Everyday English (Elementary)
Topic: Dates and Numbers
Lesson Notes July 8, 2025 (Elementary)
Words & Phrases
The Hokkaido Garden Path is a garden tour route 200 kilometres long. It begins in Asahikawa and takes you through Furano and Tokachi.
In the picture with me is the farm owner and tour guide.
I won a ticket lottery for a concert in Yokohama. (See appropriate language below)
Recently, I’ve been going to hula practice every other day. (See grammar below)
The factory the dressmaker used changed owners last year.
If we order new dresses they won’t arrive in time.
We reached the city on the expressway. (‘Interchange’ is more formal and technical)
I went to the museum, not their special exhibition.
There were a lot of (people / museum goers) lined up to buy tickets. (NOT ‘audience’)
There was a large crowd of people outside to get tickets.
Audience (noun); the group of people who watch, listen to, or read something, such as a performance, speech, or piece of media
The audience clapped loudly after the concert.
He tailored his message to suit a younger audience.
A large audience gathered in front of the TV for the announcement.
Grammar
“Recently” suggests something happening lately, so we typically use the present perfect continuous (have/has been + ~ing) to show an ongoing action
Appropriate Language
High-demand tickets (for concerts, sports events, theatre, etc.) are sold through lotteries. Here are some common phrases you can use.
“I got tickets to the concert by lottery.” (= simple and direct)
“I always enter a lottery to get tickets for my favourite performer.” (= Most common phrasing in natural conversation)
I entered the lottery for the concert, but I didn’t win.”
“Initial ticket sales for the Expo were done through a lottery system.” (= Slightly more formal or explanatory)
“I won / lost the ticket lottery.” (= Common way to describe the outcome)
“I finally won the ticket lottery for Ghibli Park!”
“I applied three times and kept losing the ticket lottery.”
Dates & Numbers
Tongue Placement for TH
Both TH sounds (voiced and unvoiced) are made with the tip of the tongue lightly touching your top front teeth.
The tongue should stick out a little, just between the teeth.
Let the air go over the tongue.
Voiced TH (Your throat vibrates)
Examples: this, that, they, mother, weather
Unvoiced TH (No voice, just air sound)
Examples: think, thank, three, tooth, month
Simple Exercise
Stick out your tongue a little between your teeth.
Say “thhhhhhink”, “thhhhhhank”, “thhhhhhree”, “toothhhhhh”, “monthhhhhh”; hold the ‘TH’ sound for as long as you can.
Now say “thhhhhhis”, “thhhhhhat”, “thhhhhhey”, “mothhhhhher”, “weathhhhhher”; hold the ‘TH’ sound for as long as you can.
You can also practice using Section 2 with all the dates that end in ‘-TH’
