Saying New English Words in Your First Lesson.

In this first lesson you step into your English classroom and start building confidence with the sound system of the language. You meet your teacher and classmates, learn useful classroom phrases and begin to connect spelling with pronunciation so that new words feel less scary. Through short dialogues and simple listening activities you notice how vowels and consonants sound in common words like names, countries and classroom objects. You practise the alphabet so you can spell your name, email address and basic information clearly on the phone or at a reception desk. You experiment with word stress in everyday words such as teacher, hotel and coffee, and copy natural intonation in simple questions and greetings. By the end, you can ask your teacher to repeat, check how to say a word and introduce yourself so that other people understand you.

1. Arriving in your first English class.

Imagine you are walking into your very first English lesson. You open the door, you see the teacher and some new classmates, and everybody is speaking English. It can feel exciting, but also a little scary. In this block we will slow down that moment and give you clear, simple language so you know exactly what to say. You will hear a short conversation between a student and a teacher. Listen for the greetings and for how they say their names. After that, you will write a few lines about yourself. We will focus on very useful chunks such as “Hello, my name is…”, “Nice to meet you.” and “Where are you from?”. Do not worry about difficult grammar; just try to say these sentences smoothly. Remember, this is your first lesson, so it is completely fine to repeat, to pause, and to think. Take a deep breath, listen carefully, and get ready to step into your English classroom with more confidence.

The moment you walk into class.

When you arrive in a new classroom, the first seconds are important. You want to sound friendly and clear, even with very simple English. In the audio for this block, you hear a short dialogue between a teacher and a new student. Read a similar conversation here:

At the classroom door

Teacher Alex: Hello, good morning.

Student Mina: Hello. My name is Mina.

Teacher Alex: Nice to meet you, Mina. I am Alex.

Mina: Nice to meet you too.

Teacher Alex: Where are you from, Mina?

Mina: I am from Brazil.

Teacher Alex: Great. Please come in.

Useful first-lesson phrases.

Here are some very common and safe sentences for your first lesson. You can copy them and change only your name or country.

• Hello, my name is _[your name]_.
• Hi, I’m _[your name]_.
• Nice to meet you.
• Nice to meet you too.
• Where are you from?
• I am from _[country]_.
• I live in _[city]_.

Notice that I and names (for example, Mina, Alex, Brazil) always start with a capital letter.

Small tips for a good first impression.

1. Smile and look at the person when you say hello.
2. Speak slowly. It is better to be clear than fast.
3. Use a short answer first. Then you can add extra information.

Example:

> Hello, my name is Omar. I’m from Egypt.

Now you will listen again and then write a few lines as if you are in that classroom.

Practice & Feedback

First, listen to the short classroom conversation in the audio below. While you listen, try to catch two things: the names and the countries. You can repeat the audio more than once.

Then write your answer in two parts:

1. Comprehension: Write the two names and the two countries that you hear in the audio. Use a full sentence, for example: The teacher is Alex and the student is Mina. She is from Brazil.
2. About you: Imagine you are walking into this class. Write 3 or 4 short sentences to introduce yourself to Alex. Use some of the phrases from the screen, such as Hello, my name is…, Nice to meet you. and I am from…. Focus on clear, simple English and capital letters for names and countries.

2. Noticing English sounds in common words.

Now that you can say hello and tell people your name, let us look more closely at the sounds inside words. In your first English lessons, you will hear many new words: names, countries, classroom objects like “pen” or “phone”. Some of these words look easy, but the sound is different from your language. In this block, we will notice patterns. For example, the sound in “name”, “Spain” and “table” is very similar. If you can hear and feel that pattern, it becomes easier to say new words with the same sound. I will show you some groups of words and you will read them slowly. Do not worry about perfect pronunciation; just try to copy the sound groups. After that, you will do a short reading task where you choose words with similar vowel sounds. This is not a test. It is simple training for your ears and mouth, like gentle exercise at the start of a workout.

Seeing and hearing patterns in English words.

When you learn a new language, it helps to notice patterns, not only individual words. In English, many words share similar sounds. If you know one word, you can often guess another.

Look at these groups. Read them slowly, group by group.

Group A – sound like “name”

• name
• Spain
• table
• plane

Group B – sound like “cat”

• cat
• bag
• black
• map

In Group A, the vowel sound is long and open. In Group B, it is short. Try this exercise:

> Say Group A: name, Spain, table, plane.

> Then say Group B: cat, bag, black, map.

Feel how your mouth moves a little differently.

Silent letters and magic "e".

In English, some letters do not make a sound. For example:

• name – we do not say the e.
• plane – again, the final e is silent.

This final e often makes the vowel before it sound like Group A. Compare:

• cap (short, like cat) vs cape (long, like name)
• plan vs plane

You do not need to remember all the rules now. Just start to notice when letters are silent and when vowels are long or short.

Classroom object words.

Here are some common classroom words. Try to put them into Group A or Group B by the main vowel sound.

• pen
• desk
• bag
• name
• page
• black

In the activity below, you will read a short text and then choose three words with a “name” sound and three with a “cat” sound.

Practice & Feedback

Read the short text below carefully. It gives you a list of words from Group A and Group B, plus a few extra words. Your job is not to be perfect, but to start hearing patterns in the spelling and sounds.

Then write your answer in two parts:

1. Sound like “name” (Group A): Choose three words from the text that you think have a similar vowel sound to name or Spain. Write them in one sentence, for example: I think "table", "plane" and "page" have the same sound as "name".
2. Sound like “cat” (Group B): Choose three words that sound more like cat or bag. Again, write them in a full sentence.

If you are not sure, just guess and explain your idea. I will tell you which choices are good and show you one or two better options.

3. Using the alphabet to spell names clearly.

In real life, you often need to spell information: your name, your email address, the name of your street or city. This happens on the phone, at reception desks and in online forms. If the other person does not understand a letter, everything can go wrong. In this block we will focus on the English alphabet and how to spell clearly. You do not need to learn all twenty-six letters perfectly today, but you can start to feel more comfortable with them. I will show you the alphabet in small groups and we will look at a model conversation where the teacher asks, “How do you spell that?”. Then you will listen to me spelling a name and an email address. Your task is to type what you think you hear and then also spell your own name in a full sentence. This is very practical English. Even with only a few letters, you can already communicate important details with confidence.

The English alphabet in small groups.

Here is the full English alphabet. Do not worry, you will practise it many times in this course. For now, just read it slowly, group by group.

Group 1: A B C D E

Group 2: F G H I J

Group 3: K L M N O

Group 4: P Q R S T

Group 5: U V W X Y Z

When you spell your name, try to say each letter clearly, with a short pause between them.

Example:

> Alex: How do you spell your name?

> You: It is L E I L A.

> Alex: L E I L A. Thank you.

Spelling names and email addresses.

You often need to spell:

• Your first name
• Your surname
• Your email address

Look at these model mini-dialogues.

1. Spelling a name

Receptionist: What is your name?

You: My name is Omar Ali.

Receptionist: How do you spell your surname?

You: A L I.

2. Spelling an email address

Teacher Alex: What is your email address?

You: It is mina.park@gmail.com.

Teacher Alex: Can you spell park, please?

You: P A R K.

Useful chunks:

• How do you spell that?
• Can you repeat that, please?
• Can you speak more slowly, please?

In the activity you will listen to a short audio. Try to catch the letters, then write the full name and email. After that, spell your own name in a clear sentence.

Practice & Feedback

Listen carefully to the audio below. You will hear Teacher Alex spelling a student’s full name and email address. You can play the audio more than once. Do not worry if you are not sure about every letter; just do your best.

Then, write your answer in two parts:

1. What you heard: Write the full name and the email address you think you heard. Use a full sentence, for example: The name is … and the email address is ….
2. About you: Imagine you are in class with Alex. Write one or two sentences to spell your own full name. Use a pattern like: My name is … I spell it … and write the letters with spaces between them, for example: J U A N.

Focus on clear writing and capital letters for names. I will help you with any letters that are difficult.

4. Asking your teacher for help in class.

In your first lesson, it is completely normal not to understand everything. Good learners are not silent; they ask for help politely. In English, there are some very useful classroom phrases you can use again and again. These phrases help you when you do not hear a word, when you do not know how to say something, or when the teacher is speaking too fast. In this block, we will focus on these mini-tools. You will see a short chat between a student and Teacher Alex where the student asks about a difficult word. Then you will write your own short chat-style conversation. This is great practice for real life, because you can use the same language in a face-to-face class, in an online lesson or even in a message to a teacher. Remember, you are not being rude when you ask for help. With phrases like “Excuse me”, “Can you repeat that, please?” and “What does this word mean?”, you sound polite and serious about learning.

Useful classroom help phrases.

Here are some key chunks that make it easy to ask for help in English class:

• Excuse me.
• Sorry, I don’t understand.
• Can you repeat that, please?
• Can you speak more slowly, please?
• How do you say this in English?
• What does this word mean?
• Is this pronunciation correct?

You can combine them in different ways to be extra polite.

Example:

> Excuse me, can you repeat that, please?

Example: asking about a difficult word.

Read this mini chat between you and Teacher Alex.

You: Excuse me, Alex. How do you say this word in English? (shows the word “receipt”)

Teacher Alex: It is “receipt”.

You: Sorry, can you repeat that, please?

Teacher Alex: Of course. “Receipt”.

You: Is this pronunciation correct? “Receipt”.

Teacher Alex: Yes, that’s good.

You: Thank you. What does this word mean?

Teacher Alex: It is a small piece of paper that shows what you paid in a shop.

In just a few lines, you checked the pronunciation and the meaning, and you were polite every time.

When to use which phrase.

• You did not hear something: “Can you repeat that, please?”
• The teacher is too fast: “Can you speak more slowly, please?”
• You see a new word on the page: “How do you say this in English?” or “What does this word mean?”

In the activity below, you will write your own short chat with Teacher Alex, using these phrases for real problems you often have.

Practice & Feedback

Read the example chat on the screen again if you need. Notice how the student uses Excuse me, asks How do you say this in English?, then checks meaning and pronunciation politely.

Now it is your turn. Imagine you are in class or in an online lesson with Teacher Alex. There are two or three English words that are difficult for you. Maybe you are not sure how to say them, or you do not know the meaning.

Write a short chat-style conversation (about 6–8 lines) between You and Teacher Alex. Do this:

• Start with Excuse me or Sorry.
• Use at least three phrases from the list: Can you repeat that, please?, Can you speak more slowly, please?, How do you say this in English?, What does this word mean?, Is this pronunciation correct?
• Include your real difficult words if you want.

Write it like a chat, for example:

> You: …

> Teacher Alex: …

I will answer as Teacher Alex and help you with language and pronunciation.

5. Practising stress and intonation in greetings.

So far, you have practised individual sounds and letters. Now we will look at how English sounds at the **sentence** level. Two important features are **word stress** and **intonation**. Word stress means which part of the word is stronger. Intonation means how your voice goes up and down in a sentence. These are like the music of English. If you use them well, even very simple sentences sound more natural and clear. In this block, we will look at stress in common words from your first lesson, such as “teacher”, “hotel” and “coffee”. We will also listen to some basic questions and greetings and notice whether the voice goes up or down at the end. Do not worry about sounding British or perfect. The goal is just to start hearing and feeling the rhythm. After the explanation, you will listen to some short sentences and then write which word you think is stressed, and whether the intonation is rising or falling.

Word stress: which part is stronger?.

In many English words, one syllable is stronger than the others. We call this word stress. Look at these examples. The stressed part is in CAPITALS.

• TEAcher
• hoTEL
• COFfee
• comPUter
• aMERica

Say them slowly and feel where your voice is strong:

> TEAcher – hoTEL – COFfee – comPUter – aMERica

If you stress the wrong part, people can still understand you, but it sounds unusual. With the right stress, you sound clearer.

Intonation: your voice moves.

Now look at some common first-lesson sentences. Imagine an arrow for your voice:

• Hello, my name is Alex.

Your voice goes a little down at the end. It sounds finished.

• What is your name?

Your voice usually goes up at the end because it is a question.

• Can you repeat that, please?

Again, your voice often goes up at the end.

Try saying these sentences aloud. Make the stressed word stronger and change your voice at the end:

> HELLO, my NAME is Alex. (falling)

> What is your NAME? (rising)

> Can you rePEAT that, PLEASE? (rising)

A quick practice task.

1. Choose two words from the list: teacher, hotel, coffee, computer, America. Mark the stress by writing the stressed part in capitals, for example TEAcher.
2. Choose one question from your first-lesson language, for example: Where are you from? or How do you spell that? Decide if your voice should go up or down at the end.

In the activity below, you will listen to three short sentences and then write which word is stressed and if the intonation is rising or falling.

Practice & Feedback

Listen to the three short sentences in the audio. Each sentence has one main stressed word that sounds stronger, and an intonation that is rising (voice goes up) or falling (voice goes down) at the end.

You can listen several times. After that, write your answer like this:

• 1: The stressed word is … and the intonation is rising/falling.
• 2: The stressed word is … and the intonation is rising/falling.
• 3: The stressed word is … and the intonation is rising/falling.

Use the sentences and examples from the screen to help you. If you are not sure, guess and explain your idea in simple English, for example: I think it is rising because it is a question. I will tell you which words are stressed and how the voice usually moves, and I will help you improve one or two of your own example sentences if you write them.

6. Your first-lesson mini role play.

You have reached the final step of this lesson. You have practised greetings, saying and spelling your name, asking for repetition, checking pronunciation and playing with stress and intonation. Now it is time to put everything together in a short role play. Imagine you are really in your first English class with Teacher Alex. You arrive, say hello, introduce yourself, ask where your teacher is from, and maybe check how to say a new word. You also spell your name or your email address. In this block, you will **write** the full conversation like a little script. Writing first helps you organise your ideas and use the new chunks from this lesson. Later, you could practise speaking the same dialogue aloud. I will give you a small model and a checklist on the screen. Then you will create your own version with your real name, country and questions. This is your small performance task for Lesson 1.

Bringing it all together.

Now we will use everything from this lesson in one mini conversation. You will write a dialogue between You and Teacher Alex in your first English class.

Here is a very short example to give you the idea:

Example mini role play

Teacher Alex: Hello, good morning.

You: Hello, my name is Sofia. Nice to meet you.

Teacher Alex: Nice to meet you too, Sofia. Where are you from?

You: I am from Italy.

Teacher Alex: Great. How do you spell your surname?

You: R O S S I.

Teacher Alex: Thank you.

You: Excuse me, how do you say this in English? (points to a word)

Teacher Alex: It is “receipt”.

You: Sorry, can you repeat that, please?

Teacher Alex: Of course. “Receipt”.

Checklist for your dialogue.

Try to include these points in your own script:

1. A friendly greeting.
2. Introduce yourself: Hello, my name is … or Hi, I’m ….
3. Say where you are from: I am from … or I live in ….
4. Spell your name or surname, or your email address.
5. Use at least two help phrases, for example:

• Can you repeat that, please?
• Can you speak more slowly, please?
• How do you say this in English?
• What does this word mean?

Finish with a short, polite goodbye or closing, such as Thank you or Nice to meet you.

Writing tips.

• Write about 8–12 lines.
• Start each line with You: or Teacher Alex: so it is easy to follow.
• Use capital letters for I, names and countries.
• Keep sentences short and clear. Simple English is perfect.

In the activity, you will see this checklist again and a very small model. Then you will write your own first-lesson conversation.

Practice & Feedback

This is your small final task for Lesson 1. Read the example on the screen again and look at the checklist. Your job is to write your own mini role play between You and Teacher Alex in your first English lesson.

Please:

• Write 8–12 lines of dialogue.
• Use the labels You: and Teacher Alex: at the start of each line.
• Include: a greeting, your name, your country or city, one moment where you spell your name or email, at least two classroom help phrases (for example: Can you repeat that, please?, How do you say this in English?, Can you speak more slowly, please?), and a short ending.

You can use your real personal details, or you can invent them. Focus on using the useful chunks from this lesson. I will correct your dialogue, show you a more natural version, and tell you how ready you are for your real first English class.