First impressions: the first ten seconds
A first impression is the opinion people form when they meet you for the first time. It forms very fast, in a few seconds. You can help it with three easy things: smile, say your name and ask a question.
Body language also speaks. Stand straight, look at the other person, and speak slowly and clearly. Do not whisper and do not look at the floor.
Greetings and self-introduction: useful phrases
Greetings: Hello. Hi. Good morning. Good afternoon. Good evening.
Asking and giving names: What is your name? My name is Mei. I am Mei.
Meeting: Nice to meet you. Nice to meet you, too. How do you do?
Telling about yourself: I am sixteen. I live in Pune. I like music. In my free time, I play football.
A short self-introduction has four parts: greeting, facts, interests, and a polite ending. Example: "Hello, I am Ravi. I am sixteen and I live in Pune. I like cricket and music. Nice to meet you."
Learning strategies for English
A learning strategy is a smart way to learn. Here are the most useful ones.
- Use all four skills. Listen (songs, videos), speak (with a friend), read (short stories), write (a diary).
- Keep a vocabulary notebook. Write the new word, its meaning and one sentence.
- Guess from context. Look at the other words in the sentence before you open a dictionary.
- Practise a little every day. Ten minutes daily is better than three hours once.
- Do not fear mistakes. Mistakes show you what to learn next.
- Ask for help. Teachers and friends are there to help.
Plan, practise, check: your weekly study plan
Use the cycle plan, practise, check. On Sunday, plan: choose one goal, for example "learn ten new words". During the week, practise for ten minutes a day. Next Sunday, check: how many words do you remember? Which skill is weakest? Then plan again, and give the weakest skill more time (the red flag in the 3D).
A good goal is small, clear and has a day to finish. "Learn 10 words by Friday" is good. "Be great at English" is too big.
Key formulas and definitions
- First impression: Smile + Name + Question
- Four skills: listening, speaking, reading, writing
- Learning cycle: plan โ practise โ check
- Self-introduction: greeting + facts + interests + polite ending
Worked examples
1. Write a three-sentence self-introduction for a new class.
"Hello, I am Anu. I am sixteen and I like drawing. Nice to meet you." It has a greeting, a fact and an interest, and it ends politely.
2. Someone says "How do you do?" What do you reply?
Reply with the same words: "How do you do?" It is a formal greeting, not a real question about health. You can also say "Nice to meet you."
3. Mei has Listen 4, Speak 1, Read 3, Write 3 blocks. Make a plan for next week.
Speaking is the shortest tower, so add more speaking: talk to a friend for ten minutes on three days. Keep the other skills for five minutes each. Check again next Sunday.
4. You meet a new neighbour. Write a short dialogue of four lines.
A: Hi, I am Ravi. What is your name? B: My name is Sana. Nice to meet you. A: Nice to meet you, too. Which class are you in? B: I am in Grade 10.
Common mistakes
- Saying only your name and stopping. Add a question so the talk can go on.
- Writing "I am agree". Correct: "I agree."
- Using "How do you do?" as a real question about health and answering "I am fine". Reply with "How do you do?"
- Cramming everything on the night before the test. Short daily practice works better.