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Getting Ready

Who would most enjoy these hobbies and pastimes? Check (✓) your answers and compare them with a partner. There may be more than one answer.

 

Young child

Teenager

Adult

Retired person

gardening

cooking

playing sports

hiking

collecting comic books

playing video games

surfing the Internet

Answer

your own answers

Listening 1

People are talking about hobbies and pastimes. Listen and number the pictures.

Answer & Transcript

A 5   B 2   C 3   D 4   E 1   F 6

Transcript

1

I love to eat out. I eat at restaurants most of the time. I really love to eat at pizzerias.

2

I read almost everything I can: books, magazines, newspapers. I go to the public library about twice a week.

3

I never used to like stamp collecting, but now I think it’s great. I’ve got two huge stamp albums. Hey, why don’t you come and see my collection some times?

4

My wife says I should take up gardening. We have a big garden, and she loves working in it, but the truth is, it bores me.

5

Well, everyone in my family loves sports – everyone, that is, except me. My family’s out playing baseball and stuff all the time. But I think most sports are pretty boring. I don’t like chasing balls around a field. And I couldn’t hit a ball if I had to.

6

My friends think I’m really boring because I’m always listening to music. I go to concerts all the time. I love Mozart and all that classical stuff.

Listening 2

Task 1

Which activity does each person enjoy doing now? Listen and circle the correct answer.

1   Zach

     a   playing basketball

     b   painting

     c   hiking

2   Erica

     a   collecting baseball cards

     b   collecting comic books

     c   gardening

3   Brian

     a   watching videos

     b   hiking

     c   playing video games

4   Evan

     a   collecting stamps

     b   collecting paintings

     c   collecting baseball cards

5   Danielle

     a   painting

     b   writing children’s books

     c   reading

6   Marcus

     a   reading the newspaper

     b   playing golf

     c   reading books

Answer

1 b   2 c   3 b   4 a   5 a   6 b

Task 2

Listen again. What does each speaker like best about his or her current hobby or pastime?

1   Zach ……

2   Erica ……

3   Brian ……

4   Evan ……

5   Danielle ……

6   Marcus ……

a   the flowers

b   looking at his collection

c   creating pictures

d   using bright colors

e   looking at the blue sky

 making great friends

Answer & Transcript

1 d   2 a   3 f   4 b   5 c   6 e

Transcript

1

I used to play sports a lot when I was younger, but I don’t play much anymore. Now I enjoy painting. I have my own studio in my garage, and pretty soon I’ll have a show at a gallery. Maybe I’ll become famous! I really enjoy using bright colors in my paintings – that’s what I like best about it.

2

I’ve always collected things, even when I was young. I used to collect everything – comic books, baseball cards, you name it. But they’re all packed away in boxes now. Now my favorite pastime is gardening. I spend all weekend outside with my flowers. I love seeing them change. That’s what I like best about it, I guess. They’re these little seeds at first, and then one day, they’re big, beautiful flowers.

3

When I was a teenager, all I did was sit around playing video games. But I can’t stand them anymore. I work in an office now, so I sit in front of a boring computer screen all day. Now I like being outdoors. I belong to a hiking group. and we go someplace different every weekend. I keep fit and healthy this way. The best thing is that I can make some really great friends.

4

I like collecting things. I collected baseball cards when I was a kid, but I don’t anymore. These days, baseball card collectors are only interested in money. I wanted to collect things that are really beautiful, so that’s why I started collecting stamps. Some of the stamps I have are really, really beautiful. I think they’re like paintings. What I like best is looking at my collection. It’s like walking through a tiny museum full of wonderful paintings.

5

I always loved reading as a kid, so for a long time I wanted to write children’s books. I tried to do it for a few years after college, but it was really hard to come up with good stories. I guess I’m not very good with words. Now, I’m happy just painting. I’ve won a few prizes, too – in art competitions – for my watercolors and oils. The pictures are important to me, though, not the prizes. What I enjoy most is creating pictures. It makes me so happy.

6

Well, I’m retired now, and I have a lot of free time. I worked for the same company for over thirty years, mostly in the same little office. I worked long hours, and when I came home from work, I was too tired to do anything but read the newspaper. Now it’s different. I spend almost all my free time outdoors playing golf. I guess what I love best is looking at the beautiful blue sky.

Listening 3

Task 1

People are talking about their interests. Listen and check (✓) two suitable hobbies for each person.

 Steve

    surfing the Internet

    gardening

     bird watching

     hiking

 Christine

    music

    bird watching

     gardening

     cooking

 Joe

    sports

    hiking

     music

     surfing the Internet

 Amy

    hiking

    reading

     sports

     surfing the Internet

Answer

1   Steve: gardening, birdwatching

2   Christine: music, cooking

3   Joe: sports, hiking

4   Amy: reading, surfing the Internet

Task 2

Listen again. What is one activity each person likes doing? Circle the correct answer.

1   a   enjoying nature

     b   hiking

     c   sitting in a cafe

2   a   bird watching

     b   visiting the countryside

     c   getting together with friends

3   a   surfing the Internet

     b   exercising

     c   playing the guitar

4   a   learning something new

     b   going to parties

     c   working out at the gym

Answer & Transcript

1 a   2 c   3 4 a

Transcript

1

A few months ago, I moved to this cute little house out in the country. Before I moved, all I did was sit in cafes and read or surf the Internet. Boring! Now I want to spend all my free time outside, enjoying nature. The only problem is, I’m not in very good shape, so I don’t like doing any sports, or anything that involves a lot of exercise. I tried hiking once, but I fell down a hill and hurt my leg. Don’t get me wrong, I love the outdoors – but what I really want is something I can do quietly in nature.

2

I live in a big city, so I love being around lots of people. My brother is completely the opposite – last weekend, he took me to the country to go bird watching. I was so bored the whole time. I like talking to people and doing creative things. I’d just love to get all my friends together at my apartment in the city and do something. We could have a dinner party, maybe. Or we could bring over some guitars and drums, and stuff like that, and sing and dance!

3

Exercise is really important to me. I like doing things where I keep active, things that are good for my health. My roommate isn’t like that at all, though – he wakes up and surfs the Internet for hours. Then he plays his guitar in his room all afternoon. Yuck! I just hate sitting around indoors! I especially hate surfing the Internet. I want to meet other people. I also want to get out and visit new places, like out in the country, where you can see some real nature.

4

I don’t really like going to parties or working out at the gym all the time. I don’t like hiking around in nature, either. I like to do things that develop my mind or things that teach me about other countries and places. What I really love is history. To me, a good history book is a lot more exciting than a fancy dinner party, or some concert, or a baseball game. And there’s a lot of great historical information on the Internet, too! I’m not one of those people who sit at home and collect stamps. For me, learning something new is a real adventure!

Conversation Corner: Talking about hobbies

Task 1

Listen to the conversation. Write the missing words.

A:   What do you do in your free time, Lara?

B:   I used to enjoy ……………., but now I like ……………. and ……………. .

A:   Oh, not me! I enjoy collecting things. I collect ……………. cards.

B:   Do you do anything else?

A:   Yes, I really enjoy ……………. the Internet and listening to ……………. .

B:   Do you play any sports?

A:   I go ……………. and ……………. in the winter. How about you?

B:   I like summer sports. I enjoy ……………. and ……………. .

Task 2

Practice the conversation with a partner. Be sure to stress the correct syllable in the missing words.

Answer & Transcript

A:   What do you do in your free time, Lara?

B:   I used to enjoy painting, but now I like cooking and gardening.

A:   Oh, not me! I enjoy collecting things. I collect baseball cards.

B:   Do you do anything else?

A:   Yes, I really enjoy surfing the Internet and listening to music.

B:   Do you play any sports?

A:   I go skiing and snowboarding in the winter. How about you?

B:   I like summer sports. I enjoy swimming and hiking.

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