Practice Restaurant Dialogue for Ordering Food

Practice Restaurant Dialogue for Ordering Food Ordering food in a restaurant is one of the most basic tasks for English learners- after all, eating is essential and so is talking about eating- but it can also be one of the most daunting. This simple lesson is aimed at beginners who are practicing ordering for the very first time. Use this lesson, dialogue, and sample menu to help ESL students learn how to order  food in a restaurant using basic vocabulary Preparing for the Dialogues Simple dialogues will help students to order food and speak in a socially acceptable way in a restaurant while  challenging listening-comprehension exercises will help boost their passive-understanding skills. Before having students perform the dialogue below, ask them to name different types of food they might find in a restaurant. Write the vocabulary on the board and make sure students also take notes. After they do so: Give students the dialogue and menu, and ask them to read through it carefully. Point out the use of would like for asking for and making requests. You may also want to make sure they notice the use of here you are instead of please when handing someone something.Pair students and ask them to role-play ordering food in a restaurant using the menu below (or a more interesting menu you may have on hand). Both students should switch roles a number of times.If you have access to a computer, improve passive understanding by doing a  listening- comprehension  exercise, like the one found in this practice script.   Finally, ask students what are some ways  (dialogues, thematic texts, and narrative stories)  they can use to help them improve their listening-comprehension skills in English. Dialogue: Ordering Food in a Restaurant Have students pair up to practice the following dialogue, then have them switch roles. Waiter: Hello, Can I help you?.Kim: Yes, Id like to have some lunch.Waiter: Would you like a starter?Kim: Yes, Id like a bowl of chicken soup, please.Waiter: And what would you like for your main course?Kim: Id like a grilled cheese sandwich.Waiter: Would you like anything to drink?Kim: Yes, Id like a glass of Coke, please.Waiter: Would Pepsi be OK? We dont have Coke.Kim: That would be fine.Waiter:  (After Kim has her lunch.) Can I bring you anything else?Kim: No thank you. Just the bill.Waiter: Certainly.Kim: I dont have my glasses. How much is the lunch?Waiter: Thats $6.75.Kim: Here you are. Thank you very much.Waiter: Youre welcome. Have a good day.Kim: Thank you. Same to you. Sample Menu Use this menu to practice ordering food in a restaurant. Have students swap out different food and drink items to modify the above dialogue, or let them create their own dialogues. Joes Restaurant Starters Chicken Soup $2.50 Salad $3.25 Sandwiches - Main Course Ham and cheese $3.50 Tuna $3.00 Vegetarian $4.00 Grilled Cheese $2.50 Slice of Pizza $2.50 Cheeseburger $4.50 Hamburger $5.00 Spaghetti $5.50 Drinks Coffee $1.25 Tea $1.25 Soft Drinks - Coke, Sprite, Root Beer, Ice Tea $1.75

Wait Listed Getting Creative Might Be the Answer

Wait Listed Getting Creative Might Be the Answer On April 15, 2010 the New York Times printed an Op-Ed entitled â€Å"The Wait List is the Hardest Part.†Ã‚   The editorial was written by Saffa Khan, a senior in high school who was waitlisted at four colleges. The content of the article was of course valuable, and 17-year-old Saffa gets points for making a Tom Petty reference.   But I’m not concerned with her content.   The thing that caught my attention is simply that a high school senior got published in the New York Times!   Saffa took huge initiative, worked hard to write a piece that would be of value, and put it out there to the world. If you were a college admissions committee, do you think you might take notice? This student stands out amongst all the others who just sit there, waiting, hoping, wondering.   She even stands out amongst the students who send additional essays, or letters about why X school is their first choice, or new letters of recommendation.   All those things might help you to get off the waitlist, but getting published in the New York Times takes the cake. Do you have something you can achieve that is truly out of the ordinary?   Can you get published in a national newspaper?   Win a poetry, science or chess contest or competition?   Self-publish a book?   Solve a problem that hasn’t been solved? If you’re serious about getting off the waitlist, my advice is to follow Saffa’s example – and stop waiting.