New Person to Person: Communicative Speaking and Listening Skills : Student Book 1 (New Person to Person)

Rating:
Summary: New Person to Person Student Book 1
Review: For Beginner. Maybe, you'll use english conversation.

Rating:
Summary: Extremely Practical Material for Learning Everyday English
Review: This is a well-assembled, user-friendly, visually interesting and attractive book for use in the classroom. Its content is very standard American English, the situations presented are very common everyday ones, and it aims at an adult level while maintaining a sense of humor. I have found it to be an extremely practical approach to practicing English in refreshing and realistic scenarios.

For teachers in different settings, I would provide a couple of cautions when considering purchasing this series:

(1) The content is very American. In my case I am an American teacher working in an out-of-the-way part of Asia teaching EFL (English as a Foreign Language) for employees of a growing local hospitality industry. These books are available for sale here, though in a cheaper black-and-white edition (which makes the lessons about colors pointless!)

My experience differs from teachers working in America, as the content of a number of parts of this series are very westerner-specific and tend to assume that the student is learning English as a resident in America, not a student in a foreign country. This is helpful in illustrating western culture more vividly, but can be a struggle for overseas students in less economically developed areas to understand. (E.g., "Those burgers smell great! What a terrific day for a barbecue!"; following English instructions on filling out forms at the local employment office; asking to borrow the keys to your friend's car; etc.)

(2) This is not entry-level English. From the first lesson these books assume a thorough grasp of basic English forms and structures and vocabulary and a good handle on a number of American colloquialisms. Teachers will want to save this material for more intermediate classes, though with a little creativity parts of it can be modified and used with beginners.

I highly recommend this series, with the above qualifications in view.

Rating:
Summary: Great Conversation Book
Review: This is great for high beginners (best for high school/college age because the topics are more applicable and therefore meaningful to the students). The listening component is great. If you buy the book, you should get the tapes as well. In addition, if you are a teacher, the teacher's manual is great. I used this book in a class I taught last semester and the students loved it. It lead to great discussions and communication.