VIP Class Notes (Ally)

• Read this and be prepared to talk about your opinions:

Breaking up is hard to do – or so some people say. If you’re in a relationship but not as loved-upas you once were, when is the right time to call it a day? The longer the relationship, the harder it can be. But once you do make the break, is it still possible to maintain a friendship with your ex-partner?

When you’ve been dumped, the classic line that’s often used is ‘let’s just be friends’. That can be either wishful thinking or something to soften the blow of bad news. However, when you fell madly in love with your partner all those weeks, months or years ago, it would have been hard to imagine you’d fall out of love. And so salvaging something from that time, and remaining friends, could be a good thing to do.

It’s good if a break-up is amicable – it avoids the hate, pain and anger that can eat away at us and affect our mental health. If you can accept you’ve had some good times but it’s time to move on, then all the better – besides, you won’t have to cancel your ex-partner from social media or delete their name from your contacts! If you can appreciate the mutual interests you had then there’s no reason why you can’t continue a platonic relationship.

But holding onto the past and staying friends doesn’t always work – you just have to accept you and your partner just weren’t compatible, therefore it’s best to give each other space, to look forward, and try to get any romantic feelings you once had out of your system. And according to some, staying friends with your ex isn’t a good option. Marie-Claire Chappet told the BBC, “It does nothing but prolong the pain of the break-up”.

Helen Fisher, a neurologist at the Kinsey Institute who’s been studying the psychology in relationships, also told the BBC: “The way to accelerate mending a broken heart is similar to treating addiction – you put away their things, stop looking at their social media and have no contact with them.”

So, maybe it’s time to get in touch with your real friends, instead of seeking friendship with ‘a ghost from the past’.

• Make sentences with new vocabulary

Vocabulary

insomnia: shi mian zheng

institute: 机构

conceptual: 概念的<> actual

impressionist: 抽象派的（艺术）

surface: biao mian

convict：定罪

accused：控告
ie. I am accusing you of not doing your homework.

tapes: luxiang dai

controversial: you zheng yi de

higher-ups: (noun) gao guan

Grammar

house/apartment vs home
class/lesson
ie. take english class
ie. learn your lesson

school: location and concept
ie. go to school
ie. I’m not in school anymore. (I’m not a student)
ie. I’m not at school. (I’m home..)

quite = an amount you cannot ignore

Q: Tell me about an important decision that you’ve made in your life.
A: Recently I have made an important decision. So I came to Smart English. I think this is a v important decision for me because I used to think a lot and made a lot of decisions but never puts them into practice. During my past life, I’m always bored. I wanted to learn English better but I don’t know how to learn this language systematically. So I searched on website, and then I found this school／institute and I made a decision to come here have a lesson for free. And I met my first English teacher Ally. I hope to improve my English both in speaking and in writing.

A: Recently I have made an important decision. So I came to Smart English. I think this is a v important decision for me because I used to think a lot and made a lot of decisions but never put them into action. This is my first time taking action. During the past, I had always been bored. I wanted to learn English more/I wanted to make my English better but I didn’t know how to learn this language systematically. So I searched on the internet/dianping website, and then I found this school／institute and I made the decision to come here and have a lesson for free/demo class. And I met my first English teacher Ally. I hope to improve my English both in speaking and in writing.

Q: Talk about a piece of news that you’ve read recently. Opinions?
A: I have read a piece of news on the internet that Kris Wu has been convicted, which brings a lot of discussion. One voice is that he really did something illegal and the other voice is that he’s innocent. As far as I/ From my part of view, things are not what we can see from the surface. First, this news is released by Chinese/Beijing government but they haven’t give the definite and detailed information of this case. Second, as we got this information from internet, there are many other so-called evidence which are not connected with Kris Wu. Last, as I know, I don’t think Kris Wu can do so many bad things alone. I think there’s a group of people like a internet, he’s just a tool of capitalism.

A: I have read a piece of news on the internet that Kris Wu has been convicted/accused, which brings a lot of discussion./I have read a very controversial/debatable piece of news on the internet. Basically, there are two different opinions / voices on the internet. One voice is that he really did something illegal/committed an illegal act and the other voice is that he’s innocent. As far as I know/ From my point of view/IMO, things are not what we can see from the surface/things are not what they seem/ other under-the-table deals are going on.. First, this news is released by Chinese/Beijing government but they haven’t given out/released any definite and detailed information of this case. Second, as we got this information from internet, there are many other so-called/supposed evidence which might not all be true. Last, as I know, I don’t think Kris Wu can do so many bad things alone. I think there’s a group of people like a internet/web of powerful people, he’s just a tool of capitalism.