Surfing
Jan 11 2016
Intro
Right now, you are probably sitting at your computer. Wouldn’t you rather be relaxing at the beach? You could swim, work on your tan, or play in the sand. Or, you could ride the waves on a surfboard!
Surfing is a water sport. Many people in who live on thecoast love to surf. It is fun, exciting, and a great workout. However, surfing can also be dangerous. You can run into hazards like a riptide or big waves. You could even have an encounter with a shark! It is important to be safe and bring a friend when you surf.
Brian wants Sara to try surfing. Listen to the dialog to find out if she will ride the waves.
Surfing is a water sport. Many people in who live on thecoast love to surf. It is fun, exciting, and a great workout. However, surfing can also be dangerous. You can run into hazards like a riptide or big waves. You could even have an encounter with a shark! It is important to be safe and bring a friend when you surf.
Brian wants Sara to try surfing. Listen to the dialog to find out if she will ride the waves.
Dialogue
Brian: Hey Sara, do you surf? I was thinking of going to the coast and taking some boards out there.
Sara_R: Not at all. It sounds really hard.
Brian: Really? Oh… well, I have a spare surfboard and awetsuit. I can go out and teach you how to ride thewaves. It’s not that difficult.
Sara_R: It sounds difficult. So, I have to paddle against the current, or… ?
Brian: It’s just practice. It’s like riding a bicycle, which, now, probably seems a lot easier than when you started. Really, honestly, I hadn’t surfed for a long time. My friend took me out. I was scared of hazards and whatnot, but I didn’t have any dangerous encounters. After three times, I really got the hang of it, and I really enjoy it.
Sara_R: Well, I guess I could give it a try.
Brian: Great. The only thing you have to look out for isriptides, but I will show you. That will be our first lesson, how to get out of a riptide.
Sara_R: Oh, gosh. OK.
Brian: I promise you’ll have fun.
Sara_R: OK. Let’s do it.
Sara_R: Not at all. It sounds really hard.
Brian: Really? Oh… well, I have a spare surfboard and awetsuit. I can go out and teach you how to ride thewaves. It’s not that difficult.
Sara_R: It sounds difficult. So, I have to paddle against the current, or… ?
Brian: It’s just practice. It’s like riding a bicycle, which, now, probably seems a lot easier than when you started. Really, honestly, I hadn’t surfed for a long time. My friend took me out. I was scared of hazards and whatnot, but I didn’t have any dangerous encounters. After three times, I really got the hang of it, and I really enjoy it.
Sara_R: Well, I guess I could give it a try.
Brian: Great. The only thing you have to look out for isriptides, but I will show you. That will be our first lesson, how to get out of a riptide.
Sara_R: Oh, gosh. OK.
Brian: I promise you’ll have fun.
Sara_R: OK. Let’s do it.
Discussion
Brian wants to know if Sara likes to surf. He wants to go to the coast and was hoping to take a friend with him. Sara has never gone surfing, and she is a little bit nervous about it. She thinks it sounds difficult.
Brian says that surfing can be difficult at first, but it is like riding a bicycle. Once you get enough practice, you will remember how to do it. He says that he just went surfing, and he did not have any difficulties or bad experiences. He can teach Sara how to surf. Sara is still not sure, but she agrees to try it.
Do you live near the coast? Do you want to go surfing?
Brian says that surfing can be difficult at first, but it is like riding a bicycle. Once you get enough practice, you will remember how to do it. He says that he just went surfing, and he did not have any difficulties or bad experiences. He can teach Sara how to surf. Sara is still not sure, but she agrees to try it.
Do you live near the coast? Do you want to go surfing?
Grammar Point
The Past Progressive Tense
Brian invites Sara to go surfing with him. He says, “Iwas thinking of going to the coast.” He uses the past progressive tense.
The past progressive tense (also sometimes called “past continuous”) is formed by using was/were + main verb + ing, as in, “We were eating dinner when the phone rang.”
We use the past progressive tense to talk about actions that were already in progress when another action took place in the past. (At the moment the phone rang, we were already in the process of eating dinner.)
It’s also common to use this tense to talk about two on-going actions that were happening at the same time in the past, as in, “While Justin Timberlake was finishing his new album, his fans were waiting for the chance to hear it.”
Finally, we can also use this tense to talk about actions in the past that took place over time, as in, “I couldn’t sleep last night because dogs were barking the whole night.”
When Brian says, “I was thinking of going to the coast,” he is talking about an action in the past that took place over time.
Which is correct, “I was left for school when the phone rang,” or, “I was leaving for school when the phone rang”?
Source: My English pages
Brian invites Sara to go surfing with him. He says, “Iwas thinking of going to the coast.” He uses the past progressive tense.
The past progressive tense (also sometimes called “past continuous”) is formed by using was/were + main verb + ing, as in, “We were eating dinner when the phone rang.”
We use the past progressive tense to talk about actions that were already in progress when another action took place in the past. (At the moment the phone rang, we were already in the process of eating dinner.)
It’s also common to use this tense to talk about two on-going actions that were happening at the same time in the past, as in, “While Justin Timberlake was finishing his new album, his fans were waiting for the chance to hear it.”
Finally, we can also use this tense to talk about actions in the past that took place over time, as in, “I couldn’t sleep last night because dogs were barking the whole night.”
When Brian says, “I was thinking of going to the coast,” he is talking about an action in the past that took place over time.
Which is correct, “I was left for school when the phone rang,” or, “I was leaving for school when the phone rang”?
Source: My English pages
