Winter Lesson Review: Week 3

 Hello ESOL 2/3 Students!!

This week we talked about apartment problems and complaints.

Here's a conversation between a landlord and a tenant:

Apartment Problems

Tenant:                Hello, _______________. This is ___________________ .

Landlord:            Hi! How are you?

Tenant:                Fine, thanks! Um… I would like to tell you about a problem I have. 

Landlord:            What’s the problem?

Tenant:               My problem is that we do not have hot water.  I took a cold shower this morning.

Landlord:            Oh, I’m sorry. Did you check the water heater?

Tenant:               Yes, I checked everything but I don’t know what the problem is. Can you             come by to        look at it?

Landlord:            Umm… how about tomorrow afternoon? Around 4:00PM?

Tenant:                OK. I will be home at 4:00pm tomorrow.  Thanks.

Landlord:            See you tomorrow!

Need more practice?  Here is some language to help you complain politely...

I am not happy because …
My problem is that …
I have a complaint about …
I am disappointed that…
I am very frustrated because…
I would like to tell you about a problem I have…
I’m sorry, but I have to complain about...

Here are some examples...

The kitchen pipes are leaking.
I’m cold.  The heater doesn’t work.
There are cockroaches everywhere.
The window glass is broken.
There are bed bugs in my mattress.
The carpet is stained.
It’s too hot and the air conditioner doesn’t work.
I can’t cook.  The stove is broken.

Listen to this conversation

What do you think?

What is the problem?

Who does the renter call?

What’s her name?  What’s his name?

What time will they meet?

Is the landlady helpful?

“Do you clean out the _____________________ after each time you use the dryer?”