Intro
1. Learn Vocabulary - Learn some new vocabulary before you start the lesson.
2. Read and Prepare - Read the introduction and prepare to hear the audio.
There is an English expression, “Love works in mysterious ways.” It means that you never know when you are going to fall in love, or how, or with whom.
Chinese pair figure skaters Zhao Hongbo and Shen Xue, who just won a gold medal at the 2010 Winter Olympics, had been skating together for 15 years before they got engaged in 2007. When you see them together now, it’s clear that they are head over heels in love with each other. But did they always know that they were meant to be? Or did love develop between them over time, as they bonded on the rink?
Jason recently talked with Zhao Hongbo and Shen Xue about what it means to be head over heels. Find out how these incredible athletes fell in love.
3. Watch - Watch the video without reading the dialog.
Dialog
1. Listen and Read - Listen to the audio and read the dialog at the same time.
2. Study - Read the dialog again to see how the vocab words are used.
![]() Xue |
![]() Hongbo |
![]() |
Xue: Hi, everybody. I’m Xue.
Hongbo: Hi. I’m Hongbo. We are head over heels.
Jason: When you are head over heels in love, it means you are completely and totally in love. After skating together for more than fifteen years, Zhao Hongbo and Shen Xue realized that they were head over heels in love with each other.
Jason: They just won the gold medal in figure skating, and they also got married a little over a year ago. And we’re gonna talk to them about what it means to be head over heels in love.
Jason: Where did you guys learn English?
Hongbo: In school, but not too much. Yeah. Not good enough.
Jason: And so, when did you realize that you were in love?
Xue: In 2007.
Jason: Oh, OK.
Hongbo: I’m in love in 2007.
Xue: We have been together for many years and the love developed slowly.
Jason: It was their first Olympics as a married couple and they came in first place. But Zhao Hongbo explains that winning the gold wasn’t as important as competing one final time with his wife. It’s clear that he’s head over heels.
Hongbo: We knew even if we didn’t get the gold medal, we would still be very happy to experience this Winter Olympics.
Jason: We just learned from Shen Xue that being head over heels means to be in love, and that she and her husband, Zhao Hongbo, fell in love slowly, over time. There wasn’t a moment when they thought suddenly, “Wow. I’m head over heels.” It happened over a period of years and now they’re married. This is English, baby!
Grammar Point
Go Super to learn "Simple Present Tense" from this lesson
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Discussion
When you fall head over heels in love with someone, you fall really deeply in love. It’s like your love is so strong that it makes you fall over and tumble upside down. It is a powerful, exciting, and overwhelming experience.
Sometimes people fall head over heels in love right away. But for Olympic gold medal figure skaters Zhao Hongbo and Shen Xue of China, love developed gradually. They skated together for 15 years before they got engaged in 2007. They have now been married for one year. Zhao Hongbo says it was very special to skate in the Olympics with his wife.
Have you ever been head over heels in love with someone? Do you think love usually develops slowly, or does it happen very quickly?
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