Intro
School isn’t just about learning. It also teaches us how to socialize with other people. For some, school is where lifelong passions and interests begin.
In the US, most schools offer many different clubs that students can participate in outside of the classroom. For instance, drama club is where students with an interest in acting can practice their acting skills. A ski club might might raise money so its members can take a trip to the slopes. Hear Jason and Amy talk about what clubs they belonged to in high school.
Amy: Really?
Jason: Yeah!
Amy: Let me guess, Drama Club?
Jason: Yup, Drama Club, couple sports teams. I was in some really off-the-wall clubs like Irish Society, a couple music groups, you know.
Amy: My school had so many clubs, and I wasn’t in a single one of them.
Jason: Really? There wasn’t one thing that interested you that you wanted to do?
Amy: I guess I just felt like I would do it on my own. Like, why did I have to join a club to be proud of my Swedish heritage, or whatever?
Jason: Sure. I went skiing, you know, but I also went with the Ski Club. It’s just kind of a good way to socialize.
Amy: That’s true. You get to maybe meet some of your peers who you wouldn’t otherwise hang out with. But I feel like in high school, most people’s friend groups are pretty narrow. So do you actually expand your group of friends by joining clubs, or do you just join clubs with all your friends?
Jason: I think you just expand your realm of experience with your friends. Like maybe all 10 of you wouldn’t be able to get it together to go skiing on your own, but when you have a faculty member helping this extracurricular activity along, then things get done that wouldn’t otherwise happen.
Amy: That’s true. I never went skiing in high school, so maybe I should have joined some clubs.
In the US, most schools offer many different clubs that students can participate in outside of the classroom. For instance, drama club is where students with an interest in acting can practice their acting skills. A ski club might might raise money so its members can take a trip to the slopes. Hear Jason and Amy talk about what clubs they belonged to in high school.
Dialogue (Download Audio Here)
Jason: I was going through my yearbook recently, and I forgot how many clubs I was in.Amy: Really?
Jason: Yeah!
Amy: Let me guess, Drama Club?
Jason: Yup, Drama Club, couple sports teams. I was in some really off-the-wall clubs like Irish Society, a couple music groups, you know.
Amy: My school had so many clubs, and I wasn’t in a single one of them.
Jason: Really? There wasn’t one thing that interested you that you wanted to do?
Amy: I guess I just felt like I would do it on my own. Like, why did I have to join a club to be proud of my Swedish heritage, or whatever?
Jason: Sure. I went skiing, you know, but I also went with the Ski Club. It’s just kind of a good way to socialize.
Amy: That’s true. You get to maybe meet some of your peers who you wouldn’t otherwise hang out with. But I feel like in high school, most people’s friend groups are pretty narrow. So do you actually expand your group of friends by joining clubs, or do you just join clubs with all your friends?
Jason: I think you just expand your realm of experience with your friends. Like maybe all 10 of you wouldn’t be able to get it together to go skiing on your own, but when you have a faculty member helping this extracurricular activity along, then things get done that wouldn’t otherwise happen.
Amy: That’s true. I never went skiing in high school, so maybe I should have joined some clubs.
Discussion
Jason was recently reflecting on how many clubs he was in in high school. From Drama Club to the Irish Society, he really participated in many extracurricular activities.
Amy, on the other hand, did not join any clubs in high school, even though many were available. She preferred to pursue activities on her own. And she wonders whether clubs really allow participants to meet new people, or whether they just reinforce groups of friends that already exist.
Jason thinks that he mostly hung out with friends he already knew in his clubs, but it was still worth it, because he got to participate in cool activities, like skiing.
Do you like to join clubs? If so, which ones? If not, why not?
Amy, on the other hand, did not join any clubs in high school, even though many were available. She preferred to pursue activities on her own. And she wonders whether clubs really allow participants to meet new people, or whether they just reinforce groups of friends that already exist.
Jason thinks that he mostly hung out with friends he already knew in his clubs, but it was still worth it, because he got to participate in cool activities, like skiing.
Do you like to join clubs? If so, which ones? If not, why not?
Grammar Point
Your vs. You’re
Jason tells Amy that when you join a club, you expand your realm of experience with your friends. Jason uses the word your twice in this sentence.
In Jason’s sentence, your is a possessive adjective that describes a noun by telling us to whom it belongs. In this case, he is speaking to Amy, but he’s also speaking to a more general “you,” meaning anyone who may have had the experience he describes.
You may also have heard a word that sounds the same: you’re. You’re is actually a contraction of “you are,” as in “You’re cute.” Contractions like this are common in spoken English.
Which is correct, “Your speech for the Irish Society was really great,” or, “You’re speech for the Irish Society was really great”?
Jason tells Amy that when you join a club, you expand your realm of experience with your friends. Jason uses the word your twice in this sentence.
In Jason’s sentence, your is a possessive adjective that describes a noun by telling us to whom it belongs. In this case, he is speaking to Amy, but he’s also speaking to a more general “you,” meaning anyone who may have had the experience he describes.
You may also have heard a word that sounds the same: you’re. You’re is actually a contraction of “you are,” as in “You’re cute.” Contractions like this are common in spoken English.
Which is correct, “Your speech for the Irish Society was really great,” or, “You’re speech for the Irish Society was really great”?
Quiz
- What did Jason notice when he looked through his yearbook recently?
- Why didn’t Amy join clubs in high school?
- An example of an extracurricular activity is __.
- Does Amy think that school clubs are a good way to meet new people?
- An off-the-wall idea is an idea that is __.
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