Talking about Your Work Schedule (Part 2) - English for Professionals

LESSON 4 Topic: Work Schedule

Have you watched Part 1?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6V-Yv-DXhzc

Part 2: Additional listening practice is provided by Holly and Alfredo Deambrosi of OnTargetEnglish. (Scroll down to see the transcript.)

Key words & expressions:
full-time, part-time, flexible vs. fixed schedule, time off, vacation day, personal day, sick day

Series objective:
This series will help those preparing to use English in the workplace as well as those already in the workforce. This is NOT traditional Business English (negotiating, presenting, interviewing, etc.) The lessons in this series will help learners gain confidence in talking about work and work-related matters.

Target skills of series: listening, speaking, and vocabulary.

Levels: intermediate to advanced.

TEACHERS: A related classroom activity is posted on my WordPress blog.
http://englishwithjennifer.wordpress.com/2012/02/03/walk-the-dog-a-speaking-activity/

MUSIC CREDIT:
"Zx5" by Euglenu. Retrieved from http://www.flashkit.com/loops/Techno-Dance/Dance/Zx5-Euglenu-5751/index.php

For more music by EUGLENU, visit http://www.designx.ro/

Transcript of Holly and Alfredo's talk
Part 1:
My name is Holly, and I work part-time from home teaching English online via video. And I'm also an independent video producer.
My name is Alfredo, and for my full-time job I teach English at a university. I also teach English language learners through our website and through our YouTube channel.

Part 2:
[Holly] I love my work schedule. It is probably the most flexible job I've ever had, and it allows me to choose when I want to work. I can work late at night if I need to or for an hour or two during the day. And that's really great because it allows me to stay home with our son, which is really my favorite job anyway. And I just couldn't be happier with my work schedule.
[Alfredo] My work schedule is great, too. There are certain times that I have to be in the class teaching, and so those hours are fixed. But then I can grade papers when I want to. I can prepare lesson plans when I want to. I suppose what I like least about the schedule is that it's difficult to take a sick day because I have to find someone else to teach the classes. But what I like most about my schedule is that I have a lot of vacation days during the winter break and summer break.

Part 3:
[Holly] In my time off, I often do a lot of things around the house, like cooking and cleaning. But I also like to do fun and relaxing things, too. ...Spending time with friends. I love reading books and exercising. And I enjoy doing things with my family, like going kayaking at the lake when the weather's nice or going to the park. Things like that.
[Alfredo] Doing things with family is definitely my favorite thing to during time off. We enjoy walking around downtown or walking around the mall. And even if I'm just at home playing games with my family, that's a lot of fun.