Learning to speak English? Our Everyday Conversations help you practice. Click the audio link to hear a native speaker pronounce each word while you read. Key terms are explained at the end. Today’s conversation is about winter activities.
Esme: I love looking at the snow, but it looks cold outside. Maybe I’ll stay inside today.
Mirta: But the sun is shining, and you have a warm coat, so let’s do something outside. How about we go ice skating?
Esme: That sounds fun, but I don’t have any ice skates. How about we go snowboarding instead?
Mirta: That’s a great idea, but the closest place to snowboard is an hour away.
Esme: Oh. Well, do you want to go sledding? I have a great sled.
Mirta: Yes. That sounds really fun!
Now let’s review the vocabulary
Let’s plus a verb is a way of suggesting doing something with one or more people. “Let’s” is a contracted form of “let us.”
When you use how about at the start of a question, it can be a way to make a suggestion.
Ice skating is the activity of using ice skates to move on ice.
Ice skates are a type of shoe/boot with a blade on the bottom for moving across ice.
That sounds … fun, great, bad, etc. is a way to reply to an idea or suggestion.
Snowboarding is the sport of sliding down a mountain of snow on a snowboard. A snowboard is a large board designed for someone to stand on and move down a mountain on the snow.
Instead is used to suggest another choice.
Sledding is the act of riding on a sled down a hill.
A sled is a vehicle used to travel over snow. It has a flat bottom or narrow metal strips on the bottom to help it move over the snow. Children often use sleds to move quickly down small hills covered in snow.
The American English website offers a variety of free resources for learners and teachers of English. The American English Facebook page posts learning materials for English-language learners daily.
Everyday Conversations are developed by the State Department’s Heidi Howland, a senior program officer in the Office of English Language Programs, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs.
