Learn about Gerunds and Infinitives

Intro

1. Learn Vocabulary - Learn some new vocabulary before you start the lesson.

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• highlight
• bill
• coupon
• junk mail

• mailman
• snail mail
• mailbox
• post office

• direct deposit
• hassle

2. Read and Prepare - Read the introduction and prepare to hear the audio.

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Not long ago, people used to get pretty excited when they saw the mailman coming. The mail used to bring letters, magazines, and sometimes even money! But these days, as more and more of our lives have moved onto the Internet, we hardly seem to use the real mail anymore. It’s just too slow. There’s even a nickname for it in English because of how slow it is in comparison with email and other forms of instant communication: snail mail. Still, some people don’t want to see the mail disappear altogether. Hear Amy and Ella talk about mail.

Dialog

1. Listen and Read - Listen to the audio and read the dialog at the same time.

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2. Study - Read the dialog again to see how the vocab words are used.

Ella

Amy

Ella:  So, where I live, we don’t have mailboxes at our house. I have to have a post office box, and I just find it such a hassle to check it once a week. I refuse to go to the post office more than once a week to check the mail.

Amy:  Oh my gosh, really? Checking the mail is like the highlight of my day. I love coming home and seeing what’s in the mailbox.

Ella:  I just…I dread having to open a bill, and when I see all those coupon magazines and stuff, things I’ll never use, I’m just like, “This is a waste of paper and killing trees.” I hate receiving mail. Just send it to my email or send me a text.

Amy:  Yeah, I understand getting kind of annoyed by junk mail. But for me, even bills, it’s kind of exciting to open up a bill and see what your gas bill is that month. Just the act of, you know, opening up an envelope. And there’s nothing better than getting something you actually want in the mail. Like what about getting a paycheck in the mail? That’s awesome.

Ella:  That’s what direct deposit is for. Then I don’t have to keep track of everything, because it’ll all just be in a very convenient little file folder online somewhere. So then I don’t have to keep all these papers and junk mail and deal with the mailman. I mean, the only thing I like to receive is probably a package, but besides that, the mail can just stop.

 

Grammar Point

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Quizzes

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Lesson MP3

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