Where do people go to shop and eat and just get together with other people? Is there a business center in the middle of town? Or is there something like a shopping precinct or mall? What sorts of activities take place there besides shopping? Are there restaurants, exhibits, concerts?
Beginning Learners:
Learn some vocabulary to talk about shopping centers.
Possible Vocabulary:
| Shop | Restaurant | ATM | Parking garage |
| Parking ticket | Shop assistant | Waiter | Bill |
| Receipt | Exhibition | Concert | Movie theatre |
| Department store | Grocery store | Market (open-air market) | Traditional market |
Learning Activities:
Go out to a shopping center and take pictures, if this is appropriate. Later on use the Look and Listen technique with a LH to learn the names of different shops and other places in the shopping center. You can also use a plan or map of the shopping center or mall to learn to ask directions and follow directions to different shops or places in the mall. You could come up with a board game based on the mall, where you have to get to the right shop to match an item drawn on a card you pick from a pile. Use your imagination! The goal is to become very familiar with the vocabulary associated with this setting, so you can understand people talking about it later.
Intermediate Learners:
Go to a shopping center with a friend from the culture and later get him or her to talk about your Shared Experience. Record the story as always, and work on learning any vocabulary you don’t understand. Ask a friend to tell you about experiences he or she has had at a shopping center, and record those experiences to listen to and learn more.
