Level I. Forms 3-4
“The sports club is having some open days from next Friday to Sunday, Claire. I’m going on Saturday. Are you interested?”
“May be, David. Tell me more.”
“Well, they want more people to join, so you can try some sports for free. I want to do tennis but you can swim too and play golf.”
“Great. What time shall we go?”
“The club opens at eight but that’s too early. Let’s meet at my house at nine thirty. Then we can be there at ten.”
“Okay, how will we get there?”
“Shall we cycle? It’s a long way to walk and the buses are so slow.”
“Fine. What shall I bring with me?”
“Just your sports clothes. The club will give us towels and water and I’ll bring some snacks.”
“Thanks, what did it cost to join? Do you know?”
“Yes, my aunt’s a member. She pays thirty pounds a month but because we are students and under eighteen it’s only twenty for us.”
“Right, well I’ll tell my dad.”
 
Level II. Forms 5-6
“Have you seen the food exhibition yet, Rachel?”
“Is it at the museum?”
“In the library, actually. The new one, near the university.”
“Oh, I know. When did you go?”
“Well, Dad and I always play tennis on Saturday, so we tried to go on Friday but we arrived too late and it was closed. We went on Sunday in the end.”
“How long is it on for?”
“It started on the 18^th of May and ends on the 30^th so it’s on for twelve days.”
“What did you think was best about it?”
“Well, they’ve got some good posters there and you get a free pen but the computer games were the best. You learn a lot by playing them. I think our whole class should go there.”
“Oh, why?”
“Well, there’s lots of information about Africa for our geography project. There’s a drawing competition too.”
“Is there a prize?”
“I don’t think so. I’m not interested in Art anyway.”
 
Level III. Forms 7-8
“Good evening. Tonight we are at the Design Museum and with me is the designer Mathew Hunt. He chose the objects on display and this special exhibition of other designers’ work. Welcome, Mathew.”
“Thank you.”
“First a little about yourself. Why did you become a designer?”
“Well, my parents always encouraged me. My dad’s an Art teacher and he is interested in design. As a boy I entered lots of competitions, one involved designing a teenager’s study. I got the top prize and after that I only ever wanted to be a designer.”
“Okay, now to the objects that you’ve chosen. The first one is a space suit. Why did you choose that?”
“I love space and space exploration. I’ve been to Russia many times for space shows and events. Once I was there when the international space station team took off in a Russian spaceship. This suit was worn by one of the men on that trip and when I looked at it I’ve remembered that event.”
“I see. Now you also chose some sports equipment. What’s so special about this surfboard?”
“Well, look how smooth the wood is. It’ll last forever. They don’t make boards like this nowadays. Modern boards are made in factories with much lighter materials. They are much faster but I prefer this board because it’s made by hand. Someone works long and hard on this.”
“Yes. What is your next project?”
“Some products for the home actually—lamps and lights.”
“Sounds great. Thanks for talking to us, Mathew.”
“Thank you.”
 
Level IV. Forms 9-11
Good evening, it’s 9 p.m. on Sunday, the 23^rd of November and you are listening to Movie Magic Cam (Radio Four) with me, Harry Parsons. On last week’s programme we were talking about the best movies of the 1980s. This week we are going to talk about the work of my all-time favourite director Alfred Hitchcock. So, who was Alfred Hitchcock? Well, he was born in London at the very end of the 19^th century, in 1899. His father sold chickens for a living, but Alfred was very interested in drawing and he used to write and design captions for silent films before long he became a film director. His first successful film was The Lodger in 1926. It was a silent film about a murderer in 19^th century London. In 1928, he made the film called Blackmail which was the first British talking picture. Hitchcock made several films in England, but it was when he moved to Hollywood that he became really successful. In his 1954 film Rear Window a photographer has to stay in his room because he has broken his leg. He sees somebody being murdered in the house opposite. In The Man Who Knew Too Much James Stewart and Doris Day play a couple whose son is kidnapped by spies. Hitchcock is most famous for frightening thrillers like Psycho, set in a lonely motel and The Birds. In this film set in California flocks of birds attack and kill human beings. Hitchcock was an expert at mixing comedy and terror and all his most frightening films have comic touches. An example of his sense of humour was that he liked to make a brief appearance in all his films. Never a handsome man, he was short and overweight, you can spot him playing a passerby or sitting reading a newspaper on a train. He died in 1980.