with students they generally haven´t met with before) and ask them to report to each other everything they found out.  Put the phrase "I´ve found out that..." and give a couple of examples.  When they´ve finished, ask a couple of students to report something they thought was interesting and check to see if it´s really true with the student it originally came from.  

More talk-time

Review any problems in speaking that you heard on the board.  

Do you like to gossip?

Do you gossip much?

Is gossip always negative?

Example Dialogues

One
Jim: Hi Kate, it´s nice to see you again.   How have you been?

Kate: Oh, Jim!  What a surprise!  I didn´t expect to see you here!
Jim:  Well, I´m here with some friends.  They´re over there at the bar.
Kate:  So how are you?
Jim:  Good!  And you?
Kate: Uff!  Really busy lately but I can´t complain.  So have you seen Eva recently?

Jim: No.  Have you?
Kate:  Yes.  She´s pregnant!
Jim:  Really?  That´s fantastic!

Two
Montse: You´re Ted, aren´t you?  From IT?
Ted: That´s right.  And you´re Montse.
Montse:  How are you?  How´s it over there?
Ted: Same as always.
Montse:  I know what you mean.  I´m looking change departments, actually?
Ted:  Really?  Is it that bad?
Montse:  No, no worse than IT, I suppose.  Do you know Kate, from Accounts?
Ted: A bit.  Why?
Montse: She said they´re looking for someone so I might apply.
Ted: Good for you!  Hey, are you still living in the city?
Montse:  Yeah, and you?
Ted:  No, I just moved to a smaller town about 20 minutes away.  It´s really quiet.
Montse:  I´m a city-girl myself.
Ted: Well, I know a bit what you mean.  I´m starting to miss all that noise!

Go mingle

First of all, although the basic idea for this activity comes from "Business Result" Upper-Intermediate (Oxford), you don´t need a business group to do it.  The focus is on mingling: introducing yourself, making contact, explaining who you are and what you do and trying to make a connection (business or otherwise).  It´s a fantastic skill to work on and this activity is a fantastic opportunity to do so.  

The objective
The basic idea is for students to take on the role of a small company and present their business to the rest and then decide with whom it would be useful to do business with.  The original activity contained just four role-cards but I found that a bit limiting to the potential of the activity which was to exploit the idea of finding your ideal business partner by moving about the room, making contact with others (via small talk) and eventually locating the business which is a "perfect fit" to yours (without having it written on your card).

The language
Present simple:  I work for...
Present continuous:  We´re looking for...; We are expanding our business.

The set-up
Print out the role-cards (provided below) and cut them up.  Make sure you know which goes with which and why (I´ll let you figure that one out yourself).  Feel free to make any changes (make the connections easier to see or "dumb down" the language).

The low-down
Ask students if they know what a business networking conference is.  (optional: bring a small text which describes one)  Explain to the class what it means, why and how it works.  Then tell them that they are going to attend one in X hotel for a lunch conference in X (city).  Each student (or pair) will have a role-card.  The objective is to move around the room introducing themselves and making conversation to decide if they could do business together.  If not, they should speak with someone else.  Very important: Demonstrate this with a couple of students.  Hand out the cards (mixed up) and ask students to stand up and move to the center of the room.  Monitor and help them with any hiccups in conversation.  Also, referee to make sure they found the intended partner.

Now what?
When students have found their intended business partner, they should sit down and discuss details of their future relationship.  Ask them to make a basic plan of what their relationship will be and how they will conduct it.  When they finish, ask some pairs to present to the class.

More talk-time
Do you think networking conferences are a good way to meet new clients?
What other ways can a company meet new clients?
What´s (would be) the most difficult thing about gaining a new client, in your opinion?
What´s more difficult, in your opinion, getting new clients or maintaining present ones?
What makes a good salesperson?

Name: Tesla Product: Hybrid sports cars Information: new company which makes luxury sports cars Current activities: looking for sound system provider as well as other electronics for interior	Name: EmCom Product: Stereo systems and speakers Information: the best sounding stereos for home, office, car also make speaker systems high quality, luxury design Current activities: Looking to expand	Name: Luxa Insurance Product: Insurance sales (life insurance, car insurance, etc.) Information: We have many important clients in many sectors as well as private Current activities: Looking to provide gifts for important corporate clients
Name: Exotic Travel Product: Travel Agency Information: Provide private and corporate package holidays for destinations all over the world at competitive prices Current activities: Looking for new clients	Name: CMI Bank Product: Banking and Investment Information: A large, international bank with a large number of branches in local neighborhoods Current activities: Looking to attract new customers by offering gifts if they join	Name: Sony Product: Electronics Information: Largest manufacturer of electronics such as televisions, stereos, Mp3 players, computers and mobile phones Current activities: Development and sales of new products
Name: J. Blue Clothing Product: Men´s/Women´s clothing Information: Manufacturer and distributor of modern clothing in Spain Current activities: Looking to expand into international market	Name: DotCom WebDev Product: Web design and management Information: Provide website design service for large and small businesses Current activities: Looking for new clients	Name: Passport Product: Magazine Information: A travel magazine for the wealthy Current activities: Looking to promote anniversary issue of magazine but throwing a party
Name: Taylor and Taylor Product: Corporate Catering Information: Provide catering for large and small events, focusing on exclusive, glamourous parties for important clients Current activities: Looking for new clients	Name: LC Logistics Product: Logistics and Transport Services Information: Provide logistics and transport for companies throughout Europe and Asia Current activities: Looking for qualified workers with languages as well as Language training and translation	Name: Tongue Tied Product: Languages Information: Provide immediate translations, interpreters and teachers for more the twelve different languages, including Chinese and Arabic Current activities: Looking for new clients