COURS D'ANGLAIS

SERIE N°02

PLAN DE LA LEÇON : MEMORANDUM

I – COMPREHENSION

II – STRUCTURE PRACTISE

1- The present simple

2- The present continuous
3- The future simple
4- Other forms of the future

III- VOCABULARY

IV- KEYS TO THE EXERCISES

 MEMORANDUM

Io: All office staff Subject : Redundancies

From: Personnel officer Date : 13 th December

As you know the current rise in manufaturing costs are cansing

a reduction in our profit margins. Normally, we employ fifty staff in
the personnel department, but we are planning to reduce the number
of office staff. For these reasons the managing, Director is asking for
names of staff who would like to take early retirement.

Many people complain that we are presently understaffed, but

at the moment we are trying to resolve the problems. On January 1 st,
we will computerise the department, and I think you all know the
probable consequences.

At the moment, I am trying to improve working conditions in

the department, and at this difficult time, I need your help in
achieving these objectives.

I – COMPREHENSION:

EXERCISE N°01:

Read the text then answer the questions:

1- How many people work in the personnel department?

2- When will the department be computerised?

3- Who has written this memorandum?

EXERCISE N°02:

Find the statements that are true according to the

text:

1- Manufacturing costs are rising.

2- Our profit margins are rising.
3- We are planning to have more office staff
4- The managing Director is asking for names of staff who
would like to retive early.
5- On January 1st we will need more staff in the department
6- The time is difficult at the moment
7- The personnel officer needs help
EXERCISE N°03:
Complete the table below with information from the text:
Manufacturing Profit Number Computers Consequences
costs margins of office use
staff

II – STRUCTURE PRACTICE:
1- The present simple :
Form:
This tense is formed by using the infinitive of the verb (without
« to »).
Remember the « s » after « he », « she », « it » or a singular
noun or pronoun.
Use:
This tense is used when you want to talk about what people do
all the time or normally and describe truths.
Example from the text : « We employ fifty staff »
EXERCICE N°01 : Find the other examples contained in the text.
a- Interrogative form :
It is formed with does + infinitive of the verb in the 3 rd
person singular.
(He / she / It) and do + infinitive of the verb for the rest.
Examples: Do I speak English well?
Do you speak English well?

Does he speak English well?

Does she speak English well ?
Does it speak English well ?
Do we speak English well ?
Do you speak English well ?
Do they speak English well ?
b- Negative form :
It is formed with does not + infinitive of the verb in the 3 rd
person singular.
(He/She/It): and do not + infinitive of the verb for the rest.
Examples:
I do not speak German.
You do not speak German

He does not Speak German.

She does not Speak German.
It does not Speak German.

We do not Speak German.

You do not Speak German.
They do not Speak German.
 2 – The present continuous:

Form:
This tense is formed by using « am » « are », « is » with the
« ing » form of the verb (e.g. «making»).

Use :

This tense is used to talk about what people are doing now.

Example from the text:

«The current rises in manufacturing costs are causing a

reduction in our profit margins».

EXERCICE 1 : Find the other examples contained in the text.

a- Interrogative form:

It is formed with : To be + subject + verb + ing

Examples:
Am I saying it clearly?
Are you listening to me ?
Is he paying attention ?
Is she typing a letter ?

Is it sleeping?
Are we working or playing ?
Are you doing your home work ?
Are they eating their breakfast?
b- Negative form:

It is formed with : Subject + to be + not + verb + ing

Examples :
I am not joking ; I am speaking seriously.
You are not doing it well ; repeat please.
He is not eating his soup; he is not hungry
She is not working today ; she is sick
It is not raining ; you can go out
We are not complaining : We are just telling you
You are not reading well ; You have a lot to learn.
They are not watching T.V ; they are sleeping.

EXERCISE N°01 :
Put the verbs in brackets into the correct present tense.
- Ann sees Paul putting on his coat and says :
where you (go), Paul ?

- Paul : I (go) to buy some cigarettes. you (want) an

evening paper ?
- Ann: No, thanks. You are always buying
cigarettes. Paul, how many you (smoke) a day ?
- Paul : I (not smoke) very many – perhaps 20. Jack
(smoke) far more than I do. He (spend) series 10
week on cigarettes.
EXERCISE N°02 :

Put the verbs in brakest into the correct form and tense.
- Mary sees Peter standing at the bus stop
Mary : Hello, Peter, what bus you (wait) for ?
Peter : Hello, Mary, I (wait) for a 9 or a 14.

Mary : You usually (go) to work by car, don’t you ?

 Peter : Yes, but the car (belong) to my mother and she
sometimes (want) it .She (use) it today to take tom to
the dentist.
May : I usually (go) by car too. Jack (take) me because he
(pass) my office on his way to the factory. But this
week he (work) in a factory in the opposite direction.
So I (queue) like you.
Peter : Here’s a 9 now. You (come) on it or you (wait) for a
14 ?
Mary : I (think) I’Il take the 9. If I (wait) for a 14, I may be
late, and if you (be) late my office everyone (look) at
you.
EXERCISE N°03 : Give the correct form of the verbs in brackets :
A couple of tourists enter a restaurant :
Wife : I (prefer ) to have a drink first .
Husband : That’s a good idea . Whats’s the menu ?
Wife : I (not understand) a thing. It’s all in Spanish.

Husband: It (not matter) .What that word (mean)?

Wife : I (not know)
Husband: Waiter! Tow of this please (pointing at a word on
the menu).
Wife (after sometime): Look! he (bring) us two boiled eggs !
EXERCISE N°04: Give the correct form of the verbs in brackets:

It is Friday evening an the Brown family are at home. Mrs

Brown (listen) to a concert on the radio ; Mr Brown (read) a
newspaper ; George Brown (do) his homework and Ann Brown
(write) a letter.
EXERCISE N°05 : Put the verbs in brackets in the correct form.

Lucy : Tom (get) up very early but he (wash) and (shave) and
(eat) his breakfast so quietly that I (not hear) a thing.
But I (hear) him driving away from the house because
his car (make) a lot of noise.
Alice : My brother (get) up very early too. But he (make)
such a lot of noise that he (wake) everybody up. He
(sing) in his bath and (bang) doors and (drop) thing in
the kitchen and (play) the radio very loudly.

3- The future simple :

Form :
This tense is formed with Shall / Will + infinitive (without to)
for the 1 st person singular and plural, and will + infinitive (without
to) for the other persons.
Uses :

This tense is used to express opinions about the future, for

future habitual action and for formal announcements of future
plans……

Example from the text: On January 1 st we will computerize the

department.

EXERCISE N°01 :

Are there any other examples in the text?

a- Interrogative form:

It is formed by inverting the subject and shall or will +

infinitive.
Examples:

Shall I come to see you tomorrow ?

Will you go and visit him at home?
Will he bring the books with him?
Will she wear her nice dress at the party?
Will it be better to travel by car?
Shall we wait for him at the station?
Will you see him soon?
Will they tell him about their problems?
b- Négative form :
It is formed by putting not after shall or will.
Examples:
I shall not go there before long.
You will not see him again this year.
She will not give a party if she fails her exam.
You will not go down to town
It will not escape from its cage
We shall not know before tomorrow
You will not clean the house alone
They will not buy a new car.
4 – Other forms of future :
The verb form to indicate the future depends on whether
the speaker is talking about an intention, a fixed plan arrangement, or
a fixed schedule.
 a- Intention :
Form : « to be going to » + infinitive
Meaning : It is my intention to ………
Example : I am going to build a house one day
b- Fixed plan or arrangement :
Form : Present continuons
Example : What time are we having the test on January 20 th ?
Meaning : What time is our fixed arrangement for the test on
January 20 th?
c- Fixed schedule :
Form : Present simple
Example : The plane arrives at 9.30.
Meaning : It is the fixed schedule (of the plane) that it arrives
at 9.30.
EXERCISES:
1- The present continuous and the future simple :
Exercises : Put the verbs into the correct tense.
1 – Tom : Where your (go) for your next holiday ? (Arranged plan)
Ann : I don’t know yet but we probably (go) to Spain.
2 - Peter : You (walk) home ? (Fixed decision)
Andrew : Yes. It’s too late for a bus.
Peter : But it’s raining. You (get) soaked ! Here, take this
umbrella.
Andrew : Thanks very much. I (bring) it back tomorrow.
3 - Mary : You (take) any exams this term ? (Fixed plan).
Peter : Yes, I (take) an English exam at the end of the month.
Mary : Do you think you (pass) ?
Peter : I don’t know. If I don’t, I (take) it again at the end of
next term.
4 – Tom : What they (do) for their holidays ? (Decision)
George : They (go) to the sea side.
Tom : And what (happen) to their dog ? (Planned)
George : They (take) the dog with them. I think he (enjoy) it more
than they will.
2- The present continuous and be going to :
Exercises: Put the verbs in brackets into the correct future form:
1- A–You (ask) your boss to give you a five in your office?
B– No, I (leave) at the end of the week.
A–Really ? And what you (do) then ? You (have) a
holiday ?
B– No, I (start) another job the following Monday.
2- Mrs Black: Mrs Jones (go) to hospital. She (have) her
appendix out.
Mrs White : Who (look) after the children ?
Mrs Black :Ther sister (come) down from Scotland
3- Ann has won a car in a competition but she can’t drive
Tom: What you (do) with the car? You (sell) it?
Ann: No, I (learn) to drive. I (have) my first lesson
next monday.
4- Jim: I hear you’ve bought a new house
Bob : Yes, I (move) in next week.
Jim : You (have) a house warning party ?
Bob : Not yet, I (paint) the house first.
5- Secretary: The employers (meet) the strikers again
tomorrow.
Typist : They just (repeat) what they said today ?
Or they (climb) down?
Secretary: I believe that they (offer) a 10 percent rise
plus productivity bonus?.
 3- Be going to and the future simple :

Exercises : Put the verbs in brackets into the correct form :

1- George : He said he (write) a book about charming people
who are happily married.
Paul : I wonder if anyone (buy) it.
George : Oh yes, people (buy) it. He’ s a famous writer.

2- Mr Jones: No, I’m not going away for the week-end. I’m
staying at home. I (start) building my garage. The bricks
have come at last.
Mr Smith : You (do) it all by yourself ?.

Mr Jones: No, my nephew (help) me .I suggested in to him

yesterday and he was quite enthusiastic.
3- Mary :(Meeting Jack carrying two buckets of water) :
Hello. Jack ! Where is the five ?
Jack :I (wash) the car, if you want to know. Would you
like to help me.

Mary : I’m not dressed for it but I (come) and watch.

4- Ann : Why are you taking fishing rods ? You (not climb) the
mountain after all.
Tom : We (climb) and fish. There is a lake on top and we
(try) to get some fish out of it.
Ann : Well, if you catch any I (cook) them ; but I think I
(buy) some all the same.
III – VOCABULARY / PRONUNCIATION :
In this conversation, Christine Adams, the Office Manager,
meets two salesmen from two office supplies companies – Isis Office
Equipment and Arco office supplies. The salesmen want to discuss
compact’s requirements and try to get orders.
Salesman A : Good morning. I’m Paul Richards from Isis Office
Equipment. I’ll only take a few minutes of your time.

C.A : I’m Christine Adams. I’m afraid you’ve come at rather

a bad moment: I’m expecting a visitor in about five
minutes.
Salesman A : Five minutes will be fine. May I ask you who your
main office supplier is?
C.A : Well, we buy from various sources, but Arco supplies
most of our equipment.

Salesman A : A very fine company. Well, at least now I know who

our main competitor is here. Anyway. I’d like to tell
you about some special deals. First of all, do you use
ring binders?
C.A : We do, yes.
Salesman A : Well, we have a good range of ring binders. These
here are particularly popular. They’re strong, and we
have a good range of colours, as you can see from the
catalogue.
We have a special offer on at the moment, which
makes them very attractive at only 93 peach.
C.A. : I’m afraid we don’t need any the moment, but I’ll bear
them in mind. But that reminds me of something we
do need. How about desks? Do you stock any desks?
 Salesman A : Yes, we certainly do. They are on page……..35 of the
catalogue. This one here is the most popular we have
a choice of three colours and the disk is larger than
average.

C.A. : And what’s the price ?

Salesman A : Ok, the normal price is £ 220, but as an introductory

offer, I can give you a 10 percent discount
……….making it £ 198. That’s a very reasonable price.
C.A. : Well, I’ll have to check with my boss before I place an
order, but I’ll bear it in mind.

Salesman A : We are selling photocopying paper at 60 p per hundred

sheets at the moment . That’s cheap compared to
normal prices, and it gives good reproduction.
C.A : (To phone) yes. Ok I’ ill be right over.
(To Salesman A) I’m fraid I’ll have to leave you now.
One of the secretaries will see you out.
Thanks for calling.
C.A : Hello, Christine Adams.
Salesman B : Hello, Mrs Adams James Philby from Arco office
supplies here.

C.A : Hello, Mr Philby

Salesman B : Mrs Adams. I just wantd to check that the last order
arrived on time.

C.A : Yes, it did. We are using the typewriters at the moment.

Salesman B : Good, I’m glad to hear that everything’s ok. Last time
we met, you said that you might need some more office
supplies, so I thought I’d just check if there is anything
else you need.
C.A. : One moment, I’ll just get my notes ……Do you stock
size B 196 printer ribbons?

Salesman B : No, but we have a new ribbon in stock that will fit.
They’re only £ 2,65 each, which is a very attractive
price. And they don’t smudge

C.A : Fine. Can I order six ?

Salesman B : Anything else ?

C.A : I am running out of filing space. So we may need to
order another filing cabinet.

Salesman B : We are selling off some filing cabinets at £ 115 each.

They’re better than average quality too.
C.A. : And color ?

Salesman B : We have a choice of four colors. Oh yes ! Last time

you ordered some computer disks. Do you need any more?

C.A. : I’ll have to check to see how many are using.

Salesman B : At the moment we are stocking disks with more
storage capacity and they don’t corrupt.

C.A : How much are they ?

Salesman B : £ 12 for ten.

C.A : Fine. I’ll be in touch if we need anything.

Salesman B : Good, I look forward to hearing from you.

C.A : Good bye.

Salesman B : Bye.
- Pronunciation and meaning of words :
Text 1 :
Memorandum  mema‘raendam  = note

Staff sta: f = group of workers of an organization

Redundancies ri'd  ndansiz = more workers than necessary =

surnombres.
Current 'k  rant = of the present time.
Retirement ri’taiamant = act of concluding one’s professional
career.
Text 2:
Orders ‫כֿ‬: daz  = requests to supply goods.

Salesman  seilzman  = person whose job is to sell goods.

CA = chartered Accountant  t ∫ a : t a d a'k a u n t a n t  = conseiller
fiscal, expert comptable.
Deals = di:l = arrangements in business to the advantage of both
sides .
Discount = 'diskaunt = reduction made in the cost of buying
goods.
Bear it in mind = remember it.
Filing cabinet = piece of furniture used for storing.
Corrupt  ka'   pt  = change the original form.
Keys to the exercises :
Page 2 : Exercise 1 :
1- Fifty (50)
2- January 1 st .
3- The personnel officer
Exercise 2 :
1- True
2- False
3- False
4- True
5- False
6- True
7- True

Exercise 3 :

Manufacturin Profit Number Computer Consequences

g costs margins of office use
staff

Rising Reduced Fifty January rst Redundancies

Page 3 : Exercise 1:
- Mary people complain……..
- I think you all know……….
- I need you help……………

Page 4: Exercise 1:
- We are planning to reduce ……..
- The managing Directo is asking for names ……..
- We are trying to resolve the problems……………
- I am trying to improve working conditions
Page 5: Exercise 1: Are you going / am going / do you want / do
you smoke / don’t smoke / smoke / spends.

Page 6: Exercise 2: Are you waiting / am waiting / go/ belongs /

wants / is using / go / takes / passes / is working / am
queuing / are you coming / are you waiting/ think / wait /
are / looks.

Exercise 3: Prefer / do not understand / does not matter /

does that word mean/ don‘t know / is bringing.

Page 7: Exercise 4: Is listening / is reading / is doing / is writing.

Exercise 5: Gets / washes / shaves / eats / do not hear / hear

/ makes / gets/ makes / wakes/ sings / bangs / drops / plays.

Exercise 1 : No

Page 9 : Exercise 1 : Are you going / we shall probably go.

Exercise 2 : Are you walking / will get / will bring.

Exercise 3 : Are you taking / am taking / will pass / shall

take

Page 10: Exercise 4: Are they doing / are going / is happening / are
taking / will enjoy.
Exercise 1 : Are you going to ask / am leaving / are you
going to do / are you going to have / am
starting.

Exercise 2 : Is going / is having / is going to look / is

coming
Exercise 3 : Are you going to do / are you going to sell /
am going to learn / am having.
 Exercise 4 : Am moving / are you going to have/ am going
to paint.
Exercise 5 : Are meeting / are they just going to repeat /
are they going to climb / are going to offer .
Page 11: Exercise 1 : Is going to write / will buy / will buy.

Exercise 2 : Am going to start / are you going to do / is

going to help.

Exercise 3 : Am going to wash / will come.

Exercise 4 : You are not going to climb / are going to

climb / are going to try / will cook / will buy