FUNCTIONAL ENGLISH

Unit 1
What is functional english?
Functional english is the use of english language in the
real life situations. It is typically taught as a foundation
subject to students, it enables the students to
understand the mechanism of speech, to produce the
words, sounds correctly and to speak english with
appropriate stress and pitch.
Session 1:Ordering food at a restaurant
(Using tenses)
A meal is generally divided into three courses:
appetiser/starter, main course and dessert. \
ORDERING AT RESTAURANT INVOLVES ;
Placing an order
Ordering drinks
Asking for a table
Requesting the attention of a waiter
Asking for the bill
TENSES
TENSES in english are frorms of verbs that are used to
indicate the time of happening of an event or action.
It is categorized into three types;
PRESENT (simple present, present cont. , present
perfect and present perfect cont)
PAST ( simple past , past cont., past perfect , past
perfect cont.)
FUTURE ( simple future , future cont. , future perfect,
future perfect cont.)
SESSION 2: MAKING RESOLUTIONS
RESOLUTIONS are promises that one basically makes
to oneself.
For eg:
I will never ditch anyone.
I will study hard for the exams.
I will never smoke weed.
I promise to always tell the truth.
SESSION 3: TALKING ABOUT CHANGE
“Change is the law of nature” and everything is subject
to change.
Example :
Changing time.
Change of clothes
Change of scene
Change for the better
Change for the worse
Change over
ACTIVE AND PASSIVE VOICE
EXAMPLE:
Has she completed her work?
Has the work been completed?
You should cook your lunch.
The lunch should be cooked.
We won the match.
The match has been won.
SESSION 4: PLANNING AN OUTING
An OUTING is a short trip either within or
out of the town for recreational purposes. It
can also be a sort of one –day , visit to zoo or
museum or a short stay at someone’s place
or a hotel. Whatever it might be , you need
to plan for an outing.
REFLEXIVE PRONOUNS
Reflexive pronouns are myself, yourself , himself,
herself , oneself, itself , ourselves , yourselves and
themselves.
Reflective pronouns are used:
When the object and subject are same.
When a subject needs to be emphasized
As the object of prepositions, when the subject and
object are same.
SESSION 5: NARRATING A STORY
Storytelling is an art and the same story told by
different may have different effects on the audience . a
good storyteller can make an average story sound
interesting by using the right intonations, pauses and
exclamations. The art of storytelling through written
or spoken means is also called as narration.
FICTIOUS HORROR STORY (OWN)
Last night my friend Zach called me and asked me to reach the docks.
I momentarily dressed up and went to the docks. there, in the dark ,
was a blazing eye which horrified me . I went forward and It suddenly
disappeared. I have a phobia of darkness so I was completely scared
and in the mean time I heard screams of a girl asking for help, I
followed the noise and reached an abandoned warehouse. I was really
terrified, I somehow put up the guts and opened the door and there I
saw a girl whipped by someone invisible. It was a terrible experience, I
felt like someone was choking me. I somehow managed to press my
phone’s power button three times which is the emergency key of my
phone and 911 was automatically called and in some minutes police
reached and rescued the girl and me. That warehouse has been sealed
and it has been proven that demonic spirits live there and it is really
dangerous to there.
SESSION 6: DESCRIBING A KNOWN
PLACE
Descriptive writing is a form of literary style in which
the objects, places and persons are described in such a
detail that the reader can almost form a picture in
their minds. Descriptive style of writing is different
from the narrative style as it employs the power of
language and sensory observation to bring a subject or
surrounding to life. It uses adverbs and adjectives.
SESSION 7: GIVING DIRECTIONS
Some commonly used phrases and terms are:
Turn left/right
Keep to your left/right
Crossing
Fork
U-turn
Go straight down
Landmark
Sign post
Around the corner
next to
Directing someone (own)
FROM SKIMS BEMINA TO DOON SCHOOL
1) Fasten your seatbelts
2) Go straight along the route till you reach Parimpora byepass
3) Turn left near Tata motors
4) Go straight for 6 kilometers along the route
5) When you reach Noora hospital, then turn right and drive
through the service lane
6) Drive straight for almost half an kilometer
7)Turn right when you see Doon School’s direction board
8) Go straight and turn right
9) There you go
SESSION 8:DESCRIBING AN EVENT
An event can be described as a planned
public or social occasion. Eg a wedding ,
book launch etc
Some phrases are:
It is raining on the fields
A book launch will take place tomorrow
Boxer’s nose is bleeding.
SESSION 9:RECOUNTING AN
EXPERIANCE
To recount means to retell or relate events
that have already occurred.
Examples:
It was a large gathering.
The people were dancing on the tunes of
the piano
I was sitting in my study and working on my
novel.
SESSION 10: FINDING A PLACE TO
STAY
Some important terms used while renting a place are:
BROKER
RENT
TENANT
LANDLORD/LANDLADY
PAYING GUEST(PG) HOSTEL
SINGLE ROOM/DOUBLE ROOM FLAT
COMMISSION
SECURITY
NOTICE
SESSION 11: SAYING NO

Some polite ways to decline requests or proposals:

Oh, I’m so sorry! I have an appointment with the
doctor today
Ah! Should I have known earlier, I would have
declined the invitation for the dinner we are going to
Oh! Sorry, I have to go to pick my aunt from the
airport today
Would have loved to come, but sorry, I have an exam
tomorrow, so got to study
SESSION 12: DESCRIBING A LOST ITEM
Imagine you lost some object, say a penholder in your
school. Stating the physical characteristics of an item
helps to identify and locate it. For example, in case of
the penholder, you can describe the following:
A) Make of the penholder
B) Its colour
C) The material it is made up of
D) Its shape
Session 13: Appreciating someone

Appreciating someone involves recognizing and cherishing

their good qualities or something that they have done. It
boosts confidence and generates positive vibes. Examples:
I really appreciate your kind gesture
Good job
Well done
Keep it up
Outstanding performance
Much obliged to you
Thanks for being what you are