Learn social English in this lesson about 'trick of the trade'

Intro

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

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• about to
• dang
• validate
• gift certificate

• insider tip
• trick of the trade
• discount
• pick out

• popcorn
• scoop

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

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Do you ever wish you had expert knowledge of something? Think how easy it would be to buy a house if you were a realtor, to travel if you were a travel agent, or to publish a novel if you were an editor. Maybe, if you had insider tips from a Hollywood agent, you could even become a movie star! Life would be a lot easier if you knew all the tricks of the trade.

We use the expression “trick of the trade” to talk about a special way that experts do something. For example, a travel agent might know a trick of the trade about how to get a discount on airplane tickets. A baker might know a trick of the trade to make cakes and pies taste extra delicious. How can you get access to all this secret knowledge? Well, if you make friends with an expert, they might share some tricks of the trade with you!

Andy is an expert about movies. Watch the video to see what tricks of the trade he has to share with Kelsey.

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.

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

Kelsey

Andy_H

Kelsey:  Boo!

Andy_H:  Ah! Hey, Kelsey. How’s it going?

Kelsey:  Great! So good! Thank you for picking out a movie.

Andy_H:  Oh yeah. No problem.

Kelsey:  You already have popcorn?

Andy_H:  Well, it’s a little trick of the trade. You see, I already saw two movies today.

Kelsey:  Two movies?

Andy_H:  This will be my third.

Kelsey:  Wow, OK.

Andy_H:  And at this movie theater, they sell popcorn at a discount when each movie is about to end. So, I wait until just before the end of the film. Then, I buy popcorn for the next movie I’m about to watch.

Kelsey:  Alright! Getting the insider tips here.

Andy_H:  You bet! Also, did you drive here?

Kelsey:  No, I took the bus.

Andy_H:  Dang. That’s too bad.

Kelsey:  Why?

Andy_H:  Well, at this movie theater, they validate parking and give you one of these.

Kelsey:  What are these?

Andy_H:  For each movie, they give you a gift certificate for one scoop of ice cream free at the shop next door.

Kelsey:  What?! I love ice cream!

Andy_H:  Me too! And I already got our tickets and got two more for you.

Kelsey:  Wow! Thank you! You really do know all the tricks of the trade.

Andy_H:  Shall we watch the movie?

Kelsey:  Sure. What movies did you see already?

Andy_H:  Well, the one we’re about to watch was the first one.

Kelsey:  What?!

Andy_H:  I just wanted to make sure you’d like it!

 

Grammar Point

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Quizzes

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Lesson MP3

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